Hey, I was just saying that...
You know how every few months I start bitching on here about how expensive life is, and the gulf between what a college graduate earns and how much student debt they carry? Well, this article summed things up pretty nicely on how messed up the finances of the twentysomething set generally are:
"Now, stagnant wages, job insecurity, the decline in employer-sponsored health insurance and retirement benefits, the rapid increase in basic expenses, soaring debt and minimal savings have jeopardized the economic security of the entire generation... their generation is the first in a century that is unlikely to end up better off financially than their parents..."
That last sentence was something my old supervisor (a career woman in her 40s who now has 2 college-age daughters) used to say now and again, and it's pretty spot-on. And the quote below completely reflects something dncingmalkavian said here one of the other times I brought these issues up, concerning the attitude of most indebted young people:
"When you get a little bit of money, what do you do with it?" asks Mikala Shremshock, 27, who works for Veeco Instruments near Philadelphia. "Do you pay off your credit cards, put it toward student loans, make an extra payment on your house or car, or put it in your IRA? I don't have enough to really make a big dent in anything. If you get a bonus, why not just spend it?"
That one feels pretty true. The impulse is always camping at the back of my head to just blow my tax refund/bonus/etc. on something cool like a vacation to some semi-exotic location, but my prudent side always steps in and points out how many bills that money would cover. I think the biggest struggle is balancing debt payoff and savings; I know I should be trying to save more, but even the paltry $400-500 I put down towards student loans and car payments every month makes it tough to save that recommended 10% of my income.
At least this year we have one less car to worry about/ pay for, and hopefully no needlessly big ticket purchases (like a chiropractic care regimen, or a f^#%ing vacuum) to wrestle past, and we won't be going to Otakon, which costs pretty dear in airfare. Still, we have to stay vigilant against too many restaurant meals and books and such - small leaks can sink the budget as easily as large ones, after all. And with luck, Chuck will have a productive summer of massage therapy work, and - dare I hope - I might get a promotion/raise if I attain my Certified Culinary Scientist certification and complete some actual projects in my new job position.