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A Life Less Ordinary

Tag: saving (page 3 of 3)

Monthly Expenses – June 2016

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting and relatively adventurous life without being rich. Or even without owning/earning a lot of money. That being said, Mark and I seem to manage one big expense a month for some reason, whether it is car, plane, travel or computer-related. Luckily, we live totally rent-free and in comfort, wherever we end up. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, for the two of us. Under groceries we incorporate all the food, produce and non-alcoholic drinks (100% orange juice, oat milk for Mark and organic 2% milk for me) predominantly bought in supermarkets. Dining out means eating at a restaurant and/or take-out food. The health category covers medicines and Mark's vitamins and supplements. Utilities are always phone and Skype-related, now that our internet is free. 

Here is an overview of our expenses in June.  Once again, we did not manage to stay under $1000. Maybe next month? The grocery bill was much higher than usual, because we organized a family gathering over the 4th July weekend at our current place. After months of having no sound, "off balance" color settings, random crashes and regular "freezes"  on my three-year-old computer (which Mark, my personal IT-guy, did not want to touch anymore for the last six months, because the thing frustrated him too much), I finally gave in and bought a new computer for a great price on eBay. Next week, it will be up and running. Thank you, IT-guy!

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Monthly Expenses – May 2016

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting and relatively adventurous life without being rich. Or even without owning/earning a lot of money. That being said, Mark and I seem to manage one big expense a month for some reason, whether it is car, plane, travel or computer-related. Luckily, we live totally rent-free and in comfort, wherever we end up. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, for the two of us. Under groceries we incorporate all the food, produce and non-alcoholic drinks (100% orange juice, oat milk for Mark and organic 2% milk for me) predominantly bought in supermarkets. Dining out means eating at a restaurant and/or take-out food. The health category covers medicines and Mark's vitamins and supplements. Utilities are always phone and Skype-related, now that our internet is free. 

We have added a new expense category in May: charity. From now on, we will donate $10 a month to the animal sanctuary Best Friends. And, maybe, one day we will even adopt one of their rescue dogs. We both read a book about this amazing no-kill sanctuary in Utah years ago and the stories of the animals and caretakers still have a place in our hearts.

Here is an overview of our expenses in May. The amount I spent in Belgium is relatively low, thanks to the hospitality and generosity of my parents. It includes 150 dollars worth of chocolate goods I brought back to the US. Yum!

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Monthly Expenses – April 2016

With some serious delay, here it is... my expense report of April 2016. It is almost time for the May one!

Back in January, I started this monthly expense series to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting and relatively adventurous life without being rich. Or even without owning/earning a lot of money. That being said, Mark and I seem to manage one big expense a month for some reason, whether it is car, plane or computer related. Luckily, we live totally rent-free and still "in style", wherever we end up. 🙂

Here is an overview of our expenses in April, a higher than average month because of my plane ticket to Belgium.

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Monthly Expenses – March 2016

Every month, I put an expense report together for the two of us. Last month, Mark and I spent a little bit more than in February, for which our car is to blame.  The grocery bill was relatively low, while all the other categories remain average for us. Here is an overview of our expenses in US$ for the two of us last month:

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Monthly Expenses – February 2016

In February, Mark and I did much better than the month prior. Almost twice as good. (If only we could keep this trend up… :-)) The reason for the decent number: we locked ourselves up inside, cooked all of our meals with the exception of two Chinese take-outs and focused on work and projects on our computers. There is an increase in alcohol, though… Here is an overview of our expenses in US$ for the two of us last month:

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Monthly Expenses – January 2016

Mark and I have lived frugally since we met, the reason being that we barely make any money and that we are not keen on materialistic goods and gathering possessions. We like to travel and we like to have a low impact on Mother Nature. While I only used to spend around $350 a month while backpacking by myself in my twenties, and around the same amount while camping, staying with friends and family or exploring North and Central America by camper in my early thirties, this amount went up when we both lived on Irie for eight years. Our annual expenses were then around $20,000 for two people, most of that money being put into the boat. It took a chunk out of our savings.

This year, being semi-settled on land, we will try to be even more careful with our dollars. We bought a second-hand car last year and have come accustomed to house and pet sitting, which is pretty much free. So, in regards to transportation and accommodation, we are mostly set. Still, costs add up, of course. To give you an idea of what we spend each month, I am starting a monthly expense report. Continue reading

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