Consumption Diary #2
A key part of this challenge is to record a weekly consumption diary. This will both hold me accountable to readers of this blog, and will allow me to think about my consumption habits.
As a reminder:
Exempt items are those classes of goods that I am allowed to purchase new, such as food and cleaning supplies.
Watched items are items that I am allowed to purchase, but that I would like to cut back on. Examples include travel and certain productivity softwares. I will also always include a justification for these items.
Restricted items are items I am not allowed to buy new.
Finally, I will also record the goods I have sold or donated.
Physical EXEMPT Items Purchased
$1, Sesame Ball from Sweet Asian Bakery.
$2, Dr. Pepper from Gas Station.
$1, Honey Roasted Peanuts from Gas Station.
$15, a Peanut Butter Smoothie for delivery.
$3, a Thanksgiving Pastry Feast from Sweet Asian Bakery.
$3, a cup of coffee from Bariques.
$1, Sesame Ball from Sweet Asian Bakery.
$4, Salted Peanuts from Gas Station, my breakfast before my flight to California.
$5, a Cold Brew almond-milk foam coffee from Starbucks in the Seattle airport.
$30, groceries!
$20, a new toaster for my friend Grace.
$15, a battery pack for my phone.
Digital EXEMPT Items Purchased
Physical WATCHED Items Purchased
Digital WATCHED Items Purchased
RESTRICTED Items Purchased
Items Sold or Donated.
Microwave
Rice Cooker
Kitchen Table
FINAL THOUGHTS.
I do confess that I did some Black Friday browsing, though there’s nothing there that I could purchase. I do it in part because it feels good to browse. I like to whet my appetite. I joked with my mother recently that the worst part about doing this project will be that I will have so much money, and nothing to make ostentatious purchases on. Not that these purchases made me happy.
Now that I have a new place to stay, the closest bakery, or other similar temptation, is a ten minute walk. I can tell already that I will become more frugal in this regard: I had created a habit out of spending, and now there’s little incentive to pursue it again.
The battery pack is a great example of “shopping as sport”, since I researched the available battery packs for quite some time. For awhile, like with purchasing too powerful a laptop, I was committed to getting a battery pack with the highest wattage. This highest wattage would be critical for playing games on my phone. But, I don’t play games on my phone! And furthermore, I had a battery pack with more modest wattage for two years and was totally happy with it. But, the idea of having the best battery pack, of comparing specs, almost lead me astray.
Finally, the toaster and the battery pack were both purchased through Mercari, a second hand goods app I am interested in exploring over the course of this challenge.