Save. Spend. Splurge.

Week of Money: Where Work Politics Gets Hairy

DAY ONE

??:?? — I wake up and make some tea while Little Bun drinks his milk.

7:03 a.m. — I get him out of the house only on the promise of stickers, and at preschool he doesn’t sob.

7:43 a.m. — I am at work. Something strange is going on. The upper management are all acting very strange and stressed. I wonder if it is post-holiday nonsense or all the emergency issues that have come up in the past week. It was very hairy last week for all of us. I also don’t know if it’s the post-holiday blues that is happening.

7:58 a.m. — I make my breakfast sandwich — 2 eggs in the microwave for a minute in a MEDIUM to large Glasslock container (any smaller and the eggs explode), and toast two pieces of bread with some turkey slices. Nomz.

8:26 a.m. — I make a cup of tea, put my lunch in the fridge (chickpea hummus with tomato pasta). I am sensing a lot of resentment from this one consultant who thinks she has more of a right to stay than I do, and tries at every single point to put me down (without making my Team Lead suspect anything), and to show how useful she is. It’s a little late, and she doesn’t have my specialized skills, but she thinks I don’t do anything and don’t really work… *shrug* I just need to avoid her for another week or two.

10:07 a.m. — I decide to skip yoga today because I am really not feeling well and I am coughing a lot, so I should take it easy with such low energy. I just feel so bad because I paid for this but I really need to let my body rest.

11:37 a.m. — Seems like everyone misses my net worth posts so I vow to get on it. I will just end up splitting that one huge post into smaller ones so that my time is worth it in terms of being able to post each day as per my schedule.

12:07 p.m. — I take a break to help someone out.

12:43 p.m. — Then lunch. I eat my yummy hummus and pasta, and a guy went out to get some food so I asked for some chicken strips. $8

4:57 p.m. — I leave and pick up Little Bun who is sad they took down all the decorations for Christmas and there are no more cute lights.

5:45 p.m. — We head home, I eat a banana (shared with Little Bun), make a cup of tea, and chew on some raw garlic as I start on laundry. I am eating raw garlic because I am sick of being sick, and I want to KILL THIS ONCE AND FOR ALL. The minute I feel a bit sick or my energy going down, in goes the peeled raw garlic (slightly scored) and I slowly chew on it to release the good spicy, hot stuff to kill whatever is making me feel bad. I slowly chew on the clove for as long as I can stand it before swallowing it with water.

6:07 p.m. — I have been changing my skincare routine and adding some of this amazing Radha organic rosehip oil to my Complex 15 face cream I picked up for $11-ish dollars at Shoppers Drug Mart and I feel like my skin looks brighter and better. This is all based on no facts whatsoever but my skin is not quite as dry as before, and I feel like it is softer. Here is hoping I don’t break out in a full face of acne in 6 weeks.

7:15 p.m. — Little Bun watches Christmas Cards from Jacquie Lawson unfold (his favourite activity these days) while I work on emails in another window on the same laptop. He just wants to be near me, on my lap and playing with me ALL DAY LONG. I miss him, but I also need to get personal stuff done too.

7:23 p.m. — He refuses to eat his soup (he isn’t hungry) and I’m going to go to sleep early, because I’m really fatigued from this cold and everything else. I need to bring my laptop to work tomorrow to work on my books for the company as I cannot go to yoga and I need to be productive.

7:55 p.m. — I get Little Bun ready for bed after reading a few books and we all go to sleep.

Spent: $8

DAY TWO

5:30 a.m. — I’m woken up by a squeal (guess who) and I try to get him back to sleep but he wants to go potty and grab milk. I remember when he used to say: “Mik mik mik!!” for “milk”… too cute

5:37 a.m. — I grab his bottle and conk out beside him. My partner tells me it is 5:30. I snooze.

5:39 a.m. — After milk he wants to sleep on Mommy but I need to get up to get ready to work so I try to indulge him but eventually get up at 6.

6:03 a.m. — Guess who is fatigued from a cold and doesn’t even want to slap on any makeup? This woman. But my skin looks incredible with this foundation. HOLY GRAIL.

6:08 a.m. — I start my tea as Little Bun stays in the bedroom wanting me to come back and cuddle him.

6:12 a.m. — I end up drinking my tea to the jarring sound of a Little Bun Squeals Soundtrack — Volume I: Morning Sounds. I don’t think it’ll be a bestseller. It isn’t his best work thus far. I think the Volume II: Night Sounds might be more up my alley.

6:24 a.m. — I finally go back in and tell him I’m getting ready for work. My partner finishes his yoga and Little Bun gets up to protest school once he realizes I’m serious about this working business.

6:25 a.m. — I lure him into agreeing to go in exchange for stickers. Again.

6:52 a.m. — I do my makeup, my partner leaves and I start getting Little Bun ready for preschool. He resists putting on shirts, pants, you name it.

6:54 a.m. — I get him to do my StyleBook entry for me and then I groggily head off to work with him after I pop a Day Pill. I feel like I’m eating these things like candy but it is the only thing stopping my sinuses from stuffing up and my nose from running like a faucet.

7:45 a.m. — At work, I start working and my brain is half there. I’m really frustrated trying to help people but I can’t help them if other people are being deliberately dense. I wonder if it is a language thing and make a note to write in French next time.

8:16 a.m. — I make my breakfast sandwich and have a technique down now — need to fluff the eggs every 30 seconds to evenly cook them.

8:20 a.m. — I finish a presentation, field two meetings with a Director and get roped into a morning meeting with a VP who wants everything yesterday.

10:11 a.m. — I just want to sleep. I work on my notes and try to clean up my files but my brain is chugging along at a snails pace.

11:45 a.m. — I crack open a bag of Hardbite Droppin’ Mad Beet chips (saw them in a store and was curious) and everyone perks up their ears like Little Groundhogs. They start coming by asking what it is and before I know it, I’m sharing it in a huge bowl with everyone. Vegetable chips FTW.

12:00 p.m. — I head off to lunch then work some more. I was going to do my net worth posts but forgot my file at home. D’oh! I’m really not with it these days. Sleep deprivation…It’s like being in a torture camp with my brain at half speed.

12:50 p.m. —  I recommended This is Us to someone and he and his girlfriend are HOOKED. He binge watched season 1 on Netflix and didn’t know there was a season 2 until I mentioned it but as I didn’t want to give spoilers away I tried to remember what happened when…

1:12 p.m. — I finish lunch and try to work but my brain slows to a stop.

3:14 p.m. — I chat with a woman who remembers co sleeping with her kid and she says it ends around age 11 or so. Okay. Fine..Well😱.. I love and hate sleeping with Little Bun. If only I could actually SLEEP we would all be better off.

4:56 p.m. — I pick up Little Bun and head home.

7:19 p.m. — Salad for dinner, I try to clean up, but start two loads of laundry and do the dishes and dry them, and then we head to bed.

Spent: $0

DAY THREE

6:40 a.m. — I wake up, grab milk for Little Bun then lie back down with him and sleepily pet Little Bun’s head while he is drinking his milk.

6:46 a.m. — It isn’t until I’m up that I realize it is almost 7 a.m.!!!! I have an 8 a.m. meeting with a VP so I’m rushing to get ready. No tea today, grab my lunch, laptop to work on posts during lunch and I am going to be out the door. I am slapping on my makeup hurriedly. Wish there was a mask I could just slap on and my face would be perfect every morning in 2 seconds.

7:11 a.m. — My partner finishes his yoga and waits as I hug and kiss Little Bun goodbye .. he doesn’t want school but he wants Mommy at home. Sigh.

7:12 a.m. — I leave him half squealy in his father’s tight grip as I get into the car and head to work. 

7:30 a.m. — At work, I drop off a USB key with notes for a colleague who wants to freelance and grab a tea. I don’t have time before my meeting.

8:00 a.m. — My meeting with the VP who I think hates me goes well. I think she hates me less now that she knows I’m not just some dumb ornament. Phew. I just need to kill it. I’m glad she is taking control, I’m busy. She thinks I’m expensive (I overheard a comment) and gives me the side eye….

9:11 a.m. — I head back to my desk to work and answer emails.

10:18 a.m. — I head off to warm up my lunch and eat it at my desk.

11:30 a.m. — After lunch, I head off to pick up a notebook (my work one is on its last pages), and I can only find the large one in black. Ugh. Hate black… I buy it anyway because I need it, and BlueLine NotePros are the BEST notebooks in the world. $15.63

11:48 a.m. — I head back, and then log in to work on the blog.

1:12 p.m. — Back to work.

4:15 p.m. — I head home early. I want to be home so my partner gets a break too.

8:27 p.m. — Don’t even know what happened after I got home. I just know I slept around 8-ish after I read a ton of books to Little Bun.

Spent: $15.63

DAY FOUR

??:?? — Little Bun wakes up squealing: hot .. too hot... and I unravel my Little Burrito, and fan him with the blanket and then pat his bum back to sleep. He snores in his very sweet, little boy way. As he gets older and moves out of our bed, I will probably miss being able to cuddle him and rub his belly or kiss his head and smell his neck whenever I want while he sleeps.

??:?? — My partner pads around the apartment and makes so much noise (for me) that I can’t go back to sleep so I get up and get ready for work. I’m wearing my pajama lounge pants today (paperbag waist, wide-legged flannel trousers) and they’re amazing. 😛

6:00 a.m. — My partner mentions that Little Bun slept 3 hours yesterday for his nap. He must have been really tired and/or sick.. I could have done with a 3-hour nap too. Lucky Bun.

6:20 a.m. — I am going about the usual task of cleaning up and my brain starts putting together some pieces from the past few months. I think I just discovered an office romance that went bad between two colleagues, both of whom are casual friends. The coincidences are too great, such as his mentioning that his girlfriend moved in down the street, she mentioning that he was not ready to get serious and just wanted to party… and then both of them refusing to talk about it in general with deflections, super secrecy, refusing completely. If the other person is a stranger that no one knows, who cares? It must mean then that I know them, and therefore, it has to be a work person. This all makes so much more sense. I think I cracked it. I must be watching too many detective fiction shows. OMG. I am going to watch them NOT interact awkwardly like a hawk now.

6:20 a.m. —  Little Bun wakes up squealing and I rush in, whispering: SHhh shhh… and I rub his back. He wakes up crying if he doesn’t feel me nearby or a presence of a body, and gets scared I think. Poor baby.

6:23 a.m. — I ask him if he wants his milk in bed, and he nods yes, so I bring the bottle. I feel like his slave sometimes but a loving one. I just love him to bits.

6:33 a.m. — After he finishes his milk, he rushes up to me in the kitchen as I am drinking my tea and announces: TODAY IS A SCHOOL DAY. I tell him happily it is…. but 20 minutes later his face crumples and he sobs: NO SCHOOL. Want to stay at home and play wif Mommy!... I tell him firmly it is school day, and Mommy has to work.

6:53 a.m. — I am done getting ready for work, Little Bun is no trouble as he helps me do my Look, and he puts on his clothes readily enough. He protests Daddy coming in the elevator with us: “Don’t want three. No three!” (Don’t want 3 people)… and I firmly tell him Daddy is coming because he has to work too, and we wave goodbye to each other in the garage.

7:16 a.m. — I have two double-booked meetings today so I get to work early, and drop Little Bun off without a whimper. He doesn’t sob or anything, he’s a rockstar this week.

7:46 a.m. — I make a tea, make some eggs in the microwave ( I am getting better — the trick is to fluff them every 30 seconds and then re-microwave for another 30 seconds).

8:05 a.m. — I get cracking on work, I have a few things to get done today, and complete my timesheet which I keep forgetting to fill in until it’s time to submit it and I’m racking my brain trying to figure out WTF I did.

8:30 a.m. — I am in my first meeting, I leave halfway through for another meeting and dial in. I wish I had a headset for this.

10:09 a.m. — The Director is not thrilled that I am adding more weeks to the project but if you make changes, things are going to get delayed. That’s it.

12:09 p.m. — I grab my lunch, eat, and then watch some episodes alone in the lobby. I need a break from everyone.

2:16 p.m. — This woman is supposed to pass her project off to me but she can’t let go and seems to triumph and enjoy proving me wrong and making it seem as though she is needed when she isn’t. So why are you leaving and I’m staying? Ugh. A lot of people are quitting / leaving and things are changing a lot, so I am sensing a lot of unease and undercurrents of stress… I pick up on everything.

5:00 p.m. — I pick up Little Bun who is happily playing with Legos and SO engrossed that he almost doesn’t want to tear himself away. I’m just so happy he’s playing! And he even plays with other kids! 🙂

5:47 p.m. — At home I am undressed, makeup off, need to take a shower tonight and Little Bun is playing with an activity set (he is also at this very moment READING THIS POST as I am typing it… I tell him to keep a lid on it because I don’t want him to announce my bidness).

8:07 p.m. — I manage to do dishes, put them away, do a load of laundry, wrangle pyjamas on a reluctant child, and then go to sleep.

9:15 p.m. — I just lie there. I can’t even sleep. Sleep won’t come. I wait for my body to drift off. Now I can’t sleep? Maybe I’m actually rested.

Spent: $0

DAY FIVE

6:30 a.m. —I get ready and leave for work. Little Bun clings to my leg like a koala and we have to pry his fingers off me. My partner hugs him tight and tries to soothe him.

7:09 a.m. — At work, I just try to power through everything. People are very tense lately due to year end reviews.

11:32 a.m. — I head out with the boys for quesadillas, and I pick up a cream cheesecake dessert for later. $23.49

12:56 p.m. — Back at the office and working. I basically don’t stop until it’s time to go.

3:45 p.m. — I leave early. I’m tired and I got a LOT done this week, with so many early morning meetings and notes…

4:20 p.m. — WHEE! Little Bun is out! I receive a MASSIVE package from my friend and I paw through all my new things, super excitedly. SO MANY PRETTY NEW THINGS. Yes. I owe you all a post. Seriously. I spent a lot and I am super excited.

5:35 p.m. — We have dinner (salad and some eggs), and I’m not even that hungry.

8:00 p.m. — I get Little Bun ready for bed and he keeps getting book after book to read. <3 I hope he turns into a bookworm like me.

Spent: $23.49

DAY SIX

5:46 a.m. — I’m up before Little Bun and I log in quietly to try and review my investments.

5:48 a.m. — No luck. I hear a cry, sob and a heart wrenching wail: Maaaa maaa!!!!! WANT MAAAA MAAAAAA!!!

5:49 a.m. — I rush in, whispering: “Shh.. sh… Mommy’s here“, and rub his back.

6:09 a.m. — He drinks his milk as I make cups of tea.

7:15 a.m. — My partner heads off to do groceries and I start 2 loads of laundry, I hand-wash out the stains off a white collared shirt, and my favourite top (this Olivia Palermo cotton bustier beauty, I have a duplicate XS for sale for $40 USD + shipping if anyone is interested… contact me)

https://api.shopstyle.com/action/apiVisitRetailer?id=536336008&pid=uid1104-32002848-44

…and I wear it constantly, like here, it is one of my FAVOURITE (all time favourite) tops to wear. It is both sexy but demure, a cute collared front, it’s in cotton, it’s a bustier.. it’s perfection.

7:25 a.m. — …and then soak it in Oxi-clean to remove the stains.

8:08 a.m. — I spend the morning shaving my sweaters. I bought this lint shaver called Just F-Care (Just “effin” Care? LOL), and it seems to work on most sweaters, see below:

The left is obviously unshaven, and the right is after I went over it with the lint remover. I had to remove the safety guard, and press down a bit on certain spots, but it did the job quite well. My sweaters look new-ish now!

CLOSE UP OF BEFORE

CLOSE UP OF AFTER

…but my short review is that it is best for very delicate, LIGHT pills on cashmere for instance. I tried removing lint off my Moncler wool sweater and the thicker pills were unable to be sliced off properly. I’d need to go in with some scissors or a brand new razor blade (men’s shaving blades are great for this to remove lint off sweaters).

10:18 a.m. — I try to feed Little Bun his soup but my partner changed the recipe and added carrots so they are kind of grainy and sticking in his throat, so he gags and refuses any more.

12:15 p.m. — My partner comes back, after having given the cars a good rinse down in the car washing bay we have. <3 What a guy.

12:28 p.m. — We eat lunch (simple bread and cheese deal), and I head off to try and mail this package back, and to eat some vegan chicken wings.

1:34 p.m. — Not open on weekends. Of course they’re not. I buy some chocolates to eat away my pain. $7.21

2:18 p.m. — I walk and eat some vegan chicken wings with two scoops of brown rice. My eyes were bigger than my stomach but I finish everything and feel uncomfortably full now. $23.67

2:22 p.m. — I head down the road to the library and start logging in to work. I have purchased so much that I want to post a review of online of clothing for other online shoppers to use as a guide (I would have found it useful!), and I spend the next 3 hours doing this.

5:35 p.m. — Time to get home.

5:49 p.m. — Little Bun is out! YAY!!! I wash my hands, change, and log in to try and clear off those draft Style Shopper Review posts (I created 6 of them by the way)…

6:37 p.m. — Little Bun is home, we have salad and some vegetarian foccacia with olive toppings and tomato toppings with some parmesan cheese. I kind of feel like we have been eating less and less meat as of late and I don’t mind it. A lot of vegetarians I know look much younger than they really are and I wonder if part of it is what they eat, such as eating red meat which may contribute to the aging of your cells quicker…

7:45 p.m. —  Dishes done and dried (not much to do if you’re just eating salads and breads), and then I make a cup of tea, drinking the last of my Tea Pigs Liquorice and Mint (this tea is NATURALLY sweet and delicious..truly.. doesn’t even taste like liquorice which I hate). Then bedtime.

Spent: $30.88

DAY SEVEN

 

6:00 a.m. — I wake up and plan on taking Little Bun to the stores to look at stuff and basically just let him play. They always have kid corners in kid clothing stores and he likes to sit there and colour, or look at things.

7:59 a.m. — We eat the last bit of the special almond tart from last night my partner brought home.

8:38 a.m. — We get ready and head off to the stores.

9:18 a.m. — Pit stop at Starbucks for a little bit. I use my Starbucks reward on a massive chai latte and Little Bun and I share a breakfast sandwich in the car while listening to Sanskrit – this AMAZING album in particular, and he always, ALWAYS asks for “Sanskrit music, Mommy!” and he has even starting trying to say the words at home, which makes my partner very confused as now it is a third language LOL. $4.20

10:02 a.m. — I almost get suckered into wanting to buy this super ADORABLE rechargeable bear lamp that is soft and squishy and changes colours. Little Bun really wants it and keeps going back to touch it saying: Bear! Want the bear! but I leave without it and mentally pat myself on the back.

http://amzn.to/2BnjK7s

11:28 a.m. — At home, we eat our lunch.

12:28 p.m. — He goes down for his nap (and my partner sneaks off to sleep too). Finally.

 

1:44 p.m. — Little Bun wakes up from his nap and we all head out to look for a bookcase for the front hall. We need it for all of the books he owns (Little Bun), and he is a VORACIOUS reader…

4:45 p.m. — 9 stores later, no dice. We want actual wood, a simple shape, the right dimensions and don’t mind paying a higher price for something that is well made but we can’t even find what we want. Little Bun loved going out and kept saying: More? More stores?? he got to play and jump on all the couches and beds so he was very excited to be in these stores.

5:35 p.m. — Salad for dinner, nothing super fancy.

6:37 p.m. — I do the dishes and dry them all while watching Blackish. I feel like the show gets better each season, and I LOVE Tracee Ellis Ross.

8:01 p.m. — Time for bed.

Spent: $4.20

———-

Want more? Read all of my previous Week of Money Diaries.

6 Comments

Post a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *