- December 25, 2024
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Nothing says grown up like trying to live on a budget.
BY EMILY BLACKWOOD | STAFF WRITER
After a few months of living as an independent adult, I thought I was getting the hang of it. My laundry piles are contained within my closet, I haven't been embarrassingly late on any bills and I've only missed trash day twice.
The most surprising factor of this transition is how I'm really not that broke. I mean, it's not like I'm toting a wallet full of Benjamin's, but I'm not living off the Ramen Noodle diet either.
So naturally this success resulted in an over-inflated ego and a tendency to rub my happiness in the face of those who once doubted me.
Emily Blackwood, former bubble girl/naive child, was killing it.
But no one besides myself found my cockiness funny or even rightfully earned. I couldn't believe after all the work and nights I spent at home, I wasn't getting the adult respect I thought I deserved.
And that's when Mom dropped the bomb.
"You don't know how to save money," she said.
Save? I was supposed to be saving? I thought I earned brownie points by spending less then $100 every time I went grocery shopping. But apparently, I was missing out on a crucial grownup detail.
Also "saving" means, like, storing it away for retirement. The only experience I've had "saving" was for concert tickets. And I bailed on those after a week. My future was in my own, fragile hands.
So, Momma Bear started me on a budget plan she used when she was my age. Basically, I'd decide on a weekly limit, take that cash out of my checking account and try not to go on a late-night shopping spree.
After careful consideration, I (my mom) came up with $125, for food, gas and entertainment.
The first day went smoothly, considering I spent it with my parents and they paid for everything. The second day is when things got tricky.
I was eating meals at home and avoiding the lure of Pinterest, when I needed to make a quick trip to Walmart for a house phone. But when I made that first mistake of getting a cart, I knew I was done for.
One hose holder, a pack of teeth whiteners and pounds of groceries later, I had doubled my weekly budget. And it was only Tuesday.
Oh, and I forgot to buy the house phone.
