Spend on What You Love - Personal Finance Link Love

I like weird food from food trucks, walking shoes that allow me to track miles around my city, fresh veggies, coffee (especially Kahlua coffee - thanks Grandma!) and the ability to treat my friends to food and drinks.

Worth every. damn. penny.

I will spend on these…a lot and that's ok because there's a lot of crap I won't spend on: expensive clothes, organic meat and eggs, sky-high rent, makeup. It's the balance that's the key. One of my favorite lines is:

"You can have anything you want but you can't have everything you want"

I'm a personal finance blog fan. There is so much you can learn and it was instrumental in helping me get out of debt and know what to plan and save for. Here are some of my favorites:

• Get Rich Slowly
• Wise Bread
• Give Me Back My Five Bucks
• I Will Teach You To Be Rich - warning: Ramit is not for everyone, but is highly entertaining if you have a "no excuses" attitude towards life

However, I don't believe in extreme frugality which is funny because that was the path I took to get out of debt. In retrospect, it was the wrong path. I gave up way too many opportunities because I couldn't see the forest through the trees and while I'm better off now for doing things that way, it is not the best way for everyone. I bought a designer purse the other day that I've been wanting for years (on sale of course). That's not to brag, it's to point out that I lived on beans and rice for a couple weeks to get it because I cared about quality. I have a friend who sold his skateboard collection to buy the best surfboard he could because surfing is his new passion. The older I get, the more I realize that all of life is a series of trade-offs. I choose to live in a crowded city that is community oriented where I am close to friends and opportunities than buy a home in an open suburb that I can make my own because to me, my friends are home to me. 

Of course, priorities change but in not only getting out of debt, but in every area of your life you should feel like you're doing things that are authentic to you (I'm sorry, that was too "Oprah" even for me). It's not always easy but as I told the Capn when he was thinking about selling a truck he loves - look at everything in your life and ask if it fits your life NOW? He's an outdoor guy who frankly needs a truck for all his activities. I sold my work suits and hi-heels because I work in a business-casual environment and usually walk a couple miles to work in the morning for exercise. Heels aren't gonna be practical for that. Humans have hoarderish tendencies. We have things to be reminded of good times, people we love and because we think everything has a use (no Mom, you will never use your crappy, dilapidated coffee tables that have been in the garage for 15 years). If it's not where you are today, get rid of it. Trust me, you'll feel 20 pounds lighter. Or sell it and spend the money on some sweet cross-trainers, a new symbol for your drums or whatever the hell is important to you.

What is worth it for you to spend money on? Let me know in the comments!