Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Uber Frugal Month: Day 31 The Finish!

A bit of a misnomer in the title -- this isn't the finish, but the beginning!

Today’s mantra: When you reach a place of tenable, enjoyable, lifelong frugality, you won’t worry about an end date for your frugality. You’ll have arrived.
Today’s action: Reflect on what this month was like for you. What was difficult? What surprised you? Could you live like this for the long-term?
Today is a day of reflection instead of a challenge. For me, the month really was no different than any other, except we were more consciously aware of some of our spending (namely entertainment).In fact, cutting back on entertainment spending was the single most difficult thing to do.

What surprised me is that it can be done, but we have to remain very mindful. A few things going forward:
  • Goodbye bus. Maybe when spring rolls around and I have a later class I will revisit the bus, but after one month enough is enough. I have to get down to the stop a full hour early because I can't depend on the bus to be on time, so I must get an earlier one. Then, I may be stuck at school for up to an hour waiting on a bus. The parking pass is worth it to get that lost time standing on a curb back.
  • Goodbye alcohol. I can't be trusted after more than two drinks -- I'll order pizza, decide to go out for food, or do something equally dumb with money. One drink on occasion at home or at a dinner at a brewery is fine -- it doesn't trigger the eating/spending binge. 
  • The major diet change I hinted at a couple of weeks ago is a keeper. More details in February, but this should bring down the grocery bill a bit.
  • I can't give up fun outings, particularly with DS2. Almost-13 is a hard age, and we really connect when we have one-on-ones. A weekly treat -- inexpensive, but $ none the less -- is staying in the budget.
  • I need to bring down some "fixed" bills. February is the month I tackle internet, the phone bill, and insurance. No more excuses -- I figure there is about $150 there we can save a month.
  • I need to up my winter game and get outside no matter what (unless it is waiting at a bus stop).
  • Saving more is great, but the simple fact is Mo will need to earn more. I'm at my limit with school, and I really should scale back work somewhat. This is something we are planning to work on over the coming months. 
We are definitely in this for the long haul -- perhaps forever! But something tells me it will get even easier once we have everything fine tuned even more. 

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