a year with(out), part two

To procrastinate the more important things I have to do today (laundry, groceries, studying math...), I've been fixing things on the blog: mapping out how the blog will function when we're no longer in France, editing our "about" page, & adding a new page.

In a year with(out), part one, I addressed the things Joe & I have been doing without. I'm really proud of the way we've been saving. No, we haven't traveled as much as our friends have. No, we don't go to fancy restaurants. Yes, we have a great time out at pubs & getting to know our region. The places we visit are important to us, are extra special because of the effort it takes to get there (2 weeks until Italy!). Yes, we've been saving money: rebuilding our bank account for life in the States, cutting our college debt by more than $700 every month.

We stress about money. We talk about budgets & extra ways to gain cash. We take on tutoring jobs. We don't often say how well we're doing–but we're getting it. We're leaving France with less debt that we came with. We're having fun & exploring new things, all while living on basically one average salary. To keep myself on track, I'm made a page to prevent impulse purchases to give myself something to look forward to. Instead of jumping toward the first book sale I see, I'm going to stick to this list, save up & reward myself with useful things.

I'm proud of us, & we are excited to do even better in the States. Here are a few small things we've gotten started on here that hopefully will carry to the States.

A Year without Washing Machines
Joe & I have gotten very, very good at washing things by hand. We've gotten even better at wringing them out without getting blisters on our shriveled fingers (a problem for me in the beginning). The laundry mat is a long walk & a room full of inefficient dryers. The laundry is heavy; we don't feel like paying; we don't want to walk back with loads of semi-damp clothing. This means we wash small loads in cold water in the sink, using hot water only to treat things that really need it. We save trips to the Lavomatique (the cool French for "laundry mat") for towels, sheets & shirts that really need the hot water.

This cuts down on soap use (small loads get by on small amounts of soap). It's better for the color of clothes. Less things are being damaged in washers or dryers. We use less water. PLUS we save money. When our change jar fills up, we do a load of laundry & still have enough to get two pints out at a nice pub.

We'll definitely keep doing SOME laundry by hand at home, mostly our delicate things or pieces I would never want to have ruined. We'll definitely put our drying rack to use & avoid using a dryer as much as possible. I used to get annoyed with the drying rack sitting in the middle of my bedroom in college. After having laundry draped literally over every surface of our studio, I'll never complain about it again.

A Year (almost) without Processed Foods
We eat a lot of dairy. I eat more pastries than I've ever let myself. We'll stop for fries or kebabs on ocassion. We buy these cracker things for breakfast; usually I smother them with Nutella. We eat tons of baguettes, which are basically classy white bread.

But here's the difference. The ingredients in our bread are wheat, yeast & water. This year, our natural food intake has increased & our processed food intake has drastically decreased. We eat fast food once a month. The only thing we buy in a can is ratatouille, a vegetable stew of sorts. The cheeses and butters come from farmers, & the packaging says so. While this SOUNDS logical, you'd be surprised.

This will be the hardest adjustment in the States. Cheese, fresh bread & butter–even produce, since it's grown in the country (which is like buying things grown only in your tri-state area, when you think about size)–is much more affordable here. To continue eating the fresh foods we've been eating here will be a challenge, & it will require a lot more reading of labels.

But we're determined. We have ourselves on a regular rotation of meals, with new things added or tossed out each week, & none of the prep time is too cumbersome. Even when we both have real jobs, we should have time to make our own food. When it's something important to you, you find ways to make the time.

I think this series will continue, as a way to keep reflecting on our experiences here & think about the ways to get even better when we head home. Joe mentioned last night that we're really only about half way through. We still have more than four months. This was a relief to me, since as you have read I've been thinking too much about what our return will look like. I tend to do this, & I want to focus on enjoying the next four months.

For now, I'll leave you. I'm off to do some laundry in the bathroom sink.

Enjoy what you're reading? I'd love to know that we're on track. Click Follow on the right side of the screen to stick with us.