October 2016 Spending Report

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Once again, I must apologize for waiting so late in the month to post this report. November has really gotten away from me, and the spending reports have really been bringing me down. I know October will turn out to be a particularly expensive month, since I went on a little visit to San Francisco and paid for a lot of restaurant food. Several of the places I bought food didn’t hand me a receipt, so I’m not positive I included all expenses this month, but I think I did.

If you are interested in how this spending report project came about, you can read this post: http://www.rubbertrampartist.com/2015/12/31/spending/. If you want to see spending reports from previous months, type “spending report” into the search bar.

10-1 through 10-2-16 I was still on the mountain with nothing to buy. Nothing spent

10-3-16 Today I went to civilization for my days off. Total spent: $251.13

$2.17 to Taco Bell for breakfast

$100 for debt repayment

70 cents for money order

$18.31 to Wal-Mart for supplies

$6.33 for groceries

$9.99 for glucosamine

$16.26 to the sporting goods store for a new Luci Light

$68.11 for gasoline

$19.51 to AutoZone for new windshield wipers

$9.75 to Panera for lunch and internet accesss

10-4-16 I picked up a few things before I went back up the mountain. Total spent: $37.83

$2.05 to Panera for coffee and internet accesss

$6.02 to Little Caesar’s for a pizza

$1.19 to Dollar Tree for 2.5 liter bottle to use with my Simple Shower

$28.57 for groceries

10-5-16 I was back on the mountain with nothing to buy. Nothing spent

10-6-16 The autopayment for my phone went through. Total spent: $34.99

10-7 through 10-9-16 I was on the mountain working, with nothing to buy. Nothing spent

10-10-16 Today I was in civilization for the days off before my last week of work. Total spent: $9.99

$3.28 to Panera for a bagel and a drink and internet access

$6.71 for groceries

10-11-16 Today I ran errands before going back up the mountain for my last week of work. Total spent: $70.35

$6.27 to Panera for coffee and breakfast and internet access

$15.02 for groceries

$1.49  for ice

$47.57 for gasoline

10-12 through 10-16-17 I was on the mountain for my last week of work with nothing to buy. Nothing Spent

10-17-16 Today I left the mountain at the end of the season. Hello civilization. Total spent: $23.51

$3.01 breakfast/lunch at Taco Bell

$20.50 gas

10-18-16 Today I visited California friends. Total spent: $15.21

$2.88 for lunch from the supermarket

$12.33 for dessert and tip (My friend bought dinner, so I treated for dessert.)

10-19-16 Today I started my visit in San Francisco. Total spent: $24.60

$7.10 for public transit

$17.50 for gasoline

10-20-16 Today I ate lunch, walked around the Mission District, and bought some cute clothes for my friend’s kids at a thrift store. Total spent: $14.21

$8.50 for lunch and tip

$5.71 for kid clothes

10-21-16 Today I did more walking in the Mission District. I ate lunch and bought a couple of little things. Total spent: $12.30

$1 for a used book by one of my favorite authors. (I read it in about 15 minutes and decided I didn’t want to keep it. I think I wasted the dollar.)

$1.30 for cookies from a Mexican bakery

$10 for lunch and tip

10-22-16 I spent most of the day in a great library, working on my blog and otherwise using the internet. In between working at the library, I had to eat. Total spent: $19

$10.50 breakfast and tip

$8.50 dinner and tip

10-23-16 Today, I only spent money on breakfast. My friend treated me to the opera and dinner! Total spent: $10

10-24-16 Today I left the Bay Area and headed to my house sitting gig. Total spent: $38.45

$8 for breakfast

$4.30 for public transit

$26.15 for groceries

10-25 through 10-28-16 I’ve been staying in the house with the dogs, working on my book. Nothing spent

10-29-16 I went to the grocery store today. Total spent: $10.57

10-30 through 10-31-16 More staying home and working on the book. Nothing spent

Total spent for the month: $572.14

 

 

 

About Blaize Sun

My name is Blaize Sun. Maybe that's the name my family gave me; maybe it's not. In any case, that's the name I'm using here and now. I've been a rubber tramp for nearly a decade.I like to see places I've never seen before, and I like to visit the places I love again and again. For most of my years on the road, my primary residence was my van. For almost half of the time I was a van dweller, I was going it alone. Now I have a little travel trailer parked in a small RV park in a small desert town. I also have a minivan to travel in. When it gets too hot for me in my desert, I get in my minivan and move up in elevation to find cooler temperatures or I house sit in town in a place with air conditioning I was a work camper in a remote National Forest recreation area on a mountain for four seasons. I was a camp host and parking lot attendant for two seasons and wrote a book about my experiences called Confessions of a Work Camper: Tales from the Woods. During the last two seasons as a work camper on that mountain, I was a clerk in a campground store. I'm also a house and pet sitter, and I pick up odd jobs when I can. I'm primarily a writer, but I also create beautiful little collages; hand make hemp jewelry and warm, colorful winter hats; and use my creative and artistic skills to decorate my life and brighten the lives of others. My goal (for my writing and my life) is to be real. I don't like fake, and I don't want to share fake. I want to share my authentic thoughts and feelings. I want to give others space and permission to share their authentic selves. Sometimes I think the best way to support others is to leave them alone and allow them to be. I am more than just a rubber tramp artist. I'm fat. I'm funny. I'm flawed. I try to be kind. I'm often grouchy. I am awed by the stars in the dark desert night. I hope my writing moves people. If my writing makes someone laugh or cry or feel angry or happy or troubled or comforted, I have done my job. If my writing makes someone think and question and try a little harder, I've done my job. If my writing opens a door for someone, changes a life, I have done my job well. I hope you enjoy my blog posts, my word and pictures, the work I've done to express myself in a way others will understand. I hope you appreciate the time and energy I put into each post. I hope you will click the like button each time you like what you have read. I hope you will share posts with the people in your life. I hope you'll leave a comment and share your authentic self with me and this blog's other readers. Thank you for reading.  A writer without readers is very sad indeed.

6 Responses »

    • Thanks for the encouragement! I appreciate it!

      Tracking my spending is a pain in my neck, but I think it’s a good exercise everyone should try once. I think even doing it for three months would be eye-opening.

  1. “Total spent for the month: $572.14”

    Would you like to feel better? My brother lives with the retired woman across the street. She has income from three sources, totalling $4,600/mo. My brother has an income of $1,600/mo. Combined, that’s $6,200 per month.

    She is losing her newish stick-built home on an acre of land to foreclosure because she buys everything she sees and pays her bills last (and late). She has a Scion that she’s making payments on, but she has to hide it in the garage because she’s several payments behind. She also bought a pickup truck, but she’s hiding that out of state, and is probably behind in those payments, too. While they were gone, I was feeding her cats. I found a power shut-off notice hanging from the doorknob, and a water shut-off notice stuck to the front door. Mind you, she’s STILL behind, and hasn’t made any of the $2,400 house payments for well over a year.

    Can you even IMAGINE how well-off you or I would be with that income and our penny-pinching ways?

    Yes, you spent a little more, but you’ve not been outrageous. Living expenditure-free is virtually impossible. You’ve paid down several debts just since I joined in here — GOOD FOR YOU!

    • WOW! Yes, Sue, this did make me feel better about my spending, although sad for your brother and his lady friend.

      Yes, with $6,000 (or even half of that) I could live HIGH!

      I know that many people who seem wealthy to me are living off credit and not doing too well overall.

  2. This is the first post I read by you — well, the one where you had to spend $600 for the plane ticket didn’t count. I did notice that you spent over $100 on eating out. I guess all-in-all, that’s what you enjoy, and if you can still keep expenses that low with doing that, kudos for you! Me, I’m a cheapskate. I’d find a free place for wifi instead of paying $10 for food at Panera to use theirs.

    But I will say one thing. You make me think I can do this on $700/month. Of course, I haven’t read enough to see what your vehicle insurance and maintenance are, or how much income you have every month.

    • Welcome to my blog, Amie. Thanks for reading and commenting.

      Yes, I did spend quite a bit of money eating out. I could have cut down on that expense if I had used the internet at the library and cooked meals at the park. I have to say, I get REALLY tired of my own cooking. Actually, I hate to cook, so I am a sucker for having someone do the cooking for me. I’m willing to pay to have someone else do the cooking when I can afford it. When I can’t afford pay for prepared food, I know how to do without.

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