saving money, week 4

I'm pleased to say that saving money and sticking to a budget was not as painful as I'd anticipated. It was actually a little fun, strange as it sounds, and I didn't feel at all deprived this month. I did have to make some modifications to my budget, but only because I had to register for 2 conferences (really, I had to- I'd put it off as long as possible). Anyway, it feels good. I don't kill time by going shopping, and Drew and I have both become really mindful of our spending habits. Right now he is contemplating a netbook, and I'm contemplating some sort of messenger bag for traveling around Chicago in a month and China this summer. Yes, we are both contemplating purchases, but the important thing is that we're thinking about it instead of just mindlessly handing over our credit cards.

It's tough trying to be a non-consumerist in a consumerist society. Everywhere you turn, society is telling you that you need new stuff. I've been checking out magazines from the public library, and Glamour tells me that I need to buy new accessories to spice up my old clothes. Runner's World tells me I need new running shoes, for optimal performance, of course. And Bon Appetit tells me that I must splurge on a fancy set of mixing bowls.

I can't help but wonder, is this what we're working for? Do we work just so we can buy stuff? Not even necessities, but just stuff. Status symbols. Nicer stuff. Newer stuff.

coconut brownies

I made coconut brownies last night. They are dense and fudgy, just the way I like them. I don't have pictures, but they're brownies, you know? Use your imagination. The recipe is from Drew's mom, and it did not disappoint. Here's the thing I just love about brownies- no mixer. It's nice. You melt the butter and chocolate, then let it cool. Whisk the eggs, stir in the chocolate mixture and some vanilla, then stir in flour, salt, and baking soda. Fold in coconut and then you're done. Fabulous.

Next up? I think some experimenting with blackberries and sage are in order.

roasted garlic and caramel brownies

Hear me out on this one. I love garlic. (I blame my old roommate and friend, who introduced me to it about 6 years ago.) I love brownies. Turns out, I don't love them together.

It all started with the brownie project. I decided that I wanted to try new and interesting twists to an old classic. Drew and I were brainstorming, and he suggested garlic. I looked at him like he was on crack. Apparently, this is a look you should never give your boyfriend (probably goes for girlfriends, partners, and spouses too. Or people in general. Unless they really are on crack). I came around to the suggestion. I agreed to try it, but it had to be roasted and I would add caramel in an attempt to complement the flavor.

I was flying by the seat of my pants here. I roasted up two heads of garlic. I tried my hand at caramel sauce, which is actually pretty easy to make. Oh, and it tastes really good. Without the garlic, that is. Anyway, I whipped up some brownies, folded in chocolate chips and the roasted garlic, and spread it in a pan. I drizzled the caramel sauce on top, swirled it together, and popped it in the oven. Smells of garlic and chocolate wafted through my apartment.

Garlic and chocolate proved to be a baking experiment gone slightly awry. In the first taste test, Drew and I ate about two bites each. It was interesting. Drew said that maybe next time, I should cut down on the garlic. I said that there won't be a next time. Garlic and chocolate are two flavors that probably shouldn't go together. And I think the almond extract in the brownie batter only made it worse.

I tried to share these brownies. Carolyn ate two bites, saying that this was a testament to my baking ability. My next door office neighbor tried a couple bites too. Props to their adventurousness. And my dear adviser, LD, even gave it a whirl.

These brownies just don't work, and I actually had to toss them. I don't think Drew is giving up on the garlic idea, but I think I'm going to move on to something else. I'll keep you posted, and stay tuned for the next brownie twist!

on running

Lately, I've been thinking about running. Just thinking about it, more or less. I've been hitting the gym fairly regularly, and I've been running a mile here and there. My mileage is at about 2-3 miles a week. More or less.

The year before I came to grad school, I was bored, so I took up running. In February. In Minnesota. Sometimes, on snow, and sometimes, on ice. I ran a couple 5Ks, and it was fun. I enjoyed the challenge, and I'm not going to lie, I enjoyed that it seemed to be the easiest way to stay in shape. Without altering any of my eating (and, ahem, drinking) habits, I lost about 10 pounds.

But that's not the only reason to run. It is one of the most efficient ways for me to relieve stress, and I feel so much stronger when I do it. But I have all these excuses as to why I don't want to do it. It's too sunny, or it's too hot. I don't want to wake up early to run (which is why I don't really want to sign up for a 5K). I don't like to run alongside all the traffic. I don't like to run on the concrete. I don't like to run on the treadmill or the track. See all my silly excuses?

And yet, I don't give up on thinking about running. I check out Runner's World from the library. I continue to run a mile here and there (a mile and a half last week on the track!). I actually looked into signing up for a 5K, but the thought of dragging myself out of bed for an 8am race on a Saturday sounds torturous. And I'm even blogging about how I think about running. Somehow, I'm hoping that all this thinking turns into doing.

saving money, week 2

Here's how the saving money and budgeting project is going so far. Last week, I went to two baseball games. This is okay because a) they were Twins games and b) I have decided that I'm not going to forgo "activities" and "experiences." I can't do everything, but I'm not going to give up eating out, watching movies, or going to plays.

I've been doing pretty well with the budgeting. At the baseball games, I ate before I went, so I was not at the mercy of overpriced and greasy stadium food. Victory! Oh, there were minor temptations. After the first baseball game, my friend Wilfred and I were walking back to his car. All these cars had Angels baseball license plate holders, and I told him that I have long wanted some sort of Minnesota license plate holder for my car. As I was telling him about how I couldn't decide between a Twins license plate holder or a U of M one, I suddenly remembered the budget. I had sworn off extraneous purchases, and a Twins license plate holder was definitely extraneous. There would be no way to justify this purchase. After all, how could I persuade Drew in a 2 page essay? It would be impossible.

Having a budget is actually kind of fun. It's like a game or a challenge, not a sacrifice.

on budgets and saving money

So here's the thing: I'm really not good at sticking to a budget and saving money. I've tried some strategies (or outright vetoed them), but they haven't worked. I've tried to make a budget. But then I freak out and panic when at the end of the month I've "run out" of money. And so then I delve into the stash I supposedly put away for a rainy day, all because I've found something interesting at Target. Or Old Navy. Or Bath and Body Works. Or Sur la Table. You get the general idea. I've considered the trick where you withdraw cash at the beginning of each week and use it for all your purchases. This way your money is tangible and you can better keep track of your spending. I've flat out vetoed this option. I mean, what if it gets to the end of the week and I have no cash for a latte?

I'm painting a portrait of myself as a wasteful spender and power shopper. It's really not that bad. I tend not to recklessly purchase a lot of stuff, and I don't buy things I don't need simply because they're on sale. Most of the time anyway (I do have a weakness for kitchen gadgets). Yet, each month, I wonder where my money disappears to. And I just read that your twenties are the best time of your life to save money. And well, I have only three months left.

Fortunately, Drew is pretty good at this sort of stuff, so I'm taking lessons from him. I have decided that in an effort to save money and reject consumerism, I'm not going to buy anything unless it's absolutely necessary. And disposable. So rent and my phone bill are okay, but clothes and a fancy immersion blender are not. I haven't decided how long this will last. And I suppose it's pretty easy to embark on this challenge, considering I just went on a shopping spree a couple weeks ago. Nevertheless, I've decided that I'm tired of not saving money, and I'm tired of acquiring "stuff." And sometimes I just don't like participating in our consumerist society.

I made a budget, and I've enlisted Drew's help. Here's how that went:
Me: Drew, if we're in a store and I see something I really want, don't let me buy it. Instead, I will write you a 5 page essay on why I think I need said item.
Drew: uh, do I have to read it?

Well that's a silly question, right? So I agreed to pare down my essay to 2 pages, even though he thought that 1 would be enough. Then I told him that if I said that I REALLY needed to buy some kitchen gadget, I had to find 10 recipes that will use said kitchen gadget. And then I have to make them.

This all sounds so anti-feminist. I mean, women fought so that I could make my own money and spend it as I pleased. And here I am, asking my boyfriend for permission before making extraneous purchases. Gloria Steinem would probably smack me upside the head.

an r & r

I'm going to take a moment and do some bragging on my blog. I mean, it is my blog, so I guess I can do this. I found out the other day that my paper on abortion rates received an R & R at a journal that will remain unnamed here. An R & R is a revise & resubmit, which means that I received a bunch of comments and suggestions from three anonymous reviewers; I must now take this feedback, revise my paper, and resubmit it to the journal. An R & R may be the best-case scenario in the journal submission process because well, it's better than an outright rejection, and an outright acceptance is pretty unlikely. So now I'll revise my paper, resubmit it, and cross my fingers for an acceptance!

By the way, this experience has given me a newfound appreciation for our qualifying paper process. Yes, we write three papers and sometimes it's frustrating that we must jump through these hoops to get a Ph.D., but seriously, the department isn't kidding when it says that this process prepares you for the journal submission process. For my qualifiers, I had to work with two professors on a paper, I got their feedback on each draft, and I revised my paper until they signed off and approved it. Sound familiar? Keep your fingers crossed for me!