My brother's sneaky snack buys are wrecking our food budget

He buys expensive chips and sodas and doesn't tell anyone. Our grocery bill is $50 higher than planned. I talked to him about it, but he said it's no big deal. Now we have to cut back on other things to make up for it.

4 comments

4 Comments

terry_ellis541mo ago

Notice how people treat shared money like it's free money. Your brother's chips are just one example. Roommates will order extra takeout on a shared card, coworkers take all the office snacks home, friends split a bill evenly when they ordered way more. It's like the second something is a group cost, personal responsibility goes out the window. The math is simple but the respect is missing.

torres.nathan1mo ago

Snacks disappearing was a constant battle in my first apartment. My buddy would grab energy drinks and fancy jerky, then play dumb when the bill came up high. We had to start keeping receipts on the fridge to shame him into paying. It worked for a while, but he still slipped up sometimes. Sounds like your brother needs a similar wake-up call.

stone.claire1mo ago

Keeping receipts on the fridge is such a good idea. Honestly though, I was probably that guy in my old place, always "borrowing" someone's fancy coffee pods and forgetting.

hill.susan1mo ago

Reading about the receipt shaming made me wonder. Did your buddy ever admit it was wrong, or just pay up to avoid hassle? For the original post, what happens when you show your brother the actual numbers? Like, does he get that $50 means less for meals or is he in denial?