For the first time in a long time, we spent the weekend at home. We decided about a week ago that we were long overdue for just taking it easy and staying home on a weekend. We had absolutely nothing on the agenda for the entire weekend which was both good and bad. My wife would call it a good thing. She’s much more comfortable just floating along through the weekend doing whatever comes to mind. Unfortunately I’m not very compatible with that approach and was continually looking for things to do. I cleaned the garage, trimmed all the hedges and bushes in the front yard, mowed the lawn, and washed the cars. It was nice to get some of the chores done but I kept wondering, "Gosh, I bet it’s more fun at the lake" or "I wonder what everyone at the lake is doing?". Yes, I know, it’s not a very healthy way to live your life. I tried to focus on the moment and did have a ton of fun spending time with my wife and daughter but I guess I just have one of those personalities that can’t sit still.
The other thing that probably made me feel a bit caged up is that we agreed ahead of the weekend that we wouldn’t mindlessly spend any money. (Shouldn’t this always be the goal?) We did spend a little money on groceries but we steered clear of Costco, where we are always at risk of spending too much. The one free thing that we did this weekend was we drove down to the north end of Boeing field in Seattle and watched all the airplanes, including the Blue Angels, take off over our heads for the Seafair air show. It was very cool to watch fighter jets take off right over our heads and feel the rumble of their massive engines.
We also didn’t spend any money at restaurants this weekend. As part of our "watch what you spend" weekend, we opted to cook steaks from the freezer on the barbeque and we enjoyed fresh vegetables from our local fruit and vegetable stand. A nice steak with corn on the cob and baked beans really hit the spot and was a LOT cheaper than buying a comparable meal at a restaurant. The total cost of the meal was around $6.00 for all three of us to eat. I have to admit, I think it tasted a little bit better knowing that it was a $6.00 meal instead of a $50 meal.
Our emergency fund is starting to build back up. For every thousand dollars that it increases I think my financial stress level goes down two notches. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a walking stress ball about it but I do like the security that a pile of money in the bank brings. Other than that, not too much going on for us. We, like many others, are watching the economy and the price of gas. All the indicators point to some tough times ahead. Gas is coming down but the overall economy doesn’t look too rosy. If we can both keep our jobs through all of the drama, I’ll be a happy camper.