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Now I know I said that I have a stable job and would be spending money to do my bit to help the economy. I’m not reneging on that – I am going to be spending more wisely and not spending money that I don’t have. To do that, I am going to cut out all extraneous expenses – eating out, coffee, liquor, shopping, the works – and limit myself to a specific budget for special events. I have already identified my spending targets and my spending budget from now until Easter. For everything else, unless it’s a dire emergency, I will not break out my wallet at all. Here’s what I have budgeted for spending:

• Sophia’s birthday (this Friday!) – $20
• Dine around Seattle w/Angela (March) – $20
• Trip to London (spring break) – £700 or $1000 (incl. airfare)

For everything else and everyone that I will be sure to disappoint, I’m sorry – we’ll have to wait until April.

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Why am I doing this? Because I spend too much. I need to get into the habit of making my own coffee and bringing my own food to work. Sure, the spending will probably rebound once Easter is over, but I hope that I can spend a little less frivolously and to save myself up a little money to buffer against any monetary emergency. And in this economy, it’s good to save some for a rainy day. Wish me luck!

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The Democrats want to literally keep printing money until the problem is resolved; meanwhile, the Republicans, with their newfound fiscal responsibility, want to return money to (selected) people. The Democrats want to keep borrowing and borrowing and spending and spending to salvage the economy; the Republicans want to let the free market takeover to adjust and correct the mistake. If these sound like some of the root causes of the economic meltdown in the first place, BINGO!

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The Democrats’ policy of deficit spending mirrors the American way of life. American people keeps borrowing and spending beyond their means – subprime mortgages with zero down, option ARMs, credit cards. And now the Democrats are pushing the national debt over $10 trillion and spending nearly $1.5 trillion to bail out banks and the economy. Although the plan will generate new jobs and help out distressed families, the price tag is staggering. In effect, the bailout plan is perpetrating wrong fiscal practice – and telling people that it is okay to spend without a though because the government got your back. This is NOT the message that the government should be preaching – instead, they should teach people to spend more wisely and save money.

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The Republicans, stung by the defeat in Congress and the presidential race, are now rallying around the principle of “fiscal responsibility”. Instead of cheering for massive government spending during the Bush era, now they are against government spending. At the same time, they want the public to trust them and let them hand the reins back to the free market economy. Let’s recap, the banking industry deregulation that began late-Clinton era and accelerated in the Bush era is a step toward free market economy. And the DJIA closed at its 12 year low on Monday – dialed back all 8 years of Bush and 4 years of Clinton economic policies. And now we should let the free market save us? The deregulation drove AIG, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and numerous financial institutions to trade in unregulated Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs) and Credit Default Swaps (CDSs) that landed us in this liquidity crisis. Can we trust the free market to right its wrongs? I don’t think so, I am still trying to recover from their last big thing.

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One thing that both parties agree, is that they can’t let the economy or the banks fail. At the same time, they can’t nationalize the banks and wipe out investor money. The uncertainty led to investors to leave the failing banks and the stock market in droves, furthering driving down the market and forcing more banks to fail, making the need to bailout the economy all the more urgent.

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I’m no economist (in fact, I haven’t even taken a single Econ class in my life). But I know that we are suffering from a crisis of confidence, as any economists can tell you. The investors are nervous about losing money in stocks and in so, sold their stocks for safer investment, which perpetrated further market drops. The banks are nervous about lending money and losing money in the current portfolio and so hoarded money and refused lending to save themselves. The corporations are nervous about making investments due to lack of financing and need to provide shareholder profit, and in so they lay off employees in droves and defer R&D to save money. The American consumers are nervous about losing their jobs and consequently losing their ability of pay off debts and in so cut back spending on everything. And thus the cycle begins again.

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I have no grand plan to save the economy. But I know that I have a stable job and that I have the modest means to spend; and not to spend excessively but wisely within fiscal constraints. Which is why I am spending, and in a very little way, helping the market by giving it just a little bit more confidence.

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At the same time, I don’t believe we need the bailout of the banks. Companies make bad investments and should thus be punished for it. When other companies that made poor choices are forced to file bankruptcy, restructure, or liquidate, banks should be no different – just because they hold the key to our capitalistic society doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be held accountable for their myopic choices. Continuous investments into the banks while they continue to head down the drain is unacceptable – if the banks are so incapacitated to stem losses, then they should consider the option of voluntary nationalization. Numerous countries have nationalized banks at one point or another while the banks restructure and emerged with stronger banking systems. This option would wipe out investor value but the way I see it, the investors themselves are also perpetrator that drives the banks to make these bad decisions, and they too should share the burden of the punishment.

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In alternate universe where investors are confident about a revival and place their trust in the banks and the economy at large, we would not have to use the nationalization option and inject the bailout. At the same time, this revival should not rely entirely on the free market economy. Instead, with sensible and balanced regulations, the banks, the people, the government, and everyone else can learn to spend and invest more intelligently and help revive the economy. But until we learn to control our own avarice (it is one of the seven deadly sins, you know), we will keep jumping back into this macroeconomic cycle of booms and bust again and again. Sure we have learned not to blindly speculate on railroads, oil, dot-com businesses, real estate, and CDOs; but there are always something else new to speculate on and to that end, our unending greed is also our undoing. So, spend wisely and invest intelligently – Don’t buy into the hype and the myopia of short-term dividend payout – innovate and stay ahead and do what’s best for not just yourself, but for the economy, the country, and the world.

Slumdog Millionaire, directed by Danny Boyle, is a shoo-in for Best Picture tonight

Today is the last Sunday of February. Like clockwork, actors, directors, among others who work in the film industry migrates to Los Angeles for the night. Like years past, these creatures migrate up a stream of red carpet amid blinding flashes from the cameras of their natural symbiotes – the paparazzis. The females put on their best display – showing colors and styles as varied as the rest of Mother Nature. The most successful displays will attract many camera flashes; while others with distasteful displays will be ridiculed and crowned “worst dressed”. Inside the cavernous chamber, the actors, actresses, directors, and others will gather in front of a stage. The stage – usually dominated by an alpha-male that cracks not-so-funny jokes – is a rite of passage for some. Only a select few will make this final trek up to this stage and will be rewarded with a golden statuette – a replica of the large monolith that loomed in the background of the stage. Many others will simply observe and clap, as they witness their fellow creatures making the final trek…

It is the time for the Academy Awards. While I may not have the messianic code of Stephen Colbert or the statistics (and fancy software) of Nate Silver, I have my own predictions for the Oscars based on my intuition. Read on for more.

Best Supporting Actress

My Prediction:

With a pretty good degree of surprise, Silver predicted that Taraji P. Henson (Curious Case of Benjamin Button) would take the gold over BAFTA favorite Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona) – albeit with a 51% certainty. I disagree (::monocles falling into highball glasses::). While Henson may get the “Best Pic” bump, Cruz held her own in VCB and in a category that is more open to non-drama films (see: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chicago in 2002, and Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls in 2007), that could benefit Cruz.

• Winner: Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• Upset: Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Supporting Actor

My Predictions:

All the other nominees are probably wishing that they are being nominated in another year without Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight) in the mix. The fact is that Ledger, who died last January from a drug overdose, is a shoo-in for the award after sweeping the award-scape posthumously. Would he be nominated without his death? Probably. But his untimely death almost ascertained a win in his honor. However, the Academy might not be too open to awarding the Best Supporting Actor statue posthumously – which then look to Josh Brolin (Milk) or Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt) for an upset.

• Winner: Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
• Upset: Josh Brolin, Milk; Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt

Best Actress

My Predictions:

When you see “xx sweeps the [insert award here]” in the headline with the “xx” being the name of an actress, you can almost bet your life savings (don’t worry, the recession took care of most of it) on this “xx” winning. This “xx” is Kate Winslet. Although she has won most of the awards for the same role as Best Supporting Actress instead of Best Actress, some of those win could carry over and give her a slight edge. However, the Oscar-less Winslet is facing Oscar-veteran Meryl Streep (Doubt) with 12 nominations and 1 win, this could get ugly.

• Winner: Kate Winslet, The Reader
• Upset: Meryl Streep, Doubt

Best Actor

My Predictions:

Nate Silver did a much better job at analyzing than I have with my own intuition. It is a race largely between Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) and Sean Penn (Milk) – sorry Brangelina. The Golden Globe and BAFTA win should put Rourke ahead of Penn, who won the SAG Award, in the race. But if the Academy is feeling the Prop-8 remorse, Penn will be taking home the statue, 5 years after his win for Mystic River.

• Winner: Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
• Upset: Sean Penn, Milk

Best Director

Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) swept the board in this category in the entire award-scape and is likely to add “Academy Award Best Director Winner” to his growing roster. The gritty film, set in the slums of Mumbai, is edgy and daring – quality that typically attracts the Academy. But the Slumdog is not the only edgy film, as is Gus Van Sant’s Milk. Once again, if the Prop-8 remorse plays in, Milk could go home with this (or another) award. This could also be the last stand for David Fincher’s Benjamin Button, which appears to be shut-out of all major awards despite the intense lobbying.

• Winner: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
• Upset: Gus Van Sant, Milk
• Outside chance: David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Picture

My Predictions:

My gripes about WALL-E being shunned aside (it was definitely the best film of the year and the best animated film since Beauty and the Beast), I think there’s only one film that is separate from the pack, and that is Slumdog Millionaire. The film was daring as it was balanced and cohesive. The use of no-name (and foreign) actors pushes it further along the edge. Instead of an character-driven story, the film is driven by the story with the characters in tow. Also, multiple wins in the category also bode well for the film. However, don’t count Benjamin Button out yet, as the intense lobbying with the edginess of Slumdog could turn many Academy voters to this safe bet – just look at Brokeback Mountain. Along similar veins, the Academy could also reward Milk with a win for the Brokeback snub. In any case, that will depend on how deep the Prop-8 remorse runs. Look for me turning green into the Incredible Hulk and smashing Seattle city blocks if Benjamin Button gets the win here.

• Winner: Slumdog Millionaire
• (Very) Upset: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Outside chance: Milk

And the rest…

I don’t read much into the other merit awards and am probably not professional enough to make the judgment by intuition. Look for WALL-E in Best Animated Film with a few sound/music awards; Waltz with Bashir for Best Foreign Film; and The Dark Knight on special effects and makeup. And now, the summary:

• Biggest winner: Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E, The Dark Knight, Kate Winslet
• Biggest loser: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Doubt, Anne Hathaway (at least you have the Golden Glitch), Brangelina
• Most buzzed: Heath Ledger

Even though now my PI has agreed to switch me to a monthly-salaried position, it wasn’t always this way. For the past month or so, I’ve been subtly (and sometimes, not-so-subtly) nudging him about turning me into a full-time employee as opposed to the hourly undergraduate research assistant that I current am. You see, hourly employee is considered “part-time” even though I am working full-time; therefore, I was ineligible for healthcare and vacation benefits (though UPass, the commuter ticket, still works). With my healthcare plan expired in December, I was in need of health coverage.

The other problem, of course, is the lack of vacation days, which means that in order for me to get paid for certain days, I have to work. That means coming to work on all federal and state holidays as well as having to schedule vacations around a full-time schedule. As you can plainly see here, I just don’t have the luxury to take days off without pay.

So I started haggling with my PI, explaining to him how I need healthcare coverage and UPass. And that in order for me to have those, he will need to switch me to a monthly position. He was very resistant to that at first, asking me why I want to switch to a monthly position, and also suggesting that he’s not willing to pay for a “tech” that gets paid more than the grad students do. I also told him that I’m ineligible for “undergraduate research assistant” anyway because 1) I’ve graduated and is no longer enrolled in UW and 2) I’ve been working grossly over the legal limit stipulated by the job code.

Several weeks passed, then comes the hail mary – he has received word from Chuck Frevert, who listed him as a co-PI for a neutrophil grant, that it was approved. At the same time, he also found out that he can pay me as low as half of what he thought was legal for a monthly position – research scientist assistant at 50% time. With the cash infusion and knowledge of the “sliding scale”, he finally agreed to allowing me to become a full-time monthly-salaried employee. But even then, it wasn’t final.

After meeting with Chuck, he and I went to get lunch (or more specifically, he went and got lunch while I tried to follow him and talk). He asked me one question: “do you think it’s fair that you’re getting paid more than a grad student?” I don’t know how to answer. To say yes would be too egomaniacal; but to say no would mean I’d have no chance in switching to monthly. Instead, I said, “well, I’m not getting a degree out of this,” to which he counters, “but you’re not going to be working in my lab for as long.” Zing!

That little chat wasn’t too fruitful and I left it in the back of my head for the next few days. I shared the incident with the grad students in my lab – and they too were equally ambivalent – while it’s true that my work duration would be shorter than theirs, I wasn’t getting any of the fringe benefits (i.e. tuition cost) paid for either. It was until later when Alice asked me how much BioE grad students make did I finally figured out how much they make. And on the same day, I got confirmation from Chris and Anthony the grad students that I was, indeed, making more than they currently are making now.

A few days later, I was summoned by my PI. He asked me how much I’m making now, I said “roughly 2100″. Then he offered to pay me at the same rate as a monthly. I told him that I actually am making closer to $2200 (multiply $12/hr by 40 hrs by 4.5 for monthly approximation). Then he counter-offered $2200, and in exchange, I have to give up volunteering on Thursdays. It was a weird but reasonable proposition (he wants me to spend more time in lab) so I agreed.

Upon further number-crunching, I was actually taking a de-facto pay cut because I have forfeited overtime. Considering that I put in ~50 hours on average for the past two weeks, I was actually making $1200 for half-month or $2400 for the month. Which means it will go down by $200 when I switch to a monthly. But in exchange I got health insurance, which is definitely more generous than what I could get for that same $200/month. In a twist of irony, I have actually made the pay levels more equal between me and the grad students – as now I have returned to the same pay range that they have without the overtime.

But, the scale may yet tip in my favor. First, the sliding scale calls for employment “short of 100%” of full time, meaning that in order for me to be eligible for a reduced pay from the full-time minimum wage, I’d have to work less than 40 hours a week. So essentially, I would be working in the range of 90% full time or 36 hours per week (and the other 10% can’t be work, right?). At the same time, my anticipated job code would also entitle me to overtime benefits. This means that if I am working beyond the capacity as stipulated by the sliding scale, I should also be entitled to overtime compensation as well. Not that I think that will affect me, but I can always hope. There we have it: everyone in lab is created equal, just that I am more equal than the grad students are…

• Wii console – 4 months (that’s two years after its release)
• Wii fit – 0 months (I pre-ordered on Amazon, and good thing too)
• Mario Kart Wii – 2 months (3 months after release)
• Rock Band – 1 week and counting (7 months after release)

That’s six months of waiting and sweeping local and online electronics stores not including the many months that’s gone by since the release of the games.

I’m okay with the “production ramp-up problem” excuse Nintendo has been pushing out instead of the actual console itself; but I’d expect the game developers to know better. You have the sales numbers of the consoles – you can calculate the expected demand (now, multiply 45 million by whatever percentage you think is appropriate) – and plan your production accordingly. Stop the excuses, start meeting demands or I will take my money elsewhere.

Why do I sleep late and go to work late:

1. I show up early on Mondays in lab
2. I work well into the night to make sure I have enough hours for the week
3. I go home late after working well into the night, then I have late dinner and subsequently go to bed late
4. I can’t wake up with my alarm and I oversleep an hour or two
5. I finally wake up and waste time on checking the Internet
6. I arrive to work late
7. I work well into the night to make sure I have enough hours for the week
8. … and repeat #3 thru #7 until Saturday

I’ve got to break out of this – I can’t and shouldn’t live like this…

After a lot of political wrangling and a few delays and controversies, the plan is finally here. The plan, of course, is for the replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct. The plan calls for a deep-bore tunnel with a combination of surface street replacement for Alaskan Way. The price tag for the plan is going to be a little over twice the price that JPMorgan Chase paid for the WaMu firesale. Is the plan worth it?

Personally, I think the tunnel is a great idea. On one hand, it maintains the right of way for the viaduct that it is replacing; at the same time, it improves the aesthetics of the Seattle waterfront and opens the surface for an open air park and a streetcar that people actually might use. However, the price tag for aesthetic and convenience is costly; and I’ve been hearing everywhere that there’s this recession thing going on. With a large budget shortfall and no end to the recession in sight, splurging on the tunnel when other options can be had for 1/8th the price seems a bit frivolous.

Being an adopted native Seattlite, I believe the viaduct is as much a part of Seattle as Starbucks Coffee, the Space Needle, and rain. But replacing the viaduct with another viaduct does not make sense to me. Visual aesthetics aside, the viaduct separated downtown from the waterfront, effectively segregating the natives from the tourists. Tearing down the viaduct will finally bring the two parts back together and (hopefully) provide link the various parts of Seattle with shiny new streetcars – public transportations that Seattle needs to up its green credentials and brings it closer to a true “international city”.

But at $4.2 billion, it defies comprehension. We are at a recession and with state budget deficit. Although the project will surely provide many new jobs, same can be said for the other two. Running between $800M and $2B, the other options are almost a bargain compared to the tunnel plan. With any decisions in Seattle, the plan is going to come under multiple lawsuits and recall initiatives (it’s already starting) that will further inflate the cost. In the end, we might end up with a Big Dig – into a bottomless pit where we toss our money into. Should we be spending so recklessly under the current climate when other solutions would work as well?

The decision is final for now (pending the outcome of the next initiative). Whether you like it or not, we need to get our acts together and get it done. We’ve already missed the monorail and delayed the light rail, we don’t need another vaporware roadway – we need a real viaduct replacement. Inaction and infighting are not going to help us. With every minute delayed, we risk one more minute of a dangerous collapse of the viaduct. Recall initiative proponent say it will not affect the timeline, but any recall is going to bring us back to the planning board, the hearings, and more environmental assessment – that is time that could be put to better use. If it’s still too bitter for you to swallow, think about what would happen if you or someone you know is on the viaduct when the Big One hits. I hope you have good health and life insurance, people of Yes! Viaduct.

P.S. My buddy Ryan is quite the fiscal conservative and for the record, I think the government is wasting our tax money – make the viaduct replacement a toll road and let those who use it pay for it.

P.P.S. Yes, toll roads would mean that people at an economic disadvantage will be excluded from the benefits they previous didn’t have to pay for – the fast, non-I-5 way through downtown Seattle. It’s Jim Crow and the poll tax all over again.

P.P.P.S. In case you didn’t catch my drift, you can’t please everybody. A decision is made, move away (from Seattle) or move on.

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Yes it is already 10 days into the new year but that still doesn’t mean I can’t do a year-in-review post. This time the topic is travel. I traveled a surprising amount this past year, spanning coast-to-coast in U.S. and across the Pacific Ocean. I’ve traveled to and, in transit, visited 10 states (CA, OH, DC, MD, DE, PA, NJ, NY, CT, MA) and four countries (China, South Korea, Japan, and Canada). Check out the travel map above on my journey. Hit the jump for more.

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Chronology

I started the 2008 New Years fresh from a trip to Mexico City. During spring break (March), my parents and I went on a five-state, three-city blitz on the East Coast. We started at Philadelphia where my sister is at and made our way north to New York City and ended in Boston. While in Boston, we caught up with my cousin, Alvina, and my friend, Jennifer, both of whom are visiting Massachusetts. We had great food and a great time; the only regret is we couldn’t make it to the Statue of Liberty in time to tour the inside. Oh well…

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Following the five-state blitz in March, I stayed around Seattle for the next six months to finish my Capstone project. But in September, traveling picked up again as my Capstone project winds down. First up is a brief visit to my sister at Philly to help her look for houses which I managed to squeeze in about 3 hours of sightseeing in Washington DC. A week after my return, I was on an airplane flying to Hong Kong.

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In Hong Kong is where my travel starts to pick up. With Hong Kong as my base of operation, I went to Osaka and Wakayama in Japan with my uncle. Right after returning, I was on another trip to Guangzhou with my grandmother and my mom’s friend, Auntie May, where we visited the zoo and the circus. It was a brief trip, but I took lots of pictures still (mostly of live pandas, TEN of them!).

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My original plan was to visit Australia during October on a trip by myself. Unfortunately, the combination of the financiapocalypse, poor planning, and lack of cheap airfares derailed the plan. Instead, I went to Shaanxi and Gansu province with Auntie May instead. We followed the trail traveled by many intrepid merchants 2000 years ago from Xi’an, the ancient capital of China, to Jiayuguan and Dunhuang, the final frontier of ancient China. We rode the train with the locals and went on the Great Wall and into the caves of Mogao Grottoes. It was truly a trip of a lifetime, and we only regret we didn’t have more time to travel further, to Urumqi in Xinjiang.

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The last trip was merely a short pit stop during a long layover at the Incheon Airport. I joined a local tour offered by the airline that visited a few places in Seoul and had the chance to get some Seoul food (thanks, Ryan’s dad!). Shopped a little at Itaewon but it’s the one thing that I didn’t get there that inspired my “backpack story”.

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The numbers

Total miles traveled (approximate, excl. to Canada): 32397.1 mi

• Miles by plane (in blue): 29098.94 mi
• Miles by rail (in purple): 1789.98 mi
• Miles by bus/car (in green): 1354.66 mi
• Miles by boat (in red): 153.52 mi

Major cities visited (excl. in transit): 9

• United States: 4 (Washington DC, Philadelphia x2, New York, Boston)
• China: 3 (Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Xi’an)
• Japan: 1 (Osaka)
• South Korea: 1 (Seoul)

Airports visited (incl. in transit): 8

• United States: 4 (SEA, SFO, CVG, PHL)
• China: 2 (HKG, XIY)
• Japan: 1 (KIX)
• Seoul: 1 (ICN)

Famous landmarks visited

• United States: Statue of Liberty (New York), Independence Hall (Philadelphia), Freedom Trail (Boston), National Mall (Washington DC)
• China: Terra Cotta Soldiers (Xi’an), Lishan (Xi’an), Qianling (Xi’an), Great Wall (Jiayuguan), Gobi Desert (Dunhuang), Mogao Grottoes (Dunhuang), Chimelong Zoo and Circus (Guangzhou)
• South Korea: Presidential Blue House (Seoul)
• Japan: Universal Studios Japan (Osaka), Wakayama Castle (Wakayama), Nachi No-Taki (Nachi)

Total number of pictures taken (and uploaded on Flickr): 1757

• Total number of sets on Flickr: 107
• Average number of pictures per set: 16.4
• Total number of albums on Facebook: 26

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All numbers above exclude visits to Richmond, BC, Canada – I’ve gone quite a few times and it’s generally more of a “commute” instead of a real trip.

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Last year was great in terms of traveling. Of all the places I’ve got to see, the Gobi Desert was the most phenomenal. Many touristy places in China have become incredibly artificial to appease to the tourists’ visions; but not the Gobi Desert. As soon as one tourist steps foot on the desert, the dune reshape back to its original form. It brings to mind the Taoist philosophy of balance and harmony. If only I had more time, I’d like to spend more time in the desert.

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This year, I hope to go to even more places and see many more sights. Last year I missed a few of the places that I wanted to go. This year, I want to make up for what I missed and find new places. My hitlist for this year is:

• Europe
  
• Australia
• Israel and Egypt
• China (Beijing, Shanghai, Yunnan)

Let’s get going!

More than half of my credit card bill goes through my digestive system

Updated: Now with the months of September thru December!

I’ve been crunching the numbers from my credit card bills and this is what I have so far. The largest chunk goes to food (39.1%), which includes eating out, barhopping, and groceries. The next biggest slice goes to shopping (35.6%). A bit shocking to me is that coffee accounts for nearly 20% 15% of by CC bills. Counting only the months of January thru March and May thru August every month of 2008 but April, I have spent over $2500 $3100 with the plastic. Hit the jump for more numbers.

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Caffeine expenditure

Largest by amount charged: January – $117.74

Smallest by amount charged: November* – $3.50

Largest by percent total: August – 35.2%

Smallest by percent total: November* – 1.3%

Largest by number of separate transactions: August – 21

Smallest by number of separate transactions: February and November* – 1

* excluding October, which has zero coffee transactions

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Food expenditures

Largest by amount charged: September – $198.95

Smallest by amount charged: October – $12.00

Largest by percent total: September – 71.5%

Smallest by percent total: June – 16.9%

Largest by number of separate transactions: February – 11

Smallest by number of separate transactions: October – 2

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Total expenditures

Total spending (all of 2008, excl. April): $3109.07

Largest by amount charged: December – $467.59

Smallest by amount charged: October – $42.46

Largest by number of separate transactions: August – 29

Smallest by number of separate transactions: October – 6

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Trends

Coffee expenditure is the least in February and March because I was abstaining from drinking or buying coffee during Lent. However, as the summer months roll by and the Capstone deadline nears, I’ve spent more time in coffee shops finishing up my thesis, thus increasing the overall number of transactions and the percent of total bill used for coffee. But in the fall, I was gone and so the coffee bill was considerably less – it was zero in October.

I ate out more during the first three months of the year and so my food bill was higher in those months. I was eating out with friends more frequently then than 3 months and 6 months later because I was stuck in lab more and more at later hours and so reduces the frequency that I eat out overall. In September, I ate out daily while I was in Philadelphia – and food isn’t too cheap there either. Frequency starts to pick up again around November when I began going out to lunch with my labmates.

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What’s left out?

Since I don’t have my credit card bills for the other months, the overall distribution may be skewed. For example, October should be the month where I used the plastic the least because I was on vacation for a good part of the month. April and December are more shopping-heavy months due to big-ticket purchases (Wii, GPS, and LCD TV) and they were not included in the chart above. I’ll post the updated one as soon as I got them.

The tabulation excludes the month of April because I don’t have the bills for that. But it should be the month of the greatest expense. More detailed tabulations will be posted later when I found the bill. Furthermore, this list does not include purchases I made with cash (though they are mostly from people paying me back) which are numerous.