bills, bills, bills #36
A week in the life and wallet of a former Kennedy Center staffer
Bills, Bills, Bills is a monthly series of anonymous money diaries from theatre workers curated and edited by Jenna Clark Embrey.
The full archive is available here. We accept diarist submissions on a rolling basis.
call for financial advice, or BBB turns three
Bills, Bills, Bills is approaching its third anniversary! To celebrate this milestone, we want to hear from you: What financial wisdom have you learned while navigating the economic absurdity of a creative career in late capitalism? Tell us about the budgeting app that actually worked, the splurge that was worth every penny, or the money advice that changed your artistic life. We’ll compile our favorite answers (anonymously) in an upcoming edition:
editor’s note
As I was editing this column, the contributor reached out and asked to reveal where she worked when she wrote it: The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. (The diary was kept in the fall of 2022; an update from the author is at the end.) In disclosing this information, the contributor wanted to draw attention to the current plight of the organization—not just the takeover by a hostile regime, but also the fallout from the mass boycott of the Center and the pulling of donations. (Lauren Note: Last week, the Kennedy Center also implemented an employee mask ban, in which employees who do not have a “valid medical certification” to wear a mask on the premises will be fired after two policy violations.)
There have been many layoffs at The Kennedy Center in recent months, with more to come. (Lauren wrote about this recently.) If anyone has ever received the advice to “just get another job!” you know how confounding that can be, especially when many of the Kennedy Center workers relied on the very specific, very good benefits that the job offered. (Related: our November 2024 column about the low-wage, high-benefits life of academia.)
Our columnist also passed along a few resources:
“There is a LinkedIn group to support Kennedy Center staffers searching for new work and where others can post job opportunities. (A note that this link should not be used while logged in/using Kennedy Center devices.)
In addition to the LinkedIn group, if people want to support Kennedy Center employees, Patrons for the Kennedy Center is a community organization that's created an Instagram account and Action Network group to follow for news and alerts about actions to help those employed at and fired from The Kennedy Center during this time. They're asking supporters to wear yellow when they attend shows at The Kennedy Center.
There is a lot of fear that the Kennedy Center as we know it, our nation's leading performing arts institution, will be dissolved before the end of this presidential term. While I understand it's a complicated and emotional issue, if there's any way for the Bills, Bills, Bills community to support the Center financially and/or creatively during this time, it goes a lot further to support the non-unionized and unionized employees than anyone in the White House.”
Job Position: Management-level worker at the Kennedy Center in DC. I also work part-time at another local theater and occasionally freelance.
Age: Early 30s
2022 Total Income: Over $78,000 total due to circumstances I’ve outlined below. In an average month, my bi-weekly post-tax paycheck is $1,600, sometimes less if there are fewer to no shifts at my second job.
Income Breakdown:
Work: approximately $60,000 between full-time salary, bonus, second job wages, second job tips, and freelance work
Family Contributions: around $8,000 ($500/month to help me with my rent with occasional boosts in that amount)
Other: over $10,000 (post-tax) was paid to me by the government earlier this year due to matured savings bonds my parents bought in my name when I was a baby. I dispersed that money into various sources: my IRA, new investments, paying off credit card debt, growing my emergency fund, a new laptop, and a vacation.
Earlier this year, I received a $1,600 voucher from an airline to switch a flight, which I redeemed for Amazon gift cards. I still have a balance of $368.74 and use it quite a bit, especially for deliveries from Amazon Fresh.
Debt: Credit card debt that I manage on an...‘okay’ basis/schedule. At the start of this week I have $2,054.79 due across two cards and a store card. I will say that this is more than usual—I just purchased plane tickets home for Christmas and I’m still paying off the hotel from my recent vacation, as well as other charges.
My undergraduate education was completely paid for by my parents. My graduate education was paid for by a combination of them, a scholarship, and my own earnings, so I have no student loan debt. My parents also bought me a used car when I was in my mid-twenties, so I have no car payments to make.
Savings/Assets:
Total: $42,019.54
Savings Account (supplements checking account in a pinch): $5,000
High Yield Savings Account (focus on emergencies and potential home ownership): $18,833.07
Retirement Account through work with matching from employer: $10,359.21
IRA: $6,125.09
Other Investments: $1,702.17
My parents have set up a trust fund for me that I will eventually inherit. I will also inherit half of my parents’ two houses, split with my sibling. The value of my share of the houses is valued at over $1 million. They have chosen to not tell me the amount in the trust fund.
I don’t own a home. Despite saving up a meager amount for it over the last couple of years I don’t know if it will be feasible or, something I even really want, for a long time.
Checking: $5,077.16. If it goes below $1,500 I get a fine, so I try to keep $3,000 - $5,000 in there, since I pay my rent and building fees out of this account.
Monthly Expenses:
Rent: $1,848.00 (starting next month, 11% more than what I was paying previously). It’s a little less this month because it’s increasing mid-month and the first part was pro-rated.
Building Fees (parking, trash, rental insurance, water): $266.00
Electric Bill: $45.00
Car Insurance: $101.02
Gas (Car): on average, I guess $85
Twitch subscriptions: $10.58
Patreon subscriptions: $11.30
Internet: $98.95
Apple subscriptions (app subscriptions and iCloud storage): $32.76
Hulu: $7.41
Spotify Premium: $10.59
Book of the Month subscription: $16.95
Financial advisor fee: $70. This fee is a percentage of my holdings with them, so this fluctuates a bit. It comes directly out of my investments, but I wanted to count it here.
Cell Phone, Netflix, HBO, a couple add-ons to Amazon Prime, Disney+, Peacock, YouTube TV in lieu of cable: $0. Paid for by immediate family and friends.
Total Monthly Expenses: $2,603.56
Sunday
I was out late at a concert with a friend the night before, so I sleep in and then heat up leftovers for breakfast. I had a dinner party for some friends a couple nights earlier and I have SO MUCH food left over. I really hate throwing food out, so I’m on a mission to try and have as much of it as possible in the next couple of days. I get dressed to go to my part-time job. On the way I stop at Dunkin Donuts and buy a large iced coffee to help get me through the shift, spending $3.81.
It’s a pretty chaotic matinee shift, compounded by the fact I haven’t worked the show yet, but we get through it! I grab a bag of chips from the concessions stand during the show for ‘lunch’—we’re allowed to snack on stuff as long as we log it in the system.
After the shift, I’m home by 5. It’s a super rainy, cozy day, and my heart is screaming for a gourmet grilled cheese from the coffee shop down the street. But I know that’s a waste of money when I have so many leftovers, so I heat up some stew instead. I FaceTime my parents to say hi, then spend the evening watching HBO Max and reading a fantasy book. (A couple of my friends and I are trying to get a book club thing going.)
Total Spent: $3.81
Monday
My morning ritual is to wake up and immediately heat up water in a kettle to make coffee in my French press thermos, one of my budgeting tactics for the last few years. Plugging the thermos here because it’s truly amazing—I’ve given it as a gift and recommended it to friends for years. I eat some focaccia bread with apple butter for breakfast while I get ready to go, and package up some more leftover stew for lunch.
Once I’m in the office, I realize that the focaccia bread is not going to sustain me, so I go to the cafe in our building and get an egg and cheese on an English muffin, as well as a seltzer, spending $5.23.
I manage to not spend money the rest of the day. I think about going to Trader Joe’s for pumpkin-flavored treats, but I’m exhausted by the end of the work day, so I just go home and proceed to fall asleep on the couch almost immediately. After a sensible 90-minute nap, I heat up more leftovers and jump back into HBO Max.
Total Spent: $5.23
Tuesday
I have learned from my mistake of yesterday morning and cut a much larger piece of bread for breakfast, then I make my coffee, pack up more leftover stew for lunch, and make it on the road pretty much on time.
Today, work is....a lot, and to top it off, my friend texts me and says she’s tested positive for COVID. She and our other friend were going to come over and hang out in my building’s courtyard tonight, but between the positive test result and the persistent rain, we decide to postpone it into the following week. Financially, I’m relieved, because that means I can cook up some pasta at home instead of helping to pay for the pizza we were going to split.
The craving for the gourmet grilled cheese has persisted all week, along with the rainy weather...AND YET I RESIST. I have some cherry tomatoes that have started to go bad, but I manage to pick out enough decent ones to make a quick sauce for my pasta. I watch a baseball game with some warm apple cider, and when my team wins, I decide to order myself some sweatpants in support; I’ve been thinking for a couple weeks about getting a new pair of sweatpants, but my alma mater didn’t have any I liked, and the MLB Shop had these for 25% off! I spend $43.16 on my credit card from the pants, tax, and shipping and pray that they’re as comfortable as I hope they are!
Total Spent: $43.16
Wednesday
I wake up and hurriedly make my coffee and cut another piece of bread. I’m nervous about continuing to rely on the stew; it’s been over four days since I cooked that sausage. I sadly dump the rest down the disposal and commit to buying my lunch today. To balance this decision out, I take some Trader Joe’s salmon filets out of the freezer to defrost while I’m at work so I can cook them for the next few nights.
When I get to work I realize I’m craving seltzer again, so I stop and get one at the cafe for $1.93. When I do this, I’m always like “should I just bring an 8-pack in and put it in the office fridge to save money?” and the answer is DEFINITELY yes but....I don’t.
At lunch, I head back to the cafe for a veggie cheeseburger and a Vitamin Water, costing me $10.78, and I sit outside and do some reading. When I get home from work, I head to the CVS near me for my COVID booster and flu vaccine—trying to stay healthy this winter! Luckily, both vaccines are fully covered by my insurance. Before heading home from CVS, I pick up an assortment of food (granola bars that are generally my breakfast, seltzer because I have none, snacks for working from home on Friday, etc.). I spend more than I was going to—$52.83—but really just because I want to take advantage of a bunch of coupons that have accumulated on my CVS card.
After making dinner, I watch more baseball and FaceTime with a college friend. Then I get SUPER tired at 9pm (I blame the vaccines) and head to bed.
Total Spent: $65.54
Thursday
This morning is rough post-vaccinations, but by lunchtime I’m feeling better, so I decide to go on a walk to the Trader Joe’s by my office. The weather’s wonderful, I’m out of desk snacks, and I need to buy something for lunch anyway, so it’s a win-win-win. I pick up a salad and probably too many snacks, spending $24.54.
I get an e-mail that the show I had Friday night comps for is going to be canceled due to COVID cases in the cast, which is a huge bummer! My friend and I text about whether we still want to meet up, and it turns out there’s a company in town doing a musical she LOVES and that I’ve never seen. She grabs the tickets while I deal with a work thing.
I’m also informed at work that I’m getting a 3.5% annual salary increase, which is surprising and more than I expected. Obviously with my rent going up more than that, circumstances are still frustrating, but it’s not an unwelcome development.
At home, I make some (microwavable Trader Joe’s) brown rice to go with leftover salmon from the night before. No baseball tonight, so time to go back to my book and television. (I swear that I DO have a life outside of work, baseball, and fictional characters.) I process my friend’s Venmo request for the ticket for tomorrow night’s show, paying her $24.
Total Spent: $48.54
Friday
Friday is my work-from-home day, so I get to sleep in a bit before making the last of my eggs and some coffee and logging on. Then all of a sudden, it’s 1:30pm? WILD. I heat up some leftover salmon and rice for lunch. After work is all done, I get dressed and head downtown on public transit, spending $2.80. I could drive, but I just don’t feel like dealing with city parking on Friday night. I get to the restaurant early and I know I have about half an hour till my friend will be there, so I sit at the bar and order a specialty cocktail and scroll Twitter. Once she arrives, I settle up with the bartender, who nicely informs me that there’s a 20% gratuity added, so no need to tip additionally. The total bill at the bar is $18.48.
My friend and I split some amazing arancini and a thin crust pizza and we both order a soda. My half of the bill comes to $30.41 with tip. We walk to the theater, and we realize that the reason the tickets were so cheap is because they’re partial view. I don’t really mind though, we still have a great time, and I love this theater company. I’ve done a little bit of freelance work with them in the past and they always put on solid productions. After the show, we find a nearby bar and each order a glass of wine to chat about the show. My total comes to $17.18 with tip.
I take public transit home, spending $2, and I’m asleep before midnight.
Total Spent: $70.87
Saturday
I love having Saturdays to do what I want. I totally burned out working full weekends regularly as a box office associate once upon a time, and I never take my lazy weekend days for granted. I decide to bundle up in cozy clothes and have an outdoor breakfast at a coffee shop in my neighborhood (the one of the famous grilled cheese I can’t stop thinking about). I do NOT get the grilled cheese, however; I opt for a breakfast sandwich, almond pastry, and iced coffee. With tip, the total comes to $20.99. After eating and reading my book for a while, I run to a couple of the local food shops. I pick up a dozen eggs and some kale, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes to make my “sad salads” (as I call them) to bring into the office for lunch during the work week. My friend is having a dinner party tonight and she asked me to bring some charcuterie board reinforcements, so I also get some fancy cheese, meat, and crackers. I spend a total of $62.57 on everything. It’s more expensive to shop locally than go to a major grocery store, but I do like to try and support my local shops.
At home, I load the dishwasher and Zoom with a friend I’m collaborating with on a project. I try to pay my electric bill online, but the website is down for maintenance, so I guess I’ll do that on Sunday instead. I heat up the rest of my salmon and rice for lunch and go back to HBO Max for awhile. I also check my finance apps and realize that the wine subscription my friend got me hooked on has charged me $109.84 for another bi-monthly shipment of six bottles, so I guess I’ll be getting those soon!
I take a nap and accidentally wake up around the time I meant to leave to help my friend get ready for the party, whoops! I text her apologies and get ready, debating public transit or a Lyft to her place, since someone else claimed the single parking space at her house. I land on taking public transit even though I’ll get there a little bit later—it’s only $2 and I already know I’m paying to take a rideshare home at night.
The Halloween/autumnal dinner party is a lot of fun: there’s tarot reading and good food and an extremely animated discussion about the upsides and downsides of working at non-profits. At the end of the night, I request an Uber to get home for the sake of time and safety. With tip, it costs $18.93, and I’m home before 1am.
Total: $214.33
Weekly Spending Total: $451.48
Update: April 2025
First off, I would like to say that the exact same Dunkin’ iced coffee order that cost me $3.81 in the fall of 2022 cost me $5.43 last week. So there’s some context for this update!
A few months after keeping this diary, I was offered a job in another major city on the East Coast, closer to family and still in arts administration, so I moved! At that new position, I was making $75,000/year, had worse benefits than my previous one, depleted my savings a decent amount, and lost my job (without any severance) some months ago due to mass layoffs. At this time, my family’s support has substantially increased as I look for work (covering rent, utilities, COBRA insurance, and more) in a terrible job economy. I am about to lose my unemployment benefits, so I’m in the midst of another financial change that I’m sure I’ll navigate with their help.
Additionally, some health situations arose with both my parents and myself in the months surrounding my layoff. As a result, my parents finally told me the amount of my trust fund, allowing me to better plan for the future. While I now know I don’t need to worry at all about retirement (and I recognize this is a huge benefit many millennials don’t have), it is sobering to come closer to that trade-off. Despite my current circumstances, I would rather work constantly and have my parents around for 30 more years, at least, than be given that fund and have financial permission to do whatever I want.
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