Summer can be either your best friend or your worst enemy as a singer. One soprano friend of mine calls it “tumbleweed season” with a sigh, indicating that while she’s happy for the time off to spend with her family, it doesn’t do her bank account any favors. For other singers who do well in summertime Young Artist Programs, it can be a major budget boon.
For either case, summer is often a whir of electricity bills, bar and restaurant tabs, and concert tickets—money often spent with the “at least it got us into air conditioning for a few hours” mantra as justification. And, despite winter carrying its own harsh weather, there’s a lot of layers you can pile on to keep warm but only so many to peel off to keep cool.
And whether this is your high or low season, professionally speaking, it all seems to break even come September. There’s the obvious, boxy monster that’s probably sitting (and humming away) in your window as you read this. Perhaps it’s the heat loosening your vise grip on your dollars and cents, but there’s something about summer that sucks out money no matter how much you’re taking in. Read on for some ways you can keep it on ice.
Plug into Your Electricity Bill
We know that it gets higher around this time, but looking at your electricity bill and knowing why and where it gets higher is the first empowering step to lowering it (while also keeping your thermostat low). Do you keep the air conditioner off during the day when you’re out but leave it on at night for a comfortable snooze? You may be able to sleep just as peacefully at night with the windows open and a fan on (though, in the realm of exact-opposite-advice, keeping your windows closed during the day seems stuffy, but it’ll keep the hot air out—especially if you also pull the blinds down tight).
With your air conditioner proper, be sure to clean the filter thoroughly each month. The buildup it accrues over time—especially during periods of frequent use—causes it to work less efficiently and in turn forces it to expend more energy for the same amount of work, often not reaching its maximum potential. Replace the filter on Memorial Day and pick up an extra filter while you’re on task to switch out on Labor Day. If you have central air, don’t forget to schedule your annual checkup before the heat is on—and if you’re in the process of deciding between the two, know that a window unit will cost pennies compared to a central air system’s dollar. The difference between actual temperatures is minimal by comparison. Some extra legwork on Energy Star’s website (www.energystar.gov) before you buy can also find you a unit that uses anywhere between 14 percent less energy on central air and 25 percent on window units.
Cook Wisely
Using your oven on the hottest afternoon of the year isn’t going to help the rest of your house. That being said, many of your healthiest and cheapest foods require minimal cooking (which will help cool you off on the dog days) and will keep you from falling down the rabbit hole of paying $42 for berries and avocadoes alone. Apples generally hit their pricing nadirs by the fall during harvest season, but you can still find a number of types for $1 a pound in the summer months.
Eggs can cost less than $3 per dozen and are versatile—even more so if you limit your intake to one yolk per day and supplement that with whites. They pack a punch with protein and don’t require any more heat than a few minutes on the stovetop. Mix one full egg with two additional eggs’ worth of whites and scramble it up with some seasoned tofu (about $2.50 per pound), yellow onions (roughly $2.50 for a two-pound bag), and Swiss chard (in season and therefore at its cheapest during the summer) for a light but hearty meal that won’t slow you down.
And while the microwave is often derided as the tool of a lazy chef, it’s a viable means of cooking potatoes, or even the more nutrient-rich sweet potatoes, in a flash and without the extra heat. Cut one in half, score the flesh for aeration, and put in a bowl half full of water. Cover that in saran wrap and cook in the microwave for roughly 5-10 minutes, depending on the size. If you want some of that crispy oven texture, rub the skin with a little olive oil.
Speaking of Seasonal . . .
Growing up, I used to think my mother was crazy for taking us shopping for winter clothes on days that broke into triple-digit temperatures. But now as I spend my Fourth of July weekends sweating it up in changing rooms in the name of 75-percent-off sweaters and cut-rate winter coats, I can see why a single mom of four made us suffer for savings.
But beyond that, there are more obvious, and more convenient, sales this time of year. It’s a dry spell for gyms and sporting stores, especially in May just before we tip into swimsuit season, so use that time to replace your running shoes, sports bras, or track pants. You also needn’t focus entirely on cold-weather gear at this time of year. Toward the end of the season, retailers will be eager to rid themselves of excess summer stock in anticipation for the fall, which means items like sandals and swimsuits will start to peter out in price come August. The explosion of wedding season in June and July means that it’s also not the worst time to invest in home goods for upgrades and redecoration.
What I’ve come to love about the pinboard-style social photo sharing website Pinterest (www.pinterest.com) is its ability to allow for visual list making. At the beginning of the season (or, indeed, year round), start thinking about the things that are priorities for you to buy this summer: new beach shoes, a few polo shirts, a tower fan, a replacement kitchen table, new glasses . . . what have you. As you do your research online, simply pin them (you can even note the price in the description) and keep returning to your boards from time to time to see if they match your vision and priorities.
Being able to see what you want will help you realize what you actually need. Seeing the prices in black-and-white ink (or Helvetica font) will allow you to compartmentalize the costs within your income. This is something more universal than seasonal, but still a great way to plan ahead for leaner months—and a free distraction from the muggy weather.
If It’s for Free, It’s for Thee
One of the best things about summer, especially if you live in a metropolitan area, is that there is no shortage of free entertainment. Consider it a quid pro quo for how much your municipal government assumes you’ll be spending on air conditioning bills and eating out to escape the heat of the kitchen. You may know better than to do that, but you still can take advantage of the freebies in your city, whatever its size. It is, after all, your tax dollars at work.
New Yorkers know to flock to Central Park in Manhattan and Prospect Park in Brooklyn for free concerts and to follow the Metropolitan Opera as it tours around other green oases with its annual free recital series (at the end of the season, they also broadcast encore performances of their HD simulcasts on the façade of the opera house at Lincoln Center). All of these events are amalgamated at
www.nycgovparks.org, and listings papers like the free Village Voice go even more in depth with weekly roundups of events like prominent author readings and classic film screenings at Bryant Park.
On the Left Coast are concerts at Golden Gate Park and Union Square in San Francisco and the multidisciplinary Grand Performances Summer Festival in Los Angeles. Portland boasts Music on Main, Chicago has the Grant Park Music Festival at Millennium Park, and Boston’s annual Independence Day celebrations include a free performance by the Boston Pops. Check your own local events magazine websites or parks and rec websites for information if you don’t already know the lay of the land. And if you’re already tapped in to the free cultural vein of your provenance or host city, you already know that summer is Christmas for free entertainment.
Entertain This
Even if the 10-week breaks of summer vacation are long behind you, there is still nothing like a classic summer party to remind you that the days are longer and cares are fewer. The easiest way to cut back on the costs of being a host or hostess is to suggest a potluck, even teaming up with a few other friends to have a rotation of get-togethers over the warmer months to keep the social ball in the air without breaking the bank.
There are a few different ways of mitigating this—and you have the fact that people aren’t as likely to consume a full Thanksgiving-style meal on a hot, sticky day in your favor. Opt for a late-afternoon get-together with plenty of finger foods and appetizers, like hummus and pita chips, vegetable crudités, fresh fruit, bruschetta, baba ghanoush, and salsa. Just the right amount of sugar, carbs, and protein can fuel you straight into the dinner hours. In my years of having company over, I’ve also found that it’s easiest to make affairs BYOB. Not only will you cut down on your highest cost, but you also don’t have to worry about appeasing everyone’s choice of beverage.
