Two days ago was Black Friday and working in the field of Marketing that has kept me tremendously busy. Daily recaps, weekly recaps, strategy decisions, intra-day updates, leading my team and 3rd parties that we work with. I’ve had to pull more than my own weight while other key people on the team weren’t available for various reasons. Tomorrow will be a continuation of that.
That said I did get some positive news that will have a direct impact on my ability to hit my financial goals. Plus we will move from a single income household to a dual one. He’s officially moved in. Yes I earn more and the house in in my name but the burden I’ve had to handle solely on my own will be relieved starting next month. In practice 3-4x more per month will go to the principal than with my normal payment schedule. I missed his apartment sort of since the location cute and everything had that brand new feeling.
The month of November has been a bit of a blur to me. Early on in the month I dropped $1,100 on getting a tree removed and multiple others on the property cut back. This was one of those peace of mind / quality of life things. Having a tree twice as tall as the house fall on top of it was not on list of things to happen as a new homeowner. It also was infested with wasps. I spent a big portion of the rest of the month just trying to recover from that. Putting over $2,500/mo into investments, plus the $2,900 on the mortgage, $188 for car insurance, groceries, friend’s birthday party. My eye started twitching, perhaps it’s too much caffeine and stress from these big holidays. There are other things I want to get done on the house but honestly 95% of it can wait. I’ve had to really ask myself what do I really need vs what’s a want. I don’t like being told no but sometimes after doing more and more research that’s the decision I land on.
We made our second annual pilgimage to Astra Lumina an immersive outdoor experience in Dallas. It looks identical to last year but my camera takes better pictures now and I wanted to check out something nice. There are some other venues I’d love to checkout this year but has been a bit harder with his travel schedule.
Christmas is 24 days away. I bought a $50 tree from Home Depot, reused a tree skirt, and ornaments from years past. It’s not the nicest tree but it does the job. I also reused some old indoor / outdoor lights at the front door to give it a little bit of the holiday spirit.
Speaking of Holiday spirit my friends were nice enough to invite me out to Eataly for early Thanksgiving and treated us.
My sports ventures are soon coming to an end for the season. I love getting out, it still makes me feel youthful in my 40s. That is until I start drinking and then feel tired and want to nap for upward of 2 hours.
Took my car in for service on Cyber Monday, $260 after coupon for an oil change and brake fluid flush. Could always be worse, brake stuff is every 2 years and oil change with the way I drive is close every 9 months. I also used a coupon, could’ve gone to another dealer for cheaper but would be double the travel time.
Other than the car, my bike tire needed to be replaced both the tire and the tube. They found a spoke nibble in the rim that was bothering me for the last 5 years. The price with parts and labor was around $90 but they took my bike in immediately. I wasn’t in the mood to order parts for $70 and struggle to get parts on the new wheel properly.
Have a connection and got a great deal on this rug. Almost bought two but starting small for now. It makes the living room feel more warm and inviting.
| 12/1/2025 | 11/1/2025 | Difference | % Change | 12/1/2024 | YoY Diff | % Change | |
| 401K | $397,992 | $394,310 | $3,682 | 0.9% | $ 319,005 | $ 78,987 | 24.8% |
| Roth IRA | $56,073 | $55,313 | $761 | 1.4% | $ 51,308 | $ 4,765 | 9.3% |
| Brokerage Accts | $3,074 | $2,829 | $246 | 8.7% | $ 1,346 | $ 1,728 | 128.3% |
| Cash | $15,621 | $15,873 | -$252 | -1.6% | $ 7,603 | $ 8,018 | 105.5% |
| HSA* | $5,869 | $5,854 | $15 | 0.3% | $ 3,561 | $ 2,308 | 64.8% |
| Total | $478,629 | $474,179 | $4,450 | 0.9% | $ 382,824 | $ 95,805 | 25.0% |
| Credit Cards | $0 | $0 | $0 | #DIV/0! | $ 166 | $ (166) | -100.0% |
| Auto Loan | $0 | $0 | $0 | #DIV/0! | $ – | $ – | #DIV/0! |
| Subtotal | $478,629 | $474,179 | $4,450 | 0.9% | $ 382,658 | $ 95,971 | 25.1% |
| Mortgage | $339,258 | $339,868 | -$609 | -0.2% | |||
| Zillow Estimate | $343,700 | $346,600 | -$2,900 | -0.8% | |||
| Equity Estimate | $4,442 | $6,732 | -$2,291 | -34.0% | |||
| Net Total | $483,070 | $480,911 | $2,160 | 0.4% |
It’s past my bedtime again but I’m up $2k in a month when the stock market hasn’t been great and my home has been coming down slightly in value. I did just make a mortgage payment so I’m caught up until February 1st. Hasn’t posted to my account yet. Yes I’m a weirdo. Up 25% in a year is still nothing to scoff at. Keep counting my blessings especially when just last week one of my friends lost his accounting job. Christmas will be here before you know it and then 2026. I’m going to enjoy some vacation time, I’ve been going full throttle for the past few months and I need a break. We are inundated with so much info and noise in any given day. I miss the days when life was simpler. Be well and take care.
Debt Free Alpha 