Comments on: Opening Up The Books

By: fiftysvn

fiftysvn — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:21:43 +0000

To be able to spend under 2k with fixed costs is pretty hard. For me, that would mean spending $500 on variable costs (dinners, drinks, whatever expenditures that are not included in my fixed).

That means my weekly budget for personal spending is $125. This is somewhat manageable because I”m single (let’s face it, having a gf requires maintenance & upkeep costs), but still extremely difficult. More realistically, I spend about $600 to $700 a month on non-fixed costs expenditures.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:42:55 +0000

My fixed are just as high, and all these one-time expenses alwayscome up — car insurance, taking parents out to eat, Valentine’s day, family birthday…It’s impossible to spend under $2000/month. Impossible!

By: Karen

Karen — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:09:20 +0000

Eating out and drinking are two of the most expensive things people do in my opinion. It’s not like buying something where you can at least use it for an extended period of time, return it if you change your mind, or resell it. You eat – and whether you enjoyed it or not, poop it out regardless…no residual value. Lol.

As for bringing your own lunch – maybe try making an extra portion when you make dinner every night and have the leftovers for lunch? It would only take an additional 5 mins to pack. ^^

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 18:04:03 +0000

“At first I tried to cut down on the meals at work but I soon realized that I was not saving that much money by bringing my own lunch. Plus, the preparation time was just too much of a chore and I did not enjoy my meals as much. I ended up reverting back to buying my meals, but I now try to keep my breakfast and lunch budget as low as possible.”

That’s a really good point. I think a lot of people don’t value their time and think of everything in dollars and cents. If you can save $10 every day by bringing your own lunch, but it tastes terrible and takes you 30 minutes to prepare every morning, is it worth it?

For me, no way.

By the way, it’s the one year anniversary of your blog. Haha. Keep it up, man.