Budgeting: the story continues

It is now late May, and how close am I to my goal of $5000 saved by the end of the year? Not very close. I have just over $1000 in my savings account. So what happens if there's an emergency? What if my car craps out? I'm stuck.

At the suggestion of my friend, I signed up for Mint, which is a budgeting tool that connects to your bank account or credit card account to follow your spending habits. What have I learned? I spend too much on shopping and food. Yeah, big surprise. But one thing that my friend pointed out (after I tried to grab the check at lunch) is that I should stop paying for others all the time. Not that it's bad or that I can't treat others once in a while, but sometimes it becomes a habit. Sometimes it's ok to just pay my half.

As far as shopping goes, I don't know what to say. My wardrobe still doesn't fully please me. I wish that I could work with a stylist who could help me find the best pieces for me at decent prices to make me love everything in my closet. Unfortunately, Stacy London isn't my fairy godmother, so I just need to work on making do with what I have....which is not easy.

I have so many unknowns to save for, and now I have another thing to save for: Europe trip next year with my best friend. Wish me luck!

Broke in the 'burbs,

~K

Changes

Changes don't always happen immediately. Sometimes they're so subtle that we don't notice them until long after they've already taken place. One day you just realize with a start how different you are from what you used to be.

That's been happening with me. I don't know if I'm necessarily better or worse than I used to be, but I do see that I'm changed. In some ways I'm meeker than I ever was before, and yet in other ways I'm much more outgoing. There was a time when I told off a guy for asking me out via text (he immediately called me), but now it's the norm.

What things ought to be changed in my life, and which things should stay consistent? I really don't know.

Confused yet again,

~K