I'm Backkkk

So, the few of you who actually read the few of my posts, or those of you who accidentally stumbled upon me, may have noticed that I was m.i.a. for a while. Well, I have no real excuse. Life is busy, and I made other things a priority. No more. I set forth to start a blog, I designed a plan for myself, and I refuse to be a quitter. So, for your financial woes and enjoyment, I'm back. 

Since I've been gone there have been a few changes in my life. I am neck deep into my Reading Specialist Master's program. I attend a college class one night a week, and yes, I did take out loans to cover the cost. (More on that later when I can share my reasoning for taking out more loans, and how I weighed the pros and cons.) I will be finished with classes in April 2018, and I will graduate in May 2018. Seems like an eternity, but I am already about halfway through. Time flies when you're having fun (insert eye roll). I also have amazing news! After being able to finally refinance my loans, I have been able to pay down $55,000 worth of private loans that were transferred that is now $38,000. This was all in the past 6 months. I am not lying. I did not win the lottery. No random inheritance money, and no, I am not doing questionable things for money. With my new consolidated loan and lower interest rate, coupled with the strict 5-year term I applied for, I buckled down and I've been cashin' checks and breakin' necks. Okay, I have not broken any necks, but I am really winning at this "loan paying thing." Not that it's anything to brag about, I owe a company a lot of money, clearly, I am not the winner in the situation. 

What have I done to pay down so much you ask? On a teacher's salary no less. Well, it is not always fun or glamorous, but I am still able to enjoy life and have a social scene. I just have to be smart about when, where, and why. Mostly it is about planning out a budget and sticking to it. First things first, I make sure my loans get paid. Next, I pay my other bills; car note, cell phone, and insurance. I then budget for gas money, and grocery and personal need costs. Any amount left over gets divvied up between savings and entertainment. I just recently got back from a Florida vacation, and I had to plan and save for more than a year. It is about priorities, and for me, being debt free is first and foremost. Enjoyment comes second. 

This would be me on a Southwest flight at the ripe time of 5:00 am. Yup. That means I had to be at the airport at 3:30 am. Why you ask...because early flights are the cheapest. I want to vacation, but I still need to be smart about how I pay for it. 

Currently, I make extra income by working a summer job at a golf course.  It works perfectly with my teacher schedule, where I am off in the summers, and the golf course is a summer job. No brainer. I work off of a small hourly wage, and the rest of the money is in tips. It can be inconsistent, but I take my money and I use the envelope system. This is a system that is a recommendation from many financial gurus. I mark envelopes with needed money. I collect cash in the envelopes as I go. Once that money is gone, it's gone. It is also only to be used for the intended purpose. For example, I have an envelope to save money for a wedding I will be attending, and an envelope for a Disney fund (geeking out about this one....also more to come on how I plan to have the most inexpensive trip to Disney ever!), and one for Christmas. I mark how much I put towards the goal amount each time and hide it away so I forget about it until I need it. Other extra money that I make in tips at the golf course I use to live my day to day and pay extra on my loans. 

Live action work photo shot. Driving a golf cart around part of the day isn't an all that bad way of makin' some extra money honey. 

I promise you that I won't leave you without a post for that long again.....this is me wishing that more people cared. Haha, one day I will be saving the world one student loan oppressed person at a time.