Tried the envelope system for groceries and ended up eating freezer burnt chicken for a week

I thought I was being smart by taking out $200 cash for food at the start of the month. No card, no exceptions. By day 10 I was out of money because I forgot about a work lunch and a birthday dinner that both came out of the envelope. The last 20 days I was digging through my freezer eating stuff from 2022. It was a real wake up call that my system was too rigid and didn't account for real life stuff popping up. I learned I need a separate fund for social eating or just use a prepaid card for groceries. Has anyone else tried cash only and had it blow up on them like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryan_nelson1mo ago

The whole point of cash is that it hurts to run out, which is exactly why you'll plan better next month. You learned more from that freezer chicken than you ever would from a padded envelope with a separate category for birthday dinners.

perry.lee1mo ago

You know what, @ryan_nelson, you actually just made me rethink my whole system. I used to be all about those fancy budget apps with separate categories for everything, but that freezer chicken example hit hard. Last month I ran out of cash three days before payday and ended up eating instant noodles for a week, and honestly that sting taught me more than any spreadsheet ever did. I'm starting to see the wisdom in having a hard limit that actually hurts when you blow through it.