Generally speaking, half way is a good thing.

If this were any other challenge, making it to half way would be a good thing.

Given that I am paid by my employer on a monthly basis, and on the 15th of each month, the half way mark is where this challenge really began.

The way things normally work for me on this monthly salary schedule:

• 15th day: Get paid
• 16th day: Spend it all
• Rest of month: Wait around for next pay day for the next cycle

This time, I've got all that money sitting there and nothing to do with it. The bonus is that all that cash I would have otherwise wasted has made a significant dent in my credit card liability.

I've decided that the easiest way to conquer this challenge is to leave my cards at home and do not under any circumstances visit any shops. Neither of which I've actually done yet. In my defence I have not actually broken my no spending vow to myself yet.

I will admit that at times I've thought about giving up and giving in, but when I think about it, the only person I would let down is myself. No one else actually cares if I spend or not (CEO's of MYER and David Jones excluded), the only person who would care is me.

So regardless of how excited I am about some of the new season lines, and the old season lines on sale, I'm sticking like duct tape to my resolution.

At the end of the day if I fail, if I cheat or if I lie, the only person I am failing, cheating or lying to is myself. Frankly I deserve to be treated with a little more respect than that, if only by myself.

There are some things I just did not anticipate.

Personally, I think I am doing quite well with my no-spending month. When I say that, I mean that I am doing quite well. But the people around me, not so much.

The thing I didn't forsee is that when no one else has made the same committment as you, they don't have quite the same dedication to the cause as you do.

So while I haven't purchased anything for myself, I have been pushed into a couple of corners where I've had to bail other people out and make purchases for them. If somewhat begrudingly, the money was still spent.

For now I think my record still stands since I haven't cracked and made any purchases for myself. Although I think I need a little more willpower when it comes to other people since my resolve hasn't been holding up as well as I would like. If I keep this up it's only a matter of time before I make a slip and buy something for myself.

On another note, I have discovered that the things I'm missing most are not shopping sprees and shoes. The things I am missing most these last two weeks are:

• Nandos
• Max Brenner
• Really good coffee

Come March 1st I think I'm going to take a day trip. Starting with a perfectly brewed, fresh latte in the morning, Nandos for lunch and heading over to Max Brenner for an amazing hot chocolate in one of his adorable Hug Mugs in the afternoon.

Now that I think of it, what day is March 1st? I hope I don't have to be at work that day...

I think in the past two weeks I have started learning a valuable lesson about self restraint and how vital it can be in today's society. We are all running ourselves into the ground because we want everything and we want it right now.

I think we could all learn something important if we took a step back to see the bigger picture and see what we are really chasing.

In the last two weeks, I haven't experienced the instant gratification that comes from shopping for new things. In the time I would have spent shopping, I've taken the time to see my friends and family and create quality, golden moments with them. I have memories that can't be bought and can't be taken away from me now.

I had a really great time doing it and it didn't cost a thing. The best things in life really are free.

Well I suppose Day 1 was a success.

If by success it is taken to mean that I didn't buy anything.

However, at one point I did think I was going to suffer a mild nervous break-down. It was about the time I went on lunch at work and realized I was down to only 2 options:

1. Hit up the shops but touch nothing; or
2. Stay at work where I really couldn't be tempted by much more than a vending machine.

It was a tough call, but the sub zero office air con forced me out of the office on a defrost recon mission, before I made a speedy return to avoid the chances of 'accidents' happening.

All in all, I actually think for the first time that I can do this.
One down, 27 to go!

Obviously I can never get married...

If this is how I react to the idea of committing, then I'm going to need a lot of therapy before I can tie the knot.

Not that I was exactly planning on it, but it's good to know that I've got issues before they become a problem. Currently the only knot being tied is the one in my stomach when I think about what's in store for me over the coming 4 weeks. NOTHING.

There is absolutely nothing in store for me, because for the next 4 weeks I can't shop. I can't eat out. I can't do anything that costs money to do.

The no shopping thing is breaking my heart. Literally, I even have chest pains. (Although that could be due to the ridiculous amount I ate for my last supper at Nandos). The best thing about February for a shopper like me is that this is when all the new lines come out and there is a whole new plethora of clothing, shoes and accessories for me to sample. Given that my dress size and shoe size tends to sell out first, I know that all the beautiful things I've noticed surfacing in the past week will never be mine. It's a bitter pill to swallow.

Since tonight was the last night I could do most of the things I enjoy doing, I've gone and gorged myself on Nandos. Although I'm pretty sure that eating a months worth of food in one night is not going to mean I don't need to eat again for a month. So there will come a time in the next week or so when my excessive gluttony tonight wears off and I want to go back to Nandos, but can't.

I'm tempted to throw myself a small bon-voyage party while I still have one last chance. I'm sitting here using the internet right now, so I'm only a hop, skip and a click away from a number of my favorite online stores. I am tempted, but I know I'm not going to. I think binge shopping either now, or on March 1 will only ruin the moral of the story I'm trying to tell.

I suppose this is bon-voyage from me for tonight. I have to go pack my bags since tomorrow I check into rehab.
Rehab for a serial spender.

It all started when I had this crazy idea...

It's no secret that I like to shop. It's also no secret that I have an over exerted credit card that suffers from an ongoing bout of whip-lash.

There is a four letter word I can't resist, and at this time of the year it's everywhere I look. SALE. I can't resist a good sale and post-Christmas, you don't have to look far to find one.

It's not just shoes that do the damage. There's the lunches with friends, the dinners out, concerts, nights out with friends, frequent visits to the cinema and an endless array of activities to keep myself entertained.

I am a self confessed serial spender. I spend money when I need to, when I want to, when I've got nothing else to do and even when I really can't afford to.

Yet even with a wardrobe that could rival the international headquarters at Vogue and a posse of go-anywhere, do-anything friends I still find myself complaining that I have nothing to wear and nothing to do, not to mention no money. So I spend even more on more things that I probably don't need.

Unfortunately they don't make pre-quit patches for shopoholics, which means I'll be doing the big quit good old fashioned cold-turkey style.

So for a whole month, starting on February 1st I will be engaging in what I have decided will be my 'no-spending-month'. A whole month without spending a cent. Coming from me, this concept is grounds enough to question my sanity.

Of course there are some exceptions to the rule here, given that I need to live and my landlord probably won't be embracing this as wholeheartedly as I am.

Things I am still allowed to pay for are:

• The rent
• The groceries
• The bills
• The car
• Public transport
• Medical expenses

Essentially for a whole month the only things I am allowed to pay for are the things I wish I didn't have to think about.

I've drawn up some guidelines to help keep me on the straight and narrow for the month:

• I can borrow things from friends if I need to, the catch is they can only be things that my friends owned prior to the start of the month. If this is meant to be a no spending month then I need to be firm regardless of who does the spending.
• I can buy groceries, but I can't buy food when I'm out. So all work lunches will need to be prepared at home in the morning. It will also mean cooking dinner every night. This will be hard because I don't remember the last time I went a week without Nandos, let alone a whole month.
• I'll be having a lot of BBQ's and beach days this month since all the activities I do with my friends will mean that I can't spend money on anything. I will be allowed to purchase food for the BBQ's from the grocery store however since this isn't a diet, it's a curb on my spending.
• If I go out with my friends I'll be doing all the DDing since I can only drink the free water. I can't have my friends shouting me drinks, dinners, movies or any other items or activities. It defeats the purpose of not spending money if other people are spending more to cover me.
• I do have a couple of birthdays in February so I've decided that I can buy gifts for these birthdays. It's probably not fair on my friends to try and get myself off the hook like that.
• I can't buy any clothes for a whole month, so this means that I'll have to make do with what I've got. This part shouldn't be a problem though...

I'm sure there are plenty of variables I haven't thought over yet. However the rule of thumb is that if it's not essential to survival then it can not be bought for a whole month.

For someone who shops every single day without fail, just the thought of not shopping for a month is giving me withdrawal symptoms.

I'll be reporting on all the ways I manage to keep myself entertained and out of trouble this month. Please post suggestions on free things to do around Brisbane that you think I should try out. I need all the help I can get.