I love math and numbers, and I’ve spent plenty of time watching my mom budget. But I’ve never had to make a budget myself, even if it’s not a budgetformyself.
It’s not easy, especially because I have no frame of reference for most things. How much money does a single guy actuallyneedfor food each month? What about rent? Utilities? Extras? God, Nico’s still wearing the same set of clothes to work every day.
And I can’t answer what’s probably the most important question—what can he do for work? How much money can he realistically expect to bring in every month? The minimum wage is higher in California than here in Nebraska, sure. But that doesn’t necessarily negate the increased cost of living. In fact, it almost certainly doesn’t.
There are so many uncertainties, and by the time I have a rough outline, I’ll admit that it’s hard to feel as optimistic as I had earlier in the day.
I’m about ninety-five percent sure my mom will be out hiking with Aunt Tammy or something—probably somewhere with no cell signal—but I text her anyway because if I’m going to try to convince Nico that this is something he can do, I’m going to have to believe in it myself first. And that means my numbers need to make at leastsomesense.
Alex (2:34 p.m.):hey mom callme when u can
I start typing out a second text to explain a bit more, but before I can even get the first few words out, the phone vibrates and begins to ring. Her name pops up on the screen. I swipe to answer and bring the phone to my ear.
“Hey, Mom.”
“Hi, sweetie. Is everything okay?” she asks, breathing hard.
“Yeah,” I answer automatically, although that’s probably not the entire truth. “Well, I mean, I hope so. It’s just...” I pause to take a deep breath and steady myself.
Muffled sounds in the background—birds chirping and the roar of a river, maybe—suggest my mom is at least outside, if not out hiking, and I immediately feel bad for interrupting her getaway with Aunt Tammy for something I should be able to figure out myself. But I know she wants to help, and she’s always told me not to hesitate to ask for help when I need it. I open my eyes and look back down at the notes I scribbled onto the notepad. All those numbers that just don’t add up. Then I try again.
“So, um, Nico and I are going to talk tonight. About California, I mean. And I wanted to get a jump on a budget, because I’m hoping to show him how it’ll be possible for us to figure it out. But, uh, the numbers aren’t... looking good, and I could use some help. Do you have a few minutes?”
“Ohhhh, hmm. Yeah, of course. Just give me a sec.” There’s some quiet talking, and I can hear Aunt Tammy’s voice, though I can’t make out her words. Then my mom’s voice becomes clear again. “Okay, sweetie. I’ve got a few minutes here. Tell me what you’ve worked out so far.”
We talk for much more than a few minutes, and I explain everything I’ve outlined to her. She’s quiet while she listens, and when I’m done, she’s quiet for another moment. I’m just about to ask her what she thinks when I hear her take a deep breath and clear her throat.
“You’re, um, missing a few budget items on there still,” she starts, and I can hear how reluctant she is. My stomach drops as she continues. “Um, he’ll need to budget for health insurance, unless he finds a job that includes it or can get on Medicaid or whatever’s available in California, and your numbers for car insurance are probably off because it sounds like you used the quote he just got?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“The cost will be much higher in California. And you’d need to budget for gas for his car, too, which is hard to do if we don’t know how much he’ll be driving. Gas is much more expensive there, especially in the Bay Area.”
My stomach knots up even more as she keeps talking, discussing each of the expenses I noted and explaining why each one might be incorrect or underestimated. When she stops talking after another few minutes, I’mnotfeeling better. In fact, I’m feeling worse. Especially when she quietly adds, “And don’t forget to deduct estimated taxes from his paycheck. Whatever he’s receiving, they’ll take taxes out first. So even if he’s making twenty bucks an hour, it won’t mean that much in take-home pay.”
“Uh, yeah. Right. Right.” It’s hard to keep the uncertainty and disappointment from my voice, and I know she hears it, because she immediately starts up again.
“But there are always ways to cut expenses, too, and I think you can find them. Maybe he can find a roommate to split the cost of rent, or—”
“Mom,” I cut in, shaking my head, “he won’t be able to have a roommate.”
“Dammit, that’s right,” she mumbles, and I hear a muffled voice on the other end of the line. “Yeah, Tam, sorry. One more minute, okay?... Okay, sweetie, so, I know this looks really tough, but here’s what you need to do, okay?”
She rambles on for another couple of minutes, explaining tome how to trim the budget and then how to figure out just how good of a job he’d need to make enough money. She reminds me that he’ll have an entire three months of work here to save up and explains how that money could be used to give him a buffer the first couple of months while he works out the kinks in his actual budget. And she also mentions all the savingsIhave, too.
“You can remind him that you’re in this together,” she suggests softly, “and that he’s not totally on his own to figure it out. You have to live on campus the first year, since Stanford requires it, but after that, you’ll have options on that front, too.”
“That’s true.” I stare at the numbers on the page in front of me and then turn back to my laptop to do a quick search for a take-home pay calculator.
“It won’t be easy, Alex, but—”
“—the best things in life never are,” I finish for her with a light laugh. “Yeah. I just... I need to know it’s possible. And it seems like it’ll just be a matter of finding him the right job and housing situation.”
I almost feel her nod through the phone. “Exactly, sweetie. It can be done. And in fact, remember that I mentioned that friend I have? She’s in San Jose, I think.”
“Oh, right, um, she has an art gallery or something?”
“She owns quite a few, actually. And she runs a collective of several hundred artists. If Nico decides he wants to give this thing a shot, I can contact her and see if she’s looking for an employee. Not all jobs are client-facing, and I’m sure he’ll be able to find something.”
