WELCOME TO HOW I Spend My Money, a series on The Journal that looks at how people in Ireland really handle their finances. 

Are you a spender, a saver or a splurger? 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. 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 project manager on €46K living in Co Galway. This week, an arts project manager on €52K living in the west of the country who, despite earning more than they ever have, is struggling to make ends meet. 

I live in a rural village in the west with my teenage son. Despite earning more money than I ever have before, I’m poorer than I’ve been in decades. I’m living week to week, dreading anything going wrong that might cause additional expenses. I used to have a house full of everything a family could need, but when the landlord told us he was selling, I had to give most of my belongings and all my furniture to charity. My son and daughter had to live with their father as I couldn’t find a house I could afford to rent for all of us. I became one of the ‘hidden homeless’ people in Ireland, living in other people’s spare rooms for two years. A few months ago, I finally found a place to live for me and my son. It’s very rural and far away from my work, which makes my travel costs expensive, but it’s the only place I could find available to rent in my price range.

It’s been expensive having to kit out a house again, and very frustrating as I’m having to buy cheap versions of all the lovely good-quality stuff I owned a few years ago. I’m waiting on child benefit, moving it from my ex to me is taking Social Welfare a long time to sort. After rent, bills, food etc, I have €150 left each month to put aside for home heating oil/car maintenance/clothing/doctors, and anything additional. I’ve had so many extra expenses like moving costs, household items, school uniforms, school fees etc since I moved to the house that I haven’t managed to put aside any money at all yet.

I don’t have any media subscriptions, I listen to podcasts on Pocketcast which is free, I listen to music on YouTube through the Brave browser which cuts out the ads, and I often borrow books from the library. I mostly cook from scratch, maybe having a takeaway once or twice a year. My house is often full of teenage boys so I bake several times a week – cakes, biscuits, and tray-bakes, as they get hoovered up fast by all the lads. In my spare time, I make art, write, sew clothes and read.

Occupation: Arts project manager

Location: West of Ireland

Monthly pay (net): €3,090

Mine and my son’s phone bills: €26

Money given to support older children who are young adults on low wages: €100-€200

Teen son’s spending money: €100

11.00am: Today is my Sunday as I worked on Saturday, so I’m off today. My partner is visiting for the weekend, so we stay in bed talking for a while, then we meditate for 50 minutes. We’re both tired as we’ve both been doing lots of travel for work and it’s a busy time of year for us both (he also works in the arts).

12.00pm: We get up and I have a herbal tea. I make us French toast with bacon and berries for breakfast as we’ve leftover tiger bread that needs to be eaten. I give the leftover mixture to my cat who loves French toast mixture!

12.45pm: After a leisurely brunch, I go to get dressed and my partner cleans the kitchen. It’s a crisp but sunny day so we decide to go to a nearby stately home and walk in their woods. Before we leave, I pay my rent which is due today. (€1,500)

1.15pm: We arrive at the visitor centre and my partner pays for us both to enter. We walk around the visitor centre and the gardens and then stop for a coffee at the café which my partner pays for as he knows I don’t have much money.

1.50pm: We go for a long walk in the woods. It’s a gorgeous day and we spot loads of interesting mushrooms. I wish I knew what ones were safe to eat, but sadly I don’t and I’d be worried I’d poison us if I tried to learn how to forage.

3.15pm: We head into the nearest town and I go to a shop where I think they might sell silicon moulds. I’ve been Instagram influenced to try and make sugar-free immune-support gummies. I have all the ingredients at home but I don’t have a mould. I’m a bit annoyed as I used to have a wonderful mould collection, but I couldn’t afford to store all my belongings when we lost the house. I buy two small moulds for €3.99 and a dustpan for €3.50 as the one I own already doesn’t pick anything up.

3.40pm: We stop at the supermarket on the way home and I buy some groceries, which come to €45.11.

4.30pm: We arrive back at my place and my son isn’t well, so I tell him I’ll make him some chicken noodle soup from the leftover roast chicken we had. I make the chicken soup and I also make a French onion soup before having a go at making the gummies. I also make a fruit salad, though I end up having to compost most of the fruit as despite being bought in the last few days, the nectarines are rotten inside and the pineapple has also gone off. I hate food wastage so I feel a bit annoyed at the poor quality of the fruit, and the waste of money too.

6.30pm: I sit down finally to eat my soup – I went for the French onion soup and some fresh bread. My partner is finishing up some work so I check in on my son and then spend some time on Instagram while I wait for my partner to finish up.

7.00pm: We watch the final two episodes of Black Snow on my partner’s laptop. I don’t have a monitor or a TV and I mostly watch TV shows when I’m with my partner. We both have a small bowl of fruit salad while we watch. After the episodes, we both shower and head up to bed where we start another series: War.

11.45pm: It’s late but we decide to meditate. The meditation is 50 minutes long and I find I can’t sleep after it, I feel too energised. I eventually put on some white noise and that helps me get to sleep.

Today’s total:........

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