Day 33- Crazyness Ensues.

Sorry- Fell asleep before posting- oops... @10:34am

Can I start by just saying WOW!!!! I've been up about 28 hours straight now, so forgive me if this makes a bit less sense than usual. Right. So. Did you ever have something happen that was so totally unexpected that you couldn't quite believe it? That was yesterday. It's today too.

srs bsns

This was (is?) a blog mainly for me. That's kinda an important point here. I read a lot of people (on other sites- everyone here has been hugely supportive and sooo nice) who think I'm doing things wrong, or crazy, or illogically. But this is for me, first. I'll be happy if someone else is helped by this crazy thing I'm doing. Really though, if everyone went away tomorrow, I'd still be doing my thing here. Which is why they're my rules, I guess. So I totally welcome everyone here for entertainment, or education, or even just a chance to watch me crash and fail. But I won't change the way I'm doing things because of what other people think. I'm kinda stubborn like that.

So there have been a couple things that have come up in comments, and I will get to answering more of them later. Like why I'm blogging if I don't have a job, why I have internet, and why I'm not on food stamps. I'll answer those here, because they seem to be popular, and any others that come up a lot.

Why am I blogging? I wanted to do this year long food budget anyway, I have to eat even if I don't write about it, and it gives me a daily goal I can always meet. There might not be three new jobs to apply for, or seven new places to send a resume, but unless the power's out, I can get *something* up on here between 7 & 9 am, every day.

Why do I have internet if I'm so broke? Because it comes with the rent- sorta. I live with two other people, and the internet is split between the three of us. Even if I said I wanted to cancel it I'd still be out-voted. No cable in this house, so it's the household entertainment expense. *With* internet my rent, utilities and internet comes to $370 a month. I'm comfortable with that.

Why am I not on food stamps? I'm not broke because I'm out of a job. I was broke with a job too. I'll still be broke after I have a job, and there will be no food stamps then. Until I pay off a (rather embarrassing) collection of student loans and credit cards I'll be broke. I'd rather eat less expensive food than have to send someone else a check for what amounts to a decent mortgage payment a month forever. Chronicling it here just keeps me accountable- to myself.

While I'm sure I *could* put the 4 to 8 dollars a month I spend on lotto tickets into food instead, it would more likely go to gas for my car. I get more enjoyment out of the "what-if" game then I would utility out of 2 gallons of gas. Every budget has to have some squish. This is some of mine.

And I cheat because I'm getting used to living with a real food budget. Sometimes it's tougher than I expect to say no to something I would have said yes to so wildly two months ago. I was also spending more than $200 a month on food just for me two months ago. This isn't just a one month thing. It's tough to change habits. I'm working on it. I'm not perfect. Neither is anyone else. I'd rather I record it as it happens, then lie about it more.

Ok, now that business is over- I'm glad you all found me, even if I really wasn't expecting it.

Food

Would you believe me if I said yesterdays breakfast of oatmeal was the easiest thing to eat all day? People started showing up in scary numbers after that, and freaking out had an effect on my appetite.

But by lunch time it was very time to eat. So I made what turned into goofy fried rice.

Sorta Fried Rice

• 2C leftover rice
• 2T water
• 1C cabbage, chopped
• 1/4 C or less onion, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• Oil for frying
• salt to taste
• splash or two soy sauce

heat oil in a pan over medium high heat. add veggies and salt to pan, flipping or stirring to cook them evenly without burning them. Turn the stove temperature down if you have to. Cook until the cabbage is wilted and any other veggies or other items are done cooking.

break left over rice into a bowl or plate. mix in water. Microwave until warmed through. pour veggies onto rice, mix in. Add soy sauce, mix more, eat.

makes 2+ c food.

Optional extras-

• Meat or tofu- add chunks to pan before vegetables.
• egg- make scrambled with no milk. Mix in when veggies and rice a mixed.
• Any other veggie you can get your hands on.

I have a photo of the veggies cooking, but I'm crashing fast. I'll try to get it up by noon.

I ate as much as I could manage, between going "squee" and hitting refresh. I'll be eating it for breakfast as well, since I still hadn't finished it before I went out for the night.

Where I stole three fries off a friend of a friend's plate, and had two sips of a hard cider. Did you know that eating cabbage all day makes cider taste like puke? Tasted fine to everyone else.

I'll get those receipts up, really. Soon. It's just really boring to take pics of them, and a pain to get them clear and readable.

And to family and friends out there- I really do have plenty of food. Really.