Profile

I am twenty-nine years old. I work as an assistant production manager and my yearly salary is $52,000. I live in NYC, which is occasionally awesome for picking up side hustle work, since there’s just so much stuff here.

Saving & Spending

Can I just say that when checked out my editorial calendar to see what I was planning to write for today, I was shocked to realize it’s the last day of April. Where did this month go??

So this month I definitely did ok with side hustling. Honestly, a little too ok opportunities wise. I’m now so overwhelmed I have no idea how I’m going to survive this week. If I can just make it to Sunday night… life will be so much better.

I picked up a gig building props for another show. They asked me if I knew how to rig a curtain too, so I said sure and they said we’ll call you our scenic consultant too then. I said “whatever.” It’s all been uphill from there.

What they really meant was we’re going to call you our b*tch. Definitely the worst side hustle of my life. Based on my initial conversation with the producer, it was supposed to be a super easy gig. And the pay is very, very low. But I liked the show and thought, why not? It’ll be two or three days of work when I wouldn’t’ve been doing much anyway.

Turns out the director is kind of nuts and dreams BIG. And changes her mind OFTEN. And I am losing my MIND. Also, there is like no budget. Oh, also, that procrastination thing – totally bit me in the behind. Hardcore.

It’s pretty much a lose, lose situation that I’m just trying to get to the end of now.

I also picked up a stage management one off for what I actually consider a decent chunk of change to work one long say and turn up at one of their rehearsals. The problem is finding time in my schedule to make it to their rehearsals.

When I accepted the job, this usually wouldn’t be a problem, because our Production Assistant works all the Saturdays. Except, you know, she quit. Going into our busiest month of the year. And as next lowest on the totem pole, my boss promptly assigned me all the Saturdays.

I also got my Etsy shop opened, although the stock is pretty paltry. I also experimented with two new flavors that were total busts, so back to the drawing board there.

I also wrote a pretty popular post in the Stage Management community this month – How to Stock a Stage Management Kit on a Budget – that actually gave me a decent Adsense boost and some Amazon income. Neither are anywhere near sending me checks yet, but it was exciting.

The least stressful thing I’ve been doing all month has been occasionally contributing to Holly from Club Thrifty’s new travel website – Travel Blue Book. It’s actually pretty awesome and you should check it out.

But it is what it is. I’ll feel so victorious come Monday morning when I haven’t dropped dead… or killed anyone involved in the props side hustle in a fit of rage.

Also, if I manage to pull off the stage management one-off, I can cross another resolution off my list. I actually called them about a week ago to politely resign from the job and they flat out told me no. I have no idea what to make of that. There are a few signs that this could be a difficult gig too but at least the money makes up for this one.

I feel like there’s a Side Hustles Gone Bad post in my near future.

As far as spending goes, I actually did a little better than normal this month – even if my net worth might not reflect it yet. I’ve got all the purchases for the current props gig on my credit card right now and haven’t turned in the receipts for reimbursement yet.

I finally dumped a small chunk of change in my IRA and plan to be able to do the same next month. I hit the minimum spend of my nifty new Barclay’s card, so I guess I can buy my ticket to FinCon anytime now.

 

My goals are pretty much the same as last month. I’m still planning to contribute to my IRA, so I think I’ll be able to get that maxed out and I want to get my emergency savings up to at least $5,000 by the end of the year. I’d also like to invest in another stock.

I’m also trying to figure out what to do to ring in my 30th Birthday. I still have a while to go, but both of my best friends came up with fun things to do – Paint Night and a 14-person bike pub crawl – since I’m next, the pressure’s on now. Currently leaning toward late night drunken roller skating in Staten Island or a murder mystery dinner

Thoughts?

 

**Where’s the net worth update, you ask? Coming soon. I’m honestly just so swamped now, I’m choosing sleep over updating charts. Fortunately, I typed up the rest of this a few nights ago.**