I’m going to Vegas (again)! April 30, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : job, travel , 8commentsUm, so guess what PF blogger is going to Vegas this summer!? That’s right, ME! I’ll be going for work conference along with a bunch of other co-workers, so my flight/accommodation & meals will be paid for. We even each get a room to ourselves in a fancy hotel. HEAVEN!
Of course, we’ll be working during the day. But it’s Vegas, baby!
So, this year I will be doing a lot of traveling:
- Mexico (7 days, end of June-early July) – parents have paid for the entire trip at an all-inclusive resort. My budget will be around $300 for excursions & miscellaneous spending.
- Las Vegas (5 days, mid-July) – flight/accommodation & meals paid for by the company. My budget will be around $200 in case we want to go to a show one evening, or other miscellaneous costs. The good thing is I’ve already been to Vegas twice, so I don’t need to spend $$$ to see all the touristy things again.
- Toronto (July 31-Aug 2) – My budget will be around $900 for flight/hotel & spending money. I’m crossing my fingers that I can do this, and if I have to stay in a hostel, then so be it.
- Hawaii (5 days, end of Sept-early Oct) – My budget will be around $1,200, which includes flight/hotel/rental car & spending money. But does not include a wedding gift. I’ll wait to see where they register.
So … yeah. Even with 2 of the trips paid for, it’s going to be an expensive year of traveling. But it’s totally going to be worth it and I am so freaking excited!!!
BUT that might mean our trip to Thailand might get postponed. Actually, it probably will get postponed. I know. It sucks. But with the savings goals I have to reach, it’s not responsible to go on a huge trip like that when travel costs are already going to be so high this year.
May 2010 Monthly Goals April 30, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : monthly goals , 8commentsMay is a fresh start. I have a new job and new savings objectives. I’m very happy to be working and able to save again. My budget is just about normal for me. I added in $$$ for Travel (going back to the island to see a concert with my sister and BF and I will be going on a hike), as well as extra into Transportation. I need to fill up on gas every week because of my commute, and we’ll use at least a tank during our hiking trip.
May Goals:
- $600 into Retirement Portfolio (RRSP & TFSA)
- $300 into Future Home Fund (half of the amount would be from BF)
- Make an extra $100
- Read at least 1 book
- Work out 3-4x/week
April 2010 Goals: My Review April 30, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : monthly goals , add a commentOkay, so April was kind of a gong show. I clearly went over my budget by -$977.52. But, I also received a pay cheque AND my tax refund – which is the reason for my over spending. So even though I over spent on my budget, I still ended up cash positive for the month and actually ended up saving money.
Notes:
- Car Payments – I made an extra payment this month, but not on purpose. I just forgot that in the real world where people are employed, it was a 3 pay cheque month. :)
- Medical & Health Care – Along with $57 for MSP I had to pay for a 3-month supply of BC.
- Food – I only went out to eat like 2 times this month (which is pretty good for us), the rest was just groceries.
- Clothing – I had budgeted $500 of my tax refund to spruce up my lacking work wardrobe. I didn’t think I’d be able to spend the entire $500 but I ended up buying a few really key pieces that I’ve been wanting for years – like a suit.
- Travel – took a trip home to see my family for 5 days.
- Personal Care – bought shampoo, body lotion and eye cream.
April Goals:
- Workout 6x/week. FAIL! I worked out 21 of 30 days in April, which is pretty good, but not 6x/week.
- Find a full-time job. CHECK! It sure didn’t feel like it at the time, but being let go was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. It allowed me to see beyond what was right in front of me, and find a job with an organization that is the perfect fit. I now feel like I have the opportunity to reach my full potential.
Hiking trip planned April 30, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : entertainment, fitness, travel , 4comments
I am so excited. Over the May long weekend BF and I are planning an awesome 47km hike along the ocean on the island. I have wanted to do this hike for pretty much forever. It should take us 2.5 full days of hiking, and I cannot wait. Breathing in the salty air, camping on the beach, and strapping on a heavy pack? Paradise. As long as it doesn’t rain. :) Websites online list the hike as “difficult” or “strenuous” but BF says it’s relatively easy with little elevation gain compared to other hiking trips we’ve been on – and will definitely not be the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Which means, it’ll be a walk in the park for him and I’ll be trying hard not to pass out from exhaustion. Haha.
My mom wants us to bring back a few things from IKEA when we drive over, and she is willing to pay for one-way of our ferry cost. Which is super generous and also definitely cuts back on our transportation cost. Maybe BF and I can even keep it to $60 each, including gas and ferry. Other than that, all we have to worry about is our hiking food for the weekend.
The night before we leave for our hiking trip, my sister and I have the Our Lady Peace concert to go to – where they will play their entire Clumsy album. Which includes front row centre seats, a swag package and a meet-and-greet with the band. Yes, we are total geeks who are reliving our 90′s childhood. It’s gonna be awesome. But really, what would we even say to the band when we meet them? “Hi, you were really good back in the 90′s, then you sucked a bunch, and now you’re just kind of mediocre … thanks for playing all your old music tonight”?
Saving for Retirement April 29, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : investing, retirement , 13commentsI started saving for retirement again. Luckily I only lost 6 weeks, but even then … with all the savings goals I have this year, I don’t think I can make that time up. But anyway, starting this Friday I’ll be putting away $300 bi-weekly.
RRSPs
$50 Money Market
$50 CDN Bond Index
$50 European Index
$50 International Index
$25 CDN Index
$25 US Index
TFSA
$25 ING Direct (3%)
$25 PC Financial (2%)
According to the pay stub I received yesterday, I’ll be bringing in approximately $1,380 bi-weekly after taxes. So my Retirement Porfolio savings represents almost 22% of my net income. And based on the TD Canada Trust RRSP calculator at an average rate of return of 7%, if I keep saving at the rate I am, I can retire at age 55 (my goal retirement age) and will have $1.1 million in my Retirement Portfolio. That doesn’t even take into consideration the fact that I would increase my savings amount with any increase in salary over the years. So I’m feeling really good about the future, and I’m so glad that I took saving for my RRSPs seriously during my 20′s.
A Wednesday Post April 28, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : EI, job , 1 comment so farWow, have I been busy at work! The graphic designer quit the day before my first day last week, and as part of my job, for the next year I’m taking over a bunch of someone else’s duties while she’s on maternity leave – so right now I’m juggling 2.5 jobs worth of tasks. One second I’m dealing with sponsorship requests, then I’m editing graphics and uploading to the web, then doing a photo shoot, then putting together spreadsheets and sales reports, then putting together marketing packages. My tasks are so diverse and I have to keep going from one train of thought to another. It’s a lot to get used to – especially in a new work environment, but I like the challenge.
Anyway, enough of the job. That’s all I seem to talk about these days. Which is the reason why I haven’t been posting as much as I usually do, so for that I apologize. I have flashes of ideas for posts at such random times during the day, but by the time I get around to writing them, I’ve forgotten about them. So I’m going to start to try quickly typing them in a memo on my iPhone.
In other news, I did not get a single dollar from my unemployment benefits during my 6 weeks of unemployment. I *should* have gotten 1 week of benefits (according to 3 weeks of severance and a 2 week waiting period). But for some reason, they calculated my last week of pay as an additional week of severance (so they thought I got 4 weeks of severance and then a 2 week waiting period). And for whatever reason I didn’t catch that? I should have. It makes me angry that I missed such an obvious error and now I’m past the 30 day window to dispute. So, that sucks. But it would have only amounted to maybe $450 anyway. Good thing I had my Emergency Fund … and that will be my priority to rebuild once I get my first pay cheque (Friday).
Trip to Toronto? April 27, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : travel , 7commentsSo I’m thinking of making a short trip to Toronto for the August long weekend. My friend (who was supposed to be getting married in July) said that he’d be able to drive up from Michigan to come visit with me (hoorah!). Plus, I want to see a bunch of friends that live out that way, catch a Blue Jays game, and perhaps meet up with a few PF bloggers? Hopefully some of you fine individuals will be around for that weekend. :)
I’m hoping to snag a flight for around $500 round trip. And then wait for a good last-minute deal on a hotel or hostel. I’m not going for that long, so I won’t need much in terms of spending money – just to go out for food with friends (none of us are very fancy), the ball game, and just general milling about downtown.
Lots of travel this year – Mexico, Hawaii, Toronto … but totally worth it. :)
Lunch salad April 26, 2010
Posted by gmbmfb in : recipes and food , 6comments
Just thought I’d share what I’ve been bringing for my lunch. I really wanted to concentrate on eating something healthy and easy to make. And usually when I find something I like, I eat it until I get completely sick of it. Why? Because it’s cheaper to buy for just one kind of lunch each week. :)
So this is my salad with organic mixed greens (bought in a big container), 1 serving of peppered smoked salmon (80 grams), onion, cucumber, red pepper, raisins and sunflower seeds. Nothing fancy, I just threw a bunch of things in there and top it off with a low fat balsamic vinaigrette.
I find by adding the smoked salmon, I’m not hungry until dinner. Which is awesome. :) Oh, and last week for dinner one night BF was making steak, so I made my salad and added a few thin slices of the meat into my salad. That was pretty good too! I don’t see myself getting sick of this salad for at least another 2 weeks. And then once I am, I can just switch up the kind of salad that I’m making.
