Brooklyn Girl's Personal Finance Blog

That voice in my head that said "It is 24 degrees, there is snow on the ground and slippery, another snowstorm is coming in... just skip your run today, you can run on Saturday." I told that voice to shut up, got dressed and decided I will at least do the minimum (4 miles). It was a great run. Fresh, fantastic, beautiful, almost meditative -- there were no people walking around and it seemed like we had the whole city to ourselves.





I did 4.2 miles, less than usual, but a solid workout, keeping heart rate at 80% the whole time.

So that's 442 calories (the area is hilly, so it takes more effort) and workout #2 of the year.

I decided I am going to keep count of my "calorie bank" for this year, just for fun. Even though calories are only forth in importance benefit of a workout, it will be kind of curious to see total yearly numbers.
Current 2014 balance: 851 calories.

I will:

1). TRACK.
This will be my goal. To write down every expense, and maybe even post it here every day. If I do this, I think it will keep me more on track.

2). Work out at least 12 times (14 would be goal+bonus).

3). List at least 3 things on ebay and 3 things on craigslist.

4). De-clutter one room in the house completely.

I am making goals that are completely in my control. For example, Instead of saying "sell", I'm saying "list" that way I have no excuse, all of these goals are up to me to do, and they are not dependent on actions of others.

First, bad news. I dropped my 100 days old iphone 5s in the toilet. It is dead. It sucks. I will have to pay $300 to get it replaced for a re-furbished one in the apple store.

Today we had lunch in Chinatown with mother-in-law. Dim sum and my favorite shrimp and walnut dish(deep fried and the sauce base is mayo and condensed milk mix. 50 minute workout I put in later will not fix that).


We picked up the tab ($42). That is very cheap for 3 people and a child.

Than we talked with my MIL. She wanted to buy a whole life policy on our son, as "protection" for his future family. So I made detailed spreadsheets to illustrate to her how this was not a good use of money. It worked! Just trying to talk her out of it never worked, but when she saw our projections, that helped.

She also told us that she had a policy on my DH, that she opened when he was 4, and that if we want to cash it in, we can do it and use the money for whatever we want. That is about 6K. That is pretty unexpected.

She also gave us a gift of 10K, to help us with our son's pre-school fees or whatever we feel would be of benefit to him or us. WOW. that is extremely generous and I am very grateful. She just gave it to us. We are not struggling or ever complained about finances, so this is absolutely amazing.

She did say though that we should have a second child, but I choose to attribute that to her being a grandmother, it was not a condition for her gift - she gave none. I think it was probably more of a gesture to let us know that she can help and so we should not be as scared to have another one.

So, overall we are 16K(-$300) richer today, as a family(we will probably put large chunk of that money away for our son's education). And it is all tax free - there is no tax consequence for gifts under 12K, and life insurance policy was held for over 15 years, so that is not a subject to tax either. That is amazing start of the year.

Would this qualify as a snowflake? (or an avalanche )

DH is about to start his additional "after-hours" job at the end of January.

He will be teaching a graduate course in one of NYC's top universities.

It requires very large time investment. The course itself is only 16 classes(meeting once a week), but teaching for the first time involved A LOT of preparation. (lectures, homeworks, labs, tests, etc...)

In a family with 2 full-time working parents, time is very important, so money alone would not be worth the additional sacrifice.

But besides the 7k per course(probably 4,400 after tax) there are other factors:

1). He has learned a lot in preparing, keeping up to date and learning on few topics that are outside his area of expertise. He is an expert in the field, but not on every topic in the field, so this forced him to learn additional things, and if they come up in his regular job, that will be of benefit.

2). It looks good on the resume and strengthens his credentials, suggesting to potential future employers that his knowledge of the field is more in-depth than another candidate's.

3). Opportunity to connect with more people in his field. (Department Head, other professors, etc.)

4). Working in academic environment and in his department will give him a chance to explore his PHD possibilities and ideas for a dissertation.

5). It is kind of cool to be a colleague to your old professors.

Challenges:

1). Time. DH needs a lot of time to prepare, and it is eating into extremely little amount of personal time that 2 parents with a toddler and full time jobs have. He has almost no rest time, with studying always weighing on his mind.

2). Stress. It is a bit scary to go into something like that for the first time. To stand before a class of graduate students who already had to take years of study, and 2 hard pre-requisites just to get to that class. These are not people who know nothing and are taking some "Intro to... " course.

3). Childcare juggling. It will be hard. And DS, who is 3, may have to miss more days of pre-school than he already does.

4). Travel for his main job may be impacted (he can't go for as many days, since he has to be there every week to teach).

5). We will not go on our annual 9-10 days ski vacation. It is our family tradition, but obviously he cannot miss a class. At most, we can go to Vermont for 4 days (to make sure he gets back at least a day before his class, to give a buffer for some unexpected delay like a snow-storm.)

But, this is something new, something outside comfort zone. And while professional benefits of this experience are intangible and cannot be guaranteed, I think that the personal growth of this experience will definitely have some value.

Is knowing what you want.

Not that something is marked 50% off, but that something you really really want is marked down. That's the best feeling.

I tried on this $500 cashmere dress at the store few months ago. The saleswoman suggested it, and she was right -- it sat beautifully on me, and was a perfect dress to wear to work. But... $500+8%tax for a work dress, no matter how nice, was outside my comfort zone. So I kept checking it online. On pre-Christmas sale it went to 40% off for one day, but I missed the window. Than, after Christmas it finally went down to 50% off, plus extra 15% off sale. Plus, I had 100 gift card. So I got my $500 dress that I wanted (and I still wanted it 3 months later) for $130. Plus, having tried it on, I know it will work and fits great. That particular dress is definitely worth it.

That is the best feeling, getting something you actually wanted, not something that is just a good deal.

I used that strategy with many retailers this season. I decide what I want the most out of the store, and than watch that item during the holidays. That way I get the satisfaction of getting something that was my first choice, for a fraction of the cost. And I know that the sale is not a gimmick.
So I got new Nike flyknit shoe (I run a lot) for half price, some smartwool tights from Athleta, etc...

I can't wait until my package arrives )))))

We have been having massive problem with our bathroom. When first tiles fell off the wall, I thought that we could just replace the tiles. However, the concrete below got completely crumbled down to nothing.

After massive research of what is going on, it turns out that whoever did the bathroom, did not use waterproof materials (Mortar, topseal, whatever) and the entire wall behind it crumbled completely due to constant water exposure.)

DH was working on it for days non-stop. We sent our toddler to grandparents, and instead of relaxing for once, all time is being taken up by frantic attempt to fix this issue TEMPORARILY.
We've been eating out and picking up take-out for a week now, with no time to spare for even grocery shopping and cooking.

Few more days of work and it will hopefully be patched up enough to buy us few months before we have to rip out all walls and gut it completely.

We are just not ready to do this now. That involves probably a month of living some place else (we only have one tiny bathroom) and HUGE expense.

Plus, finding good contractor is a massive challenge.
And, if we are ripping out all walls, might as well do floors (we have cheapest possible tile from previous tenants) and replace all fixtures, and put in full size tub one can soak in, and bathroom cabinets... If the bathroom is out of commission and everything is getting ripped out, we are better off doing it at the same time.
So in the next few month we have to look at stone, tile, ideas, contractors, hardware...
And the challenge of coming up with design ideas is that we have a true NYC bathroom. No window, tiny probably 5feet by 8 or 9 feet big. So when I google for "small bathroom ideas" their "small" is what I consider huge...

Plus, we need to come up with the MONEY to do this. I am afraid to even guess how much this will end up costing. 20K probably

DH is a federal employee, so this jerking around is getting really old!

Constantly either threat of shutdown, or furloughs, and when you think you are done with furloughs, more s*t comes.

And yes, we are absorbing pay cuts by going into savings. But it is more than that. It is not a "vacation" or "unpaid days off" because you do not know "if" or how long. You can't make plans, you can't go anywhere. And YOU CAN'T ARRANGE CHILDCARE! You can't come up with a way for your family to cope with it, because you just don't know.

One can only imagine how much cost in actual loss of productivity this will end up being across the country.

And today, he has to go in just to sign some stupid paper (3 hr driving and more than $30 in gas and tolls).

I'm getting a warm and fuzzy feeling:

That's pretty awesome!

When it come to food, manufacturers have somehow sold us the myth of value.

That more is better.

Myth 1. Bigger portion means better VALUE.
Does it?
If recommended portion for your dinner is 700 calories, and you get a massive 3,000, is there really any value in consuming excessive 2,300 calories?

What is the value for your health?

You might argue "I eat 1/3 of it and pack the rest to take home. That way I have 3 meals for the price of one."
Setting aside the fact that most people don't (or eat more if more is put in front of them), is that really value?
Even if you make it into 3 meals, you are not getting 3 times the food for price of one portion. You are paying for all the food you are getting -- or restaurants would not be able to make profit.
So you are not getting 3 meals for the price of one. You are getting 3 meals for the price of 3. But 2 of them will be stale.
(Not to mention that some foods taste like crap if reheated. Do you really want to eat re-heated burger?)

"All you can eat"... Don't even get me started on this one!
Unless there is impending starvation, should you ever eat all that you can?!

Cheaper price means value.
For whom? Profit margin on cheaper processed foods are close to 10x greater than on fresh produce.
So yes, it is a cheaper food, but the value in it is for the manufacturer.

To assign value correctly, we must look to the primary purpose of food, which is NUTRITION.

Of course, pleasure is an important component, but it is wrong to judge food on that feature first. But that is what advertisers are constantly convincing us to do.

Excessive processing and overuse of pesticides, cutting quality of the ingredients, adding fillers, sugars, oil... For years, food industry has been selling us the idea that all of it is done to give us "value". And we, as a society, have bought it.

On Wednesday we went out for pizza:

So no leftovers. And I was running late in the morning and the only thing I brought was breakfast (yogurt and some caramelized pecans).

So at lunch had to go out. I was going to try a new sushi place, but when I got there I decided against it.

Than I headed to Pret. But they were out of falafel wraps. So I ended up in a cambodian sandwich shop I like. I was determined not to get porkbelly sandwich. It is yummy, but, I imagine, high calorie.
When I got there and looked at the menu, I ended up with a choice that is not any healthier. But I liked it.


Today I am back on track. Brought in my breakfast and lunch(chunky guacamole and chips).

I am truly like a camel today. I carried my purse, my gym bag (I have a session with a trainer at lunch), and my food bag (breakfast, lunch, fruit, and raw coconut water for my workout). And walking with all that for at least an hour a day is very annoying!

Breakfast:
whole milk, fresh ricotta, so soft and delicate.
With freshly caramelized pecans (I caramelized and toasted them myself last night) Yummy!
and a little of earthy tasting(my favorite) organic honey and 1 baby banana.

And a fresh brewed coffee with some half and half.

Lunch:
Ton of vegetables cooked in curry sauce(from yesterday's dinner), with a tiny bit of rice and beef on the side.

Some longans for dessert.

I am feeling like a camel though, lugging a bag with containers everywhere I go. Sigh. And it does take time packing and prepping.

I want something extravagant for the house, so I have to find "extra" money. Coupled with DH's furlough... I've decided to challenge myself to bring food from home. It is not easy, as I do not eat frozen stuff, and I have to carry everything I will eat -- I don't drive to work, I take the train and do a lot of walking.

Today was day 2 of me bringing both breakfast and lunch. That is pretty much a record for me.

Morning - fresh bagel, toasted, with cream cheese and marinated sardine in olive oil.
Coffee with half and half, made at the office.

Lunch -- I made this at home and brought it for lunch. Not bad!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hosRgMeUgB4
Next time I will add garlic and caramelized pecan pieces into the top beet layer.

First half hour consultation, than a training session. I'm excited.

I want to do strength training, but really have no idea what I am doing, so this should help.

$104 per year for unlimited 45 minute at a time stretches of use.

I don't have to worry about bike storage or maintenance and be able to pick it up on a whim. There are stations everywhere below 60th st.

My main motivation? Expanding my lunchtime range. I'm a foodie and I want to venture farther than I normally could and get varied lunches. I will also allow me to go further during lunch break if I need to buy something or to pick up some groceries for home.

The only bummer is I need to wait until my packet arrives in the mail. Can be around 10 business days. And I thought I could use it from the day I sign up.

I've been invited to a bachelorette party. In Puerto Rico. For the 4th of July long weekend.

Expensive, of course. Tickets there, hotel, drinks, entertainment. And we will probably have to pay for the bride (though she can definitely afford it). Not sure how that aspect works.

My DH generously offered to watch the baby all weekend by himself and does not mind me spending the money. Still, it is money that could go towards our common vacation.

Also, the only person I really know there is the bride. I've only met the others maybe once or twice.

On the other hand, it is a new experience. I've never been on an away multi-day bachelorette party you fly to. However, these people are not too wild. Bride does not even drink! (others might though).

So I've been looking for a long time for a backpack that does not look like it belongs on a high-school student.

And several times, by the time I found something I liked, like these:



They were sold out everywhere and I could not obtain one at any price.

So when I saw something I liked and it was available, I just bought it:

picture from another website:

My commute involves a long walk, so it would be very convenient not to have to carry stuff on one shoulder and have my ipad and my water fit comfortably . It is casual, summery and yet stylish.

There can be small benefits if you look for them.

For example, my DH travels to Maryland for work rather frequently. Besides the obvious benefits (hotel reward points and not having tolls and gas expenses of his regular commute to work) there are less obvious ones.

For example, now I have him get his haircut and routine car service there - it is cheaper than in NYC. And if we want a large purchase (like an ipad) he can buy it while passing through Delaware (a sales tax free state). These are snowflakes in a way.

Also, this weekend I took Amtrak to meet him there at the end of the week and we spend a weekend in Philly together.



I used Amtrak points for my ticket (he had some from the times where he went to DC frequently) and our gas and tolls back to NYC were paid for. We paid for the hotel, of course, since that was leisure. But still, little savings do add up over a year.

At my job, I'm taking advantage of the free language classes. I'm restarting Chinese this semester.

The lazy boy recliner for the balcony. It is too big, does not work well in that space and it is hideous.

Even when I bought it, I knew it was hideous.

But, I was pregnant, hormonal and tired. I set down in it and was comfortable and that sealed it for me. I was far along in my pregnancy, I had heartburn when laying down and I thought that this was a solution.

I know now that an outdoor seating sectional would work much better for our family -- to have weekend lunches out there when weather is nice, and for everyone to be comfortable. But what do I do with this expensive chair now? I don't think I can even sell it. Because I bought it in hunter green. And if faded on the balcony under relentless sun. Now it is red. Except for the crevices, which are still green. So people think that it has mold (which it does not have), but I can understand why it looks that way.

Uggg. I feel guilty for making such a pricey wrong decision.

When someone is unhappy with their finances, the key is to track carefully, do the budget, and not spend more than you bring in.

When someone has a weight issue, the key is to track the intake and outgo and not eat more than you can expend. Identical concepts.

Going over what you can afford by just a little bit on a regular basis gets you into trouble.

If you want to eat more than your calorie budget allows, you can work on increasing your allowance through exercise. It is like getting extra income on the side.

But why is is that someone who has no problem with the one, often cannot do the same with the other?

The willpower that extends to not buying that purse often fails when it comes to fries. Is it simply that one wants fries more than one wants a new purse?

Breakfast -
Apple
coffee with whole milk
Fage 0% with honey and pistachios.
All brought from home
Total: 300 calories

Lunch -
Left over Thai green coconut chicken curry with ton of veggies over rice
Total: 420 calories

I brought breakfast and lunch from home. And I have all the ingredients for chunky guacamole I will make for dinner.

I anticipate that to be around 550 calories for a nice filling portion.

Today is my non-running day, so no Haagen-daz vanila almond bars for me.

The only food spending will be DH's lunch.

In April, I will try to concentrate on food.

1). Eat at a calorie deficit. (Netting about 1,450 daily)
2). I want to eat varied and reasonably good tasting food.
3). I want to do it cheaper than I have but without compromising on quality/taste or health.
4). I need to post it here, to keep accountable.

Today:
Breakfast:
Fage fat free Greek yogurt with a teaspoon of honey, toasted unsalted pistachios and almonds, and a dusting of coconut shaving.
Coffee (made in office) with whole milk.
Breakfast calories -- 310

cost - unknown (Yogurt is $1.7 at the supermarket in Westchester, but would be $2.5 or more if I bought it in Manhattan. Toppings - hard to say, they are expensive, but I use such small amounts of it.

Lunch
Half of large lentil curry soup from Cambodian place. $5.75

I have no idea of the calories. I'll overestimate and put it close to 380. I had the foresight to bring few pieces of lamb I roasted yesterday. (Soup alone will not be a filling enough lunch for me, but this way I will add a quality protein without additional cost).
Lamb - 163 cal.
Dinner total -- about 550

Snack - coconut water - 60 calories

I was missing one ingredient for making dinner today (coconut milk), so I went to a store on my lunch break.
I bought
Coconut milk $2.29
Leek (1) $1.59
Canned lychees $3.39
(I love adding them to fruit salads and I like lychee martinis)
Half a cantaloupe $2.85
Total: 10.12

Dinner - not yet eaten, will log later.

So Day 1, I spent only $15.87 (we did a large weekly grocery shopping 2 days ago)

Do you ever think of the things you would like to do if you were rich?

Not the things you would like to buy, but things you would like to do?

Things that would be much easier to accomplish if you had a lot of resources.

I decided that on a couple of important ones, I will skip the "getting rich" step and tackle them NOW.
It may not be as easy, but not at all impossible.

One of my goals was "If I was rich, I would have time and resources to become really fit and have a great body. I would have personal trainers and nanny for when I need to work out."

Is it possible to get fit without those things? Yes. Not as easy but entirely possible. I've been doing this for the last month and a half. My husband is very supportive and will take care of the baby whenever I need to run. I have been cooking healthy and exercising about 5 times a week. I've dropped 14lb in 42 days and fit into size SM again! This is a lifestyle change, and it is hard, and sometimes I don't feel like running after a full day of work plus 2 hour daily commute, little sleep, making dinner/cleaning up, taking care of the baby... when it is 10pm already and I am tired. But I still do it. Because I have to.

2. If I was rich I would spend more time with my family. How can I do that now? Flexible schedule, long vacations, outing together. We do what we can now. Next year, I want to rent a house for a month in some beautiful spot like maybe New Zealand or some charming town in Europe, and spend a whole months, with neither of us going to work and just being together leisurely every day.
I can arrange that without quitting our jobs, so that will have to do. That is still a lot better than nothing.

What are your "if I was rich" wishes that are attainable even if you bypass the "rich part".

It was a loooong time since I bought a dress. Maybe close to a year. So when I saw this dress I could not resist. It just says "spring" to me. And it is in an unusual color I don't have.



Close ups:

DH bought a car warranty today -- $1,400.
A gift from a friend's wedding registry - $167
New running shoes and running clothing - 187

wowza

When I wanted to replace a shower curtain, I realized that we don't have one. So I went to drugstore.com to order a pair. One for now one for next time. Than I realized we are low on toothpaste. And our toothbrushes need to be replace. Baby's too. Than remembered that we are low on baby's shampoo. Than, while searching for best shampoo I stumbled upon something else.

The end result? $105 for what was supposed to be a shower curtain and a toothpaste order.

That is a nice snowflake. Why would I turn this down? Discover is paying me monthly to use their money interest free. I love it.

I am ready and I am serious about it.
No reason at all to wait until "Monday" or the first of the month, or the New Year. I started on a Tuesday, 8 days ago and I am doing better job than I ever had.

5 days of working out and keeping my caloric intake reasonable. (I am tracking everything).

Lets make a pact and see what we can accomplish in terms of lifestyle change. Who else has fitness/weight loss goals they are working on?

I had a massive cheat meal yesterday because I went out with friends -- 1 good dirty martini and a beer at a nice martini bar in the village during their happy hour.

Than delicious Xi'an hand made noodle with cumin lamb in chili oil and some tofu with another beer at a bar nearby. All for a total of $24 -- not bad for Manhattan! It was a lot of fun.

Not good for weight loss goal. But I'm keeping on track with my workout schedule.

We overspend by close to $1800 last month, that's with 1345 of snowflakes factored in. That's not considering an AAPL stock option wich looks like we will loose most of the money on this month. Plus, I've gained weight during my vacation. I had no idea how many calories are in cocktails. You have 3 of those a night and you are in trouble. Plus desserts.

So I am now on a health kick. Moderate spending and working out at least every other day (not easy with a full time job and a 2 year old).


But, in the last 6 days I worked out 4 times ($40 to my personal fund), and ate mostly healthy. I had a nice juciy burger yesterday, but I also run 4 miles and my other meals were healthy. And we ground our own meat for the burger, so I know exactly what and how much I am eating.

However, I'm going out after work tonight with some classmates from my study trip to China this summer. So it is a martini bar and chinese food after. This is really a challenge to my healthy streak.

Transportation
Flight both ways and all ski gear bags checked in: $0
Taxis, shuttles and bus: $434

Hotel
7 nights slopeside -- Marriott Vail and Park Hyatt BC $0
1 night in Park Hyatt and 1 night Ritz $743.83

Food $1188.43

new ski boots for DH and me, 1 base layer $974



Tips (resort staff only) estimate $120

Ski passes for 2 adults $1,100

$4560

That's with free flights and free 7 nights of hotel!