KirstenL4W

Yeah, I read that book - and the rest of the series (Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Ties the Knot, Shopaholic and Sister) and quite enjoyed them. While I don’t consider my spending as out of control as Becky’s is, I definitely identify with the need to shop.

Gretchen posted on her blog about coveting. I covet stuff too, which is why I have 2 jobs. Job#2 is supposed to pay for the things I covet and already bought, but with my move that payment plan has fallen by the wayside. There’s always something - my move, my upcoming vacation, my car registration due in September, the upcoming holidays, blah blah blah. I want stuff, we all want stuff. When I had extra money, instead of saving it I would spend my weekends at the mall or visiting my favorite shops, always buying a bunch of stuff I don’t need. So yeah, I’m a shopaholic. Even now, when I’m bored, I think, “Gee, I haven’t visited that mall in awhile, I think I’ll go browse around.” If I buy something, I feel bad about the money I spent because I know full well it could be spent on something else. If I don’t buy anything, I feel bad because I see other people buying stuff and wish I could too.

Job#2 is retail, which has its good and bad points. Good point - I rarely, if ever, buy anything from my store. We sell shoes, none of which fit me because I have an extremely narrow foot, and we don’t carry narrows. We also sell purses and wallets, but I’m very picky about that stuff so I rarely purchase them (plus, they’re expensive, even with my discount, and I don’t like to spend that much on a purse). Bad point - the store is in a mall, and I always want to shop at the other stores, many of which will give a 10% mall discount.

What do I like to buy? Shoes, if I can find ones I like in my size. I love buying jammies, don’t know why because I don’t always like buying regular clothes. Books, magazines, movies, music. Stuff for my home, even though I have nowhere to put it. The 1 in, 1 out rule is a good one, but it still means I can buy stuff if I get rid of stuff at the same time and doesn’t solve the buying stuff issue.

Now that I have more than 1 reader here, perhaps this will be a good way for some accountability. I’m gonna try my hardest to keep a bit of a journal here on my spending and debt payments. I’ll update tonite on that, since I haven’t spent anything yet today. My basic goals are this:

1. Cut out frivolous spending while maintaining my sanity
2. Pay down debt - Mastercard and Visa
3. Save some money!

I’ll try to put up a daily post or at least include in my posts an update on this. If I don’t, you can all yell at me. I tried to keep a notebook, which lasted all of 10 minutes because there was no one else to answer to. I post on a message board, but again, no one else to really answer to. My parents basically leave me alone as far as the spending goes, because all my bills are paid on time and I don’t ask them for anything (unlike my sister, who depends on Dad’s handouts). So that leaves it to be a personal thing, and I’m asking for a little bit of accountability in this department.

Of course, I still covet stuff, so I’ve linked to my wishlist on Amazon just in case anyone wants to reward my efforts with a present

Ok, here it is, my spending for the day:
$1.66 - cookies (to keep in my desk drawer, so I have chocolate handy to keep me sane. They should last about 2 weeks or so)

Other Posts Like Me:

• Tame the Shopping Beast
• Vacation Spending Report
• Yawn! Need a Nap
• Fastest Shower in the West
• A Sweaty, Dusty Day