An unexpectedly busy month!
A good portion of my friends are leaving in July to go back to their home countries so I’ve prioritized spending time with them. With the covid situation as it is, it will be a while until we can meet again, so I want to make as many memories as possible. Correspondingly, the costs reflect that, haha…
July spending will likely look the same, I’ve got some back taxes to pay and a month’s worth of vacation. It’s very exciting to note that at this stage of my life getting hit with a surprise tax bill only constitutes a minor annoyance. I’ll leave you with a cliffhanger until next month to see what my tax bill is TT_TT
Spendings Report: $3,043
Off the top of my head, a few big bills:
- Massage membership: $1,000. I hold the account so I’ve paid for all of it but it’s shared amongst a few friends. If I was not sharing the account I wouldn’t be bothered going with this place and go with a cheaper one.
- International school’s job board: $330. I’ll finish my master’s by spring 2023 and will be looking for new jobs with higher pay so this is the ideal time to sign up. It’s more reputable plus they host job fairs with the type of schools I’m interested in.
- Leaving sales: $200. I bought a bunch of classroom decorations and storage boxes from friends who are leaving the country, plus two awesome lounge chairs that I haven’t figured out where to put.
- Computer problems: $150. I got my computer cleaned and replaced the battery. I didn’t even realize that the old battery had warped and was the reason why my trackpad felt difficult to press and it would not register the laptop as charged when unplugged.
Net Worth Update: recession
Whispers of a recession have reached me even with my firm belief in the trickle-down method of getting the news. I could have probably made a decent guess at the state of the economy just based on my own net worth records alone.
All the investing sources I read stress that the money that goes into the stock market needs to be long-term, like 7-10 years long term. In addition, be prepared to see sharp drops anywhere within that period of time, as nobody can predict when a recession will happen. This is the time to put my investment plan (buy index funds regularly) to the test, see if I estimated my risk tolerance correctly and can hold steady through the next while.
I’m very very lucky to be in this position at this point in my life. A drop of equal value in my first three years of working would have put me into the negatives, now, it’s a setback I can patiently wait out. I dearly wish I kept good financial records during my first two years of teaching, just so I can look back and see how far I’ve come.
For you, dear reader, if you’re investing, hold on tight. Remember to think long-term, and stop over-consuming the news. If you haven’t invested but think that’s the next step for you financially, now’s a pretty good time to read up on things and take action.