Yard Sale and Weekend Update

(Betsy): Dave Ramsey has coined several phrases and ideas (i.e. "Live like no one else so [that later,] you can live like no one else.") One of our favorite components to his teachings is his idea of attacking debt with "gazelle intensity." Let me explain.

Imagine a camera skimming Africa's grassland habitat (think: Discovery Channel/Travel Channel). You may spot an occasional tree or pond, but we all know the camera man's true intentions. Somewhere nearby is a herd of animals--probably gazelles--with a predator--the cheetah--close by. The camera man continues filming as the gazelles become aware that their enemy is on the prowl. When the cheetah makes his move, darting towards the group of seemingly helpless animals, the gazelles scatter and run like hell. Usually, the cheetah chooses one victim, and a cat and mouse chase develops over the next few seconds. If you concentrate on the gazelle, you will notice that he (or she) is running from the cheetah with a 'focused-intentsity'. In other words, this gazelle is on a mission: to get away from this cheetah, and get away fast. His life depends on escaping his hunter.

We, the American consumer population, are much like the gazelles; our predator, credit card debt. We are constantly being encouraged to go into debt so that we can have what we want instantly. We are encouraged to finance cars, furniture, cosmetic surgeries, televisions, homes, the list goes on... When we finally realize that our lives our now swallowed in debt, we begin to panic. Dave Ramsey argues that we should run like hell from credit card companies, with this 'focused intentsity' that the gazelles use. Likewise, we should be using this same intensity to pay off our debts. Sell things you don't use or need. Work extra hours. Pick up an additional job. Whatever it takes.

Scott and I are fortunate to only have car debt. But, let me tell you, we HATE it. Scott makes double payments each month, and we are both making compromises and sacrifices in order to stick to our budget. We are on schedule to pay off the loan in 12 (or fewer) months. We are incredibly happy with that, as the loan was originally scheduled to be paid off in 5.5 years! To illustrate our 'gazelle intensity' (our roommates now have it too!!), we had a yard sale. Not only was this a great time to make some extra cash, but we also were able to spend some quality time with my roommates. We had many laughs and many customers. The yard sale also gave us the opportunity to meet some of our neighbors and learn some interesting history about our 18th century home.

 

On a much different note, Scott and I started a new book, Super Freakonomics. The authors, two economists, put a unique twist on interesting topics. For example, they propose that you are at greater risk by walking drunk than by driving drunk. We are currently reading a chapter on why "A Street Prostitute is Like a Department Store Santa." Interesting stuff... 

Everyone, have a great week!

Labor Day Weekend

(Betsy): Hello all! I hope everyone is enjoying the transition from summer to fall. While I'm a huge fan of warmer weather, I'd have to say, fall is probably my favorite season; there is something refreshing about crisp air, and who doesn't love the beautiful outdoors during September/October?!

Like most of you, Scott and I started our September with a long, fun-filled weekend (with a lot of studying in between). Friday afternoon, we drove to the central library where I was able to get a significant amount of reading done for class, and Scott was able to finish up some things from his work week. The downtown library is gorgeous. In the past couple of years, the structure has changed quite a bit, and visitors get this cool "old/traditional meets modern/state-of-the-art" experience. It is definitely worth checking out if you are in the area.

On Saturday, Scott's parents came down for the last Indianapolis Indians' game. We enjoyed some wine at Tastings before heading to Weber Grill where we met Scott's aunt, uncle, and cousins (It was so great meeting you guys!). After a great dinner, we headed to the game (less than a mile walk) on a perfect night. Although I've never been a huge baseball fan, it has been fun learning baseball lingo. I now know what a pinch-hitter is, and I am slowly learning the dynamic between the different professional levels (i.e. Indians versus Yankees,etc.). Scott is super excited to take me to a Cubs' game (on our 30 list!), and, from what he has told me, the subculture at these games is nothing short of exciting...Anyway, I don't know that I've ever sat through an entire baseball game, but the fireworks show at the end of the game certainly made it worth it! We also were able to enjoy the entire night for less than $40. Between Tastings, dinner, and food at the game, we could have easily spent $70-80, but by budgeting and only spending cash, we were much more aware of where our money was going. Call us nerds, but we were SO excited about that!

We also spent Sunday with family. We headed to Danville, IN for my family's annual hog roast. Here are some pics we snapped:

Breena and Scott

My dad and his beautiful wife, JC :)

Only the sweetest little cousins ever....Chris and Nick!!!!

The poor hog!

Hanna!!! and myself

Grandpa Al, my wonderful mother, and Janet L.

Finally, on Monday, Scott and I got to spend some quality time together at one of our favorite spots at the Lily Gardens in Indy (pictured to the right). The Lily Gardens is a seriously beautiful  hidden treasure, located behind the Indianapolis Museum of Art. There, we finished Mindfulness which turned out to be a really great book despite the sometimes drag content. I'll save my thoughts on the book...and share my absolute favorite story from it...for another post!

Also, I wanted to let some people know (specifically, Mo and Amanda) that you can subscribe to our blog (down at the bottom of the blog page) or "follow" us if you have a gmail account. You will automatically be sent updates when we update. I'll also send you the directions in an e-mail.

I cheated!!

(Betsy): Ok...so...you know that whole request from me in my earlier blog about praying that I didn't burn the house down...well, I was serious! I need your prayers, people!

Tuesday started out a lovely day. The weather was perfect, I was on time to work, and my amazing boyfriend had my lunch ready to go--tortilla chips, cheese, and a yogurt. My morning flew by, and I was all smiles....

Those smiles quickly turned to looks of horror when I realized I had set my office microwave on fire. I was trying to melt some cheese on the tortilla chips when I noticed the smell of smoke. Apparently, you can't microwave paper plates with aluminum on them (they were little plates from a child's birthday party with some crazy cartoon character)...who knew!

I quickly put the small fire out (turns out, I exaggerated a bit in the previous paragraph--i only sent the plate up in flames--not the entire microwave) with some water from a sink nearby. Needless to say, my lunch was burnt, and I had a major headache (probably induced from the stress of putting out a fire combined with an empty stomach). Then, I totally broke down. I admit it! I drove to the Mexican restaurant down the street, Real Hacienda, and bought chicken nachos!

Scott helped me rationalize the situation and made me feel better about eating out. So, we are adding one more day to our challenge to counteract my little episode at work. September 24th can not come soon enough!