Now that you know exactly how much debt you are in because you have looked up each individual credit card balance, and home equity line of credit, and car loan, and lingering school loan—and now that you have created direct access to these individual credit card balances, and home equity line of credit, and car loan, and lingering school loan, because you have saved these online sites to a desktop folder named Debt Watch, which is like Bay Watch only with more girth around the middle—now it’s time to figure out why you are in this pickle in the first place.
And the way to figure out why you are in this pickle in the first place is to track your daily purchases, especially if you purchase pickles, like Bossy did last weekend when she went to a Pickle Bar, and yes there are such things.
The reason Bossy thinks it’s crucial to track every single purchase is because even though we all think we know how our money is being spent, the picture is infinitely clearer when kept in an itemized log that allows you to see how the small things add up over a period of a day, a week, a month,
a life.
Which means that even though you are the type of person to impulsively purchase a pair of boots in Vermont in mid-summer, it doesn’t make you any more spendy than the husband who doesn’t fret over his decision to buy the extra bag of Romaine Hearts for “only” $2.99 when Romaine Hearts isn’t even on the list because you already have a bag of Romaine Hearts at home and no, it doesn’t mean that now you can use double the amount of Romaine Hearts when preparing your sandwich because then you are using five leaves when two would do, and because $2.99 x five packages a week
x 52 weeks in a year = airfare and three nights at the four-star Loews Miami Beach Hotel.
Speaking of which—a little familial infighting isn’t the worst thing for your finances according to Bossy, who is now involved in a healthy competition with her husband to spend less money during the day than anyone has ever spent in the history of days.
And to keep track of their individual spending, Bossy downloaded this chart, which is from Oprah’s Debt Diet:
In addition, Bossy and her husband are currently saving all of their receipts from the day, which is represented by the photo at the top of the page—Bossy’s husband in envelopes fastidiously labeled albeit misspelled, while Bossy prefers to collect her receipts in heaps at the bottom of her handbag.
andrea says
October 21, 2008 at 9:32 amI try soooo hard to keep track of daily spending but then I forget. I need to kick myself in the butt and just do it. I have to laugh at your husband’s way of holding on to receipts versus yours because that it EXACTLY like my husband and me. Mine are crumpled at the bottom of my purse and his are neatly folded and placed chronologically in his wallet.
Elaine says
October 21, 2008 at 11:35 amI’ve been keeping an excel sheet for about a year and a half, and it has helped immensely. I truly did not realize the amounts I was spending on unnecessaries. I do cheat a little, however, and sometimes will just log my ATM withdrawals as “entertainment” or “miscellaneous” instead of logging what I actually spend the money on. Ahem, like Taco Bell maybe.
steph says
October 21, 2008 at 11:42 amMy husband mispells too :). I still spend more money than him though, usually… Anyway here’s my latest… http://unsweetmama.blogspot.com/2008/10/to-file-or-not-to-file.html
Stephanie says
October 21, 2008 at 1:46 pmBut- but- but… Okay, dang it. You’re right. I need to watch my spending. Sigh.
Liz says
October 21, 2008 at 4:15 pmLooking at those receipts at the end of the day is almost as scary as facing my student loans, only in a different way.
I hereby vow I will stop squeezing my eyes shut as I empty them from the bottom of my purse into the garbage can and actually log them somewhere.
Rory says
October 21, 2008 at 4:49 pmCarol and I have been using a spreadsheet to track spending. It’s way simple and has actually worked for us.
Cactus Petunia says
October 21, 2008 at 6:58 pmBossy, you are braver than I am. I’ve been too afraid to add it all up! Even if it turns out we could’ve gone to Italy for what we’ve spent on Starbucks in the past year…I’m turning over a new leaf. Right now. I promise. You can read about it here:
http://buenosburritos.blogspot.com/2008/10/poverty-post-former-barista-cuts-back.html
kitty says
October 21, 2008 at 9:48 pmThis is an easy task for me for the next two days at least – I will not be spending a cent on anything. Then I get my monthly paycheck and the real party begins!
Sandy_Shoes says
October 22, 2008 at 9:16 amIt has only taken me 16 years, but he finally learned, “I before E, except after C.”
My Name is Cat says
October 22, 2008 at 9:46 amI hate when lettuce buy one get one free. As though that is any kind of sale, because who can eat all of that lettuce before it goes bad. We end up given Romaine to the guinea pigs, and they are most appreciative.
Here’s my new Poverty Party post http://mynameiscat.blogspot.com/2008/10/weigh-in-wednesday_21.html
Jodi aka soNOTcool says
October 22, 2008 at 11:27 amAm I the only one that thought that “daily receipts” was actually a box filled with squash?
That’s how I like to be held accountable … wish squash.
Drew says
October 22, 2008 at 11:37 amI have really found two tools that work well for me. They are Quicken for Mac and Mint.com. You can read more about my experiences with those apps at my post today.
Lisa says
October 22, 2008 at 11:43 amI have spent more money in the past two years on my son’s college expenses than I ever did up to that time. If I didn’t have that expense, I would be doing fine. But if this were my last day on earth, I would gladly have spent the money on my son’s future. Though, it does bother me that I will be starving when I retire……..
dgm says
October 22, 2008 at 2:36 pmMy hubby has been a receipt-tracker and spreadsheet guy since long before the 20 years I’ve known him. Me, not so much. I make attempts by spending my money on little organizing helpers, but they go unused. Sigh. Okay, I need to crack down!
ChristinaTE says
October 22, 2008 at 6:13 pmHave you ever tried the whole do not spend any money for 24 hours, then try again for 48 hours thing? It’s so hard!! It drives me crazy that we spend money every single day. Although usually it’s my husband who spends the money first!
operagal says
October 23, 2008 at 7:26 amNot a poverty post, but a link to Fat Wallet, which is amazing and addictive. The grocery coupon area alone rocks, and the RSS feed to free stuff snags you some good stuff once in a while.
gina says
October 23, 2008 at 4:10 pmmy husband and i just had this very same conversation/contest chat about whether or not to do the save-receipts thing….and i would SO win because he’s a not-so-secret lunch-eater-outer. good plan!