A Week In New York On A $115,000 Salary

Welcome to Money Diaries where we are tackling the ever-present taboo that is money. We’re asking real people how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period — and we’re tracking every last dollar.

Today: a business development specialist who makes $115,000 per year and spends some of her money this week on Trader Joe’s mocha latte pretzels.

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Housing costs: $1,871.56 rent (I live with one roommate and pay slightly more than half because I have the bigger bedroom).
Loan payments: $0
Electric: $70 (split evenly with my roommate so this is my half. Varies, but this is the yearly average).
Verizon internet: $30 (this is for my half — my roommate and I split it evenly).
Ritual multivitamin: $33
Planet Fitness: $10.45
Hulu & Disney+: $0.98 (it’s actually $20.98 but I get $20 back from my American Express Platinum).
Spotify: $11.99
Savings: $2,000
Phone bill: $0 (my mom pays). 
Insurance: $173.96 (for medical, dental and vision. This is per paycheck, pre-tax). 

Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes, I got a bachelor’s degree from a private university. I’m a first-generation college student but it was always assumed I would go to college. My grandparents were always mad at my mom for not going and the importance of good grades was stressed from a young age. I was lucky to receive a lot of need-based financial aid as well as a small merit scholarship. I took out about $10,000 in loans over the four years to cover the remaining bit of tuition and I worked part-time jobs throughout college to have spending money.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s)/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
Growing up, we didn’t have money, so there weren’t a lot of conversations about it. My mom had me at 21 and was a single mom. I watched her budget by hand at the kitchen table with a calculator all the time. I took a personal finance class my senior year of high school and mostly educated myself about money. I have always had a savings mindset because of my childhood.

What was your first job and why did you get it?
My senior year of high school I worked 20 hours a week in the office of my local school district. I got the job because I had to pay for my own gas and any extra things like going out with friends. I also wanted to save up some money before going to university. I would have liked to get a job before this, but I didn’t have a car to get around in rural South Carolina where there is no public transportation.

Did you worry about money growing up?
I wouldn’t say I worried because we always had the necessities. I was definitely aware that we didn’t have as much money as most of my friends, but it wasn’t something I worried about.

Do you worry about money now?
I worried about money a lot right out of college when I was on my own with a super expensive lease. Now I have a six-month emergency fund in a high-yield savings account so I don’t usually worry anymore.

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
At 22. I moved to NYC after graduating from college and was on my own. My mom and grandparents would certainly help me if I needed some money but they aren’t well off themselves and wouldn’t be able to cover my rent or any large expenses.

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
No.

8:30 a.m. — I wake up and brush my teeth. I throw on some leggings, a T-shirt and some deodorant to get out the door to hit the grocery stores before they get busy. I start by heading to Trader Joe’s. This is a brand-new one that just opened and the first in my neighborhood — I’m so excited! I realize I made no list or plan for the week and end up wandering the whole store. I get ranch-seasoned cashews, mocha latte pretzels, garlicky pasta, spaghetti carbonara, Hold the Cone! vanilla cones, frozen butter chicken and frozen chicken tikka masala. $28.85

9:30 a.m. — Because it’s so hot and I got a lot of frozen items, I decided to come home and drop off the groceries before going back out to Whole Foods. I still don’t have a list or plan and they are out of baskets even though there is barely anyone in the store, so I only get a few items (pineapple chunks, mini naan, eggs and apples). $18.16

10 a.m. — Stop at Dunkin’ on the way home and get a medium iced coffee, hash browns and a bacon, egg and cheese wake-up wrap. I reload my app with $10 but pay with my American Express Gold Card so I’ll get my $7 monthly credit. $3

10:15 a.m. — Put away the groceries, eat my breakfast and throw my sheets in the wash. I realize I didn’t take my pills this morning so I quickly swallow those (vitamin D, Ritual women’s multivitamin, spironolactone and Accutane). Then I sit down to play the NYT games. Wordle, Spelling Bee, The Mini, Connections and Strands all go well and then I struggle on the crossword for a while before giving up.

11:45 a.m. — Get my laptop out to do my weekly banking. I keep a spreadsheet on Google Drive where I track everything manually. I’m going to visit my mom in two weeks so I also look into a couple activities and restaurants near her.

12:15 p.m. — Take a break from the computer stuff because the sheets are dry. I make my bed, put the clothes in the dryer and throw the comforter into the wash. Thank goodness for in-unit laundry!

12:45 p.m. — Talk to a friend’s mom on the phone about a surprise “welcome back” party we are throwing my friend this Friday. It’s going to be super casual but I’m excited!

1:30 p.m. — The clothes are dry and I throw them in a heap on the bed with the clothes that were washed last week and never put away. I can finally throw the comforter into the dryer and leave. I stop at the ATM for tip money because I never have cash and then carry on to the nail salon. I get a gel manicure and a pedicure and choose white polish — not sure how I feel about it but at least they are all cut and filed now. $83.97

2:45 p.m. — Decide I should make lunch before it gets any later. I heat up two Trader Joe’s hash browns in the toaster and then cut up a mini avocado on top. I fry two eggs to top them off.

7 p.m. — Finish off Friday night’s Chipotle bowl while I put Trader Joe’s chicken tikka samosas in the oven for dinner. After dinner, I finally put away the pile of clothes on my bed.

8:30 p.m. — Pluck my eyebrows because I got the dreaded eyebrow question from the woman who did my nails. Then I hop in to take an everything shower. When I get out, I put product in my hair (Living Proof Curl Definer and Curl Defining Gel) and pray to the curl gods. Then I brush my teeth and moisturize my face (Farmacy Honey Halo) before I climb into bed.

11:30 p.m. — I finally set my alarm, put my phone down and go to sleep.

9 a.m. — Wake up. Brush my teeth, make my bed, put on my Apple Watch and make coffee. I drink it black but add a scoop of Vital Proteins unflavored collagen.

9:30 a.m. — My roommate went into the office so I settle onto the couch with my laptop to start working. I clean up my inbox and respond to emails.

12 p.m. — I throw on a blouse because I have a Zoom meeting with my boss and someone new we haven’t worked with before. He’s super nice and I’m excited to work with him going forward.

1 p.m. — I take a break and make myself some lunch. I slice an apple, pop two Trader Joe’s hash brown patties in the toaster and make two scrambled eggs. I play the NYT games after I eat and then wash the dishes.

2 p.m. — Back to work. I review a resume and make edits and then share some job postings.

5 p.m. — I’m starving despite snacking on ranch cashews and mocha latte pretzels, so I go ahead and make Trader Joe’s spaghetti carbonara for dinner. I don't care what the package says — the bag is one serving.

5:45 p.m. — I change into a T-shirt and leggings before I head to the dermatologist for my monthly appointment. With Accutane you have to take a monthly pregnancy test to get your next prescription. My dermatologist wants to see more progress so we up the dose. The appointment is free with my health insurance.

6:30 p.m. — Back home. Talk to my mom on the phone for half an hour and calm her down about her own doctor’s appointment today.

7 p.m. — I take the Accutane questionnaire and then snack on more ranch cashews and a Hold the Cone!.

7:30 p.m. — I brush my teeth, wash my face and moisturize. I put on PJs, change my pillowcase and get into bed to mindlessly scroll for a while.

11 p.m. — I finally set my alarm and go to sleep.

7 a.m. — I want to get into work early today so I get right out of bed and get ready for the day. I shower, do my hair, brush my teeth, put on sunscreen (Black Girl Sunscreen SPF 30) and take my pills. Then I throw on a striped shirt, blue slacks and white loafers. I finish up with some deodorant and Elizabeth and James Nirvana perfume before I head out the door.

8:15 a.m. — I take the subway to work. I have to transfer trains and it takes about 30 minutes altogether. Luckily, I only go into the office twice a week. $2.90

8:45 a.m. — Get to work. Drop off my stuff at my desk before heading down to the cafeteria. One of the best perks of my job is that the cafeteria here is 100% free for all employees. I grab my black Starbucks blonde roast coffee and a bacon, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich. I get upstairs and add one of the travel Vital Proteins collagen packs to my coffee. I open my sandwich and realize it was mislabeled and actually has sausage and no cheese. I don’t really eat sausage so I head back downstairs and get a plain bagel and cream cheese instead.

9 a.m. — Work on updating one of our documents with some new information. It’s a Word document with a big table and I have no idea why we don’t use Excel instead because it takes forever to change anything on it. I keep getting interrupted as people trickle in for the day and the first emails start coming through.

11:30 a.m. — I head downstairs for the yearly team-building workshop. Normally I hate these things but this one is actually pretty interesting and is engaging without pressuring you to participate.

1 p.m. — We come out of the team-building and we’re already on the same floor as the cafeteria so I head straight over to grab lunch. There’s two rotating stations, a pizza bar, a sandwich station and a salad bar. I end up with a baked potato with cheese and sour cream and bring it back up to my desk to eat.

2 p.m. — I head to my boss’ office for a meeting with her and a lawyer at the firm. After the meeting, I stay behind to meet with just my boss and discuss all of the different projects we have going on. July 4/Labor Day is usually our slow time but apparently not this year.

5:45 p.m. — A group of us head out to take the subway down to a mini golf place where our department is having its summer social event. $2.90

6:15 p.m. — We get to the event and it’s great! Because we only have one event like this a year, almost the entire department shows up. The food is so good and there’s an open bar. I eventually get dragged into playing a round of mini golf and get the worst score in our group of four.

11:30 p.m. — The event was supposed to end at 9 p.m. but they kept extending the open bar so I ended up staying way later than expected. I finally leave to catch the subway home. Of course, at this time I have to wait 20 minutes for a train to come. $2.90

12:30 a.m. — I finally get home and quickly brush my teeth and put on PJs before I pass out.

9 a.m. — I wake up exhausted. I drag myself to brush my teeth and decide to skip my pills and coffee because my stomach seems upset.

9:30 a.m. — I work from bed because being fully vertical seems like too much right now.

10 a.m. — I decide I’m not going to make it without food and DoorDash some breakfast from Chick-fil-A. I get hash browns, Chick-n-Minis and a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit. $27.31

2:15 p.m. — I throw on a blouse and have a quick Zoom call to help prep someone for an interview.

3 p.m. — The pharmacy delivers my prescription. I’m finally getting hungry again so I warm up a Trader Joe’s Reduced Guilt mac ‘n’ cheese in the microwave. I play the NYT games as I eat. $150

3:30 p.m. — My mom calls and I talk to her for 15 minutes. She got the results from her appointment on Monday and, as expected, is totally fine.

5 p.m. — I conduct a practice interview and she does great!

5:45 p.m. — I close my laptop for the day and rush to get ready to go. I brush my teeth again and twist my hair up into a clip. Both of the friends I’m meeting are coming straight from the office so I throw on a black top, tuck it into some belted green slacks and grab a black Kate Spade crossbody bag. I put on deodorant and Light Blue perfume. I go with diamond studs, a yellow gold Cartier Love ring, and another gold ring for my jewelry. I take the subway downtown. $2.90

6:30 p.m. — My friend B. and I finish work earlier than our other friend, Z., so we head to Pastis and grab a drink at the bar before dinner. I have a French martini, my favorite. $18.51

7:30 p.m. — B. and I walk over to Catch to meet Z. for dinner. We get salmon nigiri, salmon sashimi, the surf and turf roll, the hellfire roll, sauteed snapper, parmesan truffle fries, crispy shrimp and a bottle of wine to split. We split the bill evenly three ways. $110.18

10 p.m. — It’s raining when we come out so I split an Uber home with B., who is also going uptown. $25.93

10:20 p.m. — I quickly brush my teeth, put on PJs, set my alarm and crawl into bed.

7 a.m. — I hop into the shower. I usually shower at night but I’ve been getting home too late this week. I put in my hair products and decide I better not risk it and also squish in some Pattern Mousse. Then I brush my teeth, take my pills and put on sunscreen. I want to be comfortable so I throw on some gray slacks with a hidden elastic waistband and tuck in a black top. As always on office days, I finish up with deodorant and Elizabeth and James Nirvana perfume before I head out the door.

8:40 a.m. — Subway to work. $2.90

9:15 a.m. — I get to work and drop off my stuff at my desk before heading to the cafeteria. Today I get scrambled eggs and hash browns from the hot bar before grabbing my coffee. I get back to my desk and add my collagen to the coffee.

11 a.m. — I’ve spent most of the morning on emails. I’m just getting into some actual work when my boss calls and asks to meet right then because she’s going to be in meetings for most of the afternoon. We catch up on projects and I find out the timeline on one has moved way up and I need to get a draft to her by early next week. After the meeting, I create some spreadsheets for my boss.

1:30 p.m. — I head downstairs to grab lunch. Nothing looks appealing so I decide to make a wrap at the sandwich counter. I get a whole wheat wrap with mustard, roasted turkey, cheddar cheese and half an avocado and ask them to heat it up. I take my sandwich back upstairs and eat it at my desk.

2 p.m. — I work on a Powerpoint deck. Thankfully our graphics team has a great template ready to go, so I just have to plug in the information. I then switch to looking for new job postings to share with attorneys.

4:30 p.m. — I have a quick departure meeting with an attorney leaving the firm. I tell him about the alumni program, give him his departure gift and ask about his next steps. When I come back from the meeting, there are people at my desk. Two people are leaving our department for new roles tomorrow so I sign their cards and eat one of the Magnolia Bakery cupcakes.

6 p.m. — Take the subway home. $2.90

6:30 p.m. — Stop at Raising Cane’s to pick up dinner. I’m trying to cut back on fast food but I absolutely cannot imagine cooking tonight. I get a three finger combo and add a side of honey mustard. $13.63

8:45 p.m. — My mom calls and I talk to her for 45 minutes about her date earlier. She seems really happy so I’m excited for her.

9:30 p.m. — I brush my teeth and put on PJs. I crawl into bed and play the NYT games before scrolling Instagram and Reddit.

11:30 p.m. — I finally set my alarm, turn off my lamp and head to sleep.

8:45 a.m. — I wake up and get ready for the day. Usual routine of brush my teeth, take pills and make coffee.

9:30 a.m. — Start work. Most of the morning is spent on emails.

11 a.m. — I have a Zoom meeting with our communications team about our LinkedIn presence for alumni.

12 p.m. — I have another departure meeting with an attorney leaving the firm and becoming an alumnus.

1 p.m. — I take a break for lunch and heat up a Trader Joe’s butter chicken and pop a mini naan in the toaster. As always, I play the NYT games.

2 p.m. — My mom calls and I talk to her for 20 minutes about our weekend plans. We try to call my grandmother but she doesn’t answer.

4:15 p.m. — I’m hungry so I go ahead and order delivery from a local place. I can’t decide so I get regular fries and curly fries with my cheeseburger. Of course I end up eating all of the fries and barely touching the burger. $19.67

6 p.m. — I throw on some jeans and a silky patterned top. I brush my teeth and spray on deodorant and Light Blue perfume. I grab the black Kate Spade crossbody again and leave my house and walk over to a different subway. I take the local train downtown to my friend G.’s apartment on the UWS. She’s been gone for about six weeks and they just finished renovating so I’m excited to see both her and the finished apartment. $2.90

11:45 p.m. — It’s great catching up with G. and a number of other friends who trickle in and out throughout the night. I’ve had too many glasses of prosecco and it’s time to go home, so I call an Uber. $22.02

12 a.m. — Get home and see that my check for the three days of federal jury duty service I did in May has finally arrived. You get $50/day plus transportation costs so I end up with $191.07. I quickly brush my teeth and put on PJs before climbing into bed. I’ve never been more excited to not set an alarm.

11:15 a.m. — Finally a day to sleep in. I get up, brush my teeth and take pills. Then I crawl back into bed to play the NYT games.

12 p.m. — Get up for real and throw on a T-shirt and some black Lululemon biker shorts. I head out to get to the bank to deposit the jury duty check before they close at 1 p.m.

1 p.m. — I head to the tailor to get a bridesmaid dress hemmed for a wedding in September. The woman I usually go to isn’t there and the man only speaks Spanish. My Spanish doesn’t quite extend to detailed hemming instructions but we get there in the end. I’m shocked when he says I can come back as early as Tuesday to get it! $50

1:45 p.m. — I stop at Just Salad on the way home to pick up lunch. I make my own with half kale and half romaine, cucumbers, apples, crispy onions, crouton, cheddar cheese, crispy chicken and the BBQ ranch dressing. $15.75

2:20 p.m. — My mom calls and I talk to her for 15 minutes before her date. She’s seeing the same guy from Thursday again!

3:30 p.m. — I hop in the shower to get ready for my dinner plans. After the shower, I do my hair and go with the mousse again since that worked so well on Thursday. After brushing my teeth and putting on sunscreen, I throw on a blue summer dress and brown Steve Madden flats. I go with my beige Gucci Soho Disco bag and Cartier Love ring for accessories. I spray on deodorant and Light Blue perfume before leaving. I walk over to another subway; it’s almost a 15-minute walk but once on the train it’s express and it will only be one stop to get to where I’m going. $2.90

5:30 p.m. — I meet my friend K. for dinner at a new brasserie that recently opened on the UES. She’s a high school friend and we reconnected when she moved to the city. A surprisingly small world! We split the gorgonzola bread and then I get a glass of lambrusco and the steak frites. We’re way too full for dessert but I want to come back because the options look amazing. $132

7 p.m. — We talk about getting a drink somewhere else but we decide it’s too hot and we’re too full. I hop on the subway back home. $2.90

7:30 p.m. — I get home and immediately change into my PJs.

8 p.m. — My mom calls and I talk to her for 40 minutes to hear all about her date.

8:45 p.m. — I finally sit down to relax and decide to play a little Overcooked on the PS4.

10:30 p.m. — I’m exhausted for some reason so I get ready for bed. I brush my teeth, wash my face and moisturize. I change my pillowcase and then crawl into bed. I can’t even do my usual social media scrolling and go straight to sleep.