The Current State of Affairs

   I've been thinking a lot lately about the future and where my life is headed. I'm at the point where I feel like I really gotta start making some changes. Don't get me wrong, my life is good and I love it, and I love the people in it, but I'm tired of treading water. Every point of dissatisfaction keeps coming back to a basic lack of additional funds. I've got enough to get by but that's about it.
   I never feel like a can splurge and spend on something I want. The continuing cycle of bills and a mediocre pay level just repeats over and over, every month. I want more. I want to be able to spend money on holidays, vacations, or even just something nice for my wife every now and then. I can, and do, handle my responsibilities, but that's about it. And sometimes that just plain sucks.
   One of my biggest strengths and my utter weakness, is that I find it incredibly easy to be content with what I have. I feel fortunate to have people who care about me. I'm grateful I have a roof over my head and clothes on my back. But that simple contentment also means I rarely strive to get any further than my current position in life. I easily become complacent. And honestly this strategy could continue to work for another 10 or 15 years at least, but eventually I'm not gonna be able to work and then I'm gonna be in real trouble.
   I'm slowly trying to come up with a plan to fix this. I've got a few ideas already but I've never been good with implementation. I have however, found a few key things in my life that need to change in order to make any kind of meaningful advancement.

• I need a car. Most people might think this is a no brainer and can't imagine getting along without one. But it's surprisingly easier than you'd think. In my day to day life I really don't need one. I can walk everywhere I need to go. There's a grocery store two blocks from my apartment and walking to work is pretty easy as well. Not only that, but walking is basically the only exercise I get. The problem is, summertime is fast approaching and without a car, it's going to be another wasted summer. I'm tired of wasted summers. I wanna go to parks and go hiking. I wanna run off to the lake for the day. Plus if I get a car, my job market opens up immensely.
• I need to quit smoking. This is a purely financial decision. I love smoking, which is why every time I've tried to quit, I've failed. But it is seriously killing my wallet. Quitting would open up hundreds of dollars a month and it's just too much to ignore anymore. I'm planning on doing this in the very near future.
• I need to start saving some money and investing. If I want any chance of having a pleasant existence as a senior citizen this has to start soon. I've started reading up on my options and I'm working on figuring out how to make this happen.
• I need a better job. For as much as I complain about it, I really do love working in the hotel industry. The problem is, I'm not making enough and I'm almost at the pay ceiling for my current position. I've been trying to advance in the company but so far it hasn't happened. The possibility is there and my bosses like me but there are still a few things I need to work on before it happens. And if it doesn't, I need to accept it and move on.
• I need to focus more on my secondary lines of income. Online projects are pretty much my only hope here. But I need to stop getting derailed so easily. I take every little defeat to heart and give up, and that's just stupid.

   That's what I've got so far. It doesn't seem like much but it scares the hell out of me. It's all so entangled that I feel like I can't get a grip on it all. But if I can accomplish one piece of it, the other pieces will become easier to manage. And now is a good time to get the ball rolling. My students loans will finally be paid off in less than a year. This is a monstrous debt that has followed me around for most of my adult life, and with it gone  I'll have a lot more income at my disposal. Major changes are coming, they have to.