I realized today that this experiment that I am undertaking is going to ruin any and every illusion each of you had left about me.  (Well maybe not my MoM, she's known I am just human for a long time.) But for the rest of you, I am afraid I am only going to break your hearts.

Here's what's in store for you: You're going to learn that I am creature of habit. You're going to learn that I am not living some wildly-exciting (or extravagant) life abroad.  You're going to get a glimpse at my groceries, my eating habits as well as a few of my little obsessions.  If you're lucky you might get a recipe or two that you're excited to try out at home. You might get laugh or two and you might be inspired to keep track of what you're spending your money on each month.

Anyhow, here's what happened today:
<ul>
	<li>Breakfast: coffee, oatmeal, milk and a banana. Cost: maybe 1.20 leva</li>
	<li>Lunch at school: chicken,  mixed veggies and a slice of bread. Cost: 2 leva</li>
	<li>In desperate need of caffeine after hours of grading: .30 leva for a long coffee made more or less drinkable with two sugars.</li>
	<li>Dinner: homemade bagel, yogurt, steamed veggies and a glass of wine.  Cost: 2.50 leva, maybe.  But, maybe I'll have a second glass of wine. It's been one of those days.</li>
</ul>
So, the pattern that you will begin to see emerging over the next month is this: in addition to my love of coffee, I also love oatmeal.  <!--more-->I eat it every morning. I've been eating ever since I graduated from college from the months of September to May or June.  But I don't like eating it when it gets too hot outside. It's just a meal that really starts your day off right.  So I eat it everyday.

I just don't think my love of oatmeal is shared as widely as my love of coffee.  So I've never really talked about it on my blog before.  Oh and once, a roommate in Washington DC, in response to a commercial for Quaker Oats said: who could eat oatmeal everyday? I said: me. He said: really? that's weird.  That was the end of our conversation. Since then though I haven't advertised my love for the dish so much.

Other things I love: bananas, chocolate, scones, lentils and french toast.

Also, for those of you keeping track, I kind of cheated on Sunday.  In normally go shopping on either Saturday or Sunday.  Saturday I decided I'd go on Monday so that it would be really to keep track of my spending.  But Sunday it was clear that I was going to run out of toilet paper and I needed bananas. Two things that I really needed to start my work week off right.  For the record, Sunday was January 31st so given my month long experiment I don't think that I am obligated to report the following purchases but I am going to anyway: toilet paper (4.99 leva), conditioner (7 leva) and almonds (3.50 leva).

Oh and I hate scented toilet paper. This makes me the crazy foreigner at the store smelling toilet paper.  I don't want my toilet paper smelling anything like a bouquet, a spa, a forest or the ocean. Of course, I don't buy toilet paper often enough to remember which one I bought last time, the language on the toilet paper usually isn't English or Bulgarian, and on top of this on the roll they all look the same.  So, I resort to sniffing toilet paper.

Yep, as promised these posts are going to ruin any illusions you may have about me and break your heart.