Week 3: Sept 22-30, 2010

Budget: RM135 = RM15/day
Actual: RM138.65

I need to point out that this is a 9-day ‘week’ because there’s two days leftover and I originally decided to take a break early in the week but decided that won’t be fair because the total funds allocated include all 30 days.

The photo above was not a purchase but a gift. I’ve never had fresh blueberries before. I didn’t know the inside was pale yellow and it tastes like a tiny plum. It was a yummy treat for a frugal month.

But back to the topic at hand. I exceeded Week 4’s budget and I know exactly where I failed. On Sept 24, I decided to take a break from the project because I needed to get out of the house and do some writing. I knew this wasn’t possible without exceeding the daily budget but I was unable to focus at home and it was urgent that I finish that piece of writing.

I stayed out all day and spent more than twice as much money than I was supposed to. It was a breath of fresh air from being cooped up all day and I’m not sorry.

My friend Joey asked me what I did with the extra money if I didn’t spend all RM15 of it in a day. If I overspend, I take it out from the next day’s budget. If I have left over I keep it. It doesn’t carry forward to the next day or go into the piggy bank. At the end of the month, I’ll still be totalling up the expenses to see how much I saved (or didn’t save).

I did eventually meet friends for lunch or dinner a few times, but at fairly reasonably-priced places. Most of them knew what I was doing and may have accidentally or intentionally left more than their fair share of money when we split the bill. We never really cared about things like an extra couple of bucks, but it mattered to me because I was watching every dime. So thanks, friends. ;-)

So over the month of No Spend September, I spent RM424.10 out of my RM450 budget. I saved nearly triple of what I usually have at the end of an average month. I used the money and paid off nearly a third of my credit card bills. When my salary came in, I bumped that up to half the original sum. I’m halfway to paying them off!

So the project is over. Does this mean I’m about to embark on a spending frenzy? Hell no. I think I’ll keep the RM15/day budget, at least until everything’s paid off. ;-)

When I’m a bit more focused, I’ll blog about other observations of No Spend September.

Week 3: Sept 15-21, 2010

Budget: RM105 = RM15/day
Actual: RM86.90

I’m pleased to report that there wasn’t an epic fail this week. Maybe just a RM2 regret, but who’s counting?

The sandwich in the above photo is what my typical lunch looks like. It’s called the Special Giant Croissant Sandwich which I picked up from Delizze. It’s totally worth the money because it usually becomes two meals for me. The regular sandwich is RM4.50. The Giant is RM4.90. I thought I heard wrong when I first asked about it. It is stuffed with ham, lettuce, cheese and tomatoes.

I usually eat half or 2/3 for lunch, and save the rest for the late afternoon hunger pangs. I ate the whole thing for lunch once and knew that I overdid it. It’s funny how I can’t remember the last time I was stuffed to the point of not being able to move.

The RM2 regret is in the background of the photo. The mini eclairs, also from Delizze. Pretty to look at, not too bad to mush around in your mouth. But once it disappears down your throat, it just… disappears. I don’t think I would have felt any different if I didn’t eat it.

Most food gives you some kind of feeling. Maybe a bit of sugar rush, peaking endorphins, feeling it sit in your tummy purring like a fed cat, feeling pleased that you made an excellent choice in dessert. But there was nothing. Just a bunch of calories that wasn’t worth the RM2. A can of Coke would have been worth the calories, and it costs 20 sen less.

Oh, I treat myself to a can of Coke maybe once a week but I’ve been much better at just drinking water lately. I thought I drank enough water before (and I still do compared to most people) but since I learned that hunger pangs are the same for food and water, it’s easier to just throw water into the hatch. Water is free. I used to buy big bottles of mineral water (RM2 each) when I’m looser with my budget but I just bring big bottles from home now.

Drinking more water also tells your body that it’s in no danger of dehydration, so it won’t retain so much water (causes bloating). When I find that article that talks about this, I’ll link it.

The other habit that changed is that I eat dinner at home more often. I could go for weeks without coming home for dinner, but I quite easily talked myself out of that this month. Again, eating mum’s cooking not only saves money, but it’s a lot healthier too, especially when my mum’s more health conscious than I am.

I was telling Shin Yi earlier that I miss pasta and sushi a little, but fortunately, it was just a passing realisation rather than a craving. I did treat myself to some KFC today.

Being able to keep my daily spending below RM15 is something I want to keep on doing.

Week 2: Sept 8-14, 2010

Budget: RM105 = RM15/day
Actual: RM92.70

Remember how I said I’m good at thoughtlessly spending on entertainment?

Yup. In the middle of a game trance on the first day of the second week, I went and bought a casual pack at RM31. Yes, I enjoyed the game I was playing. The purchase wasn’t ideal and isn’t something I want to keep doing, but once next month’s coins are in, I’m gonna cancel the subscription.

Happily, I didn’t spend very much in the subsequent three days because it was my day off, then Hari Raya so I did my eating at houses I visited. Just spent RM6 on Thursday on lunch with my brother at my favourite kopitiam, and RM4.75 (RM2 tumbler discount) on a freshly brewed coffee at Starbucks on Sunday. So I just about balanced the extravagance of the first day and saved a few bucks along the way! (Imagine how much more I would have saved this week if I didn’t buy the game credits…)

As expected, I had to continue saying no to things I won’t have thought twice about before, like a new Artermis Fowl novel and various dinner outings with friends who probably don’t know about this project. It’s become a little bit easier to say not to unnecessary purchases, like daily afternoon snacks at work. In the long run, this is probably healthier as well.

There were a couple of purchases I decided to put off indefinitely until I get this financial situation sorted out. One of it resolved itself when my brother returned home with the packaging of the iPod Touch he gave me last year. My earphones were dying. There was a pair of the original iPod earphones in the box. Yay!

The other item I was coveting is the Black Rapid RS-W1. It’s a camera strap designed for women! There’s a curve that fits between the boobs instead of cutting across it like it isn’t there.

When I first saw it last month, I made the prudent decision to wait till the next paycheck. But the “next paycheck” coincided with NSS, so it’ll be a while before I get my mitts on this.

Nonetheless, I added it to my wish list, with an unsubtle reminder that my birthday is next month. ;-)

Week 1: Sept 1-7, 2010

Budget: RM105 = RM15/day
Actual: RM105.85

Let me start my No Spend September (NSS) updates with my epic fail of the week.

A McValue meal comes at the lovely price tag of RM12 something. I’m gonna round it off at RM13. And then I ordered the Groovy Lime Sunday, which bumped up the price tag to about RM17. To add to the irony, this was at 11.00pm on a day when I managed not to spend a cent.

Regardless, I spent much less than I usually do in a week and that alone is an accomplishment. I did fairly all right most of the time, being able to keep my spending limited to around RM15. I had days where I went over by a few bucks, but I compensate by spending less the next day.

Knowing that I have a daily budget of RM15 didn’t really make me want to spend less. It made me think about what I’d rather be spending it on. Will it be a fancy RM4 drink or Chinese tea at RM1? (Getting mineral water is often more expensive.) A cheap meal and snacks later, or no snacks after a meal I’ll really enjoy?

How did I spend my free time? There’s mostly a lot of my usual computer time and a lot more reading than usual. But I’m actually getting bored of reading. In the coming week, I’m gonna try to balance the reading with some creative writing.

There are a number of purchases I could have done without but even with that, I only went over my week’s budget by 85 sen. I’m mean, WHO’S COUNTING A COUPLE OF SENS, RIGHT? NOT ME.

I was gonna say “Hopefully I’ll do better next week” but I know I already committed my epic fail for Week 2. Possibly for the whole month.

Coming across No Spend Month over at Small Notebook was timely. I thought I was doing pretty well getting my spending and saving under control but I fell off the wagon big time the last couple of months.

I’m going to Hanoi and KL in October, and I’m still paying off my credit card bills from the last KL trip. Very bad!

I managed to put away a small amount of spending money for Hanoi and briefly considered throwing it at my credit cards to make the debt go away. But I decided that what I saved should simply not be touched for any other reason.

But for now, I have two salaries to go before I go on holiday, and a fairly decent chance of killing off those bills first.

So September onwards, I’m limited to the essentials only, so I expected to spend a lot of time alone at home with my past spending sins to keep me company.

You might have noticed that I’ve not included family in this project. I live with my parents, so I don’t have to worry about rent, utility bills and such. And my parents are already pretty damn good at being frugal. I just have to look out for myself.

That’s my objective. Here are the details.

Budget:

RM450, or RM15 a day.

Which includes:

• Eating out, which is impossible to avoid completely because of work.
• Entertainment, which I’m really good at thoughtlessly doing.
• Groceries & household items

Does not include:

• Bills
• Savings
• Insurance
• Work expenses, which includes petrol
• Health/Fitness expenses

Absolutely not buying:

• Books or magazines
• Clothes

There we go. I’ll update as I go along.

Updates:

• No Spend September – Week 1
• No Spend September – Week 2