A couple of summers ago, I noticed a kitten wandering around my neighborhood. I would see it occasionally while walking my dogs but then weeks would go by before I saw it again. I just assumed it was a neighbor’s kitten who liked to escape. But after a year of sporadically seeing the kitten, I started seeing it more and more often. It soon became clear that this was a stray cat. I knew I wasn’t going to call the SPCA or one of the other organizations because I refuse to be the reason this cat was euthanized. There was no way I could live with myself if I did that. So, like most people, even though I knew I needed to do something, I opted to do nothing.
Until we got our homeowner’s association newsletter. To say that I am not a fan of our homeowner’s association would be an understatement and to say that I am not a fan of the president would be an even bigger understatement. Anyway, I read the letter and in it was this statement “Please remember to put lids on your trash cans. We have stray cats and we don’t want them here”. Excuse me? We don’t want them here? I don’t remember ever giving my opinion on this situation. I cannot stand when someone speaks for me without consulting me first, so I did what I do best. I said “F*ck you” and did the exact opposite. I started caring for the cat and have been doing so since October 2010.
Taking care of the cat is not the easiest thing to do nor is it the cheapest. She needs food and water daily, she needs shelter and in extreme weather, I have to make sure she is as safe as my indoor pets (I want her to live inside but she refuses). It’s a constant worry that she’s going to get hurt or sick. And when we move, I’m not quite sure how we’re going to transport her. On top of all of that, it took months before she would even come near me. Sure, she would eat the food I left for her but she would run away as soon as I was in her line of site. It was insulting but I refused to give up. I was going to make this cat trust me no matter what.
My efforts paid off, too, because now she lets me pet her and she spends as much time with us as she can when we’re outside. She even goes for walks with us and the dogs! I’m pleased that she’s adopted us as much as we’ve adopted her. It’s still tough to take care of her, especially because she’s an outdoor cat. But I don’t take care of her because it’s easy. I do it because it’s right.
(At this point you’re probably wondering why I’m telling you this and what this has to do with finance. Hang on–I’m getting there.)
When I finally took control of my finances, it was for similar reasons. Much like my cat, my finances were feral. They didn’t know what it was like to be attended to or treated well. They didn’t know how to respond when someone actually came near them. They would swat or bite back whenever one of us would try to be nice by not overdrawing the account or having a bit leftover for saving. They weren’t used to the attention and it showed.
Just as I did with my cat, I worked on my finances slowly. I started one step at a time. First, by getting organized and developing a system. Then, my husband and I created a budget. Next, we found a debt repayment plan and formulated savings goals. We kept working, bit by bit, until our money trusted us to take care of it the right way. It worked, too, because now our money isn’t feral. It’s now nice, well-behaved and does what we want it to instead of going rogue or hissing at us.
But there were other reasons behind why I started taking care of my finances. One, I started taking care of them because I refused to be one of those people who accepted that debt was a way of life. I know too many people who believe that they will always have some sort of debt, be it a mortgage, car payment, credit card or whatever else you can think of. I refused to accept that mentality. Two, I was tired of my money controlling me. My debt owned me. Every paycheck was spent before I received it and there was never anything left for what I wanted (and sometimes, what I needed). So, basically, I set f*ck you to my debt and the defeatist mentality and did what was necessary—I took care of business.
Believe me, those years of paying off debt were hard. I wanted to give up so many times. I wanted to just accept my debt. I wanted to go on vacation, go out to dinner for something other than pizza, go to a movie in a movie theater, buy a book…anything to make me feel normal. Sadly, there was no room in the budget for that no matter how hard I looked. So I kept going despite my frugal exhaustion because I knew the result would be worth the effort.
Now, whenever I have a conversation about paying off debt, someone inevitably asks why I went through all of that. I tell them I didn’t do it because it was easy. I did it because it’s right.
Comments
Trackbacks
-
[…] Money Shot with It’s not easy but it’s right I wish the cat would have liked living inside, but it’s sweet […]
-
[…] As a child, I was not allowed to have any pets besides fish. We did watch my first grade class’s hamster over Christmas break and we dogsat once but other than that, my dad was adamantly opposed to having pets in our house. As I got older and become more and more enamored with animals, I decided I was going to have a pet. Now I have 3 ½ (the ½ is a stray cat who sometimes swings by our house to share in our cat’s food. We have an outdoor cat). […]
-
[…] what if you have, like I do, an outdoor animal who absolutely refuses to come inside no matter how much coaxing and bribing you do? There’s not […]
-
[…] the years that we’ve been taking care of Boots, our actual cat, numerous other cats have come and gone. They stay for a few days, eat the food, […]
-
[…] an outdoor cat. An unintended side effect of having an outdoor cat (you can read her whole story if you want) is pest control. She’s great at killing mice, which are apparently a problem […]
-
[…] an outdoor cat. An unintended side effect of having an outdoor cat (you can read her whole story if you want) is pest control. She’s great at killing mice, which are apparently a problem […]
-
[…] Seeing my cat comfortable in the house. While I love my dogs, I have a special place in my heart for my cat since I literally rescued her from the street. […]
Good stuff. Good to know that there’s a cat being cared for. We have two indoor cats that are too used to the good life to go outside. I like the analogy with debt, and I agree that debt is not necessary though many people seem to believe that.
It’s frustrating to see just how many people accept debt as a way of life.
My cat refuses to come inside. I even try to bribe her with treats and…nothing. It’s something I’ve given up trying to understand!
Great analogy, Jana. Vonnie and I started taking care of our finances because we had to (otherwise we were going to lose everything)….well, and because it’s right.
I’m a sucker for a story with a cat in it though..I’m a cat person. 🙂
Travis @DebtChronicles recently posted…Blog Reboot
I’m definitely more a dog person but after this whole experience with Boots, I’m a cat person now, too. There’s a second cat that my daughter named Biggie (he’s aptly named) and I have resigned myself to take of him, too. Because it’s right.
Well, so I’ll be the third person to tell you you did the right thing. Oh well. And actually, I did the same thing with two cats (at different times) and both became indoor/outdoor; actually one ended up moving with me three times.
Suggestion for the cat: put a blanket out on your porch if allowed and the cat will take it as a bed; then eventually trust you enough to stay with you.
Now as for the finances. Yeah, I’ve seen lots of people with money problems which keep meowing “feed me”; and they go right ahead and keep feeding the problem without trying to get the problem situated to their families. I also see people with a recurring cycle of debt (borrowing and spending then repaying only to borrow again next month). These people think that since the animal is contained, it is fine – no, the animal is still wild, just feeding off of whomever has food for it.
Bill Swan recently posted…What Do You Do When the Money Dries Up
Thanks for the tip! We actually don’t have a porch so we put a lawn chair with a towel on it in the backyard and she’s adopted that as her bed. We’ve also put a pet tent filled with hay for the really cold nights in the backyard as well.
I like your analogy and it’s completely accurate. I kind of wish I’d thought of it 😉
Great story – I totally understand where you’re coming from – often, doing the right thing is the longest, hardest slog you can go through, but it’s always worth it in the end.
Jeff @ Sustainable Life Blog recently posted…Getting Back on Track with Rewards
Thanks, Jeff! Both taking care of the cat and my finances have been 100% worth it.
Really enjoyed this. There are so many instances where this is the case. It would be a lot easier but less rewarding if the “right” thing to do didn’t come at such a high price. Great job! 🙂
Tessa recently posted…Learning from mistakes
Thanks, Tessa! It would have been easier to ignore both the cat and my money but at what cost? I’m glad I took care of both.
I would have done the same thing. In life the hardest thing to do is the right thing to do. I think that’s how we learn who we are and what we want in this life. Great post!
Aloysa @ My Broken Coin recently posted…Live A Little: Have A Latte
Aahh! I used to have a cat that looks like your Boots. So cute! Keep on treating her well, just like your finances, and I think she’ll come inside! Look how far you’ve come with her already, just like your debt! I’m just beginning the long road to be debt-free. Love the analogy!!
As a cat rescue volunteer, I’m so happy you decided to care for this cat! it doesn’t make sense financially for me to be a cat foster mom, but it rewards me in other ways. I’ve talked about this a lot on my blog. I also agree with your stance on debt repayment. I believe that if you borrow money you should pay it back which is why I decided not to file for bankruptcy.
I always want to take care of stray animals too. You did a really good job of using your kitty story to relate to your finances, it makes a lot of sense. 🙂
Jen @ Master the Art of Saving recently posted…12 Week Spending Review #3
You justified your story so well that I smiled at the site of your cat’s picture. I also have adopted three stray cats and fortunately they easily got close to me maybe because I adopted them since they were just kittens. I adore them a lot and have considered them as part of the family. I do hope that your cat gets inside though. Keep it up!
Angel Collins recently posted…MSDSonline Offers GHS Guarantee – Risk-Free MSDS Authoring for GHS Adoption by OSHA