this month, money is tight for me. so tight that i did not pay my student loan and only paid part of my flight ticket to bali to my friend while i will pay the rest next month. i find that i spend a lot on food, so i’ve started writing down what i spend for dinner at work so that i would ‘guilt’ myself into choosing a cheaper option the next time. it’s not really working so far ‘cos food is expensive where i work. i miss my former workplace (not the bookshop) where i could get a cheap and delicious vegetarian meal for less than rm5.
the other day, i thought to myself, sure, it’s not fun taking a pay cut but i was glad that i was not earning too much that the pay cut was too drastic. theoretically, the pay cut is not that much, but at the bookshop i was doing a lot of overtime so in the end i brought home an ‘inflated’ paycheck back then. here, i have not started doing overtime yet so i’m taking home the minimal paycheck.
(actually, i am more glad that i did not let money issues get in the way of me accepting this job, because i enjoy doing the jigsaw puzzle these days, if you know what i mean. and that it means i don’t hold money so highly that it gets in the way of what i think could make me happy. but money makes me happy too. sometimes.)
yesterday, a family member was rueing our financial issues and now i feel bad about my smaller paycheck. i went out with a friend for a book spree and lunch but what that person said ruined the day for me and i did not truly enjoy the trip. i felt guilty for indulging myself (though in reality i spent less than rm10 for the 3 books i bought because i had some book vouchers) when i keep telling my family that i’m broke this month. i had some car troubles yet again and they’ve footed the bill, which might explain their money grouses.
i like this job. i’m learning good things from good people who have so far been nothing but good to me. i like that i’m not too ‘in love’ with this job that i can really enjoy my days off without worrying and have more free time at the moment to catch up on my reading. but with more free time comes the itch to do activities which requires more money. and sadly i’m in that zone where i have to think twice before i take out money from my purse. and the feeling sucks. not funny at all.
bloggerdygook 
Comments on: "must be funny, in a rich man’s world." (8)
been thr, and its so not funny, i agree. but sadly, i’ve still not learnt to save or be a disciplined spender 😀 guess tht isnt something meant for all 😀 but don worry, you’ll hang n thr, and survive thru it. its ppl like us who win, finally 😉
same, working for two years and still not good at saving! yes, just working on scraping through at the moment.
I’ve not been there, so I don’t know if it is my place to comment or not, but I can suggest some things:
maintain a expenses journal for some time.. by that i mean carry a small pad and write whatever you spend throughout the day or make notes in ur phone.. at the end of the month u’ll have a better idea of what you can cut from ur budget..
secondly, if the food where u work is expensive, u can always take lunch with you from home.. maybe not everyday but a day or two a week…
hope this helps..
i tried to once, but my accounts never add up. 😕 i do take food from home occasionally but it’s not fun to eat at your desk. and bringing your own food to a restaurant while you accompany your colleague eating there can be awkward. but oh well… that’s the ‘punishment’ for not being able to balance my budget!
If the weather is nice take your lunch and eat outside someplace. I have been known to do that even in the winter unless the weather is to far below freezing. Find a park or place to sit and rest or just enjoy a walk while you eat. Money is like that. There are often times where you just scrape by others when you feel you can feast. One tip I can tell you is you can save a lot of money over the years when you add up how much is wasted by eating out a lot. Save the cash and you can splurge on one really nice meal at a restaurant instead of just eating out at lunch time over and over. The thing is you learn to really appreciate the good times when you fight through the tough times.
where i work, there’s no appropriate place to eat outside the office except in other eateries. and i don’t work normal office hours. i eat dinners. 🙂 so far i’m pretty bad at not splurging on food this month. but i will try to do better next month!
what I’d give for some free time to catch up with my reading! Hold on a little bit longer and I’m sure things will work out for you financially.
what are you busy doing? the best way to squeeze in some reading is to do it while you’re on the throne. 😛