A Boodle

My dear friend, Patty, would often talk about having a boodle.  Her mother told her that every woman needed a boodle, a stash of her own money, often secret.  I had never heard of it before Patty used it.  I thought it was a Yiddish word, but it’s not. I thought it was a family word. It was not.  However, boodle is a real word. A boodle means a large quantity of something, often ill-gotten money. It is from the Dutch word boedel from the 1600s.  A few of our politician have boodles that get them into a lot of trouble. We are going to talk about the good kind of boodle.

When I was a young woman, we really didn’t think about having our own money. You might save your babysitting money or what you made as a waitress or another job.  You used it to buy clothes or to have a good time. We weren’t taught how to invest or build your credit score.  We hardly knew how to balance our check books if you had one. Then we married and often our husbands took over the finances. I imagine many women had their own boodles from pennies pinched here and there that was stashed away somewhere in the pantry.

 I was a military wife, so I had to do the bills since often my husband was deployed. That was a blessing in disguise for me.  When my husband left me, my eyes opened, not how to pay a bill, but how economics worked.  I had no credit since my credit was tied to my husband’s.  Yet, I was responsibility for caring for two children. 

 I had a good, stable job which was lifesaving for my family.  I was able to get a place to live since I had the money for deposits. The car was a whole other ball game.  With no credit, it was hard to get a loan for a car.  A very nice salesman at the Renault dealership worked very hard to get me a lease so I had a car.  That kind man was a guardian angel.  Angels come in different forms. 

As time passed, and I slowly began building a credit history by paying the rent and the car lease payments, I bravely applied for a Shell gas card.  When I got approved for it, I was walking on air.  I had a credit card. I had a new beginning to take care of myself and my family. Then, the big whammy hit.  My ex did not pay the bills that had my name on it, so what little credit I had built was now in danger. I was back in the hole again. I ended up slowing paying off the loans and credit cards of the joint accounts.  You need to be careful what you sign – if your name is on the account, you are responsible regardless the circumstances. 

I wish I had a boodle.  I could have taken better care of myself if the “stash” was available. I could have eased the challenges I faced.  However, I may not have learned the money lessons I needed to learn. Obviously, I did thrive on my own and grew my credit history.  It was not easy, but it can be done. I am living proof. 

When I became a principal, I would always tell my young female teachers to build their own credit, grow their savings, invest in their retirement, and create a boodle which today is an emergency fund.  It is easier today for women to build credit and manage money but not necessarily easy.  I would also give this advice to older women for many of them still don’t know how to manage their finances.  Life can change so quickly from the passing of a spouse to an unexpected divorce.  It is always better to be prepared.  If you don’t know where to begin, I suggest reading Jane Bryant Quinn’s How to Make Your Money Last or Get Good with Money by Tiffnay Aliche.  Both finance books can help you to self-educate.  You can do it! 

Mary Ann