Secret Folder #0000

Dark and dusty describes this place.  It smells like old people and moldy paper.  Or it could be Depends.  This is the place where everyone wants to go, not for the surroundings of course.  It’s not a hip bar, or a high end gym to meet beautiful people.  Its not a chic restaurant or a gloriously extravagant hotel.  Not even close.  Here the only sound is a drip from a pipe somewhere and the occasional scurry of vermin.  This place is where Secret Folder #0000 rests.  This is real life.

At least thats what it all seems like.  All that old knowledge about finances and money manegment.  Almost seems as if it was started somewhere around the time when someone named Ughhiklheim invented the wheel.  I know all of this, in my room, on my own bookshelf lies the secret folder.  All it contains are the finacial advice, how to make money, millions even.  We all have it.  Funny how we try to look in everyone elses secret folder to try and make heads or tails of our own issues.  In every folder, the information stays the same.  It NEVER changes.

I remember everyone telling me things like.  Live below your means.  Avoid credit and use cash.  Save a percentage of your check each week.  Invest in mutual funds.  and most of all Get out of debt.   Look in your own folder.  I bet you’ll find the same stuff.   The one I am going to focus on at this point of my life is getting out of debt.  I know sounds terrible doesn’t it.  You mean people can LIVE WITHOUT DEBT?!?!  Well yes.

The reason why I want to get out of debt first before starting to save for the honey moon is this:

I figure I pay out (roughly) about almost $200 in bills each month.  Now most people would have it made if thats all they had.   But you have to realize I haven’t hit the house payment yet, and that number doesn’t include my insurance every three months.  I get paid every two weeks so I get paid twice a month, about.  So if I put into the bank about $600 each month.  I really only get about $400.  Factor in gas I average about $100 a month so thats $300 left.  Ok so now food.  5 days a week at about $6 a day thats $30 a week on average.  Subtract another $120 from that.  $180 is about what I have left.  I usually hav eto make some purchases for something it seems like.  So by the time my next check rolls around I am usually sweating and playing “Time the Bills”.  You know, where you time when your bills will come out so your not late, but before you have the money so you HAVE to deposite that check on Friday.  So I figure if I could cut it all out and just pay for the occasional food and gas then I’d be able to save MORE for the honeymoon.

Thats why I got some books and