Housing - $769

Utilities - $171 (low because gas bill did not hit this month, due to holiday)

Groceries - $100

Fees/Services - $40 (replenishment of tollway pass)

Vacation/Travel - $36 (short trip to brother's house)

Medical/Health - $33 (premium and band aids)

Eating Out/Takeout - $30

Gas - $28

Furnishings/Equipment/Decor - $24 (avocado keeper, mini-cooler)

Entertainment - $23 (streaming)

Laundry - $20

Household Supplies - $16 (dishwasher detergent)

Home Repair/Maintenance - $15 (doorknob set)

Clothing/Accessories - $12 (jeans from Goodwill)

Phone - $33

Car - $7 (car washes)

Personal - $4 (hair conditioner)

Gifts/Charity/Hosting - $2 (donations)

Fares/Parking - $1

Grand Total - $1364

I haven't reported any spending since the 15th, but actually I haven't spent all that much. I spent $21 on groceries at Aldi, plus another $4 for an avocado keeper (which worked fairly well -- the avocado still developed a brown skin but it was easy to scrape off). On Saturday I took a long walk and stopped at a favorite eatery, where I spent $25. I had enough leftovers for a second meal, but still, it seemed like a lot for a brunch. Today I spent $3 on a car wash, the second one this month. I'm trying to keep it down to once a month, but this morning my car was covered with some kind of sticky residue which must have come from the trees. It was gross. I've done a couple of loads of laundry ($4), and that's about it. Variables are at 45%. I think I'll be able to put $1500 in savings if there are no surprises.

I had a really nice Mother's Day, with a salmon luncheon prepared by the "chefs" at my son's house and a lovely cash gift of $100! I was going to put it in the bank but decided to hang onto it as cash, since I don't know how this debt ceiling thing is going to go. Even a small disruption in Social Security would make life difficult for me. I hope it won't happen, but I probably won't rest easy till it's all over.

Today I got a car wash ($4) and gas ($28) and bought band-aids ($7). Variables are at 38%, and we're halfway through the month, so that's good.

Great news came through today -- my son got a much-deserved and much-overdue promotion. He works for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Now he will be tracking employment rather than product prices, and with a higher level of responsibility. The pay raise is not too impressive, but it puts him in another track where raises will be more frequent, and higher. He is very happy, and so am I!

I had a brief vacation at my brother's house in Michigan this past weekend. I hadn't seen him since Thanksgiving, so it was good to do some catching up.

I spent $36 on gas and food. Also, my IPass replenished automatically, and that was $40.

Yesterday I bought a new doorknob set for one of my interior doors. It was $15. I installed it myself; fingers crossed that it will hold!

Today I'm heading out for groceries. It is a $20 week, so I won't be getting much!