Profile

I am thirty four years old and I started out the month as the Stage Manager of Things That Go Ding! at Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. However, the show ended on the 3^rdand I’ve spent the rest of the month as a vagabond.

Saving & Spending

This month I put $500 into my IRA and $291 into my HSA.

Those were pretty much my only financial wins.

I finally had to dip into some of the money I saved up for the six month of unemployment, but nothing tragic, and when I calculated my net worth, I was pretty excited it had only gone down $700.

I spent most of the month traveling.

From the job in Milwaukee, I drove to Colorado and spent a few days in the mountains with my family. I only skied the one day (because lift tickets are ridiculously expensive), but I enjoyed hanging out with everyone. It had been a long time since I made it on one of the family ski trips.

From Colorado, my dad drove back to New Jersey with me. Not gonna lie, the bank of dad paid for gas and our hotel room along the way, despite my protests that I could handle it.

After a few days in New Jersey, I headed to Europe with my cousin Sam and we explored Prague, Vienna and Budapest.

The trip was really fantastic and we had a great time, but we did had one expensive issues out there. We got bedbugs in the AirBnB we used in Budapest. Not only did we get hit with an extra hotel fee when we ditched the AirBnB as soon as we figured out what was happening, there was also a last minute shopping trip to H&M to pick up some decontaminated clothes and then a trip to Target once I got home to replace several things that had to be thrown out.

As unpleasant as that was financially, it was nothing compared to the 80+ bug bites on my body that have turned into pus filled, itchy, painful boils. It turns out I really react to bed bug bites. :0/ I’m looking forward to them healing eventually, but for now, I look like I have the bubonic plague, especially on my face. Ugh.

When I got home, I also decided to go visit a friend in Nashville and got concert tickets for a show out there, so maybe I’m doing YOLO a little more right this month.

My expenses this month:

• Food – $306.14
• Car  – $120.25
• Healthcare – $140.63
• brokeGIRLrich – $7.99
• Jewelry – $32.72
• Travel to Colorado – $79.56
• Fun – $384.25
• Gifts – $6.34
• Speeding Ticket – $190.32
• Prague, Vienna, Budapest Trip – $837.68
• Clothes – $87.52
• Tuition – $650.50
• Credit Card Reward – $-164.00

Total Spending in March: $2,679.90 

Hustling

My income this month was from stage managing at Skylight, another check from The Tonight Show, and brokeGIRLrich.

• Stage Managing – $827.35
• The Tonight Show – $405.91
• brokeGIRLrich – $611.82

Income This Month: $1,845.08

Oh, hey, and just a reminder that if you came out a little ahead this month too, That Frugal Pharmacist could still use a few bucks as they figure out life with their sick kid. You can read the whole story and donate via this link. Or if you’re doing some Amazon shopping, you can do it via their link at the bottom of their website and at no cost to you, they’ll get some kickback from Amazon.

Most Popular Post of the Month: 40+ Stores That Sell ModCloth for Less

My Favorite Post to Write This Month: My Secret Tricks to Breaking $100,000 Net Worth by 34

Goals

• Start eating better. I still wonder if this is this quantitative? And it still doesn’t matter this month. I failed anyway. 
• Work out more. See above. Though I did ski several times and walk quite a few miles in Europe each day.
• Better stress management. I am doing well with this. I mean…. not working for a month is pretty awesome, stress—wise.
• Keep taking accounting classes. Nailing it. 
• Do two things to build up my stage management skills. I went to an APA sponsored pyrotechnics course, so one skill project done.
• Take music lessons while I’m home for a few months. Fail.
• Spend more time with family and friends. Success!
• Be more supportive of family and friends when I can’t be there in person. Yes, maybe?
• Go out on a date. Fail.
• Make an effort to not withhold kind words and encouragement. Check.
• Max out my Roth IRA. On track. 
• Max out my HSA. On track. 
• Set aside $5,000 for my house downpayment account. No progress here. 
• Set aside $2,000 for my new car account. No progress here. 
• Invest $2,000. No progress here. 
• Read more. I finished Grit and Elevation by Stephen King.
• Learn to make macaroons. No further progress. 
• Visit two roadside attractions. Wild Bill’s Prop Shop in Connecticut, the Mars Cheese Castle, the National Bobblehead Museum, the Lake Geneva Ice Castle.