The MOWOSP (Month Without Spending)

This is happening.

THE GOAL: 

Save. Save. Save. 

Sustain, and possibly enhance a healthy-ish lifestyle.

Find clever ways to cut spending.

Stick with it! While money is important, the commitment is even more so. 

THE RULES: 

Does this need mentioning? Dining out, drinking out, or any unneeded spending—of any kind—is out of the picture.

Vital exemptions to The MOWOSP: Food, water, and shelter. (But very limited, indeed.) 

Water, gas, and electric will be staying. (I have an obligation to the utility companies as well as a roommate who'd dislike dining in the dark.)

Shelter- You get the idea.

Food is a bit trickier. Previous MOWOSPers seem to have stockpiled food in a spending rampage prior to go-time. (Which sounds a bit like an addict's binge week before rehab, right?) And again, my personal goal is to do this MOWOSP in a healthy fashion, so keeping fresh ingredients is a must. 

Food rations for week #1 are already in my fridge, and I'll take out a small amount of cash to use for the remaining 3 weeks. 

Transportation- Necessary for making-money purposes, one tank of gasoline will be rationed for the month. (Which hurts just thinking about.) 

Miscellaneous: Doctor's appointments ($10 per visit) and my gym membership ($28 for the month) are things I've pegged as necessities. While that last one is usually the first to be kicked off a budget, I'm keeping it around for a few reasons. Firstly, it actually COSTS money to cancel; and secondly, swimming, which unlike running or a team sport, is particularly hard to do on the street. To add a bang to my buck, I'll be able to take advantage of their other activities like volleyball and old-lady water aerobics. 

Exciting.

Alright.

GO.

Up next:

Dinner—Sponsored By The Samples On Toothpicks At Kroger.

Stay tuned.