Frugality

Here is a breakdown of my income for April.

Interest	$111.14
Dividends	$8.33
Job	$672.87
Social Casinos	$532
Cash Back	$182.19
eBay	$836.66
Other Selling	$90
Sportsbooks	$125.87
Class Actions	$96.56
Surveys	$19.14
Amazon Merch	$4.15
Mystery Shop	$10
Capital Gains	$1148.97
Total	$3837.89

April income was good. It was much higher than I expected since I only had one paycheck.

Dividend income came in at $8.33.

Interest income was $111.14.

I made $836.66 from eBay and $90 from other selling.

I made $182.19 from cash back.

I made $672.87 from job income. I’ve been having a difficult time getting placed on projects this year so I’ve ramped up my side hustle income.

I made $532 from social casinos.

I made $19.14 from surveys.

I made $125.87 from sportsbooks. The promos are beginning to dry up. This source of income will go down unless I can figure out another way to profit from the sportsbooks.

I made $96.56 from class actions, $4.15 from Amazon Merch, and $1148.97 from capital gains. I sold all stocks in my Robinhood and Webull accounts and used the proceeds to contribute to my Roth IRA. This will result in my dividend income being lower the rest of the year. Next year, I’ll turn 59.5 and will be able to take income from my Roth IRA tax-free. When that happens, I’ll count the dividend income from my Roth as income.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for December.

Household	$558.28
Utilities	$228.40
Entertainment	$10.28
Transportation	$94.50
Food	$577.92
Health	$116.97
Travel	$1146.24
Phone	$15
Total	$2747.59

December’s expenses were once again rather high. This month’s expenses should be lower although still higher than I’d prefer since we’ll be traveling the last two weeks of the month.

Entertainment expense was for one month of Peacock, Hulu, and Prime. I let my Paramount Plus deal expire since I don’t have enough time to watch everything as it is.

My transportation expense consisted of $94.50 for three tanks of gas.

Food expense was $577.92. That is divided between $370.71 for groceries and $207.21 for restaurants. That is way too high. I’ll lower this expense this month. We’ll be traveling the last two weeks of the month which will complicate things. Food is cheap in Thailand though, so I still expect to lower this expense significantly.

Travel expense came in at $1146.24. That was for a cash flight for two to Thailand, seat selection fees on one flight, and the award taxes on a flight for two from Thailand back to the U.S. This will be less this month, although I still have to buy several intra-Thailand flights and several hotel nights, so it won’t be too low

Utilities came in at $228.40. This was for electric, water, trash and internet. This was about the same as last month. It should be a little bit lower this month since we won’t have a trash bill.

Household expense came in at $558.28. This was mostly for my Missouri Bar annual enrollment fee.

I spent $15 for one month of phone service for my wife.

The $116.97 spent on health was for a walking pad and my BP medicine.

This month will be another expensive month, although it should be less expensive than December. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for December.

Interest	$201.6
Dividends	$19.62
Job	$2880.36
Other Selling	$61.69
Cashback	$21.30
Ebay	$12.10
Credit Card Bonus	$25
Amazon Merch	$4.51
Total	$3226.18

December was a decent income month.

Dividend income came in at $19.62.

Interest income was $201.6.

I made $12.10 from eBay and $61.69 from other selling. I currently don’t spend much time on this since it is more profitable to spend that time working at my job.

I made $21.30 from cash back.

I made $2880.36 from job income.

I had a credit card bonus of $25. That bonus was for adding an authorized user to my account. I don’t usually bother with such low bonuses, but this one was easy to do.

This month should be a little higher since I will have five paydays.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for December.

Household	$792.08
Mortgage/Apt	$0
Utilities	$292.92
Entertainment	$45.27
Transportation	$135.90
Food	$322.62
Visa	$0
Health	$21.52
Travel	$95
Phone	$20
Total	$1725.31

December’s expenses were a little high. This month’s expenses will probably be about the same.

Entertainment expense was for one month of Amazon Prime, one month Hulu, one month of Netflix, and dinner out for my wife’s birthday.

My transportation expense consisted of $133.04 for gas and $2.86 for tire valve caps.

My food expense was $322.62. That is divided between $276.65 for groceries and $45.97 for restaurants. That is almost exactly the same as last month. I hope to get this under $300 for this month.

Travel expense was $95. That was the annual fee for my Chase Sapphire card. I should get at least $95 in value out of the card this year.

Utilities came in at $292.92 This was for electric, internet, and trash. This month will be a little lower since I won’t have a trash bill.

Household expense came in at $792.08 which is much higher than usual. A big chunk of this was the $418.45 I spend on the Missouri Bar annual fee. I’d rather not pay that fee, but I’ve got to stay an actively licensed attorney to keep my job. The rest was spent on Christmas presents and household stuff.

I spent $20 for one month of phone service and add-on data for my wife.

The $92.57 spent on health consisted of $61.46 for an insurance premium and $22.43 for medicine. This month might be a lot higher. We had and ER visit last month, that I’m not sure how much will be covered.

This month’s expenses will probably be about the same since I will have some medical bills due. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for October.

Interest	$289.59
Dividends	$19.81
Job	$2996.32
Other Selling	$18.74
Cashback	$32.97
Ebay	$94.41
Brokerage Bonus	$100
Total	$3551.84

October was another solid income month.

Dividend income came in at $19.81.

Interest income was $289.59 This will decline this month since interest rates have gone down, and I don’t currently have any money in a CD or other instrument that earns higher interest than my savings accounts.

I made $94.41from eBay and $18.74 from other selling. I currently don’t spend much time on this since it is more profitable to spend that time working at my job.

I made $32.97 from cash back.

I made $2996.32 from job income.

I had a brokerage bonus of $100. I try to always be working towards one bank/brokerage bonus and a credit card bonus.

This month should be about the same. My job income might be a little smaller due to the Thanksgiving holiday.

How was your month?