What Do I Do All Day? I Obsess over Our Finances

(Photo credit: Tax Credits)

This is the eighth in a series of posts about how a disabled person like me passes the time at home, now that I no longer work.

To say that I obsess over our finances may be too harsh. I’ll describe what it is I do, and you can decide what to call it.

My primary tool for managing our finances is a program called Quicken. I have 18 separate accounts in Quicken, including: savings, checking, cash, PayPal, various credit cards, mortgage, auto loan, etc. I periodically reconcile these accounts against statements from the various financial institutions. I don’t dread this activity. In fact it often leaves me with a warm, fuzzy feeling on the inside. The spending and income within those accounts is broken into approximately 80 categories like: Kim salary, automobile repairs, clothes, groceries, natural gas, Zach tuition, retirement plan contributions, federal taxes, etc.

Okay, obsess is beginning to feel more and more appropriate. But I’m just getting started.

I track additional aspects of our loans and investments, and our gas and electricity usage separately in Excel spreadsheets. Sometimes Quicken just doesn’t give me the level of detail that I desire (after all, I need to justify that MBA I spent years of night school completing).

I pay all of our bills electronically, using a variety of methods. In recent years I finally succeeded in ditching the traditional checkbook. That’s a good thing, since I am unable to write with a pen anymore, other than scribbling my name illegibly on the signature line.

In recent months I’ve had the pleasure of helping Amy manage her student loans, which will enter repayment status soon. I’ve offered to furnish her with her own copy of Quicken, but so far she hasn’t shown an interest.

Once a year, about this time, I also compile something I call “The Sturgeon Family Annual Report.” In this document I summarize income, spending, cash flow, insurance, loans, net worth, and more. Why do I do this? First, I can’t imagine how any family could keep its financial house in order without a periodic look at the big picture. Second, this report becomes available for Kim’s information if I should die, or for our kids information if we should both die. Third, it’s just great fun.

Fun? Sure. For example, because of this analysis I know exactly how much money we spent at our local pub, The Snow Squall, last year (only $979, it was an off year), or at Trader Joe’s ($551). Because of my obsession, I also know how much we spent on clothes ($1,359) and veterinary bills ($1,116).

I rely heavily upon this information whenever we face important financial decisions. However, I don’t use this data to manage or control our day-to-day spending. I don’t develop or attempt to enforce household budgets. We are both frugal by nature, Kim more than I, and so I don’t need to do much along those lines. I’m like Jane Goodall studying the great apes. I find our behaviors fascinating, but I only observe. I rarely engage.

Here are my other posts in this series:
      
1. I Watch (mostly) Quality Television 
2. I Digitize and Archive Family Photos and Videos 
3. I Read Books 
4. I Attend Courses at Top Universities (sort of) 
5. I Nap
6. I Blog
7. I Read Other People's Blogs