Below the Line: Day 5

I'm grateful.​

I'm grateful to not have to worry about where my - or my child's - next meal will come from. I'm grateful to not have to make a choice between food and medicine. I'm grateful for carrots, imitation crab, eggs and potatoes - although I'll be happy to not have to eat them every day anymore. I'm grateful for every one of my donations. I'm grateful for every supportive Facebook comment. I'm grateful for every person who came to read my blog. I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to make even one person stop and think for a moment about the issue of extreme poverty in our world. I'm grateful I've had the opportunity to feel compassion for other human beings on a deeper level.​

I'm just so so so grateful.​

I went back to poached for my final breakfast. I kept them in one minute longer than last time and they turned out great! I'll definitely be using these again - when I can stomach having eggs again.

• 2 eggs = $0.42
• Salt = $0.01
• 1/2 pita = $0.09
• BREAKFAST = $0.52

I decided to try something a little different for this lunch. I popped the crab into a non-stick frying pan and tried heating it up a bit. I microwaved the half potato I had left over from potato puff night and put the hot crab on top. Cooking the crab actually took a lot of it's flavour away, which at this point was a good thing for me.​

• 1/2 potato = $0.03
• 1/5 pack of imitation crab = $0.20
• 1 carrot = $0.15
• LUNCH = $0.38

If any meal had to be an epic fail, I'm glad it was this one. I made up a sort of omelette with my one remaining egg and a potato. I wanted to pre-cook the potato before putting it in so I popped one in the microwave for FAR TOO LONG. It came out shriveled up and hard as a rock, so I cooked up another and it turned out fine.​ In the mean time I shredded 2 more potatoes and tried to make sort of hashbrowns in the oven. WORST. IDEA. EVER.

These were absolutely horrible. ​They looked horrible, the texture was horrible and they tasted horrible. NEVER AGAIN.

• 1 egg =  $0.21
• 1 fail potato = $0.06
• 1 potato = $0.06
• 2 shredded potatoes = $0.12
• salt = $0.01
• DINNER = $0.46

•  1/10 lemon = $0.04
• water = $0.00
• DRINK = $0.04

I had rehearsal again tonight so I brought a carrot and a tea along with me.

1 carrot = $0.15

SNACK = $0.15

tea bag = $0.08

hot water = $0.00

DRINK = $0.08

Which brings my grand total for the day to:

$1.63

I just want to thank everyone again for all their support. It really has meant a lot to me - especially when I was feeling really off on Wednesday. Even though my challenge is now over I can continue to accept donations until July 1st for SPREAD THE NET at my sponsorship page HERE.

Better yet, why don't you take the challenge yourself? You can find out all you need to know at the Live Below the Line website.​

Below the Line: Day 4

Day 4 of my challenge is also World Malaria Day & really puts things back into perspective. There are an estimated 219 million cases of malaria and 660,000 malaria deaths every year - 85% of those deaths are children under 5. One child dies from malaria every minute.

Bed nets have been shown to reduce mortality in children under the age of five by up to 20 per cent. One bed net protects a family of five for up to five years. Unfortunately, those living in extreme poverty can't afford them.

Thanks to everyone who has donated so far I've raised enough for Spread the Net for 37 bed nets!

It was another hard-boiled morning, but this morning was special because I had TEA! I forgot to use the tea bag I planned to use at rehearsal last night, so I popped that baby in this morning.

• 2 eggs = $0.42
• Salt = $0.01
• Tea Bag = $0.08
• Water = $0.00
• BREAKFAST = $0.51

I packed up my lunch and brought it to work with the intention of having a picnic. The weather seemed to have other plans and it was raining pretty hard when lunch came around. Instead we drove and met my sister and we had an almost-picnic in the van.

• 1 pita = $0.17
• 1/5 pack of imitation crab = $0.20
• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• one squirt of a quarter of a lemon = $0.02.
• LUNCH = $0.47

The half carrot I didn't eat at lunch, I brought back to work.

• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• SNACK = $0.08

​I decided to go back to my day 1 dinner and bake up some potato and carrot pieces.

2 small potatoes=  $0.12

1 carrot = $0.15

spices = $0.03

DINNER = $0.30

​I think I've got these chips figured out now. I found the "thin slice" attachment for the mandolin so I was quite happy to not have to cut them by hand again. They turned out all uniform and the perfect thickness.

1 small potato = $0.06

pinch of garlic salt = $0.01

SNACK = $0.07

 

1/10 lemon = $0.04

water = $0.00

DRINK = $0.04

Which brings my grand total for the day to:

$1.47

Although I cannot accept donations of food, I am raising money for SPREAD THE NET which is all about getting mosquito nets where they are most needed in order help end preventable malaria deaths. View my sponsorship page HERE.​

Below the Line: Day 3

I got my first hunger pains today. I woke up hungry. I ate my breakfast and was still hungry. I ate my lunch and was still hungry. I got irritable very easily. Oh yes. I was hangry. And as I sat behind my desk for 7.5 hours today and continued to stew about it (mmmmm stew) it was hard to get my mind away from. After work it was much easier to distract myself, especially at Cabaret rehearsal.

Now, I debated including this next section as it’s definitely TMI (that’s “too much information” to the uninitiated) but I feel like it is an important part of the journey to share. If you’re adverse to “ladytime talk” I’d skip to the first photo.

One thing I didn’t expect to happen was for my period to suddenly arrive almost a week early. I usually run almost exactly on schedule – like, to the day – so I was definitely surprised. The cramps on top of the underlying hunger pain and rumbling stomach were not exactly a welcome addition but it did get me thinking even more. I’ll just come out and say it – tampons and pads are damn expensive! All women’s health and wellness related products are damn expensive! There are many, many reasons why I cannot even begin to fathom what it is like to be a woman living below the poverty line, but this situation today really got me thinking again about how lucky I am. 

I made up a few hard boiled eggs last night so I could sleep in this morning and bring them to eat at work. I was and still am happy with this plan. I just really like hard boiled eggs. And sleeping.

• 2 eggs = $0.42
• Salt = $0.01
• BREAKFAST = $0.43

Okay, it's only day three and I'm already officially over the taste of this. I rolled this baby up like a burrito.

• 1 pita = $0.17
• 1/5 pack of imitation crab = $0.20
• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• one squirt of a quarter of a lemon = $0.02.
• LUNCH = $0.47

And my half-carrot afternoon snack.

• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• SNACK = $0.08

I tried out a new recipe tonight for 'potato puffs' which are basically mashed potatoes, mixed with an egg, and baked in the oven. They were an almost success. The almost is because I had a major brain fart and forgot to put the salt into the mixture. I put a bit on them after they baked but they would have been a lot better with it inside. I ate half the batch at dinner.

• 2 1/4 small potatoes=  $0.14
• salt = $0.01
• 1/2 egg = $0.10
• DINNER = $0.25

•  1/10 lemon = $0.04
• water = $0.00
• DRINK = $0.04

After I got home from rehearsal, I was too tired and too hungry to make any more chips so I had the rest of the puffs.​

• 2 1/4 small potatoes=  $0.14
• salt = $0.01
• 1/2 egg = $0.10
• SNACK = $0.25

Which brings my grand total for the day to:

$1.52

Although I cannot accept donations of food, I am raising money for SPREAD THE NET which is all about getting mosquito nets where they are most needed in order help end preventable malaria deaths. View my sponsorship page HERE.

Below the Line: Day 2

​The lesson of today was that cooking "Below the Line" is time consuming! I have realized that not only do I take for granted being able to pick up any number of foods without having to worry about how much they cost, but I've really been taking for granted the convenience that these foods had given me.

I got up an extra half hour early to try my hand at some poached eggs. I'd never made poached eggs before and looking back I probably should have given myself a bit more time. Thankfully, I googled how to use silicone egg poachers last night so I knew to put the lid on my boiling pot, which I definitely wouldn't have done otherwise.

These turned out pretty good! I like soft yolk but I probably could have left these in for one more minute and they would have been perfect. ​

• 2 eggs = $0.42
• Salt = $0.01
• 1/2 pita = $0.09
• BREAKFAST = $0.52

I decided that since I'm eating the same thing every day for lunch I'd try to switch the presentation up somehow. Let's just call this my "deconstructed" carrot & crab pita.

• 1 pita = $0.17
• 1/5 pack of imitation crab = $0.20
• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• one squirt of a quarter of a lemon = $0.02.
• LUNCH = $0.47

Again I brought my other half carrot back to work for the afternoon.

• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• SNACK = $0.08

Here's where I didn't plan very well. I worked til 5, had a play rehearsal tonight and my ride was set to pick me up at 5:50. I really underestimated how long preparing my food would be. Washing, peeling, cooking, shredding... these things take time. On a quick night like this I'd usually reach for some preprepared food or hit a drive-thru. 

I microwaved up 3 small potatoes and as they cooked I used a vegetable peeler to make a sort of carrot salad, which I added lemon and pepper to (the salad was really good by the way!). I was running low on time and the peeling was taking longer than I anticipated so I chucked half of the carrot into my purse to munch on during rehearsal.​

• 3 small potatoes=  $0.18
• salt = $0.01
• 1 carrot = $0.15
• squirt of lemon = $0.04
• pepper = $0.01
• DINNER = $0.39

•  1/10 lemon = $0.04
• water = $0.00
• DRINK = $0.04

I gave the chip another try tonight and I have to say, they were a success! Yesterday I used a mandolin and cut them much too thick so tonight I cut them thinner by hand and they turned out crispy and brown and great. They did take a LONG TIME to cut up though. I'm not the fastest with a knife to begin with but when trying to slice something so thin and even it was really, really slow going. Definitely worth it though, these were delicious. Tomorrow I'll see if there are settings to adjust the mandolin to slice thinner.

• 1 small potato = $0.06
• pinch of garlic salt = $0.01
• SNACK = $0.07

Another treat I had today was TEA. I decided to save up my 3 tea bags for nights I have rehearsals so I had a nice big travel mug of tea and popped the leftover bag into a jug to attempt to make some sort of unsweetened iced tea.

• tea bag = $0.08
• hot water = $0.00
• DRINK = $0.08

Which brings my grand total for the day to:

$1.65

Although I cannot accept donations of food, I am raising money for SPREAD THE NET which is all about getting mosquito nets where they are most needed in order help end preventable malaria deaths. View my sponsorship page HERE.

Below the Line: Day 1

The power of the mind is an amazing thing.​ Despite having eaten very well yesterday, I woke up this morning with a loudly growling stomach.​

Don't give me that attitude, stomach, I haven't even started yet!​

Before I even began I could see what effect hearing people say "You're going to be so hungry next week" over and over has already had on me. What will it be like when I keep hearing it on Wednesday, Thursday & Friday?

I started the challenge with 2 eggs scrambled with a bit of water and a tiny bit of salt.​ I think scrambled are my least favourite way to eat eggs, but I wanted something quick and easy this morning. Hopefully I'll be making them in a few different ways for the rest of the week.

• 2 eggs = $0.42
• Salt = $0.01
• BREAKFAST = $0.43

Thank God I like the way this pita tastes. It certainly makes life a lot easier, since I plan to eat this every day for lunch.​

First I used my fingers to shred 1/5 of a package of imitation crab into a bowl. Then I grated half a carrot and threw it in. Then I took 1/4 of a lemon and squeezed a few drops on it all, mixed it up and popped it in a pita.​

• 1 pita = $0.17
• 1/5 pack of imitation crab = $0.20
• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• one squirt of a quarter of a lemon = $0.02.
• LUNCH = $0.47

​I took the other half of the carrot back to work with me to munch on in the afternoon. I didn't take a picture because, well, it's half a carrot...

• 1/2 carrot = $0.08
• SNACK = $0.08

• Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever tried to cook dinner without using some sort of oil or butter or something of that nature so I really wasn't sure how this was going to turn out. Luckily, it was really rather good!

I chopped up a carrot and a few small potatoes, tossed them on a parchement lined baking sheet and sprinkled over a little garlic salt and a tiny bit of dill weed. I chucked them in the oven at 400 and took a lucky guess at how long to cook them for (20min -flip-15min did the trick perfectly.)​

• 3 small potatoes=  $0.18
• 1 carrot = $0.15
• spices = $0.03
• DINNER = $0.36

Also, I didn't take a picture but I made up some lemon water with 1/10th of my lemon.​

• 1/10 lemon = $0.04
• water = $0.00
• DRINK = $0.04

I decided to try a little experiment and attempt making potato chips in the microwave. These actually weren't that bad tasting but weren't crispy and I know the thickness was the problem.​ I aim to perfect my technique by the end of day 5!

• 1 small potato = $0.06
• pinch of garlic salt = $0.01
• SNACK = $0.07

Which brings my grand total for the day to:​

$1.45

Although I cannot accept donations of food, I am raising money for SPREAD THE NET which is all about getting mosquito nets where they are most needed in order help end preventable malaria deaths. View my sponsorship page HERE.

Below the Line: Day 0

Shopping day!​

After scouting the stores, scouring the flyers, and hours of working and re-working spreadsheets of ideas I took my trusty owl coin purse, fed him $8.75, and hit the town.

​All my planning seemed to pay off. I only had 3 minor freak-outs.

1. ​I forgot that merchants now round the change you get (or don't get) to the nearest $0.05 so I was down one cent after my very first stop. After a mini panic, I checked my notebook and was relieved to see that all my other items were round numbers.
2. Shopping for lemons, the price on the signs were not the price I had written in my notebook. In a mini panic I ran to the front of the store to get a flyer and was relieved to see that the sale price I had written was correct.​
3. ​As I went to grab my pitas I couldn't find the ones listed in the sale flyer. All I could see was ones that cost $1 more. After a mini panic, I found the proper pitas off by themselves.

After I was finished shopping I had a whopping $0.45 left over so I decided to hit the bulk food store to see if anything else jumped out at me. Boy did it ever! I found single teabags for an amazing price so I nabbed 3 for $0.25!​

Here's my beautiful haul:​

I managed to pick up 10lbs of potatoes for $2, a dozen eggs for $2.50, 6 pitas for $1, one lemon for $0.33, imitation crab for $1, 3lbs of carrots for $1.47 and 3 tea bags $0.25. This brings my total to $8.55, leaving me a whopping $0.20 left over. ​

According to the official rules you can work out the 'per gram' price of spices and use them without having to factor in buying whole new bags of salt etc. These extra pennies will go to good use, giving my food a little something extra, and saving me from eating a plain potato for dinner every night.

Before I crawl into bed tonight I'll be making yet another spreadsheet- working out how to best spread out my food so it lasts the 5 days and to keep the value from going over $1.75 per day.​

Although I cannot accept donations of food, I am raising money for SPREAD THE NET which is all about getting mosquito nets where they are most needed in order help end preventable malaria deaths. View my sponsorship page HERE.​

Wish me luck! It all starts tommorow!​

challenge accepted: Live Below the Line

This is what I ate on Monday.
All-You-Can-Eat sushi night alone cost over $20.
Monday's meals weren't really anything out of the ordinary for me.

From April 22 to April 26 I'll be LIVING BELOW THE LINE.​

On Sunday I'll go out shopping with only $8.75 for 5 days. The total cost of the food and drink I eat each day can't exceed $1.75– the Canadian equivalent of the extreme poverty line.

How does it work? (from livebelowtheline.com)

• The full cost of all the items you consume must be included in your budget. This means budgeting for whole packets of food items such as rice, pasta, noodles and eggs etc.
• For items such as salt, pepper, herbs and spices, simply work out the cost of each item per gram and budget your shopping proportionally. Separate your items before the challenge so there’s no need to be digging around in your cupboards.
• You can share the cost of ingredients amongst a team, as long as no participant spends more than their total $8.75 budget. Working as a team will allow you to pool together funds and do more with your cooking.
• You can’t grab a cheeky snack from the cupboard unless you include the cost of buying the item new in your budget.
• You can use food sourced from your garden as long as you can account for the price of production!
• You cannot accept ‘donated’ food from family or friends, but monetary donations towards your fundraising goals are acceptable, and encouraged!
• You are allowed to drink tap water – remember you should try and drink at least 6-8 glasses of water each day.
• Remember that cigarettes don’t come cheap either! Can you Live Below The Line and still manage to smoke?

Last week I did a little "scouting" at the grocery store. The first thing I saw was a block of cheese that was more expensive than my entire budget. I headed off to look at what I assumed would be cheap, filling options. Shock. Rice and lentils by themselves ate up almost all of my budget.

I took notes furiously at the store. Was I really this oblivious to how much things cost? Yes. Yes, I was. I've never had to worry about if I had enough money in my bank account to pay for a tin of beans.

When I got home I spent several hours working out a meal plan - which I am still tweaking. I take so much for granted!

This is going to be hard.
But that's ok, it's supposed to be.

The 1.4 billion people who have to live under the extreme poverty line every day have to make their $1.75 a day stretch to cover a whole lot more than just food and drink.

challenge accepted.

Visit livebelowtheline.com for more info!