Moolah indeed

Amazingly, for someone who can gripe at the drop of a hat, I haven't had much to say lately.

I did get busted going to Costco using my friend's Nicole's card...but that's another rant for another time (and i'm still not over the humiliation of that one).

Nay, today's gripe is about money.

Or my lack of it.

I've always been a master saver. My parents are hands-down the biggest tightwads on the planet, and I learned from the best. They used to do the "do you see a money tree in the backyard" schpiel, which I never fully understood because in Canada our money isn't green so I didn't get money = green = leaves.

My mother used to WASH AND SAVE the straws from McDonald's. What's even worse, she'd try to deny it...uh Mom, you can't buy yellow and white striped straws.

My mother also used to wrap up extra slices of pizza from the Pizza Hut buffet with a napkin to take home, and made sure that each of us kids ate way beyond the point of stuff-ness. Little did I know when I was a kid that the Pizza Hut buffet is only $4.95!!!

I understand where my parents were coming from...my parents paid off their 30 year loan in 10 years, and those 10 years were brutal. I remember the day the loan was paid off...for that ONE day, my mother looked 20 years younger. All the wrinkles were gone. And then right after that they started dropping cash on redoing the floors, the cabinets, the bathrooms, and the wrinkles came back.

My mother always worked odd jobs to help support the family, but really we were a 1-income household. Well...unless you count my mother's odd jobs, and me and my brother's jobs, so I guess that makes it 4-income (but it's not like I contributed to the groceries or anything).

Now let's start with the first-time owners of California. Um yeah there's no way I'll be able to pay off this home loan in 30 years, let alone 10. Unless I start praying to the Lords of the Lottery.

So I've been reading a ton of financial books and I'm going through all the stuff that you're supposed to do...talking to a lawyer about wills/trusts/living-wills/whatever, getting quotes for additional life insurance, got a bigger safe deposit box at the bank, all that crap. Transfered my 6-month savings to a money market account that gives a higher rate. Researching more where my 401K funds are going. Even bought some stocks (yeah $200 in stocks doesn't get you too far, esp. after the stupid service charges).

And then last night I picked up yet another financial book, The Millionaire Next Door.

Riiggghhhttt....

Granted I'm reading an older edition, from like 1996 or something ancient like that. But I want to hurl myself in traffic. The statistics are unreal. LIke apparently a good number of people in America who are millionaires (well, in 1996 anyway), are AUCTIONEERS. WTF. And alot of them are men who have stay-at-home-wives. WTF.

Anyway the key to that book is that most millionaires are quite frugal. That most of them have boatloads in equity but they bought their homes for around $325K and have lived there for upwards to 20 years.

TWENTY YEARS.

Yes, my parents were able to do that. But...they have a DRIVEWAY. And a BACKYARD. And a BASEMENT for 20 years' of CRAP.

Nothing that new homes in california have.

And $325K will buy you a condo, so you're lucky if you even get a single garage, no backyard and no basement.

I'm a frugal person. Really, I am. Right now this second my top was given to me by my boss ($0), my bra is from Walmart ($5), my underwear is Hanes Her Way from Target (like $1.50 per underwear), jeans are from Old Navy ($30), socks i've had since high school ($0 based on depreciation), and boots from Payless that desperately need to be replaced ($16).

I'm a cheap bastard.

And I'm STILL scrounging to get ahead. Maybe I'm just too impatient. Or maybe I just live in a way overpriced part of the US (however one can argue that if i move to No Man's Land for cheap, I won't be able to find a job).

I just want MONEY. Badly.

That's my rant for today.