Where In The World Wednesday - Washington D.C.

I have spent a total of five nights in my own bed in the last two weeks. I do not tend to sleep well in foreign beds so I cannot tell you how excited I am to be home. Yes, even avid travel lovers enjoy the comforts of home and the ability to sleep in their own bed.

This is me in front of the White House in Washington D.C. right after my little brother obtained his Master's Degree from Johns Hopkins University. As you probably guessed, he is clearly the smarter of the two of us. We took the slightly longer route while walking from his ceremony to Bistro Du Coin in order to swing by the President's home. If you like mussels, Bistro Du Coin is the place to go. On the advice of my brother's girlfriend, I had "Moules Roquefort" and they were tender and delicious and surprisingly not heavy. I expected Roquefort to be thick and rich, but this dish was divine in every sense of the word. Back to the photo, I love this picture because it captures me with a true smile. When someone points a camera at me and starts to count or says, "Smile!" I end up with this toothy grin that is somewhat squarish on the bottom half of my mouth and it just looks goofy and all wrong. My brother is a pretty cool cat and always makes me laugh.

The photograph to the right was taken at my brother's graduation just before the one above was taken. Notice how scholarly he looks in his graduation gown. We have had some really amazing times together over the years and I couldn't be more proud of him. He is going to make a huge impact in the world and I hope he doesn't become such a big wig that he doesn't have time to travel with me or visit anymore. <3

A Month Without Credit Cards

This seemed like a better idea when I read about it a few weeks ago. We are three days into the month of June and I am already struggling without my beloved AMEX. :( I am not close to being out of cash by any means, I am just not used to carrying cash. Resisting the urge to pull out my credit card for things like gas and groceries has been tough because I usually pay for these things on credit without a second thought. I earn 5% back on gas and 2% back on groceries so it makes sense. Why not earn a little money back on something you have to purchase anyway?

At any rate, this is a money-saving theory I read about here and here and I am curious to see how much truth there is to it for someone who is paid once a month. Yes, you heard correctly. I am paid once a month. I get a big, fat check on the last day of the month and after paying bills and putting money into my IRA and savings account there never seems to be much left by day two of the month. This is where my credit card comes into play.

Now, I never carry a balance on my credit card which could be the reason I never have oodles of dollars left to spend frivolously, but there has to be a way to keep the balance more at bay so that I can spend more money on fun things. I will post throughout the month with updates, obstacles and (hopefully) successes. We'll see how much of a difference it makes come bill paying time... 27 days from now.