I have a confession. I haven’t balanced my checkbook since like, 1997. I know, I know…of all people, I’m supposed to be the shining example of perfection here, but spoiler alert–I’m human.

It’s purge season at my house. Over the last month, I have been going through every closet, every drawer and every cabinet and ruthlessly getting rid of things that have accumulated. My bedroom was an especially large project, resulting in 31 (yes, 31) bags of things going to the donation bin. Like many people, I had hung on to things I wasn’t using, thinking maybe I would need them someday. Pieces of clothing that didn’t fit, were no longer in style, or things I had forgotten I bought were cluttering up my space. As I was combing through everything, I came to some hard realizations.

Have you seen the “supoon”? It’s a spoon & a spatula & a measuring cup. It’s engineered to not mess up the counter. Naturally, I ordered one immediately, ONE AGAIN falling victim to an impulse purchase. Damn you, Bezos!

I put off uncomfortable tasks. There is a part of my brain that, for reasons unknown to me, figures it’s better to sweat and worry and twist about it for a few days. I don’t want to face that email, that text, that paperwork, so I just pretend it doesn’t exist–or more often–busy myself with something else that definitely isn’t as important. As you can predict, once I actually tackle the task, it’s never as bad as it seems and I feel much better. I’ve ruined a day or two of my life with anxiety over literal minutes of discomfort.

We already talked about the importance of health insurance, and regardless if you choose to follow that advice or not, taking care of your health should be a top priority. This is especially true when it comes to preventative care such as the following: