Ahh...

That sigh of relief you hear? That's the sound of my car being paid off. I just wrote the last check for my last payment on this car on Sunday.

It will be like getting another pay raise, not having to make this payment every month. I never thought I'd get to this point.

It's also unbelievably nice NOT to feel like I have to juggle my bills each month, determining when to pay which bill -- depending on when payday is -- and which ones could handle partial payments this month or that one, if I was over my budget. Now, I've been able to put everything on auto-pay, and I don't even have to think about whether I'm behind on my cable bill anymore. Because I'm not. I can't be.

Mind you, I'm not debt-free, but I'm closer than I've been in years. I have a couple of pretty small debts (around $1000, give or take) to clear up, and then I'm done. And I have to be sure to be responsible about my spending now, so I can build up a decent chunk of savings and never again be in the financial straits I've been in over the past several years.

Ahh. That's the sound of a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders.

(Of course, I'm probably tempting the fates by writing this. Now my car will die, and/or I will lose my job!)