As a result of over-indulging last month, I made a more conscious effort to step up my savings for this month. For starters, I ate out much less frequently, and subsisted on eating cheap, energy dense foods such as oatmeal, rice, and pasta. I also took advantage of the free drinks, sodas they offer at work, along with the free breakfast offerings. This was not as painful as it might seem, and I don’t feel any more deprived than usual.
Also, I saved up on my transportation costs, as I’ve been walking to work more frequently with the improved weather. As a result, I only had to fill up my gas tank once this month, as opposed to 2 or 3 times. This is becoming more of a routine as well.
Other expenses were kept low since there were no additional season passes purchased this month 😉 However, I did spend some money on the purchase of a new Ipod Nano. I lost my old Nano in the snow, and find it hard to jog without music. Other than that, a Smog check was the only other additional item of note. This was a relatively uneventful month, and thus there isn’t much to report. Just the way I like it!
| Rent | $750.00 | ||||
| Utilities | $15.00 | ||||
| Internet | $15.00 | ||||
| Food | $175.33 | ||||
| Gas | $59.44 | ||||
| Phone | $50.00 | ||||
| Other / Fun | $311.84 | ||||
| Total | $1376.64 | ||||
| Expense Ratio | 26.87% | ||||
| Savings Ratio | 73.13% | ||||
Here is an update on the dividends received this month:
| Coca Cola Co (KO) | $17.85 | ||||
| Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT) | $9.94 | ||||
| Exelon Corporation(EXC) | $4.81 | ||||
| Total | $32.60 |
That’s a great month right there and eerily similar to my own income/expense report which I’ll be posting next week.
I see you started a journal over at ERE, that’s great! You’re only 27, which is one year younger than when I started saving/investing. That’s a head start on most people!
It seems you are aggressively pursuing financial independence. That’s fantastic. I hope your journey continues to go as well as it started.
Best wishes!
DM, Thanks for the kind words! It looks like we got started at around the same time, which is great. Not too many people I know are serious about pursuing financial independence at this age. I think most believe it just isn’t attainable so early, so instead they focus on other things (i.e. spending money). Yes, the ERE community is a terrific place. I feel very fortunate to have found such an invaluable resource where I can share this journey with other like-minded individuals. Now knowing such a community exists just adds fuel to the fire. The posts, and people,… Read more »