....the one good thing that came out of that All-Too-Brief job, is that i was able to generate @ $500 in a 401K in the 3 mos that i was there….

so Yay! Another little nest egg begun….!

Now i have to figure out something worthwhile to roll it over into, as the company i was at doesnt allow keeping 401K account open thru then after youve “left”. Luckily, my credit union has a whole financial planning divison, so i just need to go talk to them about what options they have available…

so Double Yay!!: in the year since i started this goal, i’ve managed to accrue $300 in a Roth IRA & $500 in a 401K…not bad for being unemployed more than 50% of the time….

One of the FEW New Years resolutions i accomplished in 2006,,,,

I’d forgotten to note, that after getting that first paycheck, i went ahead and opened a Roth IRA account thru my credit union. When i found out it only required $5 to open one, i was All In….! (Somehow i’d laboured under the misunderstanding that it required a $500 or $1000 minimum.)

So yeah, with a whole $5.oo to start, i started my first retirement IRA in November 2006. I also set it up for an automatic deposit of $17.oo/month to go into the account. Some of my friend teased me about ”$17??” (implied that ‘what kind of savings can you really build with only $17 a month?’). But hey…gotta start somewhere, and gotta pay yourself first, right? And $17.oo is a consistant amount that i know i wont miss. (which is another trick i’ve learned over the years—make savings as unconsciously unnoticed as possible :)

i was proud to add my xmas $$ from relatives to the account in December as well (usually it winds up going toward bills)(not that i didnt have Bills it could have gone to!)And now, a mere 4 months after i opened the account, I’m proud to say the balance is over $140. Not bad,,,,not bad at’tall.

hopefully, i be able to add another big chunk with my minimal tax return. Chip, chip, chip….feels good to building some bit of security again….

:D

woo hoo: my first paycheck in Two Years !!

:D

SUCH a good feeling,,,,to deposit $$, put alitle toward savings, make an EARLY payment to a bill, be able to go to the grocery store & catch up on all those backlogged “needed” items…

ahhhh, i could get used to this !!

STILL in the poor house—!!

found out yesterday that i didnt land the dream job, thus i am STILL unemployed, STILL deep in debt, STILL behind in all bills, and STILL with no income to evenStartdigging my way out from all of it….

I’m so bummed; i had such visions of how i’d set up my incoming checks, with an automatic transfer to savings, and aggressively paying off each debt while maintaining the minimumson the rest till i could attack it,,,,and further planning that each time my savings hit $600, i’d take $500 and start a CD, and roll them over into the next when the previous one renewed, until i had enough to set up a Roth IRA….

‘Not to meantion all the classes, travel, workshops, lessons i’d planned to pursue once i was again in positive cash-flow…

_{damn damn damn damn damn !}

(you know the drill….)

• get a job (so i can pay my cards off & go travelling again!)

• dig myself out of the financial pit even if I have to use just my fingernails and teeth AND save $2000 for a Roth IRA

• (quotes from “The Secret”) “Checks are coming in the mail regularly,” or change your bank statement to whatever balance you desire, and get behind the feeling of having it.

‘Was listening to (i think it was Frontline) an investigational report about pensions, retirement funds, 401K accounts, and generally being prepared for one’s retirement. In these days of people living an average of 20 years after they retire, alot more needs to socked away just for basics, foregoing any huge medical costs (witnessing my mother’s recent severe health decline at a mere 73yrs, makes one think twice…)

One part i took major notice of, was financial analysts stating that most people (& companies offering 401K accounts) think theyre really doing well if they put away 10% of their income—but what is REALLY required, for an adequate retirement, is to put away a minimum of 20% to 25% of one’s income in order to remain financially secure in one’s retirement. With most companies gutting their pension accounts, Social Security tettering on the brink of collapse in the next 25 yrs, and the analysts saying that 401K accounts alone wont suffice,,,some drastic changes to finance need to be made…

i’m 44yr; my last job was State employment, so i accrued no SS benefits, and as stated previously, i’m in serious debt at the moment…So i have my Solvancy Work cut out for me,,,to only dig out from the hole, but build up a mountain of security…

i Was doing really well with this, until 2 yrs ago, when my job of 11 1/2 yrs was obliterated out under my feet. I’ve never made alot of money ($11,000 to 12,000 max/yr), but i’d learned to manage it, build up some savings, & had a near perfect credit score (710 out of 750)

all gone now. I could the see job abolishment coming, so i paid off everything in sight that i possibly could, socked away abit more, cashed out my severance, & focused on my health & school for the first 10 mos (it was quite nerve-wrecking to survive the demise, & i needed the rest) When i was ready to come back to working last April, i had a rotating realm of bad luck—first the job opening i was counting on dried up, my car was totalled, then i went thru another bout of illness, then my mother’s health completely failed, & required alot of my time & energy to help take care of her. Thru out all this, my savings emptied, my bills piled up, my credit cards maxxed, and i’ve wound up cashing out every last CD i had squirrelled away….my current calcs have me close to $19,000 in debt. And no real income.

Thus, its a major endeavor to get this situation turned around this year….3 things i’m going to focus on doing by year’s end are:

• Pay off Loan ASAP

• Pay off 2 major credit cards (my visa & MC) and transfer balances to lower interest cards ASAP, get credit rating restored

• Open a Roth IRA, and make regular deposits to it

‘Wish me luck; i’ve done the long hard climb before, hopefully i can turn it around faster this time….