2017 Expenses

2017 could very well turn out to be an expensive year for me. While there aren’t many things I need to replace, there are quite a few things that might be worthwhile to do so. For example, though the camera that I’ve been using for travel and other occasions since 2012 still works fine and takes good pictures, I’ve been thinking about replacing it with a newer model. Some things, such as my printer, which is on its last legs, are arguably more pressing, but in the case of the printer I’ve not needed to do anything since I have access to other printers at work and at home. Certain items, like a 4k TV, a PlayStation 4 Pro, and an Xbox One S (or Scorpio) are more distant possibilities, but still barely possible enough that I have to keep them in mind. And then there’s my car. Each year I wonder if it will be the year I finally replace it, but each year it simply refuses to die and I get to December 31 with the same wheels I started the year with.

In addition to the various things that might get replaced, the specter of travel always hangs over my financial forecasts for the year. I’m planning on doing a short trip out to NYC around May and perhaps a few other domestic journeys later in the year. These domestic trips will vary in expense depending on where I’m going and how long I stay, so it’s hard to predict how much of a financial strain they’ll put on me. But probably more expensive than all of these put together would be the Japan and South Korea expedition I’ve been thinking about. It’s still very much a moonshot goal, but I’d like it to happen. Should I do so it would be the largest individual expense of the year (right now I’m guessing that if I could do the desired four to five-week trip it would add up to at least $5,000). I’d probably have to forsake some other things to do it, but travel is one of the few things I never feel bad about investing in, so it shouldn’t be overly difficult to postpone my gratification in certain areas in order to free up funds for Asia, should the trip become more doable.