Ramblings and Brain farts

Impressions of the BDJ Power Planner

The Belle de Jour Power Planner 2012 was launched last month, October16th, at an all-day event at the Eastwood. In keeping with the travel theme of the planner, the fair was dubbed Take Flight. We don’t usually go to events like that, but Alfred and I went out on a hot Sunday afternoon to check it out.

I must admit though, I wasn’t really after the planner, but an online vendor was having a booth at the fair and I so wanted to check them out in person.

Off we went. Walked around and missed the entrance to the fair, and walked around some more before finding it. Straight to the Suelas booth we went. I picked a pair of shoes and then we moved on to see the rest of the tents.

Since there was 20 pesos off the price of the planner, I decided to go ahead and get one. 2012 would be the 6th year that Viviamo, the company behind BDJ, is crafting these special planners for the modern Pinay. This is my first one, ever.

Photo Nov 10, 6 45 26 PM

Photo Nov 10, 6 50 40 PM

I got it before I ever saw photos of the 2012 Starbucks planners – which I think I want to get too. I skipped on the 2011 planner but I got one as a gift. (You can read about my Starbucks planners here, and here)

It’s just the right size, not too thick and not too heavy.

Photo Nov 10, 6 47 11 PM

I love that it has a, what do you call it? A band to keep it closed when it gets too thick. Smile

Photo Nov 10, 7 00 42 PM

Purchase comes with a BDJ card, which I think can be used with vendors to get discounts, or to access events. It’s also a membership card.

Photo Nov 10, 7 21 17 PM

It came in a pocket page that looks like a temporary insert. I’m looking at keeping it there though. A pocket for loose paper and other stuff I tend to collect. Smile

Photo Nov 10, 7 20 14 PM

And the inside pages are great! I can totally see it being a Smashbook of sorts! Check out some of the inside pages on their site here. I only took a photo of this first page with a nice message:

Photo Nov 10, 6 56 51 PM

It also has sooooo many discount coupons! All those discounts more than make up for the cost of the planner itself. For just these, the BDJ Power Planner should be in every girl’s list of unusual gifts for her.

I’m still not sure if I will use this or give it away. See, I’m not a very organized person and a ‘power’ planner really isn’t my thing. I’ve recently started making lists and like doing them and ticking things off the list, so maybe I’m changing too. So yes, I will probably keep this and use it. So will I skip Starbucks Christmas this year? Maybe not. I can never have too many notebooks anyway. Smile

Envelope System

I probably should start a Personal Finance category on this blog. I think about it sooooo much.

Why?

I earn a significant amount of money. It should be more than enough for a single woman living with her parents, or even for a kid-less couple. Even with the car payments, there should still be enough to save.

As it goes though, I hardly save. There’s always just enough left over. And I hate that feeling of always having to look forward to the next pay day. Counting the days until my bank account is replenished. That is just not the way I want to live.

Back in 2010, I wrote this piece to Start Saving Now! For awhile I did it diligently. I followed my own advice and I built up my savings account. Later that year, I bought my iPad. I also switched jobs which disrupted my cash flow for a month. I was okay, but it meant that my savings account was dented (and it still hasn’t fully recovered).

Remember that show on Discovery, where a financial expert goes into the home and helps the couple sort out their financial issues? I can’t remember the title of the show and I don’t see it anymore so perhaps it’s been discontinued. One of the techniques she teaches couples is to stop using their credit cards, and set their weekly/monthly budget in jars.  I did a version of that. I set a two-week budget and I have to stay within that budget for all expense types. It really helped me save. I didn’t use jars though, I still kept my money in the bank and withdrew money as I needed. It was the recording that kept me in line with the budget. I used my Starbucks planner (that I had with me almost everywhere) to record everything.

Another variation of the jar system is Dave Ramsey’s Envelope System. The idea is to budget your paycheck, have an envelope per category, take the money from the bank and fill up the envelopes. When the money is gone, it’s gone. You can’t fill it up again.   What happens if the two-week period or the month is over and you still have money in the envelopes? The article doesn’t say, but I would either add them to my savings, or add it to the following payout’s budget. The latter would be specially helpful when saving up for a big purchase that won’t fit in your monthly allocation.

I think I will do the envelope system this time around. I’ll take the money from the bank and stow away my credit and debit cards so I won’t be tempted to spend more than what I have in my envelopes. Hmm.

These Receipt Organizers from Beabi would be perfect (both images credited to the Beabi website):

beabi 2

beabi

You can even keep change in these because they zip up. They’re reusable and would definitely last longer than your normal paper envelopes.

But more than what envelope to use, the most important thing is to define my expense categories. Will I include clothing there? I don’t buy clothes every month though. If your work includes a uniform and you know you will need to get repairs done or get a new one every few months, you should factor that in somehow. If I were to allocate an annual budget for nursing uniforms for example, maybe it would be good to plan how much that would be and then set aside money each month to build up to that budget. In my case, setting up a clothing budget every two or three months might already be a good idea to help me build up my wardrobe.

I’m excited at the idea. Before I figure out my categories though, I’ll have to sell this to the boyfriend. We both have to be doing this, not just me.

What about you? Do you follow a system for budgeting your personal finances?

BC bloggers 2011

The first time Paula of Mommy Diary sent a callout for members to her new blogging circle, I signed up. I was one of the first to ever be in a BC Bloggers list, and I was there in the BC Bloggers’ Party. Smile

Now it’s time we get a fresh set of links. And I may be a day late, but I’m still signing up!

BC_BLOGGERS

 

I will have to give credit where it’s due. The BC Bloggers Secret has probably done my blog a lot of good, specially in earning it’s Page Rank 3. So thank you Paula, and BC Bloggers who have kept my link active all throughout these months.

Apart from seeing BC Bloggers post all over blogosphere, you will most likely see posts go up about ongoing discounts from web hosting providers, like this amazing deal from FatCow. Just go to http://www.fatcow.com/secret/ and sign up for an unlimited hosting deal for only $2.95 a month. It’s only valid until October 31st, using the code PINK, in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. FatCow will donate 10% to the American Cancer Society for every new sign up. It’s such a steal, and for a good cause too.

If I didn’t already have an unlimited hosting account, I probably would sign up for this sweet deal.

So there, check out BC Bloggers and link up with likeminded bloggers. And also checkout the special hosting deal mentioned above (not an affiliate link).

Thank you Livedrive

Thanks to Livedrive, we are surviving a hard drive crash. The other night, I turned on the power on my PC to boot but it wouldn’t spring to life. I knew then there was a major problem. I didn’t panic. I was a bit worried that some of the most latest photos we transferred to the PC would be lost – we’ve had unreliable Internet connection lately so I wasn’t sure they’ve been backed up.

I checked my backup via the iPhone app and it looked like things were intact. But I also then realized what we won’t be able to recover: photobooth photos from Amir’s baptism. The good thing is all those photos have been uploaded to Facebook. They are low-res photos though. Still, the memories will be preserved.

Alfred was very worried – he wasn’t sure if photos from their Tuguegarao roadtrip last month were backed up. He’s checked, they were. There would have been no way for him to recreate those photos, so we’re very happy they’re safe. I am currently having difficulties restoring the backups though, not yet sure if it’s a Livedrive issue or a problem with my connection again. I shall find out tomorrow.

Purchasing the Livedrive subscription was a very sound decision. I’d renew in March, that’s for sure.

Check them out. Sign up and backup your files automatically.

Sleeping through Pedring

I have been indoors for more than 24 hours. Looks like Typhoon Pedring has finally bid us goodbye, but Typhoon Quiel is about to say hello.

No photos from me, not even of the flood last night. I’d been taking advantage of the bed weather see, so I’ve actually been sleeping a lot. Oh and yes, I skipped work last night. At first it was the flood, but then I didn’t make it halfday either – I had been feverish all of a sudden. Must be because of getting wet from the rain several times the past few days.

I left work after lunch with the storm still raging yesterday. I had my big violet umbrella but because of the wind, I still got wet. Globe was having issues and I have had no signal on my mobile for about two hours by then, so imagine my surprise when one message came through! It was my brother, checking in for updates. Unfortunately, I lost signal instantaneously and couldn’t respond. I left my bag in the car and walker around the parking lot looking for a good spot but there was none to be found.

Oh. I did stop to snap this photo of a small tree, casualty of Pedring:

Photo Sep 27, 12 38 04 PM

And also of my bumper, casualty of the driver known as me:

Photo Sep 27, 12 40 03 PM

I bumped against a wall while backing up from where I parked the night I wrote about my non-talent in parallel parking.

Anyway, I gave up and drove home. Along E.Rodriguez, I had to reroute. A big tree in front of the Iglesia ni Kristo fell right smack on the middle of the road. A big red firetruck blocked the street from incoming traffic.

Photo Sep 27, 12 54 35 PM

Photo Sep 27, 12 55 11 PM

I had a choice of following the majority of motorists and turn right towards EDSA, or turn left towards God-knows-where. I chose the road less travelled. Good thing there were street signs, and I easily found my way. Right on Lantana, and another right on New York. Left on E. Rodriguez. There weren’t a lot of vehicles on the road, and the traffic lights were all out. I learned later that power was out since 630 that morning.

It wasn’t difficult to find parking space, but I still wasn’t sure if I would be able to walk home or if creek had already overflown. As soon as I was parked, my phone signaled for new messages. One from my dad asking me to get lunch for everyone. They weren’t able to leave for work. Alfred also sent a message saying he was already home and couldn’t contact me. So I called Mom to say I just got their messages, and I’m going to McDonald’s to grab us all some lunch.

When I got back, I realized I couldn’t bring my bag and all the food with me and balance my umbrella at the same time. I also realized I couldn’t park my car. Dad came to the rescue. Haha.

So we all ate. And there was no power. I had a choice of sleeping through it, or go out and hangout with relatives at the (can we call it) porch. Or I could read a book. I ended up sleeping. And slept I did until very late in the evening.

And this morning? I slept some more. Well. Sleep is good. It cures many ailments. It’s good for the skin. And what I wouldn’t give right now to have better skin. I can’t wait to use my VMV voucher for a Superskin Facial. These Gratiae products also seem good, has anyone tried them?

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