Expenses Without Receipts

Starting from Monday, July 2:

• Parked downtown: $8.
• Went to this coffeeshop called Penny's Coffee, considered to have very good coffee and one of the most splendid-looking rooms in the city.  The views are great; it's housed on the ground floor of a building that has floor-to-ceiling windows, and the patio is gorgeous.  I might spend a a morning eating breakfast with a friend out there next week.  But the coffee, as you can imagine, is expensive.  With tip, the coffee I asked to be poured into my mug, while excellent and distinctive, was: $4.33.
• Trying to figure out what to do after work but before going home.  It was hot, so I thought about DQ, then this place in town called Grandpa's.  Went to Grandpa's, but they were closed for Independence Day.  (Aside: Because the 4th of July falls right on a Wednesday, businesses are, I think, taking either the first half of the week off or the second half.  Either way traffic has been cut sharply because of this unique either/or situation; even though I got out of the house late, I got to my parking spot in about 20 minutes.  Actually had to turn around because I forgot to put money into the slot for parking, and yet I still had time to go to Penny's, a place I had never been before, to get coffee and reach my desk at 8:31.)  Eventually decided I was going to go to Dunn Bros. to get their pricey but scrumptious Mocha Icecrema.  Except that it's no longer called a Mocha Icecrema.  It's now just a Mocha Frappe, like it's called everywhere else.  It's still good.  With tip: $5.75.
• Sunday the 1st: Off a high from a successful party, I spent the early evening in a drunken daze around Uptown.  A hot spot that just had its soft opening over the weekend, Meyvn, was a place I spontaneously went to to have dinner and get really tipsy.  But before then I drove up Lyndale and remembered, "Hey, I haven't been to Crema Cafe in a while -- I'll go there!"  Ice cream really hit the spot.  With tip: $5.75.
• And then I went to Caffetto to unwind.  Medium hot chocolate plus tip: $3.75.
• Finally I went to My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Edition).  Met Cicily there and got a lapper from her for the first time in a while.  Had a Sprite.  Tipped only Cicily on-stage because one girl during that shift demands $5, another stayed in the changing room and a third was too busy talking to this one PL.  Saved a bit more money than I thought.  All told: $26.
• Back to the 30th, where I was going to spend the day charging everything I spent, nearly entirely at the two downtown pubs for both World Cup matches, on my credit card.  But then I remembered that I should print out the list of people coming to the next day's alumni chapter party.  So I went to the library (something I thought I was going to do anyway) and printed it out for: 10 cents.
• And then, because it was hot and I wasn't able to eat lunch at Brit's, I went to DQ before having dinner at home.  Had a chocolate sundae instead of my usual hot fudge.  Cost: $3.20.
• Friday the 29th ... parked downtown: $8.
• Did my best to avoid the oppressive sun and heat by ducking into the Red Cow for Happy Hour.  Then went out to the United match, where it was still ridiculously hot.  Got my usual hot dog and Redd's: $15.25.
• And while I was sitting through another excruciating loss I found a penny at my right foot.  An Infusion of: 1 cent.
• I then went to Glam Doll.  But which one?  The one in Nordeast is much closer, and I promised myself that I would go to one of these after a United match.  But ... shoot, the original on Eat Street, although so far away, just has that ... ineffable feeling that I like and that makes me feel safe.  So I took the longer drive down there.  Big mistake, I think.  There was a huge back-up going from 35WS to 11th Ave.  I don't know if it has anything to do with construction, but I didn't think it would snarl up traffic on a Saturday night.  But it did.  I should have used common sense and just went the two miles in the other direction to Nordeast.  But hey, I got to see people I'm familiar with.  I put the first donut, the pour-over and the tip for both on my credit card.  This EWR is for the second donut and the tip for that: $1.75.
• Thursday the 28th -- parked downtown: $8.
• Caribou sent me an e-mail saying that I could get a dollar off a beverage for Thursday.  So I went in for a small mocha I had them put in my thermos.  Plus tip: $4.
• I had tickets to the premiere of HBO's Sharp Objects, which was being screened at Southdale in the evening.  Texted my friend to see if he wanted to come; got no answer.  Hmmm. ...  Sometimes, but not always, they offer free popcorn and pop.  They did here, which saved me a trip to a fast food place afterward.  Instead I went to Caffetto to work on some stuff on the computer.  Small iced mocha plus tip totaled: $4.75.
• Back to Wednesday, June 27, where I, uh, parked downtown: $8.
• I then went to Caribou because I got another discount from them, a free size upgrade.  I still wanted them to use my thermos, so even though it was the same size as before, I was being charged for a medium, and therefore on this day I was charged for a small.  With tip: $2.50.
• Tuesday the 26th: Parked downtown (aside: I calculated the net hourly wage I'm getting on my current gig.  Taking away a dollar -- I work eight hours and parking costs eight bucks -- I barely make ten bucks an hour ... and that's before I pay for food and drinks) which set me back: $8.
• Had to break away from the food my parents pack for me.  There's a place on the IDS Center Skyway called One Two Three Sushi that has specials on Tuesdays.  And on this Tuesday I got this shrimp California roll, or something.  These guys have a tip jar even though this roll was already pre-made.  Do I tip like a bigshot for pre-packaged meals?  I didn't.  Total: $5.75.
• That evening I went out to the library for two things.  One, I had to print out the ticket to Thursday's screening of Sharp Objects.  Second, I was sent by the alumni association headquarters a confidentiality agreement that, once I signed and returned, would give me permission to take into possession some information that I believe I need to run the club.  While I understand privacy issues, I think this was information I have needed for a long time.  And yet I wonder if this agreement was something I could have had for several years now.  If so, it's strange to think that no one told me about it.  Guess that's why you always have to ask.  Anyway, I printed out both the ticket and this agreement, so I spent: 20 cents.
• On Monday, June 25 I did not go to work, so I did not park downtown.  Instead I had an interview, and so to prepare and/or relax I went to Caribou for a bagel and coffee.  With tip it came out to: $6.
• I then I went to the library, and then I went to the gazebo and the building where my shrink works and at the lunch my folks packed for me; I was there in the hopes I could see him after my interview was over.  And then I went to the Nomad to watch dueling World Cup games.  I saw my shrink after the matches.  Tecate plus tip: $5.
• Sunday the 24th ... this was the day where I decided I was going to plop my ass down at the Nomad and stay there for eight-plus hours to take in all three games of that day's World Cup tripleheader.  Like I blogged, it was really nice to be allowed to just sit, play on my computer, and watch TV.  So long as you pay for the privilege, of course.  A Bloody Karenina (man, their Bloody Mary mix is spicy!), what I believe to be a chana-and-potatoes bowl from the Marla's Caribbean food truck, a can of Tecate and tips for all comes to a total of: $22.75.

Good through July 2.