Money, Money, Money, Money, Mon-ah!

So I am trying this new thing out. Some of you may have heard of this wacky thing before. It´s called a budget.

In all seriousness though, I am trying to limit myself to $2 of spending money a day. That, plus my approximately $8 a day that I pay for housing and food, will bring me to a grand total of $10 a day. I figure that´s what the average Managuan is living off of daily, and though I probably won´t ever fully understand what it means to have this kind of income, I want to come closer to understanding.

Already I have run across a couple thoughts...for example, I will probably have to cheat when you lovely folks come down to visit, and there have been moments when I am scared of running late and have thoughts of just flagging down a taxi instead of waiting for who knows how long for the next bus. BUT, I haven´t cheated yet, and I really am enjoying more fully immersing myself in the life here.

I know eventually the novelty will wear off, but it´s presenting some interesting challenges for now..for example, the women where I live have a woman come in to wash their clothes every couple days, so I have to think, will that fit in my budget? Do I cheat to help give a Nicaraguan more income? Or do I stick to my guns? And, when I go to church, do I put in more than everyone else because I can, or do I stick to what fits in my budget? Also, you figure that with my health insurance at home, I am technically spending more than $10 a day.

So far, I have been doing pretty well, though. The first week I spent 345 Cordobas, or $17.25 dollars, which comes out to $2.46 per day. This last week I spent half a cordoba more (approximately 2.5 cents), so as you can imagine, right around the same amount. I may have to make my budget $10.50 or $11 per day, though it doesn´t sound as good lol.

Opinions? Suggestions? I would love to hear what you think about this, and all the innate questions that come along with it. Please share!