Making Do With a Budget

This early, people from the Department of Trade and Industry have been urging consumers to start buying their Christmas groceries. Apparently, some people in the know are expecting prices to hike up a few weeks before Christmas.

And rightly so... retailers have a tendency to ride the bandwagon. Just when the holidays are around the corner, the prices of goods become more expensive. Although Christmas comes just once a year, the good cheer all around becomes a smoke-screen for rising cost of living.

Filipinos in general, have a tendency to go all out and spend during the holidays. Once they receive their bonuses, they splurge on every conceivable caprice they normally would not be able to afford on an ordinary day. Having the longest Christmas season in the world doesn't help either. We tend to overspend on food and then give away stuff to avoid spoilage.

Still and all, Pinoy households can never do without the traditional Christmas ham, the queso de bola, the buko or fruit salad, the spaghetti and the lumpia'ng shanghai. At least once a year, it's nice to have the dining table heavily laden with food. It has always amazed me how my family was able to come up with ways to make do with a budget that seems to get smaller and smaller every year. And recently, I learned that some things, I can live without.

This year, I plan to get my Noche Buena prepped and cooked ahead of time. Since I only have a brother to celebrate with I'm cutting my recipe portions by at least half. That should save on refrigerator space. I also plan to make my desserts instead of buying a whole cake. Unless of course, someone shows enough good will to gift me with a standard 9" inch round Christmas cake. 

Since my brother doesn't eat fruits, I've decided to limit buying fruits to half kilo bags. He doesn't like pancit either so it's either half a kilo of baked mac topped with lots of mozzarella and fontina (which I got pretty cheap) and queso de bola from his Christmas basket. A quater kilo of minced pork and quarter kilo of minced beef and a kilo of fresh tomatoes for the sauce should be enough for both of us. I don't invite guests over anymore so that should suffice. As for the lumpia'ng shanghai... that would have to have my brother's approval. I'm not certain he really enjoys them.

Gifting has also become more creative. Offices have the customary Christmas gift basket for their employees. Ever notice how the shredded paper fills out more of the space than the goodies? But hey, it's the thought that counts. Bargain hunters are all agog over what they can find in thrift stores and novelty shops, Christmas bazaars and vintage stores in Divisoria. I've stocked up on some give-aways for my friends and family months ago. I've even given some friends their gifts way in advance... They're not getting much, but I thought of them, at least. For special friends I've started making presents. The time and labor spent on creating these gifts are priceless.

It would be great if money were no object for the holidays. I would love to splurge... who wouldn't? But breaking your back while paying off your credit cards is the most absurd thing anyone could ever do. I wouldn't want to take that road again...