Completely Poor

Image: Jamie Hewlett

There's nothing quite like an empty bank account to focus the ol' energies is there?

All those resolutions about healthy food, fresh air, saving cash... Well they're all par for the course when you get poor it seems.

Suddenly all those little extravagances you made at Christmas seem downright ostentatious. 18 euro on new earrings and 25 on hot chocolate and cakes? Outrageous! What were you thinking! You picture all of the steak you could buy with that as you try to eke out the last of the root veg and persuade the kids that minestrone soup three days in a row is actually still delicious.

Naturally they aren't buying it, in any sense of the word.

"Gross!"

"Disgusting!"

"Didn't even like it the first day."

(Whatevs kids. Wait 'til we get to day five).

I've even had to cut out my morning cappuccino addiction for Godsakes. Things are getting extreme here.

Of course it's not all Dickensian woe and villiany. Our lovely bracing walks are still free, and it's only, erm, 3 weeks until pay day. *bites nails*

And actually, in all honesty, I am not 'completely poor'. In fact, I feel a bit like the girl in Pulp's Common People 

"But still you'll never get it right  

'cos when you're laid in bed at night 

watching roaches climb the wall 

If you call your Dad he could stop it all."

So yeah. I can't really grumble. Thankfully I always have that safety net. That family around the corner to bail me out if I ask them to. It doesn't mean that I will, but knowing that I can makes the world of difference.

And so the three (five) day old minestrone and cutting out the caffeine drip doesn't really seem so bad after all. 

On the other hand the thoughts of having no safety net there is simply terrifying.

Don't look down people.