This week has not be as easy nor are we as excited about our new way of living.
I made my husband go to the grocery store with me so that he could pick out what he wanted and I would not pick up things he didn’t want. This happens frequently. My husband takes his lunch and a sackful of snacks to work everyday. He gets tired of the same old stuff week after week. Sometimes he gets so tired of stuff he just refuses to eat it and it sits in our pantry and expires. No more! We are Living Broke, we can’t afford to be wasteful.
My husband is not a fan of grocery shopping and I am not a fan of his grouchy company in the Walmart SuperCenter. We made it in and out in record time and spent $118.
My husband is skeptical about this entire budget initiative. He’s going along with it, but not peaceably. This may be detrimental to his happiness going forward.
He doesn’t buy beer often and I don’t buy wine often. However, when you’re on a budget or a diet for that matter, you tend to focus on what you can’t have and not what you really want. We don’t imbibe often but suddenly he realized he didn’t have beer at home. I told him beer and wine would come out of the grocery budget and he grunted.
On Saturday we were to make a 65 mile one way trip to visit his family. The plan and my commitment to the plan was to drive up, visit for a couple of hours and bring two of our grandsons back to spend the night. By the time this plan went through numerous adjustments, changes, accusations, screams and demands, it was clear to me that my husband’s particular family member orchestrating the whole ordeal was going to keep us hung out for hours on end. I had dinner in the crock pot with a estimated dinner time of 6. I did not want nor intend to get hung out at the mercy of a control freak, passive aggressive, spiteful, mean young woman just for the hell of it. I know and love my husband and in knowing him, I know that he has and always will cowtow to demands like this so I told him the only way I would accompany him on this clustered excursion was to drive my own car so that I could come home before midnight. He was not happy.
In his mind “marriage” means “joined at the hip forever and ever amen.” In my mind married means a foot rub when I ask for it and someone to kill spiders for me. In his anger that I would not endure his lovely family and the ever-changing plans he said “driving up there in 2 cars just wastes gas! Don’t say anything else to me about a budget.”
Yes. I did. I slapped him down quickly on that one. I figured with my new, fuel efficient compact car, I spent $5.37 in gas to drive up there on my own. That is a bargain compared to what my bail bond would have been if I had been trapped in his daughter’s home with no escape or release date. Once I finished with him over that comment, I rested assured that he would never use “budget” as a weapon in a disagreement of any sort lest I take it away from him and beat him to a pulp with it again.
I came home Saturday at 4. At 6 pm, my husband called and asked if it was still OK with me to bring the grandsons home. I never turn down grandbaby time! I had to quickly run to the store and spend $9 for food the 4 year old would eat.
I looked at the pay per view channels and saw Wall-E listed. That would make a great movie night for a 4 year old! However, once we settled in to watch the movie, it was a premium channel we don’t get. The 4 year old was not happy. We told him we would stop at Walmart after church on Sunday and buy the movie since we promised him we would watch it. And we did. $20.00
I had planned to get some work done last weekend in preparation for my business trip that began with a 2:30 flight on Monday. Having the grandsons around meant no work time for me.
I got up early Monday morning and began a mad rush to get everything done for my trip. I began the process of printing out hundreds of pages of color presentation materials. I fielded phone calls and of course since I didn’t have time for issues, I got more than a normal Monday’s share. I had grand plans to leave my office around 11:45, pack my suitcase, enjoy a quick bite of lunch and leave at 12:45 for a 1:45 arrival at the airport. HA! By the time 10 am arrived, I was tempted to call HR and fire myself just so I wouldn’t have to finish out the day.
I sprinted down the stairs loaded down with my briefcase and files, I pitched and tossed clothes and shoes into my suitcase, grabbed things out of the bathroom cabinet, could not find my bag with my nail stuff in it, zipped up the suitcase, ran to the car with it and hoped both the shoes I packed were the same color. I threw a piece of ham on a piece of bread, grabbed a bottle of water and sped out of the driveway.
And you know when you’re running late, everything that can go wrong will go wrong. Like heavy traffic and incompetent people at every point of contact it takes to actually get to the gate. And I know the only reason that TSA agent made me take off my sweater was so he could see my bra. Asshole.
I got through security, got dressed and ran to my gate barefooted. Yes, I am so professional when I travel. Always representing the company with my best sock foot forward.
There were issues on the plane that are worthy of their own post, so I’ll save those for later. I thought about all I had to do once I landed. I didn’t have all my printing done, so I would need to find a Kinko’s. Any my nails? I gave up manicures for Living Broke, but I had to do something about my hands before I sat in front of important CEO people the next day.
Once I arrived in Kansas City, I drove quickly to my destination. I broke the no manicure rule and paid $15 for a manicure and conversation with a Vietnamese woman I couldn’t understand.
Once on the road, all my expenses for meals and the glass of wine I had for dinner are not my personal expenses. I am a frugal travel not because I am a tight wad but because I live the way I live and eat what I eat no matter who is paying for it. I know and love people who are extravagant on the company’s dime. I got news for you, that big ole fat steak and order of bacon cheese fries may be free, but it is still 9,000 calories and it will expand your ass. Literally. I’ll take a $5 Subway turkey on wheat please.
I arrived home late Wednesday night. On Thursday, my husband and I had to speed to the accountant’s office in the city to sign our tax return. We had gift cards to a couple of restaurants so we went to dinner afterwards. After we used our gift cards, we both chipped in $4 to cover the rest of the bill and tips.
I had committed to making a donation to a non profit that is close to my heart for a silent auction. Yikes! Where would that come from? I scoured the junk drawer and found an unused $10 Walmart gift card. I was willing to fork over a few more dollars to get something decent. I found a set of new grill tools, a vintage looking Barrell of Monkeys game and a stuff animal. Total $19.71. I used the gift card an paid $9.71.
So we survived another week. Today is Friday, it is grocery day again. I’m hoping to have a little bit of grocery money left to buy a banned item – like one bag of Kona coffee. But then I reminded myself that I need to get little Easter things for our grandchildren. There goes the coffee for at least another week.
I saved all my laundry for tomorrow because it is supposed to be nice outside and I have a clothes line. After paying our 4th astronomical utility bill this week, the dryer is grounded! It will not get to dry our clothes unless is it an emergency. It costs nothing to hang them out on the clothesline and they smell better dried on the line.
I’m sure Living Broke will get harder as we get into this week. However, we must do it and I know we will.
Tags: Living Broke, Musings
