Expenses: rating my Goals for 2020

Kaylee's not-a-blog » Human stuff » Expenses » rating my Goals for 2020

Yes: have fewer breakdowns :)
no: learn a new (to me) and far more marketable Computer Programming Language
Yes: continue to create more Computer Code for Citizen projects :)
fail: MindMeld/wrestle with Tux in more National Forests
(due to COVID and t-holes, things were downright scary in some of the National Forests)
Yes: moar HotPockets!!!
(technically, most of those were Aldi's knock off "stuffed sandwiches"; bonus: all were heated in my crockpot :) )
Yes: consume fewer cup-o-noodles and instead consume more ramen
a wee bit: eat somewhat better, nutrition wise :)
Yes: reduce expenses
Yes: continue ~~finish~~ reorganizing my van, pack it more efficiently

Summary:
My main goals were to reduce expenses significantly, and earn some income.

Details...

Goal - income:

I was hoping to earn some income now that I'm getting used to the rhythms of this lifestyle. :)

Reality:

Sadly, several major disruptions caused both by the pandemic, and several incidents involving LUSAR/t-hole law breakers, made it impossible to do much of my volunteer work in April thru July. :(
Fortunately, a long-time Friend offered to let me camp on some rural land in the Cornbelt. I spent most of the summer and fall there, and hope I can return next year. :) This would make it possible to do commercial "remote" work.

Goal - Van Repairs:

I had hoped that Van Repairs would drop by at least half.

Reality:

As I had hoped, they've dropped dramatically.
Zero breakdowns. :)
An even bigger change was some priceless help from a longtime GeekBuddy who did some major mechanical inspection and repair work on my van.
I'll be writing up that experience, and will post it with some very cool repair pictures. :)
I now have a much better & more reliable understanding of what is most likely to need repairs, which is a huge comfort.

Goal - Van Insurance:

Reduce my cost of Van Insurance.

Reality:

Near the end of 2019, I found a much cheaper & better insurance policy, which saved me a little over $400 in 2020. :)
Big Bonus: their "roadside assistance" was so cheap, I added it. :)

Goal - Food:

Eat even more frugally, however I'd also like to stock up more on dehydrated & freeze dried veggies.

Reality:

While the total spent has gone up, my daily cost has gone down.
Due to the pandemic, many shelf stable foods, including #10 cans, were in short supply and often were overpriced.
I did buy five #10 cans of vegetables (I waited for price drops & used CamelCamelCamel price alerts), and one dented #10 can of freeze dried ground beef crumbles (an "Amazon Warehouse" deal).
Despite shortages and price jumps, my cost per calorie day was below last year.
I now have a much better understanding of what foods I actually eat, which items are unavailable and/or more expensive (hence worth stocking up on) in some locations, and how to stockpile to minimize food taxes, so I do expect to continue saving modest amounts due to that understanding.
In 2021, I may be able to reduce costs a bit more, by making more items from scratch (in particular, using my crockpot to make more of my "snacks").

Goal - Luxuries:

I had decided to half my Luxury allowance down to $5/month.
In particular, I planned to reduce fast food luxuries, which I had expected to be somewhat easier after having accomplished Crockpot Pizza.

Reality:

I reduced my total 2020 luxuries by $72.77 below 2019. :)
A huge saving was fast food luxuries, which was much easier due to pandemic disruptions, and my accidental discovery of very easy pan fried tortilla based pseudo Pizza. :)
I plan to continue to keep all luxuries very low until I'm solvent.

Goal - storage unit:

Reduce my two small storage units to just one.

Reality:

In Spring 2020 I successfully cleared out the contents of one unit.
Unfortunately, I chose the "wrong" one to get rid of, and only found out afterwards that there are major issues at my remaining storage unit. :(
I saved about $70 this year ($120 next year).
I'm undecided how to handle the access problems with the remaining unit.
It will be costly to move it, so I'll probably defer that for a year or so.

Goal - Gear:

Spend less than half as much on long-term gear.
I now have all the core "essentials", though I do have a few items I'd like.
I had planned not to buy them until I have income.

Reality:

I did end up buying a "thermo electric cooler" to help me cope with very hot weather (i.e. due to my move to the CornBelt).
It may be viable to use it intermittently for food (i.e. just during periods of moderate temperatures and excellent sunshine), which would give me more & cheaper food options.
I did defer all other non minor items I'd like.
I bought a few very low cost items, including some minor cooking gear (e.g. larger bowl for making Bread) that I included in "personal" expenses (i.e. budget limited).
I have tentatively decided to buy three specific modest items in 2021: a scale (my very old one rarely works), a headlamp (a model recommended by a friend), a small electric fan (a model recommended by several van dwellers).

Goal: - all other "personal" categories

Spend about the same on all other "personal" budget limited categories (i.e. hygiene, medical, etc).

Reality:

As expected, most were about the same.
Two items (ibuprofen, DrBronner's soap) were known to be running low, and I did buy 1000 tablets of ibuprofen & a 32 ounce bottle of DrBronner's.
I spent about twenty dollars more on "hygiene" items, mainly due to pandemic price hikes (i.e. hand sanitizer), and my decision to dramatically increase my minimum stocking levels of both toilet paper and hand sanitizer (from 4-6 months to 1-2 years).

Goal - overall costs:

I had speculated that I could average below $500 per month for all expenses.

Reality:

I was easily able to achieve that due to both frugality and no breakdowns.
My monthly costs averaged less than half that goal: $235.54. :)
Note that this does not account for future replacement costs, so it is not a true reflection of the cost of van dwelling.

Other non-Goal Cost Changes:

Categories that remained about the same:

Consumables, recurring:
I bought two cases of butane this year (same as last year), both at seasonally low prices due to CamelCamelCamel price watches.
Note that during the COVID panic period, prices soared, so my stockpile from the previous year saved me considerable money.
The 2nd case I bought was during a price dip in the summer, and was entirely to maintain a decent stocking level.
My consumption has gone down moderately (about 17%), mainly due to increased use of fuel free tools for heating food: my crockpot and my van's dash. :)
Water was more difficult to obtain for "free" at my new location, so I began regularly buying some filtered water (from refill machines).
Van Maintenance:
Was about the same - I did find two new shops that I used for my oil changes.

Categories that increased moderately:

My PO box went up to $86 / year.
2021 will be $92 or more, so I will be investigating moving it to a cheaper location.
My van registration was about the same, however due to pandemic disruptions the admin costs (postage) increased by about ten dollars.
In 2021, I plan to mail my renewal well ahead of time, instead of relying on phone/internet renewal.
Communications:
Summer of 2019 I was not able to find viable camping sites with cellular access, so I only paid for one 60-day card, however it was easy to find sites with cellular in the South and Cornbelt;
a Dweller Friend kindly donated data cards for my first 4 months of Winter (thanks!). :)
To save money, I decided to discontinue my cell phone, since I used it rarely and it rarely had coverage where I've been staying.
I do need to find a more reliable mobile provider, and so expect my costs to go up in 2021.

Categories that unexpectedly decreased significantly:

I had expected gas to increase, instead it decreased significantly:

decrease: due to price wars, gas prices dropped dramatically just before my Spring Migration
decrease: I was able to do far fewer resupplies/relocations during summer and fall
increase: I was able to get further South this winter (bye-bye Polar Vortex!!!), and had to travel more to meet Texas public land movement requirements (as opposed to being stranded for two months at the beginning of 2019)
decrease: I drove 1077 fewer miles :)
cancelled: ~~I have one "admin" trip I will probably have to make that will cost close to $200 in gas~~ (cancelled due to COVID pandemic)
cancelled: ~~if I'm able to earn sufficient income, I may spend part of the summer in the Rockies, for heat relief~~ (not possible due to COVID pandemic & collateral issues)