Wtf was I thinking? Dammit, I opened tumblr just to preserve one freaking idea, and poof, 47 minutes later, I've eaten half my lunch, commented on four posts, and my thought was gone.
It might have been about saving money? That's not very interesting.. hmm
Well, here's one thought that's bounced back into my mind many times.
Most of the time, for most people, how you start saving money is in small amounts. I wish there were one big thing, and that's all. There's the first few things, but no single one is the lynch pin. Sure, you have to spend less than you make, on average. But very often, that's just not realistic. It can take a lot of things to make that more realistic. Like, through a few different actions, we can spend a little less money over time. And fortunately, they have a positive domino, or chain reaction effect.
Options are: use coupons or reward points. If you're good with your credit card, make sure you get one that gives you points, 1% minimum. Get a credit union checking account that gives you a monthly APY (interest). When you do end up with a few extra dollars, buy something in bulk. Toilet paper is a good one, because: it doesn't go bad on the shelf. There's a pretty big difference in price when you can get the bulk one. Along with that, you also save a ton of money on TP in particular by comparing prices. Look at square feet. Most prices show you $/per sq. ft. I know it's probably annoying. But having like $50 more dollars after 12 months is pretty sick if you ask me.
Depending on advancing in my career(?) and other stuff, I really don't know if I'll have much real retirement savings or not. But until then, I really like the idea of having a little more money before I have to cross that bridge, or jump over that ravine(?)
Here's one of my main points: As you save money through a few (fairly small) tactics, it builds. You're not just stuck at saving $1 per month or whatever. And hey, maybe you won't get a down-payment on a house. But if your car needs work, and you π― need your car for work, holy crap! I've seen it happen. My friend's car broke down, permanently, because they never changed the oil. The car was on the side of the road, so it got towed. But not to a mechanic, because she didn't actually have tow service, because she had only minimal insurance. She couldn't pay to have the car fixed because she was nearly broke. She kept thinking she'd save just enough money next month to get it out of the lot and cover the cost of a mechanic. But that didn't happen for like three months. She was spending an extra $50 to $100 per month on the few times she "had to" use an Uber because she was tired or impatient. She lost her car, couldn't sell it. That was plan B, but too much trouble. During THAT whole time, she didn't have a roommate, so that had been a whole extra cost, too. IDK really what her debt situation was, none of my business, but it can't have been good. She was using bigger and bigger payday advances, which are stupid expensive, they just are. Plus, honestly, she was kinda seriously crapping out at work. IDK how close she was to getting another warning, or maybe even getting fired. She was definitely getting away with big time slacking. It was kind of a wild thing at the time. Some could get away with that for a month, and then get warned. Some could get away with it for months! And everybody has an off day or off week, and we cover for them. Somebody always picks up the slack, always. And honestly, we don't mind. That's not the important point. There was definitely a larger context. The team went downhill right around that time. She was maybe just one of ten precipitating factors, including me honestly. There were easily five weak links, plus five other no-fault factors. Where was I going?
Well, shit was not working out for her. Her parents helped her out with some expenses at the end, but not the car. That was earlier. She had to bail on her whole life, move back east to live with her folks again, boof. I genuinely was sorry to see her go. I didn't ultimately care that she didn't carry her weight at work. LOL weird, right? And that's part of me being a weak link. I honestly could have called out most of the other weak links, and saved everybody a lot of hassle... if... anyone would have listened. And here's the shit thing, I work with some of the weak links. Covering for each other went too far. And where's that line, even??? If I point out that a coworker is slacking all the time, then am I a narc, a snitch? Where the F is that line? If I try to call out a manager or supervisor, then I'm a whistle-blower, and good luck keeping my job, and nothing gets better, and I'm super-fucked. I take my chances and try to out the company to others, or out that department to the execs. But, anyway wtf.
What a fucking tangent! I'm seriously like, fuck, how the F do I navigate this?
