umm... the party sounds great... kinda makes me wish that i was the dude in question...
but spending money that you think in the back of your mind that you should be saving IS wasting money, even if you use all the things that you spend the money on. Managing money is a funny thing, and it's something that people learn at all different ages in life. The key I think is to learn that lesson as early on in life as possible. It's much easier that way.
If you can get your hands on a book called "The Richest Man in Babylon" and read it, that'll change the way you think about money.
but in case you don't read it, here's a couple quick tips.
Rule # 1 - live within your means. This means that if you make 1500 dollars per month, you should spend less than that each month. If you have a credit card with a 1000 dollar limit, and you spend your 1500 dollar income plus charge 300 bucks on the credit card, you're not living within your means.
Rule # 2 - save at least 10% of your income each month and invest it wisely. This means that if you make 1500 dollars per month, you should be saving at least 150 dollars of that. Saving means putting it somewhere that you can't get to it, and won't spend it.
Rule # 3 - Pay yourself first. If you get paychecks twice a month for 750 dollars each, decide how much of that money you're going to pay to yourself. ie. "i'm going to allow myself to spend 175 dollars for these two weeks on whatever i want"... put the rest of the money towards paying off your debts.
Rule #4 - Own a home instead of renting.
Rule #5 - Get yourself out of debt if you're in it. Write out a budget that supports Rule #1 and stick to it. "Paying yourself first" will make this easier. It may take 3 or 4 years to get out of debt, but once you get there, you'll feel like a million bucks.
There are a lot more little guidelines that apply, but those are the top 5. I'm sure other people will chime in too, but that's a good place to start. I can speak intelligently about this, because i've had to learn all of these lessons the hard way. I used to be a real fool with my money, and now i'm on the 3 year plan to climb out of debt.
You prob'ly weren't looking for this kind of response, but take heed to my words... I promise that you'll be glad you did...
