Money Matters

Among the multiple domestic issues of the modern 20-something woman, there is one issue that cannot go neglected, cannot go with too many mistakes, and cannot be more confusing to figure out....MONEY. We are on our own, single or married, and somehow we need to manage our finaces. What kind of accounts should we use? How much should we keep in each? How do we budget, what do we budget? How do we plan for the future? How far into the future do we plan for?

Suddenly we are in a world where Mom and Dad are a more distant fallback. We have gone from being concerened with mall money and money to go out to eat with friends, to managing cell phones and college tuition... and now... total financial indepedence. "Fun money" has taken a backseat to car maintence, our own car insurance, saving for a car and/or a downpayment on a house, not to mention money for rent, ulilities (you are suddenly a pro at turning out lights in every room), extra gas money for roadtrips (the infamous Mesko trip to Niagra Falls!), etc. All these things are now in the forefront of our minds and calculators. The triumphant paycheck is suddenly spread thinner than ever before and somehow we need to figure out how to make it all work.

Andrea has a fun suggestion I'm sure she'll post soon, but I thought I would link you to a helpful article my Dad found for me. It's kind of geared toward government employees (found this is a work newsletter) but it is very applicable, clear and simple, and gives some guidance for the first steps of how to start managing your money like the grown ups that (I suppose) we are.

:)

http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?sid=1457466&nid=22