Money, money, money…

An interesting side conversation to Ashe Mischief’s great blog about Finance and the Fashion Blogger, is how some people have no problem trying to get in other people’s business to find out how they are able to afford what they have or what they blog about.

I am not one of those bloggers who blog about their expensive shoes and clothes, etc and people ask me this all the time!

I rarely ever blog about spending big money on anything {mainly because I am offended by the price of most “designer” things}, although as I write this, I have a blog about Coach bags sitting in my drafts. But mind you, most of my Coach pieces were given to me by my very generous ex, Dex.

But,if you follow my tweets, tweet photos and foursquare checkin’s, its obvious that I spend quite a bit of time out and about and in shops from Starbucks to Charlotte Russe to Lane Bryant to Macy’s and beyond.

Hell my starbuck’s trips alone could honestly total $100+ a month, so I get that things like that could possibly make people curious as to “how she do that“.

People ask me all the time what I do for a living and my answer might seem kinda vague because for one, I am in my “day job” in spite of all my openness online, in a very private type of business.

I handle other peoples money and assist them with their lives for a living mainly and then I have my other more fun side jobs, ReThrifted, my Etsy shop, this blog.

I am also working to create my “dream hustles“, my fashion line, my photography career, etc.

So, when people ask me this on twitter or wherever, I tell them I work in accounting or bookkeeping or that I have a virtual assistant business and all of the above is true.

But sometimes, I wonder what the motivation behind the questions are.

I know some people are just generally curious and it’s pretty typical to ask someone what they do for a living BUT sometimes it is just obvious that people are just trying to be nosy and I find that rude.

People make a lot of assumptions based on little fact most of the time.

Personally I spent 15 yrs working in investments and while I would love to say that I handled my money fantastically, I did not.

I was 19 years old with Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales and Marshall Fields cards, among others and a boyfriend who didn’t have a dime and who made some really big mistakes that cost us both terribly, financially and otherwise.

And while I am very good at handling other peoples money and advising them on how to manage it, I was definitely not prepared for that kind of credit availability back then.

So, fast forward two decades and while I am not totally where I want to be, I can honestly say that I am definitely living with my eyes wide open.

Does this mean that I have no debt and my financial house is without blemish?

Hell naw!

But I have made a lot of adjusments and every day I am making more.

I use cash 90% of the time.

I shop as I say “to make Washington look like he has had botox”, stretching my dollars, using coupons, shopping sales and being creative.

So, while I get it that some people are just curious and may actually be asking with nothing but good intentions, I am kinda put off by the questions at times and I know other people are also.