Extra Paycheck!

Today brought one of my semiannual extra paychecks. I get paid biweekly, and I pay my monthly expenses from two paychecks, which means that twice a year, I get a paycheck that doesn't have the monthly bites (rent, utilities, Metrocard, Netflix, et cetera) taken out of it. This one is very much needed with the holidays approaching. I'm sending what would have been my rent money ($300 per paycheck) right into my ING savings account. Other allocations will pay for me to get a haircut before I start going to parties (and a dress and a pair of shoes in which to go to them) and flesh out my gift fund. While I feel like I'm spending quite a bit on the holidays (and I am), the timeliness of this extra paycheck is much appreciated, and ensures that the holidays won't set me back in the scheme of things. And of course, it's tremendously satisfying to see my savings number move from $1,900 to $2,200. I've actively saved $700 in the past two and a half months--that feels great, and it's almost the equivalent of a full paycheck.