Monthly Money Check-In: May 2013

I am not feeling very happy right now. It's been a long time, months, since pulling this monthly report has brought a real sense of joy, of accomplishment.

I got a commission this month, finally, and I sent the entire thing, $900, to my student loans. What do I get? This.

 

In case you missed it, this is what nearly a thousand dollars looks like in the fight to pay off my student loans:

Jesus. Ugh, fine. I'm also down because my house is down in value, dragging my numbers down and making me look bad. The lying, cheating crook who sold it to me is supposed to buy it back (for $78,000, stab me in the eye) but it's taking forever, and I'm left with a nagging sense that I'm never going to be rid of this damn anchor that just keeps dragging me lower.

I do have some other goals that are affecting my finances. I am getting healthy, and I found that the only way I can stick to my diet is with promises of nice shoes. So I have bought two pairs of ridiculously expensive shoes in the last month, one pair of Nike frees that I designed online and one pair of flats, both to replace shoes that were three years old. And I've lost 10 pounds. Is that "ok" or the "correct" thing to do? I sure as hell done know, but I'm just mucking my way to a better self.

Plus, I think I have a really big commission coming in the next few months. Don't count your chickens before they hatch, I know, I know.

So, here's what we're looking like this month. I had to add up how far I would have come in the last month if it weren't for my stupid house.

So I still put more in my emergency fund, I still paid off that chunk (nibble) of my student loan. Hey, they started at $14k and now we're down to $11k. My positive attitude is what is most important, so I'll have to look for that somewhere around here. 

And Hey, I'm almost half way to my emergency fund! If I lost my job, I could afford to live for almost three months, without calling my mother crying. Hooray for that!