Last Friday was a very exciting milestone for my wife and I. We made our 45th payment to our Debt Management Program, but more importantly according to the tracker tool we have 12 payments left. Which means a year from now we will be DONE with our DMP, and will have paid off $109,000 of credit card debt. As I thought about that, I teared up a little. Look, I’m a glass half full, optimistic, find the silver lining in everything kind of guy. When I look back at the last 45 months, I think about all the changes Vonnie […] Read more »
Why Zombies Seem Easier to Face Than Real Life
Just in case you have been living under a rock, Zombies are all the hotness. The story is not really new, but the popularity of the genre is reaching a critical mass thanks to hits like The Walking Dead. What strikes me about the trend is the timing. There seems to be (to me anyway) a solid correlation between the rise of the Zombie/ post-apocalyptic genre and the decline of the national economy. Let’s explore some common themes. The total eradication of modern technology…no more cell phones, TV or gadgets. A return to living off of the land and the […] Read more »
Cable TV Is Cheap Entertainment
Our cable company has been advertising new packages and lower prices, so this weekend Vonnie and I stopped into the nearby office to investigate our options, and see if we could lower our bill. Thirty minutes later we walked out the door having been upgraded to their new gold package that includes 4 DVRs, almost every channel they have, and a broadband speed double what we had previously. AND a lower bill. Driving home with the new DVRs in the trunk, I thought about our decision and wondered if we had made the right choice. The TV portion of our […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 3/29
The kids are on spring break from now until April 8th. Anyone want to start a pool as to how long it will take before the first “I’m BORED” is said? I personally am excited for this weekend because there is a Minnesota personal finance blogger meetup (FinconMN) tomorrow in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. We bloggers have an interesting work environment as we don’t get many opportunities to talk in person to other bloggers, so I’m really looking forward to it! Enough about my weekend, you came here for links, and I’m a giver so here you go: Posts That […] Read more »
Beer, Friends, and Losing Control of your Spending
My last few Monday posts have been a bit heavy and serious, so today I thought I’d talk about something a little lighter: Beer and Movies. Well, to be completely accurate, it’s more about my weekend spending relating to beer and movies. My house is a convenient central meeting point for my brother-in-law and his two best friends from high school. A couple of times a year they meet at my house, go out, and have a great time together. I’m always invited to come with. The first few times I felt a bit out of place, but I know […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 3/22
It’s March Madness time! Yeah, I’m not much of a college basketball fan. I know the Minnesota Gophers made the tournament, so I might briefly be interested in seeing how they do. If you’re not interested in basketball, you could always checkout my favorite posts from the week, or just read them during halftime. Posts That Make Me Fist Pump: Are You Paralyzed With Fear Because You’re in Debt? from Celebrating Financial Freedom Message Monday: The Entitlement Donut from Money Plan SOS How People REALLY Get Rich (Versus How We Think They Do) from American Debt Project You Saved $128 […] Read more »
Allow Me to Introduce Myself…
Editor’s note from Travis Pizel: It is with great excitement that I introduce to you Suzanne Coblentz, a brand new member of Team EOD! Suzanne is the Social Media Manager for CareOne Debt Relief Services, along with wearing many other hats. She brought me on board as a customer blogger over three years ago, and is the person responsible for launching my blogging career. She’s dedicated to helping people rid themselves of the shackles of debt, is a personal friend of mine, and is someone that I admire and respect immensely. She’ll be sharing her personal perspective on debt […] Read more »
Personal Responsibility and Debt Relief Are Not Dirty Words
Last week my story to pay off credit card debt was shared in a post on Business Insider, and subsequently picked up by Yahoo Finance. I really appreciated the opportunity, and I think the article turned out great. There were many positive comments on both posts stating support for our journey, and for what we have learned and accomplished. There were also a fair number of comments questioning how we could have ever let things get so far out of control to accumulate such a massive amount of credit card debt as well as wondering what effects our debt has […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 3/15
After a couple of weekends away from home I’m glad to have absolutely nothing going on this weekend. The agenda for this weekend is relax, relax, relax – oh, and do my taxes. Yuk. I’ve been procrastinating, because I know I’m going to have to pay in. If you’re procrastinating too, check out the articles below – that’ll blow through an hour easy! Posts That Make Me Fist Pump: Financial Thoughts and Personal Reflections at Age 35 from On Target Coach The Art of Communication About Money from CareOne Debt Relief Services Paying Down Debt is Boring from Couple Money […] Read more »
Are You One of the “Financially Fragile” Americans?
I read in a Wall Street Journal article that almost half of all Americans would have to sell some of their possessions if they needed to come up with $2,000 cash within 30 days. The author called these people “financially fragile”. Wow! That’s disturbing statistic. It’s especially surprising when you realize that a normal emergency expense like a major car repair or a child’s broken arm (which happened to my son a few weeks ago) can pretty easily set you back a couple of grand. Why Are So Many of Us Financially Fragile? So what’s the deal? Why is it […] Read more »
I Don’t Want To Be A Deadbeat Geezer
Over the weekend my mom had major back surgery to correct her scoliosis. The surgery involved attaching metal rods to her spine to straighten it, and “rouging up” the vertebrae which would cause them to fuse together as she heals. My mom has a long road ahead of her as the estimated recovery time is at least a year. But the result should be a better quality of life than what she had, and definitely better than what her life would have become as her scoliosis continued to get worse. The nine hour surgery gave my dad and I the […] Read more »
Getting Out of Debt – How My Attitudes Helped Slay the Financial Beast
When getting out of debt, it's helpful to sincerely adopt a new way of perceiving things, thinking about issues, making decisions, and taking action. What works for one doesn't always work for others, but there is certainly something to be learned from everyone who has had to go through the challenges associated with indebtedness. Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 3/7
This week I celebrated my 3 year blogoversity. On March 3rd, 2010, my very first blog post went live in the CareOne Community. I can’t believe I’ve been writing about my family’s journey out of debt for three years! I was off work yesterday afternoon and today to be with my parents in Minneapolis as my mom is having back surgery to correct severe curvature of the spine. If you wouldn’t mind, send some positive thoughts this way for a speedy recovery. I don’t know why this is the case, but every time I need to take some […] Read more »
Are You Financially Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
I am a huge supporter of financial literacy, for both kids and adults. Financial literacy has become more complex since I was a fifth grader back in the 80’s (I know I am dating myself here). The financial services industry has exploded offering everything from online trading to debt relief. Tax laws make filing taxes a DIY nightmare, unless you purchase software like TurboTax with a step by step guide. And, applying for a loan or a credit card of any kind requires reading twenty plus pages of fine print. In a previous article, The Great Debate Kids and Money […] Read more »