WIS in the Week, August 29, 2026

        Life is expensive these days. My fall is really is going to be expensive, but for the most part with good things, other than property taxes and life insurance premiums. Those are necessary to both live in a good community with good schools and services and have some safeguards for my family.  I'm tracking my variable, discretionary spending to get a better grip. While boring blog content, it'll give me a good view of where my money is going,  not necessarily a challenge. Here's What I Spent, WIS, in the last week, rounded to nearest dollar.

Saturday: $28

I love the fresh produce at good prices at one stand. I'm sucked into the artisan stands and spent almost $21 on popcorn. I used and will use for a couple social plans.


Sunday:$65

I couldn't risk stretching the tank so filled up on Sunday before going to St Paul to see my daughter who was unwell. Also, splurged on one month of HBO Max.

Monday: $2

I got to the service station ahead of my daughter to get her dog and was very sleepy. I treated myself to a fresh ground and brewed Holiday coffee with cream. 

Tuesday: $160
 
As the kids all wanted some and I had only made a half batch, so I stopped for cucumbers, now 3/$1 and red onions, four small in a tray for $1, to make a full batch of refrigerator pickles. Pups meds were delivered and charged as well for another $158. This is roughly 6 weeks worth. I got a two month prescription for the arthritis last order and this one, so the next shipment I'll be able to skip as he'll have enough so slight savings next shipment in early October.

Wednesday: $0 

It was a completely stay at home day and got grandpup on several walks, plus outside time with both dogs. I made the pickles, two large (pasta sauce size) jars. I dropped one off for my MIL and brought one last night (Friday) to book club at my sisters. I'll left for her as my brother who stays with her in the summer and her husband love them. ( He camps during the week and uses weekends for civilization, lol.) I easily can make more next week.

Thursday: $0

No spending today either. My daughter joined me for supper for a plant based meal.

Friday: $0

Book club was later and I needed to finish the book, so another home day until later. I made the same garlic and spinach dip I brought to lake with "fancy" crackers, plus the pickles, and the Chicago popcorn mix from the farmers market. I had everything already. I helped at my daughters to get a jump on her move. 

Grand Total: for the week $255

    I'll be helping my youngest today again as she moves to a different apartnent and quite frankly, the old one is a disaster. I'll clean as she uses my bigger crossover vehicle to move boxes of stuff and clothes 5 minutes away. Her roomates parents are moving the larger things in their truck. They were supposed to move two weekends ago but when they got the keys to the unit, they had toured a different one, there was both overwhelming cigarette smoke and pet smells in the supposedly non-smoking apartment. They demanded a wall cleaning and painting and zero residue carpet cleaning. Further delay as her roomate went on vacation, and my daughter started her new job, while finishing old, then got sick. She's quite overwhelmed because she thought she had two weeks for a slow move.  It'll be a nice fresh start but a huge task. 

      If you track, were you on or off plan in your spending?




Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 30, 2026 at 8:31 AM

    Wow Sam, your life sounds like mine! But then we are born to serve. Great on tracking the spending. I too do this and it is eye opening. Not Bossy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:44 PM

      Tracking has really been eyeing opening g. Now that I have the receipts to compare checkbook and Visa statement. It's definitely identified denial in the past.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousAugust 30, 2026 at 10:19 AM

    Hope the move in goes well! We had an unexpected meal out with family last night, that I definitely wasn't expecting, but it was really fun & rare. Luckily, we are under our dining out budget for the year, so it will go into that category. Eating out is SO expensive these days! The good news is that the food was fantastic. - Hawaii Planner

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:45 PM

      Eating out eith two adult young men is not for the faint of heart.

      Delete
  3. Anne in the kitchenAugust 30, 2026 at 12:09 PM

    You have motivated me to chart my personal spending just to see how/what I am spending money on. Instead of weekly, I decided to keep the entire month's spending and post it at the end of the month. I am guessing since I know I am going to have to post it, I will think twice before buying anything.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:46 PM

      Its keeping me honest. Those extra $10, $30,$100 spends jump off my page to me.

      Delete
  4. AprilAugust 30, 2026 at 2:09 PM

    You opened with " Life is expensive these days.' UNDERSTATEMENT!!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:47 PM

      If a person isn't able to cherry pick the deals, it'll be even more so.

      Delete
  5. GinaAugust 30, 2026 at 5:09 PM

    I just do the best I can, knowing that everything is ridiculously spendy and I am doing good to cover the basics - no frills!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:49 PM

      But I want the frills. Wah,wah woe me. I know I really lack of nothing. I just hope to identify any mismatched with my priorities.

      Delete
  6. Cheryl KimbleyAugust 30, 2026 at 5:11 PM

    Keeping track of things can sure be eye opening. I hope the move goes well and they get all settled quickly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMAugust 31, 2026 at 12:50 PM

      The move has been everything l, but not well. Next week's tell all will have a few critics, rightfully so.

      Delete
  7. LoriSeptember 1, 2026 at 12:45 PM

    Chicago style popcorn is a favorite at our house.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SAMSeptember 2, 2026 at 6:51 AM

      The salty sweet with cheese combo is the best! It's still unopened. I'm tempted but really want to bring and open when others will eat it too. Another night at my sisters with so much food.

      Delete

Post a Comment

If you comment anonymously, it'd be nice to have a name to go with the comment. It helps me string other people's comments and therefore their experiences together.

Popular posts from this blog

It's Worse Than I Imagined

      The shit show since January 20th has been a big reason for my reclusiveness the last few weeks. Let the comments fly. Create a crisis. Lie that you resolved it. Get your sycophants to suck it all up. Rinse. Repeat...for four F' ing years.  Oh, and let's shout, "but her emails" while a foreign oligarch is raiding our private personal data with his hoard of teenagers. Let's pardon January 6th criminals, several of which immediately committed additional crimes.  I said it was going to be my only political post election post but man, it's even worse than I could have imagined.
Read more

Home Found

Image
      N ow a big life update and another explanation for my blog absence. I toured a few homes with my son in mid April. He wanted me with as he's not really lived in Minnesota (before coming back) since he was 19 and he's never owned a home. After a winter of snow, a spring so far of cold, and rain, and employment opportunities that require flexibility, he shifted his search to low maintenance living.       He almost put an offer on a beautiful condo with all his buttons checked just across the main road from my neighborhood. He paused though, realizing he doesn't want to settle down in our town but rather move to one of the twin cities. I'm much less familiar with Minneapolis but aware areas he'd probably like were a tad out of his pric e point. I know St Paul pretty well so was of more help. We proceeded to tour a few condos in St. Paul. A great two bedroom, two bath, while needing updates, was a top contender. Still, something was missing though lo...
Read more

Testing the Waters

Image
        I've missed blogging. I blogged for nearly nine years in a previous iteration. It was a daily ritual during the long hiatus from regular life that the Covid pandemic created. Even as the world, my world, opened up again, the clicking away on my phone or computer keyboard, reading comments if something I said had any resonance, and reading and commenting on other blogs in return became my morning norm. Life sure is unpredictable. A year ago, just after Christmas, I had read of the tragic loss of my blogger friend's husband who passed away on Christmas morning, then read one of her readers lost her husband the same week. Never would I imagine just a few weeks later would I be joining that unasked for club, faced with my own widow story. But there it is. I've had to try and figure out life in this unplanned and foreign place. I'm not a young widow, having raised and launched three children, but at now 58, feel too young to be thought of in the same space as my 8...
Read more