Yesterday I spent $2.80 at garage sales for 12 items, at an average of 24 cents an item.

What I got:

a small frame

Tupperware thingy perfect for spaghetti

four gifts - Jeff Gordon ponchos stuff for two NASCAR fan friends, a porcelain lemon for a collector of fruit things, and a wool sweater in excellent shape

A very nice high quality child’s sweater that I will give to some grandparent or parent at work (I stuck it in the bag of clothes for a dollar bag)

Clothing for me: one piece footy jammies (these things sell new at $35!), a sweater, a nice blouse, and a pair of slacks

A shirt for My Guy

I spent perhaps two hours at the sales, and I’d say used no more than half a gallon of gas maximum.

I can’t recommend garage sales enough. I’ve heard various arguments against it, but I feel they have their place. “It’s too easy to buy things you don’t need.” If someone has trouble scooping everything up I understand that. But if you avoid garage sales for this reason, you miss the items that you do need. I’ve been wanting a crock pot with a lift out crock for quite a bit. I was able to get a very nice one last week for $3. I’d have missed it if I hadn’t gone to the sales.

One thing that I plan to use sales for this year is gift shopping. I’ve gone to thrift stores and garage sales with a different mindset: if I see something a friend would really like, I buy it, then stick it in a gift box until a birthday or Christmas comes along. I’ve gotten nine gifts for $4.90 so far, an average of 55 cents apiece. Since I didn’t have to pick out a gift, what I have selected has been very spot on-I feel confident that most of these gifts will please the recipient.

Now, you won’t always get lucky, but sometimes you hit the jackpot. One year I was getting cases of 24 canning jars for a buck. I’ve been looking for footie jammies for years, and now I own them for a quarter. I also saw other people’s jackpots waiting: at this one sale, there was a large quantity of beautiful large sized women’s clothing. A woman who wore a 2X to a 4X would have had an excellent selection of high quality clothing that looked very well taken care of, at excellent prices. Even though I didn’t need any of those items, there was part of me that was excited for a woman to come along and see that smorgasbord!

One last thing about garage sales: they give me an appropriate sense of sticker shock when I am at regular stores.

Although I’m proud of taking on this (Modified) Minimum Wage Challenge, I’ve been worrying that my overall life is not that different and therefore there are no stories to tell. I’ve been wondering why this has been a relatively smooth transition.

I came to the conclusion that I haven’t had to give up a lot of things. When I had little money I did without, and got used to it. When my debt was gone, and then my income increased, I didn’t upgrade my lifestyle much, and when I did upgrade, it was in small ways.

We didn’t start buying convenience food when we could, so I don’t miss it now. I’ve always bought the cheapest bulk oatmeal, so I haven’t had to give up instant oatmeal with flavors, or fancy low carb oatmeal, or cold cereals that are expensive. We didn’t start buying precut vegetables, or frozen pre-made vegetables and sauce, or frozen meals. We didn’t start buying the more expensive fruits and vegetables like asparagus and pineapple, except as rare treats.

We never got a dishwasher, so washing by hand is what we do. We rarely bought many cleaning items beyond bleach and ammonia which we used diluted and sparingly, and didn’t have a variety of Simple Green and 409 and other cleaning agents. We never paid someone to clean the house.

We didn’t have TiVO or satellite TV or a Plasma TV or Full cable to give up. We felt that getting Netflix and the $9.95 cable to get us a small number of channels was quite luxurious. (I’m still keeping them on the Challenge, partially because My Guy is a partner in these bills and I do not want to negatively affect him with My Challenge. We thought long and hard before committing to baby cable and Netflix and made the decision together).

We didn’t switch where we bought clothes, such as Ross Dress for Less, though we may have bought more items. We didn’t buy new CDs, or DVDs, or accessories. We weren’t into household decorating items except for the infrequent item we fell in love with.

I never bought lattés or any coffee out. I never bought soda or water from vending machines. I kept packing a lunch.

So there wasn’t nearly as much for me to cut back on, because we never added it once we had more money. And that’s why my Challenge may be boring. Some stories that I can not tell:
-> I’m adjusting to making my own coffee in the morning.
-> I’m getting used to our once a week housecleaner not coming.
-> I’m getting used to only having a handful of channels.
-> I’m overcoming my desire to clothes shop at Macy’s and Nordstrom.
-> I’ve switched from the Salad packs to buying the lettuce, yea for me.
-> I tried beans for the first time in a while, and they’re not bad.
-> You know, making oatmeal isn’t so hard, why did I ever buy instant?
-> I’ve discovered the bread thrift store.
-> I’m experimenting to see if I can handle store brand shampoo.

Here is what I want to tell people who are moving out of debt or have increased income: don’t add on luxuries you don’t need, because you can’t miss them if you haven’t had them.

I don’t mind traveling for work, really. It’s kind of a treat to be in a motel room, because you are forced to relax. Somehow this time, even though I was at an actual capital R Resort, for a special conference, I am glad to be home. The luxurious food coming at me almost blew my fuses – I’m too used to my crockpot concoctions. I will admit that the fresh pineapple was pretty fabulous.

It just feels good to be home. My real luxuries are the bath I’m about to take, with a good paperback. Perhaps I’ll have an orange juice and club soda mix.

There were two cars full of people who went to the conference. The car I wasn’t in evidently had a conversation about my Challenge. I don’t think I’ve ever had one of my hobbies interest other people enough to talk about it when I wasn’t around.

I realized I hadn’t brought a razor once we arrived. As I was planning on shorts and a tank top after a winter of growing fur, I was troubled. (My usually well equipped Travel bathroom bag offered me only a spoon. Huh?) One person overheard me mention I was looking for a little store, and she offered me a razor out a three pack she had just bought. She would accept no money. It’s sometimes the small favors we appreciate; I had been thinking I had going to have to pay those high prices for the convenience. I told her I wished her the reward of a good Door Prize, and she did win a good one.

I did get a bill for a deductible on a procedure I had. Medical is going to cause grief again this month.

Tomorrow I leave for a 3 day trip for work, and I come home Thursday night. Next week I might be gone at least one night. June has a couple trips, too. This trip is to a place that’s sunny, and has a pool, so it might be nice to hang out after work around the pool. I like my co-workers a lot-that’s good, because I’m sharing a room with one of them.

You know, not spending is really a habit. I keep thinking, “how am I thrifty today?” And I keep coming up with a simple answer: Not spending anything. Other than some groceries and rent, really this month I’ve spent $8 bucks at garage sales.

Today I spent small money on some great stuff at garage sales, which almost compensates for spending money on something really stupid.

First, the stupidity. I have Pfaltzgraff tableware in the Salerno pattern on my wish list with E-bay. I bought a big set for $16.99 at Ross years ago, and I was an employee and got 20% off. I’ve probably spent triple that adding pieces, for no good reason at all. I like Asian looking things, and I like things to be all one simple pattern. So I’ve ordered more of this pottery to replace pieces broken over the years. Well, lately I have enough, but I still get the wish list mailings. So sometimes I make a low bid, and I’m always outbid, and I’ve shopped without spending. Except last night my low bid was the highest bid, and shipping kicked my butt. Seven ninety-nine plus 9.87 shipping for 4 cups is 17.93 spent out of the household category. I am not proud. It's a pretty pattern, but I can't find pictures that do it justice.



The good stuff: a crock pot with a removable crock-I’ve been wanting that for a long time-$3, household. Three gifts for Birthday/Christmas, $2.25. Gift for My Guy to give to his mom for Mother’s Day ,$1, which I’ll be reimbursed. Nice blouse and sweater, $1.75. Books, 75 cents, under the entertainment category. Might Bright book light, retails over 10 bucks, 25 cents, household. Wooden box and bath beads, free. Nine dollars, eight of them mine.

I met with friends at 8 a.m. to go garage sailing, which was nice for two other reasons. First, I’m supposed to be getting up at the same time on weekends (good sleep patterns to avoid migraines), and I got to do something social on the weekend, which I don’t always do.

Other purchases and income: a travel book sold on half.com, so I get $3.73 in income ($5.80 less the $2.07 postage). That’s a nice surprise, I haven’t sold two books in two months in a long time. Also, I mailed something to a buddy, so $9.84 postage. I had thought parcel post was cheaper, but I guess it’s been a while since I mailed something that wasn’t media mail. It’s not really a gift; I guess I’ll stick it in miscellaneous

Friday we did not go to lunch for Cinco de Mayo, so there is money unspent. Friday I also did not go the the barbecue and play poker. (I think it may have been cancelled; regardless, I was a little too worn from the week to attend.)So I still have my pretty eggplant, and I still have my $26 left for poker playing this year.

I've figured out a benefit to eating lighter and going out to eat. Tomorrow a couple of us are going to a Mexican restaurant for Cinco de Mayo. And because of my credible threat challenge, I'll be likely to order a smaller dish, as opposed to a Combination Plate that has tons of food. So, it will cost less. And I know I will savor it, because it's a treat now, not just another ten dollar "oh, well" meal.

Saturday morning I Garage Sale with 2 buddies, and I am darned excited. Sometimes I realize I'm not as social as I'd like, and I can have a good time while doing a worthwhile activity. I'll honestly be Christmas shopping!

There are quite a few blogs on this site that are really inspiring. I can't name names...it's like the Oscar speech, you list everybody and still forget to mention a really important person....

Suffice it to say that I thank all of you for being willing to share your daily lives, money aspects and other. It makes me think, and has actually started taking the place of some nightly TV for me. So many of you write so well, and have an honesty and simplicity I just love.

I watch too much bad TV, and I'm working on it. Most TV is bad, I admit. I'm not tackling it, because I'm not in a tackling headspace for anything other than figuring out Roth IRA stuff, the Minimum Wage Challenge, and the Credible Threat challenge. But, I'm working on it. The blogs help.

I love tortillas and beans. Kinda simple statement, but man, we have been eating a lot of them and they are so tasty. Corn tortillas, flour tortillas, whole wheat tortillas. Refried beans, fat free beans, black bean. Some chicken or onions or veggies or tomato. Open faced or rolled. They make me pretty happy and I’m satisfied.

My car didn’t cost as much as I thought. Oil change, general check up, rear brakes fixed up, and a serpentine belt, $125.90. Not bad. My place may not be the cehapest in town, but all the employess have fair benefits, and I know that they are super honest, so I never have to lie awake questioning work I had done.

I walked to work today, because of the car. I’ll try to do the same tomorrow, even though my car’s done. I’m doing well on the Credible Threat, and getting below 190 into the 180s is darned close. A lot of folks at work are doing weight watchers; I decided not to, not just because of the cost but because it didn’t seem to fit me. I’ve heard wonderful things about it, but don’t feel it would suit me right now. The benefit, though, is that now at work there are quite a few of us working to be healthier and slimmer. I now have a regular walking buddy, which makes me take my breaks, too. The camaraderie isn’t about food and potlucks and candy, it’s about being motivated to make positive change.

Friday we’re invited to a Barbecue and Poker Tournament (followed by live game). I only have $26 left from my 2006 poker winnings, so I need to win or stay even to be able to keep playing. I’m not sure what I’ll bring; potato salad sounds good and easy and cheap. And to grill? Perhaps some eggplant. I’m not vegetarian, but I do have a nice, pretty eggplant. I’m intimidated by cooking meat sometimes, and though I love sausage a lot of it has nitrates which may (or may not) trigger my migraines.

I've had a series of overall good days, and that's helped me feel more energetic.

Friday I train nine people all day. I love training, but I know I'll be wiped at the end. It's good to be energetic going in.

Last night I neglected to post the actual numbers.

April books are closed, and I’m making it. Success for month two of the (Modified) Minimum Wage Challenge. I have a total of $145.06 “banked” to use for future larger purchases (such as car insurance in July).

I tell ya, the health situation knocked me a bit. Darned body, causing me trouble. I spent more than I should have for the month, but I spent no extra on fun stuff. I was very lucky that all our hard work on the electric bill resulted in such a decrease in that bill.

It’s shaken me, a little. I know that I’m going to get a bill from the doctor’s office for the mole removal, but I’m not sure how much it will be. I know that I’m due for my 35,000 mile tune up – my brakes are starting to squeak, and my Change Oil reminder is lighting up. In June, I think I might have to renew my water aerobics; I’m weighing whether I should or not. (The woman I go with is a friend of mine who, due to bad knees, can’t do other activities. If it weren’t for her I’d likely drop it but being her Pool Pal is a real factor for me.) And Car Insurance is coming due soon.

What has shaken me is not the above expenses, or that I might wobble on the challenge. The reality is I have money to “cheat” with if it comes to that. I worry, knowing that others don’t have the safety of drawing on reserves. For many, living on minimum wage is not an idle Challenge for someone with too much time on her hands to blog about. I get a dose of humility when I think of myself in this position without my actual income. Meeting all needs while satisfying some wants is manageable, but it takes time and effort and desire and attention must be paid.

It crossed my mind to cut down on medications due to this challenge. I won’t do that, no worries, but I bet others do. A person with limited income facing some larger bills might think of halving the dosage on meds, driving uninsured for a couple months, not getting preventative maintenance on the car, or putting some of the bills on a credit card. I have the luxury of not having to do those.

I’m sticking with the Challenge. I plan to make it, and if I don’t make it, it won’t be because of a couple rough months. I have to remind myself, I didn’t think this was going to be easy. (Well, maybe I thought it’d be easier.) I’ll remind myself of the reasons for doing this challenge, and remind myself to give thanks for what I do have. I have a warm bed in a safe house with a full pantry, and to be ungrateful would be a dishonor to any person who goes without these this evening.

A raw dollar reason I was doing the challenge was to save money for the $20 challenge. My spent of $1073 is $519 less than my average per month last year. (I know I have some unspent as of now, but it will be spent on budgeted purchases.) Adding back in the $39 I put into "savings" under the challenge, I saved an additional $558 for the $20 challenge.

(Boring full disclosure: I drive to the airport in my car each month for work, 32 miles round trip. I get money back per mile, .44-1/2 cents. I didn’t want to include the “income” I get from driving for work in this Challenge. On the other hand, that trip is about a third of my monthly miles. I decided that I would allow myself one gallon of gas “paid for” by work each month to compensate. So I took $3 off the gas I paid in April, and I’ll do the same in May. It seemed like a fair compromise.)

Total on the $20 Challenge for two months: $1116.

We'll be going to the grocery store, to get some vegetables and perhaps some shrimp (supposed to be 78 cents for a half dozen?) to go to a barbecue. We'll perhaps play croquet, and enjoy the mild sun. Since I do water aerobics tomorrow, I may not close out my challenge books until Tuesday. I know I made it, it's just a matter of how much I am able to carry over into May.

We were blown away by how many trade dollars we got at the books store; $40.78! That will help with quite a few birthday and Christmas presents. And, we also have more shelf space, since we are no longer keeping books we have no interest in re-reading. A no spend day, which always helps, and a productive day. I take advantage of my perky moments.

I’m trying to live on minimum wage: free food is wonderful.
I’m trying to lose 20 pounds by September 13: free food is dangerous.

As a civil servant, I rarely go to meetings with coffee offered, let alone treats. Today I ended up at a meeting with a breakfast spread that included fresh fruit, bagels and lox, and then one with a catered lunch. I did the best I could under the conditions; selected the healthiest items, ate and was happy, and gave thanks that my dilemma today was how to handle free food. Others faced worse difficulties today.

...may have made you turn heels and run. I should beware the lengthy posts. I promise, just a little chat here and there for at least a week. I just was typing away, had no idea it was such a behemoth until I looked later.

Yesterday I posted the details of how my challenge is going, and then I realized some folks may not know why I’m doing the challenge. I decided to do the (modified) minimum wage challenge 02/25/06, after reading the “Challenge::Live on $5.15 an hour::“ thread under General Discussion; mine is modified because I am using the California minimum wage of $6.75. My original reasons are far outnumbered by the rewards I’m seeing. I decided to do this for a couple reasons, but I find am getting more than I expected.

I am getting:

a clear sense of the value of a dollar.

a sense of freedom in not spending everything I make.

additions to my frugal toolkit.

more creative, to cook better meals and put together better gifts.

excellent clarification on where I am getting good value in my spending.

an ability to savor my treats instead of taking them for granted.

the satisfying feeling one gets from taking on a challenge.

the security of knowing that I am prepared if I hit a financial rough spot.

more money to use for long term plans; retirement, house down payment.

a clear idea that healthcare is broken; I am exceeding lucky to have an insurance plan that costs me $44 in premiums; I’d like to see all people have the “luxury” of affordable healthcare.

more exercise, in trying to decrease gas use, hanging clothes, etc.

a better diet, in going out less and eating beans, grains, and vegetables.

an enjoyable, if slightly odd, hobby.

a sense of gratitude.

The idea that a good life could be lived on a low income if needs were taken care of before wants is an idea has been percolating for me since I was in my early twenties. It took me a while to act on that idea.

When I grew up, my parents spent what they made. Payday was treat day, the day before payday the fridge was bare. I think that with the double income of white collar professionals, we could have been in a lot better shape than we were, but we had a paycheck to paycheck instability. I didn’t learn to save. I got my first real job at 15-1/2 to the day, and I spent a lot of that money on frivolous items-an obscene amount on meals out.

In my late teens and early twenties I made poor money decisions, but I did subscribe to Amy Dacyczyn’s “Tightwad Gazette” newsletter for a bit, so that planted a seed. I don’t believe that being exposed to information is ever a waste; when I needed to change financially I had a direction to turn to.

It was in my late twenties that I starting cleaning up my life, including my finances. At this time I had been pretty low income. I had been $6.75 and hour part time (30 hours a week or less), and then became lucky enough to go to $7 an hour full-time, 37.5 hours a week with benefits. During that time, I was able to pay off old debt. I had also always managed to find money for alcohol and cigarettes-it was a priority to me at the time. I had somewhere between $3000 and $6000 in debts, medical bills, and fines, and though that might seem low, it felt crushingly large.

Living within and below my means became a tool for me to not feel afraid financially. I didn’t mind eating oatmeal if it meant not owing any more money. I was much more scared of debt than I was any deprivation I might have felt. We never went hungry, we always paid rent, but things were tight. I balanced my checkbook daily because sometimes I had as little as $5 in my account.

I got a job as a civil servant, eligibility worker in welfare, interviewing clients who needed Medi-Cal or food stamp benefits. My starting wage in 2000 was $8.43 an hour. I later moved to cash aid, where my clients received cash aid welfare. A lot of these people seemed to not have the frugality skills to live within a small income. I have a lot of compassion for people on aid, regardless of whether life choices or unforeseen circumstances placed them there. I don’t want to get in the welfare debate. I also do not want to get into the Minimum wage debate; I am not arguing that minimum wage is a fair wage. (I will say I think that affordable health care for all would go a long way to helping families make it on lower incomes.)

What I am saying is that our overall culture does not teach frugality. Some of my clients had a series of brutal knocks in life, and being frugal would not have prevented domestic violence, abusive parents, job loss, drug or alcohol abuse, low education, injury and illness. However, during those times of stress, I was seeing that if money was spent differently, at least some of the stress could be lessened. When I started as a worker the food stamp level was $130-something maximum for one person, and people were telling me that they could not eat on that. I was spending much less than that. These folks did not want to buy foie gras, steak, or caviar; but they were buying a lot of name brand items, a lot of convenience foods, a lot of snack foods. One client told me, when granted food stamp benefits, that she was glad that she didn’t have to get the 4 loaves for $5 deal anymore. This was at the time that I was buying 50 cent loaves at the bread thrift store, at the same time that I could have spent $2.50 a loaf if I wanted too. I realized that I had a different head space than other people.

Now 6 years later, I’ve been promoted a couple times and make what I consider pretty decent money, especially for my area. I still buy bread at the thrift store. I had been spending more as my income went up, but I had still spent below my means. As I’ve spelled out in prior posts, my per month average spent last year was $1592, and that included a week long trip to Oaxaca and a weeklong trip to Belgium and Poland, and many meals out.

What some people still fail to see is why I would line dry and wash Ziplocs and buy bulk bulghur. Co-workers and friends see frugality as something to be used when broke, but something that a better income can free you from. I don’t have full cable (I have the $9.95 twelve channel deal), and folks wonder why I don’t have full cable since I can "afford” it. A friend gave me a bunch of paper grocery sacks, and I found a receipt in one. This person spends regularly, but I was shocked at what a “normal” household buys on a grocery trip.

I’ve been through three phases: low income with debt, low income without debt, and higher income living below means.

For the people in debt:
Getting out of debt was one of the most satisfying moments ever. It was definitely incentive to not ever go into debt again. I bought a used car and paid cash, because I couldn’t deal with the idea of car payments. Living low, regardless of one’s income, is a great way to free up money to pay off debt more quickly and avoid new debt.

For the people on a low income:
I want to show that living on a low income does not have to mean hunger and deprivation and boredom and insecurity. Other people on this site, in the forums and blogs, speak eloquently about making do with little. I’m giving the detailed numbers based on my real life to show that under certain circumstances it can be done. Admittedly, the minimum wage in California is higher than most of the country, but the cost of living is higher too. I’ve already acknowledged that if I were actually minimum wage I’d cancel my cable, my Netflix, drive less and walk more, spend less on dining out and clothing, have a cheaper apartment, etc. The money I saved on those would be going to an emergency fund. I admit I am childless, am not disabled, and no longer have any debt. I am living pretty high on my $1073, though-with bulk foods and thrift stores and ingenuity, a person could do a little with a lot. If I had started this challenge with nothing-no home, no furniture, and the clothes on my back-I could use Freecycle and thrift stores to get the minimum basics while I put all my money into an apartment.

For those of us who are making decent money:
Doing this exercise has been invaluable for me to see where I get good value from my spending. I have overspent on clothes, because I don’t like clothes shopping, so I go twice a year and get what I need at one or two stores. If I shopped smarter, by checking thrift stores occasionally, I could get better clothes for less. I splurge on silver and semi-precious stone jewelry, $10 to $50 per item, and I don’t regret a single purchase. Jewelry is my favorite souvenir from traveling, and I wear my pieces all the time. So I know that I’ve been getting not-so-good value from clothing purchases, but great value from jewelry purchases. A lot of spending on items where I get low value comes from having more money. It is rare that if people get a raise, they still spend exactly what they used to make. I used my extra money to pay for the convenience of one-stop clothes shopping, not for higher quality or more flattering clothes. I’m trying to see if I can choose not to spend money on convenience. I can put a lot of my money into retirement, or investing, if I don’t pay for unnecessary convenience.

Now, I don’t say that any particular purchase is bad. Take the oft-quoted latté factor. I myself don’t appreciate lattés and I brew coffee at home and bring it to work in a travel mug. However, I know people for whom the latté is a truly enjoyed daily treat. They get good value out of the purchase. Where we get value is an individual decision; for some spending less in some areas lets them have a stay at home parent, for others (me!) spending less in other areas lets me travel a couple of times a year.

And with that lengthy post, I’m hoping my reasons for this challenge are clearer. Whew.

As I’m saying I’m making it on minimum wage, I feel obligated to post the detailed budget periodically. I’ve been very honest about all expenses and haven’t left off any expenses unless I specifically said so. (For example, I travel for work about once a month; I am not counting what I spent traveling for meals, nor am I counting what I will get from work for meals as income. I usually come out ahead.) A couple times when my boyfriend has wanted to go out, I’ve declined him treating me. I’ve said either, no, nothing for me, go by yourself, or, I've paid my share and put it in my budget. It is challenging sometimes to have the disposable income and have to forego a purchase; but then, otherwise it wouldn’t be a challenge, right?

Reminder on income: $6.75 CA minimum wage x 40 hours x 4.33 weeks per month less FICA and SDI = $1073. I’m counting income from recycling and selling books on half.com; I usually sell about one book every three months-it’s not a real moneymaker, but it’s something. I got $8.77 in April, less $1.50 in postage, for $7.27. That’s real money on my budget.

March income $1073 plus $6.73 recycling = $1079.73.
April income $1073 plus $7.27 textbook sold = $1080.27.



Why could I only spend $986.97 in April? It’s because I overspent some categories in March-for a total of $93.30. Income of $1080.27 less $93.30 is $986.97. Why is my balance in April $170.79? It’s because I’m also carrying over unspent money from March.

I’m using the YNAB budget to track. I may not be using it exactly as designed. For example, Say I budget $62 for April for prescriptions and co-pays. Then I have a funky month where I spend $167.32. If I was absolutely true to the budget, I would not adjust the budgeted amount, and to compensate for my “overspending” I would have $105.32 taken away from my May budget. Well, if I have under spent categories in April, I am adjusting those budgeted figures, and increasing the budget for prescriptions. I’m not “taking” money from categories I have to save, like the money I’ll need for my car insurance in July. Where I will move money from a budget line is where I can under spend, such as grocery or gifts or entertainment.

Now, with the YNAB, I have to enter all purchases twice; into my regular Quicken that I’ve used since ‘98, and into my YNAB spreadsheet. In the spirit of full disclosure, I neglected a double entry last month; I spent $10 in charity but only entered it in Quicken. I’m showing that I spent that $10 in April, as I didn’t want to re-do the finals.

Full disclosure two: there is a radio show in town where one can buy “gift certificates” at less than face value for local businesses. For example, for this nice soul food place in town, $17 got me $30 worth. The general merchandise certificates are printed on blue paper, so I call them Blue Money. I do have left over Blue Money for restaurants that I bought in 2005 or Jan/Feb 2006, and I have used some. I haven’t bought more (if I do it will come out of the budget), but my thought was that I already had them so I could use them. I certainly didn’t stock up prior to the challenge. If people think it's unfair to use them, let me know.

I’m starting a combination emergency/big purchase fund. I know it’s starting small, but if I manage to under spend in enough categories, I want to be able to have both emergency money, and a fund I can use to cover big purchases, such as a replacement dryer, or a new freezer.

I got back from Sacramento fine on Wednesday night. I was more thrilled with a thrift store run than being able to eat out-a surprise to me, but no unpleasant. Perhaps part of my mind is really seeing that longer term purchases such as clothes are better than short term ones such as eating out. I had a huge spree for $13.75 – three shirts, a couple a little nicer than usual because I’d like to bump up my work appearance without being uncomfortable. A pair of flannel jammie bottoms, a muffin tin, bread loaf tin, and a pastry brush. The Deseret Industries thrift store is just beautiful-so organized and huge selection. Items are organized by type-short sleeve blouses, long sleeve blouses, then by size, then by color. With such a huge selection of quality clothes, I don’t mind the prices being a little higher- $4 is not super cheap, but for a very nice work blouse it’s not extravagant.

Migraine today, but still won’t be a no spend today-my medical line in the budget is gonna take another big prescription hit. I’m not thrilled about it, but it’s not an extravagant expense.

I'm into the groove of not spending much, and staying within my minimum wage budget without strain. I'm able to save over half my income this way, and I suppose that's exciting, but I can't tell a fascinating "I didn't go to the mall" story. However, my increased frugality has become a habit.

We've done 2 birthdays with low expenditure and high return, by being extra thoughful and taking time. We've starting cooking more, both grains and beans and other simple stuff at home, and nicer stuff to take to friends' houses. We cut out electric bill over 50%. When we go out to eat we savor the experience. We line dry regardless of the weather, after doing a second spin. We come up with non-spend solutions before solutions thet require an expenditure.

I had always felt in control overall of my spending and knew I lived below my means, but I have felt very good about living so far below my means. It's like I'm adding all sorts of tools to my toolkit, so that if anything bad should happen as far as income, I have a security blanket of knowing I can make do and be satisfied.

I knew my challenge was to live on minimum wage; I didn't realize an extra bonus would be to have an increased sense of gratitude for all that I have.

Okay, that was a little hokey, but, today it's true.

Here's a mid-month update. I kinda had forgotten the $20 challenge aspect to it. (see below) My spent month of $1073 is $519 less than my average per month last year. Adding back in the $39 I put into "savings" under the challenge, I saved $558 in March for the $20 challenge.



So why is my budget less than $1073? It’s all spelled out at Jesse’s YouNeedABudget.com site. For new folks: This is also my $20 challenge: I purchased JMJJ215’s budgeting software at www.youneedabudget.com, because I needed a way to track the challenge. I use Quicken for myself, but I am depositing more than $1073, so really needed a separate method, and I thought I’d try YNAB product. Here it is in a poorly imparted nutshell: If I overspent a category in March, I have to reduce my spending in April to catch up. Even though I spent less than $1073 in March, in some categories, like Workout, I overspent, and have to under spend in this month.

Why do some categories have a balance higher than the budget? It’s the flip side of the above, in a way. If I under spend, that category has “banked” money. I don’t pay $51 dollars a month for car insurance; I pay $304 two times a year. Using this system, I “bank” that money each month, without any work; the budget does it for me. When the Insurance Bill comes due, I’ll have that money. So my balances are this month’s budget, less this months expenditures, plus last months unspent money budgeted in that category.

So, my spent this month plus my balance should equal my monthly budget, $1073, plus my “banked” money of $71.28. (It’s off by a penny above on the chart – it’s a rounding issue, and I didn’t want to redo the chart as a graphic.)

I bought bulk popcorn and popped it in a paper bag in the microwave. It worked perfectly. I watched it close the entire time. No burning, and if for some reason it had burst into flames I would have caught it. Now I can have healthy, butter-free popcorn for pennies at anytime. For 1.22 in bulk I would guess I have 20 to 40 bags worth.

I bought some really cheap conditioner, 1.99 for a huge bottle, enough for months. Sadly, the conditioner is thin, and I needed a lot of it to condition my hair. I solved my problem. I am using it as a leave in conditioner. I tested it and it works great. Instead of double the normal amount, I use ½ the normal amount. Instead of lasting months it will last over a year.

I love minor victories like this.

I got our gas and electric bill, and it was the most pleasant shock I'd had all week. $127.09, down from $304.60 last month. (My share is one half.)

I thought it had to be a mistake, it's down over 50%!

Now, part of the savings was because we reduced our gas usage by 10 percent from Jan 1 to March 31, which gained us a 20% discount. However, that accounted for about 30 bucks.

Our current electric bill is 43% of what it was. Fantastic. I'm able to compare bills month to month online, and it will tell me about how much of an increase/decrease is accounted for by usage, taxes/fees, rate, days in billing period, etc. Our change in usage alone resulted in a decrease of over a hundred dollars. The rate even went up, and my bill plummeted.

Our usage went from 37 KWH a day to 23 KWH.

I think most of the decrease was just stopping heater usage-I didn't think they could be so much when used on low in small spaces for limited periods of time, but now I'm a believer. We already had flourescent compact bulbs, low appliance use, etc. I do feel, however, that my attention to detail-paying attention to lights being on, turning off my computer sometimes, line drying even more, made a dent too.

I needed good news this week, and this helps. I may be willing to go ahead and get the haircut I was delaying-since my prescription and insurance co-pays were such a hit this month. However, I overspent Medical by 40 some odd dollars, and underspent what I budgeted for electric by over 60 dollars.

Oh, did I need this boost. Not the money, just a bit of good news.

My budget has taken a blow, from medical expenses. I almost got angry, and then realized that I better be d___ed grateful I have insurance. What if I didn’t? I wouldn’t be getting treated, or I may be choosing not to take my medicine. That would be worse. A lot of people have no insurance, and people are suffering right this minute. Has anyone mentioned lately that the healthcare system is broken? Oh, it’s on the news every five minutes? But not fixed yet, huh?

I had $62 budgeted per month, the average last year of my co-pays, prescriptions, etc. Last month I was over by $3-I thought OK, fluke, it will even out. No this month I am at $107.32. Just relatively minor issues (later I’ll read that “minor” and grimace) but it added up. I think next month will be better: hoping no doctor’s visit co-pays, and small medicine co-pays.

The Challenge remains intact; I’ll try to cut other areas. I have $39 in “savings” plus $72.38 held over from March, to pay larger later bills, such as insurance in July. I will aim to not dip into either of these, but at least they are there.

So, little things perk me up in the face of the above adversity. I am tickled by drain strainers.

We had no drain strainer in the bathtub for years, and a funky, non-fitting, just yucky one in the kitchen. I don’t usually go to hardware stores, and what I saw idly in Grocery or Home stores seemed overpriced and like it wouldn’t fit. (Old, old house.) When I visited my folks in January, they had an unused pack of 2 strainers, wire mesh. The large one works perfect in the kitchen sink, and the small one fits perfectly in the bathtub. No more worries about clogs. I am still enjoying that “gift”!

This site pumps me up but good. Great energy. So many people are facing daily and major problems with wit, grace, and humor. Pumpity pumpity pump. Catch that fever.

My (Modified) Minimum Wage Challenge is on track. No spending to report. Not spending is starting to become a habit. I’m also getting used to not eating out much, which may relate to …

The Credible Threat Challenge: I’m making progress. I don’t want to name a number, because day to day things vary, but I’m in the right direction.

My health is better today, I was at work all day, so some guilt is going away; I have issues with how many health issues I have. It felt like a productive day: putting away hung laundry, eating a healthy meal for the third meal in a row, feeling like if I chip away and keep moving in the right directions that I can achieve any goal.

I’ll pay all the bills in a few days. Our phone bill has a bogus charge from a company for a “voice mail box.” It’s funny, when I called to say “Hey you nuggets we ordered no such thing” I got a “voicemail full” response. So the regular phone company is pulling it off the bill and notifying Bogus Company that there was a refusal to pay. I will keep trying to reach them, to give them heck. Some people probably don’t notice and pay those thieves. No other bills are due though and I like to pay them all at once.

In other blogs I see people writing down very specific goals. I’ve always heard that writing down goals makes it more likely to achieve them, and I love how concrete they can be, i.e. instead of Save Money or Lose Weight, it’s "walk to work 5 times," or "Pay off $300 this month in debt." So I’m going to have some belated April Goals, and see if that acts to help me. I’ll have some “one time” goals, but I want to use this idea to help me develop new habits, as per 4/7 post.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m still doing the Credible Threat, punitive and unrewarding as some perceive it. I am using the ideal of modest achievable goals to motivate me and help me avoid the Credible Threat Punishment.

I have been sick a LOT lately; either stomach crud or migraines or whatever. I always get sick easily, for no good reason: I used to think it was being a smoker and drinker, but I haven’t done either in many years, so there’s really no excuse. So my two main set of goals will be money and health related.

*April Health*
Walk to work once a week. (I have drive the nights with water aerobics, and we still have some rain-will ramp this up.)

Eat breakfast daily (6 days a week will count to goal).

In bed every night at 10 with no TV after 10. (Friday and Sturday bed at 11.)

This is a small list, but I want these to become habits. I have a bunch I can stockpile for later. I don’t want to be too ambitious.

*April Money*
Make appointment to get pre-qualified on a home loan

Make the Challenge.

*Future Goals:*
Reduce amount of bread/white rice/potatoes eaten: not sure how to quantify this one yet.
Reduce amount of cheese and peanut butter eaten. (Good protein but I eat way too much.)
Reduce bad TV watching. (Possibly make a limit of hours per week, or add no “new” shows unless I give up an “old” show?)
Take vitamins and meds daily.
Figure out what investment steps I should take with my money: increase deferred comp, increase my IRA, or what? Not sure how to make these one a discrete concrete goal yet.
Find a place in house to hang a laundry line.

Spending: $20 co-pay for a doctor visits, and $17.32 for 3 months worth of two medications: $37.32 already for the month. Plus, another $20 co-pay will come in a week, for a follow up visit. I don’t think getting rid of a “bad” mole is a luxury, but for many people, medical care is a luxury. I’m hoping no visits in May, but I do have another prescription that will need to be filled then. On the plus side, the $80 “missed appointment” bill I thought I might get doesn’t seem to be coming. Knock on wood.

Other spending: a big grocery stock up, my share a whopping $27.37. Good grocery news: My Guy was very pleasantly surprised by how low our grocery bill is, and has taken pride and ownership in it. He made a cheapskate’s Comfort Food Delight last night: can of condensed soup, and a lot of rice. Mix and eat. Not the healthiest, but filling, and not too unhealthy. If we went brown rice we’d be better off.

I’ll count my health insurance as paid and due; I haven’t had paychecks yet, but I know the deduction will be the same; I get warnings of increases ahead of time, in writing. So, $43.70 there.

Rent paid on the 1st, $400. $508.39 spent for the month.

Now, our DVD player broke. Old me? Let’s buy one. But I’m on my challenge, and My Guy is trying to make his unpaid time off last as long as possible, so he doesn’t want to dip in reserves. He’s very computer inclined, so, our plan of action: move his computer DVD player into the living room, even though it’s a computer one in a tower, for now. Price the parts to build a new one. The bonus will be: if he “builds” the DVD player, it will act like a TiVO, with record capabilities. If that doesn’t work, just keep using his in the living room. He’d have to use the network to my computer to access things on DVD. But it will be cheaper. Meanwhile, I will keep on the look out for crazy cheap DVD players.

I’ve been hanging laundry on our wooden rack. Not the best-takes a long time to dry. The weather is getting better; hanging on the line will be an option soon.

People I know question how long I will continue on the challenge. It’s sad to me that they thought one month would be “enough.” Even though I had been pretty frugal, it’s been great to see the areas I had gotten too loose in. I’m at least 40 pounds overweight-why did I go out to eat so much? It’s not as if I was ordering steamed vegetables and broiled fish. I shrugged at certain expenses, such as my crazy electric bill, because I had enough money coming in to pay the bills, but I never worked at really lowering these bills. I’m learning from this challenge, and I am not feeling deprived.

In April I want to try and get pre-qualified for a home loan. I have been idly thinking of it. My income is pretty good for my area, but, and it’s a big but, I live in California. House prices are just craziness. So I will find out if I can do the house thing or not. I don’t mind finding out I can’t. (I already know it would only be a smaller house if I could: a one or one and a half bedroom, no garage, etc.) At that point, I will need to make some investment decisions. I have a lot more than 6 months expenses in savings: not the best place at 1.25 percent. I have 457 Deferred Comp that I could increase contributions to-I hadn’t yet because I couldn’t borrow against it for a down payment. I have an IRA I haven’t paid attention to. And I know nothing about investing. So once I find out about the house, the next challenge is to take the money frugality gains me and make it more active.

I love surveys, for no real good reason. I do Greenfield, and GoZing, and NFO, and some others. I used to do okay with the money, too: it seemed as if I'd get $2 or $5 pretty frequently, and $10 or $15 every few months. Once I got $75 for chatting about Feta cheese for an hour (online). But the money has dried up. I just checked, in 2004 I got $112 for various surveys, and in 2005 I got $22. So now, really, I do them for fun and to put my two cents in.

Well, I just completed one where the reward is a $1, that will be deposited into my PayPal account in May. And it made me think, $1 is real money. $1 gets me a half pound of cheese, or 3 months worth of bran, or a few crockpots of beans, or even a month of postage for me. Who am I to scoff at the dollar? I bought a fabulous pair of thick dark blue flannel jammie bottoms with a $1.25 last week. I bought 3 items at a thrift store for 84 cents.

I'm getting to know the value of a dollar more intimately.

In March, I spent $1007.45. $1073 was my base budget (CA minimum wage $6.75 x 40 x 4.33 less SDI/FICA) plus the $6.73 recycling, for a total of $1079.73 available. I needed to underspend; it does NOT mean I’m ahead the $72.78. This is “banked” for non-monthly expenses, such as my car insurance in July. I did put $39.00 in savings, but I would like to not have to touch that at all.

I’ve managed to figure out how to include the amounts in a readable format, by making a spreadsheet excerpt a picture.



It's ironic that I started this in a month with an extra biweekly paycheck and my two tax returns. A lot more money came in than usual, and a lot less went out.

I did play poker last night. We have a group that attempts to play every other Friday, but we’ve been a little inconsistent. I’d say I play maybe once a month. I had saved my previous winnings, and had already decided to only play with “won” money. I hadn’t really kept track last year, but this year had decided 1) to see how much I improved (or not) and 2) to ensure I kept better track. It had been hard because I rarely use cash. I’d take out money, win, break even, sometimes lose, then I’d spend the cash, and lose track. So I decided this year to keep it separate. Last time I won $42. I put that in a jar and kept it separate. That’s what I have to play with, and it’s outside the challenge and regular budget too. This time I lost $16. So if I play poker again, I have a maximum of $26 to play with. If I lose that, I will have to seriously evaluate whether this hobby is worthwhile.

The gifts were perfect. Kim loved the book and magnets. She teared up at the Bono/Kim photoshopped picture; I don't think because she's weird about Bono, but because she was touched at the effort that went into the gift. A resounding success! It'll be a tough trend to continue, the low amount of spending and high return, but the process rocked.

We were in a fast food mood. How did we handle it? First we decided that grilled cheese sandwiches provide that greasy love. Then, I decided not to have my usual two, but to have one, with a big bowl of vegetables. A healthier, cheaper, meal, with little effort. I want to succeed with my Credible Threat challenge and Minimum Wage challenge, but most of all I want to not feel stressed or deprived about it. Today was a good day.

Well, I am pleasantly astonished at how being frugal made me prepare a very nice gift for a friend, that is very thoughtful and tailored to her likes and lifestyle.

She loves traveling (Lithuania next week, Croatia with me in September), adores cats, loves magnets, reads a lot, loves U2, is a Shari Lewis/Lamb Chop fan, and her fridge is covered with everything and more.

She is getting: homemade magnets. (A set of five different cat designs, a black and white Photoshopped picture of her and Bono drinking and toasting the photgrapher, a very nice shot of her and her husband, a little cutout of her husband looking goofy, and Lamb Chop.) A card that has four cat magnets on it(store bought-local art place, made by a local). A piece of chocolate shaped like a cat. And, a book of essays by women travelers, using trade in I had from earlier this month at a used book store.

Cash expenditure for this totally amazing gift pack: $6.16. My Guy and I stretched our craft skills, and came up with what I think is a top notch gift set. I could of spent $30 on a less satisfying gift. (I could have foregone the card with magnets and chocolate, but I didn't and don't regret it. As I've said before, I love gift giving.)

And, since the book "cost" almost seven bucks, my partner chips in half the cost (the books traded in were mine), and I have spent zero. This is a win, win, win. Reports on her response tomorrow will be reported later.

Today I went on a spending spree, and spent $22.94. Last night I was reminded that two big birthdays are coming up. I decided when I’m out and about I should be scoping for birthday and holiday presents for everyone I know, all the time, to be alert and ready for a great deal on the perfect present, even if it is a couple months early. This time I’m cut a little short on time.

I did order a book online for one of them. My friends are going to London in a week, and made reservations at St. John’s, and Matt wants the book by the chef, Fergus Henderson: The Whole Beast: Nose to tail Eating. I called the bookstore I have some credit at, and another local used place, and no go, so we ordered from Half.com. That’s $7.10 for my share.

I had an idea for Kim’s present: she has magnets, photos, and postcards all over her fridge. We have some of those larger thin magnets, like the promotional calendars, that I’ve been saving for a while. I was just going to glue regular photos (I’ve been traveling with Kim and Matt and have some pictures) to the magnets, but My Guy had a better idea: he’s doing some Photoshop work on some pictures, so we will also have Kim inserted into a picture of her favorite band U2.

I had wanted to go to garage sales this morning. Due to rain I went to more thrift stores than garages sales. At one thrift store, I got 10 nice plastic hangers, a pair of kitchen tongs, and a nice basket for 84 cents. I felt good about that purchase. At a garage sale, as a fluke I found what my guy has been coveting: a stove top waffle maker. I had priced them and they are at least $38 new plus shipping, or a lot more at local stores. The garage sale was crazy overpriced, but I offered $10 instead of $15. Too much for an idle purchase, but not bad for something he’s been really wanting. Then I picked up a $5 prescription.

So that was my wild spree. Nothing came up for future presents, unfortunately. But it was a good reminder, to always be on the lookout. For example, my friend Linda loves lighthouses; I can look all Yard Sale season long.

A great thing about thrift store shopping, even if I don’t buy, is to be reminded of how cheap items can be. When I shop our locally owned neighborhood stores at Christmas, I always stop at St. Vincent de Paul’s first, to get grounded.

We’ll be taking Kim out to dinner, but we have already purchased gift certificates. (One of those deals where I paid $15 for $30 worth of certificates; it’s a great local restaurant.)

Friday night, I did spend more on groceries and toiletries, so that’s another $29.53.

I’ve spent $1000.98. I will make the Challenge for this month; however I did overspend in some categories, leaving me less to carry over for bigger, later expenditures, such as Insurance in July.

I am working on modifying my budget, so I will post new numbers for April at the end of March. I am working towards no more spending for this month, except perhaps for Matt and Kim.