I have spent very little since my last entry. I went to Walmart yesterday just to buy a loaf of bread. $4. I won't buy any more groceries unless I really need something. Needs instead of wants.

I also donated $5 to a charitable fund. That's it. Variables are at 88%.

One break I've had with my budget this month is that my assessment fees will not hit this month -- not until March 1. I paid my last one early, so I have essentially skipped the whole month of February. That has given me almost $500 worth of wiggle room. Well, not really, since my semi-annual property tax was a little over $500.

On March 2, I'm going to travel down to BFF's house for some weekend fun. We will go to a play her granddaughter is working in -- running the sound board. Of course there will be some shopping and eating out.

Still waiting for my tax refund. It seems a bit slow this year.

I was hoping February would be a low-spend month, but it's not turning out that way. Partly my fault, partly not. My fault -- I ordered a Levi hybrid trucker jacket from Macy's -- a good deal, but still $57. Because of the size I needed I had to order online; I hope it fits. Not my fault -- the college where I used to work, and from which I was an official retiree, retracted the perk I got upon retirement of free Microsoft 365. The IT person I talked to -- when I started having problems -- didn't even know that retirees were given this. Anyway, it seems that with changes in administration, the whole idea of this has gone away, and they disabled my account. (Hence, the problems!) I was hitting a brick wall when I tried to get them to understand that it was a legitimate account, so I gave up and took my laptop to Best Buy to get Microsoft Office loaded onto it. I opted for the one-time fee, which was $165. Ah well. It was nice while it lasted.

Other things -- my tollway pass replenished again -- that's three months in a row, $40 a pop. I guess I could avoid the toll road more; it's just so much easier than the crowded highways.  Also, I met BFF in the middle city and spent $51 on gas and food. I got a haircut -- $25 -- which is way cheaper than the salon I used to use. I was getting low on toilet paper so bought the big package at Sam's for $26. And after several months of very little grocery shopping I find I have finally started needing to stock up a little. Sigh. Variables are at 86% and I'm only halfway through the month. Well, a little more, since it's a short month!

Just a few updates to my spending log. The heater in my aquarium bit the dust (haha, no dust in an aquarium!) -- it malfunctioned, the red light flashing on and off erratically. I didn't want to take a chance of the fish being harmed, so I bought a new one. That, and an underwater thermometer, cost me $26. I bought a few groceries for $9, valentines for $11 and I spent $24 for lunch the other day. That seemed like a lot, but I brought home leftovers that will provide a few more meals. And I had to pay a buck for parking. Variables are at 36%. Too high for only a week into the month.

In other news, my two cents has officially been logged in by my property management company, so I hope that's the end of that saga.

Taxes are done; I am now awaiting a state refund of $238, which will be most welcome!