Busy Weekend

It was a very busy weekend. With Donna's help or should I say pushing we got a lot accomplished in my room. We got a lot of my stuff packed and stored in my storage unit and other things either thrown away or set aside to sell. There is still a lot to do but we should be able to finish up this weekend.

I am looking at this as a fresh start. New furniture mixed with a little of the former pieces with a plan to make my new home a place where I can relax and destress. My plan is still to have everything paid off before my move. With my furniture alone I have been able to save $250.00. I have all my linens now so now my focus turns to getting the cleaning products and appliances that I will need in order to begin my new life. I should be able to buy the other 2 bar stools this weekend and pay off my layaway at the furniture store. Next will be to order my coffee table from Overstock.com.

On the down side Bill's car is on it's last leg and he is having to research his resources in order buy another car soon. He now admits that he has no choice but to begin bankruptsy proceedings, something he was hoping not to do. I know how he feels since I have been there myself. All of this could have been provented if he had just gotten another job when he left Clifton. It is great to have a dream but to pursue it you have to be able to be financally stable or keep you day job. He was not and he did not. I sometimes wonder if he regrets his decision since he is now loosing so much, me, the house, his financial security and good credit rating. It is hard to start over at his age. We are both having to start over separately. The difference is I think I am better prepared while he is still in denial.

Pride in myself

In preparing to move ahead and into my own apartment I am finding that I am becoming rather good at finding bargains that end up saving me a lot of money. My goal is to have everything paid for by the time I move in November. The bedroom set is paid off, my sofa and chair are almost paid off and because I found bar stools today that will save me $200.00 compared to what I was going to buy I am finding that can do this. I am trying to decide now whether or not to buy my coffee table from Overstock or from the furniture store. Overstock would save me $10.00 but I would have to be able to move it from the UPS store to my storage unit. It will be extremely heavy and not sure if it will fit in my car but I have time so I am to concerned at the moment.

This weekend I need to get focused on getting packed and my room cleaned up, sorted out and either through away, give away or sell things I will no longer need or use. At least I can make some money which will insure that I am able to accomplish my goal having my furniture completely paid in full by the time I move. Kudos to me for finally getting this right.

First Steps

I am in the process of taking measures to make my first steps back to my life. Since I will be on my own and I have relied on Bill to handle our finances for the past 6 years I have begun setting up ways to manage my money. I don't have a good history in this area and I have a lot of catching up to do and a lot to learn. First of all I have set up spreadsheets to keep track of my spending and my financial accounts. My challenge is to develop a habit of recording my expendatures and keeping an close eye on my accounts, something I have never done in the past. Once I get this habit established I need to begin planning for my future since at age 53 retirement is not really that far away. If I don't want to spend my retirement as a Wal-mart Greeter I have figure out a fast way to catch up so I will be prepared. One step at a time.

A lot to do

Because it is so late at night I am going to make my first post short. Basically my life has gone downhill the last 3 years ever since my husband decided on his own to take a one year sabaticle to pursue acting and writing. He did this in spite of not being financially secure and with many obligations and responsibilities including at that time child support. I became the primary support for the household and as I told him I do not make enough money to support us alone. He has many different odd jobs and has done many acting roles, some he would not have had the opportunity to do if he were still teaching. My husband will be 60 years old in a couple of weeks and we all know it is hard enough to get a big break into acting when you are in your 20's much less your late fifties. His decision has not been lucritive and in June of this year I found out that he had not paid the mortgage since January of this year. I found this out when a Federal Express package was delivered while my husand was away for a weekend "just chillin". It was information about how to stave off forclosure using the Obama plan. He had already gotten a forclosure letter from an attorney. For the first half of this year I began suffering from various health issues due to stress. I continually went into work even when I was sick thinking I was keeping a roof over our heads. Now we are loosing it. I have chosen to take my own "sabatical". In November we will be separating and I will be moving into my own apartment. This will my first step to taking my life back and getting me back.