The balance between paying down debt and savings

[catherine]

I’ve been hanging my laundry to dry. We’ll see if that makes any impact on the electric bill. I have an electric dryer. I do a couple of loads of clothes a week, plus maybe a couple more for towels/bedding, depending on the given week.

I will NOT give up using the dishwasher. I despise doing dishes. Always have. Using the DW keeps me eating at home, so o consider it necessary to bring frugal. LOL.

Reducing my long hot baths to an hour (instead of the current two hours- I’m not kidding!) would also help with the gas bill. My heat continues to be set at 60. But the weather is going to be in the mid to high 50s for at least the next week (except for a day or two), so I might just turn it off.

My car’s ac broke last spring. Shop confirmed it was totally out of refrigerant last fall when in the shop for something else. They couldn’t fit it as it takes a newer kind of refrigerant/machine they don’t have. I hate being hot but I think I’m going to go another summer without ac in the car. Most of my commute is at least 45 mph so I just roll down the windows for the breeze, go faster when I can, and keep cold water to drink on me. I’m just cheap and can’t be bothered to spend the money on the repair now!

You are a gazelle intense frugal zealot, Tradd!! No wonder your debt and savings goals are al going in the right direction!!

We finally have proceeds from the NJ house, and I thought that would alleviate a little anxiety but it's almost increasing it. It's not a lot of money, if you think about what a normal person needs for retirement. When I look at our expenses I panic. As I've said before, you guys should have kicked me out of this group!! I don't belong!

But my plan is to contribute the max to my Roth IRA. I'm going to put a good chunk in a HYSA as an emergency fund, and I'm going to pay down about one third of the debt. I am petrified to do more. I've said to myself: just pay off all the debt and then pay yourself back with the same amount that you would have paid to the minimum monthly payments. At least the "loan" to myself would be 0%. But I'm terrified that I wouldn't pay it back into savings. I did pay off about $15,000 in debt so far, so at least that's something. I'm definitely doing this in a "peel the bandaid off slowly" mode.

On a good note, 2024 has been much better from a business perspective so far. My income will be exceeding my outgo for at least a couple of months! I should be good through April at least.

Tradd, thanks for the inspiration!

[Tradd]

Catherine, good news! Thanks for the update!

[catherine]

Catherine, good news! Thanks for the update!

Oh, I forgot to mention: DH is seriously considering starting a business giving weekend boat tours on the lake! We already have the boat.. they will be small party tours--2 hours long. Everyone he's mentioned it to tell him (and I agree) he is PERFECT for this. He loves people, he loves performing, he has already learned a lot about this history of the lake and the neighborhoods around it, and he LOVES being on a boat! There is some investment, but nothing that I'm not completely confident that we will recoup. So that should help with savings/debt!

[Tradd]

Oh, I forgot to mention: DH is seriously considering starting a business giving weekend boat tours on the lake! We already have the boat.. they will be small party tours--2 hours long. Everyone he's mentioned it to tell him (and I agree) he is PERFECT for this. He loves people, he loves performing, he has already learned a lot about this history of the lake and the neighborhoods around it, and he LOVES being on a boat! There is some investment, but nothing that I'm not completely confident that we will recoup. So that should help with savings/debt!

Better check on the insurance! That’s a big one. I know this from a friend that owns a dive charter boat.

[catherine]

Better check on the insurance! That’s a big one. I know this from a friend that owns a dive charter boat.

Yes, we haven't checked the insurance yet, but we definitely plan do that! I wonder if the insurance for dive charters is different than just taking passengers around the lake in terms of liability? If the insurance is ridiculous we will not go forward with the idea.

[Tybee]

Yes, we haven't checked the insurance yet, but we definitely plan do that! I wonder if the insurance for dive charters is different than just taking passengers around the lake in terms of liability? If the insurance is ridiculous we will not go forward with the idea.

It's a super cool idea and sounds perfect for him!

[Tybee]

Meant to say if you do it, you should investigate doing funeral boat cruises--we looked into them. Some of them here in Maine, you didn't even go with them, you just gave them the ashes and they took them. But you could do music, catering, make it nice for people. We thought about doing it but my brother wanted to throw the ashes on the beach by his house instead.

[catherine]

Meant to say if you do it, you should investigate doing funeral boat cruises--we looked into them. Some of them here in Maine, you didn't even go with them, you just gave them the ashes and they took them. But you could do music, catering, make it nice for people. We thought about doing it but my brother wanted to throw the ashes on the beach by his house instead.

Thanks, Tybee! Very interesting application! I'm just afraid DH would cry louder than the guests! They might get offended . He cries at the drop of a hat. Seriously, we've already thought of historical tours, bird-watching, Broadway musical tours, birthday party tours... so funeral tours are something to think about. I remember when we dispersed my mother's ashes into the Long Island Sound we were told it was against the law, but they probably meant against the law to disperse them at that particular place, off a pier near a hotel. We wound up just hiding behind the pier on rocks and throwing them into Sound with no one watching except me and my brothers.

[Tybee]

I read something about going three miles out into open water for it to be legal. I think the funeral charters were doing that. I think everybody does what you did--I know that's what my family did, too.
I think your DH has a big heart, and that would be very welcome to people under those circumstances.

[Tradd]

Yes, we haven't checked the insurance yet, but we definitely plan do that! I wonder if the insurance for dive charters is different than just taking passengers around the lake in terms of liability? If the insurance is ridiculous we will not go forward with the idea.

Yes, I am sure there are differences, but insurance as a whole has gone up massively, so I just wanted to make sure you checked it out.