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Everything I spent in 2018

The fact that it took me multiple tries of adding up numbers to get ones that were reasonably the same means I a) am not as much of a recovering perfectionist as I thought and b) probably need to slightly rethink my system of tracking numbers. I think a lot of it is inconsistency in categorization, which is frustrating but ultimately doesn’t affect the total (so I could’ve spent a way healthier ratio of time spent writing this post compared to spreadsheeting for this post ?‍♀️).

But, I am finally done spreadsheeting. And in total, I spent $28,629.03 in 2018. Continue reading “Everything I spent in 2018”

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An update on my unofficial clothes shopping ban

Oh hi, friends. It’s Thursday. Despite my best attempts to keep at a normal posting schedule, things keep getting in the way, and Tuesday posts are particularly taking a hit for some reason.

This week, which was supposed to be quiet, unexpectedly turned into a shitshow Monday night. It involved both me witnessing an attempted serious crime/spending the evening talking to the police (serious to the level of I wrote everything down afterwards so I can remember in case it goes to trial and I’m called in. ETA: I am fine though, don’t worry!) AND the arrival of both my youngest sibling and car troubles that started happening an hour before they arrived here (thank goodness the previous owners of my car bought it new and therefore I know they took care of it, plus I still get a free oil change once a twice a year from them, aka my parents!).

I got up early both Tuesday and Wednesday mornings to be at the mechanic right when they open before going to work, and you know how I write posts the night before they go up? I was too tired last night to stay up as late writing as I normally do, so I got up way too early in order to finish writing this on Thursday morning because I AM GOING TO PUBLISH A POST TODAY, DAMMIT.

Let’s talk about something that’s not attempted [serious crime what the fuck] or car issues, shall we? Continue reading “An update on my unofficial clothes shopping ban”

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Pantry staple price comparison: ALDI edition

After a Trader Joe’s opened up near me a few months back I decided to do a price comparison of some of my pantry staples at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and the grocery store I normally shop at (RS in the post for “regular store”) to see if I should be changing up my grocery shopping habits in order to get the best deals on things I buy regularly.

Turned out there are a few things that are cheaper to buy at TJ, even though it’s more out of my way, and I’ve tried to buy those items there since that post.

My last grocery price comparison post started out like this:

Ah, Trader Joe’s. The bargain store spoken of in hushed tones of reverence usually reserved for sacred spaces and museum exhibitions of old masters (or no, is that just me speaking as an history nerd?).

Replace “Trader Joe’s” with “ALDI” and I’ve got myself the beginning of a second price comparison post! Continue reading “Pantry staple price comparison: ALDI edition”

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Coming to terms with a year’s worth of spending

Tracking your spending is one of the most basic things you need to do when on the FI path. December 2016 is the first month I actually kept track of everything I spent, which means I have data for the entire year of 2017.

I have to admit, for months now I’ve been thinking about totaling up everything from 2017, but I’ve also been avoiding it. While I moved to spending more intentionally overall during the year, I know for a fact there was a lot of waste, and I was scared to see what I’d find. But for the sake of better knowing my finances, I sucked it up and took a peek at the numbers. Continue reading “Coming to terms with a year’s worth of spending”

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What are your trade-offs?

Essentially all of life is a trade-off: when we say yes to something, we’re saying no to something else. We trade our time and energy 40 hours a week at our jobs in exchange for a paycheck, which means saying no to the myriad of other things we could or would rather be doing during that time.

When we say yes to an evening in reading a book or watching tv, we say no to an evening out somewhere or spending time with friends. And vice versa.

When we stay up late writing blog posts, we say no to getting more sleep. Ahem, I digress. Continue reading “What are your trade-offs?”

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Of lemons and rice: a price comparison of pantry staples

Ah, Trader Joe’s. The bargain store spoken of in hushed tones of reverence usually reserved for sacred spaces and museum exhibitions of old masters (or no, is that just me speaking as an history nerd?).

Despite the many glowing reviews, I can probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve shopped at TJ. The closest one to me was either in Virginia or a drive halfway across the city. I’m a fundamentally lazy person at heart but paradoxically living here has made me quite the city slicker: walking a mile or two is way less work in my opinion than having to get in the car to drive somewhere (and losing the prime parking spot I usually snag on my block). Plus I generally refuse to drive across this city on principle. Continue reading “Of lemons and rice: a price comparison of pantry staples”

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Some of the things I’ve bought over the years

(aka Amazon is sometimes a dangerous game)

I’ve talked before about how I’m a natural spender. I’ve been noticing a tendency lately to want to buy things—and I succumbed and bought two prints the other day. At some point I’m going to run out of wall space for those, but I suspect it’ll be that event that makes me finally stop, not some act of self control on my part.

I had a tab open earlier today for a pine-scented candle. It took me a few minutes to blink, take a second look at that tab, and close it out. I’ve got a bunch of candles. Hell, I have the supplies to make my own. I don’t need an expensive holiday-scented candle, as fantastic as that would smell. I’ve got better things to do with my money. But I still had that tab open. Continue reading “Some of the things I’ve bought over the years”