Budgeting... and then busting that budget

Hello friends,

It's been a few weeks since the last newsletter. I've been resting as much as possible this past week after a hectic semester... and by resting I mean eating a lot of delicious food and hanging with some great pals.

One social event I was super looking forward to was a budgeting catch up with a small group of financially-savvy friends. We try to meet every 3 months and update our money-related wins, losses, and goals. I only started budgeting properly about 3 years ago but it has been life changing. Talking about it openly and honestly with a group of trusted mates even more so. Do you budget? Do you talk to others about money? Such an interesting (and still often taboo!) topic. Chuck me an email if you want to talk about it too!

At our little meeting I updated my budget based on some upcoming life style and work changes... and almost immediately I busted that budget. Opshopping was one culprit, as per usual. Oops! I'll share some of the other splurges below.

Talk soon!

Marina

(she/they)

P.S. I lied a little; I 'busted' the spending portion of my budget early this pay period, but my new budget includes a buffer account I've named "uh-oh" for weeks like this one. I've found the most important aspect of budgeting is to be honest with yourself about your habits and needs. I know I like to have a splurge once in a while so I built it into the budget. Phew! Is this what adulthood feels like?

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My most dreaded budgeting tip

I'm at the point now of being so immersed in money related content that I've 'heard it all' when it comes to bad budget tips. Top of my personal pet peeves is being told to 'make coffees at home' to save money. It assumes that someone has the income to be spending $5+ per day on a variable expense (which they can then cut in order to save). It also assumes that home-made coffee is just as enjoyable as barista-made.

THAT SAID, I've perfected budget-friendly homemade coffees. And want to brag about it, haha. I got a brand new coffee machine from my local 'buy nothing' group (which I more than recommend, check on FB to see if your area/suburb has one!). I've also been adding half a teaspoon of vanilla chai powder instead of my usual half a teaspoon of sugar. So. Dang. Good.

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Filthy looks at the footy

... are what I get for sitting in the Crows members seats and cheering for the other team. Ha!

My fabulous friend Rebecca slung me the tickets (also budget win) and another other fabulous friend Quinton (hey, if you're reading this!) came along for the ride. I felt pretty honoured to be at Quinton's first live footy game, and pretty chuffed that Eagles won.

I also bought myself a Dry July 'Golden Ticket' so I could have a bev. Definitely a splurge, but definitely good fun. If you'd like to donate (or get me another Golden Ticket) the link is here.

Overall, a great night. Sorry not sorry to all my Crow-loving friends. It's all in good fun ;-)

P.S. Check out some of Quinton's music here.

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Budget buddies

Here's a sweet snap of our budget catch up! I thought I'd link some of my favourite financial-related resources (my other 'budget buddies' if you will):

The Financial Diet (YouTube channel with a variety of content, lots about budgets and budgeting and lots from different content creators which is interesting)
Two Cents (US-based YouTube channel which still has a lot of useful things to say for us down under. The hosts make things simple, digestible)
She's on the Money (Podcast which is aimed at 20-something Aussie women but would be useful for most young people wanting to understand investing, home-ownership, and their relationship to money)
The Broke Generation (Instagram page - also podcast - by a lovely lass named Emma who is a self-taught finance whiz. She keeps things real and relatable)

Also, I've been researching & using the cash-envelope method (with a bit of a twist, I use about 15 small bank accounts rather than envelopes with cash in them). It's been working really well for me. Maybe I'll go into detail in a newsletter soon.

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The best ramen I've had in Adelaide

Last week I saw Black Widow (pretty good!) and ate this ramen (even bloody better). We went to Kazumi Ramen in Norwood which boasts the coolest atmosphere, including a rad mural feature wall. I had the Wagyu Ramen Shoyu which was tender, sweet, and slurpy. John had the vego ramen which was AMAZING and Ben let me steal some of his gyoza which also rocked.

The ramen at Kazumi will set you back $18+ (more if you like to add things like egg, which I do). Many of the reviews for this little spot decry the price. And, I will admit, it's more than I had budgeted for dinner... but I bought a very average burger for $22 last week and would've much preferred to have this ramen again. As one reviewer pointed out, if you buy a bowl of pasta for about the same price at a restaurant, why not ramen? The quality and care that go into these handmade noodles and soups is more than worth it. I'll be back there again soon.

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13 Grove Avenue
Marleston
Adelaide
5033
Australia