Righteous Rebellion.

Seems like an oxymoron, doesn't it? I want this blog to be genuine-raw, and real. To reflect my flaws, my strengths, and the lessons I've learned, am learning, and will learn. This is not going to be easy for me in many ways; in others-this will be one of the most liberating things I've ever done, of this I am convinced.

You will see that I am indeed a rebellious spirit-always questioning everything, and nearly everyone. I say this not to offend you, or make you crinkle your forehead, and think "What can a rebellious girl possibly do for me? How can she impact me? She might offend me! I don't want to expose myself, or my family and friends to someone who is openly rebellious". I understand all of these things may, or may not cross your mind. However, if they do, I hope that you'll bear with me. I don't revere rebellion, or even recommend it. I'm being honest, because I'm not rebellious in the way most people expect-(although, I did go through a pink-hair phase, and have some piercings other than just a single stud in my earlobe)-but I have always been a person that fights for the underdog, and questions authority. BUT-I can blog more about that at a later time if necessary.

Now. As to why I have the need, at 23 years old, to write a "manifesto" about debt...that's a whole other cup of tea. And it's not the easiest one to talk about, admit, or even think about. Which is part of the reason I got here!

So. Here it is.

1. I am a compulsive spender.

2. I am not patient (BUT I am working on it!)

3. Because I am not patient, I LOVED credit cards...they offered me instant gratification.

4. Because I LOVED (notice the past tense) credit cards and instant gratification, I owe several institutions a lot of money.

5. I am easily overwhelmed.

6. Because I am easily overwhelmed, I bury my head in the sand, and don't necessarily want to, or choose to deal with things that I should. (I learned this one while not dealing with a close family member's illness)

7. Because I chose NOT to deal with things, I owe people more money.

8. I have a hard time asking for help-I am stubborn, and resilient, and struggle with having to accept I can't deal with everything.

9. Because I have a hard time asking for help, I let my problem get way out of control.

10. Because my problem got way out of control-I had to learn to ask for help, and needed to learn multiple lessons in humility. This however, is GOOD.

In learning humility, I started doing research, so that my husband and I could get out of debt, and eventually move forward with our lives, and buy/own a home someday...and this research lead me through several options. The one we chose however, is a non-profit agency certified by several boards and associations we trust, that essentially consolidates our debt, and only takes a small fee, as opposed to the typical 10% of total debt other agencies wanted. This is so not a perfect solution-I am NOT advocating for this by any means...because we desperately wish we hadn't allowed our problem to get this far. BUT there are times that good ideas, or perfect ideas aren't feasible, and we have to do what we can. On the upside, going through this agency, we are rebuilding our credit, and are being FORCED to learn good, healthy money habits. With the aid of a course offered by this agency, and books by Dave Ramsey (who we are loving so far), and coupons, and so much more, we are well on our way to being debt free-to accomplishing the revolution against the debt prison...breaking out, breaking it down, demolishing this for good...(hopefully).

*Wow. That was hard to type. It took me 20 minutes just to type that paragraph...and I nearly cried reading through it again. Good thing that this is not the end-there IS light at the end of the tunnel, and there will be a prosperous future for my husband, and I-and our future family. I put my trust in my Universe Maker-He always has me in the palm of his hand.*

So. I think that's it for now. Next time I'll be blogging about what we're doing to get ourselves out of this mess...and how we manage to stay optimistic even when we're discouraged about living paycheck to paycheck.

IF you've ever had to do this, or are still doing this-what do you do to keep sight of your long-range goals? Do you have any tricks or tips for having fun on no-budget, or how to maintain perspective? If you haven't had to do this-my hat goes off to you! Leave a frugal tip as to how you've maintained your budget, or what you do to maintain your costs and your savings! :)