When I was hoping for a raise at the end of the year, I was already starting to budget for things that I normally could not afford.
I wanted a new car, a better cell phone, and a new work wardrobe.
My fixation pushed me to visit several car dealerships for test drives, and I even went as far as negotiating a potential price if I received the raise. With the cell phone and work wardrobe, I had credit cards to cover both while waiting for the raise. This was my major mistake, as the long awaited raise never came. When I realized that I amassed two thousand dollars of extra credit card debt because I foolishly counted on money that did not yet exist, I was disgusted with myself and my behavior. I cannot believe I actually spent money I did not even have yet, and now I am paying the price in more ways than one. With no raise and new credit card expenses to pay, I wasn’t happy when my electricity bill kept increasing over a 12 month period. I kept wondering if my house had different energy demands for different parts of the year, but I kept seeing an increase with all other variables the same. I called to have a full HVAC inspection hoping that there was an explanation that involved my heating and cooling system with regards to my increasing electricity bill. Little did I know, my air conditioner and furnace had reached their natural demise and the system needed to be replaced. Now that I have a new central heating and cooling system in my house, my electricity bills are consistently affordable month after month. That just leaves me with the credit card debt to sort out.