I just wanted to write and let everyone know that I had a pretty damn good day today!Well, the day didn't start out too great. I had to wake up at 7 am instead of my usual 9 am. But I felt pretty good because I knew I was taking a first big step in straightening out my horrific mess of bills and debts. My paycheque was being garnished at work for monies I owed. They were garnishing my cheque like 50%!!
So I went to work the morning I found out about my garnishment. I was extremely bummed out, and almost on the verge of tears. Angry with myself for getting in such a mess, and angry that so much of my fairly meager paycheque be taken away. They were garnishing 25% of the balance I owed them off my pay.
Anyhow, I decided to get some free help from my work's EAP (Employee Assistance Program) and got an appointment for financial counseling. I met with Joe today and he went over my possible options. I am taking the bankruptcy route. In some ways, it's the easy way to go. In other ways, it could prove to be risky.
For those who don't know, when you go through bankruptcy, you basically declare to all your creditors/collection agencies that "I'm FUCKING BROKE! Now leave me alone, assholes!!"
There are fees involved, but I'm not sure what they're for. When you first declare you're bankrupt, there is a fee of $250.00. I think it's $100.00 for processing fees, and $150.00 for your first payment. Then once a month, for 8 months, I would pay $150.00 to my trustee in my bankruptcy.
My penalty for committing this 'sin' is that I have this on my credit records for 6 years and 8 months. That means I can't get a credit card, a bank loan, car loan, mortgage, etc. without that effecting my credit rating. That's the only thing that scares me, is because a lot can happen in 7 years. However, my going bankrupt will wipe clean my debts of over $11,000, and I pay $1,450.00 over 8 or 9 months.
Fuck it, I say. I've been living just fine and my credit has sucked for the last 3 years. The year I left my wife.
Soooo, now my finances are going to be in order someday soon. I'm applying for bankruptcy in a few days, I think. I'm 90 percent confident that I'm going to apply...but I'm going to do a bit more research.
Oh yeah, and get this. When I do file, my co-signed student line of credit balance of $4,800 gets dumped on my co-signor...my ex-father in law. Honestly, I don't give a shit because he has an assload of money. He just helped my ex-wife...his daughter, buy her very own house in the suburbs. So I stab him in the arse with a bill...ol' George can handle it.
Sigh...I rambled a lot there. I'm stiff fucking stoned. It's 1:37 am and I have to wake up at 7 or 7:30 tomorrow.
