Back to School -- Again.

School has already started for the little kiddies. But, only now have the implications dawned on me that my wife has decided to go back to school, too.

Among her first assignments, she has to write a short essay on the challenges of the adult college student.

I helped her proof the essay. While helping her, all the challenges she mentions have now become apparent in our personal lives:

Hefty student loans.

She's nervous as hell and constantly doubting herself.

No personal time for herself.

No time with family (meaning, me and the kids).

That last one translates into me having to handle the kids a whole lot more on my own. Cooking and cleaning is something I always try to help with, but now I will practically become a single dad for a few months while my wife studies for school.

The kids hate it when I cook. Hardly have I seen my kids scowl so hard. Especially my son.

Despite all of this, my wife's endeavors are completely worthwhile if she sees them through to completion. She's got what it takes.

Now, if she would only recognize that herself and embrace that, she'd realize that everything will be fine on her first day back to school.

Even if I do have to find something to cook tonight.

Gettin' It Together

Sometimes I feel like I'm sinking in quicksand when I try to keep up with everything in my life. Work gets hectic sometimes; my projects seem like one continuous steam of never-ending tasks that can never get done.

My wife and kids are a bit needy of my attention. I love 'em and they deserve all I've got. But, they sure do take all I've got without much hesitation!

I do get back in return, though.

Anyhow . . .

Lately, I've come across a few applications that have really helped me out quite a bit.

GNUCash

Money management to the rescue! This program helps me keep up with our family's spending. I've been poor with my money management lately. Now that I don't have daycare costs any longer, it's time to do some financial healing with that extra cash.

GNUCash is a free, opensource program that comes with Linux, but also can run on Windows and Mac.

It's a little tricky to use at first. I think sometimes powerful programs give you so many choices that you really don't know where to start. Read though the help files. Understanding how this program ticks is well worth the effort--especially if you're serious about taking those first steps towards a better financial life.

GoogleCalendar

I've gotten so busy that I need to start putting important dates on a calendar. GoogleCalendar works great for me. It's free and handy to use. GoogleCalendar will also give SMS, e-mail, and pop-up reminders for all your calendar dates and appointments.

And I just like Google stuff in general. So pretty and colorful. Oooohhhh . . .

Producteev

Sometimes, having a smart calendar just isn't enough. You day sucks when your boss asks you if you made "those changes yet" and you clearly forgot. But the e-mail is clearly in your inbox.

Enter, Producteev.

You can forward important e-mails to your Producteev account to build a task list so that your important reminders (be they personal or work related) won't get burried in your inbox.

You can use your smart phone to also manage Producteev.

And Producteev can sync with GoogleCalendar-- thus, marking dates on your calendar without you ever having to stop and log into your Google account separably.

Producteev has both free and pay levels of service.

Since I've started using GNUCash, GoogleCalendar, and Producteev, I finally see light at the end of the tunnel concerning my finances, my hectic schedule, and the constant onslaught of projects at work.

Now, if I could only come up with a popular application of my own that generated a huge user base. Then someone like Google could come along and buy me out and send me on a permanent vacation.

Then, I could forget about all those utilities that I just mentioned.

Where the Money Goes

I feel as though I'm a personification of the father who is talking to his son in this classic School House Rock video. I didn't understand this cartoon short as a kid, but boy, oh boy, do I understand this one now.

Where the Money Goes