My grandma gave me $20 for my birthday/x-mas. I thought it could be interesting to track the money and see what all it could accomplish for me. So here is a brief image to show you what all I bought with the money.
Full inventory:
$1.75::Medium coffee from McDonalds for the commute to work
$20 - $1.75 = $18.25
$1.25::Bus Fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Westholme Ave. to Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly Blvd. (2.5 miles)
$18.25 - $1.25 = $17.00
$7.75::Groceries for the week including:
-Three Navel Oranges
-Four string cheeses
-Two cans of Pringles
-Four Oriental flavored Ramen Noodle packages
Yes I did eat Ramen and cheese and Pringles for five straight days.
$17.00 - $7.75 = $9.25
$1.25::Bus fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly Blvd. to Santa Monica Blvd. and Westholme Ave. (2.5 miles)
$9.25 - $1.25 = $8.00
$1.10::A small coffee from McDonalds for the morning commute
$8.00 - $1.10 = $6.90
$1.25::Bus fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Westholme Ave. to Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly Blvd. (2.5 miles)
$6.90 - $1.25 = $5.65
$.25::A Coca-Cola for a nice mid-day treat
$5.65 - $.25 = $5.40
$.40::Bus fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly to Santa Monica and Westholme Ave. (2.5 miles) *I gave only $.40 because all I had was a $5 bill and the $.40, and the bus doesn’t take $5s unless you want to give them the whole thing. So in some cases you can get away with just giving them what you have, so I gave them my $.40 and took the ride. Thank you LA Metro
$5.40 - $.40 = $5.00
$1.75::Medium coffee from McDonalds for the morning commute
$5.00 - $1.75 = $3.25
$1.25::Bus fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Westholme Ave. to Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly Blvd. (2.5 miles)
$3.25 - $1.25 = $2.00
$.25::Snickers from the vending machine at work
$2.00 - $.25 = $1.75
$1.25::Bus fare from Santa Monica Blvd. and Beverly to Santa Monica Blvd. and Westholme Ave. (2.5 miles)
$1.75 - $1.25 = $.50
$.25::2-for-effing-1 candy from the vending machine. If you’ll notice the pictures, an M&M was stuck somehow on top/beside a Starburst. So, naturally, I went for it! Put my quarter in and lo and behold (L and B) my dreams were made a reality when both of them fell. Really making this $20 stretch.
$.50 - $.25 = $.25
$.25::It’s already gone this far, why not keep pushing it. I got a Squirt with my last $.25.
$.25 - $.25 = $0.00
So there it is. Not only a great picture of what $20 can get you, but a haunting peek into what is my life and more importantly my diet. It’s a wonder my brittle sugar induced legs get me to and from the bus stop each day. But, alas, I’m here to tell you that $20 can last you a week, sufficing for nearly all your needs.
(I hope to set a click through link or something to some sort of presentation/motion picture of the breakdown as well)
Thank you.
If only we all did this with every $20 we spent.
