Queercents

Before deciding to go back to school, I had to research what’s available and what I could afford. I was happy to find a certificate program at my local community college that would only cost me about $500 for each semester, including books and tuition.

Since both the program and price sounded great, I then had to figure out how I would pay for living expenses while I was in school. If I had to do this process all over again, I would have eaten the cost of talking to a financial advisor instead of enduring the messy and hectic process I endured.

I’ll skip forward past how the process worked for me because it’s a private matter with unique circumstances, and also, you need to examine the condition of your own current finances and tailor a personalized solution that will keep your finances healthy. Read the rest of this entry »

Welcome to our new feature News Bites where we discuss money in the news: Be aghast, discuss, or just lurk. We don’t mind.

Here’s an item from the San Francisco Chronicle about a global rice shortage that may sour Costco and Sam’s Club shopping trips this weekend:

The worldwide rice crisis lapped over into the United States this week when Costco Wholesale and Wal-Mart’s Sam’s Club, the two biggest warehouse retail chains, limited the amount of bulk imported rice customers can buy. Sam’s Club said the restriction is due to “recent supply and demand trends.”

Try not to complain. Apparently, the rice shortage caused rioting deaths in Cameron and hungry protesters in Haiti to boot their prime minister. Read the rest of this entry »

[If you’ve been following along with The Bliss Chronicles, you’ll notice I’m taking a different approach to money writing. I’ve always felt personal finance could use some more humanity, although in this week’s edition I’m plowing further ahead in my detour. Brace yourself.]

No career transition is easy, though some are more manageable depending on circumstances. I’m lucky to have a supportive partner and a fairly stable financial situation. I don’t take these facts for granted. Not anymore at least.

When I was being overworked as a paralegal, I had to abandon time I’d dedicate to most of my interests. I had little or no time for reading books, cooking, enjoying nature, or finding obscure music and movies. I barely had time to date Zac, but I made it happen because I met an incredible person.

Zac turned out to be my mirror during a time when I didn’t recognize myself, and I don’t just mean that in some annoying dramatic way. I mean it literally too — there were weeks that I was pulling so many all-nighters at work that I couldn’t even think straight, unless it was related to the facts of a case I was working on. Read the rest of this entry »

Are you thinking about a career transition, but you’re not really sure you have it in you to follow through with it?

Sometimes you’re taking steps towards a more satisfying career without really knowing. At least, that’s what happened to me, and momentum built up from there.

Nearly a year and a half ago I started blogging for Queercents because I had just completed a class on finance, and I wanted to apply what to I learned. Although I was working as a paralegal in financial institution litigation, my job had nothing to do with money on the personal level. I thought, Heck, I’ll do this blogging stuff for fun.

Much to my surprise, I found that it came rather easy to me, although of course there were nights my fist would pound the desk and I’d curse the very idea of writing. But once I finished a post, I forgot all about the momentary misery and loved blogging as a creative outlet again. Read the rest of this entry »

The greatest joy in writing for Queercents is when I get a comment that says I’ve inspired someone — that I’ve given someone strength to follow their passion in life. I live for those comments as much as I live to see the beaming smile on my partner’s face first thing when I wake up in the morning.

Now that I’m a full-time student again, there are few thoughts about my finances that qualify as stirring. I’m learning to be quite resourceful on a tight budget, but I have much more important things to share with you than the things I do to shave $20 here and there from my expenses.

I’ve somehow overcome a lifetime of doubt and insecurity about what I truly want from life. I’m finally making a rewarding career happen, and if I can be any part in helping you to do it too, well… awesome!

I’ve decided to start a new series called The Bliss Chronicles because I think I’m onto something. Since I’ve been growing and learning immensely by following a career path that’s more meaningful to me, I figured that I should chronicle the ups and downs of the process to offer encouragement to those of you who also want to take the first step in achieving career bliss.

And for those of you already navigating the sometimes-frightening waters of pursuing your dream, I hope my weekly reflections will not only help you stay afloat, but embolden you more. Read the rest of this entry »

Did you know that as gay and lesbian couples, we’re denied access to the more than 1,100 federal benefits and protections available to married people? Do you want to understand how this influences our bank accounts?

With the April 15th just a week away, HRC kicked off a “7 Days to a Better Financial You” campaign to help the LGBT community learn a few things about getting our finances in order. HRC will address one of the significant issues facing same-sex individuals and couples everyday through April 15th.

Plus on Thursday, they’re doing a webchat with financial advisor and Advocate contributor Joe Kapp, Attorney Brenda Jackson-Cooper from Arnold & Porter LLP and HRC Legal Director Lara Schwartz. You can submit questions before the chat, by emailing HRC at webchat@hrc.org.

Webchat: Thursday, April 10th at 3:00 PM EST / 12:00 PM PST on www.hrc.org.

Finally, here’s some bonus material to bookmark: Joe Kapp recently co-authored a piece in the Journal of Financial Planning that every queer should check out: A Guide to Serving the Estate and Financial Planning Needs of Gay Men, Lesbians, and Same-Sex Couples.

I had the pleasure of meeting some of the top personal finance bloggers (see acknowledgments below) this past Friday at a forum organized by the folks at NetworthIQ, Expensr and MyStrands who are teaming up to develop a personal finance tool for Web 2.0.

I’m a tough sell customer on everything, from products costing pennies to those reaching into thousands of dollars. A product needs to amaze me before I can loosen my death-grip on money. So, I was curious if there was something that could rival treasures such as a free expense tracker or an inexpensive budgeting tool.

The proposed financial tool under MyStrands would use the power of social networking to give you a snapshot of how your net worth and spending for certain categories compares to those of your peers. It’s a neat concept, but I didn’t find it exciting enough. Part of what has made me financially responsible is the ability to tune out what other people are doing with their money. But maybe I’m throwing the baby out with the bathwater — maybe seeing that other people are saving or investing more than me would give me incentive to save or invest more myself. Or it would depress me. Who knows?

I did get excited about two other ideas that I thought could revolutionize personal finance tools. One idea would be easy to accomplish — the other — a holy grail pursuit. Read the rest of this entry »

This recent news story was clearly designed to appeal to sentimentality. Nonetheless, you’ll likely forgive the journalist’s approach. The protagonist: Debbie Shank, a brain-injured woman whose 18-year-old son was killed while on duty in Iraq. She asks about his whereabouts only to be reminded that he’s dead. She cries each time like it’s the first time she’s hearing the news.

The antagonist: Wal-Mart.

Shank was awarded $417,000 after legal expenses from the trucking company responsible for the crash that left her brain-injured. She was an employee of Wal-Mart and was covered by their health insurance. Wal-Mart paid out $470,000 for her medical expenses. Wal-Mart sued to recoup the money, and a court decided that Wal-Mart was only entitled to the $417,000 in Shank’s trust. Wal-Mart got their money back.

Shank, who can’t work and lives in a nursing home at 52, has also exhausted all judicial resources. Her family has fallen apart and suffers financially.

Can you imagine being the spokesperson for Wal-Mart who had to defend their actions? Here’s what he had to say: Read the rest of this entry »

Last week I was on the phone with a friend, and it seemed to me that out of nowhere she said, “Gosh, you sound really panicky about money lately. I mean, really panicky.”

I was miffed and quickly denied it. But when I hung up the phone, I realized that I shouldn’t BS myself. Yes, I have been panicky about money. I write about money, which means I read a lot about money, and everything I’m reading seems to materialize around me. There’s business trouble for my family, my 401(k) looks like it has been mauled by a money-eating monster, and I’m a full-time student again, this time around living in the second most expensive city to rent in the U.S. with my partner who is also a full-time student.

By all means, yeah, I’ve been concerned with how to survive without getting into loads of debt, as I’m sure many of you are. Read the rest of this entry »

I couldn’t find my thumb drive yesterday. For a few hours, I was worried that I left it at a public computer at school. Of course my main concern should have been getting it back, but actually, I was obsessed with trying to remember what was actually on it.

Then my mood dropped like a parachuter having his last and unluckiest jump.

That thumb drive contained hours worth of research and design projects. There were raw images, drafts and final products for my portfolio — files I gathered and developed that required immense research, patience and practice. And where did I back them up? Nowhere.

And even worse: one file may have had my social security number and my address.

Would we ever treat our finances the way we handle our portable data? Read the rest of this entry »