I’m 33, in a long term relationship, and up to my ears in some serious debt. I started this blog with well over $100,000 in debt after a failed business and some massive student loans.  This is my journey of getting out of it without filing bankruptcy. Follow along as I beg, borrow and steal, ah, try to figure out different income steams while I reduce my debt and build my savings.  If you’re easily offended, this might not be the blog for you. Hey, it’s the New Yawka in me.

Some have asked why I don’t show my photo.  Would you post your photo when you have a 6 figure debt? I didn’t think so either. So, think of me as the big sister that you never wanted that likes to share some personal finance information, maybe a few great deals and then cry on your shoulder occasionally.

I guess I should add some more about me. I’m educated enough. I have a B.S. in Biology and an MBA in General Management. I’m pretty much a wage slave, but I am a little bit of a kooky person at heart. I’m not talking about Paula Abdul level, but just a little left of center. I always say that life is too short to not be a little bit crazy. Good philosophy to live by right?

So, how did I get into this mess? Well, you can read the details in my very first post or you can read the short, short version here. I basically had a brick and mortar store and borrowed a  HELOC as well as money against my credit cards as it began to fail. I can tell you exactly when the economy started to tank because it was like I made $20K in sales one month, then $10K the next, then a downward spiral until we closed. That and some student loans from undergrad and graduate school. Beyond those two major things, I try to be financially responsible, but it doesn’t always work out.

So, follow along as I claw my way back from a whopping humongous debt, share some deals and steals, hold a few contests (especially on my birthday) and share some financial insights along the way.  The goal is to have some fun, make some friends, and slay my debt.

Wait, wait, wait!  I’ve been called out for not offering up enough about me, so I’m pasting part of a post I did elsewhere here.  You asked for it.

“It all started after I hit rock bottom, but that’s the middle of the story, so let’s go back to the beginning.  I’ve always known that I was meant for greatness.  I say that not with arrogance or self-importance; it’s just something that I’ve always felt coursing though my blood.  I vividly remember being 8 years old and the teacher asking what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I sheepishly thought to myself, President, but I knew better than to actually say it.  You see, I knew that I could never be the President, not because I was a girl, but because I wasn’t born in this country, and immigrants can’t be President.

I feverishly racked my brain.  What could I say that wouldn’t be embarrassing?  With nothing popping into my mind but President, I blurted “waitress!”.  You can imagine the shock and horror on the face of my teacher when the bright little shy girl in the back of the room whispered that she aspired to be a waitress.  A parent-teacher conference would have to be called, because there was obviously something going on at home.  But no, there was nothing going on at home except a single mother with two small children that had immigrated to this country with nothing by a few suitcases.

Seeing my mother working hard to provide basic necessities for us motivated me in ways that I can not ever recount.  I knew that I had to work hard to be better than everyone else at whatever I wanted to do, but what was it?  Since I couldn’t be President, the next best thing of course, was to be my own boss.  So, 18 years later, after working hard at jobs that I hated on Wall Street, researching, saving, and borrowing, I opened my own boutique selling costume jewelry.  The first few months were spectacular.  I was selling roughly $20,000 a month in costume jewelry, and knew that everything was going exactly as projected.  What I didn’t know was that a major recession was right around the corner, and it hit me with a bang.  That combined with my city doing a 1.5 year road reworking project on my store’s street which redirected traffic away from me virtually killed my business.

Three years later my store was closed, I was in $65,000 debt from the store plus student loans from my undergrad and graduate school years.  I owed a total of $115,000 and I didn’t know what to do.  I spiraled into a major depression gaining 50 pounds and pulling away from family and friends.  They didn’t know how to help me, and I didn’t know how to help myself. The world seemed like it didn’t need me, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be in it.

The Beginning of The Blog
I realized that I needed help, but seeing a mental health professional is a big no-no in my culture.  It’s something that Americans did.  I felt American enough and my job would pay for it, so why not.  Talking about my problems was not something that came naturally to me, and I felt uncomfortable going to a psychiatrist, so after two visits, I stopped.  But going to see him did arm me with some information that made sense to me.  The first was that I had ADD.  ADD?  Isn’t that something that affects only children?  The kind of ADD that I have makes me hyper focused on single topics at a time to the detriment of everything else.  It’s great if you’re a researcher, but not so good for normal, every day life.  The second was that I was stronger than one failure.  I couldn’t let this beat me.

I decided to write down all of my debts and tackle them one by one with ferocity.  It was slow going and I stumbled a lot.  I needed greater visibility and accountability.  On New Year’s Day 2009, I started the blog.  At first it was just a way for me to see what my balances were from day-to-day, but then I started sharing some tips and freebies with my friends.  Being frugal had become chic and I in vogue.”

The story here is that you can fail.  You can fail completely miserably.  But as humans we are resilient enough to be able to pick ourselves up, and reinvent ourselves and be better every single time.  An early failure has made the best of people that we admire including boldface names like Oprah, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Every failure is an opportunity for improvement.  This is my journey.

As Seen In

Oh yes, let me add the disclaimer.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a financial professional, I just play one on the interwebs. You should not take anything that you read here as professional advice but as entertainment… I’m just a chick in debt trying to claw my way out. Should you need professional financial help, please contact a trustworthy (I think that they exist) certified financial planner or accountant.

In order to help me slay some debt I may from time-to-time accept advertisement placements.  Please be aware that I may be remunerated by a  company for a product or service mentioned.

Want to get in touch with me? Send an e-mail to cheapskate [at] yesiamcheap [dot] com, click on the contact button above, or follow me on Twitter @yesiamcheap for daily deals and my constant musings.