I hate going to the mall....wait! did I say that?? Did I actually think, then write that I HATE going to the mall?...can that be true??...uhmmm, yes, it is....I used to looooove going to the mall!! Now I hate it...it's temptation-land out there!!....they have opened a huge mega book store right next to the food court!..You have no idea how much will power it took to get away from the window...they have put the children's section right at the entrance, and you get a view of all those wonderful, colorful books as you (try) to walk by!!...on the next window, they have the best-sellers....how cruel can they be?? today, their door was decorated imitating the cover of the latest Isabel Allende book!!...I almost had a heart attack!! (can you tell I'm a bookworm, er book lover?)...but, I managed to survive and not buy anything (of course, it helps that I go there with only $5, $2 for my lunch and $3 for any incidentals....like during the holidays, when none of the specials were available!!)...
I spent my $1.99 and have already put the $0.01 in my jar...I counted the money in it, so that I can really see what I've put in by the end of the week...right now, I have $0.56....Hey, $6 a month pays my share of the "security fee" at the place where we live (each house pays $12/month for 24-hour armed guards at the entrance/exit of the complex)....$10 pays the minimum payment on my department-store credit card....
Hopefully, I won't have to go to the mall again this week! (but, I do have to go to the supermarket to get some things for Mom!...she still hasn't realized- or, rather, she refuses to acknowledge- how much I hate going to the supermarket...and, no, that is something that I've always hated...ever since I was about 12, that is!

today, I'm eating at the shopping mall 4 blocks from my office...I need to go make some payments (which unfortunately can't be done directly through my bank, so I have to physically go there)...it is ok, as I have set a goal of bringing lunch from home 3 x week, to allow for running errands at least 2x a week...I try to do several errands on one day, so that I don't have to go out every day, also saves on gas money...the good thing about that shopping mall is that I can do almost everything there....my goal for days when I'm eating out is to spend no more than $2....
Also, I have cut down my sodas from 2/day to 1/day (good for the diet, also!), and, whenever possible, I buy Salvacolas at $0.25, instead of Coke or Pepsi at $0.45- $0.40 ...You'd think that my options are limited with $2 at the mall, but, not really, there are always "special offers"...$1.99 burger/fires/free-refill soda from Biggest....$1.75 big pizza slice and 16oz soda from Pizza Hutt...$1.50 regular pizza slice and 8oz soda from Dominos...$1.99 baked potato (ham and cheese) and soda from Papaland...and others....just a matter of seeing what I'm really in a mood for....or what I have time for (the baked potato takes 6 minutes before I get my order)...What I don't use for lunch I "pass" to the next day...at the end of the week, I put that in a coin jar...at the end of the month, I will see how much I have and probably use it to pay for a bill...

I'm not very good at keeping track of my money...mostly, it just "leaks" out...I can generally remember/account for the big purchases, but not the $0.75 or less ones...and I know there are plenty of those, and I know they add up...this journal will be my attempt to follow my "out of budget" expenses...maybe just thinking about posting them will keep me from making unnecessary purchases...we'll see...

so far, this month I have managed to bring food from home 9/11 days...so it has been good. I still buy myself a soda and/or fruit piece, so I have been spending about $1 per day (as opposed to the $2-$3 per day I was spending!)...every little step counts, right? (plus, if you see it as a $5/week saved, it isn't quite as small any more!)