Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
WELCOME TO HOW I Spend My Money, a series on The Journal that looks at how people in Ireland really handle their finances.
We’re asking readers to keep a record of how much they earn, what they save if anything, and what they’re spending their money on over the course of one week.
Are you a spender, a saver or a splurger? We’re looking for readers who will keep a money diary for a week. If you’re interested send a mail to money@thejournal.ie. We would love to hear from you.
Each money diary is submitted by readers just like you. When reading and commenting, bear in mind that their situation will not be relatable for everyone, it is simply an account of a week in their shoes, so let’s be kind.
Last time around, we heard from a marketing manager on €70K in County Clare. This week, a Data Analyst based in Limerick, earning €48.5K.
I currently live in Limerick in a house shared with two people. I work in a hybrid setup in Dublin.
I tend to put away around a €1,000 each month, but sometimes hidden costs (e.g., car repair) can come up and disrupt this.
In my spare time, I enjoy gaming, catching up with my family and friends and going on drives, especially on rainy nights (which I’m blessed with a lot here in Limerick).
I do love watching football and Formula 1, so they’re something I look forward to on the weekends.
Occupation: Data Analyst
Age: 30
Location: Limerick
Salary: €48,500
Monthly pay (net): €3,000
Transport: €300
Rent: €675
Household bills: €100
Phone bill: €11
Health insurance: Zero – company provides it
Groceries: €120
Subscriptions: €15
Haircut: €20
Money to support family: €400
Car Loan: €200
Gym: €38
Savings account: €1,000
***
7:30 am: Wake up, didn’t hit the snooze button and started getting ready for work.
8:00 am: Start work. Time to have a nice quiet and focused hour to begin with, before the Monday morning chaos begins.
10:15 am: Make myself some iced coffee and had fruits for breakfast. Caffeine and fruit are a nice combo as always.
10:30 am: Back to work again. Cue in the Monday blues.
1.00 pm: Make a tofu and veg stir fry for lunch. Colourful, tasty and nutritious.
2.00 pm: Back to work. Time to get things done again.
3:45 pm: Take a break to move around and rest the eyes. I love how nice these breaks feel, especially to the eyes.
4:00 pm: Back to work. Finishing things up and noting down tasks for tomorrow.
4:30 pm: Log off of work for the day. End of Monday. Always a nice feeling to have.
5:30 pm: Take the bus to the gym (€1.00). Call my mom and grandma on the way, keeping the time zone difference in mind. I enjoy catching up with my family whenever I can.
6.00 pm: Work out. Promised myself I’ll eat something healthy after this.
8.00 pm: Oops! Ordered pizza for dinner (€16.00). I burned enough calories. So, it’s well earned.
9.00 pm: Nightly gaming session with friends. Fun, laughs, banter. Nice de-stressor.
12.00 am: Off to sleep. Time to catch some shut-eye.
Today’s total: €17.00.
7:00 am: Wake up. I’m excited as I’m gonna meet a friend I haven’t seen in months.
7:30 am: Meet a friend for coffee (€4.50). A mocha while seated on a bench outside. It’s not raining either. Love it.
8:00 am: Start work. As usual, the first hour is my quiet one, where I have a glance and plan the day ahead.
10:15 am: Make some chai. A good cardamom chai/tea is a blessing for the soul.
10:30 am: Back to work. Time to use the caffeine and clarity of mind to my advantage.
12:00 pm: Take a break to walk and stretch. Important to do this; otherwise, the neck and back just keep hurting.
12:15 pm: Feels nice after, my body doesn’t feel as stiff anymore. Time to head back to my desk and continue with work.
1:00 pm: Make mushroom curry for lunch and dinner. For all you mushroom lovers out there – try mushroom and peas curry. Simply wonderful. I had it with protein wraps.
2:00 pm: Back to work. Second half of the day to commence now.
3:30 pm: Take a break to stretch. Target the neck this time. Feels good now.
3:45 pm: Back to work. Final push now. I feel quite motivated at this stage of the day.
4:45 pm: End of work day. Switched off the screens and my laptops. A good day at work today.
5:00 pm: Clean the room. Give it a nice dusting too, and I like how clean it looks now. I think I’ll buy myself a robot vacuum as my birthday gift next time around.
5:30 pm: Buy potatoes bell pepper, chocolate biscuits, apple juice and blueberry yoghurt from the nearby Polonez store (€10.40).
6:00 pm: I am missing my sister and how fun it is to quarrel, so I decide to call her to see how she’s doing. And of course, trouble her too ;).
7:30 pm: Eat curry and wraps for dinner. Very convenient to have dinner done already. Feels like a treat of sports.
8:30 pm: Watch a show on Amazon Prime. Lay on the couch, wearing my blanket and enjoying the show. It’s called ‘Panchayat’.
9:30 pm: Gaming time. One of the things I look forward to the most.
11:00 pm: Lunch prep for tomorrow. Gonna make a nice Japanese meal tomorrow.
11:30 pm: Time for sleep. Not too much of a tiring day.
Today’s total: €14.90
7:00 am: Wake up and get ready. Last work from home day of the week.
7:45 am: Make some coffee to kick-start my day.
8:00 am: Take the coffee to my desk and set up laptop and screens. Time to begin work.
10:00 am: Break time. I walk around the house to get some movement in.
10:15 am: Heading back to my room. Got a meeting in 15, so I prepped for it before heading in.
1:20 pm: After back-to-back calls, I’m looking forward to cooking katsu curry and rice for lunch.
2:00 pm: After the delicious lunch, it’s time to work again.
5:00 pm: It’s been quite a busy day, but I finally got over the last of it. Time to log off for the day.
7:00 pm: Feeling hungry again, and it’s time for more curry and rice for dinner. Such a comfort food.
10:00 pm: Heading off to sleep. It’s earlier than usual. Gotta head to the office in Dublin tomorrow, which means waking up early.
Today’s total: €0.00
5:30 am: Getting up and time to get ready.
6:15 am: Leaving for driving to the office. Twice a week, in-person day at the Dublin office is now mandatory (that’s €30.00 for fuel and tolls, €3.00 for parking).
9:00 am: Reach the office through the traffic, just about and start work.
10:15 am: Buy a coffee at the workplace cafe (€3.50). It was an extra chocolatey mocha.
10:30 am: Meeting time. This is a long one. An hour and a half.
1:00 pm: Have lunch with my team at the staff cafe (€6.00). It was some bland curry, chips and steamed peas & carrots.
2:00 pm: Back to more Teams meetings while having to come to the office. So much for the return to office mandate for in-person collaboration, LOL. What a waste of everyone’s time, and money.
4:00 pm: Coffee with colleagues (€3.50). Good to see faces from other teams too and see what’s happening in their world.
5:00 pm: Finish work. I head off for my friends’ place to stay at their house. God bless them for letting me crash on their couch every week. It takes the pressure off me in terms of a long commute to Limerick and the cost of that. Not ideal long-term, though.
Today’s total: €46.00
7:30 am: Get up and get ready for work.
8:30 am: Drive to the office. Friday spaces are available for parking in the office. Free parking, woohoo!
8:45 am: Commenced work. Finally Friday, so that’s got me in a great mood.
10:00 am: I take a coffee break and met an old friend. Bought a mocha (€4.00).
10:30 am: Back to the work desk. Time for some more virtual meetings while being in the office.
1.00 pm: I buy lunch at the staff cafe. Lunches are a euro cheaper on Fridays (€5.00). It’s a pizza baguette today.
2.00 pm: Back to work again. A few hours left, then I can finally head home.
4.00 pm: Take a break. Took a refreshing walk around the green space in the office surroundings.
4:20 pm: Back to work. One last hour. Then Limerick. LET’S GOOOO!
5:30 pm: Time to drive back home to my beloved Limerick (€30.00 fuel etc).
8:00 pm: Make it home, finally. Freshen up and make some elderflower cordial water. Nice and refreshing.
8:15 pm: I eat dinner that my friend cooked for me and watch a movie with him.
10:30 pm: The phone falls on my face. Decide to call it a night and head to sleep.
Question to everyone: I could pull all-nighters regularly until recently. What happened the moment I turned 30 this year???
Today’s total: €39.00
7:30 am: I wake up because there’s the monthly maintenance stuff at work.
8.00 am: Start work.
9:30 am: Finish work and head back to bed to catch some shuteye.
11:00 am: I wake up and head for a drive to Leenaun. Enjoy the drive. I sit by the river and enjoy how beautiful summers in the Wesht are.
1:00 pm: Head off to Limerick.
2:30 pm: I reach home and made some daal and rice for lunch (€9.00 total fuel cost).
4.00 pm: Saturday is up-skilling study time. Studied how I can derive insights and visualise data better. Basic stuff, but still quite a lack of it in the real world.
6.00 pm: I speak to my folks back at my home on the way to the gym.
7.00 pm: Work out. I’m a fairly sedentary person, but I am trying to make some changes to better take care of my body.
8:30 pm: Weekly grocery shopping time: 2L milk, 1kg yoghurt, pasta, onions, garlic, ginger, canned chickpeas, baby corn, tenderstem broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, bananas, easy peelers, blueberries, strawberries, bread, tofu, pasta sauce, cheddar cheese slices and a packet of Taytos (€40.00).
9:30 pm: Reach home and have Tayto sandwiches for dinner.
9:45 pm: Read a book.
10:30 pm: Gaming time. I love this time of the night.
1.00 am: Binge a show on Netflix. Better Late Than Single. Started off as quite wholesome, but definitely got some drama later on. It’s one of the nicest reality shows without the cringe that comes with a 10/10, would recommend.
6.00 am: Definitely time to sleep.
Today’s total: €49.00
12:00 pm: Wake up.
1:00 pm: Make a tea and have some cookies with it for breakfast.
2:00 pm: Watch Formula 1 race. It was a meh kinda race. I’ll take it. Could be a lot more boring. I’m looking at you, Monaco. Over hyped, boring race.
5:00 pm: Make burritos to eat for dinner.
6.00 pm: Have dinner. Feel quite lazy today, so I might call it a night early.
9:00 pm: Off to sleep early. No gaming tonight.
Today’s total: €0.00
What I learned –
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say