September went by in approximately 3 days, I think? What a fast month. I got back from England on the last day of August, and then went straight into deep long-term planning mode for the show and plotting various other projects (none of which are ready for prime time).
I volunteered and really enjoyed myself at my 5th XOXO, despite the fact I definitely had the plague the whole time. I definitely lost my voice by going to a conference where I talked for 12 hours a day and stomped around in platform boots, held aloft only by sudafed and coffee.
Then 2 days after XOXO wrapped, I shipped out over 300 books and stickers to the Early Kitten backers over 2 long work days.
I flew to Australia to have a couple meetups for Oh My Dollar! I was tagging along on a work trip that Aaron Parecki was on, and was able to fly on a combination of mine and Aaron’s various points. That week flew by in a blur- literally, I flew 51 hours over the course of a week – but I discovered some great things:
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- Australia has amazing coffee, everywhere. Even the plane coffee served on Qantas Airlines was delicious french press.
- You don’t even need to show your ID to get on domestic flights in Australia. They’re very trusting.
- The people are really great. I got to meet OMD community members in Melbourne and Perth, which was rad. Even though they shorten and abbreviate everything. Australia is “Straya” and McDonalds is “Maccas”.
- Their flora and fauna are uniquely intense. Evolution just had a field day with Australian wildlife.
Just some baby joey hanging out INSIDE its mom. Listen to this intense bird that actually FLIES and is 17 pounds and makes this intense ROAR.
I do not understand this bird. Australian evolution makes the weirdest fauna. pic.twitter.com/RvkfexqXfu
— Lillian Karabaic (@anomalily) September 18, 2019
Here’s me with a koala friend:
This report is late because I am struggling with the fact that I’m still not producing videos, which is apparently the only media I care about? But I managed to get my book shipped out to hundreds of people (hey you can buy my book here!) and a show out every week. Plus, I flew to the other side of the world and back. So yes, I am behind on videos, but what’s new? I say that every month.
Full September 2019 Spending Report
Total Spent: $1,572
Just about on target – 75% of total annual budget at 74% of the way through the year.
Household & Insurance – $832.97
- Rent: $615
- Water, Commons: $32.50
- Garbage: $7.50
- Electricity: $32.69
- Household Goods: $0
- Renter’s Insurance: $145.28 Note I save for this in a sinking fund each month! This is the month is came due.
- Internet at Home: $0 This is now paid for by SSO’s employer due to being remote employee, was $20 per month.
Basic Food – $109.62
- Groceries: $87.17
- Treats (non-essential snacks): $22.45
- Coffee/Tea For Home: $0
Extra Food + Drink – $3.50
- Coffee Out: $3.50
Medical – $48.26 ***Why this is so cheap
- Health Insurance Premium: $29.00
- New Glasses: $19.26 (from Zenni Optical, which I recommend!)
Fitness – $38.98
- Gym Membership: $38.98
Random Indulgences – $178.25
- Office Rug: $59.99 (I redid my office – more on that later!)
- Skincare: $91.47 (refilled a TON of things, should last me 2-4 months)
- Shoes + Shoe Repair: $26.79
Figure Skating $110
Figure skating is super expensive- ice time is one of the most expensive things you can buy. Currently, I’m mostly skating on low-traffic public session at a mall instead of the advanced freestyle sessions and I don’t have a coach (which I need). I pay for 7 weeks of public skate time at once and try to get my marginal cost per hour as low as possible. Year to Date, my marginal cost per hour of skating for ice time is $6.37/hour.
- Ice Time: $110
Sinking Funds – not yet spent
- Unicorn Hair: $23
Australia Trip Expenses (in USD): $239.87
- Restaurants: $99.11 (including paying for food at OMD meetups)
- Coffee (OMG COFFEE IS SO GOOD IN AUSTRALIA): $8.86
- Transit: $57.51
- Award Flight Taxes: $5.60
- Visa: $13.78
- Wildlife Park: $41.23 (two people)
- Sim Card: $13.78
Retirement savings: $100