A Small Step is Still Progress

Baby steps. That was what I kept telling myself when I started this whole "new outlook on life" thing in 2010.

We are now more than 1 month into the new year. Let's take a look at some of the financials:

As most of you know, I slipped a bit in the end of January with the eating out and the whole concept of not-spending-money. Baby steps. Overall, for the month of January, I spent more than $250 LESS than I spent in the month of December. This includes eating out, entertainment stuff, other stuff, AND bills, monthly obligations, transfers to savings, etc. Also, I made a number of charitable donations in January.

Conveniently, my online banking will show me my "spending report," which is where I'm getting all this information. It also breaks down how I spend that money, though it's not entirely accurate, as I tend to pay for my groceries with a personal check to my roommate (for example).

According to the spending report, my average monthly expenditure in restaurants (for 2009) was in the neighborhood of $500 (huh... if you do the math, that adds up to $6000!). January's restaurant expenditure? A mere $200. ($200 * 12 months = $2400 a year. That's considerable improvement. I wonder if I can get that monthly average down for the year... there's a fun goal!)

Retail/Department Stores (which I assume includes Target, where I shop the most on my own - but remember, this doesn't include groceries). Monthly average for 2009: $200 (spiked a bit in December due to Xmas). Total for January: less than $50. Bam. That's what I like to see!

In total overall spending, I really can see improvement. Online banking totals up all spending ("outflow") for the month, and my total for January was more than $500 less than the monthly average for 2009. And that includes money transferred to savings, so technically that money wasn't "spent."


I'm saving money, and I'm proud of myself for that. I really hope I can keep it up. I'm going to print out my 2009 end-of-year report and keep that so I can refer back to it a year from now. I'd love to see how much changes over the course of a year now that I've started to be more frugal in life.

I haven't been nearly as successful with the whole getting-healthy thing. But, I have a feeling that seeing my success with managing my finances will give me the confidence I need to change what's necessary to get myself healthified. I can do this.

Ah, Football, or Brett, You've Got it Going On

A few weeks into the football season this year, when the Vikings were still undefeated, I thought to myself (and may have spoken it aloud) that the Vikings would make it to the NFC championship game only to blow it in the end. They are, after all, the Vikings. They are a Minnesota pro sports franchise. They are champions of disappointment.

I really only started getting into football this year. I watched a few games last year, and I've been to a couple games at the Dome. But this year, thanks largely in part to HDTV, I really got into the Vikings. I watched most of the games. This year, I became a real fan.

Last night's game - the NFC Championship game - was easily the most intense, exciting, and heartbreaking game I've ever seen.

We had it in the bag. Tie score, in possession of the ball in field goal range with seconds left on the clock... and BAM! Interception. Yet another red-zone turnover.

I don't blame you, Brett. Especially after how beat up you got in that game (especially considering none of those hits were actually sacks). I think it was a poor decision at that point in the game, but it's not your fault that the Vikings lost. I blame Butterfingers Baloo (formerly known as Adrian Peterson). And I'm a little peeved with Percy Harvin (I had your back, man) for following Butterfingers' example. The whole point of the game is to HOLD ON TO THE FRIGGIN BALL!

Sorry, got a little carried away there. I apologize.

So, Brett, I hope you decide to come back for one more year before you retire. Clearly, something is working right with you on the team if they were able to get so close to the Super Bowl. I'm sad it didn't happen this year, but I have hope that next year will be different.

Oh, and in other news, I'm now down 8 pounds. 3 cheers for baggy pants!

Two Weeks Later

It's been two weeks since I started my efforts to become healthier. I've brought my lunch to work most days, and haven't ordered pizza or eaten out very much at all in the last two weeks. I've saved more money than I thought I would (yay!), and I've found a lunch routine that works for me. I'm eating the most well-balanced diet in my life... at least, in my adult life. Back when I lived with my parents, we ate pretty well.

So far, two weeks into my little adventure, I've lost six pounds. That's pretty dang good, considering I only worked out one of those 14 days, and that was only for 15 minutes. I'm going to gradually integrate the exercise into my daily routine, because I know that getting myself into shape will help form a more all-around healthy me.

You may not be able to tell by looking at me (after all, six pounds is nothing on someone as heavy as I am), but I have started slimming down. Of course, it's all from my lower gut.

My what, you ask?

My "lower gut." As you all know, I'm a Big Girl. I have everything you'd expect me to have - big thighs, hips, butt, chubby ankles and feet, and humongous arms. But the part about me I hate the most is my gut, which is divided into two distinct parts: my upper gut and my lower gut. The equator, if you will, of my gut is my waist line where I've always worn my pants. I've just sort of... grown around it. I hate my upper gut. It's normal for women to have a lower gut - we're naturally built with more fat there to help protect the special woman parts inside there. But nothing in my upper gut needs added protection, and that's really what I want to get rid of. But as I looked at myself in the mirror today, I realize that my upper gut hasn't changed in the last two weeks, but my lower gut looks smaller. Of course, this just works to further emphasize my upper gut, which gives me a very pronounced "muffin top." It looks like I'm wearing pants that are too small for me, since part of me is ballooning out of the waist, but really, that's not what's going on here. I actually need a belt. Over the weekend my jeans were practically falling off. The khaki pants I'm wearing today are a bit on the loose side, as well, though thankfully I don't need additional help holding them up. My hips are good for something, thank goodness.

You get the idea, right? Of course, the apparent shrinking of my lower gut is probably all in my head. After all, it's only six pounds... but I like to think it's making a visible difference. In any case, I'm really starting to feel good about myself, and the changes I'm making.

Now, if only I could find an answer to why I haven't been sleeping well...