I can't believe it's already April

Time flies.

Life right now is consumed with trying to find a new job with a higher salary. I'm on the verge of wiping out my savings to take an in-person bar class, and I'm terrified to do it without more money coming in. I didn't take the bar in February, and am trying to decide whether or not I can go it on my own or if I should pay nearly $4k to be in a classroom every night. The former hasn't worked so well in the past.

Our lease is expiring in a month, and we're going month-to-month from there on out. H and I are "thinking things through" in regards to what we eventually want to do. What that basically means is that we're deciding if we're ready to take the next step (moving into a new place together not on a whim, which H considers a "total commitment"). I think we'll have everything figured out in a few months, but the insecure living situation is causing me a little bit of stress.

It's amazing that I've let the bar hang over my head for this long. That I didn't take the class and pass it right out of law school was one of the worst decisions of my life!

Debt Roundup

My current credit card totals --

Store Card #1: $1500
MC: $6637
Bofa #1: $4775
Bofa #2: $4400
Bloomies: $740
Capital One: $1756

Total = $19,808
Beginning Balance = $22,355
Previous Balance = $20,754
Total Paid = $2,547

Paid down 2% of my debt in the past month! Yay. :)

Buying a House

H wants to move closer to his work in the coming months. Depending on how close we get, it'll add 1-4 miles for me, which could mean the same commute up to 25 minutes more (obviously I'd be pulling for not increasing my commute; I'm also looking for jobs in that area). [Edit in response to comment: The freeway up there has some ugly traffic, which is why 1-4 miles could mean an extra 25 minutes, but it's possible I could avoid it by leaving the house/coming back at a particular time] Our lease expires in May, and the landlord has agreed to let us go month to month.

H's mom has offered to give him a lump sum to purchase a house. Neither of us is exactly sure how much that will be, but probably between $200-300k.

He has no credit and no debt. I personally think he should only spend whatever his mom gives him, and not take out a mortgage (with no credit, I don't even know if he could?). Where he works is a fairly cheap part of SoCal, so I think it will be doable. He's leaning toward a house, and I think he'd like to stay in it for maybe 5 years (I don't know what will happen in those 5 years, but it's probably still pre-kids age for both of us). But he doesn't seem to want to talk or think about the whole process, he just wants it to magically happen. I've sent him some Redfin links, but otherwise I know very little about what's the best course of action. Find a realtor? Stick with Redfin?

There are a lot of things going on for me from May-July, so my main concern is that our living situation is stable during that period. That would either mean leaving at the beginning of May, right when the lease expires, or doing month to month until August. I know he really hates his commute, but I also don't want him to rush into buying something just to quickly fix that issue.

Any advice?

Debt Owed to M

I was asked in the comments about my current relationship with M (my ex, who I was with for six years). We're still very good friends, I'm happy to say. He's doing well; trying lots of new things.

I still owe him a lot of money, which I've finally started tackling.

I owe him $26,554 and have paid him back $5,700, leaving a total balance of $20,854. I'm paying him $100 per month for now. At that rate, it would take me 17 years to pay him back (damn, did I do that math right? argh). Obviously I want to increase that amount, and will do so as soon as I get a better job.

I also owe him $5,000 for a car he purchased for my mother. I'm hoping one day she can help pay some of that back.

I have a long way to go... It's overwhelming sometimes. But I'm trying to think positive.