Welcome to Money Diaries, where we're tackling what might be the last taboo facing modern working women: money. We're asking millennial women how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period — and we're tracking every last dollar. (Thanks, New York mag, for the inspiration.)
To mark our 50th money diary, we decided to do something a little different. A brave Brooklyn diarist decided to track four complete weeks (not a month, but close enough). Ahead, a project manager for a construction management company with an almost weekly pot delivery and a penchant for horror movies.
Industry: Construction Management
Age: 31
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Salary: $105,000
Bonus: 10 to 16% annually ($11,500, paid in March)
Savings: $40,000
401(k): $60,000
# of roommates: One (boyfriend)
Paycheck Amount (Every Two Weeks, 26 paychecks per year)
Gross: $4,038
Taxes: $1,280
401(k) (10% of gross pay): $405
Insurance: $104
Total Biweekly Take-Home Pay: $2,250
My BF is the same age and makes $130K per year, his bonus payout will be $37K this year (gross). We work in the same industry, but in different roles. He contributes to a 401(k) and Roth IRA, his biweekly take-home total is about $2,450.
Biweekly Auto Transfer To Savings: $350. In addition to this, I keep about a $2-5K in my checking account at a time. When there is an accumulation beyond $5K, I will transfer that to savings on top of the $350 auto transfer that occurs each paycheck.
Monthly Expenses (all numbers represent my half of joint expenses)
Rent: $1,113. We live in East Williamsburg in a 670-square-foot one-bedroom apartment with a backyard that we share with our neighbor.
Car Loan Payment: $207. We have four car payments left (car was $26K).
Car Insurance: $65
Electric & Cooking Gas: $50
E-ZPass & Monthly Metro Card: $122
Phone Bill: $0 (company-paid cell phone)
Cable, Internet, & Landline: $107.50 (Yes, I know, but we have every movie package and bad cell service in the apartment.)
Netflix (streaming and one disc): $9
Spotify: $5
Student Loans: None. My parents paid for college. My four-year bachelor’s degree cost $46K (this includes two years of dorms and meal plans, the tuition itself was only $32K). I worked through high school and during college so I could pay for my living expenses and my rent after I moved out of the dorms. My boyfriend just finished paying off his student loans, which were about $50K total when he graduated. He received some scholarships and did a work study program that covered half of his tuition.
Total Fixed Monthly Expenses: $1,678.50
Editor's Note: All expenses were rounded to the nearest half-dollar. Expenses that are marked with an * indicated a shared expense, with the number representing the diarists' half. Money Diaries are meant to reflect individual women’s experiences and do not necessarily reflect Refinery29’s point of view. Refinery29 in no way encourages illegal activity or harmful behavior.
The first step to getting your financial life in order is tracking what you spend — to try on your own, check out our guide to managing your money every day. For more money diaries, click here.
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Week One
Day One
1 p.m. — I love to sleep and regularly get up very late on weekends. BF is at work, so I go to the bodega and get sausage and cheese on a roll, waffle fries, iced coffee, and seltzer, before watching the first season of the Netflix series Scrotal Recall. I like it. $10.50
4 p.m. — BF picked up baked beans, potato salad, and pickles from Fette Sau on his way home from work. My BF and I split most of our expenses and use a shared credit card for those purchases; this is one of them. $16*
4:30 p.m. — He runs out to grab ciabatta, tomatoes, and cheese from Brooklyn Harvest while I tidy up the house. $5*
6 p.m. — My friend comes over for dinner and to hang out in the backyard. She brings sausages, hot-dog buns, and a 12-pack of beer to go with our side dishes. We also open a bottle of Lambrusco, which was a hostess gift from last weekend, when we had people over.
8 p.m. — Our neighbor also joins us and invites a few friends. I go to the bodega with them when they are picking up more beer and buy a pack of cigarettes. We spend the next several hours playing games in the backyard. $6.50*
11p.m. — Get a pot delivery, $50 for 3 grams. $25*
Daily Total: $63
Day Two
12 p.m. — Make coffee at home in the French press (from beans purchased in previous month’s groceries, one pound for $12.99 lasts about 3 months for us)
1 p.m. — Neither of us want to cook, so we order sandwiches and chips from Campbell Cheese & Grocery on Seamless. Sadly, they do not have my favorite sandwich, the spicy ham grilled-cheese panini. The spicy turkey is a close second, though. $15*
4 p.m. — After watching several hours of Mad Men and making a grocery list, I send BF to run some errands. First stop, Crest Hardware to get a new filter for the AC, supplies to fix our screen door, and grass seed for the backyard. $10*
5 p.m. — Next stop, Brooklyn Harvest to grab groceries for the week. OJ, bacon, zucchini, eggplant, onions, hot dogs, pancetta, bread, block of cheddar, sliced deli meats and cheeses, tomatoes, parsley, lemons, Thai chilis, shallots, half-and-half, Splenda, seltzer. $54*
5:30 p.m. — My list includes fresh peas, which the other market doesn't have. My BF tries Meat Hook and walks away without peas, but can't control himself and buys chips and salsa. Yes, it is $14 total just for chips and salsa there, but they are seriously so good! $7*
5:45 p.m. — The pea hunt continues on to C-Town, but there are no fresh peas to be had there, either. We end up compromising with frozen peas and fresh pea shoots. $3*
7 p.m. — I make a spring pasta with pancetta and peas in cream sauce (based on this recipe). I already have pasta and parmesan on hand from previous grocery trips. We invite our neighbor over to share dinner and watch our Netflix disc, The Witch. Neighbor brings a 12-pack of beer to share. The movie deeply disturbs the boys, but I like it a lot. If you like a claustrophobic and atmospheric psychological horror that reaffirms puritanical America was the worst, then this one is for you! Pasta is enough for five large servings, but I'm crazy about it, so I'm sending the two leftover servings to work with BF for lunch this week.
9:30 p.m. — Not satisfied yet with my horror craving. (Hint: it’s never satisfied.) I convince my BF to watch The Visit, which was just added to one of the premium on-demand channels. It is a real turd, the twist is practically shoved down your throat by the 20-minute mark and then you still have to watch for another hour to get to a very anticlimactic reveal. It does have some creepy moments. Overall, I’d say skip it.
Daily Total: $89
Day Three
7 a.m. — BF needs to drive in today and he likes to get in early, so he gives me a ride. We take the tunnel and it’ll come out of the monthly E-ZPass payment. His parking will be expensed to his project.
7:30 a.m. — Our office provides coffee. I chug a cup as soon as I get in and then have a refill around 9 a.m. I don’t typically eat breakfast during the workweek, unless there are free leftovers from a meeting.
11:30 a.m. — Since I wasn’t feeling my pasta from the night before, I have to buy lunch and get barbacoa tacos and a Diet Coke from Chipotle. If I buy lunch, I usually try to spend less than $10, but Chipotle is an occasional splurge. $12
5 p.m. — I take the subway home and relax on the patio with the last beer from the night before.
8 p.m. — BF gets home a bit late, so he makes us sandwiches (with yesterday’s groceries) and the leftover baked beans and potato salad.
9 p.m. — I fix us both a glass of whiskey (purchased two weeks ago) and we watch a Game of Thrones episode.
Daily Total: $12
Day Four
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee, then my monthly auto-charge for Sephora Play! Box. This month will be my third box. I like it, but I’ll probably cancel it. In both boxes, I’ve gotten samples for things I already had. If I get another mauve lip color, I’m going to murder someone. $11
1:30 p.m. — Grab a six-inch sub with chips and a soda from Subway and eat at my desk. $8
8 p.m. — BF makes us open-faced turkey melts with a side of sliced heirloom tomatoes and some leftover chips and salsa. We each have a glass of whiskey, which finishes the bottle.
Daily Total: $19
Day Five
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11 a.m. — My cat needs special (a.k.a. expensive) wet food, due to health issues. I order a couple of varieties of three-ounce cans from chewy.com to add to his current rotation of food (60 servings total). $47*
11:30 a.m. — Grab cajun chicken soup and free garlic bread from a nearby deli; eat at my desk. $4
3:30 p.m. — Take a can of Diet Coke that was leftover from a meeting and eat two mini Snickers from the communal candy jar.
6 p.m. — Stop on the way home to grab a bottle of whiskey and a bottle of Lambrusco. $25*
7 p.m. — Drink two glasses of Lambrusco and eat some leftover tortilla chips as a snack. Dinner is hot dogs and one more glass of Lambrusco.
10 p.m. — Our neighbor picked up some cocaine and grabbed some for us. We send a Venmo for our share, which is about a gram. $120 for total, my half is $60*
Daily Total: $136
Day Six
8 a.m. — I go to visit a job site today to work with the project team. I know they only have a Keurig and powdered creamer in the site trailer, so I stop at the bodega for an iced coffee on my way to the subway. $2.50
12 p.m. — Any time I come to the site, the team uses it as an excuse to buy everyone lunch. We get Chipotle and I have chicken tacos.
3 p.m. — We finish up early and I take a cab from the Upper East Side to Union Square to pick up a package from FedEx. The cab is $24, but it will be expensed to the job. My package is a pair of Carla Colour sunglasses and an incense holder by Cinnamon Projects that I ordered two weekends ago. Sadly, the sunnies don’t look good on me and will be returned. I take the train the rest of the way home and work from the couch for the rest of the day.
5 p.m. — BF drives a fair amount, so he doesn’t have a monthly unlimited card. He takes the subway today and needs to re-up on a pay-per-ride card. We consider transportation a joint expense. $20*
6 p.m. — I grab a bag of Krasdale shredded mozzarella that is on sale at C-Town on the way home. $1*
6:30 p.m. — Eat some leftover tortilla chips and have the last glass and a half of Lambrusco.
8 p.m. — I bought eight frozen pizza dough balls from Fresh Direct two months ago on sale at $1.50 a piece. We use one dough ball to make a white pizza with zucchini, ham, Thai chilis, parsley, pea shoots, and the mozzarella.
9 p.m. — Eat a few slices of cheddar and have a glass of whiskey while I force my BF to watch Sinister 2. It is okay, not nearly as good as the first one. The scares are just not there this time.
Daily Total: $23.50
Day Seven
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — I host training for a different department and they provide lunch. I have two slices of pizza and a soda.
5 p.m. — Get to leave a bit early and I stop into the bodega on the way home to pick up a pack of cigarettes and a 12-pack of beer. $15*
6 p.m. — BF and I have sandwiches when he gets home from work.
7 p.m. — Our neighbor’s sister is visiting and he has another friend over. We all hang out in the backyard until pretty late.
12 a.m. — Everyone takes turns buying beers and my neighbor grabs me a bag of Doritos on his round. BF thinks we are getting low on beer and buys another 12-pack and another pack of cigarettes. There are a bunch of beers left over at the end of the night. $13*
Daily Total: $28
Week Two
Day One
12 p.m. — BF wakes me up at noon. We order sandwiches from Campbell Cheese & Grocery on Seamless and make coffee at home in the French press. They have the spicy ham, woo! We also finish off the leftover Doritos from the previous night. $13*
1:30 p.m. — Pick up a few pieces of dry cleaning and drop off a lot more. $8.50*
3 p.m. — Apparently, my BF was hoarding some parking tickets and he pays them online. We got one when we were out of town a couple months ago, another for forgetting to move the car for alternate-side parking last month, and one from two weeks ago for having an expired inspection sticker (for only one day!) this is an unusual expense. $111*
6:30 p.m. — Eat hot dogs and macaroni and cheese. Then, lay outside in the backyard and drank a couple leftover beers from the previous night.
10 p.m. — Our neighbor invites us to a house party nearby and tells us to bring beers. We grab two six-packs from a corner store on the walk over. I am a bit beer-ed out, so I also bring two airplane bottles of whiskey that I got as stocking stuffers from my mom at Christmas. $10*
11 p.m. — Buy about 1.5 grams of cocaine ($120 per gram), which is delivered to the party. $90*
Daily Total: $232.50
Day Two
12 p.m. — Make coffee at home in the French press. Feeling lazy and hungover, so we get breakfast sandwiches, waffle fries, and sodas from the bodega. $8*
3 p.m. — Pick up some groceries from C-Town: OJ, microwave popcorn, deli meats and cheeses, capicola ham, heirloom tomatoes, Ziploc bags, recycling bags, paper towels, seltzer, ground beef, fresh mozzarella, and toilet paper. $34*
3:30 p.m. — Fill the car up with gas while out running errands. $19*
9 p.m. — Our neighbor comes over to watch Game of Thrones and brings homemade enchiladas, crema, and rice to share for dinner. My BF uses his own cash to buy a six-pack and we each have one.
Daily Total: $61
Day Three
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11 a.m. — Stop by Walgreens to pick up a prescription, Breathe Right strips, 200-pack of ibuprofen, hydrocortisone cream, and Zyrtec-D. $32*
11 a.m. — I buy a pack of cigarettes. $6.50*
11:30 a.m. — Grab turkey chili and garlic bread for lunch from a nearby deli and eat at my desk. $4
6:30 p.m. — Sit in the backyard and read for a couple of hours.
7:30 p.m. — BF picks up the dry cleaning we dropped off two days ago on his way home. For as much as it costs sometimes, I feel like I’m just paying for someone to steam my garments. He also grabs our wash-and-fold stuff that we drop off at a different laundromat. They only accept cash, and most of the load was his, so BF pays. $31*
8 p.m. — Use my last FD pizza dough ball and make a white pizza with capicola ham, zucchini, Thai chili, pea shoots, fresh mozzarella and parsley.
9 p.m. — Fix myself a glass of whiskey and read until I finish my book.
Daily Total: $73.50
Day Four
8 a.m. — Twp cups of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — Buy a chopped salad and a bag of chips from a nearby café. Also snag a leftover Diet Coke from the fridge. $11
3 p.m. — My coworker, who is also a friend outside of work, gives me two packs of cigarettes. She bought them while out drinking, but doesn’t really smoke.
6 p.m. — Pick up hamburger buns and also grab a pack of Haribo gummy bears. $3*
9 p.m. — BF grills up some cheeseburgers along with grilled eggplant and zucchini and sliced heirloom tomato on the side.
9:30 p.m. — Pot delivery, $50 for 3 grams. Snack on the gummy bears. $25*
Daily Total: $39
Day Five
7 a.m. — Get to work a bit early to prep for all-day meetings. Drink two cups of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — Lunch is provided, since we are working through it. I get Chipotle barbacoa tacos with chips and guacamole.
5 p.m. — Meet up with two of my former bosses at a dive bar for happy hour. We try to get together for drinks every couple months or so. I don’t have cash, so I start a tab. Our total for five beers, two whiskeys, and a $3 seltzer (are you fucking kidding me?) is $44. I tip $6 and each of them gives me a $20. I owe them each a couple bucks back, but they say not to worry about. $10
8:30 p.m. — We finish up what is essentially a two-hour bitch session and I walk over a few blocks and catch the train home.
9 p.m. — BF makes us sandwiches and we finish off the rest of the gummy bears from last night.
Daily Total: $10
Day Six
7:30 a.m. — It’s rainy out, and BF is driving in, so he gives me a ride. I drink my standard two cups of free office coffee. If I haven’t mentioned before, our office coffee is actually pretty good.
11:30 a.m. — Stop into Victoria’s Secret to return a slip I purchased a month ago ($42). It was a back-up, in case I didn’t find something better. They are having their semi-annual sale and I start to look around, but I have trouble with their sizing and how narrow the crotches are cut. I prefer wearing my panties on the outside of my vagina, so I decide to bail.
12 p.m.— Grab beef chili and bread at the deli and eat at my desk while doing some online window-shopping. I’ve been scoping out all the end-of-season designer sales, but nothing has made me bite, and thankfully for my wallet, most of the items I really like are sold out in my size. $4
5:30 p.m. — Had a shit day of worthless meetings and am generally just pissed off. Make myself a double whiskey to drown my misery and fast forward through four episodes of Project Runway All Stars.
8 p.m. — Another night, another sandwich.
9 p.m. — We watch our latest Netflix disc, 10 Cloverfield Lane. It is pretty good, if a bit slow to get to the turn. I honestly think it would have benefitted from dropping its affiliation to the original Cloverfield.
Daily Total: $4
Day Seven
8 a.m. — I wanted to get in by 7:30 to prepare for all-day meetings, but I didn’t wake up until 7:05. It was close, but I make it into my first meeting at 8:03 with a free office coffee in hand.
8:30 a.m. — First meeting wraps early, so I grab my second coffee and a massive banana from the communal office fruit basket.
10:30 a.m. — There are other meetings in the office this morning that served breakfast, so I snag a mini croissant and a mini blueberry muffin from the leftovers.
11:30 a.m. — There is a catered lunch for a coworker’s birthday. I get a chicken cutlet sandwich, some chips, pesto pasta salad, and birthday cake.
4:30 p.m. — My meetings ran ahead of schedule, so I leave a little early. I should work on other projects, but I just don't have any motivation left. I stop in the bodega on the way back and grab two six-packs of beer and a pack of cigs. $20*
8 p.m. — Order food from a deli on Seamless; we both get waffle fries and split a cheeseburger. $12*
10 p.m. — We lay around and watch TV for the rest of the night. Suspect a herpes outbreak coming on and I keep a couple prescriptions of antivirals on hand in case of a recurrence. I start a round as a precaution.
Daily Total: $32
Week Three
Day One
11 a.m. — BF went out of town to visit family. I stay home, since I am not feeling well. My suspicions are confirmed about the outbreak, so I continue on the cycle of antivirals. I have an outbreak, on average, once every two years (for last decade). I can tell when it’s coming, so can prevent the worst symptoms from occurring. My body aches like I worked out and have period cramps, I’m fatigued, and have loss of appetite. Essentially (for me), it’s a body cold that lasts a few days. Ibuprofen takes care of the worst symptoms and I take four when I wake up.
12 p.m. — Make some coffee in the French press and a toasted sandwich with the last of the deli meat, bacon, American cheese, and onions, on a bun.
2:30 p.m. — Lay around on the couch and watch junk TV and play games on my iPad.
6 p.m. — I make a bag of microwave popcorn and force myself to eat another one of the leftover hamburger buns and drink a blood orange Pellegrino. Not the most nutritious dinner, but it is better than nothing.
8:30 p.m. — My neighbor stops by to hang out before heading out to a bar to meet friends, and he gives me a beer.
10 p.m. — Make myself a double whiskey to help get me to sleep.
Daily Total: $0
Day Two
12 p.m. — Don't feel like scrounging up a meal with the random food left in the house, so I go to the bodega and grab a BLT, fries, iced coffee, and soda. Already feeling way better than yesterday. $10
3 p.m. — Did a whole lotta nothing all day, laid in the backyard for a bit and read on my iPad.
6 p.m. — BF gets home and we decide to splurge a bit and order delivery from Roberta’s — pizza, short ribs, and salad. $29
8 p.m. — Had another lazy night on the couch. We start the first season of Mr. Robo t. I’m trying my best to rest up and let the virus pass quickly. I’m still achy and fatigued.
Daily Total: $39
Day Three
7 a.m. — Meetings all morning, so I get in early and have my first cup of coffee to try to wake up. Take a handful of ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet in our break room.
8 a.m. — Second cup of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — Still feeling really run down and achy, so I leave the office after my meetings end and work from home the rest of the day.
2 p.m. —Take a break from working on the couch and go to the deli to grab a BLT, fries, a soda, and some seltzer for lunch. $11
8 p.m. — BF gets home a bit late, so he makes us grilled cheese sandwiches with the last of the sliced deli cheese and bread.
9 p.m. — I fix us both a glass of whiskey, which kills the bottle, and we watch a Game of Thrones episode and another Mr. Robot.
Daily Total: $11
Day Four
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11:15 a.m. — Stop into Walgreens and buy a pack of cigs. $7*
11:30 a.m. — Grab turkey and wild rice soup and garlic bread for lunch from the deli and ate at my desk. $4
6 p.m. — I stop into C-Town on the way home and grab some fresh chicken sausages, a four-pound pork shoulder, two giant portobello caps, a slicing tomato, and a massive eggplant. $11*
7 p.m. — BF buys a bottle of rye whiskey, a bottle of bourbon, a Lambrusco, and a vino verde. $68*
8 p.m. — I cut up one of the portobello caps, half of the eggplant, and an onion, and douse them with olive oil, salt, chili powder, and smoked paprika and grill them with the chicken sausages for dinner. We grill all five sausages and have two left over.
8:30 p.m. — After dinner, we open the bottle of Lambrusco and watch our latest Netflix disc, Predators. We’ve both seen it before but I had a craving to re-watch it.
Daily Total: $90
Day Five
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — Grab some turkey chili and bread from the deli and ate at my desk. $4
12 p.m. — BF buys his own pack of cigs on the shared card while he was at lunch. $7*
3:30 p.m. — Can't help myself and ate four mini Reese's from the communal candy jar.
6 p.m. — Open up the vino verde and make myself a toasted sandwich with leftover chicken sausage, shredded cheddar, Dijon mustard, and sliced onion on a bun. Also slice the tomato and ate half drizzled with oil, salt, and pepper.
8 p.m. — Sit outside and have another glass of wine and goof off on my iPad. BF gets home and fixes himself the same meal I had earlier.
10 p.m. — Watch some more Mr. Robot.
Daily Total: $11
Day Six
8 a.m. — In all-day meetings and they provide meals. I know I'm going to be presenting during lunch, so I go a bit crazy on the breakfast spread. Have two mini croissants, a mini everything bagel with cream cheese, two mini muffins, a cinnamon roll, a plate of fruit, and three coffees.
1 p.m. — Finish up my portion of the meeting and grab some pasta salad, a tuna sandwich, and a cookie from the catered lunch.
4 p.m. — One of my coworker’s is having a farewell happy-hour event at 5 p.m., so I know dinner is unlikely. I don't want to be hungry all night, so I eat another plate of pasta salad leftover from the lunch meeting.
5 p.m. — Arrive at the happy hour, which is right next door, and buy a glass of (gross) Cabernet for my first drink (tip $2). $8
6 p.m. — One of our coworkers does a drop-by at the happy hour and buys everyone tequila shots. This is when my evening takes a nosedive off a cliff.
6:30 p.m. — Buy a beer based on recommendation from a stranger sitting at the bar (also gross, tip $1). Someone in our group ordered fried calamari and I eat a few. $6
7:30 p.m. — Another round of tequila shots was bought for the table. I am feeling no pain at this point in the evening.
8 p.m. — Someone else we are with orders a whiskey cocktail and doesn't like it. As the saying goes, “Waste not, want not.” I volunteer to drink it and it is delicious.
8:30 p.m. — Instead of doing the sensible thing, I suggest we move to another bar. My coworker (the one who is leaving the company) and I grab a cab and go downtown to meet her boyfriend who is at a work event for his company. Not sure how much the cab cost, but she picks up the ride.
9 p.m. — Coworker’s BF tells us to order on his tab (he is expensing his work event). I get a glass of whiskey. Then, we all do pickleback shots. Chat it up with his coworkers and dance a bit. One of the women he works with gives me a leftover chicken taco.
10:30 p.m. — One of the boyfriend’s friends is having birthday drinks nearby so the three of us hop in a cab. I pay for this ride. We arrive and, for some reason, the party had been split into two neighboring bars. My coworker and I go into the one with the birthday girl and her BF goes to the other bar across the street. $10
11 p.m. — I buy a round of shots for everyone. $30
11:30 p.m. — We join the boyfriend at the neighboring bar and he buys me a beer.
1 a.m. — Finally call it a night and take the train home. I've run out cigs, because I was bumming cigs all night. For some reason, I feel I can't wait until tomorrow to get more, so I stop in the bodega and grab a pack on the way home. $6.50
Daily Total: $60.50
Day Seven
8:45 a.m. — Sleep through my alarm and am sooooooooo hungover (obviously). Brush my teeth and rush out the door, pop into the bodega for an iced coffee to hopefully combat my hangover before I get into the office. $2.50
9:30 a.m. — Get another cup of coffee from the office and grab a banana from the communal fruit basket.
11:30 a.m. — Run over to the deli next door and grab beef chili with garlic bread. I am still feeling awful, so the smell and taste of it just turns my stomach and I end up throwing most of it away. $4
2 p.m. — I’m still in a bad way so I decide to finish my day working from home and stop into the bodega for a BLT, fries, and soda on my way home. $9*
6 p.m. — BF grabs a 12-pack of beer on his way home and we each have one. I know hair of the dog is BS, but I sure did feel better after drinking it. $9*
7p.m. — Order a cheeseburger and two orders of fries from local deli on Seamless. We each drink another beer. $ 10*
8p.m. — BF and I head into the city for a going away party for friends. Always sad to see people leave the city! BF needs to refill his pay-per-ride card and it goes on the shared card. $ 20*
11 p.m. — Everyone is taking turns buying beer for the party and it is our turn to grab more. We get three 12-packs, two packs of cigarettes, and some gummy bears. $39*
2 a.m. — Take a cab home, which seems to take a million years. $12*
Daily Total: $105.50
Week Four
Day One
12 p.m. — BF has to work again today, so I order my favorite sandwich from Campbell’s and a bottle of La Colombe cold-brewed coffee on Seamless. $19
1 p.m. — Tidy up the house a bit and then fast forward through the rest of Project Runway All Stars.
4:30 p.m. — Decide to lay outside in the backyard and find that the landlord had let workers access the space. They ripped our string lights down and broken a bunch of the bulbs, so there was glass smashed all over the patio (and obviously no effort made to clean it up). I spend a half an hour sweeping up glass and rearranging the patio furniture. Then, I send an angry email to the landlord to request he pay me back for the damaged lights.
8 p.m. — By the time BF gets home, we decide to just order dinner. Get delivery: fettuccine Alfredo, truffle fries, and meatballs over polenta. $18*
8:30 p.m. — Our neighbor comes over and we watch our Netflix disc, the new Point Break. I know it's going to be bad, but think it will be fun, anyway. It exceeds my wildest expectations of terribleness. The only explanation for this film’s existence is that a movie exec’s 15-year-old son, who is really into the X Games, wrote the script. If there was a drinking game where you had to do a shot anytime someone said “extreme athlete,” you would die of alcohol poisoning. We have a really great time making fun of the film, but otherwise it has no intrinsic value.
8:30 p.m. — We each drink two of the beers that were leftover.
Daily Total: $37
Day Two
12 p.m. — Make coffee in the French press and cook up the rest of the bacon with fried eggs.
2 p.m. — Sadly, my pork shoulder purchased last week smells off (even though it was before the sell by date!). It isn't worth the risk of cooking, so that gets thrown out. I clean out the rest of the fridge and get rid of anything that is expired or had gone bad.
3 p.m. — BF goes to the market and picks up a five-pound pork shoulder, molasses, three pounds of baby potatoes, pesto, two pints of cherry tomatoes, basil, radishes, a block of cheddar cheese, kitty litter, 12-pack of seltzer, parsley, pickles, cabbage, ketchup, liquid smoke, spicy mustard, onions, paper towels, orange juice, eggs, potato rolls, bacon, and toilet paper. I stay home and start doing some prep for dinner, which includes soft boiling the last seven farm eggs, two of which are floaters and have to be tossed. $64.50*
3:30 p.m. — BF grabs chips and salsa from Meat Hook, despite it not being on the list!! $7*
4 p.m. — Run to the bodega and grab a pack of cigs. $6.50*
5 p.m. — I've resorted to wearing bikini bottoms for the last two days, since I ran out of clean underwear. Since I am cooking a feast, my BF does a load of laundry for me. He also washes our sheets and any hang-dry items. $5*
6 p.m. — I make a slow-cooked BBQ pulled pork recipe with a homemade coleslaw (recipe here) and potato salad with seven-minute eggs (recipe here, the chives were picked from the backyard). We have a mini BBQ in the backyard with our neighbor, who made tostones as an appetizer and provides beer.
9 p.m. — BF and I go inside and watch Game of Thrones and finish the last two beers.
Daily Total: $83
Day Three
7 a.m. — Meetings all morning again, so I get in early and have a cup of free office coffee.
8 a.m. — Second cup of free office coffee.
11:30 a.m. — Eat leftover pulled pork on a roll with leftover coleslaw and potato salad at my desk.
6 p.m. — Take the train with one of my coworkers downtown to attend a team-building event with one of our clients and their design team. BF and several other coworkers were also in attendance.
7 p.m. — The event is catered by a bunch of different vendors, so we have a sampling of random foods and drinks.
8:30 p.m. — Several of us decide to “have one more drink” at a nearby bar, it turns out “one more” really meant “three more." It is being expensed.
11 p.m. — The crowd has dwindled down to four (including BF), and we head a few blocks over to a pizza place that is also a jazz bar (I have no idea), we all have a beer and order garlic bread and a pizza. Again, it will be expensed (not even sure how much it was).
12:30 a.m. — Finally, we call it a night and BF and I catch a cab with one of the designers who lives close to us. He pays for the cab, since he’s the last stop, and says he will expense it.
Daily Total: $0
Day Four
8 a.m. — Ugh. I’m hungover. I get a ride in from BF, grab two cups of free office coffee, and a banana from the communal fruit bowl.
11:30 a.m. — More leftover BBQ, potato salad, and coleslaw, eat at my desk.
6:30 p.m. — Stop into the bodega and grab a six-pack on my way home. Snack on some leftover chips and salsa and sit in the backyard and goof around on my iPad. $6*
7 p.m. — BF stops on his way home and fills up the car with gas. $19*
7:30 p.m. — He also grabs a pack of cigs at the bodega. $6.50*
8 p.m. — I have a big plate of leftover potato salad, coleslaw, and eat a couple potato rolls for dinner. Wash it down with a beer.
8:30 p.m. — After dinner we watch our Netflix disc, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Ugh, it is terrible.
Daily Total: $31.50
Day Five
8 a.m. — Two cups of free office coffee.
11:15 a.m. — Place another order of cat food: 60 three-ounce cans (several varieties). $44*
12 p.m. — We are flying out for a family vacation this evening, so I am taking a half day. Stop into the pharmacy on the way home and pick up a prescription refill for Ambien. I have trouble sleeping when I’m not at home and want to make sure I have some for the trip. $2.50
12 p.m. — Find a package waiting for me when I arrive home. Remember those sunglasses I returned back in week 1? Well, it turns out they were exchange only, since I had used a 30% off promo code. I used the credit to get myself a really nice white T-shirt and another incense holder by Cinnamon Projects to give to my friend. The Dreslyn hooked it up and gave me the same discount as when I previously ordered and wrote off the $2 balance I owed after the exchange.
1 p.m. — We clean the bathroom, sweep, mop, pick up all the clutter around the house, and start packing. We each have a beer that is leftover from the night before and I buy a movie on iTunes to watch on the flight. $8
2 p.m. — BF makes us plates of our leftovers and we leave some for our neighbor, who is going to stop in to feed our cat. I had kinda forgotten about our trip when I made the grocery list this week, so there was a lot of food purchased that we will use when we get back from vacation.
4:15 p.m. — Keep receiving warnings about security lines being out of control, so we Uber to the airport earlier than I normally would for a 6:30 flight. We bought our tickets last month, which cost $283 a person, but we will be getting a $70 credit back on our Amex for the carry-on fees. $13*
5 p.m. — Traffic and security were a breeze, so we have an hour to kill. Go to the only bar in the terminal and we each get two beers and split a lobster salad roll that is actually really good. $31*
9 p.m. — Arrive! My parents pick us up from the airport and have brought us homemade sandwiches for the ride home. My dad makes the best sandwiches, ever!
10 p.m. — My parents have stocked the fridge with beer and we all have a couple and chat before bed.
Daily Total: $98.50
Day Six
10 a.m. — Get up and have a cup of coffee and my BF makes everyone some scrambled eggs with ham and cheese for breakfast. My parents have already gone grocery shopping, so the food from today and tomorrow are no cost to us. We all take turns doing the grocery runs, but our turn happens to fall outside this diary.
12:30 p.m. — Check out a local fabric store and my mom buys me five yards of linen for $30 so she can make me new pillow covers. She pays for them and is sewing them for me as a belated birthday present. She made the first set of pillow covers for my birthday three years ago, and they are ready for an update to better match the rug we bought last year.
1 p.m. — My dad takes us to the beach and we snack on cheese and crackers and drink beer out of the cooler.
6 p.m. — Mom makes us lasagna with garlic bread and salad. So good!
8 p.m. — Play cards and drink some wine. Then, we watch a crappy movie on Netflix and call it a night.
Daily Total: $0
Day Seven
10 a.m. — Get up and had some coffee, eat some bacon and eggs with toast.
1 p.m. — Go to Target and buy a new swimsuit, a pair of shoes, a tank top, a pair of shorts, a lip balm, Altoids, and a couple of toys for my sister’s kids, who will be arriving the next day. Even though it is mostly stuff for me, it goes on the shared card, since my BF bought a pair of shoes on the shared card last month. We try to keep things even, but don’t worry about it too much. $79*
3:30 p.m. — Feeling a bit lazy, so we just hang out goof around the house and watch HGTV with my parents.
6 p.m. — Leftover lasagna, garlic bread, and salad for dinner.
8 p.m. — We play cards again, since we were all tied up after our games last night, and we have to have a tie-breaker round. I drink a couple beers while we play.
9 p.m. — Have a bowl of ice cream for dessert and my dad picks out the second Maze Runner movie on cable, which is not very good.
Daily Total: $79
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