I Could Live Without...

[JJReyes]

I never thought I could live without fresh perked coffee, but I found out I can live without it.  3 in 1 instant coffee can be adapted to and is 1/5 the price.   I never thought I could live without beef but I found out I can live without it.  Pork and chicken are ok substitutes at half the price.   I never thought I could live without cheese but I found out I can use CheezWiz in my tuna melt sandwiches and it'll do, and at a fraction of the price of real cheese.   I never thought I could live without an oven but its doable.   One think I am HAPPY to live without is long underwear and a parka.   EDIT:  I also found out I can live with dial up speed Internet and lots of disconnects.  I ain't happy about it but I survive.

 

Excellent post. You do need to watch out for that sudden, insatiable craving for a cup of brewed coffee or a 20 ounces porterhouse charcoal broiled steak.  I am right now in the middle of a prime steak binge. I spotted a tray at Costco with three delicious looking steaks. The price was $38 plus tax. That's how much I would spend to eat out. Instead, I can have a delicious steak every night for three consecutive nights. At least that's how I justify it.

 

I am still working on the coffee. There's nothing like the aroma of a cup of Italian and the smell of rotting blue cheese in the morning for breakfast.

[jon1]

I agree with you guys about the local TV but at $20/month I can afford it. I rarely watch it as I have a full media library (thanks to the Internet). I use my computer for up to date weather and news.

 

I also tend to shy away from beef for health and cost reasons. I primarily eat fish and chicken. On occasion pork and sausages (maybe twice a month). I usually eat local vegetables (very cheap). 

 

I still live in luxury with the brewed coffee but a bag lasts about a month for me (2 - 3 cups a day). So a 300p for a bag of Boraco equates to 10p a day for me. 

 

I rarely eat processed meats (the local variety is OK) again for health reasons. 

 

Restaurant dinners are maybe once or twice a month. I keep the use of the aircon for mainly when it is just crazy hot or someone is sick. I will go out and have a brew or two with some friends a couple times a week (maybe 300p each visit) and have breakfast rides on my bike (again another 300p) weekly.

 

After being overseas for 7+ years, you tend to forget a lot of the conveniences from our home countries. 

[Bil Brock]

Off topic?  LOL, I CAN'T live without aircon here in Cebu City. Hot, no breeze & it works as an air filter. I have to clean the aircon filter once a week, it gets full of black crap, exaust froom the jeeps & trucks I  guess. So be forwarned, pick your location carefull when you come here.

[jon1]

Off topic?  LOL, I CAN'T live without aircon here in Cebu City. Hot, no breeze & it works as an air filter. I have to clean the aircon filter once a week, it gets full of black crap, exaust froom the jeeps & trucks I  guess. So be forwarned, pick your location carefull when you come here.

I had the same experience with that in Manila. I was on the 25th floor and some days you would swear that it was overcast but the reality was you were looking directly into the smog!

 

One of the primary reasons that I chose Subic. Fresh air, either an on or offshore breeze (sometimes both depending on the time of day).