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A Life Less Ordinary

Tag: self-isolation

Monthly Expenses – June 2020

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.

Most of June was spent away from “our room above the garage”. After six weeks of sheltering in place in this tiny, uninspiring, yet relatively comfortable setting in Massachusetts, Mark, Maya, and I loaded up our campervan with belongings and groceries and traveled north.

We self-isolated for two weeks in Lincolnville, Maine, where we helped out with renovations in a house recently purchased by our brother-in-law and his wife. We didn’t spend any money during those weeks as we didn’t do anything and didn’t go anywhere. The numbers of Covid cases in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont have always been low, but we quarantined for 14 days nevertheless.

(Captions appear when you click on or hover over the photos. I have posted more visuals of last month’s experiences in previous blog posts here and here.)

That visit concluded with a couple of hikes and a quick stop in the cute seaside town of Belfast on day 15 and 16, before we moved on to Kingfield, Maine, to hang out with friends for a couple of days.

Next up, more relaxing with another set of friends at a lake house in Island Pond, Vermont. That was a VERY enjoyable weekend, despite the 90-degree weather. We concluded our “grand tour” with a quick “hello and goodbye” to one more set of friends met on the road last year. Again, it was extremely hot and there was no shade for Zesty. We cooled off in the woods on their property and in a swimming hole by Troy Falls. Other than the last three nights of camping in our van, we stayed inside houses.

Some of the June categories were higher than usual: groceries because we stopped at a Trader Joe’s (which means splurging on goodies like dumplings, goat cheese, and snacks) and shared special home-cooked dinners, alcohol because we are social drinkers and we socialized a lot, and the dog section because of Maya’s new flea & tick collar and heartworm medicine.

All things considered, June was a decent spending month for us and the numbers underneath are accurate. But… a Covid-related action made us spend much less in real life. Let me explain. With our Chase credit card, Mark and I have been collecting points over the years, accumulating to $1,500 in cash last month. Usually, we save the points and use them for flights to Boston or Belgium. Well, that isn’t happening anytime soon, so we considered alternative benefits. At the same time, Chase announced that customers could redeem points during the pandemic for 1.5 times their value when paying for groceries and dining out, retroactive for 90 days. Our $1,500 instantaneously turned into $2,250!

Mark and I jumped on the offer, waving grocery and restaurant expenses from the previous three months and using points for all our current grocery shopping and take-out meals. To put things in perspective, a $30 food order, for example, costs us $20 as only that equivalent of points is redeemed. It’s a bit of an accounting nightmare, so I’m keeping the spending numbers in my reports equal to what we paid, not incorporating the “free money”. But, based on this fortunate turn of events, we only spent $410 of real money last month and a few hundred dollars less than recorded in February, March , and April as well.

Sorry for the confusion, but I added this explanation to provide total transparency about our expenses. At the end of the year, I will have to post two sets of numbers because of the generosity of our credit card company during these challenging times. Thank you, Chase!

June 2020 Overview:

Groceries:

Alcohol:

Camper (diesel: $87; maintenance: $17):

Dog (food: $35; health: $58):

Health & Fitness (vitamins):

Utilities (phone: $35; Skype:$5):

Dining out (pastries):

Accommodation:

 

TOTAL:

 

$412

$117

$104

$93

$56

$40

$15

$0

———

$ 837

To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the expense blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

I hope my American friends and family are enjoying their Independence Day Weekend. The three of us had a mellow social-distanced BBQ with my brother-in-law and his family yesterday.

Monthly Expenses – May 2020

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.

The entire period, Mark, Maya, and I lived in a room with en-suite bathroom and a makeshift “kitchen” in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Zesty was parked in the driveway, feeling neglected. Apart from getting a thorough cleaning inside and out and having a few parts replaced or fixed. No diesel cost, but May is when our annual camper insurance is due, generally making it the most expensive month of the year.

The weather wasn’t great. Being cooped up affects Mark more than me. I’m always busy with one or another writing or editing project (or attempting to make headway with my travel memoir – choosing an editor last month), happy with prolonged computer time. Walks with Maya in town involved crossing the road often to avoid pedestrians and keeping at least 6 feet distance when passing on the trails.

Mark found a forested, dog-friendly park ten minutes away from our home base, so he often drove Maya there for a hike. Her itchiness has improved since Florida, but we needed another bottle of Apoquel, which set us back $175 for 100 pills. It’s the cheapest option for this anti-itch medicine. Other “extra” expenses in May included flowers for my mother-in-law and one take-out dinner from a local burger joint.

As often, our camper van is the most expensive category in this monthly report, but June should be better!

May 2020 Overview:

Camper (insurance: $1118; maintenance: $294):

Groceries:

Dog (drugs: $175; treats: $8):

Utilities (phone):

Dining out:

Gifts (Mother’s Day):

Clothing (flip flops Mark)

Household (propane outdoor grill):

Postage:

Alcohol:

Accommodation:

 

TOTAL:

 

$1,412

$327

$183

$35

$20

$18

$11

$8

$1

$0

$0

———

$ 2,015

To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the expense blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Self-isolation X2

A lot has been said – and written – about this recent pandemic and its affects. I shared a few posts about it myself, here (how it influenced our lifestyle in mid-March), here (what we still managed to squeeze in, sightseeing-wise), here (in relation to our expenses), and here is where I left off on April 1st.

(Click on photos to enlarge or hover over them for captions.)

Self-isolation Take One

After a few hits and misses at several parks and boondocking spots and a failed week-long hotel splurge in Hilton Head, we checked out our “last resort” in decent weather: the free campground at Santee Coastal Reserve in South Carolina. The entrance road was serene and welcoming, but we didn’t settle – mentally or physically – until we arrived without any “No camping due to COVID-19” signs blocking our progress.

The campground was quiet and peaceful. No amenities, which means no restrooms, water, electricity, sewer, or trash. Pack it in, pack it out. That might have been the reason why this place was still open – the workers weren’t at risk cleaning facilities. We found a roomy, relatively private campsite with sun for the solar panels and shade for the camper, a picnic table, and a fire ring.

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IWSG Writing Update April 2020 – Coronavirus Status

Every first Wednesday of the month, the IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group) engages writers to share their fears, thoughts, progress, struggles, excitement, encouragement, or anything really, about their writing. A different question is posed each month as a writing prompt. Answering it is optional.

For April, the question is: “The IWSG’s focus is on our writers. Each month, from all over the globe, we are a united group sharing our insecurities, our troubles, and our pain. So, in this time when our world is in crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic, our question is: how are things in your world?”

This amazing, supportive group of writers was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Today, the co-hosts are Diane Burton,JH Moncrieff,Anna @ Emaginette,Karen @ Reprobate Typewriter,Erika Beebe, and Lisa Buie-Collard.

((After the park ranger told us Wood Lake Campground would close (see last photo of my previous post), she recommended another spot in the forest where we would be able to boondock (primitive camp for free), showing it on her map, from a safe distance. Based on the amount of bugs and the lack of cell service in Apalachicola National Forest, FL we decided to move on.))

My answer to the question (How are things in your COVID-19 world?)

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