Okay, where did all of my money go?

I felt so empowered a few weeks ago knowing that I’m a single, 28-year-old woman who owns her own apartment in the city, something a lot of people my age don’t have.

Okay, let me qualify it: I’m about to turn 29 next month and I’m separated from my husband Steve; our legal separation was finalized in mid-May.

But I have no debt, no loans, no maxed out credit cards. I make a good living doing financial investor relations and was even able to save some money in my own separate accounts. Steve, of course, knew about my accounts since he had separate ones as well.

Joint Citibank, separate Citibank, joint ING, separate ING, joint mutual funds, separate mutual funds. Come to think about it, I was basically prepared for a divorce even though I never thought I’d be in this situation. Don’t get me wrong, I still have all of my savings, but I feel like a walking debit card.

I never realized how much money I spent. There always seemed like there was money to pay for everything. I even handled all of our finances: I took care of the bills, the investments…everything. I basically was the man in the relationship.

But when we went to dinner, Steve put down his credit card so I never paid much attention, although he always did hand me the receipts. Dinners and drinks with friends are so enjoyable, but holy crap, being single is expensive!

What am I supposed to do though? Sit home alone and eat bonbons and think about how shitty my situation is? How my entire world fell apart in a matter of two months?

Moving on means getting out of the apartment and enjoying myself. I’ve never been one to complain about finances or worry that I was spending too much money. I’m young, I don’t have children and I want to enjoy myself. But I also don’t want to deplete my funds.

Now, being newly single, I need to be a bit more aware, more vigilant. Still, there are certain things that I’m not ready to give up…..dinner, drinks, manicures and my weekly cleaning lady.