Frugality Game : Episode 1

Disclaimer : This pic is not mine and is used compliments of cyberescue.co.uk

   My sister Jane was convinced that she could succeed in spending virtually no money this month. As in zero dollars. On Wednesday when I was telling her that she has to spend money SOMEtime, she said in a very serious voice "No, I can spend no money if I cook everyday, if I don't go out with friends, if I don't leave the house, if I don't do anything."

   I rolled my eyes at how serious she had become. This game has really brought out her competitive streak. As soon as I got home Wednesday evening she announced that she had spent no money that day.

   "How much money did YOU spend?" She asked brightly.

   "I don't wanna talk about it." I mumbled.

   "Haha! See? I'm winning already!"

   "Yeah, yeah. Don't judge me. I had to buy lunch."

   "Well, if you would cook in the morning like me you could bring your own lunch to University."

   "But I can't cook.

   "Well, whose fault is that? You're so gonna lose this game."

   Ooooh, that was low.

   I turned away from her and consoled myself by planning my next blog post.

   However, my buying lunch is no longer a problem as my sister has relented and said lunch doesn't count. Nor do grocery bills or anything like that that is absolutely necessary. I mean, you've gotta eat, right? Instead, only the purchases that are not necessary, like say, buying a snack when you've just had lunch, or eating out for dinner when my mum has already cooked dinner, will be counted.

   Anyway, my other sister Jackie has also joined the frugality game. She like me, is a shopaholic used to be a shopaholic. In fact, sometimes I wonder if I get some of my impulsive shopping habits from her. Therefore, I was worried that she might not last out this game. However Jackie has actually spent the least amount of money out of the all of us so far.

   But onto the struggles of yours truly in this darned game. Well, it's been really tough on the Misnomer so far. And was especially hard this week as the mall I work in had a mall-wide sale.

   Yup. Mall-wide. And up to like 60% off in certain stores too.

    Can you imagine how an alcoholic feels when being confronted with liquor after two months of being sober? Well, that's how I felt when I was confronted by the giant sale sign after being clean for three days.

   I could feel the hunger rise from the pit of my stomach as I walked toward my favourite store in the mall. The sign seemed to twinkle and wink at me as I imagine the glass of a pint of Guinness might twinkle at a reformed alcoholic.  My legs automatically carried me into the store. Of their own volition. I swear.

   In the store I saw the store owner and friend V. We chatted for a bit, while my eyes hungrily took in the bags and clothing apparel. Then with a great sigh, I left the store.

  Yup. I just left. With no money removed from my purse.

  Now, I don't know about you guys, but I was pretty proud of myself.

 But then...the day after I returned to work at the mall...and saw the cutest tube dress ever which was originally $140 but had been reduced to $50. And...well...I fell off the wagon. I shopped. I bought the dress. Immediately afterward I felt pretty angry with myself. 

  But then I got home and realized that my sister Jane had spent a whopping $200 + that same day on two bags! Which was a huge shocker as Jane is the more sensible sister. But when she showed me the bags, both of which were designer, I realized why she had spent that amount of money. The bags were so ridiculously reduced that we both thoroughly checked to make sure they were real designer, and they are! It's crazy how good a deal she got. And they're both gorgeous. Like, they're the sex. And they have that new bag smell that is so intoxicating and they're perfect in every conceivable way.

   Anyway, before I get so caught up about those bags that I can't stop going on about them, let me change the subject. The point is that Jane has spent the most money so far and is in the final position, while Jackie, who has been surprisingly financially prudent of late, is in first place. I'm somewhere in the middle, having spent about $65 so far.

   So Jane has a lot of catching up to do and has resolved to spend absolutely no more money for the rest of this game. I also think that deep down she is hoping Jackie or I will incur some huge expense, so we could be closer to her in total. But it aint gonna happen.

  I hope.