- Uop past midnight. 3am feeding. 5am hurts. Back to bed? #
- Stayed up this morning and watched Terminator:Salvation. AWAKs make for bad plot advancement. #
- Last night, Inglorious Basterds was not what I was expecting. #
- @jeffrosecfp It's a fun time, huh. These few months are payment for the fun months coming, when babies become interactive. 🙂 in reply to jeffrosecfp #
- RT @BSimple: RT @bugeyedguide: When we cling to past experiences we keep giving them energy…and we do not have much energy to spare #
- RT @LivingFrugal: Jan 18, Pizza Soup (GOOOOOD Stuff) http://bit.ly/5rOTuc #budget #money #
- Free Turbotax for low income or active-duty military. http://su.pr/29y30d #
- To most ppl,you're just somebody [from casting] to play the bit part of "Other Office Worker" in the movie of their life http://su.pr/1DYMQZ #
- RT @MoneyCrashers: Money Crashers 2010 New Year Giveaway Bash – $8,300 in Cash and Amazing Prizes http://bt.io/DQHw #
- RT: @flexo: RT @wisebread: Tylenol, Motrin, Rolaids, and Benadryl RECALLED! Check your cabinets: http://bit.ly/4BVJfJ #
- New goal for Feb. 100 pushups in 1 set. Anyone care to join me? #
- RT @BSimple: Your future is created by what you do today, not tomorrow"— Robert Kiyosaki So take action now. #
- RT @hughdeburgh: "Everything you live through helps to make you the person you are now." ~ Sophia Loren #
- Chances of finding winter boots at a thrift store in January? Why do they wear our at the worst time? #
- @LenPenzo Anyone who make something completely idiot proof underestimates the ingenuity of complete idiots. in reply to LenPenzo #
- RT @zappos: "Lots of people want to ride w/ you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus w/ you…" -Oprah Winfrey #
- RT @chrisguillebeau: "The cobra will bite you whether you call it cobra or Mr. Cobra" -Indian Proverb (via @boxofcrayons) #
- RT @SuburbanDollar: I keep track of all my blogging income and expenses using http://outright.com it is free&helps with taxes #savvyblogging #
- Reading: Your Most Frequently Asked Running Questions – Answered http://bit.ly/8panmw via @zen_habits #
Carnivals
I spent the day consoling (read: napping with) a tonsillitis-infected little monster.
Live Real, Now was included in two carnivals last week:
Festival of Frugality #327 hosted by Budgeting with the Bushmans
Yakezie Carnival – Setting Your Clocks Edition hosted by 20 and Engaged
Thanks to all of the hosts for including my posts.
Get More Out of Live Real, Now
There are so many ways you can read and interact with this site.
You can subscribe by RSS and get the posts in your favorite news reader. I prefer Google Reader.
You can subscribe by email and get, not only the posts delivered to your inbox, but occasional giveaways and tidbits not available elsewhere.
You can ‘Like’ LRN on Facebook. Facebook gets more use than Google. It can’t hurt to see what you want where you want.
You can follow LRN on Twitter. This comes with some nearly-instant interaction.
You can send me an email, telling me what you liked, what you didn’t like, or what you’d like to see more(or less) of. I promise to reply to any email that isn’t purely spam.
Have a great week!
Carnival Roundup
I spent this week in my home town with my family: my parents, brothers, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, kids, uncles, aunts, and some cousins from Tennessee that I don’t see often.
In the evenings, after the kids were put to bed, we played Cards Against Humanity: A Party Game For Horrible People.
If you are a horrible, dirty-minded person, with a sense of humor that would make your grandmother blush–and you have friends to match–get this game. Then play it where you can’t wake up the neighbors. Seriously, it’s more fun than a super soaker filled with cat pee.
Live Real, Now was included in the following carnivals recently:
Yakezie Carnival hosted by Write and Get Paid
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by I Am 1 Percent
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #39 hosted by My University Money
Carnival of Retirement #26 hosted by Write and Get Paid
Totally Money Carnival #72 hosted by MammaSaver
Festival of Frugality #342 hosted by Help Me to Save
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Simple Finance Blog
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #38 hosted by My University Money
Yakezie Carnival – Summer Vacation Edition hosted by One Cent at a Time
Carnival of Retirement #24 hosted by Making Sense of Cents
Yakezie Carnival – Arachnophobia Edition hosted by See Debt Run
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Broke Professionals
Totally Money Carnival #70 hosted by Young Adult Finances
Yakezie Carnival – Sushi Edition hosted by Free Ticket to Japan
Festival of Frugality #340 hosted by See Debt Run
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Financial Product Reviews
Yakezie Carnival – Birthday Edition hosted by 20’s Finances
Festival of Frugality #339 hosted by The Frugal Toad (My post was chosen as an editor’s pick!)
Thanks for including my posts.
Get More Out of Live Real, Now
There are so many ways you can read and interact with this site.
You can subscribe by RSS and get the posts in your favorite news reader. I prefer Google Reader.
You can subscribe by email and get, not only the posts delivered to your inbox, but occasional giveaways and tidbits not available elsewhere.
You can ‘Like’ LRN on Facebook. Facebook gets more use than Google. It can’t hurt to see what you want where you want.
You can follow LRN on Twitter. This comes with some nearly-instant interaction.
You can send me an email, telling me what you liked, what you didn’t like, or what you’d like to see more(or less) of. I promise to reply to any email that isn’t purely spam.
Have a great weekend!
Carnival Roundup
Horse season starts today. That means that almost every weekend my wife and daughters will be at horse shows. The days I don’t go with are among the most productive I have. The days I go, I’m just herding whichever kid is bored or has been recently snubbed while everyone else enjoys themselves.
Live Real, Now was included in the following carnivals recently:
Yakezie Carnival – The Facebook IPO Edition hosted by One Cent at a Time
Financial Carnival for Young Adults #11 hosted by 20’s Finances
Yakezie Carnival – My Momma Told Me Edition hosted by Weel Heeled Blog
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Little Miss Money Bags
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #33 hosted by One Smart Dollar
Yakezie Carnival – Will Smith Slap Edition hosted by Young Adult Finance
Totally Money Carnival #67 hosted by Don’t Quit Your Day Job
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Miss Wallstreet
Carnival of Financial Planning – Edition #237 hosted by The Skilled Investor
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #33 hosted by My University Money
Financial Carnival for Young Adults #14 hosted by 20’s Finances
Yakezie Carnival – The Power Ballad Edition hosted by Daily Money Shot
Totally Money Carnival #69 hosted by Thirty-Six Months
Lifestyle Carnival #4 hosted by Free Ticket to Japan
Thanks for including my posts.
Thanks for including my posts.
Get More Out of Live Real, Now
There are so many ways you can read and interact with this site.
You can subscribe by RSS and get the posts in your favorite news reader. I prefer Google Reader.
You can subscribe by email and get, not only the posts delivered to your inbox, but occasional giveaways and tidbits not available elsewhere.
You can ‘Like’ LRN on Facebook. Facebook gets more use than Google. It can’t hurt to see what you want where you want.
You can follow LRN on Twitter. This comes with some nearly-instant interaction.
You can send me an email, telling me what you liked, what you didn’t like, or what you’d like to see more(or less) of. I promise to reply to any email that isn’t purely spam.
Have a great weekend!
Carnival Roundup
Live Real, Now was included in the following carnivals recently:
Yakezie Carnival hosted by Growing Money Smart
Lifestyle Carnival hosted by KNS Financial
Carnival of Retirement #73 hosted by Hurricanes, Panties, Dollars
Carnival of Financial Independence #13 hosted by Reach Financial Independence
Yakezie Carnival hosted by See Debt Run
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by This, That and the MBA
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Master the Art of Saving
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #85 hosted by Master the Art of Saving
Carnival of Financial Independence #14 hosted by Reach Financial Independence
Yakezie Carnival hosted by Financial Conflict Coach
Lifestyle Carnival hosted by Master the Art of Saving
Carnival of Financial Independence #15 hosted by Reach Financial Independence
Yakezie Carnival hosted by Master the Art of Saving
Lifestyle Carnival hosted by Fat Guy, Skinny Wallet
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by The Money Mail
Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #87 hosted by Free at 33
Carnival of Financial Planning hosted by Hurricanes, Panties, Dollars
Yakezie Carnival hosted by Mo’ Money Mo’ Houses
Carnival of Money Pros hosted by Mo’ Money Mo’ Houses
Finance Carnival for Young Adults hosted by Master the Art of Saving
Thanks for including my posts.
Get More Out of Live Real, Now
There are so many ways you can read and interact with this site.
You can subscribe by RSS and get the posts in your favorite news reader. I prefer Google Reader.
You can subscribe by email and get, not only the posts delivered to your inbox, but occasional giveaways and tidbits not available elsewhere.
You can ‘Like’ LRN on Facebook. Facebook gets more use than Google. It can’t hurt to see what you want where you want.
You can follow LRN on Twitter. This comes with some nearly-instant interaction.
You can send me an email, telling me what you liked, what you didn’t like, or what you’d like to see more(or less) of. I promise to reply to any email that isn’t purely spam.
Have a great weekend!
3 Reasons You Hate Your Budget
- Image via Wikipedia
One of the first steps in clearing up your financial mess is to set up a budget. You need to figure out how much money you are making, how much you are spending, and what you can do to keep one of those numbers smaller than the other. If your income is smaller than your expenses, you’ve got work to do. If not, yay!
Even if you don’t obsessively cling to your spreadsheets and calculator, you need to spend the time to establish a budget–at least once–to know where you stand. When you do, you’ll find out it sucks. With good reason.
1. It takes too long to set up. Setting up a budget can be a long, drawn-out pain in the butt. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be, but you won’t know that until after you make your first budget, then see some fairly drastic changes, and make a second budget. That one will be easier. For the first one, just concentrate on making a list of all of you regular bills and how often they are due. Don’t be surprised when you miss some. I missed a couple of our quarterly bills. All told, it took a year to get our budget completely done.
2. It doesn’t lie. Once you have all of your expenses down on paper, you are done hiding. You can’t tell yourself it’s all puppy dogs and ice cream when you are staring at the giant red pit that is the negative balance of your bad decisions. Nobody likes the messenger who brings bad news. When your budget shows you how big the hole is, you are going to hate it. That’s when it’s time to confront the problem head on and get out of the hole. Find the problems and rip ’em out. Cancel the cable, taxidermize the cats, and start buying generic underpants. It’s time to take an honest look at your situation. If you can’t handle where you are, how are you going to get where you want to be?
3. It’s not fun. When your friends go out, but you stay home because you’re broke, you will hate it. Y’ou’re also gonna hate comparing your old cell phone to the iPhone in the hands of the d-bag contemplating bankruptcy. Like Dave Ramsey says, “Live like no one else, so that later you can live like no one else.” Skipping some of the fun now will turn into security later. When you get to that point, it will have all been worth it.
Why do you hate your budget?
