simpler-living report: CY18Q3

Summary: I was back on track in the third quarter and met the budget, squeaking under by $4.47.

July to September notes:

• I raised the gas allowance in July and have reduced the number of trips but still find it challenging. I’m experimenting with not driving over the speed limit.
• In August, car insurance went down and tiny house insurance went up.
• I made a bit of cash in August by selling childhood toys (including the magic hat).
• In September, I realized that I did not budget enough over the year for car maintenance. In July, I needed a tire repaired due to a puncture.  Then in September, I needed the front brake pads and rotors replaced.
• I’m pleased with the progress I’ve made with the food allowance—I’ll write a separate post on my new approach.

Car maintenance notes:

The allowance I’ve been working with is a generous amount for the minimal driving I was doing out west.  I have always been disciplined about timely oil changes and checkups—that’s part of the reason the car is still in great shape after 13+ years—but, living in the country, the extra mileage on the car is going to reflect in more maintenance.  Plus there is now the twice-yearly task of having the summer/winter tires swapped.

The car still looks good although I occasionally have little melancholic thoughts about the detailing I regularly paid for out west.  The interior is no longer spotless.  It now typically contains boxes of stuff getting moved, extra outerwear for weather contingencies, extra footwear for event contingencies, and/or a backlog of laundry overflowing in the hatch.  The tiny car is a satellite of the tiny house.

I liked the dealership where I first took the car in WA for servicing.  They included a free car wash as well as coffee and scones.  Over the eight years I went there, they got busier and busier and then moved to a new bigger building nearby.  As I walked around the new place and looked at the palm trees and coloUrful fountains, I felt a bit uncomfortable about my little shiny blue hatchback and me being there.  I’d started the SLSR plan by then and thought: I don’t want to pay for this!  After that, I went somewhere a little less fancy.  Well, that place still had a café, fireplace, and multiple big-screen TVs but it did not have water features.  Now, I’m going to a much more sensible place.

I am nowhere near considering replacing the car so I will up the maintenance allowance.  That car can still make me smile.  I frequently lose sight of it in parking lots when it plays hide and seek between pickups and SUVs.  When driving, I occasionally pat the steering wheel, feeling grateful for its hard work.  Yes, I’m attached.  And practical.  I’m doing a road trip later this month to take care of a long-standing item on the Master Procrastinator List.  Just in case we need roadside assistance, I joined CAA.

References and related links:

• CY18Q3: Calendar Year 2018, Third Quarter. Calendar Year distinguishes from a company’s Financial Year (FY) which has a different start date than January 1^st.
• SLSR: simpler living semi-retirement.
• CAA: Canadian Automobile Association.
• simpler-living report: CY18Q2 (post # 95)
• the jeep (post #27)
• magic hat (post #76)