Photo Credit: ashengrove

Odd comparison, I know, but hear me out. I was thinking about some of my schools and the bad lunches. The burgers were dry, pizza had barely any sauce, and their chicken was rubbery. It just stunk. One thing that no school could screw up was the fries. Fries are amazing (not even going to analyze why fries are a big part of school diets) and were always fantastic. Anyways, I guard my fries.

I would trade things I didn’t want (nasty chicken patty, BBQ Special) for more fries, which I lovee.

That’s a bit like how we should be with our money. Cut down on what you don’t love and enjoy and spend on the things that matter to you. My husband and I don’t have cable. It’s not a big deal because we don’t want a lot of TV. We do have high speed internet. Besides writing this site, I do a lot of my finances, research, play games, etc online. Ask my husband. I also love to read books, so TV doesn’t appeal to me as much as other people. I might be sad I missed a few specials, but I usually get around that because my friends have similar interests and cable.  

Money’s purpose is to reduce stress and help you enjoy life more not stress you out and control you. High amounts of debt on high interest accounts only take money away from you and keep you in the hole for a long, long time.

Saving up money just to save is as dumb as spending money just because you have it.

1. Have a plan with your money.
2. Save some for short term and long term goals.
3. Pay off your debts and bills
4. Have some fun.

BTW: Happiness and fun are not synonymous. Happiness is lasting and fun is temporary. (I had that explained to me last night and I liked it.)

What is money like to you? What do you consider unimportant and what is important to you (in terms of how you spend your money)?

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

• Panda Budget (Very) Beta I know a lot of readers are college students and are looking for ways to improve their finances. Some of them may be strapped for cash, but still want to be responsible with their money. My husband was kind enough to write a program to help budget someone's money. It's......
• Marriage and Money: Financial Game Plan This series was inspired by the recent marriage in our family. I organized some information with my brother in law and new sister in law in mind. If you find these tips to be useful, please share them. Congratulations on getting married. I hope you have a happy and long......

• Health Care Spending in 2016 According to a WebMD article Health Care Spending will reach 20% of all spending in 2016. This is an amazing number to me, but it's really not that surprising. As baby boomers get older it makes sense that more money would go towards health care. Medical advances should continue at......
• 4 Tips for Starting Off a Coin Collection For many, the hardest part of a hobby is actually getting that hobby started. This couldn’t be more true than it is for those who are looking to start a coin collection. With thousands of different coins available to collect, it can be hard to understand where to start or......