Rich Stuff*

Several years ago, Petunia and I took a couple of personal finance workshops offered by the MA Treasurer's Office. They were led by this tiny powerhouse of a woman named Dee Lee, and they were simultaneously funny, terrifying, and instructive. When we took the first one, Pet and I didn't know a Roth IRA from an escrow account, and we nearly fainted when we learned we had negative net worth. By the time the second one rolled around, we were equally in the red re: net worth, but much more knowledgeable about personal finance in general. It's been a while since we examined our finances, and it strikes me that we've fallen into one of Dee Lee's dreaded traps: We've been working for our money, not making our money work for us!**

All of this is on my mind because I learned today that we came out ahead in our 2005 taxes. I could cry, I'm so relieved! This means I can stop shitting myself in anxiety and start making earnest promises to "do better next time." For real, though, I swear! I've already made some big changes to my accounting system (new accounting software, joint bank accounts, estimated quarterly tax payments, improved receipt-filing protocol--I'm not an INFJ for nothin', baby!), but the greatest change will have to be in my own bookkeeping. I need to remember my two goals: Goal #1: Get out of debt; and Goal #2: Maximize our savings. I also need to remember that the last time I followed a strict budget, we were able to buy our house. That should be a pretty good incentive, no?

*From The Goonies, remember? I live for that movie!
**Dee Lee absolutely killed me with her repetition of this mantra, but she had the last laugh: 4 years later it's still my guiding principle re: personal finance. You win, Dee Lee!