Welcome back to Claire From Online and, okay, I admit it, I think I might need to go back to work. I’ve lived past the end of my myth*
*summer time-off true unbridled enjoyment
AND CRAVE SOME MORE STRUCTURE AND, YES, TASKS.
My Instagram story has been 25+ slides deep for days. This is when I know it’s time.
Quick things:
I’m blasting this (& doing the little dance1)
& to think Charli posted somewhere that IT ALMOST DIDN’T MAKE THE ALBUM.
Weekly Spending Recap videos are back on TikTok ✶⋆.˚BUT ONLY WHEN I WANT✶⋆.˚
Please know I was still deep in Love Island land this whole past week and VERY PLEASED by the ending. Someone said I should rank the contestants, but how could I when it was already done and done WELL by
:
My writer pal Ashley interviewed me about my emetophobia the other day and I was very brave about it! If you were unaware about this fear of vomit/vomiting, you’re not alone — it’s even marked as a spelling error on this draft — and I will continue to bring awareness to this Very Real Thing! Essay forthcoming, probs.
Here’s how & what I spent this week.
This post may contain affiliate links. :`)
Amazon Storefront | LTK | Try Cometeer Coffee | Atlas Stationers Affiliate Link
Monday, July 15th
Every Monday I deal with my weekly affiliate payments from all of my little squirrelly side hustles via Stripe and PayPal, if there are any, and pay some dang bills. I don’t get paid from my real-life career job again until August 20th. Right now, I’m focusing on paying off a personal loan (~2k), car (~2k! so close!), and building up an emergency fund. Does microinfluencing pay the bills? Depends on the month, but it certainly helps when I’m going 60+ days without a paycheck. Something to take the edge off.
$200 extra this month towards my car
$100 Amex payment (this is my gas/groceries/essentials credit card. It kinda operates like a debit card for me; I throw some money at it weekly, always paid off before the next month’s statement)
Other than that, no spend :~)
Tuesday, July 16th
Bocce’s pet treats. I bought some of their puppy training treats at Petsmart last week and their IG ads totally got me. I got a pretty decent variety. Cookie loves them all and says thank you for being influenced. They have a lot of fun flavors, excited to try this one next. The (non-training) treats are shaped like a capital B; I break one in half with my thumb and give her half when she makes it outside (we’re having some threshold sensitivities, lol) and the other half when she poops 0:) my lil angel
Adidas Gazelles (“she looks like every other b-”) NEW SCHOOL YEAR? NEW SHOES. NO ONE DISAGREES? GREAT, MOVING ON
It was also Prime Day(s) — here are some highlights of what I’ve been hawking:
Hobonichi 5-Year Journal: amazing, incredible, HIGHLY RECOMMEND; it was half-off last week ($43) & they come out with one every year so — as of today — I’d actually recommend waiting until 2025 to pick one up, UNLESS you a) had a child this spring or summer, b) just had a birthday ending in 0 or 5, or c) feel really positively about your ability to back-journal. If you plan to get one in January, be prepared to spend ~$90. It does last five years! There are pros & cons here for sure. Look within for this one, queens.
Tombow Fudenosuke Hard-Tip Brush Pens: everyone who journals needs at least two
CRZ Yoga Butterluxe Tops: There’s a 50% chance I’m wearing one of the three I own on any given day. Yes, I’m doing a lot of laundry.
Wednesday, July 17th
Upon hearing that thee Chappell Roan is coming to the amphitheater minutes from where we live this October, my friend Antha really said, “wake up, it’s time to clock in” for presale day. Where else would two educators on summer break be on a random & rainy Wednesday morning? PLEASE GET REAL, like we weren’t going to show up in-person to the box office! I picked us up some 7Brew, we stood in line for a little under two hours, & came out successful (even made some friends)! Chappell tickets were absolutely not in the spending plan this month, because the dang show was only announced the day before this, but I’m happy to share that four lawn tickets were secured and I’m going with my besties. What more, truly, could I ask for? Tickets were very reasonably priced because Kayleigh is that gorl for real. Low-key kinda hometown-show-adjacent. Oh yeah, and a very “I want to smack you” to every ticket scalper. I surely witnessed some with my own two eyes whilst standing at the Proctor & Gamble box office that day. DisGOSTING! Very happy we went in-person, considering it completely sold out on presale day. And I’m sorry if reading this made you feel any type of way. If it makes you feel better, you won’t be getting a “I just paid off my student loans and I feel so FREEEEE!” or “here’s how I made $5k on the TikTok creator fund this month!” post from me anytime soon. Let me get it hot like pawpa jawn on a school night, I will deserve it.
Thursday, July 18th
It’s the way that I fell directly out of a coconut tree today. AG1 is FINE I just feel like it’s overpriced/not in my spending plan so I paused my subscription for three months and yet here we are, auto-bill. Peloton is GREAT, it completely changed my life, but you all know I’m going to Pilates AND yoga right now and I had my subscription paused while I figure out if my stationary bike era is officially over or if I just needed a cute little break and wouldn’t you know it, auto-bill. So that’s a cool $130+ I wasn’t planning on spending this week, but it’s fine, this is exactly what I’m talking about when I reference little dramas; I like and use both of these things, it’s just funny (derogatory) how it happened on the same day. I’m already over it, though. Was due to catch up on some rides I’ve missed over the past few months, anyway.
My Atlas Stationers order came in! I used store credit, so I only paid for shipping, and I was hoping I’d have my little haul video up by now… it’ll be coming soon!
I also pre-ordered a 2025 planner option and I’m not quite ready to talk about it yet but I will be soon, lol. Don’t worry, the beloved Hobonichi Cousin Spring Start is not in danger. I JUST HAD TO SEE SOMETHING REAL QUICK!!!! DO YOU OR DON’T YOU WANT #CONTENT? Why am I fighting with imaginary ops right now? You are just as stationery-pilled as I am. More soon. WaTcH tHiS sPaCe, lol.
Friday, July 19th
I ordered some off-brand lickimats on Amazon for my little landshark, and licki-matted my wounds from my auto-bill day of madness!
Saturday, July 20th
Sent E my share of rent & pet insurance $ for August
$3.50 at Dunkin - iced coffee with caramel swirl! It was not free, but it was kind of free? I typically load $15 per month on the app, I had some funds left from June! This always feels like a treat for me.
$35 at Fellow - One of my pre-partnership ‘dang, so you’re referring a lot of folks’ referral gifts from Cometeer was a 12oz Carter Move Mug from Fellow and it is my all-time favorite travel mug. I’M OBSESSED WITH IT. I weep tears when it’s in the dishwasher. I loved the limited edition sand dune color. New shoes AND new coffee mug for the school year? I am unstoppable and very stable and (afffirmations-style) I Will Have A Positive Attitude Going Into Professional Development Days!
Sunday, July 21st
$50 at Target — my friend Caitlyn pulled up in the spot next to me, so I gave her a little haul through our open windows. Tyson blackened chicken strips, Downy Rinse & Refresh, Dove body wash, Good Culture cottage cheese, 4-pack of Poppi, and some Cinnamon Toast Crunch. She came all the way down there (Target is just a short drive down the highway from us, but still a *tiny* bit of a trek) for the Coffeemate Natural Bliss Brown Sugar Oat Creamer. Not a private label to be found2. Nice.
Speaking of groceries, in honor of it being
’s birthday (on the date of publishing, go say happy birthday please), I nearly ordered my favorite comfort white cheddar mac & cheese from childhood back when Jewel-Osco stocked President’s Choice. The thing is, a 3-pack is almost $20… and I have to get it from Canada. I’m not out of the woods yet. Maybe this fall.$4 at Swig - tried a small Diet Dr. Pepper with blackberry and peach! I’m “not drinking sugary soda” right now; this workaround made me roll my eyes so far into the back of my head that they came out of my butt
APPLE CARD PAYMENT - I’m still paying off my MacBook (next month’s the last, though!) so it’s important for me to always consider that in my statement. It’s 0% interest until it’s nawt!! Apple Card hive knows.
Chappell Roan tickets purchased: 4
Place in line, virtually, while I was #3 in the physical line: 15,405
Total $ paid towards my debt: $500
The Wishlist
Let me show you my masterpiece. The Wishlist journaling page is back! I set one of these up every now and then when I notice I’m feeling a little spendy. It’s been helpful for me, and it’s also fun to look back after a few months and see how many of these things I just won’t care about anymore. I wonder how many things I would not have purchased if I was consistent with this practice?
Thanks for reading! This has been a fun way for me to wrap up my purchases & links. This is not a line-by-line budgeting dashboard. I believe in value-based spending. There will always be bills, essentials, gifts, and things I omit (both by choice and because I forgot about something, lol). This is literally just for fun. Check out past wrap-ups below:
July 16th | July 7th | June 24th | June 16th | June 10th
(WEEKLY-ISH SUMMER SERIES!)
May | April | March | February | January
ALL MY BEST AND MY WORST BECAUSE I CONTAIN MULTITUDES,
Claire
AND ONE!!!
I’M SO INCREDIBLY DOWN TO TALK ABOUT WALMART’S BETTERGOODS BRAND THOUGH.
Ummm I’m excited for the 2025 planner thinking and thank you for the spoiler! I feel fulfilled! 😂😂😂
Whenever you drop a newsletter, I do a little happy dance! I love every spending recap and every little anecdote so much!!!! I love the Wants List! I do one in my notes app and I am constantly consistently unequivocally amazed at how often what I want in the moment becomes “How did I ever want that?” in a few weeks. It is a very cool practice in mindfulness and delayed gratification.