Woken by pain...

this morning at 9am that is. Got up at 3:30am last night and popped a painkiller, rinsed my mouth with saline water before returning to sleep. It felt like somebody is chiseling away at my jaw. Well, the dentist surely was, I heard sounds from the electric drill. Face/jaw is still swollen. 

Just had my breakfast (congee), medicine and now slowly (really slowly like you wouldn't believe) chewing on grapes, my mouth immediately felt sore the moment I opened it. Great. Mom's been helpful in suggesting that I cut them in halves to make easier entry to the mouth. The pain is still putting me off from doing anything productive, so catching up with blog posts that is!

2015 goals reviewed and looking forward

So I had the privilege of a few days' down time chillin' at home, due to a surgical dental extraction (PAIN!!) and wound stitching (TMI!). When the anesthesia is gone, it's really painful to the point that I couldn't sleep and had to take analgesics, and keeping a liquid/soft diet. Now half of my face is swollen up like a balloon. Not pretty. Plus, it hurts like somebody had punched my face, bruised and dug a hole on it, it felt very sore. The few days off could be more productive (had plans in the household area) but the pain is keeping me off from doing anything at all. Not even Internet, but hey, I remember and cherish this little corner and you lovely frugal friends on the cyber space :)

I haven't properly posted here since April, can you believe it's that time of the year already?? The past few months had been a blur, I dreaded in going to work, once I struggled to, it's like 11-12 hours per day, go home, have supper, shower, do the dishes, then off to bed. Barely any time to wind down and do my own stuff (from idling to Internet browsing, let alone blogging). If I stayed up at night (aka more 'me' time), I'd be exhausted the next day and the cycle repeats. One thing I had to be strict about is bed time, yeah like a kid. If I'm lucky that night that we're heading out for supper, which means no dishes. The work situation really is dreadful - there's no way around it and won't change anytime soon. I used to joke that the current role enables me to save more, i.e. too busy to do any mindless shopping, but being the holiday season in November to December, it isn't helping so far, lol. We shall see.

Back to the core business. Frugal living. Makes me panic the other day when I looked up and realized I had no definite ideas of what goals to achieve in 2016. More panic when I realized the latter half of 2015 was gone and I didn't do well in terms of adhering to my budget. Here's some financial milestones of 2015:

- I had taken a baby step towards investment, e.g. buying some stocks (on the advice/recs from my dad), earning dividends. I have no intention to put more money in it now since it's a volatile market and there's a possibility I will get carried away and put more/win some/lose more money;

- I just signed up a savings plan, which I consider it a safety nest to put some of my eggs into, and will start earning some guaranteed interests (similar to dividend but it's not a stock, idk how to call it) starting the 2nd year. This is a big step for me as it means I need to be financially committed (in the form of a fixed amount) every year, also a step that I've dreaded for 3-4 years. Sure I could be more aggressive in terms of the financial commitment per year as well as the guaranteed interest rates, but then I had other plans in mind that I'd like to purchase in the coming few years such as insurance, which is why I think I'm happy with the amount signed up for now;

- Who knew I could make some extra earnings from doing surveys? I did :) and I kept a figure of how much I made, it's not much but it certainly helps;

- I discontinued a monthly subscription box which brings happy little surprises, originally a monthly treat to self, I now find my room is stuffed to the brim and don't need any wondering of 'hit or miss'es;

- I did only 2 major clothes shopping this year, aside from undergarments and replacement of PJs, not sure how it will be like next year but it certainly cheered me (& wardrobe) up without breaking the bank. I didn't buy any shoes (slippers not counted) nor handbags;

- Aimless trips to supermarkets avoided.

Things I could have done better (financial or not), these will probably be 2016 goals:

- Adhere strictly to the budget, precisely spending on entertainment, cutting away mindless/impulse buys, and stop being sucked in by the word 'sale' and 'offer' and 'gifts'. Apparently this is still a MAJOR work in progress;

- Clocked in approx 130 No Spend Days this year, could definitely do more and get closer to 150;

- Side hustles fluctuated plus I'm busier in new role right now, 2-3k per month used to be attainable but no longer, I'd be ecstatic if able to make extra 1k per month;

- Saving for down payment: see financial milestones above, still a MAJOR work in progress, I'm thinking what to do with the blog progress bar;

- Explore funds and ETFs;

- Could be more diligent in cleaning and tidying my room (dust bunnies);

- Working out what are the 'essentials' in everything: from wardrobe to timetable, to routine to life;

- Traveled more;

- Be a better listener and partner;

- Keeping up with frugal blogosphere, internalize frugal living as a habit;

- Read more books/magazines, plus I'm close to not 1 but 2 libraries;

- Reevaluate my assets distribution, particularly the retirement funds (dreaded for a few years), do a shopping on bank offers;

- Exercise!! 

- Not bringing credit cards out on most days will help greatly in driving down impulse buys;

- Clear new emails every day.

My goals for next year is loosely laid out, some of the housekeeping/personal development/health and personal care goals will be similar to that of 2015 so they are likely to stay on the 2015/6 page...all in all, it's an OK year but definitely could accomplish a lot more. As far as 2016 is concerned, I'm not sure how the struggle between work and life will be, so I tend to be on the safe side not to make goals that are too radical. The older I become, the more I appreciate certainty and routines. The adventurous side will be kept for travels :) Very often I find myself hoping for a 'normal' year instead of an exciting one. Is anyone of you like that?

Now off to do the calculations of November...

Hello, world!

I've left the blogosphere for a good 6 months, with some quick monthly wrap-up in between but that ain't blogging!

The latest development was: I got switched to a much busier role at work, so for the coming months I would be making a huge transition in terms of mindset, workload and routine. It'll probably mean a big overhaul of everything: from wardrobe (still feeling like a drab with clothes that have seen better times), to exercising, to discipline (time-wise), etc. If I'm adapting well, this should take 6-9 months before I can truly settle down.

On the other hand, stuff and more stuff are piling up in my room that I absolutely want to get rid of, but they're not trash nor papers, so that's going to take some time.

I hope everyone has been doing well during my absence, I'll make extra effort to post regularly, because I clearly need to establish a routine amidst everything that's changing.

Slow Sunday

On this slow weekend, I opted to stay in and hence 2 NSDs.

A few things that were forgotten in the last post, I made a decision to quit one of my side-hustle. Although it doesn't earn much, it does take up a bit of time and more often than expected, I found myself dreaded at the thought of working on it. To put it simply, I told the supervisor that I will have an impending change on my workplace, and that will take time to settle in; secondly but more importantly, I want to free some time to pursue my projects (e.g. de-cluttering, spending time with loved ones and family, exercise, catching up with blogs, or just plain idle...). But to keep things open, I did not exclude the possibility of picking it up in the future - if my work situation allows (but I doubt). Anyways, I felt free.

Starting from April, every month went not frugally, and I intend to change that. I found that jotting down tiny frugal things every few days / per week helps a great deal in keeping me on the frugal / resourceful course instead of looking anywhere to spend. I am also considering keeping a small, palm-sized note pad (and a pen obviously) in my bag whenever I go, so when I think of something, usually a to-do item, or a vague idea like meditation, some project that needs further consideration, I will write it down. Why not use a phone as a notepad? I have done that and the list ended up with many other miscellaneous items, and I cannot cross them out after completion of certain tasks (erase is the only option), I prefer something that allows me to check, check, tick and done.

The idea of keeping a physical to-do list is beneficial in a way I did not expect: when near to tears with boredom this weekend, I looked through the list (now still shreds of papers stapled together instead of a notepad), and realized I could use the time to complete some of the stuff that I've been dragging on: finish reading Mrs Moneypenny's book, draft a letter to the building management office, a wardrobe purge (see? this thing crept up every 6 months. Bastard.), clean my room floor, to rotate shoes (#firstworldproblem), exercise (as far as I'm concerned, with the heat and rainy weather, this will remain as scribbles on the paper instead of an item...sad). 

So the easiest was of course to finish the book where I left off months ago, and I couldn't find it anywhere! Wardrobe purge: not really feel like it now. Mop the floor? The flat below me is blasting their air-con so my floor is trickled with cold water droplets because of the temperature difference (I offed the air-con when I wake up)! It would be futile for me to wipe the floor clean when such situation is anticipated to last until summer finishes.

I turned to rummage through the cupboards and then found some noodles that were close to expiry dates, had one for lunch. Rummaging through the other cupboards I picked out some tubes and jars that are unopened and won't be used, off they go to my friends then. The travel book I borrowed from a friend - it's no longer sitting on my desk but off to the bag it goes - I'll return it when I see him for a dinner or something after work. A few reading materials on the side-hustle that I was working for? The recycle bin! 

I also reserved a book on de-cluttering (the mind and the home) with a click, didn't know it was that easy! Now I just have to wait patiently since there are others who are also waiting for the book. Think this deserves a frugal point!

For the rest of today, I'm catching up with some blog reading and will be charting my frugal course for August. 

I may or may not have mentioned in the last post, that some of the items in the wardrobe are looking a bit washed out and tatty (e.g. black turned dark grey with white cast on top, colors that no longer look like when they're new thanks to the mixed color wash and transfer of dye/colors during wash, things that no longer look good because I've grown fat in the belly - YIKES especially on the last one). I found that shabby looking clothes really dampen my spirits and outlook, I'd feel shabby the whole day and felt compared to, even when my bag is new. After some analyzing that most items in my current wardrobe had lasted 1-3 years, some of them are just outdated, gone tatty, and some of them just don't look good anymore. With this in mind, I have a clothes shopping trip planned next next week, I'd be uber careful and cautious when I consider bringing a new item in, however. This is due to concerns with space, ease of washing with other items (color transfer), style in question (compatibility with my activities and other items), and material. I deliberately pushed this shopping trip later and later, frankly I just want to faint when looking at the current wardrobe, I'm not sure if I have the guts to bring anything new in before cleaning something out, this is something I dreaded on and on. Secondly, some bargains might be at their best when we're stepping into the next season. 

Also on the same note, I really need a change on my hair, it no longer looks crisp nor fresh, instead it looks out of place, still thinking on how to proceed with this one. I may change haircut twice per year to three times per year in order to feel my best. Hope this doesn't come across as vanity, but how I look really affects how I feel (low confidence, insecurity, shy away from this or that). I could no longer deny it when looking at the mirror, and this has become more frequent than before.

As July is drawing to a close, the monthly wrap-up will be up in the coming few days. I'd have a weekend getaway next week so I hope everyone has had a great month!

What are your plans in August?

Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2015

Yoohoo! Since I was away for most of the month, my savings rate pumped up to 55.33%! But I was spending money everyday when on vacation, so up to 30th June my NSDs for this year is 65. My goal is 150 days, well I'll try to make it happen! There's no granny money to be paid this month, nothing, nada, so my monthly contribution money went straight to its determined account, that was great.

So, the trip, it was a blast. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and am thinking of going back there again already (even though impossible in the near future). Now I know the freedom (also peril) of traveling and spending money every day. It was great to be able to forget most 'rules' I've set for myself, and get a treat/eat/try anything I want; but once I'm back home, old habits die hard! 

Other than the trip, nothing much has taken place this month, zero exercise, read 1 book (travel-related). I did try my best to settle the post-travel materials (wash and everything) into their respective place in the wardrobe. The investment earnings in the account seemed to be dropping this month was the general market wasn't doing very well, I'm a bit worried but think it should be OK as long as I'm holding onto them and not desperate to sell them at their lowest. I heard a good advice though - I get muddled when being a bit desperate with the "wealth creating wealth" mindset, the advice was that don't put all your money in it, even if you're making earnings! There's that temptation thinking that the more money you put in, you're maximizing the earnings, but it isn't always about earning, it's also about timing, being sensible, rational and cautious.

What's to come hither? I had a few people to see, hopefully some exercise when the temps are cooler (can the weather get any hotter?!), a wardrobe culling and maybe a shopping trip (see below) is in store in August? I'll get a tiny raise so that helps with the savings rate too. A couple meals would be done outside as well since you know, catching up...it's not a very frugal outlook come July and August. As I'm writing, I've taken advantage of a mid-year sale and stocked up on some personal care items. Again, not frugal at all! Need to put more effort tuning back to frugal mode!

Things on my mind to think about:

- from 2 haircuts per year I'm starting to think it'll be nice to have it 3 times a year, I felt "lighter" (literally the way your shoulder does) once I've had a trim. Also thinking about making it shorter;

- *maybe* taking up swimming (classes or not) again because my belly could use some fat-burn;

- need to get new swimsuit, swim cap, and goggles in that case;

- my wardrobe, badly needs an update I think?! Some of the items albeit I love them, is becoming tatty or just looks out of place? I felt a bit old-fashioned sometimes compared with what others are wearing - but tbh there's nothing wrong with the clothes I was wearing, no they aren't from the 90s! Don't know what was going on, my eyes or brain playing a trick on me?

- in relation to the previous point, perhaps I should consider going on a white/black/grey/navy color palette with my wardrobe so time and effort can be saved each morning, and each time doing laundry. Have to think more on this first, since I'm not ready to give up on colors!

Hope everyone will have a nice month ahead - I'll be slowly catching up with unread blog posts...but time for bed now! :)