In the run up to a stint of travels to Canada I shall be embarking upon come November 16th, there is but one thing on my mind. Moneymoneymoneymoneymoneymoney. And I’ll tell you one thing; it is bloody annoying! Whoever it was that blessed me with the love to travel didn’t really consider how expensive it all is. And as a result of this, I’m attempting to save every last penny to make my travels fully worth it.
Don’t get me wrong; when it comes to money I’m a hugely lucky individual. My parents have always been there and continue to help me out when I’m in need and provide for me, and for that I thank them, and for working so hard to earn it.
It’s been something that’s cropping up at the moment with all my friends. People getting married and trying to cut off any help from their parents in order to start a new life off their own backs. Little babies bringing joy into our lives but also dread into the hearts of their parents when the bills start coming in. For me, it’s the idea that now I’ve finally worked out what I want to do, it’s going to take a lot of hard work and budgeting to be able to survive whilst trying to make it. We are all truly breaking free from the nest, and it’s a little bit daunting!
It took a while, but I’ve kind of got used to having to sacrifice things in order to put all my money away for Canada. Some examples include:
Not wearing makeup for three weeks because I’d ran out and couldn’t afford any more. I think my skin quite enjoyed the break. When I could buy some, I still went for the cheap stuff, saving me a fortune!
I’ve lived in a studio apartment with but three small rooms for five months now. It could be worse I guess, some are only one room and my apartment is just enough for me. Due to the fact it’s too small, I have no chairs, it would clutter up the place. This means sitting on the floor a lot at my computer; I swear this does nothing good for my back, even though at the beginning I claimed it did. This has now encouraged me to take up yoga again, and that can’t possible be bad for me.
Following on from this, it also took me three months to buy a vacuum. Well, I say buy, I mean steal the one from our old house that my friend was hoarding in his new house down the road. Since then, I have come to fully appreciate the feeling of not having to brush yourself down after sitting on the floor (my hair sheds in massive amounts) and nothing sticking to your feet and/or socks.
I have also yet to buy a kitchen bin, so I hang a bin bag off an unused draw in the corner of my kitchen. I see no positive of this, it just seems like every bin I find I consider way too expensive. If I can go without for five months I can carry on doing so, right?
There are two ropes holding my bed together. There was originally one, but the headboard kept falling off whenever I rolled over in my sleep, thus ruining my slumber. Now my mother has found out about this, she has decided to donate a spare bed she has and also throw in the super-comfortable mattress cover that I love so dearly. Hooray!
Being a bit strapped for cash has meant there is an upside to being ill, in that I could in no way be tempted to go to the pub.
So there they are. I know a few of them may sound a little extreme and be considered just plain lazy but hey ho, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I utterly adore my little home, and I just have to tell myself that the various corner’s I have cut in order to save money are just character building.
It’s nice to know that I don’t waste my hard-earnt (debateable?) wages on anything, and that’s all just come down to practice. Having to reduce my outgoings has really made me appreciate the times when I do splash out a little and go down the pub and actually have a glass of wine instead of trusty bank account-friendly lime and soda. But what’s more is to really value seeing your friends over the beverage you consume. Vancouver, you better be worth it!
Who am I kidding? Of course it will be.
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