Saturday, November 23, 2013

Thankful...

I got to spend the day with my parents. My Mom and I ran out to the mall together and my Dad decided to tag along. Fun! When we got back home, my nephew came over to spend the night with my parents and for a little while, the whole core crew was together.  I don't take a single moment for granted. Blessed! =)

Friday, November 22, 2013

TGIF...

Today was a good day. I woke up super sleepy but I got up, gave my thanks for waking up and got the day started.

It seemed like I saw a lot of my friends and associates today at work and outside of work. I ran into a lot of close associates in the cafeteria this morning. Some of whom were on my list to check-in with because I haven't seen them in a while and they work in other departments. Then I went for chocolate run with my friend Karen and had lunch with another co-worker. I walked to get tea with my BFF and then I had dinner with another good friend. It was just an awesome day that way. =)

Hope you guys have a wonderful weekend. God wiling, it will be an awesome and relaxing weekend for me too. Cheers! 

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Credit Card Balance Transfer...

It's about that time of the year again when the promotional rate on my credit card expires and I look to transfer the balance to another card. The last couple of years I have switched back and forth between Chase to Bank of America. I stopped using my other credit cards and those were closed by the issuer over the years due to non-usage. So all I really have left is American Express, Bank of America, Capital One and Chase.

Chase is offering me a 0% rate through 2/2015 with a 2% balance transfer fee...Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!!!! I will make the transfer at the beginning of December. It will add $350 to the balance but the transfer fee is much less than the 4% I paid last year to move the balance to Bank of America.

Below is a chart showing my balances at the beginning of the year and my balances as of November. As you can see, I am going to have to accelerate debt payments in order to really reduce these balances over the next few years. 


Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Meditiation Challenge....

Now that I am back to work, the Meditation Challenge has been a struggle. I am on Day 10 and I haven't missed a day but doing the meditation in the morning is much better than when I am getting ready to sleep at night. Simply put, I need to get up at least an hour early to get in the 20 Minutes of meditation and 40 minutes of exercise to get my day started off on the right foot. Once I get home, I tend to think only of dinner, shower, rest and relaxation.

I am trying to finish up my online compliance training due at the Bank before 11/30/13. I had seven courses to take and I finished five this morning. Speed reading and then taking the test at the end. It's the same training each year with only small modifications so passing the tests with an 80% or better hasn't been an issue.

I am heading over to Macy's in a few minutes with my co-worker Eric for something called Fellowship Loop. Fellowship is a church on the south side of Chicago that offers downtown church service. I don't remember the frequency. We used to go all the time, but my work schedule hasn't allowed. This month, my calendar was clear so I asked him if he wanted to go. He is the one who got me to attend the first time and it was pretty cool.

Well I am off. Have a wonderful Wednesday! Hump Day Baby! =)

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Quasi Interview....

I had a quasi lunch interview today and it went very well. My only hurdle is lack of management experience although I am confident that I can do the job. We were talking so much that we ran out of time. I appreciate when that happens with pure strangers. Now that I have an idea of the position, we are going to follow-up again next week so I have some time to think about the position and formulate some questions. The possibility is exciting and I welcome the opportunity to challenge myself to grow and learn something new.

I know I am just getting back to work but I am already looking forward to the weekend and putting up my Christmas Tree which I always try to do the weekend before Thanksgiving. I asked my brother-in-law today if he has time this weekend to help. I know my Dad will be around. It doesn't take too long. I get the thing out of the garage and open it up. Then they come over and string all of the lights and put on the bulbs. My nephew helps me with all the other decorations and he gets chocolate chip cookies in exchange. I like a lot of color so no plain white Christmas trees in the Chitown Family. lol I will post a picture after we get it all set up and twinkling. Just thinking about snuggling on the couch with some hot chocolate and carols playing makes me smile. =)

The Holidays for me mean God, Thankfulness, Family and Love and that's more than enough to put a smile on my face. I am truly blessed!

Monday, November 11, 2013

Vacation...

It's a pretty gloomy day here in Chicago. One of those days when you curl up on the couch with a good book and a cup of tea or watch your shows on DVR. I may do a mixture of both today.

I wish I was on a flight to a sunny beach somewhere. That would be amazing. I love love love to travel, feel the warm sun on my skin and get out for a run to take in more of the scene. I love the sound and peace of the ocean. I can almost hear it now as I type. The beach in Ft. Lauderdale was perfect.

I would also love to travel to a spa. I've had my eye on Miraval in AZ for a few years. I like to take breaks from the ripping and running to just be still and at peace. I also love a great massage and I've never had a facial before. It's on my list of things to experience. 

I had a great day yesterday. I got to the early Church service and as always, Pastor Hannah's message was amazing. We have one of the best praise and worship teams in the Country. They're doing something different this month introducing light worship and they brought in the strings to accompany the band and the music stirred the soul. Amazing! Then the Pastor was moved by a line in the song and stirred up the entire congregation and the energy in the place skyrocketed and you could feel the spirit. It's something special to be a part of and I am so thankful to have found a church home after not growing up in the church at all. 

We had a great time together at the chili cook off. I am so thankful my brother-in-law has some great friends with children around my nephew's age. He's an only child so I was just thrilled to see him have kids to play with yesterday and he played hard for about 8 hours straight with no nap! He was ready to fall out! LOL. He's the cutest little kid and he's got such a positive spirit. I love him unconditionally. The rest of us had a great time in fellowship and my parents even stuck around for a few hours. Great time! I am so incredibly blessed! 

I am starting this 21-day meditation challenge today with Deepak Chopra. I think it would be cool to go to the Chopra Center one day for a retreat. I will let you guys know how it turns out. I've tried the challenges before but I never completed one start to finish. I am going to try to make it a daily practice to meditate twice a day for at least 15 minutes. They say the medical benefits of just that small amount of time is measurable especially with stress reduction.  

Have a great day! 


Thursday, November 07, 2013

October 2013 Recap...

October was a busy but decent month. I posted a slight $554 improvement in my net worth. My cash resources are dwindling a bit but they will be replenished next month. Overall, it wasn't too bad.  I still have to adjust my personal spending which is always a constant battle especially during high emotional times and when I am on the go which is an understatement with work being crazy. All in all, not bad at all.

My retirement account is sitting right around $52k right now. I started contributing 5% a few months ago. I will make adjustments to any investment and property accounts on a quarterly basis instead of annually starting next month.






Saturday, November 02, 2013

Paid in Full...

The weekend is here and guess what?!?? I don't have to work!!! Yes!!! My condo needs a serious cleaning so I am working on that right now. I was going to do it last night but my train was delayed and I didn't get home in time.

I just made a deposit in the Bank this morning so I can pay my monthly expenses. I will be able to pay everything off in full. Thanks to being reimbursed for my expenses in Madison, I will have a couple hundred dollars to get me through November. Thankful!!!

All will be well and better once December comes along. Hard to believe I'll be 36 in exactly one month! Not exactly where I want to be but thankful I'm not where I was just a short time ago. 

Have a great weekend! =)