Project 52: Monday Afternoon

This Monday Afternoon was the week of my Live Below The Line challenge. Living on such a minimal budget, and thus lack of variety of food, I found myself holding out to have lunch at work as long as I could - even on that first day! The later the lunch, the faster the afternoon goes, right!

This is Pumpkin Soup with Damper, and water. Pretty uninspiring! And such a small portion!

I managed to raise $805 towards charities working towards eradicating extreme poverty, although the donation page remains open until the 31st of May. Pretty impressive with the generosity and support from my friends and family through the week of the challenge.

This post is part of Project 52 with Jess from FuShMuSh.

Project 52: Monday Lunchtime

For Project 52 Monday Lunchtime, I decided that I would treat myself with lunch out of the office, in preparation for the follow week, where I did the Live Below The Line challenge. I remember thinking when I had purchased it, just in the cafe downstairs from the office, that it was almost worth the whole budget for the following week.

This post is part of Project 52 with Jess from FuShMuSh.

Live Below The Line Challenge Completed

I survived Living Below The Line for 5 days last week! I mean, of course I would, but the main factor is that I didn't cheat, I didn't bend to temptation all around me at my workplace, and I gritted out the caffeine withdrawals.

From my $10, and the menu plan I followed, I managed to have 3 meals a day.

With the knowledge that this restricted food and drink plan was only 5 days, it was less of a challenge than that of those faced with this prospect every day - 1.4 billion people, all around the world, who live below the poverty line.

This experience does help echo the notion of luck of the “world lottery”, which I heard again at the AYAD Youth Forum last month. It’s sheer luck that I am born in Australia, and within the  opportunities that have come my way, and thus I do not need to live like this challenge on an enduring basis. I can eat what I like, spend what I have in my bank account, and I also have the freedom to travel where I want, get the education I seek, read what I want, wear what I want...

Once I was through the hunger experience and the caffeine withdrawal headache pains of the first 2 days of the Live Below The Line week, the lack of variety was my main challenge.  I was so bored with the prospect of the same combination of ingredients. I longed for the usual variety my usual life affords me. And I would never eat food with that much butter with such frequency!

When I was cooking those meals, I was also being very careful of waste. I was so worried that I would run out of food for my leftover meal on Friday night. It reminded me, as I trimmed the skin from the pumpkin, of helping in the kitchen in Cambodia, and having my friend Nina tell me off for discarding what I would usually discard from a capsicum - the ends. She reminded me, back then, that not everyone can be so frivolous.

The lack of energy was another big insight from the week. If this figure from the World Bank is correct about the AUS$2 per day, the women I saw working in the fields on my trek in Kalaw, and the work teams of women laying the road in Bagan, doing such back-breaking labour, sustain their activities of daily living on just this. I just had to sit at a desk all day, in my current job. That blows my mind!

I have raised $755 from my week Below The Line, which will go towards the fight to end extreme poverty around the world. Thank you to all who have supported me and the cause, and the fundraising page is open until the 31st of May for all those still wanting to.

(Image credit - Halogen)

Live Below The Line: An Update

Today is Day 4 of the Live Below The Line challenge, and I think I am going to make it! One more day of living on $2 per day, $10 for a 5 day week, to simulate the experience of living in extreme poverty.

But of course, it’s difficult to simulate completely – after all, this challenge is just about food and drink. It does not take into account that for the 1.4 billion people for whom this is the reality everyday, and also that this meager amount is what they subsist on for everything, including housing, utilities (if available), and all other expenses. Clearly, living in Australia, and coming from the wealth of opportunities that has got me where I am in life, it’s tough to experience the true experience. But it’s a little window, and a harsh reminder, at least.

The end of Day 1 was the worst, and then Day 2, with a constant caffeine withdrawal headache, and hunger ache. The meals on my meal plan were enough to get through to the next one, just, but not really hearty enough to sustain me through the day. Getting home from work on Monday was pretty ridiculous, as I felt listless and so, so tired. I got over this yesterday, being Day 3, and today has been the best I have felt. The lack of variety in the meals has been the hardest part, and the need for meticulous planning! Although a different breakfast, and the introduction of tomato, this morning, was a huge relief! I crave cheese, and coffee, and sugar, and coffee, and salad, and coffee!

I would rarely plan meals ahead, and I would mix things up through the week, so that I am never bored. Plus, I eat out so much! This week I have had to be aware of what I could eat at each meal, to stay in budget, and resist all snack on offer at impromptu morning teas at the office. I could not eat out before or after the movie I went to see last night (a free movie, at that!). I have also had to factor in cooking time most days! Plan when I could cook the meals, and have spent more time in the kitchen this week than I do for a month or more! This has been a full time occupation, just living! Such an insight!

One more day, and I can return to eating meat and drinking coffee like the privileged person that I am. I am certain that this week’s experience, and the conversations I have had about the challenge, will stay with me for a long time. I will certainly approach the dilemma I always have with beggars a little differently, that’s for sure.

I am so, so pleased that my challenge has also managed to raise such valuable funds towards the worldwide fight against extreme poverty. I have raised $695 to date (fundraising closes on 31st of May, so plenty of time to kick in a few dollars!), which will go toward supporting kids access school, have a meal before school so they can concentrate, and ultimately access a better life. Thank you to all who have supported me, and this important world issue!

Groceries For 5 Days, At $9.70: Live Below The Line

With the task of shopping for my groceries for the next 5 days, as part of the Live Below The Line food challenge, I had to plan, stake out where to go, and actually shop around today!  These are things I NEVER usually do!

I am a "go to the closest, most convenient store, and just make it up as I go along" kinda grocery shopper. I am not a cook, nor someone who plans meals very far in advance - plus I usually live on my own, so meals for one are nothing exciting; not something I put any serious thought or effort into. That's why I eat out a lot, with mates, and the joy of tasting someone else's culinary efforts!

Most lunches I ate last week cost almost $10 each. And each pint I drank yesterday while watching the footy cost more than $10 each. As next week has been looming, I have been pretty mindful of that figure...the World Bank's estimate of what people living below the poverty line are surviving on each day.

I am following Julie Goodwin's meal plan for the challenge this Monday through to Friday. Although, frankly, I don't know where she went to get her items at her quoted prices!

The eggs and the pumpkin caused me the most dilemma - I actually researched online before deciding which supermarket I would go to within a decent range of my current housesitting apartment, to find 12 eggs anywhere near Julie's quoted price. As it was, I did not find the online quoted price on the shelf, and went investigating down the street, mid-shop, to find a dozen in a Chinese grocery, at closer to the right price. The pre-cut pumpkin in the supermarket was my blow out expense, and I did consider heading off to the market to see if I could get it smaller, and for less. I mean, that's what someone living on $2 a day would have to do! But in the end, I ditched some other items, mindful that the Friday dinner of "leftovers" in the plan was pretty light on, and anticipating that that may be the hardest meal not to cheat with!

I had to forgo the fresh garlic I had in my basket, and did not get the 500g of salt on the shopping list. In fact, I didn't get any salt. Maybe I will need to collect some from a fast food place, if I decide I need it. Don't judge me! It did not fit within the $10!

I have a jar of crushed garlic in the pantry, and have worked out that I can use about 15g of that, within the 30c I have left from my $10 budget. Part of the challenge rules allow this - although does not allow people to gift me any food, to help me out during the week! Well, without it counting towards my budget, and now I have no room for that. Nor for coffee.

Right, now to cook my breakfast for tomorrow and also lunch, tonight - these meals take planning ahead!

You can support my challenge, and the quest to assist those living like this, in extreme poverty everyday, to rise above it here. A million thanks to all those who have kicked in money to the cause already - you are awesome! 

Preparing To Live Below The Line

1.4 billion people around the world live below the poverty line, every day.

I have signed up to Live Below The Line next week, meaning a budget of just $2 per day on food, for 5 days, to experience the experience of those around the world stuck in such a poverty trap. A glimpse into the difficulties of getting through the day and week with meticulous planning to ensure you don’t run out of food, and also manage to feed yourself enough to get through everyday tasks!

I have been inspired by Kelly-Louise to join her on this challenge. She always has a project on the go, many of which are part of the Eat So They Can campaign, and her work in Africa. I have joined her team, and so our funds raised go to the GVN International. This fund will help support education, mentoring and scholarships for youth to work on their leadership skills.

Lots of people have commented when I have told them that I am doing the challenge that I am just returning to the experience of uni days. But being broke whilst at university is not the same as experiencing actual extreme poverty. Going to uni implies that you have hope of a better day, when you have finished. You also have people around you that you can turn to for a loan, or for assistance, be it fellow students or the university student support services. Actual pervasive poverty is a cycle that people rarely find a way out of, nor the hope and strength to do so. Without a helping hand from those more fortunate, there are not many paths out of such a dire situation, with ensuing health and housing concurrent issues compounding an already stressful mode of living.

I certainly ran out of money at the end of most months when I was living and working in London, but that was a lifestyle choice. I was paid monthly, and promptly planned at least one, maybe two, weekends away to explore a new European city. The end of the month was very, very lean, and I employed all sorts of strategies to get me through to the next payday. But again, this experience was rewarded with those amazing trips – not something someone living below the poverty line has to look forward to.

I appreciate how lucky I am, with my ability to earn, to fall into casual employment, to have collected my education, and to have managed to travel so extensively. I don’t know if I fully appreciate how hard living on around $2 per day is. That insight is something that this challenge can give me – even if it is just for 5 days.

I am just going to follow one of the menu plans from the Australian Live Below The Line website, which actually looks ok. I did ponder whether it is actually better than my average meal-for-one week if I don’t have any social plans…hmmm. I think the hardest thing for me, really, will be that coffee won’t fit within my $10 budget for the week. Even though coffee and tea is provided at my current workplace, within the rules of the challenge any such consumption still needs to be accounted for within the budget – and so that just won’t fit. I cannot imagine working without coffee in my system, and I already feel sorry for the work colleagues who sit with me in my pod! I am also working at a workplace that has impromptu morning teas for all sorts of fun reasons, so this will also be a challenge to resist during next week! Oh, and no buying treats on the way home from work, like I did tonight!

So I have set myself this challenge – I hope I don’t lapse and cheat! Please donate to my page, so that I am not tempted by that coffee at work, and I feel a sense of obligation to maintain the strict menu plan for the week!

I plan to drop some progress notes over on my LBTL page, as well as Instagramming some of my meals along the way, to show you what this challenge means on a day to day, meal to meal basis. I will also give you an update here about how I am going with it! Wish me luck!

(Image credits - Stoffers Group and Halogen)