July Month-End

Just as I have tasks in my accounting position regarding month-end posting, that is one of the tasks I will be doing in my blog as well. It is the end of July and I started off this month with a few goals. How did I do? (I will be posting my August goals at the end of the week.)

1.) Save at least $100 in my E-Fund. Goal met! (I actually contributed $200 and would have put in more, but I realized with the move to the new apartment on August 9th, I will need a cushion for some of the moving costs.)
2.) Save at least $200 towards a Roth IRA. Goal met! (I will be setting up automatic bi-weekly savings transfers from my checking account to my ING account since I am now receiving full paychecks.)
3.) Follow preliminary July budget. Goal met! (This went very well! I was surprised that I was under budget in a few categories, adding up to a nice amount even with my surpassed savings contributions. However, my parents were in town for 5 days and they definitely compensated me with meals out and some purchases.)
4.) Work out 3x per week. 1/2 success. (I worked out at the small gym in my complex 3 times last week and have worked out twice this week, so I only half made this goal. My motivation for working out is MUCH better when I have classes to attend!)

Regarding #3, I feel stuck in terms of how to reconcile my budget. For example, I know that in August I will have to purchase more contact lenses (~$150 for a 6-month supply) and I would like to get my eyebrows waxed and get a pedicure (~$50 together inc. tip) which I budget for every other month but included it in July's budget. How do you rollover what you did not spend? I like to leave a bit of a cushion in my checking account for random purchases that might take me over budget. What if I calculate the total under-budget amount, perhaps cut it in half & put that towards savings? What do you suggest? How do you reconcile your budget at the end of the month?

On Working Out

Last week I started to get back into a workout routine at the gym in my apartment complex. As long as I can remember, and even during the past 4 years at college, I took classes. They were always hip hop dance classes or cardio kickboxing. Currently, I am not a member of a gym and thus am not taking classes. My work has 2 on-site (very small) gyms and the complex I currently live in has a small one, too. Last week I went to the gym in my apartment complex and worked out 3 times on the treadmill. I went tonight too, and forgot how much I do enjoy a short-but-sweet work out. I am not really a fan of running, as I enjoy high-energy classes much more. With the move to the new apartment looming in 2 weeks, I will not have an on-site gym anymore. What do I do now? The idea of going to the gym after work at work doesn't really appeal to me, since I spend 8 hours a day in the office anyway and neither of the gyms in the building have windows. I have been toying with the idea of joining a gym, but I know that in the world of personal finance that is a rather expensive endeavor! The 24-Hour Fitness near my new apartment does offer classes that I would definitely take - but is it worth the cost? I do have 2 work-out DVDs (pilates & cardio kickboxing) that I do occasionally, but they are only 30 minutes each and can get very repetitive... I am starting to lean towards joining a gym, but I will first do a one-week trial of the classes to see if I like them. 24-Hour Fitness offers a free trial-week for either the facilities or the classes, which I think is neat! (Though of course it's a pretty big sales ploy, too.)

What do you do to workout? If you are a member of a gym, did you get a discount or a special deal, and do you actually go enough to make it worth it?

Weekends = Food & Relaxing!

It's the end of another weekend. What did I do and how much did I spend?

Dining Out - $32.69 ($1 for a cupcake split with a friend at a local bakery where we ended up getting 2 for the price of 1 since they were about to close for the day; $24 at California Pizza Kitchen with my good friend who just returned from a one month study abroad trip to Italy; $7.69 for an Acai bowl at brunch on Saturday...mmm!)
Groceries - $25.64 (for some dinner on Friday & tonight - I made some roasted asparagus and it was amazing!)
Household - $11.24 (at Target for some shaver refills and hangers)

As you can tell, I love food. I love to eat, try new restaurants and types of food and slowly I am learning to cook! Today, Sunday, was a no-spend day which was nice. I slept in, watched "The Office" and half of season 2 of "Bones" with my roommate plus I did some batch cooking and budgeting. It was all very relaxing, though I wish I had gone to the gym. Maybe tomorrow!

How was your weekend and weekend spending?

Gas + MPG

It's nice to see the price of gas dropping slightly. A week and a half ago, I picked up gas for $4.49/gallon at Shell. I used my $20 monthly Shell gift card from work, so it only cost me $31.71. This weekend I picked up gas at Shell again - but for $4.39/gallon!

I have also been trying an experiment relating to mpg. In Southern California where I live, the average speed on the highway is around 70-80 mph. I have read a few articles and heard people say that to get the ideal/best gas mileage, you need to drive 60-65 mph. Basically that means I need to stay in the right-hand most lane or else I will cause someone to have a case of serious road rage. My Honda Civic had been averaging around 27 mpg for the past few months, but that was when I was doing all city driving and driving 70+ mph on the highway. Since my commute to work takes me 15 miles each way on I-5, I used that for my experiment for my last 2 tanks of gas:

At 65 mph, 11.4 gal tank @ 355.8 miles driven = 31 mpg
At 60 mph, 11.4 gal tank @ 363.4 miles driven = 32 mpg

More than anything else, I am excited that my mpg has increased by 4-5 mpg! It's nice to know that I am getting the most mileage out of my car, especially with gas prices the way they are. Do you do anything like this? How do you deal with the high price of gas?

Weekend Spending!

I had a really fun weekend. My roommates were both out of town, so I hung out with a few good friends, went to my company's summer picnic at a mini amusement park/bar at one of the local beaches all day on Saturday and saw The Dark Knight in IMAX! Here's a breakdown of my spending:

Gas, $50.39 (the price is dipping a bit, at $4.39/gallon instead of OVER $4.50!)
Groceries, $40.06 (most of this went to a bottle of alcohol I purchased for my roommates)
Dining out, $10.20
The Dark Knight in IMAX, $17 ($15 for the ticket + $2 Fandango surcharge) - Totally worth it!

I would have actually spent more had I gone to Costco - but I decided to save that trip until next weekend. (I need to replenish my contact lenses and they are not exactly cheap, even with insurance!)

Another fun thing I did this weekend was making a really delicious cold pasta salad with shrimp, dill, chopped pickles, and homemade dressing - and I have enough for 2 lunches this week! The recipe comes from one of my friend's parents and it's great, plus it's really easy. I am still slowly getting the hang of this cooking thing and am having fun trying out recipes I find online or at various food blogs. :)

Parents in Town + On Moving

Sorry for the long time without a post - my parents came down for a business conference from Saturday until last night, so I have been very busy spending all my time with them! I won't see my Dad again until Thanksgiving but my Mom might come down before then to help me set up my new apartment. It was so great to see them again (even if it was only 2 weeks after I was home for my wisdom teeth surgery!) and of course that meant I ate all my meals with them and my Mom decided to buy me some shirts, so I did not spend any money from Saturday until today! Of course that makes me (and my budget!) very happy.

Two friends and I have been on the hunt for a new apartment. We have pretty much decided on a 3-bed/2.5 bath place that puts me 10 miles closer to my work - however, it is also at the top of my price range. But water is included and so are the HOA fees (our rental is a condo) plus all utilities will be split 3 ways, which definitely makes them cheaper. The security deposit is more than one month's rent which will be hard to include into my budget, but I will make it work. (Have you ever asked a landlord for an extension on the security deposit, such as paying it over 2 months instead of all-at-once-plus-1st-month's-rent?) We still need to go through the lease and talk about other issues with the landlord, so that will most likely occur next week. Ourmove-in date looks like it will be August 9th (instead of August 1st) and my current lease is up August 10th so that works out MUCH better than expected! In the end, however, I think my $800/month in rent will be worth it due to my new and fun roommates, the location and the size - at 1,900 square feet!

Side note: I have started paying attention to "price per ounce" at the grocery store since the cost of food is increasing. Also, I have no problem buying generic brands whenever/wherever I can. However, I have not been able to get into the habit of clipping coupons, since most of the time I cannot find staples or things on my pre-made list in the booklets.

Different Perspectives

I know that everyone has a different opinion when it comes to things, and especially when it comes to personal finance. Tonight I went out to dinner with some friends to catch up, as we have now all been gainfully employed for a month! One of my girlfriends showed up first and somehow the conversation moved towards bank accounts. (I think it was due to the fact we get excited whenever there is a payday, like today!) I was mentioning to her that I was looking to open a new checking account and getting rid of my out-of-state account, plus my debit card still has not arrived.

She started complaining about WaMu after I named it as one of my options. She stated that she's had horrible customer service, she had issues opening the account, etc. When I briefly flitted over my other idea of an online-only checking account, my friend just about flipped her lid. Basically, she told me that she would never, ever want to open any sort of account where she could not go in and speak to someone, especially for a checking account. She said she thinks it is unsafe.

What I really wanted to ask her was if she had done her research on the topic, especially since I certainly have. I just let her have her rant, but found it funny that she had so many complaints about her current brick & mortar as well as online checking accounts! I have no problem if she would rather use a b&m than an online account, as to each their own. Part of me also wanted to offer a bit of pf advice - especially since I love learning about and now I even blog about it! - but I kept my mouth shut and told her that she had some good points. I just hope that she at least has a savings account with WaMu! :)

Do you have friends that you wish you could help out, but sometimes realize it's not your place to say anything? How do you deal with it?