Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-14
DIARY OF A
NEW FATHER
BIT ROBERT f. DICKSON.

Sunday night.
Friday Joan decided we had TO
economic, and yesterday we started
living on the budget plan. and today
am rolling my own cigarettes.
/ do not do it very well. but Joan
says l will most likely get better be-
cause she does not see how anybody
could be worse, and she says If she
is willing to sweep up all the tobacco
/ spill on the rugs, why goodness
knows I oughtn't to crab about srRok-
Ing what little | manage TO roll into
cigarettes.
She says she saw a cowboy in the
movies once who rolled cigarettes with
one hand. / guess she thinks she got
cheated when she married me.
We spent yesterday afternoon and
last night planning the budget, and
today we were looking 1t over and we
found there was only $225 a month
for amusement. because we made the
mistake of leaving amusement until
the last instead of putting it In first.
so we had to get pencil and swipe
81 from medical and the whole SO
from selfimprovement and $1.75 from
groceries and 81 from my lunches, and
now we will have $40 a month for some
fun, except when I run out of shaving
cream, when the toilet articles account
in the budget is all used up, or some
other darn thing.
Joan said. Now we will have SIS
week to put in the bank. Isn't that
simply wonderful?" and said, "Why
is 1t? That makes $3.50 a year, but
you will probably spend $500 when we
go on vacations so what good does it
do?" and Joan said, "Oh, heavens, we
forgot to put a vacation account in
the budget. didn't we?"
] said. You leave my lunch money
alone, now"
Joan said. Let me see think we
can take so cents from laundry, and
perhaps save another so cents by
using less light and gas, and we can
take so cents more from groceries, and
just another half dollar from your
lunches certainly won't hurt you. How
much is that?" and I said, 1.-TWO dol
lars month, or "a whole dollars a
year, and you're forgetting to count
on any more of your relatives visiting
us. too"
Just then the doorbell rang and 1t
was Mrs. Stewart, who lives across
the hall, and she wanted Joan to go
walking with her, and 7 said, "You
ought to take the baby out with you
~ SET SOilbC dAis JOdHs anu she Sdlu.
81 would. but he is taking a nap and
/ don't want to wake him. You stay
in the house with him, and we won't
be gone long
SO she started putting on her hat,
and she was telling Mrs. Stewart about
the budget, and Mrs. Stewart said,
isn't that splendid? Are you really
going to save something every week p"
and Joan said. YES. I am going to
run the house on the absolute mini
num-" and thought, Joan is pretty
good manager after all. maybe I am
going to get little ahead at last 6.
even if I am married, and Joan and
Mrs. Stewart started out and Joan
was saying. "We aren't going to
spend a single cent that isn't neces.
sary," and they left. and I started to
roll a cigarette and I thought, gee,
Joan is a good kid. she intends to do
her part of the economizing, 1t isn't
every wife who decides to hold down
on the expenses, and Joan opened the
door again and she said. Where did
leave my pocketbook? I want to
take some money along" and I said,
What for?" and she said. I'VE may
want to stop for sundae and some
magazines"