It was nice to have a four day holiday weekend prior to my final four days at work. It didn't seem long enough though. We had to travel to both sets of relatives because we'll be out of the country in December.

I have two offices located in two different towns. I drove the 80 miles over to the one that I don't go to much these days. I went out to lunch with about 15 of my coworkers/acquaintences from there. I also visited some of the other people at that location and said my 'goodbyes.' Now I just have to make it through three days at my local office. I have to finish cleaning out my desk and deleting old email and files from my computer.

I'm looking forward to this. It wasn't my choice to leave; I was downsized when another company bought my company. It's okay though. I've been wanting to get out of there for five years and just never had it in me to leave on my own.

Spending for today: $0. (My former manager bought my lunch!)

I’ve been reading the forum and a couple of the blogs for a while now so it is time to jump in.

I am a mid-30’s woman. DH is early 40’s. We’ve been married just short of ten years. In exactly two weeks I will have my last day of work. My department has been eliminated because of a corporate merger. I had a well paying job that more than provided for a decent living. I am not sad to be losing this job; it is time to move on. I have known about my termination for almost a year. In this time I have started to think about my financial situation and about the accomplishments I have achieved and areas where I could do better. Notice I say ‘I’. That’s because DH has very little to do with our finances.

Debt:
1. Started with student loan debt of 30,000. Now it is down to just under 5,000.
2. Purchased house for 127,000. Balance = 94000. 11 years remaining.
3. Purchased and still paying for a car. Balance = 11800

That’s the liabilities side. At the moment I am too shy to give the asset side of the equation. I am pleased with my assets but I am really looking back at the past ten years and I am beginning to realize how much more I could have done. This is depressing for me when I think about how much money I have wasted.

What is also frustrating for me is that I can’t get DH on board. He is not overly extravagant but at the same time I feel he spends too much on stuff that is not necessary. I make much more than he does and yet I am the frugal one? Here’s a great example that just happened. We have used the same brand of salon hair products since we’ve been together and it is more expensive than what you’d buy at a discount store. Thanks to the freebies section of this site I recently received a shampoo and conditioner sample pack. That little pack lasted me four days! I was on the phone to DH tonight. He frequently stays at hotels. I asked if the hotel room came with the shampoo bottles and could he please bring them home to me. His response: “Are we that hard up?”

Oh… I am hoping this blog doesn’t turn into one long rant about DH, but right now his attitude is really frustrating me given our upcoming financial situation in light of the fact that I am going to be unemployed on December 1 and may not want to return to work for 6 months, 9 months, 12 months.

Aside from that venting, I am here to learn and share. I believe taking little steps can really make a difference overall. Using a $1.00 coupon here or there, cutting back on this or that, finding a good interest rate. I am also looking at ways to take my assets to the next level.