A Week In Munich, Germany, On A $60,093 Salary

Occupation: Office Manager
Industry: Investment
Age: 24
Location: Munich, Germany
Salary: $60,093
Paycheck Amount (Monthly): $3,865.06
My Husband's Salary: $0 at the moment. (He recently quit his job for a different career move.)

Monthly Expenses
Rent: $1,341 (I live with my hubby, A.)
Student Loan Payment: $0 (Thank you to my amazing parents!)
Monthly Transit Pass: $50
Health Insurance: $0 (We have universal healthcare in Germany.)
Netflix: $10.99
Trash: $18
Amazon Prime: $5.99
Wifi: $52
Gym: $40 (Hubby pays.)
Car Payment: $300 (Hubby pays.)
Phone Bill: $50 (Hubby pays.)
Savings: ~$1,000 (Sometimes more, sometimes less. A. and I have separate finances, but we have a joint savings account. We're saving up to buy a house soon.)

6:45 a.m. — I'm awake. I tidy up the living room and kitchen and turn the dishwasher on, then jump in the shower, draw my face on (moisturizer, concealer, eye shadow, eyebrows, and mascara), get dressed, take my probiotic (I've had a few yeast infections in the last year, TMI, sorry), put my breakfast and lunch in my purse, kiss A. goodbye, and catch the train.

9 a.m. — In the office. Get my coffee together and settle down for work and breakfast.

10:30 a.m. — I've been feeling nauseous and headache-y for two days. I think my building is having water pipe issues, because the shower drain reeks and so does the staircase. I do quick research and see that it may be a water pipe issue, which may be the reason for my nausea and headache. GROSS. Make a mental note to call my landlord.

11:50 a.m. — Come up for air. Hubby has an interview in the city and wants to meet for lunch. Yasss (even though I brought lunch). We sit outside at a local café because the weather is absolutely stunning — I order a Caesar salad and hubby gets a sandwich. $26.42

4:35 p.m. — Take another break to tidy up the office kitchen and order a few things off Amazon: face sheet masks, Bio-Oil, multi-purpose cleaning wipes, face cream, and shelves for my shoes. $134.35

5:45 p.m. — It feels weird to be the first to leave the office, but ya girl crossed everything off her to-do list and tonight is our date-aversary (yes, it's the little things). I asked my man to pick a restaurant (because I always choose, and it's always sushi), but alas he lets me choose again, so we're having sushi.

9 p.m. — We eat our way to food comas, and I am so damn happy. After dinner, we walk laps around the block before calling it a night at midnight. $71.08

10 a.m. — And we're up! Today is a public holiday, so A. and I sleep in and snuggle. We eat yogurt for breakfast, and then get started cleaning. We usually clean on weekends, but we choose to clean this morning because we want to relax this weekend. A. handles the kitchen, living room, vacuuming, and garbage, while I handle the bedroom and bathroom and then dust and steam mop. I am so thankful that my husband likes a clean apartment as much as I do. I also throw in a load of laundry. Okay, honesty hour: I love doing laundry. My most adult moment to date was when I purchased our washer and dryer…best feeling ever. I love them.

12 p.m. — The apartment is spotless, so I whip up brunch — eggs over easy for hubs and a bowl of cereal for me. We then head over to my in-laws' house to catch up with them, and my mother-in-law makes us a real meal. I make a mental note to send my own mother a gift for Mother's Day. The woman deserves an island, and I can only afford, like, a candle.

4:30 p.m. — Some cousins are coming over to check out our new apartment, so hubs and I head home and my mother-in-law sends us off with cake. I always like to have homemade desserts in the fridge, but I've been really lazy last week. Mother-in-law is so clutch.

7 p.m. — Guests leave. It's so draining making small talk with the wives, who are much older than I am. On the plus side, my cousin and her hubs brought their eight-month-old, who is just the cutest munchkin ever. And they brought over a set of gorgeous plates for us — a gift from my aunt.

10:30 p.m. — A. and I tidy up and run the dishwasher. I call my parents, who live in the States, and then we watch Money Heist (so, so, so good!) until midnight.

7:30 a.m. — Major regrets over watching TV so late — I'm so exhausted. Hubby kicks me out of the bed instead of snuggling, and I am low-key annoyed. I want nothing more than to run under a hot shower, but there is just no time. I remember that my boss is not in today and my other two bosses usually stroll in the office at 10 a.m., so it's okay if I'm just a little late. I do my usual morning routine of moisturizing, makeup, and getting breakfast and lunch together. I hate leaving A. with no food, but homeboy is just going to have to figure it out.

8:19 a.m. — I miss my train and the next one doesn't come for 30 minutes (something I am not used to as a New Yorker), so I have to take the bus, which I hate. I get nauseous and it takes forever.

9:10 a.m. — I'm in the office. It's been quiet lately and almost everyone is out, so I use the time to send thank you messages and order a gift certificate to the spa for my mommy. I also use the time to look at dresses for my brother's wedding in the fall, along with plane tickets for the summer (we're planning a vacation to Greece and Croatia) and plane tickets to NY for the wedding. $119.24

12:30 p.m. — My coworker asks if I want to grab lunch, but I brought food from home. I also just don't feel like making awkward small talk, so we “plan” for another day. I step out of the office to buy sweet potatoes and cinnamon strudel. I avoid cooking on Fridays (my day off), but we have food at home, so I plan to quickly roast sweet potatoes and regular potatoes for dinner. $6

6:30 p.m. — I'm home and A. is at the gym. I put the potatoes in the oven for dinner. I would love nothing more than to go out to dinner tonight, but I'm #BallinOnABudget. I finish up watching Money Heist and I tell A. what he missed when he comes home. Now he wants to watch, so I watch the last two episodes again.

10:45 p.m. — I put on a face mask, tidy up the living room, and call it a night.

9:30 a.m. — Thank the good L-rd for the weekend. A. has been feeling down in the dumps lately due to being unemployed and some family issues, so he heads out to the gym with friends. I enjoy my alone time. (I can be very introverted.) I jump in the shower, shave, put on makeup, get laundry going, and start to iron clothing. I text my brother to buy a card for our mom for Mother's Day and ask him to insert the gift certificate in the card. It's 3:30 a.m. on that side of the world, but he'll see it when he wakes up.

11:15 a.m. — I notice we're almost out of groceries and Ramadan is approaching, so A. and I run out to Aldi to get some essentials, since we're both going to fast. We're trying to figure out the meat situation in our house. We're deciding between buying in bulk at Aldi (which we don't want to do because the quality is subpar, but it costs much less) or buying fresh every day (which we want to do, but it's pricier). Anyway, we buy a loaf of bread, wraps, eggs, broccoli, yogurt, various cheeses, juice, lemons, deli slices, potatoes, milch mause chocolates (so yum), cottage cheese, mayo, lemon juice, apple sauce, blueberries, razors, shaving cream, salt, vinegar, nuts, and chicken cutlets (though I don't get too many, because with Ramadan coming up we want to stick to halal meat). $117.01

1 p.m. — We then go to our local supermarket and buy two packs of water and ground beef for moussaka tonight. $8.86

1:30 p.m. — My husband brings the groceries up and I put them away. Then I get started on making dinner, because we're hangry.

2:15 p.m. — A. would like to help with dinner, so I ask him to cut the potatoes on the mandoline slicer and tell him 505 times to watch his fingers — and what does he do?! Almost slices his damn finger off. I'm a fainter when I see blood, but there is just no time for that. I clean up his wound with hydrogen peroxide and he's in one piece. I continue with the food and turn on the TV to Wendy Williams. A. goes down for a nap.

4 p.m. — Dinner is ready. When we're done, a friend of ours calls to meet up — his girlfriend, who lives in Switzerland, is in town, and she's so lovely. We get ready, and then they pick us up in said girlfriend's convertible. So amazing. We drive around, go to a carnival, and then get drinks at a café. They graciously pay. I make a mental note to always keep hair ties in the car if A. and I ever have a convertible.

10:30 p.m. — We're finally home, and we're exhausted. We put on face masks, and then I watch Midnight in Paris on Netflix while making a cake. I talk to my parents on the phone and head to bed around midnight.

6 a.m. — A. has a hard time staying asleep, so I get woken up with kisses and he asks me what time I want to wake up...no, not right now.

9:30 a.m. — I get a text from my mother-in-law saying that the fam would like to swing by today. We have friends coming around 1 p.m., so I peel myself from bed, get in the shower, and then tidy up. I text my mother-in-law around 11 and tell her to swing by whenever.

12:45 p.m. — My husband and I get into an argument, so I'm a bit angry, annoyed, and teary, but I gotta get myself together because we have guests coming soon. I put all my emotions into ironing until our guests arrive, and then I just suck it up and put on a front.

4:30 p.m. — Our guests leave. It was nice to have positive energy in the apartment to lighten the atmosphere. My husband and I make up with a kiss, but TBH I'm still annoyed.

6 p.m. — The in-laws arrive and we hang out for a while until they leave around 8 p.m.

9 p.m. — I finally find the strength to tidy up the living room and get the dishwasher going after laying around watching Wendy Williams. I'm sad to have finished Money Heist, because now I have nothing to watch on Netflix. A. and I put on clay masks and then retire to bed.

4 a.m. — Hubby wakes me up again with kisses, and this time I am sleep talking (I sleep talk quite often). It's complete nonsense, as always, but A. goes along with it. It's hysterical and alarming at the same time.

7:35 a.m. — Crap. I oversleep. I jump out of bed and get ready for work. My husband has a few interviews lined up this week, one being today, and I'm so excited for him. I write him a good luck love note on a Post-it, kiss my man, and jet out the door. I take a quick look in the mirror on my way out and analyze my skin — I've always had clear skin, but felt that my skin tone was uneven and just, blah. With the clay mask, face mask, and Bio-Oil, I've seen MAJOR improvement. It looks so alive. Money well spent.

8:55 a.m. — Before I get in, I buy milk at the nearest grocery store for the office. My company reimburses me. ($2.98 expensed)

1 p.m. — I eat my lunch and then go outside for air. My immediate colleague is the big boss's girlfriend, and she is so draining. I should try be on her good side, because she's the girlfriend of the big boss, right? Wrong. She's the admin assistant, so I delegate some tasks to her. But she thinks she has some authority over me for some reason? I don't know what world she lives in and how she made it to 2018. I can't complain, because I need my job at this moment. I'm just going to have to suck it up for now.

5:20 p.m. — Take a quick break to look at prayer mats for A. and new hijabs on Etsy. I put a few things in my cart for later.

7:15 p.m. — I'm home just in time before a monsoon starts outside. I call my mom and put together this slammin' stew for the start of Ramadan, which A. tells me is not tomorrow after all, but I don't think he's right…

9:20 p.m. — Catch up on Wendy Williams and tidy up. I take two birth control pills because I missed a day — oops.

3:16 a.m.— My alarm wakes me to get suhoor together, but A. tells me Ramadan doesn't start today, so I go back to sleep. We will never know.

6:45 a.m. — Alarm wakes me up again and I'm not about it. Hubby and I cuddle and kiss.

7:14 a.m. — I would give everything under the sun to stay in bed, but I need to get up. I throw myself in the shower, put makeup on, get dressed, and get breakfast and lunch together.

8:50 a.m. — I'm on the bus and I want to vomit because there are too many people and it's hot. I get out at the next stop and walk 10 minutes to the office.

9:03 a.m. — Finally get to work. I really needed the fresh air. I'm amongst the first in. I go into the kitchen to turn the dishwasher on, as the cleaning lady didn't come this morning, and tidy up around the coffee machine. Big boss's girlfriend and another coworker stroll in, and we chat by the coffee machine.

6:45 p.m. — Home. Today is swim day! In an effort to stay active, A. and I try to go to our local pool once a week. The big pool is so cold it should be against the law, so I avoid that one and go into the smaller, warmer one. We have one free entry bracelet and pay for another. $2.98

9 p.m. — We're home and exhausted. We call it an early night because we have to be up at 3 a.m. for the start of Ramadan. We get into bed and I peruse a deep dark site called Etsy. I want it ALL. I buy a marble bathroom accessory set (obsessed with all things calacatta marble) that is So. Damn. Cute. I hold off on the prayer mats until I find something I like. $104.90

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