One Last Pedicure: Balancing a Personal Budget

Introduction

In early September, McKenzie stood in the checkout aisle of the grocery store and watched with fear as the cashier rung her up. With each quick swipe of the cashier's hands, McKenzie looked at the total price on the monitor and knew she was going to come up short on money for her groceries. Again. Once the cashier was done, sure enough, the total of $ 150 was more than McKenzie had in cash or checking, and her credit card was almost maxed out for the month; she'd last used it on one of her bimonthly rituals?a shiny red pedicure. She started sweating with embarrassment as she had to ask for certain items to be removed. The cashier sighed exasperatedly as she deducted the items, and McKenzie was sure she even felt some other customer's eyes looking in her direction. Somehow she had lost track again of how much she had spent that month, and immediately began regretting that red dress she had bought on an impulse at the mall two weeks before.

As McKenzie left the supermarket with only half of what she needed for her and her youngest daughter, Millie, she was depressed. She felt like the same gray cloud followed her wherever she went, and at the end of every month, she felt like she was in a deep hole she could never dig her way out of. She was so stressed that she stopped at the gas station on the way home to buy cigarettes. She would have to call Kerry again to ask for her help with monthly expenses, and she was dreading making that phone call.

Exhibit 2 (continued) Mckenzie's Personal Budget-August Total Monthly Income: $2,900 HOUSING Monthly Cost TRANSPORTATION Monthly Cost Kent/ Moncut Vehide Payment $210 Phone Bus/ Taxi Fare Insurance Cable and Intemet Maintenance FOOD Monthly Cost Dining Out Subcoral INSURANCE Monthly Com EDUCATION Monthly Cox Home RemITS High School Fees Health School Supplies Subtotal PERSONAL CARE Monthly Cost ENTERTAINMENT Monthly Coat Medical Hair/Mal Video Games Clothing More SAVINGS Monthly Cost LOANS Monthly Cost Savings Account Penonal Retirement Snodent Emergency Funds Credit Card subtotal Subional Total Monthly Expenses! Balance:Exhibits One Last Pedicure: Balancing a Personal Budget Personal Budget Template Total Monthly Income: Balance: HOUSING Monthly Cow TRANSPORTATION Monthly Cost Vehicle Payment Phone Busy Taxi Fare Mananance Cable and Internet Suppli Maintenance FOOD Monthly Com Dining Our Subtotal INSURANCE Monthly Coat EDUCATION Monthly Cost Home/ Renner's High School Has Health School Suppli Subincal PERSONAL CARE Monthly Cost ENTERTAINMENT Monthly Con Medical Har/Muk Video Game Clothing Dry Cleaning Night Clubs SAVINGS Monthly Cost LOANS Monthly Cost Savings Account Eregency Funds Credit Card Subtotal Subcoral Total Monthly Expenses: Balance:Exhibit 1 One Last Pedicure: Balancing a Personal Budget Mckenzie's Handwritten Budget MY BUDGET - Auqust Monthly Income: $2900 MY MONTHLY EXPENSES Rent - $ 850 Groceries - Blo (8/1 ) Car Payment - $200 1 8/12 - $50 Fixed Car Window- $50 11 9/30 - $140 Gasoline - $70 Household Supplies - $10 $30 Shopping $25 - $25 Book bong - $25 Pens pencils notebooka - $30 utilities 2 DVDS - $30 I Video Game - $30 Electricity - $35 Gas - $25 8 packs of Cigarettes - $ 80 Water and Sewer - $10 clothes - $70 (8/7 ) Phone - $55 8/11 - $45 1/21 - $35 ( Shoes) Cable + Internet - $55 Beauty Supplies - $15 Other Monthly Bills Restaurants Going Out Joe'S Italian - $30 Hal's Burger - $25 Movies - FLO (1/5) Credit card bill - $85 in 8/ - $20 Renter's Insurance - $12 Vita Pizza - $20 1 /22 - 420 Student loan payment - $150 Xscapes Nightclub Car Insurance - $50 $ 40 Gym Membership - $ 15 Salon Millie's school fees - $ 200 Pedicure 8/1 - $30 (15 Tip) Dry Cleaning - $25' Pedicure 8/15 - $30 ( 45 tip) Hillie's Relaxer - $65 (phu poTip) Hair Extension, Touch-up ( 4 Tracks) 1- $40