Life Lately: F is for Fog

Is it fall?

#Fogust Activities: As summer wraps up I've been enjoying myself around San Francisco - riding a bike through Crissy Field and over the Golden Gate Bridge over to Sausalito, cheering on the Giants at home games, and hanging out at the Pistahan festival. Some days I have to wait a little longer for the fog to burn off to see the summer sun, and sometimes my outfit screams more autumn than summer, but overall it's a champagne problem, so I'll take it.

Finding (or Faking) Balance: NYMag's "How I Get It Done" series featured San Francisco's own Audrey Cooper, editor-in-chief of the Chronicle. My favorite quote:

“Gosh, you look really tired,” and I’m just like, "No, I’m just not wearing eyeliner." - NYMag

Food: I've fallen in love with these pancakes that need just 2-ingredients: eggs and bananas. They are ridiculously easy to make and are just sweet enough that you don't need syrup on them, either - though of course you may still want the syrup. I make a couple days' worth of breakfasts and reheat them each morning for a protein-packed meal. The recipe gets points for being Whole30 compliant, too. Check it out over on The Kitchn. 

Finances: This article on how Hillary Clinton became the breadwinner early on in her family life was something I really appreciated, in the sense that she wanted them to have security and wasn't just relying on someone else to fulfill or provide for that need. I'm sure a lot of people have a complicated relationship with money, though fortunately they won't all have to be written about in a major newspaper.

On a less serious note, I heard a great story from a Bay Area couple with kids. They were in a store buying sports equipment for one of them, but one of the items wouldn't scan correctly and the mom was investigating via her smart phone what the correct price should be. But her kid, frustrated at how long it was taking, insisted that they just buy it at whatever price since, as the kid said, "Mom, we are perfectly wealthy!" We were all howling. The mom, of course, did find the right price online, and the store honored it.

Habit

Self-improvement - I'm a little obsessed. I'm continually trying to form good habits and stopping bad ones (or at least, forming more good habits to outnumber the bad ones!). They might be habits that aren't visible/obvious to other people but still have an impact on my productivity and well-being.

Here's an article to stop a bad habit, and an article to start some good ones:

On stopping self-criticism: small answers (love this blog)
I love how it's called "The Itty Bitty Shitty Committee" ha! Amy Poehler also had some great stuff to say about quieting "the demon voice" in her fabulous book.

10 Better Money Habits for 2015: lifehacker
cuz i'm a groowwwwn woman:

What I Gave in 2014: Charities

This post could also be named, Trying to Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is.

I looked back at my charitable giving this year and here is what my wallet supported:


Social Justice:

• Southern Poverty Law Center: The tragedies around Michael Brown and Eric Garner made me want to support an organization that is fostering tolerance and understanding. 

Health:

• The SAMFund - I was introduced to this organization at work. They are the only charity in the country that gives direct support to young adult cancer survivors. They are pretty small (~$200K in annual grants) but growing and after meeting several survivors who received SAMFund grants, it's really evident how much impact this organization has. 
• ALS Association - Yup, did this through the Ice Bucket Challenge, but learned more about ALS along the way.

Friends' Fundraisers:

• (health) A cancer-research fundraiser brought on by the death of a friend-of-a-friend a couple years ago. When twentysomething who was beautiful inside and out dies from a senseless disease, and when her friends honor her memory by raising money for research, you give.
• (health) AIDS/Lifecycle - A friend took on this cycling challenge that supports California AIDS/HIV organizations. Seeing them go through the months-long training to raise awareness for the cause was inspiring.
• (aid) Oxfam - Another friend was part of a 100km relay walk to support international development

Schools:

• Both my undergrad and graduate schools keep calling me, and I won't stop giving them, but I'll probably give minimally from now on.

I'm using this list to consider what I'll give to next year and how to be more strategic about it, including how to fit giving in with my other financial goals of paying off my loans and saving money for 'the future'.

I didn’t really make any New Years resolutions but I did want to use January as a chance to re-set and put myself on track for the rest of the year. Why is this important to me? Well the past year and a half has been full of big changes (finishing grad school, moving, starting a new job, getting engaged/married). One ‘track’ is getting my finances in order, so this month I made extra student loan payments, set up my monthly budget spreadsheet (nerd alert), and created more online savings accounts so I could track just how close I am to buying XYZ. For the most part this is continuing a habit I’ve been cultivating for a few years now, but I like to stay mindful of this, especially as a new year starts. And it feels good to know I’m filling my own tip jar.

(Photo taken at the American Grilled Cheese Kitchen in San Francisco)

Saving for Travel

Sometimes saving money is easier when there is a specific, short-term goal in mind. For some people, it’s an object like a new TV or pair of shoes. For me, it’s a big trip somewhere in the world. Spontaneous day or weekend trips are one thing, but I plan major travel with enough time in advance to save some funds. Here are some tips:

• Break it up into chunks: paying off airfare, then saving money for the hotels, then food, then spending money


• If you want, combine the food budget & spending money into a “cost per day”


• Estimate a “cost per day” budget for your destination by checking travel guides or websites


• Keep the money in a savings account, charge your hotels to a credit card with good rewards, and pay off the entire balance when you get back


• Bonus points for keeping a designated online savings account with a fun name like “jetsetter” or “best trip ever”


• Remember to call your bank/credit card company & alert them you’ll be using your card overseas


• Consider where you want to be frugal (buy lots of souvenirs, or take lots of photos?) and where you want to splurge (fancy dinner?) - it’s an extension of how you spend money normally


• Think of how great it would feel knowing your trip is paid for rather than racking up debt


• Enjoy your trip!