I often hear myself quoting Scarlett O’Hara from the movie Gone with the Wind, “Well, tomorrow is another day.” Or, “I don’t want to think about that today, I’ll deal with that tomorrow.” Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow…..but tomorrow never comes.

All over the news, farmers are lamenting about how they don’t have enough water to keep their crops at full production and most have already scaled back their growing season. This past weekend I drove north and saw dust bowls where farms use to stand with my very own eyes.

Taking a close look at your finances with your partner, spouse, or significant other may not sound like fun times, so I kept the financial information as succinct and to the point as possible. I’ve organized the topics in an easy-to-read format, added quizzes to lighten the mood, and included resources for further reading.

I’m smoking my quarterly goals this year so far. Part of my success has been that my goals were realistic and attainable, the other part has been that this year has been good to me so far. A few things that have worked to my advantage:

I used to think that before I could save for retirement, I had to pay off all my debt. Though paying down debt definitely frees up money which helps you save more, it’s not a black and white area where you can only do one or the other. Instead, retirement savings should be a priority with paying off debt close behind.

Living in Southern California most of my life, I’ve only seen or heard thunderstorms a handful of times and snow twice (without having to go to the mountains.) I can remember the onslaught of February rain in 1997 and 2005, that’s how infrequently we get consistent showers day after day – I remember the dates!