Paying off the Debt because I am Sick of it.

I have become increasingly disgusted with the level of credit card debt that I have been carrying. I regard it as immoral, unhealthy and dangerous. When I think of the amount of savings I could have if I diverted my payments from Credit to savings I am amazed.

While I like credit, I have abused it. I believe that the Credit Card companies are predatory and many should be put out of business. They make it too easy to live beyond your means. However, I do not blame them for my quandary, I blame myself.

As of today I owe $12,000. I got to this point by a combination of bad or foolish choices (and I am trying to be very self examining and honest) and circumstance. For example, at times I may buy something simply for pleasure. At other times I used it while I was in nursing school, an emergency car repair and so on and so forth. It would be of value to look at a five year history to analyze that.

I recently joined Mint.com to try and help me suss this out a bit better. I no longer carry the one credit card I have. There is not annual membership fee and my interest rate is 6.75%.

In one month I have paid off $2000 and this in addition to my regular bills. I eat out less, I am working two jobs (and sometimes three when I pick up extra work as a nurse here and there). Every time I think about my credit card debt, I make sure that I get online and pay $25, since I wrote this just now I am going to have to pay another $25 off. That is in addition to a $500 payment yesterday and a $300 payment today.

I even pay in the middle of the day or night if I think about it, I pay instantly, logging into my bank site using my mobile. If I do not go to a movie, I send the money I would have used for the movie to my credit card.

I am determined to be financially responsible, to live within my means, to stand up for what I believe in. Debt cripples me and chains me to my job, a place and constricts my mind and imagination. When I have paid this credit card off I am going to reward myself by actually saving the same amount into savings and retirement. I am going to buy myself an apple computer (since I am dumping all PC related junk eventually). I will buy used (from an Apple employee friend who gets new ones all the time).

I don't want to be cheap - but thrifty? Yes. I want to be able to buy very nice clothes, even expensive but not on credit and not a lot but of high quality.

I am so lucky to be able to do this. How many people do any of us know that can divert $2000 of their income in one month to debt? I am paying the price though, no free time and not much activities except work and more work. Luckily, I love being a nurse and I love it even more that I am back in the Emergency Room and in the field as a Volunteer Firefighter and Emergency Medical Technician.

Enough babbling for now. If you can think of other ways to get out of debt and be more fiscally responsible then please let me know!

Thanks for reading - David