Friday 28 June 2019

Beating Brown Bag Boredom


Image result for sad brown bag lunch
One of the biggest costs of working in an office can be lunches - a 'low cost' takeaway can be $10 a day, whereas a fancier lunch can run up to $30.. plus drinks. For office workers going out to lunch every day can cost up to $100 a week.

Bringing lunch from home (Brown Bagging) is an easy way to bring the costs down, but after a while ham and cheese sandwiches get really boring. While it can be tempting to go out for some variety, it's easy to change up the basics to keep things interesting, and on budget.

Satisfying sandwiches

In summer my sandwiches are ham, cheese, tomato and cucumber. In winter it's ham, cheese and tomato on the grill. While the staples are delicious the same thing week in and week out can get dull. 

Whenever I ask google for some new ideas the suggestions are extremely costly and elaborate. Instead, there are some super simple options to make it interesting.
    Image result for thousand island sandwich
  • Salad dressing and sauces - Thousand Island Dressing, Mayonaisse and Pesto are delicious on a sandwich. A dollar worth of dressing or sauces can last an entire week and turn a same-same sandwich into something new.
  • Herbs and spices - salt and pepper are an obvious choice, but a sprinkle of Oregano turns a ham, cheese tomato sandwich into a pizza sandwich. 
  • Change up to protein - swap ham for turkey, chicken or roast beef. Each protein has a different flavour and opens the door for different cheese, veg, or sauce options.

Pasta playground

Pasta is a winter favourite, but it's easy to fall into the trap of minced beef, garlic, tomatoes and cheese.

  • Change your colour - red sauce pasta is the easy choice, but what about white sauces, that can be creamy, or cheesy, or garlicky. A green sauce can be made with a pesto base, or if you're feeling like something light, a simple lemon juice or olive oil dressing can make a great variety.  
  • Protein options - mince beef is the staple for spaghetti, but meatballs can give the same flavour and a new texture. Chicken pairs beautifully with bacon and potato. Turkey tastes wonderful with pesto. Chorizo can add a smokey flavour. 
  • Leveraging Keto for comfort - a favourite trick of mine is to take a 'keto' casserole and add pasta. Keto recipes alone can be heavy and expensive, with an abundance or cream and butter. Adding pasta to a keto casserole reduces the cost per serve, and creates a delicious comfort food that warms any winter.

Salads made special

Image result for strawberry saladWhen summer rolls around, pastas are heavy and warm. Leafy greens by themselves might not seem exciting, but there are so many flavours that can be added.
  • Sauce it up - sauce is the trick to any tasty salad. There are the obvious ones like thousand island or ceaser dressing, but you can make your own with a little effort. Olive oil, mustard and lemon juice is cheap, tasty, and the oil will help keep you full. Mayonnaise can be flavoured with ketchup, or garlic, or pepper. For an even easier one, mix hummus with a bit of olive oil.
  • Meat and Dairy (or tofu and beans) - salads can be boring when it's just vegetables. they have a reputation for being paired with flavourless poached chicken. Instead try different cheeses like feta or haloumi. Try crumbed chicken tenders, or salmon. And don't skimp on the nuts - cashews are both flavour and texture!
  • Sweetness - lastly, try sweet additions. strawberries in a salad are divine (mix with feta, cashews, balsamic vinegar and honey). Apples and walnuts go together. Pomegranate seeds add a crunchy texture and a rich taste.

Vegetarian Variety

We have a high dependence on meat to be the stand out star of our meals. Yet, more than two million people are vegetarians. While for many this is a moral or ethical choice, it can also be a benefit to the budget. While it's easy to see a vegetarian diet as a boring one, it forces creativity, especially for those of us who are not so reliant on meat.

When meat is removed from the dish, we're forced to think harder about how to add flavour. Mushrooms and beans are the obvious alternatives, but other stand outs include roast pumpkin, zucchini and eggplant.

You can also draw inspiration from other cultures - lots of Indian and Japanese cuisines are light on meat. Both cultures use large amounts of rice, however the two approaches are markedly different.


If you're struggling to stay inspired, small changes can be some of the better ones - keeping you on an easy routine without letting boredom set in. Once you've tried something new for a while, the old classics will still be waiting for you.


Monday 17 June 2019

May 2019 Wrap-Up


Image result for winter naps animalIt is Winter and it's 100% time for naps. Staying awake and motivated is becoming a challenging and sunlight is a rare commodity.

As much as the calendar says it's Winter, I wonder whether that's accurate. There is no daylight to be seen, but trees are still dropping leaves now in mid-June, and plants that are supposed to bloom in summer haven't completely given up yet.

I have engaged Winter-mode though. I've been fighting a cold for about two weeks, and perpetually chasing naps. To get through the days I've been taking lunch time walkies whenever the sun it out and soaking up any daylight I see.

May Goals Update

Investing Goal: $110,000 in Vanguard

The goal is to have $110,000 in my Vanguard account by the end of the year. I started with $78,424, which means I want to gain just over $31,500. I hope that $5,500 will come from growth and dividends, and the remaining $25,000 will be investments.


Full year

Opening Balance: $78,424.57
Deposit: $6,350
Dividends: $1,564.26
Market Gains: $9,376.46

May

Opening Balance: $93,916.51
Deposit: $1,175
Dividends: $0.00
Market Gains: $623.79

Current Balance: $95,715.30

Umm... wow... just wow. Still waiting for this mad growth to stop, but apparently it's not! I wanted $5,500 growth in the calendar and I've had almost $10,000 in five months. Just wow. 

Spending Goal: Under Control!

The goal is simply to have my spending under control, and for May... yeah nah... It wasn't under control. Also due to some lovely accounting errors I didn't work out the averages this month. Oops. I've left them at the previous averages from April.  

Here's what I spent in May, which includes the (very small) save-to-spend amounts


Category
Spent
Budgeted
12 Month Average
Home$700$938.17$306.38 ()
Under Budget! Just paid rent. Tidy.
OG Investment Property$1,794.21$1,190.83$1,324.57 ()
Over Budget! The big bill arrived again. Joyous days...
Home turned Investment Property$2,193.44$1,042.33$1,464.81 ()
Over Budget! I paid the closing utility bills, set up landlord insurance and ordered a depreciation schedule so I'm ready for tax time. From June onwards this should come down to much more sane levels. 
Personal Bills$127.26$127.33$134.99 ()
Under Budget Nothing new. I'll be getting a new phone very shortly though as mines on it's last legs, so this will go up when that happens. 
Groceries$198.45$190$189.26 ()
Over BudgetEver so slightly over budget - but $50 of this was buying a discounted giftcard to use next month.
Pets$50$50$72.82 ()
On BudgetExactly on budget - because I'm squirreling money away each month to build a new chicken coop and possibly catio in the new house.
Roller Derby$175$175$227.07 ()
On Budget Also on budget! We're going to a tournament in Utah soon, and I need new gear so again - squirreling every budget-allowed dollar away for future spending
Travelling$200$122.50$85 ()
Over BudgetSo when I said Utah soon... I mean in August. I got my passport in May, and I'll be spending a lot in the next couple of months sorting flights and Visas and such. I'm glad I've been saving for 'someday' for the last few months. 
Comfort Food$25.35$40$47.85 ()
Under Budget. Pleasantly under budget, and I thought I snacked well for the month. 
Other$191.20$187.00$266.26 ()
Over BudgetNot very over - a surprise considering I bought $60 worth of deluxe teas in the first week of May... I'm also putting aside some money for vital things like New Glasses, High-Vis Riding Gear, and Video Games
Total$5,689.44$4,063.17$4.105.40 ()
Over budget overall, with 5 out of 10 categories over. Both investments went over due to bills, which is unpleasant, but not something to kick myself over. The travel, derby and other categories are going to be the real blow-outs in the coming months.

Bonus Goal, if we can: $10,000 worth of an Asia focused ETF

Since I'm going to Utah and that trip is far more expensive than the original ones I had in mind, this bonus goal is looking tenuous. But I do have two investment properties now, so there is still hope!



A quick 2023 check-in

I have been away for a tumultuous 12 months. I made a lot of changes. I changed career, I removed my birth control, and I very nearly ended...