i'm irish catholic, heavy on the irish.

So today is Ash Wednesday. The beginning of Lent. Time to make some sacrifices.

In the past I've attempted to give up chocolate, caffeine, french fries, alcohol (haha), buying clothes (haha again) and a whole host of other can't-live-withouts. I understand that it's supposed to be a sacrifice, but it's always been a problem because my Mom's bday, my brother's bday, spring break, and ST. PATRICK'S DAY all fall within Lent. I'm no saint. I'm Irish. St. Patrick's Day is a day without rules except one: you must be drunk off your ass. Duh.

I thought long and hard about what I would give up this Lent. Eating lunch out? No, I need the fresh air, and walking places is "exercise." I thought about doing something a bit more sensitive, like vowing to stop criticizing myself and others. I did the math and realized I'll be PMSing twice during Lent, so that's definitely a no-go. I thought and thought about what I really needed/wanted, what would de-stress my life yet it still under my control.

Well kids, that's money. I want it, don't have it, spend too much of it. I started out with the vague idea of cutting out "frivolous" spending. We all know how quickly that would be broken. I need defined rules, numbers, deadlines. So, here it is, written down for all to see:

By Easter, I will:

1. Have enough money saved to buy a laptop, or will have already bought it.

2. Have paid my credit card down by $500.

3. Track my spending/saving on http://www.mint.com/ (one of my new favorite websites).

Look at me, being responsible!

Oh, and if you thought this post was kind of twilight zone-y/not Kiki.... I'll leave you with this:

And if you don't think this goes along with my whole "savings" plan.... I'll just inform you that KING KONG beers (they're about the size of your head) are a mere $2.75. Think about the savings!! You better be there!!

ps: thanks so much to Deutlich and Heidi for putting this together. It's gonna be off the chain!