I’m back!

Well, it’s certainly been awhile, hasn’t it?

It’s funny [and annoying] how life has a way of getting away from you. Last year at this time, I was all fired up about pursuing this blogging thing and getting out of debt. I had great plans – grand plans – to knock down the monster that is debt and build another income stream. I would be a beacon of hope to those laboring under a mountain of debt and an inspiration to others living paycheck to paycheck. My life would turn around and become all that I knew it could be.

Except it didn’t. Or, perhaps, more accurately [and honestly], I didn’t.

I didn’t get gazelle-intense and cut out any-and-all extras from my budget.

I didn’t say NO to myself when I wanted stuff and things and dinners out and special treats and [insert here].

I didn’t take the time to blog and share my journey with others.

I [and I alone] didn’t put the work in to make those dreams a reality.

And now, looking back on that, it hurts. It hurts a LOT. When I sat down in November to look over my finances and realized I had made almost no progress in a year’s time, it hurt. Throughout the year, I felt like I was depriving myself of so much and making all these good choices – but the numbers don’t lie. Sure, I did better than I have in the past, but it was nowhere near where I wanted and expected to be.

I let life get in the way of my plans. And I’m starting to realize I need to make my plans part of my life on a day-to-day basis. Let my plans get in the way of life and allow them to help me create a better life for myself.

All I can do is try.

The Intelligent Zebra