Although I went over my daily limit a handful of times this week, I managed to balance it out with several "free days."
The grand total for spending for week three comes to a sum of $56.92.
Yah, that's right, suckers ... $13.08 UNDER my weekly allowance. It wasn't always fun, but I did it. I will probably use this money to contribute to another grocery shopping trip this week. My cabinet is looking a little Old Mother Hubbard-ish.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Weekend tally ...
As it was a holiday weekend, I figured it was time to get out of the city. I knew I had a little extra spending money saved from the week, but I wasn't going to worry about holding back.
Saturday:
My friend Laura and I took the trek out to Astoria for the first time. I spent a significant amount of daily money on snacks for the car ride, but it was a long drive.
We spent the day seeing the "sights." (And aside from lunch, everything was free.) Astoria isn't the most booming town ever, but it has its charm. Our first stop? 'The Goonies' house, duh! Although Laura wasn't as thrilled, it definitely tickled my fancy.
See ... look how happy I am:
After we saw and conquered, we headed to The Astoria Column, which is essentially a lighthouse on the highest point in town, offering 360 degree views of the area. Besides crapping my pants due to the height situation, the climb up was worth it.
Saturday:
My friend Laura and I took the trek out to Astoria for the first time. I spent a significant amount of daily money on snacks for the car ride, but it was a long drive.
We spent the day seeing the "sights." (And aside from lunch, everything was free.) Astoria isn't the most booming town ever, but it has its charm. Our first stop? 'The Goonies' house, duh! Although Laura wasn't as thrilled, it definitely tickled my fancy.
See ... look how happy I am:
After we saw and conquered, we headed to The Astoria Column, which is essentially a lighthouse on the highest point in town, offering 360 degree views of the area. Besides crapping my pants due to the height situation, the climb up was worth it.
Other adventures led us to a pioneer cemetery, sketchy gas stations, and of course lunch.
So, lets get to the point. Total spending for the day ...
Sat 5/26/12: $30.14 for snacks and lunch. (-$20.14)
Sunday:
I spent Sunday catching up on the all the things I meant to get to the rest of the week. (A mountain of dishes, laundry, sweeping, etc.)
However, I was recently offered some work on the side, and spent a few hours doing that as well, which leads into my new justification.
Since I have a little more income, and Sunday was my first bout of that, I canceled out my $9 worth of drinks out with friends that evening. I guess it's technically cheating, but I made it to the end of a long week, and I'm counting it as a free day, dammit.
Sun 5/27/12: $0 because I say so. (+$10)
Crafty weekdays ...
I clearly have some catching up to do on my spending from last week. Let's start with the weekdays ...
Wednesday:
Another "free day," technically. Although I spent my morning at the doctor's office dealing with the Pink Eye my kids gave me, I had a little bit of time before needing to return to work. I couldn't resist grabbing a coffee and a muffin. However, I got crafty with it. Earlier in the week, I happened to find a pre-paid gift card in my wallet with a whole five bucks on it! I also, realized I still had a giftcard to Heart Coffee my boss had given me months ago. Took care of both cravings without actually spending any of my own money.
Thursday:
With the lack of spending I had been doing this week, I knew I had a little extra to spare, but was still trying to be careful, so I could indulge over the weekend. But, when I opened my bagged lunch from home that day, I just couldn't stand eating leftovers one more time. I let myself splurge and bought Subway for lunch instead.
But, uh oh! Surprise! I ran out of tampons and milk that day. (And maybe it had something to do with the tampon situation, but I couldn't control my urge to buy chips either.)
I went a little over my limit, but not by much.
Friday:
Maybe it's because I went over my limit on Thursday, or maybe it's because I actually do have some kind of self-control, but I managed to stay under budget on Friday night. I hustled my co-teacher for a haircut in exchange for Red Bulls to fuel our weekly energy needs amidst eight needy one-year-olds. Then, only drank one Rainier at the bar later that night, while catching up with a friend from college.
The Run-Down:
Wed 5/23/12: $0 even with coffee and muffins. (+$10)
Thurs 5/24/12: $17.82 for lunch, lady-needs, and late-night snacks. (-$7.82)
Fri 5/25/12: $7.84 for a hair-cut and a tall-boy. (+$2.16)
Wednesday:
Another "free day," technically. Although I spent my morning at the doctor's office dealing with the Pink Eye my kids gave me, I had a little bit of time before needing to return to work. I couldn't resist grabbing a coffee and a muffin. However, I got crafty with it. Earlier in the week, I happened to find a pre-paid gift card in my wallet with a whole five bucks on it! I also, realized I still had a giftcard to Heart Coffee my boss had given me months ago. Took care of both cravings without actually spending any of my own money.
Thursday:
With the lack of spending I had been doing this week, I knew I had a little extra to spare, but was still trying to be careful, so I could indulge over the weekend. But, when I opened my bagged lunch from home that day, I just couldn't stand eating leftovers one more time. I let myself splurge and bought Subway for lunch instead.
But, uh oh! Surprise! I ran out of tampons and milk that day. (And maybe it had something to do with the tampon situation, but I couldn't control my urge to buy chips either.)
I went a little over my limit, but not by much.
Friday:
Maybe it's because I went over my limit on Thursday, or maybe it's because I actually do have some kind of self-control, but I managed to stay under budget on Friday night. I hustled my co-teacher for a haircut in exchange for Red Bulls to fuel our weekly energy needs amidst eight needy one-year-olds. Then, only drank one Rainier at the bar later that night, while catching up with a friend from college.
The Run-Down:
Wed 5/23/12: $0 even with coffee and muffins. (+$10)
Thurs 5/24/12: $17.82 for lunch, lady-needs, and late-night snacks. (-$7.82)
Fri 5/25/12: $7.84 for a hair-cut and a tall-boy. (+$2.16)
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Free day ...
Total spending for the day? Nothing, suckers! I'm getting good at this shit.
Tues 5/22/12: $0 for squat. (+$10)
But don't think you're going to get away with only reading that good news. After "constructive" conversation with my dearest friend, Sharon, I've decided to make this blog a little more exciting.
I'm not going to say I'm making a schedule for creative posts, (because God knows I can barely manage to just write about spending), but I will now be adding cheap outing ideas and recipes that last for days. (Seriously, I made a pasta salad last week that I ate for three lunches in a row.)
So here's my first (and favorite) free activity to do in this city:
Sunset on the bluffs
Or as my friend Laura likes to call it, "Beers at Hipster Park."
As an unofficial offshoot, of Overlook Park, the bluffs are definitely a gathering point in NE. You're almost guaranteed to see someone you know there.
There's a reason for that, though. The park overlooks the river, facing West, so you can catch the sun going down over the hills. There's a pretty stellar view of the cityscape to the south, and a nice grimy vibe from the industry happening below the bluffs and to the north. (Plus, you can watch tugboats float by. Oh wait, that may only be interesting to me.)
As most people ride their bikes there, it's totally acceptable (and presumed that you will) stash a few beers in your messenger bag.
So, besides the cheap beer stashed in your bag, this event costs nada. Now only if the sun would reappear ...
Tues 5/22/12: $0 for squat. (+$10)
But don't think you're going to get away with only reading that good news. After "constructive" conversation with my dearest friend, Sharon, I've decided to make this blog a little more exciting.
I'm not going to say I'm making a schedule for creative posts, (because God knows I can barely manage to just write about spending), but I will now be adding cheap outing ideas and recipes that last for days. (Seriously, I made a pasta salad last week that I ate for three lunches in a row.)
So here's my first (and favorite) free activity to do in this city:
Sunset on the bluffs
Or as my friend Laura likes to call it, "Beers at Hipster Park."
As an unofficial offshoot, of Overlook Park, the bluffs are definitely a gathering point in NE. You're almost guaranteed to see someone you know there.
There's a reason for that, though. The park overlooks the river, facing West, so you can catch the sun going down over the hills. There's a pretty stellar view of the cityscape to the south, and a nice grimy vibe from the industry happening below the bluffs and to the north. (Plus, you can watch tugboats float by. Oh wait, that may only be interesting to me.)
As most people ride their bikes there, it's totally acceptable (and presumed that you will) stash a few beers in your messenger bag.
So, besides the cheap beer stashed in your bag, this event costs nada. Now only if the sun would reappear ...
Monday, May 21, 2012
Oh, Mondays ...
Nothing exciting to report on today. (Don't worry, Sharon ... I'm working on a weekly "fun" schedule.)
Mon 5/21/12: $5.56 for lunch. (+$4.44)
Mon 5/21/12: $5.56 for lunch. (+$4.44)
Sunday, May 20, 2012
The Sunday count ...
I spent the day cooking, doing laundry and watching movies. Lame? Yes. But I didn't spend any money.
Week two spending: $76.20.
Eh? Eh? Not so bad. I had some extra income (rollover money and a sold bike lock), that factored into this week's spending, but even with that, I'm feeling pretty ok with only being $6.20 over my limit.
Week two spending: $76.20.
Eh? Eh? Not so bad. I had some extra income (rollover money and a sold bike lock), that factored into this week's spending, but even with that, I'm feeling pretty ok with only being $6.20 over my limit.
Yikes ...
Maybe it's because I didn't buy any snack food on my last grocery trip, but I craved junk all weekend. I held out on Friday night, only stopping by the grocery store for beer and a missing ingredient for dinner, but I let loose yesterday.
I knew I had about $35 dollars to spend for the weekend, so I agreed to take part in a golf-themed pub crawl that involved a lot of beer-chugging. Well, beer-chugging has always led to money-spending for me.
After drinking a handful of PBR's, and thinking about how I just got paid, I allowed myself to spend a little more money than planned. And you know what? I don't feel bad about it. I'd been good all week, and I didn't go crazy ... I just let myself order food from the carts and have that extra beer at the end of the night.
Even with my indulgences last night, I realized I hadn't gone much over my weekly budget so far.
(I've managed to not spend any money so far today, but I'll check-in again at the end of the night for a weekly total.)
Here are the numbers for the past two days:
Fri 5/18/12: $11.83 for meat and beer. (-$1.83)
Sat 5/19/12: $40.30 for beers, dinner, and a grand ole time, dammit. (-$30.30)
I knew I had about $35 dollars to spend for the weekend, so I agreed to take part in a golf-themed pub crawl that involved a lot of beer-chugging. Well, beer-chugging has always led to money-spending for me.
After drinking a handful of PBR's, and thinking about how I just got paid, I allowed myself to spend a little more money than planned. And you know what? I don't feel bad about it. I'd been good all week, and I didn't go crazy ... I just let myself order food from the carts and have that extra beer at the end of the night.
Even with my indulgences last night, I realized I hadn't gone much over my weekly budget so far.
(I've managed to not spend any money so far today, but I'll check-in again at the end of the night for a weekly total.)
Here are the numbers for the past two days:
Fri 5/18/12: $11.83 for meat and beer. (-$1.83)
Sat 5/19/12: $40.30 for beers, dinner, and a grand ole time, dammit. (-$30.30)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)