Finally Done With Expense List Reconciling

I still have a day planner.  (Mental note: Order next year's Franklin Quest.  Should blog about this soon.)  At the back of the last day of every month there is an expense list, and ever since I started using the FQ I have filled it out in order to track my expenses.

There are four blank columns.  I use them for "Plusses," which are times I put cash money into my wallet; "Fast Food," "Entertainment" (more than just strip clubs ... although, yeah, money-wise stripclubbin' is the greatest expense in that category) and "Miscellaneous."  This is a grossly inaccurate accounting of how much money I spend per month, mostly because this only tracks the ins and outs of the money in my wallet and has nothing to do with the times I use my credit card to charge stuff.  I mostly do it out of habit and to justify buying a refill of a year's worth of papers every December.

But when I get busy, the process of what I call "reconciling" my day planner gets pushed aside.  That's standard operating procedure since I started.  But I have set a record closing out November 2012.  It was only about several hours ago that I finally wrote down all the expenses for the month, did the math and figured out how much more or less I put in or took out of my wallet, and wrote down my analysis (how much I spent per category, why it was so much or so little, what happened during the month that resulted in that amount, etc.).  I only have space in my binder for a month's worth of papers, and I cannot replace one month with the next without doing this reconciliation first.

I got busy, what can I say?  The combination of the temp job and ... well, being so tired after my temp job put this task on the very back burner.  My schedule didn't let up after my parents left.  And even after my assignment ended I busied myself with other stuff, most notably going out and enjoying myself.  It was only December 24th, bleepin' Christmas Eve, when I had the time and the wherewithal to complete this task.  I feel bad, and I feel badder because I can't make any promises that I won't do it again.  It has never been this late, but I can foresee a month where I get so busy that this just happens.

However, I have never let two months go by before I reconciled.  At least not yet.

And once again, Merry Christmas, everyone.