The day after I landed a very dear friend, her mother, and I got together for lunch at the local Kelseys. It was absolutely wonderful to see them both; I hadn’t seen MB since September 2021, and I hadn’t seen her mum since the day before lockdown started in March, 2020.
I don’t know if others do this, but when I’m looking at a menu I will check the prices, not so much to curtail my choices financially, but rather to give me a bit of an idea of the size of the meal. A $10 soup & sandwich is likely going to be less food than a $15 burger with a side. Imagine my shock when all the meals on the lunch menu at Kelseys were $19.99. $20 for lunch in a roadhouse-style restaurant — things have changed a lot in Canada since I last dined out in spring 2020.
Gas prices were higher than I remembered, although they were on par with what I’d been paying in the UK. Then I hit the grocery stores — OMG. I cannot get over the price of a head of lettuce, or a box of pasta, or lemons. Dear God, the lemons.
Well, clearly I was going to have to re-learn the cost of living in Canada, and the only way to do that was to assume the same course of action I had undertaken just before retiring: track every penny I spend for the next six months, to get a handle on what my life is going to cost from now on.
I have downloaded an expense-tracking app, Money Manager, and am now entering every single, solitary purchase. It’s actually easier to do nine years later, as so much of shopping is cashless now. But, every single penny.
*Edit (January 4, 2024): I am four days back in my house, and I have spent $700+ re-stocking the fridge & pantry (starting from zero here, folks), $300+ on household items (cleaning supplies, lightbulbs, paint,etc..), and over $1,000 on ear surgery for Scout (she’s fine). Ay-yi-yi.