My husband and I have a standing date for a weekend outing. We have rules about this outing: We must choose a destination within 2 hours' drive of our home, we must pack a lunch, and we must refrain from buying anything while we're out. As dates go it's a pretty frugal outing, but gas prices keep climbing.
At present, gas is taking as much from our monthly budget as food, and sometimes it's taking more.
Some of our driving - like my commute to work - is unavoidable, but our weekend outing is an increasingly expensive optional treat. We discussed giving up our date but in the end decided to keep it, opting to do without some other things instead.
Budgeting is all about this type of adjustment. We can be pretty sure that prices are not going to go down, so making ends meet comes down to making choices. We must either give up the optional extras in our routine, or find ways to earn more income, or both.
I must confess that I struggle with this sometimes. I work hard and I'm no spendthrift so I tend to feel resentful when faced with the need to cut back ever further on the things I enjoy.
I'm working on an attitude adjustment. It's important for me to remember that compared with much of the world's population, I'm very rich indeed. I have a safe, comfortable home, enough to eat, access to good medical care, plenty of clothing, and even a car. So much more than so many!
Here's what we spent this week:
|
Date
|
Item
|
Amount
|
|
April 1/13
|
Gas
|
$51.56
|
|
|
Pre-payment for egg delivery for April, May, & June
|
$48.00
|
|
|
.62 kg/1.36 lb grapes
|
$2.69
|
|
|
.2 kg/.45 lb red onion
|
$0.76
|
|
|
household goods
|
$12.48
|
|
|
4 liters skim milk
|
$4.53
|
|
|
1.08 kg/2.38 lbs bananas
|
$0.93
|
|
April 6/13
|
Gas
|
$44.72
|
|
|
2 cauliflower
|
$1.98
|
|
|
2 heads romaine
|
$1.96
|
|
|
1 cantaloupe
|
$1.50
|
|
|
1.56 kg/2.55 lb tomatoes
|
$1.73
|
|
|
4 kg/8.8 lb frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts
|
$26.28
|
|
|
Personal care items
|
$11.45
|
|
|
Dinner out
|
$13.05
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Coupons Redeemed
|
-$9.60
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL EXPENDITURES
|
$214.02
|