Yesterday, as I waited in line to check out at the grocery store, I realized I was holding my breath. It wasn’t due to the woman behind me who believed in liberal application of Dolce & Gabanna Light Blue. No, no – I was waiting for the cashier to let me know what my bill for the week was.
Until I started grocery shopping with my own money (and occasionally David’s), I had no idea how expensive food was! I also had no idea how quickly things like gym memberships, 3 night a week Blockbuster rentals, and Friday happy hours could add up when it’s on my tab – not Mom and Dad’s.
Unfortunately, minimum wage part time jobs just don’t cover my lavish lifestyle, so while I hunt for a better job, I’d prepared myself for the inevitable cut backs I’d have to make. If that meant more nights just staying in, resorting to regular cable programming (the horror!), and occasionally eating microwave popcorn and apples for dinner instead of a real meal, I was fine with it. Unfortunately, David was not.
David, who works 40 hours a week at what most people would consider a big kid job, earns enough money to support himself pretty darn comfortably. He likes going out for drinks with his friends after a long week. If he feels like renting a new DVD every night of the week, he does. He goes out to eat when he wants, and buys whatever he feels like when he goes grocery shopping.
Spread that paycheck a little thinner though, say, between himself and his lovely gf, and the cash money doesn’t quite go as far. So while he’s happy to pay for both of us when we do the things he likes, he finds that he can’t do as many of the things he likes. Without me earning enough money to share the lifestyle he maintains when I’m not broke, or when I’m away at school, all the financial pressure falls on him if he doesn’t want to change his habits. Read More »