Sometimes, you have to take the painful steps

     When I learned what I had get myself into financially, I sat down and tried to figure out what I could do to climb out of this hole. I knew that it had taken me a while to dig this, it was going to take a while to climb out. I knew too, that what I was going to have to do, was look at some ways that might hurt.
      Years ago, my husband had wanted a pick up truck. We found him one that someone was selling that didn't want an arm, leg and half your fingers for the thing. It was an older truck, and you could tell it had been driven quite a bit. But it was still a truck, we could afford it and it was relatively dependable. At that time.
  It was also one of the few things that we had left of his after his passing. My son only drive it to haul off our trash or to pick up a load of firewood from time to time. You could only make one trip as it got a bit cranky if you tried to do more than that. Then, it decided that it wasn't going to crank at all. We're still not exactly sure what's wrong with it, but the renewal tag was due and it needed to be inspected. Something that you couldn't do if it wouldn't start. I made the decision to take the insurance off of it and park it for the time being. I was going to sell it, but my son didn't want me to go that far so its in the drive, just not able to be driven.
  When I canceled the insurance on the truck, I wasn't sure what that would do to my bill. I was now a single driver, single vehicle insured customer. Happily when the bill came it was lower than I had anticipated. That is going to make a big difference in the monthly bills since I have my insurance set up to deduct monthly from my checking account.
  My cell phone bill has dropped down from what it was originally. There is a couple of things I need to check into, things that may drop it a bit more.
  Changing our cable programming to remove some extras is going to help keep it from jumping sky high. I may still have to look at other alternatives in the future. Still, ever small step, is progress.
 I generally don't do yard sales, because I live off the main road where there is so little traffic. If I do go through my stuff and decide I might have enough for one, I think I know where I can set up though. Even a few dollars is a plus at this point.
  When I purchased groceries last weekend, I did not buy one of the things that I had been purchasing for snacks at work. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel eating less and still trying to work. There really wasn't any problem, so there is one more thing I know I can do without.
 Yep, I can do this. One step, even painful, baby steps, at a time.
 I sit here and look at the things I'm paying for now, things that back when I was young we had never even heard of, much less grown so accustomed to having that we didn't want to part with because we wouldn't know how to live without them. I'm sitting here thinking, I know, I am not the only person, who has suddenly found themselves in this position. I know, that others have dug out, climbed out, fought their way out. I can do this. I will do this. Being frugal, is not the end of the world.