It's not too late to join the festivities, just check out this post and follow the instructions :-) Remember, you don't have to *be* single to write about how awesome it is. I'll post a list of my co-bloggers later today or tomorrow.
Tho I must say, there isn't a whole lot of interest in this project so far. Not a lot of bloggers have contacted me about it. People were far more interested in blogging about a pretend Zombie attack last year. Bloggers would rather write about pretend zombies than being single? That says sad things about our society, imo.
But I also just joined the Women's Blogger Directory, which is awesome. Come play with us this week, ladies!!
Because finance is a big weight on a lot of people's minds these days, I'm going to write up a list of why it's awesome to be a single financially minded person:
- Taxes for one, soooo simple (in the USA, at least). We can file them online now!
- Budgeting for one, also very simple. If something doesn't work in the budget, there's only one person to investigate.
- Food shopping and home cooking, a large part of budgeting, is much easier. If you are a picky eater, you'll get exactly what you want every time. If you aren't, you never have to deal with another picky eater ;-)
- I have no joint bank accounts, so I know exactly where my $$ is and who is using it at any given time.
- Credit reports, also super simple.
- Need to move-house for work? No problem! It's your household, take it wherever you want.
- Got offered a super traveling job? Hey, you are foot loose and fancy free, it's a perfect combination for professional travelers.
I got more interested in budgeting and finance last summer, just before the economy started going haywire, and before I started actively looking to buy a home. From what I've seen, nobody needs to buy books about saving money ever again. It's ALL on the internet.
Budgets are Sexy is my favorite finance blog. He's married, but I don't hold that against him ;-) There is plenty of instruction and insight on budgeting-for-one on his site, and tons of article round-ups and links to other blogs.
The Dangling Conversation is blogged by a friend of mine, who spent many years climbing out of debt. She's had many bad experiences and many good insights, and is almost debt free now! Yay!
Debt Free Saver is another friend, trying to balance life, school, demanding kitteh, and cash. Also has good tips on budgeting, shopping, and bartering!
(I used to have all of these blogs linked on my side bar, but I went to the fancy blog look and lost that bar :-/ I'm thinking of going back to the old look. Less flashy, but more informative.)
One piece of advice I have for would-be-budgeters is to track all your purchases for a month or two *before* you try and budget. It will give you a better sense of what you already like to do with your money, and where corners can be cut. Especially in the grey areas between what count as "essential" and "non-essential" expenses. I don't need cable, but I do need air conditioning.
A friend of mine often worries that she spends too much money on eating out, but it's also her primary social outlet. I don't think it's a bad idea to budget ahead for expenses like that instead of cutting them out entirely. Friends and fun are essential too ;-)
Personally, I cut my late-night-out expenses in half when I gave up alcohol. Now I can spend $$ on taking a cab ride home instead, yay!
<3 Sassy
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