[meaghanchan]

My debt is due to about 7 months of unemployment that ended recently. I had a 6-month emergency fund- which isn't enough when unemployment stretches out longer than that. Also, once I had cut my emergency fund in half, I panicked and started putting everyday expenses on credit cards rather than cut my emergency fund more. Lesson learned- I need a large emergency fund just to feel safe.

I started out with about $2800 on 1 credit card with a very high interest rate. I don't have a perfect credit score, so I'm hesitant about trying the 0% balance transfer, because I don't think I'd be approved. I am going to call my cc company next month (after 3 months of on-time payments... yeah, I didn't pay on time so much when I was unemployed) and see if they'll lower my rate. Anyway, I just started working in the middle of August and I've got it down to about $2000 now. I'm hoping to have it payed off by December. Fortunately it's not a very long time period, so I don't have to worry too much about staying focused- and everytime I see the interest on my statement, it motivates me more to pay it down as soon as possible.