No Spend Days

Well ... the month of June 2009 is behind us now. We lost some people again, some near and dear, some larger than life. Some expectantly, some suddenly. With every passage, I personally, am reminded my own frailty, my own temporality.

Those who had the dubious pleasure of putting up with me over the most recent ten years or so, would have witnessed this writer as a burned out long haul trucker, a stay at home dreamer, a short haulin' day tripper ... mostly to Michigan and back, sometimes Oshawa, an increasingly exhausted home renovator, then a day tripper again, mostly to Michigan and Oshawa again, and now an Ottaway Motor Express shunter at the General Motors National Parts Distribution Centre in Woodstock, Ontario.

Throughout it all, there has been the love-hate relationship with money that seems to follow me around. One could argue that Bernie Madoff had a love-hate relationship with money, too. The years of 2005 and 2006 were nasty, dark times health wise. I got nailed with an iron-deficiency, long story, the end result being a sluggishness that did me no favours financially.

Savings and credit lines got depleted. Now I'm rebuilding.

One of the ideas laid on me by a concerned lady who was part of a group that helped put me back together again was that nearly all of us have holes in our spending where our money drains into and we end up seeing nothing for it at the end of the day.

For instance ... go ahead and spend just $1.50 a day on your favourite cup-a-drive-thru coffee, Monday through Friday. Go ahead. It ain't hard. At the end of the year that works out to about $378 spent, all with after tax dollars. That cup of coffee sure went down just fine, didn't it. Now ... how long did you hang on to it.  Usually, a person and their cup of coffee part company pretty quickly.

Now imagine all the other holes in one's spending. I recall an article in the Globe and Mail, several years ago, with the title 'Broke on a $100,000 a Year.' Yup ... it can be done.

So ... over the last couple of years, I've gotten most of my health back as well as some idea where I'm headed, fiscally speaking. It don't look none too good. No Golden Parachutes or $75,000 buy-outs for me. No collective agreement giving me Cost of Living Allowances.

All I know, I have to change my spending habits drastically if I'm going to be able to retire with any sort of dignity at age 65. And a good measure of luck. Think of those Bernie Madoff investors. Time for austerity measures.

One of my techniques in modifying my spending habits is to track how many days a month I DO NOT spend any money. No coffee, no newspaper, no pack of smokes (not that I smoke ... but my buddy in London loves his Marlboros), no gasoline, nothing! Then, being the visual guy I'm, I graph my No Spend Days on a chart and give myself a pat on the back for being disciplined.

Damn ... not spending money is BORING! However, I like being able to make my mortgage payments and not get cut-off notices from the Hydro and Gas folks. My darkest hour happened back in February 2007. Times were bleak. Now ... considerably less so. But make no mistake, nearly everyone around seems to be having more fun than I am. So it seems, anyway.

During the month of June 2007, there was only one day I did NOT spend any money. During the most recent three months of April, May and June 2009, I averaged 17 No Spending Days a month. I'm not out of the woods yet, but when motor oil goes on special, I can stock up.

Hopefully July 2009 I can do even better.

P.S. When I grow up, I want to be an Economic Subversive!