[speaker001:] Do you, uh, have a family budget, or, how do you work your budgeting?
[speaker002:] Well, [throat clearing] for many, many years, uh, my wife and I did have a budget. Uh, we were both working at the time and so forth and, uh, that, we had to do that until we finally got the house paid for and, and other big bills taken care of.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Uh, we have a, a budget, but not as strict now as we used to because we don't have quite such a tight financial situation.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] So it, it's, uh, it's helpful. I mean, yes, having a budget is very, very important and that did get us so that, you know, the house is paid for and, uh, other major things are taken care of and now we can relax a little bit more because basically we don't really require as much on a daily or a monthly basis as we did before, so we don't have to have quite as strict, uh, a budget as we did.
[speaker001:] Oh, well, we don't have a real strict budget. Uh, we have a, a low budget to work on, but we, uh, you know, for like groceries, we say about this much per week and then
[speaker002:] Sure, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] we just spend about so much. We don't, I, I don't know of a written figure of expenses that we, you know, keep to or anything, but I know that I go to the grocery store that we always stick within, you know, five dollars between here and there.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] A certain amount.
[speaker002:] I think I've, I do that automatically myself.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] I mean, I unconsciously, uh, you know, stay in a, within a, with a certain amount because I, I have enough food already stored here
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] that I don't have to make any large purchase at any one time. All I normally do now is pick up little things here and there. If the salt goes out or we need sugar or [LAUGHTER] something like that.
[speaker001:] Wow, that's great.
[speaker002:] [Throat clearing] Yeah, we have two freezers, and, course, we have a large garden here that we grow a lot of our own stuff and we freeze a lot of that, so a lot of the vegetables are taken care of in our own
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] p-, personal storage.
[speaker001:] Oh, you guys sound pretty self sufficient [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] Well, we, we keep a little note pad on a, on a wall. W-, if anything is absolutely out, make a note of it and then, uh, the next time I go to the store, why, I pick it up and fill it up.
[speaker001:] Huh.
[speaker002:] So it's, it's worked very well that way. That way we [throat clearing], you know, if each of us finds something is missing, uh, we put it up. Uh, the other person might not know about it.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] That way we
[speaker001:] Well, that's a good idea.
[speaker002:] keep up to date [throat clearing].
[speaker001:] Let's see, the other thing there the topic was talking about was, if, if, uh, all I can think of is if you don't keep a real, a real tight budget, how do you control expenses, but, uh, one, another thing that we do is we always fly back to California and Washington each Christmas. Well, not fly back, but somehow we get back there.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And, uh, this year we did it by train because it was the least expensive and,
[speaker002:] Well, actually, it's more interesting, too, if you've
[speaker001:] Huh?
[speaker002:] got the time.
[speaker001:] Oh, yeah.
[speaker002:] [Throat clearing].
[speaker001:] And, uh, you know, we could go to both places without having to spend so much for
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] plane fare. And so, uh, we find that if we're careful with our, you know, just everyday things like grocery shopping and, and gas and entertainment, things like that, then, uh, somewhere in, out in the wash, it will come out that we have enough to get back there.
[speaker002:] Sure.
[speaker001:] You know.
[speaker002:] Well, I think we unconsciously [throat clearing] do the same thing. Excuse me, my throat's not as clear today as it should be.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, that's all right.
[speaker002:] Uh, we are, uh, going to be traveling to Europe with a choral. We sing with a so called Pennsylvania choral
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and we make a two weeks tour of, of, uh, foreign countries and, of course, that costs money. So we, uh, each of us watches the funds that we spend and make sure that, that we gather together over a period a time enough money to, to make this trip. So th-, that is another way of, uh, budgeting
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, that's right.
[speaker002:] and I think we just sort of unconsciously do it. We, uh, just live a normal life, but we don't throw any money away, particularly. We save it for this trip, which is, uh, always very, very nice.
[speaker001:] Yeah, well, whenever [LAUGHTER], I don't know if this is part of the topic, but whenever I find, you know, a dime or something on the ground, I, I'll probably pick it up [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] I do the same thing. I have a whole pile of them saved that I have found by parking meters [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, yeah, I have a special little jar that I keep all the money I found in. You know, just
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] count it up at the end of the year, something.
[speaker002:] Yeah [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] But, yeah.
[speaker002:] Well, let's face it, the, when we're talking budget, it is important to, to have a budget [throat clearing], and, uh, I, I keep track of mine on a more rough basis now by just watching the level of my checking account and I have a money market account also.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And, uh, I keep those levels up above a certain minimum, and I'm always trying to,