The Addison Cafe

When I think of budget killers, two things come to mind: cars and food.  The one I want to focus on today is food. 

Everyone has their favorite food, whether it’s dirty take out (Nom Nom) or caviar and escargot.  Whatever your preference, eating out too much can really affect how much you save each month.  On one hand, restaurant food tastes great (usually) and can provide a fun experience. On the other, you don’t have anything to show afterwards; your money is gone and so is your meal.

So how much is enough?  Some avoid eating out at all costs, and if they do, they opt for the dollar menu and drink water. Others throw caution to the wind and pork out whenever they have the urge. I know it comes down to personal preference, but does anyone have any wisdom on the matter? What should the balance be?

I went surfing for the first time last month. Well, I wouldn’t call it surfing. More like falling over a bunch and drinking gallons of salt water for several hours.  While I was busy doing that, my wife was busy having the time of her life bodyboarding. Despite my insult to the sport of surfing, it was a blast. So much so that we now both own wetsuits and body boards (yes, I bought a bodyboard and not a surfboard…success comes more frequently to me on those).

The wetsuits were on sale and we bought your basic run of the mill bodyboards. Overall, the cost for one person is about $250. But from here on out everything is free. Using the ocean? Free. Time limits? None. We don’t have to put a quarter in to ride a wave (oops, hopefully I didn’t give the government any ideas). If the gear lasts a while, as it should (years hopefully), we now have a free hobby outside the cost of gas.

Hobbies like that are the best kind…finding something you can do that once you’re setup, the activity is unlimited and free. Kayaking, photography, most forms of exercise, clubs for things like chess and cribbage, etc.  Ironically, watching movies and cable television, while fun, continually cost money and provide little benefit.

Any good free-once-you’re-setup hobby suggestions?