needed: a tail to wag

you can tell that this piggy doggy bank has been broken into a few times. it seems like the moment that you get ahead is when the next thing breaks. saving has been something that i have not been able to do in the past three years. life squirms one way and, once you wrangle that position, it wiggles the other way.

the one thing that i have been able to do is forcefeed little bits of cake towards the principal on my mortgage. when i woke up this morning to doublecheck that my monthly principal only cupcake had been applied correctly and realized that it hadn't, i was on the phone immediately to the bank. it was easily fixed and i had a great conversation with the mortgage banker about saving. artie inspired me to blog about the idea of saving.

i love bankers. my favorite uncle (okay, my only uncle, but he is still my favorite!) is a banker, but i still don't like giving a bank more than i have to give. watching the change of ratio of the payout between principal and interest on my mortgage payment each month tickles me.

at the end of each month, i end up starting at zero again, but these little cupcakes really do start adding up when you apply it to what you owe. all of the recession how-to articles tell us to spend only cash, yet with every credit card reward programs comes a chance to make a little money on what you would spend with cash. as long as you are prudent with your spending and not overspend with plastic, this could be a chance to make 1-5% back on certain monthly purchases, i.e. groceries, utilities, etc.

going out to eat has been something that we haven't been able to do in three years and this unneeded spenditure amazes me. i wish that i had the extra money to have had this luxury so i could cut it out and save it, but i haven't. for one who has it, it would be tremendous savings.

lowering the principal (or lowering debt) is the best hobby ever. even if money is tight, you can still be creative in finding bits and pieces to save. you have to remember the big picture when you go without a splurge to do it, too.

buy less, be creative with repurposing what you already have, have a garage sale, resell your existing pretties, rethink what you really do need to live on less --- wag your tail and do it.