Budget Update: February 2017

February 2017 Budget Update Summary

I’m a bit annoyed with myself because for the past two months, I’ve been spending everything I’m earning. It’s more or less equal. But a significant portion did go towards donations, so… *mixed feelings*

February 2017 was an enjoyable month. Just when I thought I was stagnant, a meetup with personal finance/ self-improvement bloggers Aaron Tang from Mr Stingy, DM from Dividend Magic and Charles from Kopi and Property perked me right back up. The conversations about lesser-known income-generating methods were truly insightful, and just like that they inspired me to hustle harder and be more creative to find ways to generate income.

February 2017 was also memorable because my Google Adsense deposited blog advertisement payout for the first time. It took me ~14 months to hit $100 in Adsense income. My aim now is to improve that to $100 per 6 months, because why not? I’d love to upgrade my hosting plan and I want to give readers a good experience when visiting this blog.

So dear readers, what do you want from Ringgit Oh Ringgit? You guys helped me earn, it’s only right to give back in return, no? 🙂

Yay of the month:

• Paid my zakat (Related: the writeup on it). I have no idea how much is my taxes yet, but if it’s anything last previous years, I should get a portion of it back, maybe.
• Sunat-ed my other (male) cat for RM120. Was extremely satisfied with their service, plus the staff was likeable. If you’re looking for a good vet in Shah Alam area, look for i-Vet Care. The last time I neutered my cat, I paid RM150 for not-so-great experience.
• (Along with many other people), was interviewed by The Edge about bitcoin 🙂 It’s in issue #1151.
• Saw a dress I liked. The tag said RM49, and I thought the price was OK. At the cashier, it was beeped as RM40. Love it when this happens 😀
• Stocked up on sunscreens (Biore) and facial lotion (Hada Labo) during Guardian’s 3-for-2 sales. Discounts on things you’re going to get anyway = #win.
• Bought a silicone facial blender for RM4. It’s supposed to help you save money by reducing product waste – normal sponge blenders absorb a lot of product. Later found out some online shops were selling it for about RM20. First of all, yay. Second of all, wow I understand the need to make profit and all, but that’s a bit too much, no?
• Attended Bloktex’s event – ‘A Day with Andreas: Discover, Engage and Connect to the Future of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency‘. Andreas M. Antonopoulos is a bitcoin evangelist – someone who clarifies bitcoin for non-bitcoin demographic. I wrote about what he said in this post. After seeing him in action, I became a fangirl – even chasing him for a photo together haha. Actually, February was a good month for bitcoin. I’m happy with the price now. 

Nay of the month:

• After the cracked phone incident in January, I had to deal with malfunctioning keyboard problem in February -_- First the ‘W’ button stopped working, so for the first few days I copied+pasted ‘W’ in all my writing work. Then freaking ‘Y’ stopped working. That’s it. I can’t be a writer without using these two keys! Paid for RM180 for same-day replacement in Subang. I was told it was overpriced, but at least it was done in a few hours. A few other people I was asking said it’ll take days to look for the replacement keys.
• My Dad was sick 🙁 He’s one of those people who refuses to take modern medication, so it was frustrating on my end. I believe in modern medication, but I also acknowledge that I’ve never been drugged out of my mind to reject it completely. That’s his story, in a nutshell. He’s better now, thank God. I’m happy his immune system is still strong.
• As reflected in low groceries bill, I didn’t cook much in February. A lot of eating out. But I was consistent in working out (10 out of 28 days), and my weight maintained, so yay.
• Been spending a lot on business expenses lately :/ Uber/Grab rides to events add up, too.

Things to Look Forward to:

• Planned a lot of activities in March! I’m going to Ho Chi Minh City for a short break, then on another weekend I’ll go tubing/caving in Perak, then on another weekend I’ll be watching a show (paid for it too!)
• Seems like many of my invoices will be processed soon! Look forward to payment for jobs done these past few months.
• Doing my taxes.
• Taking on more clients for Quarter 2 onwards. This is a learning process, but I hope to be able to schedule work+rest time more efficiently from now on. I was close to burning out on a couple of occasions because I didn’t like being idle. It’s getting a tad counter-productive – rest time is important, too.
• One of my clients, a cool health-tech startup focusing on brain and mental health, is now doing a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo! This was my first time working during crowdfunding process, and the experience of working with neuroscientists and engineers passionate about mental health was overwhelmingly positive. Please support them – if you think the product is cool, please share to people passionate about mental health!

March will be awesome, I’m sure of it, InsyaAllah. You guys have significantly improved my life (by making me feel useful), and seriously, thank you for visiting RoR.

To read about my past monthly budget update, click here.