Apparently it’s “emove.com” now. I can’t vouch for all of them, but the ones I hired were great and matched their reviews.

Congratulations on your progress, Flexo, and best of luck in your new apartment.

I try to balance groceries with dining out so when one month is high in one category, the other category is low. It tends to work out that way simply because I eat about the same amount of food each month — though dining out is generally more expensive.

I don’t use a budget. I just use my monthly numbers to track my behavior and (try to) make any changes from there. I think budgets can be great tools, and they’re especially useful when income and expenses are too close for comfort.

The bottom line is adding another layer of time-intensive analysis is crossing the line. Like Lazy Man says, it’s a lot of work. I’ve got it down so entering my expenses in Quicken is… quick… and converting my monthly reports to graphics for the site is somewhat quick, but writing the analysis is the big time drain.

Adding a budget analysis on top of that won’t add much value, as I already compare my spending numbers to past months, averages, etc.

ntguru: Good to know regarding the LLC. I’ve been meaning to spend some time with a tax accountant to make sure I’m in good shape for 2007 (and possibly review 2006).

Are you trying to set up a single member LLC? If so, it shouldn’t change your tax situation at all as that is what I did for my secondary business/income and a single-member LLC is a pass-through entity to the IRS.

You do a very great job of consistently tracking your expenses. Although I see that you do state spending goals, I was wondering whether you maintain a budget as well and compare your expenses to that budget? You noted that you spent more for dining out. But I also noted that you spent less this month on groceries than in the month prior.

In my budget, which is also tied to goals, I cross level actual expenses. For example, if I overspend in one category, I’ll cut back in others to cover the overspent amount. This has worked very well for me to stay within a budget and not feel too constrictive.

I give more of my *time* to volunteer work for organizations whose missions I admire, and my time has been proven to be more valuable than the money I could give.

I’m sorry it “makes you sick,” whatever that means. Pray for me, maybe through divine intervention I will become the better person you seem to think I am not.

I completely agree with you in that I should support those who need money more than I do, and I will be the best philanthropist I can be, but I don’t need a book to tell me that I should do it, how much, and how often.