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 an office manager on €45K living in Dublin. This week, a part-time adult educator on low pay living in Leinster.

I wrote a Money Diary before and thought I would write another one. I’m still living in Leinster (for now anyway). I live less than a 10-minute walk from a train station which is great. The train is fairly efficient and cheap and I don’t like driving.

I still work part-time in adult education. The pay is low but there have been some contractual changes recently which should yield a small increase. As tutors, there has not been a pay increment for about nine years. I’m not a teacher so I’m on a different contract.

I started going to a gym about a year ago to help manage stress and anxiety. I joined for a month and I’m still there. I go five to six times a week, it’s now part of my daily routine.

My social protection claim for the summer months has yet to be processed. I am allowed to work two days a week and claim a casual payment for the other three days. The paperwork for this type of claim is lengthy and relies on other people to sign and date forms. I have not officially earned from my education role since mid July and my next pay date from education will be mid October.

I hit an obstacle with selling my house and that is taking longer to iron out than anticipated, I’m not in a huge rush but I do need to give myself a deadline.

Occupation: Part-time adult education tutor

Age: 51

Location: Leinster

Salary: Variable income

Monthly pay (net): Varies considerably – I averaged €1,800 gross per month last year from my salaried job. I have taken on some contract work that keeps me going during the summer and that pays about €200 per month for a few hours here and there

Monthly expenses

Transport: Varies. During the academic year, I drive much more but my car is fuel efficient and I use a fuel card, average €120 per month plus €30 per month for Leap Card

Rent: None – paid off my mortgage a few years ago but I do have property taxes of €30 per month

Life policy: €15, I don’t officially need life cover. This is the tail end of my original mortgage protection policy. I paid my mortgage off early and hung on to the policy as it was so cheap

Toll bridges: €10 approx

Household bills: Gas heating, electricity and property taxes – €100

Phone bill: €13.05 for mobile and €25 for broadband

Health insurance: None, it was proving very costly for not much in return so I pay for what I need to and claim it on my tax return.

Monthly prescription: €20

Health supplements, vitamins etc: €30-ish

Groceries: Varies but around €100 per week. I cook two to three times a week. I’m vegetarian and use a lot of beans and pulses instead of meat. I don’t eat out very often.

Subscriptions: $120 a year for a Cloud backup programme, $90 a year for money management software. Occasionally, I sign up for a month of Audible. During term time when I’m driving, I listen to audiobooks, but most of the time I use BorrowBox from the library for free. €7.99 per month for Netflix (this is something new I am trying)

Gym membership: €38 for roaming

Guilty pleasure: €30-€40 on coffee pods. If I order a certain amount per month, I get a free sleeve

Dentist: €50 per month

Car loan: €240, I have three months left

Winter months or during bad weather: €40-ish on laundry

Personal care: Probably €30 per month

Clothing: Hard to estimate as I tend to keep my clothes for ages but probably €30 a month

Annual expenses

Car insurance: €350

Home insurance: €341

Motor tax: €190

Bin charges: €90

Misc birthday gifts: €200

Garden maintenance: €600, I had some planting done and my gutters cleaned

Boiler service: €100

Parking: €60, I use Parking Tag as it’s cheaper but it does have a monthly maintenance cost so even when I am not using it, there is a small fee.

***

Monday

6.15 am: I’m an early riser and like to be up 6am-ish each morning. I like to start the day with some warm water and lemon and then coffee. I get to the gym first thing so that it’s done for the day. I alternate between resistance and cardio with yoga once a week for stretching.

7.00 am: Strength and conditioning today. I prefer to go to a class because it gives me structure.

8.30 am: Back home for some breakfast – I make porridge with berries and nuts. Tidy the house and plant some seeds that I got at the library for free.

12.30 pm: Lunch of eggs and vegetables.

2.00 pm: I have some paperwork to catch up with and I need to start preparing my lesson plans for September.

6.30 pm: Dinner. Baked potato with tuna.

7.30 pm: Watch a film on Netflix. Get some overnight oats ready for the morning.

10.45 pm: Head to bed.

Today’s total: €0.00

Tuesday

6.00 am: Up and head to the gym.

8.00 am: Back home for some breakfast. I have my overnight oats with berries and fruit.

10.00 am: Head to get some groceries and bring my plastic bottles to the reverse vending machine (€35). Mostly vegetables and some freshly baked rolls from Lidl for lunch. I buy some flowers for €3.99 included in my groceries. Once I get back home, I spend the morning doing some cleaning.

1.30 pm: Lunch – rolls from Lidl with hummus and guacamole.

3.00 pm: Run some errands, return some books to the library and do my glass recycling.

7.30 pm: Make some vegetable risotto for dinner and ring a friend for a chat.

10.00 pm: Get my overnight oats ready and head to bed.

Today’s total: €35.00

Wednesday

6.00 am: Up at my usual time and have some warm water and lemon. I am heading to Galway for one night to catch up with some friends. I head to the gym for some resistance training first.

8.00 am: Back home for breakfast. I finish getting my things ready and take the train into the city centre to catch the train to Galway. My friend is collecting me on arrival. I booked my ticket last week for €15 each way. I have included this in my total for today even though I booked the train tickets last week. It’s about two-and-a-half hours by train to Galway. I spend most of the trip reading a book on my Kindle. Much as I love physical books, Kindle is very handy for travelling as it hardly takes up any space and only needs charging about once every two or three weeks.

3.00 pm: Arrive at Galway train station and my friend collects me. We get some groceries on the way to her house and spend most of the afternoon and evening catching up. Groceries and wine come to €50.

7.30 pm: Cook dinner for us both and tidy up. We continue chatting and sharing the bottle of wine bought earlier.

11.00 pm: My eyes are closing so I head to bed.

Today’s total: €80.00

Related Reads

Money Diaries: A sales team leader on €60K living in Dublin

Money Diary: An insurance manager on €95K in Dublin

Money Diary: A primary school teacher in Munster settling into summer pace

Thursday

7.00 am: Up a little later than usual but I still start the morning with some warm water. No gym this morning.

8.00 am: We both head out for a walk along the sea. The weather is not great and the wind is very strong but despite that, we walk for about an hour. So glad I brought a hat, even though it is supposed to be summer in Ireland!

9.00 am: Back to my friend’s house for some breakfast. I cook up some poached eggs on toast with coffee.

11.00 am: We are accountability buddies for each other and have a sort of impromptu mastermind session before she drops me to the train station.

6.00 pm: Back home. I did not bother with lunch as breakfast was quite substantial but I’m hungry now and cook up some vegetable stir fry using up any leftover vegetables in the fridge.

8.00 pm: Put some laundry on, get ready for tomorrow, tidy up and watch some Netflix.

10.30 pm: Head to bed.

Today’s total: €0.00

Friday

6.00 am: My usual start to the day with a trip to the gym. I never thought I’d say it, but I actually missed it. Even on the days that I really do not feel like going, I always feel better afterwards.

8.20 am: Catch the train to the city centre as I’m meeting a friend for breakfast. We both work in education and are preparing for our respective returns. We only get time to meet during the week during the holiday season. Breakfast comes to €40 for both of us. We split the bill. (€20)

11.00 am: I run some errands and pick up a gift for a friend (€20). Drop off my coffee capsules for recycling.

1.00 pm: Breakfast was pretty substantial, so I’m not really hungry at lunch time.

7.00 pm: Dinner is baked potato and some roasted vegetables.

8.00 pm: I watch some Netflix and book cinema tickets for tomorrow with a friend. I pay for the tickets, she offers to get them next time. (€20)

Today’s total: €60.00

Saturday

6.30 am: I tend to get up at the same time each day – seven days a week – where possible. This has helped me regulate my sleep pattern and it’s good for my mental health.

9.30 am: Head to yoga.

12.00 pm: Brunch at home of poached eggs on toast and coffee.

5.00 pm: Head to the cinema to meet a friend. I bought the tickets yesterday. I put fuel in the car (€35). Parking is free.

6.00 pm: Meet friend at the cinema.

8.30 pm: We have a bite to eat and split the bill, and I drop my friend home as it’s on my way. (€20)

Today’s total: €55.00

Sunday

6.30 am: Up I get, as usual. Breakfast is coffee and fruit.

10.00 am: Gym again.

11.30 am: Back home, sort some laundry and do some food shopping for the next few days. Spend €30 on groceries.

1.30 pm: Lunch – eggs on toast.

5.00 pm: Clear my desk. Check receipts, bank statements, etc.

7.00 pm: Rice and veg for dinner and some Netflix.

10.00 pm: Bed and ready for the week ahead.

Today’s total: €30.00

Weekly subtotal: €260.00

***

What I learned –

• No two weeks are the same for me. My schedule is very different during term time.
• Despite being mortgage-free, a home incurs costs: maintenance, insurances and taxes, but it does give me some mental freedom.
• Netflix can be addictive. I gave up “doom scrolling” because it was not good for my mindset.
• I am really lucky to have a small group of close friends.
• I work better with deadlines. I am probably more productive during term time as I have a really tight schedule to stick to but mentally the break over the summer is important.
• I am more of a morning person and prefer to meet people for breakfast or brunch rather than in the evening.
• I was probably too conservative with my estimation of expenses last year.
• I need to increase my income and still keep putting off looking at being more strategic with my retirement plan.
• Joining a gym was one of the best investments in my mental and physical health I have ever made. Even though I am doing more laundry, my electricity bill has decreased slightly as I have an electric shower that I hardly use.