Chhhhanges…
Originally published at Modern Domestic Geek. You can comment here or there.
So - in the past two weeks, the family has been through a lot of changes. Dan got a new job, working in Center City, and he’s now out of his previous position, which we affectionately called Hell. This is a fantastic opportunity for him, the start of a new career, the chance to possibly used to the skills he’s gained being in New Media, and a pay raise. But with these changes, come some changes to the family. I could use some advice, or discussion on two issues - ones that have a very domestic flavor to it.
First - he’s gone from having to wear khakis and polo shirts to wearing dress pants and shirts. Which means two things: We had to get him basically a whole new work wardrobe, and two - get to see him dressed like this all the time, which makes me very happy. But with this wardrobe comes the fact that we will need to get his clothes dry cleaned. I’m concerned, because the weekly bill for dry cleaning could quickly eat up the other financial benefits gained by this job. I’ve been looking for one of those Dryel kits, because I thought they would work for at least the pants. The shirts, I can’t understand wanting those dry cleaned and pressed. Does anyone have any suggestions - home made solutions for the dry cleaning? My other question is - how many pairs of pants and how many shirts should I have on hand for him? Those of you that are required to wear this sort of clothing, or the wife of someone who does - how many shirts, etc do you have on hand? Right now, we have enough to get him through the week, but I’m stressed that I’ll forget to pick up stuff at the dry cleaner, and leave him with nothing to wear.
The second is a bit silly. For 15 years, I’ve been planning my budget on a biweekly schedule. When Dan came along, he was on the same schedule I was on. But now, with this new job - he will be getting paid every week. So, with one of us on a biweekly schedule, and the other on a weekly, I want to make sure that we allocate the money properly. It seems silly to me, but I guess I just can’t see how it will work yet. So if anyone has any tips for managing money with a weekly paycheck, I’d appreciate it.
And speaking of Changes - the book of the same name by Jim Butcher is well worth the read - if you have read the other Dresden novels. Listened to it last week as I was riding back and forth to western Pennsylvania, and there were several places where it got very very dusty in the car. Butcher does know how to slay me, with just a few words.