One woman with disabilities, and her journey to F.I.R.E. Financial Independence/ Retire Early
I had consumer debt (credit card debt), student loans, and a car loan. All of them charging me interest. I managed to shave years from my pay off date and save thousands in interest by utilizing this credit card hack. I opened a Discover card with 0% interest for 14 months. I then transferred my … Continue reading Debt free – faster!
You remember my three financial goals of 2018? I completed the first goal, then the second goal, and now, I MADE IT! I completed the third goal! To refresh for those of you who have missed it - I set three goals for 2018. They are as follows: 1) Emergency fund of $1,000 2) Credit card debt free3) … Continue reading HUGE NEWS! GOAL!
Hello all! Here is what I have to say to begin week two: I miss bubble water. I love carbonated water. Doesn't even need a flavor. It makes up the majority of my liquid consumption and BOY do I miss it! Tap water. Ick. Meh, getting used to it. Freebies this week: Chick Fil A gave … Continue reading Results: Snow Storm Challenge Week Two
Like many people, I just bought my liquid detergent at the store. I would buy whatever was least expensive, use coupons/bulk shop and call it. Then I started getting involved in the DIY realm and started making my own detergent and laundry soap. What I discovered over time was that the laundry soap was … Continue reading Ways to save: Laundry and dish detergent
To reiterate: Eat as though you are home bound due to a snow storm. I have several rule exceptions to this, but that's the main idea. I began with mom's Thanksgiving leftovers and then moved onto my pantry/freezer. There are a few pictures and a video below. I'm fairly well stocked in my pantry, and my … Continue reading Results: Snow Challenge Week 1
Short post, but I'm too excited to wait. After much up and down and back and forth I finally hit my goal of having a $1,000 emergency fund! All year long I've been struggling to put money away into an emergency fund as I realized that until I had one I would never stop cycling on … Continue reading Emergency fund: Funded!
As discussed in previous posts I regularly do pantry challenges to keep up rotation, prevent expiration, and use up those odd ball items. It challenges my creativity, beats back my sugar dragon, and is a kindness to my pocket book. I call this challenge: The Snow Storm Challenge. I was inspired several years ago by a … Continue reading Challenge: Snow storm 2018
One cannot live on SSDI alone, so I had to come up with something I could do that would bring in some income and I could do even when I was having a very bad day and in pain. Years after SSDI was granted for other issues I developed an idiopathic autoimmune condition. I have … Continue reading Income: Pet sitting
For the last twenty plus years I have wrestled with guilt. I call it, “survivor’s guilt,” as a riff on the original meaning. I survive today because programs exist to support people with disabilities at a rate far greater than the past. Yet there is such a stigma attached to using them when your disability … Continue reading Social Security Part 4: Guilt and Shame
In order to qualify for Social Security Disability you must meet federally established requirements for "permanent and total disability," including being unable to work for over a year in the future. You also must have completed enough work credits (worked enough reported full time hours) to qualify for the insurance benefit. I believe I only … Continue reading Social Security (SSDI): The numbers. Part two.
