By The Numbers

Okay, I've come up with this (possibly insane) ten-bucks-a-day concept.  But how much money do I actually have?  And how long does it have to last me?

ASSETS:

Well, there's my checking account: 1,052.52.  Call it a grand.

Plus the eleven thousand dollars I got for my bar exam study loan, so that's $12,000.

And I'll get four more paychecks before I leave work, which will be 3K, for a total of $15,000.

Of course, the bar exam prep class is $2,500, leaving me $12,500.

And to be fair, I've got $300 on my credit card, so it's really $12,200.  Let's just call it $12,000.

TIMELINE:

I'm planning as though I'm not going to get a job until January 2009.  Obviously I hope to start making some income before that, but it's probably a good idea to plan for a worst-case scenario.  Not counting the rest of April, that's eight months: exactly $1,500 per month.

BILLS:

$550 covers my rent, utilities, and internet (no cable).

$50 for gas and other car-related things.

$50 for the cell phone bill.

That's $650 per month, leaving me with $850 discretionary money per month, or just over $200 per week.  That's almost $25 per day, but that doesn't allow for emergencies, or travel, or any of the hundred things that might come up!  $20 per day is a little more reasonable, but hell, where's the fun in that?

Hence, ten bucks a day.

Of course, it's not going very well so far.  

But at least I know how the numbers play out.