The "Philanthropic" Mission to Mars

Fair Warning: this post is going to have a lot of sarcasm, but there's going to be a point at the end, I promise!

Yesterday on my lunch break, I checked out my CNN app to see what news (other than Pope Benedict's retirement) was making headlines. I saw this headline: Group aims to send 2 humans on Mars mission in 2018. Of course I was intrigued! I was wondering if these two humans would be selected from among a pool of current astronauts or if there would be applications accepted from civilians. I am secretly hoping there is a reality show competition to select the two lucky people who will orbit around Mars for just over a year. Of all the silly things people do with their money, none seems more ridiculous to me than private space travel! Really, are you that bored with this planet that you want to try your sense of adventure on another?!

“It’s incredibly feasible. It’s not crazy talk," Taber MacCallum, CEO of Paragon Space Development Corp., told CNN.

Okay, "incredibly feasible" sounds like what I used to tell my mom when I was going to not only be a pro athlete, but play all four major professional sports. My mom told me it was impossible because the seasons overlapped. I always thought if Deion Sanders (or is it Leon Sandcastle?) could play two sports, why couldn't I play all four? I hadn't quite considered how to play hockey knowing I'm not a great skater, but Happy Gilmore still dreamed, right?! So I guess Taber is right, "it's not crazy talk" to think we can send two people on a 501 day space cruise around Mars and back.

 It would not involve landing on Mars, making the proposed journey infinitely easier than putting people on the planet's surface, which NASA wants to do later this century.

I was kind of disappointed when I read this sentence. First of all, I think it's kind of weak to take the "infinitely easier" journey around the planet instead of landing on Mars. I mean, you're spending almost a billion dollars on this mission, why not drop the extra few bucks on a landing? I guess this guy's motto is, "shoot for Jupiter, if you fall short you'll just orbit around Mars, which is infinitely easier than landing there." Secondly, NASA wants to put people on Mars later this century?! I thought we were done wasting government funds on space shuttles. [Also, if I may opine for a moment- don't those space shuttles get horrible fuel mileage and put out terrible CO2 emissions on their way out of the atmosphere we're trying to keep clean?!!! I get booed for driving a SUV and people think it's cool to send up space shuttles?!] Back to the issue at hand- NASA is a government funded program. We have such a federal budget crisis that we have to cut welfare programs, but we're optimistic we can land on Mars by 2100?! Maybe this is what's wrong with our government. While we have real problems back here on planet Earth, they're trying to find ways to explore other planets.

...founded the Inspiration Mars Foundation, a nonprofit organization spearheading this effort...

Please consider the Inspiration Mars Foundation in your annual charitable contributions. They dearly need the funds to keep their dream of sending underprivileged children to Mars alive!

“If you take existing chemistry and technology and add some improved technologies," MacCallum told CNN, "you can get a mission together.” A life support system also would have to be developed.

You have five years to improve the technology and develop the life support system. I'm sure that's a pretty feasible timeline.

Water and oxygen will be recycled in flight, so the crew will be drinking and breathing the same resources over and over throughout the journey, Inspiration Mars representatives said.

Sounds like they've already solved most of the life support problem. I'm going to start practicing my water and oxygen recycling and consumption now, on the off chance I'm selected for this mission. I wonder at what point you can't recycle it anymore? Also, where do we go to the bathroom; and will that waste be recycled also? Most importantly, will there be two separate rooms on this ship so when the couple (they want to send a husband and wife) get mad at each other- something that my wife and I try to do at least once every 500 days- they can go to another room and cool off?

"This is a challenging but attainable goal for advancing human ... knowledge. Now is the time."

You know what else is a challenging but attainable goal for advancing knowledge? Going to school! Schools in our country are seriously underfunded (I know, I'm married to a teacher) and this group thinks spending money on a mission to Mars is a great use of resources?! They could do far more good donating to public education than they ever will sending two people on a journey around Mars.

“This is a philanthropic effort to be done for America,” MacCallum said. It could be accomplished for under $1 billion, he said, a figure that’s cheap compared with the tens of billions of dollars a NASA landing on Mars would cost.

Oh, never mind, this is going to do a lot of good for America. I think someone needs to look up "philanthropy" in the dictionary!

Philanthropy: altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needy persons, by endowment of institutions of learning and hospitals, and by generosity to other socially useful purposes.

Maybe the couple going on the mission will be needy? I'm mostly hung up on the socially useful purpose of this mission. As we have been trying to make people aware, there are millions living in poverty in our country. This group has access to money and technology and instead of trying to help solve a real world problem, they are focused on sending TWO people into orbit around Mars and back. How much more socially useful would it be for these people to devote their resources and time to helping educate people living in poverty? This money could be better used to fund development programs in underprivileged areas of our country. What's better: giving people hope that one day we'll put a person on Mars or giving people hope that one day they and their family can rise above the cycle of poverty?

In the next five years how many people will die of nutrition related illnesses while this group is spending money trying to figure out how to keep TWO people alive on a space trip for 501 days?! (HINT: it's more than two!)

Besides laughing while reading this article, I wanted to scream obscenities at the people behind the intended trip "to" Mars. Are they that f---king ignorant of the plight of so many people on this planet that they think sending TWO of the over 6 BILLION of us on a round trip past Mars is going to be really "philanthropic"?! Maybe they're hoping for every person who visits their website Bill Gates will donate $1000 for their cause? He probably won't though, because Bill Gates is into real philanthropy (NOTE: I am not endorsing his charitable foundation, but he and his wife do work on real issues).

 It was noted that a 6-year-old boy already made a contribution, sending in $10 and calling this mission "my Apollo."

Poor kid- he could have done more good for humanity dropping that $10 on the sidewalk!

 

Date Night- Sponsored by Friends

We've spent a lot of time in our apartment the past two months. It's not that we haven't gone anywhere, it's just that with limited resources, it's difficult to justify the need to go out. Over the past couple of weeks, we watched some friends' kids a couple of nights, allowing them to go out with each other. In return, and not because we sought remuneration, one couple bought us gas for the car, and the other gave us a gift card to our favorite sushi restaurant. We also received a movie theater gift card for Christmas (that I made Alicia save!). Friday evening we went out to dinner and a movie for the first time in 2013.

We certainly couldn't have afforded dinner and a movie in our $1261 budget. Well, we could have, but it probably would have come at the expense of gas in the car, a late payment on the electric bill, or any number of other cuts. We've been pretty content to eat at home, even when it's been the same meal three nights in a row. An opportunity to get out of the house and eat food prepared by someone else was a welcome treat! I think we took for granted the ability to fit dining out and watching movies in our budget. We weren't always watching movies, but dining out had become a very big part of our lives.

I think I better see the link between obesity (and its related diseases) and poverty now. When you can only afford "value menu" offerings at fast food restaurants, have limited access to fresh and healthy food, no way of affording a gym membership, and feel worthless because our society values monetary wealth instead of people- the circumstances become overwhelming. Admittedly, even though we can technically "afford" to go out, limiting ourselves to a poverty level income has put us into a different frame of mind. The temptation to "cheat" is great, but the desire to understand the real problems facing people living in poverty is even greater. So, we've cut out parts of our "routine" such as date night because those things cost money we "don't have."

If it wasn't for the generosity of our friends, we would have spent Friday night enjoying a tuna noodle casserole (it's Lent after all!) and a movie on Hulu Plus. I'm grateful for our friends and their participation in this year of learning! Thanks Nick & Vanessa and Emil and Becca!

Two-fer

Two-fer

This post will be a two-fer: I have two topics I'd like to cover, both related to Lent, but since someone thinks I'm hogging the blogosphere, I'll combine them into one post.

Lent Begins

It's my favorite time of the year! I love Lent, Holy Week, the Triduum, and the Easter season! I love each season in its due time! Lent is a time of renewal and spiritual preparation for the most Holy mystery of Christ's death and resurrection. For most people, Lent is a time to give something up. I usually give something up during Lent and then factor the cost of that thing over a 40 day period and give the money to my parish. This year, I'm not giving anything up, but of course living in poverty is essentially already giving a lot of things up.

Fasting:

On Ash Wednesday, when we Catholics are obliged to fast, I came to the realization:

I fast twice a year because I'm obliged to.

There are too many who "fast" every day because they have 
no choice.

For years I have annoyingly corrected people who say, "I'm starving" because they haven't eaten all day. Nothing annoys me more than someone who has access to food complaining about normal hunger in such an exaggerated way. On Ash Wednesday as I walked down the sidewalk to work, I saw a homeless man who had apparently dug some Taco Bell leftovers out of the trash. I bet he was starving! Being on my fast, I thought about how hungry I would have to be to resort to eating out of a trash can. I'm sure if I hadn't eaten in days I could force myself to do it. Unfortunately, there are too many people who live in "food deserts"- places with little or no access to grocery stores offering fresh and affordable food. While these people aren't necessarily homeless, they are primarily in impoverished neighborhoods. Why open a grocery store in a poor neighborhood where theft, vandalism and other unprofitable activities will probably occur? Because poor people need to eat too!! 

My little brother and I have started a non-profit called E3 Community Development Corporation. Our vision is to: End cyclical poverty by resourcing urban communities. Our first project is called Garden Market. Garden Market will be a non-profit grocery store in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Nashville, TN. Our goal is to provide a community with access to fresh, affordable food, as well as looking at providing educational services in regards to nutrition and menu planning. Please consider donating to this cause.

Little Black Book:

Opposite the "Operation Rice Bowl" page for today is the Scripture and meditation. Today's Scripture was Matthew 6:19-21. The first line of the meditation really resonated with me:

There are days when I think I'm useless.

For a guy with chronic depression, this is sometimes a daily mantra. The second line of the meditation reinforced the point:

I can't seem to do anything worthwhile.

I feel that too! But then the author starts driving home a point I think most people living in poverty would say a big, "AMEN" to:

Says who? And measured by what standards? By the car I drive (or don't drive)? By the job I have (or don't have)? By the clothes I wear?

As I alluded to in my last post, I think the materialistic and consumer driven mindset our culture is geared toward creates a measure of "happiness" based on things. There is an attitude that people living in poverty can't be happy. I admit that sometimes I fall prey to that thought. Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor." Are they blessed with material possessions? Obviously not, because that would mean they probably aren't poor. But sometimes I think the poor are blessed because they have the ability to be happy with what they do have. While the rich are trading in their three year old car for a new one, the poor are happy to have a mode of transportation. While the rich stand in line for hours waiting to be the first to buy the latest smartphone, the poor are happy to have personal conversations with their family and neighbors. 

The meditation wraps up with this thought:

There are a hundred ways in which I measure the importance of myself and others in this life - the kind of job, car, house and clothes a person has. But come the kingdom, the only thing that matters is how we treat one another.

To quote Alicia: BOOM! The only thing that matters is how we treat one another. You have a million dollar home, a Corvette, make $400,000 a year and wear Armani suits? How do you treat the person who cleans your office? You rent an apartment, drive a '92 Oldsmobile, make $16,000 a year and wear Wrangler jeans? How do you treat the person whose office you clean? Rich or poor (and anywhere between), we have to treat each other with dignity and respect. We have to love one another (Read 1 John 3:11-18- talk about some "BOOM"). Love doesn't judge the man eating out of the trash can- love tries to help make sure no one has to eat out of a trash can. Love doesn't lust after the Corvette- love is happy with what it has.

Operation Rice Bowl

I thought I would blog again before Tim has ten more blogs before I get another one in!! Can y'all tell that I'm married to a writer?!! 

The Sunday before Ash Wednesday my parish gave each family The Little Black Book--which for those of you who don't know is a book that many Catholics like to use for meditations during Lent. The way the book is formatted is it usually gives a little fact, story, historical event that happened on that day and then it's followed by a Scripture and a short meditation. I had time in the morning so I thought I would go ahead a read today's meditation and story and the first thing I read was the following quote: 

'God destined the earth and all it contains for all people and nations so that all created things would be shared fairly by all humankind under the guidance of justice tempered by charity.'

 -Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. #69

I read that quote and I thought BOOM!! It doesn't say for all of you that are rich and educated...it doesn't say for all of you who live in the USA....nope it says ALL people and ALL nations!! So yes I hate to burst some of your bubbles but God destined this world for the poor and needy as well as those who are rich!! 

My second BOOM moment from this quote is the word fairly!! In case you missed it it says 'all created things would be shared fairly' So for all of you who walk pass the hungry or just don't want to think about them--how fair is that?!! For the lawmakers who have abandoned those who are less fortunate how fair is that?!! 

Third BOOM moment this is all to be taken place under the guidance of justice tempered by charity!! WOW...am I right?!! We as Christians are called to charity...and that doesn't mean that we just give to charity so we can get money back on taxes-in fact charity is so much more than that. Charity is showing those around you that you care for them in the simplest ways sometimes. It's writing a letter of recommendation....it's opening the door for people.....it's listening to them.... ultimately it's showing God's love! 

So after reading that kick butt statement the story went on to talk about Operation Rice Bowl. Operation Rice Bowl began as an idea of a group of Pennsylvania churchmen in 1975.  It was the idea of Msgr  Robert Coll, a Jewish rabbi, and Presbyterian,Episcopal, and Lutheran minsters. They developed this program due to a severe drought in the African Sahel.  The program's success encouraged them to be part of the 1976 Eucharistic Congress that was planned for Philly.  Later Cardinal Krol enlisted the help of Catholic Relief Services to sponsor Operation Rice Bowl.  Since this time Operation Rice Bowl has become an annual Lenten Practice in many dioceses.

So what is this practice that I am talking about?!! During Lent people place a cardboard container (many parishes hand these out) in their homes, and the money saved because of their fasting and the things they give up for Lent is put into the rice bowl. At the end of Lent, the bowl filled with the family's offerings is brought to Mass, and the money is used for development projects in poor nations and hunger relief in the local diocese. How awesome is that?!! I read that and I thought what an awesome idea that not only helps out locally but helps out nationally as well! I am constantly amazed how God takes this little idea from Pennsylvania and now look at hoe much it has grown!! Learn more about Operation Rice Bowl (wow, I sounded like a spokesperson for a minute there).

Until next time....Peace be with you!!

State of the "Union"

I will admit I did not watch the State of the Union speech last night. I almost never watch it no matter who the President is. I prefer to read the text of the speech instead. The reason I prefer to read it is purely practical- I can read it in about 15-30 minutes because I don't applaud after every sentence. Honestly, if the people in the Senate chamber would hold their applause until the very end of the speech, I'd watch it live. I would prefer to hear the President's voice reading the speech prepared for him. Reading the speech does provide one benefit- I can re-read lines of interest, skip the annoying "thanks Beyonce for singing (I mean lip syncing) at my inauguration" lines, and really gain a different insight on the speech. I can also read the opposition party's rebuttal speech immediately after, without having to watch endless news commentary.

And so I think the State of the Union is sadly broken. Our country is broken because we fail to address the causes of problems and think that "spending" and "incentives" are the way to solve them. Our country is broken because when one person offers a solution to the cause of a problem, another person dismisses it as "not the right way." Our country is broken because 535 men and women who were elected to represent us have forgotten where they come from. Well, not all of them- the representatives from wealthy districts seem to remember where they're from.

From the President:

I thought the speech was very well written, but I especially thought the part about poverty was applicable to this blog.

OBAMA: We know our economy’s stronger when we reward an honest day’s work with honest wages. But today, a full-time worker making the minimum wage earns $14,500 a year. Even with the tax relief we’ve put in place, a family with two kids that earns the minimum wage still lives below the poverty line. That’s wrong.

I see someone from Washington, D.C. has been reading! I am glad that a President finally had the courage to include this fact in a speech. For too long I think the assumption most people live under is that if you have a job you can't be impoverished. It's about time we all got a wake-up call in a nationally televised speech!

Tonight, let’s declare that, in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full time should have to live in poverty ...

While I can agree with the last part of the sentence, I don't think America is the wealthiest nation on Earth. In fact, Qatar is. America is number 7. Top 10 isn't bad, but can we finally show some humility and quit defining our country in superlatives?! We are a great nation, and I love living here. But I'm tired of us walking around with this bravado that says, "we're the best country in the world." Saying we're the "best," "wealthiest," "smartest" country doesn't leave us open to learning from other countries. I don't think Qatar's economic system would work here, but it works for them. It doesn't make them better than us, it doesn't make us better than them.

The point I'm trying to make is: we don't have an obligation to be the "best" in the world- we have an obligation to do what works best for our country and the common good both here and abroad. So I wholeheartedly agree that "no one who works full time should live in poverty." What saddens me most about the situation of the working poor is that a lot of these people aren't satisfied with their wages, but they know that some money is better than no money and don't have too many alternatives.

...and raise the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour. ... This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank, rent or eviction, scraping by or finally getting ahead. ...

I did the math on the $9 an hour, and that makes $18,720 a year. That's a $4,220 annual increase. That may not sound like much, but consider that a family of four with two full-time employed parents would earn an extra $8,440 a year, that could be the difference between a lot of things! Imagine if those families didn't need food stamps anymore- they could regain their dignity at the grocery store. Imagine if those families didn't need rent assistance- their children could go to school without worrying about having a home to return to that afternoon. Imagine if those families received financial counseling to help them save their extra income and invest for their children's education and their own retirement. Or...

 For businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money in their pockets.

Or we could promote the materialism and consumerism that have kept most people from getting ahead. I will probably devote an entire series to this topic in the future, so the short answer is: spending more money because you have more money leaves you with less money.

Then Someone Let Marco Rubio Talk:

In the spirit of not wanting the President to be right about anything, the Republicans let Marco Rubio (good thing he introduced himself, because I had no clue who he was) talk on their behalf. Most of Rubio's speech was typical, "the President's policies haven't worked, aren't working, and won't work" rhetoric. I think everyone can see the constant hypocrisy in Rubio's speech- e.g.- Medicare needs cut in order to balance the budget, but, "it pays for the care my mother receives now." I'll let the left-leaning Internet blogosphere torch the speech. I thought the only thing Rubio said that offered anything positive to the discussion on the State of the Union was this:

The real cause of our debt is that our government has been spending 1 trillion dollars more than it takes in every year. That’s why we need a balanced budget amendment.

All sarcasm aside- okay, quick sarcastic comment: REALLY?! Our government is in debt because we spend more money every year than we take in?! Is that how debt works?!

Okay, now all sarcasm aside- we've been hearing about a "Balanced Budget Amendment" since Bill Clinton was in office. It's been so bad for so long, I often quip, "if the government can deficit spend, why can't I?" We live on a balanced budget and we do just fine. Almost every corporation runs on a balanced budget. Every non-profit in the country has to operate on a balanced budget. Why can't our government live on a balanced budget?

Moving Forward

I don't pretend to have all the answers to fix our country. I do know that none of the President's vision for a better country will happen if we don't all start working together to make it happen. I think we can all agree that what's made our country great is our innovative spirit. I think what President Obama was trying to encourage in his State of the Union address was that we need to get back to that innovative, "can do" attitude. We are, after all, Ameri-CANs!

Bumpy Road

WARNING:  Prepare yourself for a bumpy ride!!  You may be wondering 1.) why must she always start with a caution or warning clause--because I like to prepare my reader! 2.) What the heck does  prepare yourself for a bumpy ride have to do with the poverty line--wait and you will see. 

As Tim so nicely posted (like I said he loves to blog and he writes so much better than I do!) we are a little over a month living at the poverty level. First I must say that it's been a little rough changing some of our habits -one of our habits that I miss a lot it going out for all you can eat sushi. I know it sounds stupid and a little selfish--but I miss sushi--it's too expensive under our current budget and therefore it's been cut out of the budget all together.  We would usually go out for sushi at least once a month and it's hard when Tim ask "what do you want for dinner?" on a Friday not to say sushi! Wow that was a lot of rambling about sushi--I apologize--my point is this it's been an adjustment to change some of our habits because we now realize that if we did go out where in the budget would we pull it from.  So sushi will have to wait until later!

I have realized that I am a person that stresses over money--I always have! One of the reasons is because as a child I watched my parents struggle from paycheck to paycheck and they did the best they could to get by. When we made the decision to live at the poverty line I think the stress is getting worse because all I think about is how much money do we still have left in the budget.......if I buy a 2 liter is that going to jacked up the grocery budget...do I go to the doctor's because that is a $20 co-pay and if he prescribes a non generic that's going to cost some money....and that was NOT in the budget! So the stress just continues to grow and grow until I have a mini break down and that's never pretty. 

So yes I had my first mini break down the other day--I knew it was bound to happen!! Tim told me that after we pay the car payment we would only have $90 left in the budget--this must include gas for the jeep and didn't include groceries! Well to those who know me I  heard $90 and that includes gas and I was like well really we don't have that much then because we have class in no man's land for church this month--so there is $20  then we'll probably have to go ahead and top it off again--so really we have $50. Then my mind was like WTF are we going to do with $50--wow so much to do in Vegas for $50! I automatically went back to thinking great I'm going to be a hermit this month!  My husband calmed me down and reminded me that it would be OK and I wasn't going to become a hermit because we have been to friend's house and hung out which have cost us $0. 

I learned from my mini break down that I may be a little selfish and stubborn! I struggle with that because I like hanging out with my friends.....I like going out.....but then I just want to slap myself for having those thoughts because there are people in this world who are struggling worse than I am and I need to place myself in that situation when I feel this way. I need to remember the reason why we are doing this....it's not to just to save money for a down payment on a house....it's to experience how people have to make tough decisions like this daily who don't have a choice...or worse who don't know if they will get a paycheck the next day. It's to educate people that there are hard working people in this country that are still living on poverty because they are giving a fair wage or worse yet they are cut hours so their employer doesn't have to give them health insurance.  It's to make a change--it's to hopefully inspire more people to realize that we need to fight for those living in poverty and not just turn our heads and act like it doesn't exist  So, yes I realize that I have been a little selfish--but that's OK to some degree as long as I learned from it and realize that life goes on and if I have to tell some friends no I can't go out for sushi sorry--that I'll be OK!! 

I guess I should have warned you all that this was going to be one of those rambling post that may drive y'all crazy!! Well I kinda warned you with the whole hold on it's going to be a bumpy road bit.... 

Peace be with you all!

~Alicia~

For Real?!

I read an article last night about how two of the heirs of the Duke fortune were suspended from their private school because their trust fund didn't make the $25,000 tuition payments on time. The whole article is here.

First of all, I'm not anti- trust fund or wealth. I do find it ridiculous that someone is spending $25,000+ on high school education, but it is a parent's right to decide where their children attend school. I would also imagine if I were a young heir to a hefty fortune enrolling in public high school wouldn't feel like a welcome environment. I was picked on in school for being poor. I can imagine kids would be just as cruel to someone with an immense fortune awaiting them.

What really intrigued me about the article was the following:

 The bank requires extensive documentation of every request.

And some of those requests have been extreme. In 2010, Daisha asked for $50,000 for Christmas gifts, including a trip around the world for the twins. She also wanted $6,000 for a Halloween party. She says she spends $1,000 per month for her children to eat out, especially at Starbucks.

Records show that she receives more than $16,000 per month for living expenses, plus tuition, medical insurance, and more.

A $50,000 Christmas?! A $6,000 Halloween party?! $1,000 a month at Starbucks?! $16,000 a month for living expenses?!

I was shocked to read those numbers for two reasons. First, I have always been under the impression that while wealthy people do tend to spend a lot more than the "average" person, they don't typically spend so lavishly on frivolous things like parties and fast food. I have yet to run into Steve Wynn at Starbucks, and I'm guessing if he spends $6,000 on a Halloween party he throws that party at one of the nightclubs in his resorts and recoups his expenses with door fees and sales. My understanding of how wealthy people view the world is that everything is an opportunity to make more money (maybe I've just watched too many episodes of "Shark Tank" though).

Second, and most disturbing to me was the $16,000 a month for living expenses. I was floored to see that someone needs to spend in one month what Alicia and I will be scraping by on for this entire year. That's $192,000 for the year. Not including the Starbucks budget of course (+$12,000 for the year). All tallied up, but not including school bills (because I'm guessing the $25,000 isn't the whole tuition), these annual expenses add up to the total poverty level income of 17 couples. Honestly, if 17 couples have no choice but to live on roughly $15,000 a year, I don't know how someone can feel like being denied a $6,000 Halloween party is an outrage!!

I would love to see a billionaire (or even millionaire) try to live at the poverty line. If anyone personally knows any millionaires or billionaires who are philanthropically inclined, share this blog with them and see if they'd be willing to accept the challenge.

Month One Summary

We're a few days overdue with this, but we managed to survive our first month living at the poverty line. $1260.84 doesn't go much farther than you think it would. We did make room for the few exceptions from the poverty line budget: student loan payments, credit card payments, travel expenses related to a previously planned trip for my sister's wedding, and a business expense involved with maintaining my online portfolio/site.

Overall, we ended up spending all but $7.94 of our budget allowance. We allotted ourselves a $200 grocery "food stamp" allowance, and spent only $187.91 of that.

For most of the month, we made a menu for each week before we went grocery shopping. That helped us make sure we only bought the items we needed and quantities that guarded against waste. We ate a lot of leftovers! We packed lunches for work.

The first 31 days of living in poverty was an adjustment for us in a lot of ways. We used to hop in the car and go to the mall or shopping centers even just to walk around. Because we have to stretch our gas tank more, we've eliminated those needless trips. We used to just go out for dinner or pick up something for lunch. With our "food stamps" those are not possibilities unless we take money from elsewhere.

I've copied in our budget from January below. The only columns I left out were those which we have previously mentioned we excluded. We do tithe (give 10%) our income to our parish, and I didn't put those numbers in here, because those are based on our actual income, not our "poverty" income.

Month:
January		Budget	Actual	Difference
1st-15th
Income:		$630.42	$630.42	$0.00
Expenses:
	Rent	$491.00	$486.28	$4.72
	Gas (Auto)	$40.00	$40.01	-$0.01
	Sprint	$165.00	$161.99	$3.01
	Progressive	$80.00	$80.17	-$0.17
	Hulu	$7.99	$7.99	$0.00
	Misc.	$50.00	$64.76	-$14.76
	Doctor	$50.00	$20.00	$30.00
	Total	$883.99	$861.20	-$22.79
	Difference	-$253.57	-$230.78	-$22.79
16th-31st
Income:		$630.42	$630.42	$0.00
Expenses:
	Electric	$90.00	$84.10	$5.90
	Gas (Auto)	$40.00	$40.10	-$0.10
	Car Payment	$189.00	$185.86	$3.14
	Internet	$55.00	$53.99	$1.01
	Misc.	$50.00	$27.65	$22.35
	Total	$424.00	$391.70	$32.30
	Difference	$206.42	$238.72	$29.70
	Income:	$1,260.84	$1,260.84	$0.00
Monthly Total:	Expenses:	$1,307.99	$1,252.90	$55.09
	Difference:	-$47.15	$7.94	$55.09