Budgeting, shmudgeting

I now have a home. It's amazing to be financially supporting myself 100%. And to have a home. It's also the reason I haven't written in a while. I suddenly have a life.

I also now have rent. And I'm low on essential life supplies. One of my few pairs of shoes was accidentally donated to charity by my roommate last week, I've biked a hole into one of my three pairs of pants, and I need to gear up for a long winter of biking. Not to mention my new room is begging for a little TLC.

Needless to say, I need to start budgeting.

To be fair, I've had an imaginary "Oh yeah, I'll get around to following that" budget for a while now- let's call it a shmudget- but I need to come up with something more substantial. Having a life tempts me to spend lots of money, but the time has come.

Yet I first I have to ask myself if it even possible to stick to a budget in this day and age. Everyone is so scatter-brained they can't remember what month it is, let alone how much they spent at Chipotle. You can even swipe your card without having to look at the total bill. The other day I was distracted, handed over my card and left the store with no receipt or idea how much money I had spent. Talk about shmudgeting.

I've been using Mint.com for a while now. There are parts of the site I like:

• All of your accounts are shown together
• You can see in chart form how you spend your money
• You can set up budgets or future goals

There are a few problems:

• It is possible to set up way too many budgets. I have around 20 listed- Housing, Utilities, Public Transportation, Groceries, Restaurants, etc- and can still think of more categories. It is not possible to keep track of all of these. Technically Mint does that for me, but what about the book I bought for enjoyment? I could put that under entertainment or shopping or "amusement". A lot of things are amusing. Or the craft project to make a mirror for my room? It could go under home or personal care. Oh, the ambiguity!
• You can't budget for future expenses. I know I have to spend X-amount every month on rent, bills, etc. but Mint doesn't let you input those unless you have an account (such as a student loan account) to link to. It makes budgeting practically impossible if you can't plan for your expenses.
• I feel guilty every time I log in. Not Mint's fault, but it's true.

I've mulled over different budgeting techniques. I could only use cash, except that I would have to manually track my expenses. I could sit down once a week and plan ahead, like my friend who plans all his meals for the week every Saturday, except weekly plans and I don't get along well. I stop after the first week.

Maybe I'll have to turn my 30-Day-Challenge into a Life Challenge. Or shmudget it is.

Also, for those in the DC area, most theaters have a pay-what-you-can night for the opening act, and tomorrow night is the opening of the comedy show Spoiler Alert: Everybody Dies at Woolly Mammoth Theater. Tickets go on sale at 6pm, and I'm sure they'll try to guilt-trip everyone into paying full price anyway, but I'm planning to pay $5-10. You should all go!

I'll take some health in my health food, please

I went home to Indiana a few weeks ago and the difference between there and DC is amazing. Indiana has loads of corn, a wonderful fall smell in the air, and cows hanging out in a field 30 feet from the local Dollar General (there are Dollar Generals, too).

The culture also differs from the one in DC, especially when it comes to consumption. In Indiana, people go to Wal-Mart regularly. There aren't even any Wal-Marts in the District (for now anyway). Hoosiers tend to value quantity (Family Size!) over quality, where I've noticed DC is the opposite. That "go big or go home" Midwest culture allows manufacturers and grocery stores to totally mislead its customers.

Take muesli for example. For those who aren't familiar, muesli (as defined by Wikipedia) is a popular breakfast cereal based on uncooked rolled oats, fruit and nuts. Below are two versions of muesli. The first, I bought at Whole Foods in DC. The second, my mom bought from a big Midwest grocery store called Kroger.

    Muesli #1: DC                       Muesli #2: Indiana

Notice the difference? The Whole Foods version, albeit a bit more expensive, is oat-based and has nuts and fruit, aka the exact definition of muesli. The Indiana version is a mixture of corn flakes and bran flakes with a few oats thrown in. There might be a raisin and an almond or two as well.

Talk about false advertising. This cereal is clearly not muesli. How is it possible that these two are being sold as the same thing?


My theory is that the Indiana consumer doesn't complain because it's cheap. It's not enough to have a healthy option if the customer has to pay more. Instead, stores convince people that they can eat wholesome food while paying the same amount as a box of corn flakes would cost, even if that is what they are actually buying. People in DC are too okay with over-spending, but I appreciate that nutrition level isn't based on income level. 


Even my friends with hourly wages eat well because it is possible to do so cheaply- check out this recipe for Curry Chicken Tacos at $1.25 a serving (and all her other awesome tips and tricks) on the blog Poor Girl Eats Well. It just takes more energy.


And according to this New York Times article, energy is something poor people don't have in the grocery store.

"Shopping can be especially tiring for the poor, who have to struggle continually with trade-offs... Spears and other researchers argue that this sort of decision fatigue is a major — and hitherto ignored — factor in trapping people in poverty. Because their financial situation forces them to make so many trade-offs, they have less willpower to devote to school, work and other activities that might get them into the middle class. "

These days, most people have to be frugal, but we need to make sure that our choices aren't affecting our quality of life. A box of cheap "muesli" is one thing. Lack of awareness of what we eat is another.

iPhone update: I've felt overwhelmed a few times knowing that anyone can contact me in any way at any time and they know it. In a sense, it's created more stress for me because I have no excuse for not responding immediately. I miss the privacy that being a technological laggard allowed me. It is oh-so-satisfying though when I am oh-so-lost and my phone helps me out of that mess. 

Home Sweet Home!

Funny how opposite this title is from my last post.

But a quick update: I found a home in DC. And I'm so relieved. It's affordable and in an awesome area called Capitol Hill, near the Capitol Building. My question still remains from my last post- is it worth it? I think it will be. We'll see.

I'm also in Indiana for the next few days and the differences between the consumer societies of Indiana and DC are already pretty apparent:

 

"Roadhouse Coffee $.99"

"Cowboys welcome." Oh, Indiana I love you.

Speeding ticket update: I haven't received it yet. I'm still scared.

I'd be more likely to find a room in Narnia

Housing is the worst.

My mom asked me today how my DC housing search was going, and I said I couldn't handle talking about it. She could read my blog instead.

It fell to an all-time low a few days ago when I was biking through a pretty dodgy neighborhood, going out of my way to see a room. The cold wind in my hair, the chaos of rush hour traffic, the creep on the corner trying to make conversation, life was just great. I realized I'd seen a house in the area before, which was strange since it was the middle of nowhere. I turned onto a small street that I recognized. Double strange, that other house was on the exact same... oh my god. As soon as I saw a too-familiar dog and his owner coming down the front steps a block away, I wheeled my bike around and zoomed off the other way. I'd already seen the place two weeks ago.

This is what it's come to.

Finding a room in DC is ridiculously difficult. My epic search began in early August and, being that it is now October, has taken me to over 20 different places. I can't add up the amount of hours I've spent traveling around the city, shmoozing people at open houses by putting my best face forward, only to get rejected over and over again.

A few weeks ago, I spent three hours at an "open house party" because the roommates said they would only remember the people who stayed until the end. I stayed out of defiance and got called back, only to spend another two hours in a forced hang-out session. Five hours total and did I get the room? Nope.

At another place, I endured an hour-long group interrogation with 20 other potentials, before we were even shown the room. The current housemates asked us questions like, "Why would you be a good roommate?" and "What would you bring to the house?", with notes taken of our responses. It was brutal. I cried when I left. And I found out later from one of the roommates that came into my coffeeshop that their original roommate decided to stay. THERE WASN'T EVEN A ROOM.

I have been offered a few places, but they've been in less-than-ideal situations. At one house, I was greeted by a 41-year-old balding man who was my potential new roomie. No thanks. Another house was so deeply under construction that the kitchen didn't have running water, a sink or countertops installed (ironically this is the house that I went to twice). Other rooms were literal closets, or had no door but instead an open space with a piece of fabric tacked up, or was a bedroom shared with someone else. The girl in the shared room even chose another girl over me. No joke.

All of this has me asking myself- is this worth it? Is it worth the endless hits to my self-esteem by people who don't even know me? Or the time, energy and effort taken away from other parts of my life? Or the $700+ a month I'll have to spend once I do find a place that's liveable?

As Thoreau says in Walden:

"And when the farmer has got his house, he may not be the richer but the poorer for it, and it be the house that has got him... for our houses are such unwieldy property that we are often imprisoned rather than housed in them; and the bad neighborhood to be avoided is our own scurvy selves."

Mom, if you're reading this, send me a tent.

Grocery stores make me sad

The other day at Safeway, a father with his two young daughters were waiting in front of me to check out. Not only were the kids acting like monsters and the dad was doing nothing to stop them, but I wanted to cry  when I looked at the groceries the dad had chosen. He was buying an array of chips, sodas and frozen pizzas, topped off with a pound of red meat. Not a vegetable or piece of fruit in sight. Maybe I was put off by his parenting to start with, but from where I was standing, it was a pretty pathetic attempt to nourish his children.

It's not only the people in the stores that are depressing. When I was doing the 30-day-challenge, I realized that if I wanted to cook food "from scratch", I could skip most of the aisles. In Target, there are at least two full aisles dedicated to bags of candy, but when I tried to find fruit other than a few oranges or bananas? SOL.

Even the foods that are bad for you are advertising themselves as good. For example:

A box of Kraft Mac-N-Cheese that says, "Shhh. There are veggies in here." It claims that the problem with "other vegetables" (meaning it considers itself a vegetable, right?) is their "overt vegetableness". As if "vegetableness" is appalling. And, embarassingly enough, I bought this vegetable version of Mac-N-Cheese. I don't eat it more than once every six months, but sometimes I'm in need of a quick meal (cut me some slack!). And the vegetable one was on sale. Or maybe the "veggie-tising" tricked me too, who knows.

But consider the commercial for Fiber One Cereal Bars. The husband tells his wife, "Fiber makes me sad" after she suggests he consume more. The commercial offers a solution, to eat their candy bar-like treat that provides "fiber beyond recognition".

There is something seriously wrong here. Since when is fiber, an essential part of everyone's diet, a cause for depression?

In his book The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan discusses the 'national eating disorder' of the US. 

"The cornucopia of the American supermarket has thrown us back on a bewildering food landscape where we once again have to worry that some of those tasty-looking morsels might kill us. (Perhaps not as quickly as a poisonous mushroom, but just as surely.)... It is very much in the interest of the food industry to exacerbate our anxieties about what to eat, the better to then assuage them with new products."

Pollan focuses on three types of food (industrial, organic and hunter-gatherer) in order to dissect and compare our different options.

Am I inspired to do a new food-focused 30-day-challenge? Maybe. As I know so little about food and where it comes from, who regulates it, etc. it would certainly be an adventure.

iPhone update: Found a case with a built-in screen protector for $14 on Amazon. Better than $40 but I'm still not happy about it. Won't have data again until October 6th, but I'm able to use wireless at least. My boss also sort of nicknamed me "Texty" Joslin so I probably need to lay off the phone use while at work. It's just.... so.... addictive.

Zipcar isn't so cheap when you speed

I moved half of my stuff the other day from Bethesda to Mt. Pleasant, where I'm staying for about a month while I look for a room in the city. I had too much to use the public transport route and no one I knew with a car was free, so I convinced myself, "It'll be cheaper than a cab!" I decided to try out Zipcar.

It's a great idea. Rent a car for a few hours with very little prior notice needed (depending on what's available, but I reserved mine two hours ahead of time) at a reasonable hourly rate.

But I did find some things that irked me:

• The website only mentions the hourly rate of $7.75. 
• They might sneak in some asterisks with fine print somewhere, but they certainly don't make it obvious that most cars are $9.75 or $11.75 (I've only seen one listed at $7.75). A difference of two dollars an hour isn't huge, but it is annoying. I spent $4 more than expected (that equals one slim sandwich at Potbelly's!)
• You have to return it to the parking spot you got it from
• This is inconvenient to say the least- after I finally got the new-fangled Hybrid I was renting started, I drove to my house, shoved my suitcases into the car, drove back through Bethesda into DC, parked (illegally), threw my stuff inside the new house, drove back to Bethesda during rush hour (of course), finally figured out how to lock the car doors, and then had to hop on the metro to head back into the city.
• Time is limited
• I felt pretty rushed to get all that done in the two hours I reserved, and although it's possible to call and extend, you'll probably be out of luck if someone reserved the time slot after yours
• Traffic laws still apply

This last one might be the most annoying. Here I was, minding my own business being overwhelmed with cars turning left on red in front of me and over-sized buses that refused to stay in one lane, when all of a sudden there came a FLASH of light.

I'm from small-town Indiana, so my thought process was something like, "What the h........? Oh. Damn it."

Speedometers with cameras, aka evil genius, are new to me. And the last thing on my mind was the speed limit, which is probably why I was going 44 in a 30.

My friends are full of information: I can't get a ticket if there is another car in the photograph (there weren't), they can't prove it was me if my face isn't visible the photo (I don't believe that), I can appeal it and some large percentage of appeals go through (it was somewhere between 40-80% but I think they were talking about parking tickets at this point)... in other words, who knows.

I've heard it will be $40. I've also heard it will $125. Either way, the fact that I was in a Zipcar doesn't give me immunity. I'm pretty sure they can track me down.

As for now, all I can do is wait for this ominous ticket to arrive in the mail. In the end, I still like Zipcar, will use it again and would suggest all my friends use it instead of owning a car, but in this case I should've just cabbed it.

iPhone update: I don't like how the phone is so fragile. It's made of glass, so you are forced to buy a case (around $20) and most cases don't come with a screen protector. Those by themselves are around $20 for 3, so unless you want a broken, scratched phone within weeks, you have to spend an extra, unexpected $40. All part of the plan, Apple?

Saving Money When Eating Out

A friend shared this link with me: Saving Money When Dining Out

I like this article. It's like a stealth mission aimed at enjoying oneself, damn it, even if that means putting a little extra work into making eating out cheaper.

I haven't used many restaurant coupons before, like Groupon or others, because I usually just tell myself that I don't need it. In reality, I eat out anyway but without a coupon, so I might as well admit to myself that restaurants are enjoyable enough to be a "necessary" expenditure once in a while. And if there's a way to do it a bit cheaper, I'm all for that.

Some of the most interesting advice: drink beforehand at home. Hey, wine by the glass is expensive, so get a little sauced on the cheap and THEN go eat. Just don't get too drunk or you'll end up eating way more food than planned and/or making a fool of yourself in public. Neither is advisable.

Also, an iPhone update: It came and I think I love it. However, I accidentally went over my data plan in the first 24 hours and racked up about $200 in overage fees (not going into details here, I'm embarrassed enough admitting it). I almost cried, but instead called customer service and they dropped the fees; however, I won't have a data plan for this entire first month. So I think I love the phone but I'll have to wait around 26 more days before I can say for sure.

Consumer I am

Forgive me sanity, for I have sinned. I bought an iPhone. And what's worse is that I am really excited for it to get here.

I spent the last week running around DC, lost, trying to look at possible apartments to move into. I realized after having to pay for coffee multiple times to use internet on my computer (and also carry my computer around) to find an address or figure out where I'm going, I was over it.

(I would put up a photo of my post-it note of step-by-step directions that I wrote out to take me from house to house to house yesterday, but I already threw it away in disgust at how much unnecesary work I put into that.)

Also, I waited for 45 minutes for a bus last night that was supposed to come every 10 minutes, completely clueless if it was even coming at all. I said screw it and caught a cab only after a girl with an iPhone came up and said the bus still wasn't arriving for another 13 minutes.

There are some things I'm worried about though:

• Becoming dependent on the phone
• Having entertainment/distraction too easily accessible
• Being too reachable- I wouldn't have an excuse to not check my email

But the truth is, I need to be reachable in DC. Things happen quickly. I don't necessarily like it but it's reality. 

I've lost opportunities for apartments because I didn't get an instant update of new places available. I've wasted countless minutes waiting for all forms of public transit and missed countless forms of public transit by minutes because of my lack of Smartphone (see what I did there?).

Bottom line: Nothing is evil in its pure form, even an iPhone, it all just depends on how it is used. As long as I watch myself and don't allow any of the above worries to blossom, it will be okay. I do need to be careful, and I am sort of shocked at myself, but I feel confident that it will make life easier.

I'm ready for that.

Maybe not Mondays

I'm debating this Money-Free Monday idea. It turns out, something I didn't realize earlier, that Mondays act like my Sundays since I work on Sundays. Therefore, I don't do a whole lot, especially since I have to wake up around 5 am on Tuesday. If I don't do a lot, by default I'm probably also not going to spend a lot.

So I'll debate this in my head for now and try to think of an alternative.

As for now, here are some awesome ideas for free, fun things to do in DC:

Free for All Shakespeare

• I waited in line for about two hours for tickets for this last night and they stopped giving them out 8 people ahead of me. Bummer for me, so get there around 4, but it's free theater. Worth it.

Free Summer Saturdays at Corcoran

• Last chance to get free admission into the Corcoran Gallery of Art; 10 am-5 pm; usually $10.

Free Language Classes through GLN

• Today is the last day to put your name in the lottery for language classes for the upcoming fall. There's a list of classes offered and times on the site. The class requires a fully-refundable deposit of $150 (as long as you keep attendance up). Pretty sweet deal.

Anyone headed to NY for Labor Day Weekend?

• There's a free show featuring lots of DJs and Brett Dennen in Montauk, NY. If only.

More to come. I'm busy house-searching on top of a changing work schedule, starting volunteering and taking a class, so I'll update when I can or when something relevant happens.

Money-Free Mondays

Here's the plan: I'll continue spending no money, but only one day a week. It'll still be a challenge, (especially because I've already got an invite for tonight to a happy hour. I can enjoy the water), but it won't be as overwhelming as not spending money at all.

One day a week, no money on entertainment, restaurants, clothes, etc. I'm going to still allow myself the necessities from my 30-Day-Challenge (see post #1) because deferring my grocery shopping to Tuesday or not allowing myself to travel doesn't make sense.

I won't allow myself to pre-purchase tickets to a concert or something happening on a Monday either. The goal is to do things that don't cost money and have never cost me money in the past, so I'm not allowing for that little loophole.

Why Mondays? It has a nice ring to it, Money-Free Mondays. I also don't work Mondays so I don't have an 8-hour-stretch of time where I am incapable of spending money (except for maybe a staff run to Chipotle but still, it would be too easy). I don't work on Fridays either but not spending money on Fridays just seems... silly.

Goals:

• Live as cheaply as possible throughout the week, but buy nothing on Mondays
• Cook one meal using scratch ingredients every Monday (or at least once a week)
• Find awesome free ways to entertain myself
• Bike to work once a week

I'll use resources such as the Going Out Guide's Free and Easy section, the Free In DC blog, the guide to eating well cheaply Poor Girl Eats Well as well as any other resources I stumble across.

(I also already know that I'll have to defer Monday, September 5th to Tuesday the 6th because I already bought tickets to a concert... whoops)

This feels like a good compromise. I might think differently if a Monday Night Outdoor Folk Concert Series (featuring all of Tiffany's favorite artists and only cost $10 a night!) starts up this Fall, but the chances of that are slim, right?

The Aftermath

I have to admit, I fell off the wagon after this challenge ended. I don't consider shopping an addiction, so it wasn't a relapse, but I did spend stupid amounts of money on stupid things. I told myself "I deserve this, I've been so good", but the feelings of guilt and worry that ensued made it less than enjoyable.

All that freedom I felt last month flew out the window, and although I am stabilizing now, it made me realize that I'd like to (perhaps need to?) keep this blog going. Let's call it blogging rehab.

On August 13th, the day after my challenge ended, I spent $16 on drinks at Dodge City and $4 on pizza from a food truck. I woke up feeling like hell for multiple reasons, but mostly because I dove head first back into my old spending ways.

On the 14th, I bought a concert ticket for $21, and although I avoided the $7 online charge by buying tickets directly from the venue, I became hungry while walking there and spent $10 on lunch (If I split the difference and call it a $3 lunch, it's a steal!)

On the 15th, $18.15 went to dinner and beer at Thunder Burger. It was DC Beer Week, so I had to try the beer, right?

On the 17th, Beer Week Trivia Night, a "free event", cost me $12 for mac-and-cheese and, of course, beer (I may be sounding like an alcoholic on top of a spend-a-holic).

Either way, this all adds up to (oh, it's painful, don't make me).... $81.15.


Ouch.

So while I don't want to to continue the No-Spending-Challenge or keep track of every dime, I'd like to turn this blog into a How-to-Guide for living cheaply. Although I may not sound like an expert based on last week's extravagance, my mother has taught me well. She is the queen of couponing, sales and finding bargains and has passed down these traits to me.

I'll link to Free in DC often, I'm sure, but this will hopefully provide insight for people living everywhere into ways to save money but still enjoy a good life. Like my challenge, this blog is unplanned, so we'll just have to see where this free-dom (ha ha, get it?) takes us. Andiamo!

Day 30- Total Spent

I have a quick story I want to share from this morning before we get to my total spent. A girl wearing a really nice blouse and skirt got on the metro carrying a Bloomingdale's bag, and I didn't think much of it until she pulled out the receipt with a worried expression on her face. She studied it for a few minutes, obviously concerned, and then rifled through her bag, as if searching for what had cost her so much. She then went on to mess with her iPhone but it struck me how genuinely unhappy and unsettled she seemed.

Usually, I know the feeling. This month, however, I can't relate. And it feels like pure freedom.

I added up the amount I spent last month and compared it to this month. Wow. Although my main goal was not to save money, that just sort of... happened. Here we go:

• Groceries
• Last month: $191.29
• This month: $181.75
• Eating out
• Last month: $157.79
• This month: $19.18
• Entertainment
• Last month: $25.76
• This month: $11
• Transportation
• Last month: $314.57
• This month: $115.85
• Personal/Clothing
• Last month: $144.58
• This month: $58.25

(After adding in my bills)

Total spent last month: $1063.91

Total spent this month: $605.95

Holy crap. I spent $457.96 less than I did last month. Not only did I spend less on groceries even though I wasn't eating out, everything I bought in the "Personal" category was either medicine, necessary for my safety or a hair cut (which, sorry, but I deemed that necessary). Transportation is a bit skewed because I spent some money fixing up my bike, but even still it's a huge difference.

I'll be honest, I'm surprised. Even though I kept commenting on how money was adding up quickly, I was completely unaware of how much more quickly my money had gone away the previous month. It was too much to keep up with, and the combination of my checking account and credit card didn't help.

This is great. But the greatest part about it is that I'm not special, a martyr or more disciplined than anyone else. Anyone can do this. Because one thing I've realized during this challenge is that while the idea of "everything in moderation" is prolific in the US, our idea of moderation is actually excess. Everyone has wants and desires, and it's perfectly fine to fulfill them sometimes, but there's no reason to be driven to the brink of insanity for them.

Because if we're all insane, there wouldn't be much pleasure in that, would there?

Next 30-Day-Challenge: Maybe I'll stick to poetry.

Day 29- Almost there!

I spent $0.50 for a tip for a sample of gelato at a coffee event that was otherwise free (other than that I spent nothing in the last two days).

I have one more day until I can start spending money again. It's almost sad to have this end, I've enjoyed the challenge and the response I've gotten from people who supported the idea. I've been debating continuing the spending celibacy for another 30 days (heck, why not try a year?) but I don't think it's necessary.

Matt Cutts was right in his video that originally inspired me to do this challenge. 30 days is a good amount of time for something to become a habit. And I've learned a lot during this month. Mostly I've learned to just do what I want to do.

I challenged myself to ride my bike to work once a week, and while I only did two out of four weeks, I still did it. I went to free events. I made food from scratch. I didn't buy food out and noticed that I usually didn't want the frozen yogurt, burrito, etc. that other people around me were eating anyway. I used to eat with others because I felt obligated to join or convinced myself I needed the food, but now I realize that I have control (and I can count on one hand the number of fried foods I've eaten this month).

"Capitalism gives us everything except what is free." - Levine, Not Buying It

I can spend my money the way I want to, and if that means not spending it at all, then that is perfectly fine. Sometimes it makes other people feel awkward, but there's nothing that can be done about that, and usually people don't care one way or the other.

Now comes the fun part- tomorrow I'll tally up how much I spent this month compared to last month. If it's not a major difference, I will be sort of disappointed. However, the main goal was not to save money, it was to buy less, and I know for a fact I've accomplished that goal.

Total spent so far: $406.69

Day 27- It feels good to be used?

I ate the last of my graham crackers today. That was the last packaged snack-like item left in my pantry.

I also walked into United Colors of Benneton just to see how I felt. As I wandered through the $89 sweaters and $69 scarves, I felt like an outcast in my used rags I dare to call clothing. I also had a dirty little secret- I couldn't buy anything! I felt almost ashamed of my inability to be Consumer. By the time I arrived at the back of the store, the $20 camis seemed cheap. "Wow, what a steal!" I thought to myself. Luckily, reality slapped me in the face and reminded me, "This is just what they want you to think!" and out the door I ran.

"They" (probably better defined as the circle of consumer demand and business output instead of an evil humanized entity) are very tricky. I almost bought it. Well, I probably would have never bought it but I almost believed it anyway- I would have stashed it away in my mental 'Things to Buy When I Have Money' list and then desired it for quite some time. Yet because I haven't had the constant barrage of "Hot Item!" and "Buy More, Save More!" (?), I was able to distance myself.

Because of that distance, I do things like this:

These shoes could have seen their better days (those are my fingers sticking through the sole on the left), but I need old shoes for work anyway. I put two insoles that I already had in, took out the laces, sewed in some elastic to keep them on and voila! Not new but they will function (who needs stinking Toms, anyway?).

I also had two pairs of jeans that I never wore, so I cut them off to make shorts and now I wear them all the time! I'm going to use that left-over denim to make a camera case (for which I spent $4.85 on a zipper and sewing pins but I figured that's worth it).

I also spent $1 to buy the newspaper Street Sense that goes to support the homeless population here in DC. Maybe not a necessity but a worthy cause.

Total spent so far: $406.19

Day 24- Need vs. Want

Apparently I'm not the only one who wants it all (or tells themself they need it all). This is an article from a cycling magazine titled "The World's Most Complete Sock-Height Style Decoder":

When you turn to page 28, the magazine informs you of the appropriate occasions to wear either crew-cut, low-rise, mid-calf or knee-high socks while cycling. Apparently a crew-cut sock is appropriate for women riding road bikes, but not mountain bikes, and are never appropriate for men. Knee-high socks are only appropriate for being "trendy" or when you're "on the podium".... you get the gist.

This is where need vs. want gets tricky. Some people honestly convince themselves that they need this many variations of sock, and that's only for cycling (which is rampant in DC). Who knows how many socks they have if they also run, ski, wear low-rise shoes with which it would be embarrassing to show a sock line, get cold feet, etc. 

Personally, I have three pairs of running socks. Three pairs! When I bought them, I told myself that it's necessary because they get dirty in between laundry days (well, that justifies two of the pairs, the third was a thinner "summer" pair so my feet don't sweat so much). These socks cost around $9 each. That's $27 on socks that I only wear for one activity.

In Not Buying It, Levine (who has become my literary sidekick throughout this challenge) quotes professor Douglas B. Holt comments on this type of 'postmodern consumerism':

"The 'good life' is not a matter of having a well-defined list of status goods. Instead, it is an open-ended project of self-creation. The idea is to circulate continually through new experiences, things, and meanings, to play with different identities by consuming the goods associated with those identities."

 The identity sought after here is "extreme" athlete. The more serious someone is about a sport, the more expensive crap they own. I buy into it (obviously, I own three freaking pairs of running socks), but this challenge makes me question the whole idea of forming my identity around the things I possess.

If I get those Toms shoes or Timbuktu bag, will I feel more like a DC-resident? If I get minimalist running shoes, will I be a more extreme runner? If I get a new iPod that fits more songs, will I value music more?

My hunch is no.

But in midst of the struggle, this feels great:

Discover: No payment due at this time. You have a zero balance.

Sweet.

Total spent so far: $400.34

(Spent $24.77 more on groceries. I must eat a lot.)

Day 22- This is hard

As time has gone on, I'm realizing that it's not as hard to resist buying things as I expected (it's like being a vegetarian- you tell yourself you "just can't" and after a while it stops feeling like an option). There have been a few nights that I haven't gone to a dinner or happy hour even if I could have joined for the company, but there are usually other reasons as well- tiredness, having to wake early for work, etc. The limited budget doesn't help inspire me to go, but it hasn't limited me to the extent I expected it to.

But it's still not easy. Since I can't buy food out, I have to pre-plan all my meals (sometimes from breakfast to dinner because I'm out of the house all day). I have to search harder for events that are free and fit my schedule. I am cooking and looking up recipes like never before since I can't rely on ready-to-go foods (I even have to plan out when to soak beans for the next day because I'm not using canned goods). It all takes so much forethought that my brain hurts.

I made quinoa lettuce wraps- healthy and cheap!

But this is the life I want! I want to be able to say that I made my own hummus, refried beans and oatmeal bars (I did!). I want to explore DC's free and cheap entertainment (there is so much of it, it would be foolish not to). I want to bike to work, alter the clothing I already have and creatively find ways to live more simply. So why is it still so hard?

The only explanation I can come up with is that I want everything. I want to use the clothing I have, but I also want to be hip. I want free entertainment, but I want it to dazzle me. I want to cook for myself but I also want to taste delicacies prepared by someone who knows what they're doing. I want free coffee (at work), but I also want the cozy nook offered only to customers. All in all, I want magic, but I want it for free.

In an ideal world, this is possible- to live a completely full life on a miniscule budget. And I still think it is, but it seems to take some of the spontaneity out of life. If I'm invited to a concert tonight, I can't go. I can search around for a free concert coming up, but it's not going to be tonight or with the same person or in the same venue. And it might not happen at all. Being new to this city, it's important for me to be spontaneous and be able to branch out whenever an opportunity arises.

This challenge makes that difficult, but not impossible. My basic struggle with want (could probably be called greed as well) leaves me feeling like I have to decide- who do I really want to be? I can't be both the person who enjoys lavish outings as well as the person who values freedom from consumerism, can I?

From Not Buying It:

"The market forces pushing convenience, individualism, and comfort are still stronger than the attraction of community, fellowship, and connection with the natural world." - Bill McKibben

Total spent so far: $375.57
(Spent $5.13 at Trader Joe's on groceries and added another $50 to my metro card)

Day 20- Easy shopping

I'm excited. I imagined that preparing food from scratch would be cheaper in the end, but I didn't realize it would cut down the amount of product I buy and the amount of time I spend in the grocery store. I went grocery shopping today and finished in a record 33 minutes (it has taken me up to two hours before). Better yet, I had less, so I could bike it home instead of taking the bus.

I was able to fly past three entire aisles because they are nothing but crap- sodas, chips, even the cereal aisle is full of nothing but sugary junk (I've been buying uncooked muesli instead which is basically like eating a bowl of horse feed covered with milk but I still like it). Two aisles are dedicated to excessive cleaning supplies and beauty products and the frozen foods are all out of the question- nothing but packaging there. I was in and out so fast, I didn't even have a chance to drool over the Pepperidge Farm Sausalito cookies (god, those look good- I should bake some cookies tonight!)

What a girl will do to save $2 on the bus: homemade bike pannier! (this image should have heat waves rising from it as well since it was around 95 degrees)

I have two confessions: I bought fish that was packaged in styrofoam- and I feel bad about it- but it was on sale. I debated but the deli wraps things in thick paper anyway, so I figured it was worth saving a few bucks (and I was really, really tired and couldn't muster up the energy to talk to the deli-guy. Lame, I know). Also, I bought pre-packaged frozen fruits that I use for smoothies because I think it would cost me a fortune to buy a pound of berries and freeze them myself (but I haven't actually done the math on that one so I could easily be wrong- I'll compare next shopping trip). 

Everything else I bought was kosher to my plan. I chose whole carrots instead of a bag of baby carrots, and I brought my own produce bags. The total bill was $38.88, and although there are a few items I'll have to pick up still, I feel like I've got a lot to work with. I'm slowly building up my pantry, like a good Mother Hubbard... although her cupboard was bare so maybe that analogy doesn't work.

Free outdoor showing on the National Mall of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

I enjoyed this free outdoor movie on the National Mall and borrowed two movies from the library that I've been meaning to see. I had to call Netflix because I didn't cancel it in time before I got billed again, but they refunded my money! 

Total spent so far: $320.44

Day 18- So close but so far

This is what I get to see when I ride my bike to work. What have I been doing relying so much on the underground dungeon called the metro?? And biking costs $0!

I (almost) spent no money the last two days. Go me! I didn't realize how often I pulled out my card to pay for things (with an intangible digital number on a computer screen being the only indicator that I've spent money), but I notice how little I use it now.

I did have to buy a headlamp ($15.89) to use while biking or running at night. I categorize my personal safety as a necessity. But I had a 25% off coupon (plus free shipping), so I saved $5. Go me again!

I am dying to go to a concert at the 9:30 Club though. They cost money. Grr. Maybe there's one on Aug. 13th...

Total spent so far: $281.56

Day 15- Halfway there!

My halfway mark  was spent at the doctor and lying on my couch in pain. The upside- I didn't spend any money on a birthday dinner (for which I was willing to cheat) but I spent $14.51 on medication fixing myself. Give and take.

Is this wide of a selection of detergents really necessary??

It's only been 15 days (which sometimes feels like an eternity and sometimes I wonder why I haven't done this all along), but I already notice changes in myself:

• Reduce
• I don't buy packaged products and make noticeably less trash
• Reuse
• I've saved jars to reuse and have worn clothes that I have but don't wear often
• Recycle
• Well, I already recycled stuff but saying it felt so right
• Other positives
• I don't feel like my money is slipping through my fingers like sand
• I feel more in control, less stressed
• I notice the ridiculousness of consumerism even more than before
• Example below: Kleenex disposable paper towels for home bathrooms

"Your hands are only as clean as the towel used to dry them."

Really, Kleenex?

Total spent so far: $265.67

Day 14- The Story of Stuff

I made a list of things I want to buy and tried to figure out why I want them:

• Toms shoes ($44-69)
• They look cool and are really comfortable (and the "cool" shoes I have now actually are falling apart)
• New iPod ($179)
• I have been too lazy to program iTunes to only put certain songs on my iPod, therefore I have run out of memory
• Wallet ($15-25)
• I tell myself that if I have a wallet that I can easily store cash in I will spend less money
• Add in Birkenstock sandals ($80), running shorts ($20-30), running backpack ($72-90), bicycle basket ($30-40)...........

That's $440-513. Plus tax & shipping. And the list could easily go on (I didn't even touch on wanting a Macbook or rock climbing equipment).

It would take me 52-60 hours to make enough money to afford all this. That's one-and-a-half to almost two weeks of work, between 7 and 9 days of working, gone to support my consumerism.

My reasons given for why I want these things are not meant to justify my desire- it's just me being honest, trying to figure out what drives this insanity.

Which leads me to a video that everyone should watch: The Story of Stuff

"We're in this ridiculous situation where we go to work, maybe two jobs even and we come home and we're exhausted so we plop down on our couch and watch TV and the commercials that tell us "You suck!" so we go to the mall, buy something to feel better and then you've got to go to work more to pay for the stuff you just bought so you come home and you're more tired so you sit down and watch more TV that tells you to go to the mall again and we're on this crazy work-watch-spend treadmill and we could just STOP."

Total spent so far: $251.16

(Spent $18.68 on lunch that I owed a friend- I bought food for myself too because it felt too weird to buy him food but not eat and another $10.08 on groceries. My friend Anna covered my birthday dinner! Thanks Anna!)

Day Ten- Life is getting cheaper

For the first time, I can say I spent no money the last two days. Yay for me!

Great free concert by Egyptian band, Massar Egbari, at the Kennedy Center 

I had to fight off the urge to take a $10 cab ride home at 1:00 am, but I rode my bike instead. I also had to fight the urge to buy some delicious-looking desserts at a restaurant I went to (but didn't eat at). I held strong.

I'm getting better at not feeling so out of place when I don't join the communal act of eating. Plus, it helps that people are so supportive! I've gotten an amazing response from people who don't think this idea is weird at all- my friends seem to think it's great and want me to succeed so that really helps. Thanks guys!

Total spent so far: still $222.40

Day Eight- Dumpster Dive

I've been meaning to try out dumpster diving for a while. Some friends were going (they quite often) so I joined them. 

Some things I learned:

1. It's not that gross (although it can be smelly and is not the cleanest of activities)
2. Grocery stores are the best bet
3. It's not illegal in a lot of places (but stores can incite trespassing laws)
4. The best time is at night, after closing
5. You usually don't have to get inside the dumpster

We met at 12:20 am outside of the District because dumpsters tend to be locked up in DC. Armed with hand sanitizer, rubber gloves and flashlights, we took two cars to three grocery stores. The first dumpster was somewhat of a let-down, only a few produce items and some sketchy-looking cheesy pasta that we threw back (Seeing as it's July, we were careful about what we took). There was a perfectly pretty orchid with a broken pot sitting next to the dumpster that we salvaged though.

We found bread!

The excitement started at the second grocery store- we found an entire plastic-bag-lined trash can filled with same-day bread. Grocery stores tend to bake all new bread every night, so they get rid of the old stuff. Some places, Panera Bread for example, donate this bread. Others apparently don't. There was so much that we filled 5 shopping bags and still had to leave some behind. Bagels, loaves, rolls- you name it- my share of which is now happily sitting in my freezer.

We found a few bag of lettuce (that I still haven't decided if I'm going to eat yet), a box of rice and a bag of pasta in the third dumpster. I hear that it depends on the day and sometimes there will be nothing, but the friends I went with said they had found crates upon crates of bananas a few weeks before that.

My findings

Apparently dumpster diving is a popular thing! This article in the Washington Post talks about divers in DC. There's also an organization called Food Not Bombs that serves free meals of food found from dumpsters every Sunday in Dupont Circle. There are also MeetUp Groups that goes diving together for people just starting out.

It is crazy to think that all of this would have gone in a landfill had we not gone out looking for it. And this happens every night. At every grocery store in the country. That adds up. (According to a study by Timothy Jones, it adds up to tens of billions of dollars of retail food waste each year).

Sign this petition to stop Trader Joe's from wasting food. It's online and easy, shmeasy.

Also check out Dive! The Film. Very cool.

My personal grocery bill also seems to add up. Too bad I didn't find any tahini in those dumpsters, I had to spend another $11.05 on it (expensive!) and a few small ingredients needed to finish off some recipes. For the love of god, I hope I don't need any more groceries for a long time.

Total spent so far: $222.40

Day Six

I put $100 on my metro card. That should last me a while, but it is surprising how fast it dwindles away.

I'm realizing that while eating only foods that I've made myself will save money in the end, it's freaking expensive to start. I didn't have ground cumin or a pound of raw almonds or even corn starch. I spent $45.85 on groceries today but it doesn't feel like I got a lot. While at the grocery store, I also had an intense desire to chow down on a bag of chips and then again on a candy bar and then drink a Diet Coke, but I didn't. I resisted.

Like I said before, I'm reading this book "Not Buying It" and I've come across some good insight:

"Research shows that just about everyone thinks she needs the things she buys and considers almost everything she wants a necessity. Half of Americans- not just poor ones- say they can't afford their 'needs'. We're not greedy, we say. It's everyone else who is acquiring useless stuff. In one study conducted by Juliet Schor, the economic sociologist, 78 percent of respondents stated that most Americans are 'very materialistic'. Only 8 percent considered themselves very materialistic."

Total spent so far: $211.35

Day Four

I spent the $10 to go to the Bike House Party. And it was fun. So sue me.

I did, however, bring my own lunch and for dinner went to Whole Foods and bought an avocado, tomato and lettuce and made my own wraps with tortillas I brought. A guy walked by and shook his head, laughing at me cutting up a messy avocado and drippy tomato with a plastic knife next to my whole head of lettuce. But at least I didn't buy food out! (and come on, it's Whole Foods- the people who shop there dream of eating like that)

Whole Foods total bill: $15.58 (including a jar of honey and some raw almonds)

I also met a friend from out of town for lunch and ate the lunch I brought with me. He knew ahead of time about my 30-day-money-hiatus so that helped, but otherwise it could have been awkward. If I hadn't brought anything to eat, do I just sit there and stare, making him feel uncomfortable for eating in front of me? I could keep refilling my free glass of water and act like it is really satisfying. The last thing I want is to seem like I'm setting myself apart or judging or asking for a hand-out.

But in our society it is awkward to shy away from the norm, and the norm is to be okay with spending money. Maybe this challenge is teaching me to be more okay with that myself.

Total spent so far: $65.50


Wow, this adds up even when you're "not spending money".

Day Two

Yesterday, Day Two of my challenge, went well. I put $20 on my metro card but have plans to bike to work tomorrow (like I said, transportation costs are unavoidable). I also spent $19.92 on groceries and tried to buy no pre-packaged foods but I'm finding this more difficult than I expected. I purchased bananas, oranges, some veggies, dried black beans and mixed nuts but I also bought yogurt, milk and tortillas.

This is the issue with winging this challenge without planning: I get to the grocery store and, being from (North) America, I assume that certain foods can't be made at home. While dairy milk is impossible to produce at home without access to a large mammal, upon searching I found a recipe for homemade yogurt, almond milk, and tortillas. If I can find all the supplies for these, I will attempt to make these soon (emphasis on the word attempt).

And I have to be honest- when I started this challenge I had planned to cheat once. There is a party at a Bike Co-op tonight that is a fundraiser. The cost is $10, and even though saying I've been planning to go for a while doesn't make it fit with the terms of this challenge, I'm giving myself a break only because it goes to a good cause (and maybe because it will be fun). Points for honesty?

I did make my own lavender shortbread cookies from scratch yesterday though. They are tasty, it wasn't difficult even with my lack of baking experience, and now I have tons of cookies to give away to anyone who wants them.

I also went to a free outdoor movie in the evening and fought off the desire to buy packaged snacks and brought nuts, oranges and water instead. Go me.

Total spent so far: $39.92

"Try something new for 30 Days"

After watching the video titled "Try something new for 30 Days" on Ted Talks, I was inspired. Matt Cutts claims that anyone can do anything for 30 days (writing a novel, for example). Cutts persuades the viewer to think of something they've always wanted to do but haven't gotten around to and do that every day for one month.

Like the video mentions, I could try to sketch once a day, practice another language once a day or take a photograph every day. Simple things. But when I made my list of things I've always wanted to try, the one that jumped out at me most was this: To spend no money at all, except on what is absolutely necessary to live.

No money on entertainment (this city is full of free entertainment), clothing (luckily I'm fully stocked on underwear), restaurants or eating out (luckily I work in a coffeeshop so I get free coffee), Netflix (sad!)... You get the gist.

Necessity is a broad concept, I realize, so I've formed my own personal definition:

• Food: I need to eat
• No eating out.
• Groceries are okay but only food that is not pre-made/instant/canned/anything of the sort. Will need to look up recipes as I don't know how to cook well.
• Transportation: I need to get to work (and play)
• Metro fees are unavoidable because I live in Maryland, however I will not use the bus.
• If I weren't so afraid of DC drivers I would bike to work. I will still make it a goal to bike to work once a week this month.
• Bills: I have debts and monthly expenses
• I have to pay my student loans and health insurance, but I'm not going to use my credit card this month so that's one less bill.
• No rent! I'm not paying rent right now since I live with family, so that helps.

Is this all even possible? I don't know. I'm using the book "Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping" as inspiration (I didn't buy it- I got it from the library, I swear!). But since I started yesterday and didn't purchase anything, I'm feeling more anxious than I expected. I feel limited, even though I'm not a big spender to start with.

What if I see a pair of running shorts on sale, soon to be snatched up, that would be perfect? What if the new, final Harry Potter movie comes out? (Oh wait, it did.) What if I'm really freaking hungry one day after work and forget to bring my lunch? What if... what if... what if??

It wouldn't be a 30-Day Challenge if it was easy, I suppose. So, here goes: from July 14th to August 12, 2011, exactly 30 days, I will spend no money except on what I absolutely need. I want to encourage as many people as possible to join me- what will your challenge be?

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me?... And if not now, when?" - Hillel the Elder