Financial Freedom and HandCuffs

I've been reading every drop about the billions in the stimulus packages and listening to all of the NPR stories on the economic crisis, the credit crisis, the housing crisis, ad nauseum, and I don't think I could hear an original thought about it at this point. But then I brushed across this quote in an old Moleskine, and it seemed extremely salient...

“The ideas that liberate one generation become the shackles of the next”
– Sir Isaiah Berlin

"In Case of Emergency" but not THE "Emergency Fund"

How much money is the right amount to have immediately available to you, in case of emergency?

With all of these big b-school expenses on the horizon, I’ve had that question on my mind lately. Like many of you I’m sure, I funnel a great deal of my savings into my ING account, which is not very accessible, purposefully so. I have two other accounts – Bank of America and my corporate federal credit union. My BOA account is the main one I use for direct deposit, paying credit cards and bills, etc., and I feel like I’ve kept it more or less at the right level – I have enough cushion that I’m not worrying about overdraft fees without wasting any interest potential. But the credit union account is essentially just a rainy day account – it’s helped when I wanted to take out a big lump sum for a vacation or a necessary shopping spree without interrupting my BOA cycle, and ensuring I’m always able to pay every credit card bill in full. But how much is too much to have in that account? Should I just move it over to the emergency fund – out of reach? Or should I keep some of those funds handy now that I have more unexpected expenses coming up? Right now, it’s at $1150.

I know it’s almost impossible to come up with that magic number yet, but I don’t feel like I’ve gotten there yet on this one… Does anyone have any principles / rules of thumb they use for how much “in case of emergency” (but not the emergency fund) money to have on hand?”

Good News and Bad...

The Guy has a great opportunity coming up at work to get more sales training in another office – so he will be living in another city – right now, we don’t know which – for a month. Living in a hotel with a corporate card for a month!!! I have to say it will be really strange to be living alone again for that long, and I know it will be lonely. But there is a silver lining… next month can be my haven of frugality. I know I will be able to save a LOT. I love the Guy and all, but he’s just not as savings-conscious as I am, and so I often fall prey to his takeout or restaurant requests, because I want to make sure I’m not smothering him with my pf philosophies.

Which is ideal because March is when my initial $1,000 tuition deposit is due for school. So my goal is to absorb $500 of that hit in my March expenses. It will be a challenge, but by cutting down on food costs and entertainment, I think it may be achievable.

Some Serious Meal Planning - Mini Chicken Pot Pies

The Guy and I have been getting to that there-is-nothing-in-the-fridge moment a little too often this past month, and I really can’t help but think it’s because we didn’t really plan ahead much. So, before we went to the grocery store, we made a list and did some serious meal planning. And I discovered a great “second or third night” of meal-planning to deal with all of the leftovers. Mini Chicken Pot Pies!!! These are super yummy and by my calculations – only 500 calories per ramekin of mini pot pie.

Ingredients:
Two 4-oz. chicken breasts – baked the day before
Handful of leftover green beans (or really any other veg you have on hand)
That perennial bag of baby carrots in the fridge
Puff Pastry
2/3 cup Light Sour Cream (or Crème Fraiche if you have that kind of refrigerator)
A little more than half an Onion
1 ¼ cup chicken broth
4 ramekins/souffle dishes/small bowls

Recipe:
Preheat oven to 450. Sautee onion, carrots, green beans on med-high for 8 min. Add chicken broth, turn down the heat and simmer for another 8 min. until some of the liquid is absorbed. Add the sour cream and chicken. Add filling into puff pastry soufflé cups or ramekins and cover with additional pastry. Brush a tiny bit of the sour cream on the tops of the filling. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until everything is warmed through. Enjoy.

How to Plan for Pre-School Expenses

So, as I’m getting more and more excited about school and getting buried in the difficult decision about which coast I’m going to head towards, I’m also realizing that there will be a LOT of expenses even before I grab up the loans and go into debt. I guess I could throw up my hands and say “Oh well, it’s all going to be negative pretty soon anyway,” but I am promising myself that I WON’T have that mentality. I have plenty of negative networth role models out there that have maintained responsible personal finance

I’m also dealing with the not exactly unexpected, but still rather unpredictable expenses associated with enrolling - $25 processing fee for financial aid with the CSS profile, $1,000 deposit due in March, $350 flights out for admit weekend, $300 for hotels at two weekends, required pre-reading and courses, and probably tons of other stuff I’m not thinking of!

For now, I’m trying to keep spending down in every other area I can control, knowing that lots more is going to pop up. I also added a budget line item called “Unexpected”. Any other budgeting techniques for unexpected expenses??

Writing my Financial Commandments

So my brother is graduating from college next year, and I’m hoping to give him a nice bound journal of advice… mostly financial, since that’s the only advice you’re really looking for at that point in your life. I’m planning to write it all out by hand, so it’s more sentimental and heart-felt, and I have a lot of different categories that I’ve started to brain-dump ideas in. But I also want to kick it off with a Financial Top-Ten List, sort of an exercise in Financial Commandments. Here’s what I have so far… any disagreements, anything to add?

1. Automatic Deductions – You’ll never miss it!
2. Be hyper-conscious of spending
3. Use the Sub-Accounts for Saving with ING (you can reward yourself – save for things you want, not just things you need.)
4. Max out a Roth IRA!
5. Dental care is expensive. Invest in a Sonicare toothbrush.
6. Learn to cook a few easy dishes you love. It’ll save you $1000’s in expensive takeout.
7. Pay off your credit card balances immediately.
8. Judge yourself against your own standards, not the groups you happen to identify with.
9. Plan ahead.
10. Know what you value.

Superbowl Goals

Woop, woop... I hate football, but I do love the superbowl. Something about being lazy with friends in front of the TV and tons of guilty-pleasure snacks...

But I suppose I also need to make some February goals... which I realized I can actually spread out by week:

ALL FEB = Carpool to work at least 3x per week
Wk 1 = Sell our old dresser on Craigs List
Wk 2 = Send Valentines to friends
Wk 3 = Reach out / make a date to hang out with someone new
Wk 4 = Write two NEW pages of my story.