Oh the Irony…

Just as I embarked on my journey to wealth, I suffered a major setback. Last Thursday, I was laid off. (insert sad face here). I was really bummed the first day because it was a TOTAL shock. One of the major drawbacks of working from a home office is that you never hear any gossip. I can’t help but think that I might have heard some rumblings of a layoff if I was in the office.

Anyway,  so much has changed in the last 5 days. I’ve broken my lease and decided to move back with my parents in LA. Breaking the lease cost a LOT of money, but in the long run it’s better than staying in my lease for the next 7 or 8 months. Plus by living at home, I’ll be able to save a ton of money on rent (and food).

So let’s see, what has this cost me in the last week?

Lease Break + Prorated January rent – $4,708.33
Bottle of water at airport – $2.79
New Tweezerman tweezers at Ulta – $18.49 (after $5 off coupon)
Aqua vest at Bloomingdales – $27.08
Anthropologie Cargo pants – $10.82
Japanese magazines – $15.36
Postage for Christmas postcards – $2.80
3 month prescription at Walgreens – $12.62
Eggs and toiletries at Target – $11.42 (after $10 gift card)

Speaking of Target, my god that place is awful this time of year. I generally avoid going shopping, especially at places like Target from Thanksgiving until the end of the year. Who would have thought so many people would be at Target at 2:30 on a Monday. Granted it’s 4 days before Christmas. Online shopping has to be the best invention since sliced bread.

Damage Done this Week: $4,809.71 (yikes!!)

Rainy Days are Made for Movies

I should have spent the day writing Christmas cards, or organizing my closet, but instead I napped and watched movies. I love Comcast On Demand. One click of a button and you have tons of movie choices. You never have to go to Blockbuster again. Does anyone even go to Blockbuster these days? I never really watched enough movies to justify a Netflix membership.

Anyway, On Demand, much like itunes, is very dangerous. Like I said, a few clicks of the remote and you get what you want without even entering your credit card info because it just gets charged to your cable bill. Plus you’re like what’s 99 cents or $4.99 here and there.

Today I watched Bruno, which was really disappointing. I thought the commercials were hilarious and I really wanted to go watch it in the theaters, but I just never got around to it. I should have just stuck with the commercials because all the funny parts were in them already. I hate it when that happens (I’m looking at you Paul Blart: Mall Cop).

On the other hand, Up was amazing. I laughed, I cried. It was cute and really well done. I’m always a sucker for cartoons anyway. I really liked Ice Age too, although they got progressively worse.

Sigh, I really should have just watched some of the movies I have saved on my DVR including The Wizard of Oz (which I have NEVER seen!), X-Men 3 and The Secret Life of Bees. I also taped Alice, the Syfy mini-series thing. It looked interesting in the commercials. Did anyone see that? I kind of want to see the Tim Burton version coming out soon and oooh Nine!

Ok so tomorrow for sure I will pump out these Christmas cards and organize my shoes…

Damage Done Today: $9.98 (+tax?)

Single & Healthy Girls Get the Short End of the Stick

Remember that episode of Sex and the City where Carrie laments about having to buy her friends engagement gifts, wedding gifts, baby shower gifts, etc. etc. etc?

Well, I’m starting to feel like that too. Not so much with my friends, but more with my coworkers. I’ve been with my present employer for, oh a year and a half, and in that short period of time we’ve had 3 marriages, a death (of a parent), and several surgeries on my team of less than 10 people. All of which required contributions of $10-$20. Now, I’m not complaining, I’m just saying… It’s hard for a single and relatively healthy girl to get gifts. Not that I want to be hospitalized and receive flowers. All these gifts just add up and I definitely do not want to be the team scrooge.

Speaking of scrooge, if you’re still shopping for holiday presents, here’s a great offer I got today.

Just act fast because the offer ends on 12/14.

There is also a 50% off boot sale at Nine West

I checked it out, but there wasn’t really anything I wanted.

Oh and finally, I went grocery shopping today. I swear, I spend far too much on groceries every month. I guess I don’t eat out that often so it compensates. Anyway, I forgot to take a picture of my haul because I’m a good girl who puts her groceries away right away. However, I have my receipt so I can tell you what I bought in case anyone is interested

Lays Kettle Chips
2 boxes Celestial Seasonings Tea
Ranch Dressing
Butter
Organic Milk
Loaf Pan
Semifreddi Bread
Bananas
Onions
Fried Chicken

Damage Done Today: $33.21

There’s Snow on Them Thar Hills

It has been mighty cold recently in the Bay. Look how close the snow is! If I didn’t tell you this was Walnut Creek, you’d probably think you were somewhere in Canada.

It’s also appropriate that the Safeway truck got in the picture because I was on my way there to do a pricing survey. I’m getting a new work laptop and I had to send my old one back to get the data transferred so right now I am computer-less. Hopefully it will be back tomorrow, but in the mean time, I have nothing to do. It’s a very weird feeling. Kind of like a Saturday, but not really. I felt a little better by working on the pricing survey.

While at Safeway, I bought a Grande Joy Tea from Starbucks for $1.85. See here it is on my “desk”

I sort of feel like tea at Starbucks is a rip off. I never thought about it until now, but they just stick tea bags in hot water. I felt I got a slightly better bang for my buck eighty five because they asked if I wanted 2 tea bags, so I said sure. lol. Have you also ever noticed that all teas taste the same?? I got the Joy tea and I’m not sure what makes it a seasonal special because it kind of tasted like every other tea I’ve ever drank. According to the website it says

Tazo Joy is a delicate yet full cup, created with some of the finest varietal teas available. Rare Darjeelings and Formosa Oolongs are paired with light-bodied, fragrant Nuwara Eliya teas from Ceylon. Yunnan teas from the high plateaus of Southern China and Southern India Nilgiris add texture and complexity. It’s a very special tea to share freely with friends or selfishly hoard by yourself as an exceptional holiday treat.

I couldn’t taste much after my tongue was scalded with the first sip. I came home and added some vanilla soy milk to cool it down and creamy it up. I don’t think I’ll be getting this one again. However, the Gingerbread Latte and Cranberry Bliss Bar gets the thumbs up from me.

Hey, when is my espresso machine going to get here??

Damage Done Today : $1.85

Christmas in Vegas

Yes guys, I’m spending Vegas in Christmas with my parents, the most un-Christmas-y place possibly in the world. No, we’re not Jewish. However, Christmas isn’t just as fun as it used to be. Having a job means I can buy myself gifts (hence this blog), so we have to find other ways to make it fun. We’ve done a lot of cool stuff on Christmas… skiing, London, Vegas. The past few years, I’ve been going to my boyfriend’s family’s house, but this year it looks like I will be gambling/shopping/eating it up in sin city.

Oh yeah, so what did I buy? A one way ticket to Vegas on Virgin America for $2.50. Yes, you read that right. I have a Virgin America credit card and was able to get a free flight with my credits. And yes, it is one way because I will hitch a ride to LA with my parents and then fly back after New Years with a ticket I bought at the end of October. Woohoo!

Damage Done Today: $2.50

Damn You Online Shopping!

I don’t think I buy THAT much stuff online. Maybe some books from Amazon, a pair of shoes every now and then, but really, I just like to browse. There’s nothing wrong with browsing. But everywhere you look there are links to shops and I can’t help clicking. Plus I get a LOT of emails about sales. And I can’t resist a good sale.

This week I told myself that I’d take it easy on the shopping until after Christmas because I spent around ~$500 on Black Friday weekend. Yes, Black Friday is not just a day for me, but an entire weekend.

However, I got some of those aforementioned emails and clicked away… Here’s what I bought this week…

A Nespresso Cube with Frother. I found it on Rue La La for $259 + $9.95 S/H less $40 credit that I had. Yes, that is one expensive coffee maker, but my parents have one and it makes a mean espresso. Plus it usually goes for around $350, so I think I got a good deal. If you’re interested in joining Rue La La, click here

I also needed some fairly basic flats. Okay, I needed 2 pairs. I got the above in bronze and black from Nine West. They were a total steal – original price $69, but they were half off and there is an additional 30% off plus free shipping until Monday, December 7. That means I got both pairs for a total of $52. That’s only $26/pair!

Finally, today, I ordered some Christmas cards. I felt guilty all year because my coworkers sent me cards last year and I didn’t send then any. Excuuuuse me, I wasn’t aware of the niceties of working from home. This year, I’m going to be on top of it. I can’t post a picture though because they are totally awesome and I want them to be a surprise. I doubt anyone who is going to get one will read this post, but still… I ordered them off Etsy and they were 5 for $5. I ordered 3 packs, with shipping it came to $16.50.

So from Monday, Nov 30 to Saturday Dec 5. I spent approximately $300, plus another $110 or so on groceries. Ugh, $410, now do you see why I need this blog?

I sort of figured December would be a high spend month because of Christmas and all, so I’m not really disappointed. Plus I have 4th quarter and year end bonuses coming up and I’m planning on saving all of that. Keep that chin up lol

Damage Done This Week: ~$410

Confessions of a REAL Shopaholic

So I’ve noticed recently that I spend a lot of money. Well, I don’t think it’s so much that I spend a lot of money. It’s more like I buy a lot of stuff. And I mean a LOT of stuff.

Don’t get me wrong, I live a fiscally responsible life. I have no debt, pay my bills on time, save here and there and even have an EXCEL spreadsheet! However, I’d like to save even more. I have a goal of saving $500/month, but I sort of just save whatever is left over at the end of the month instead of sending the money directly to my savings account as soon as I get paid. Which is what I should do, and I know this, but as you now know… I like to shop.

So… I’m using this blog as a conscience of sorts. Do I really need those shoes? A fancy dinner? Vacation? I’m thinking the answer to those questions is a big fat YES, but maybe the thought of logging my purchases will make me think twice.