First the good news, as of 5/16, I will be down to only 2 credit cards with balances (1 of the 2 is 0% apr).

Now the bad news. My friend that had been doing well finding temp work hit a dry spell and needed money so as to not crash and burn. It was only $800 but that is money that was originally scheduled for debt repayments so my payoff this month will be lower.

I am getting her more comfortable with the idea of budgeting and I am helping her track it more frequently. I think once we get her used to the idea of an allowance, she will not do the starvation/binge cycle that she always does.

Its still slow progress getting her used to it since her parents taught her nothing about finance and she never took any classes on it either (in fact, her parents are the worst examples ever so don't want her to emulate them).

However, she is starting to be a bit more savvy and the constant exposure to our budget is helping her grow more comfortable with finance. She is beginning to really want to develop an emergency fund so she isn't in constant panic mode and she is willing to work to get herself to that point.

Her big holdup at the moment is steady employment. Mind you, if she had ever built an emergency fund I wouldn't have to bail her out but baby steps, at least she is going to try living on a reasonable budget. I have even gotten her to agree that she isn't allowed to spend more than $20 on a person till she has an emergency fund set up (yes this is an issue).

I am still on schedule to payoff in August but a couple more setbacks like that could start to impact the payoff date. Hopefully she gets a contract or a full time gig soon. She has definitely been applying for stuff.