Rock Climbing = Stress Relief

Talk about random! I decided that I need to be more active, get some more exercise and meet new people…and I am so tired of the boring gym.

My solution: rock climbing!

I found an indoor wall 3 miles from my house, open in the evenings until late…and I couldn’t be happier. I was scared walking in. I didn’t know what I was walking in to. I didn’t call; I was just going to look around. Two minutes later I was in a harness going over safety with another girl who just randomly happened to be a newbie too. I couldn’t have picked a better time to show up.

We spent about an hour scaling three or four walls and trying to stay away from the big group of people on the difficult walls while we learned the ropes. I was glowing after the first wall, and still truly excited even on the last wall. I knew I had to take it easy though, if I didn’t I would wake up in a world of pain, so an hour was all I attempted, and I totaled maybe five short climbs.

And I am going back….very soon!

Dog Training - Day 1 - Teaching how to Teach

The first thing that was stressed to us is actually to make the dogs feel comfortable with the space they are training in. Surprisingly, this is done by having the dogs potty (yes, I said potty!) in the training area (the front lawn, in case you were wondering). To continue working on their “confidence” my homework for the week is to get them to potty in strange places and on the leash.

We also worked on getting the dogs to sit instead of jump on us. We have to actually entice them to jump on us, and when they sit they get treated. Eventually it will work into a treat only if they sit with no jumping before they sit. We also worked on the down and sit commands, and on how to break a dog of its ‘fixation’ by using touch (cats are usually fixations).

Apparently there are three ‘stages’ to dog training (I call them stages at least): teach, train and proof, and proof is using training in real world situations. The first stage, teach, will last a few more weeks, probably into week 5 or so.

I am still not impressed by the dog trainer’s professionalism. He was 40 minutes late starting the session...But, it really seems like he knows what he is talking about, we completed two hours of ‘teaching’, and he is fair. See, the last time we tried an expensive dog trainer, we were not prepared for the extent of training necessary. We didn’t have the time and we didn’t realize the commitment needed. My mother and I dropped close to $800 on that training, and after the first session asked to put training on hold so we could better prepare.

By the time we called back, many months later, we were told that we were too late, our money was non refundable, and even though we only had one lesson they would not continue training or give us our money back. The worst part was being told this was in the contract we signed. Sadly, I spoke with the trainer who had no problem putting our training hold back then, but that trainer was no longer with the company, which sounds like the real problem with the refund.

Total Cost: $87 per session ($350 for two dogs, four-two-hour-long sessions)

Benefits:
- I can control Nickel when he revs up to attack another dog; I know how to correct this
- I know how to use a corrective touch

Homework:
- Potty in strange places
- Sit opposed to Jump
- Down to Stand to Down (looks like doggy yoga)

Still leaking money....

I realized last month that my biggest spending leak is in food. Okay…so maybe I’ve known for a while that this was a problem, whatever, at least I’m doing something about it. Right? So instead of just idly tracking this budget and watching it as it crosses over into the red each month, I decided to try going cash only for food expenses. This actually worked, for the first few weeks….and then I realized my trips through drive thru windows went up. I guess this had an opposite effect on me, when I have cash I want to spend it.

So, now I am trying to reign in this spending with new rules…no more drive thru windows. If I have to get out of my car then there is less of a chance I will stop for fast food, and more of a chance I will run into a grocery store instead. At least that’s what I am hoping. I will still try using cash only and see how it works out.

My budget for food is still really high. I need to lower that number as well...but that will come later, one step at a time for now.

But then again, maybe I am going about this all wrong. Can I really modify my behavior by enacting rules against myself? What do you think?

A Long and Un-Eventful Weekend

I didn't much of anything I set out to do this weekend...and I managed to spend a lot of money in the process.

Saturday my parents and I went to a City Wide Garage Sale. It was not as fun as I thought it would be. I found a few things for myself, and a few things to sell online, nothing that great thought. I took my mom out to dinner on Saturday, and paid for drinks with a friend later that night. I ended up staying in Sunday battling what may have turned into a migraine (no, not just a hangover).

I also set myself up for a much needed massage. I am considering going back to monthly massages again. As much as I try to put it in the WANT category and dismiss it, It always ends up back in the NEED category when the headaches and pain start back up. So now I have some juggling to do with my budget.

I have been eating out too much again. I found myself using my credit card for some meals over the weekend. (It gets paid off weekly, don't fret). That means I am off budget on food this month, since I couldn't pay for it with my Food Budget Cash.

Friday Link Fest

This is my first round up of articles from the past few weeks!

Enjoy!!

Trent at The Simple Dollar answers a readers question: Is this all there is?

Man vs Debt shows us How not to suck at blogging!

WiseBread shows us how to shop Craigslist for a slammin deal!

Lazy Man and Money writes about the price placebo effect....I know I've fallen victim to this!

Budgets are Sexy outlined the ways the internet has transformed banking

Dumb Little Man teaches us how to control constant worrying

Generation X Finance shares tips on plugging money leaks

How do I balance saving for the future and having a life right now?

Recently I have been struggling with savings, spending, what I want vs. what I need, and basically all of the principles and methods of building wealth. I am not having a hard time with saving money…actually the amount I am saving each month is increasing, even thought I have had to make some big purchases lately. I am struggling with spending money on myself.

I found out last week about a concert this Friday that I would love to go to. I have the money to afford it in savings, it wont be that expensive….maybe $150 with the cost of food and transportation. So why have I been struggling for the past week to make the decision to spend a little on a concert I would love to see? I would have jumped at this opportunity a few years back, paid with a credit card and taken the day off work. Now, I have the money in savings and I don’t have to take the day off, just go after work….but I’m still stuck.

I’ve been thinking the idea over, and decided to get it down in words….what the heck is my problem? What am I afraid of? I am afraid it will be a waste of money…that I will hate the concert or not have a good time then I will regret spending the money on it. That fear is overriding the fear that I will regret going in the first place. So how do I make it over this hurdle?

Has spending money on yourself ever caused an internal conflict for you?

Net Worth October 2009

Assets   $ Diff % Diff Cash $18,136 - - Stocks $0 - - Bonds $0 - - Annuities $0 - - Retirement $3,728 - - Home $135,000 - - Other Real Estate $0 - - Cars $4,665 - - Personal Property $0 - - Other $0 - - Total Assets $161,529 - -

Debts   $ Diff % Diff Home Mortgage(s) $134,004 - - Other Mortgage(s) $0 - - Student Loans $21,267 - - Credit Card $268 - - Car Loans $0 - - Other $0 - - Total Debts $155,539 - -   Net Worth $5,990 - -

+$1262

Not bad...not that great either, but I will take it! Check me out at NetWorthIQ.