Brookey's Cafe Blog

Happy Money Monday!


Post Holiday Financial Assessment...by Austin the Realtor


Welcome back and I hope your New Year has started off prosperous and fulfilling. As we continue on the journey of financial awareness and success, it's time to make an assessment of where we are and where to go from here. Holiday spending is long gone, and now it's time to get on track and utilize some of the tools we discussed in previous Money Monday discussions.


1 – Lay it all out on the table: Literally get all your bills and lay them on the table to see what you are dealing with. As discussed, prioritize by interest rate and setup up your payment amounts and schedule.

2 – Grab your list of “Trimming the Fat” items and keep it close so we can keep up with it as much as possible. Post on your fridge if needed so that it can be reviewed every morning. Go for the gusto and see how far you can go and make small adjustments as needed.

3 – Track your spending and the differences so you can see if you are actually making a difference or see if an adjustment needs to be made in your daily spending to maximize the value of your money.

4- Lastly, let’s try a change in mindset. Ask yourself, “If I can’t pay it off by months end, can I go without buying it?” It’s easy to charge an item and say, "I’ll pay it off later." Think about this statement: “I’ll eat this entire cake and work it off later.” How often do you immediately work off calories consumed, pound for pound? Debt works the same way! It’s much easier to maintain it as you go along as opposed to spend, spend, spend and then say, "let’s fix this."

I’ve found the more you repeat something, the more you grasp it and it becomes second-nature, so this is a recap of what we already discussed as a refresher. In the coming weeks, we are going to discuss various saving and investment objectives so we can put all that money saved to work.


Topics to be discussed:
Mutual Funds
401k tips
529 Plans (saving for college)
Real Estate – the process of buying and tips

Let’s make this your best financial year yet!

-Austin the Realtor

Happy Random Thoughts Thursday!

- My whole body is sore from training last night. Not a good look for me, but it means I did something right! Can't wait to get back in shape.

- Need to paint my nails...gonna do it myself and save some money.

- I have a good lunch today, can't wait to eat it!

- But I need some fruit.

- SU basketball is #1 - just thought I'd throw that out there :-)

- Someone offered me a Snapple yesterday and I turned it down. That may seem minor to some folks, but Snapple is like crack to me!

- Please send prayers out to DMoe - he lost his grandfather yesterday :-(

- Gotta run to the bank...for some reason that's such a chore to me. Let me stop complaining cuz at least I'm making a deposit!

- Baby Jordan is 5 months old already!

- I miss my family in Philly.

- Can't stand when people let their children act a fool. Your child is NOT as cute as you think he/she is.

- My arms are on fire.

- I've been thoroughly entertained by Facebook lately :-)

- Universal's been slacking on my movie screenings...unless the mail room guys have been jackin' me for them. Waiting on one for Contraband. I think that's what it's called...Marky Mark :-)

- Let's try an R&B throwback this week - thanks to L-Train...aka LaDante McMillon!



Go!

-b

Happy Hump Day!

So this morning I'm listening to the radio as I pull on my thermal top (it's colder than a Witch's tit outside!), and the "rumor of the day" was about Amber Rose calling Kim Kardashian a "home wrecker." It went something like this:

They were both cheating! They were both cheating on me and Reggie with each other. She was sending pictures, and I was like, ‘Kim, just stop. Don’t be that person.' I thought at least she’d be woman enough to respond to me. She never responded.

It’s very important that us women stick together and we don’t f**k each other over like that.

Read more: Amber Rose Blasts Kim K As A Homewrecker: ‘They Were Cheating On Me & Reggie With Each Other’ Necole Bitchie.com

I normally don't give a rat's ass about anything Amber Rose has to say - although she rocks a baldy better than anyone I know - but her comment got me thinking...and thus the question of the day.

Should other women (and men) respect someone else's relationship?

I've heard everything from, "Well, if she was doing her job, then he wouldn't be coming to me." Or, "He must not be hittin' it right...which is why I break her off."

But is that disrespectful, or should the blame soley be placed on the one who is in the actual relationship? Are men and women obligated to look out for each other and not screw over (literally) someone else by infiltrating their relationship - or are all bets off if everyone involved is a consenting adult - and out to get theirs?

What say you? Have you ever been the "other" person? Have you ever held a third party responsible for the breakup of your relationship?

Let's go!

-b

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Happy Hump Day!

Speaking of humping, what would you do if you caught your boo gettin' busy with someone else? I mean, ass all in the air, red handed?

Has that ever happened to you? If so, how did you handle it?

It's not TMI Tuesday, but I wanna hear all the details anyway - go!


-b

Hey, hey, hey everyone!

So I'm sure by now everyone has heard of the impending divorce between Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa. I'm sure you've also heard by now that there was no prenuptial agreement between them. This brings us to the question of the day.

If you are (or were to become) a man or woman of significant wealth, would you have your significant other sign a pre-nup before marriage?

If you are NOT a man or woman with means, would you still have your significant other sign a pre-nup?

Like Chris Rock said: "If I'm making $30 million, and my wife wants 15, so what...I ain't starvin'. But if I'm making $30 thousand, and my wife wants 15, I might have to kill her!"

Also, would you be offended if your partner asked you to sign a pre-nup? Would you take that as a sign that the other person planning the divorce before they plan the wedding, or does it make smart financial sense?

Let's hear it, go!

-b

Many shop by pushing the limits with thoughts of dealing with the ramifications in the New Year. It is the season of giving, but it will not feel so good when you start receiving the bills associated with all your giving. It’s hard to decide who gets what on a limited budget, but it's more painful trying to dig yourself out of the debt created by trying to please everyone.

Many are going different routes this holiday season to try to soften the financial blow.

- Just buying for the kids this year
- A Secret Santa amongst family members
- Create games where the prizes are wrapped gifts
- Set a spending limit per gift per person
- Offer to perform a service as opposed to a tangible gift (wash the car or mow the lawn for a month coupons)

Many have traditions which they are not willing to part from, but in these economic times, you have to consider what is reasonable while trying to stick to your annual rituals. Consumer spending is up 15% so far from last year. This is interesting given all the reports on unemployment and home foreclosures.

I am a huge advocate of gift giving, but I’m a bigger advocate of ensuring we are not financially stressed after the holidays. You have to find your personal fine line where you can spread the holiday cheer and still maintain your financial sanity.

How do you balance the two during the holiday seasons?

-Austin