Friday, July 9, 2010

Cutting the Cord

After I closed on my place, I realized that I had a larger cushion than I had expected. This, of course, is a good thing -- a great thing. It has come in handy in getting my place together. I've used it for home-related things, bills from the old place, and the like. But the party is over.

It's time to cut the cord.

Mind you, the money is still going to be there. But I'm putting away the card that accesses that old account and am flying solo on the everyday account. When I made the decision to buy a place, I looked long and hard at the budget and discovered that though it might be tight, I would be able to do it. And do it I shall.

Things are going well. I've decided to put a third of every freelance check toward the remaining credit card debt. This will be in addition to the regular payments I'll be making every month -- all of which will be more than the minimum due. I just want to knock it out, you know? And the sooner I get it done, the better.

I haven't heard anything about my rental deposit for the old place, but I'm not worried. My feeling is that no news is good news. Had something been wrong with how I left things, they would not have hesitated in letting me know. What else is coming? Well, my freelance job for the Big Nonprofit isn't done, so it hasn't been billed yet. (I'm supposed to be getting at least one more statement to edit before I'm done and can bill.) I have an invoice pending with Regular Freelance Gig, and that check should come and be deposited by the end of the month. And the Writing Gig has already paid me for last month's work; I've directed a third of that payment toward the credit card bill.

And though this isn't entirely related, I finally took care of my oil change and got new brake pads for my car. So the car is in good shape -- and all for less than $200, thanks to the new auto shop I've been going to.

So things are in good shape, I'm happy to report. I'm so, so happy to report. :-)