In the second quarter, most of it under SIP restrictions, I met the budget.
This is the only quarter since I moved home three years ago that I did not exceed the food budget.
Most of my grocery shopping since mid-March has been through the farmers market with only occasional trips to the supermarket, smaller specialty stores, and the local coffee roaster (for oatcakes). I had a restaurant take-away meal only once—to share with my dad and step-mom for Father’s Day. I think this was easy because I’m solo. Not cooking for others, at no point did I feel I needed a break.
But I certainly know that feeling. Here are some food notes during the first year back—living in the country without running water or a fully functioning kitchen:
- Summer 2017, I was so thankful to find a couple of vegan options at a charming restaurant in the nearby village—when I was having a particularly anxious day, I treated myself to a black bean burger and serenity now.
- For a coffee in the town where I did most of my shopping, I tried a few places before settling on one that became a frequent refuge where I could sit reading or writing with an Americano and happily surrounded by the voices of other customers.
- I can’t remember when exactly I discovered the organic sourdough bakery but what a happy day it was! Along with excellent bread, that shop became a little oasis of goodness where I could get a veggie soup for lunch when I was in town running errands. The young owner kindly tolerated me speaking of back in the day when I cooked in a vegetarian restaurant.
- I dropped more weight than I liked. This self-corrected after finding the bakery.
- What I am most grateful for is the kindness of non-veg friends and family who researched and made vegan recipes for me. It felt like nurturing when I needed it most.
When I was feeling stress or isolation, a treat out was a source of comfort. But since that need diminished after I moved to the new location in December, I found it easy to skip during SIP. Two weeks ago, I had my first socially-distanced coffee sitting outside in a garden with friends. While I may not have missed the expense of the coffee, I welcomed being offline and connecting with friends again in person.
And after writing the last post on my clothing budget, I thought about items I wanted for the next year and challenged myself to buy every item on sale. Then I went online and spent the entire yearly clothing budget in three days. Yeah. We’ll see how that all works out.
References and related links:
- CY20Q2: Calendar Year 2020, Second Quarter (April to June). Calendar Year distinguishes from a company’s Financial Year (FY) which has a different start date than January 1st.
- SIP: Shelter In Place.
- simpler-living report: QY20Q1 (post #139)
- update from a larger closet (post #143)
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