This and That

Well, I know it's been a while since I posted, but I have been enjoying a little R&R in sunny California. I was lucky enough to spend a few days on a FREE work vacation in Santa Barbara, soaking up the sun (actually just getting sun burned), riding the beach cruisers, and just generally relaxing. We were actually staying in Montecito, one of the wealthiest communities in the U.S.and home of Oprah. I was hoping we might run into her, but alas we had no luck. The homes were AMAZING and I felt inspired to pump up my savings so that I could just have a little house, with a little garden in that beautiful area.

It was quite a drastic change for me though. I normally teach kids from South Central Los Angeles, maybe one of the poorest areas in the U.S. There was such an extreme difference in the schools and the children. At first, I felt tempted to consider teaching in one of these nicer schools. I imagined how many resources I would have and how much easier it would be. But then I met the kids, and I realized I would much rather work with the underprivileged kids who appreciate the attention and care you give them, than the rich kids who feel a sense of entitlement to everything, so I guess I made the right choice anyhow.

In other news, I finally set up a Roth IRA account to get started on my retirement savings. I had agonized over who to sign up with and how to do it and that wasn't getting me anywhere, so I took the plunge and just did it so I could take advantage of compounding interest. I opened an account with Sharebuilder because they are relatively cheap (only $4 a trade) and I already have an investment account with them. I like that Sharebuilder allows you to buy partial stocks so even if you only have $50 to invest, you can buy whatever stock you want no matter how much the stock price is. I'll be managing my own account for now, just to see how it goes. I realized that being a perfectionist can sometimes be costly, because you put off making decisions until you feel 100% confident, and sometimes that doesn't happen. Sometimes, it's better to just make the decision and hope for the best, instead of agonizing for days, weeks, and months, on if you are making the BEST choice and then never getting around to it.

In some more disappointing news, I fell off the wagon and bought something new, breaking my goal of going 100 days without buying anything new. It wasn't so bad because it was a worm bin to do composting in, so it will actually benefit the environment and I was able to buy it subsidized through the county. I did manage to go two whole months without buying anything new, and I'm proud of that accomplishment. I figure it is more practical to make it a lifestyle change as opposed to a hard and fast rule. There is very little that I feel compelled to buy and the things that I do feel like buying (like stuff for the garden) won't break the bank and will help me grow food and thus save money.

May is on track to being a better savings month than April, but I'm still not close to my $3,000 a month savings goal. I'm going to have to put my brain to work to see what I can do to make up the difference.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!