How come they don’t want me no more man?
Zoë Kravitz? Yes.
March ended with a series of events, ranging from positive to down right negative. The release of The Batman (2022), starring Robert Pattinson and Zoë Kravitz was a pleasant, though lengthy, way to start the month. I am no movie critique, yet my ignorance is enough to say that it was a movie that sufficed, though not surpassed, the expectations of the average movie goer. I personally loved the extremely dark aesthetic of the movie, the scene where Batman’s unrelenting pursuit of the penguin in the dystopian punk themed Batmobile was brilliant.
March went on and nothing much happened until the last week. During these seven days a lot happened. Crypto went on the rise with the merge on the way, Will’s slap echoed across the world and the contract for my job got terminated. Yep. I am jobless.
Anime NFT = $$$
Crypto had a pretty good month. Not really sure on the exact factors that is causing this ride, but technical analysis (educated guesses) suggest an increase of retail buyers holding their bags. NFTs also experienced this love, with Azuki leading the latest craze in the market, reaching a top of around 30eth (≈£67,000/£2,230 per eth) and flipping Mutant ape club. Will Smith then went on to slap Chris Rock at the Oscar’s which literally was the topic of every discussion of every social media platform.
In no metaverse was Will right in doing that. As a firm advocate of comics being able to talk freely, Will’s reaction was an attack on all comedians. Will is human and to some extent it is understandable that at some point he would inevitably explode. Being ridiculed on social media, no longer being the fresh prince and the disgrace of his marriage will make anyone erupt. As out of character that may have been for Will, Chris did not deserve that by any means.
With the world talking about the Oscar’s, I was applying for my own job. It sounds ridiculous because it was. I had a 2-year contract with my school. Coming to the end of my teaching agreement (ending in August), I needed to re-apply, which followed an application and interview to the job I was currently doing.
The end of an Era
Having lost my job to another candidate, I was informed that my contract would not be renewed. This effectively meant that I am out of a job at the start of September. The jungle of the job market is an unnerving place, and the mountain of rejections is a feeling I cannot get used to.
Having to now search for jobs, with the high possibility of being unemployed for many months to come, I have decided to be significantly more frugal with my spending. I planned to go to Malta with my significant other this summer, but that opportunity is unlikely. And with petrol prices reaching extortionate prices I am making only compulsory travels. My budget is gasping for air, being as tight as it is. Only purchasing essentials and limited myself to no luxuries, like eating out and non-groceries shopping. My spending in March was successful, except from a £60 parking fine. The cameras caught me in 4K eating 8 chicken wings from wing stop. 6.3/10 by the way.
Financial Recap
The primary downside during March was my lack of investing into the market. I set up a Natwest invest account and deposited £100, with a recurring £50 monthly deposit. The account is set up to medium to high risk, and the fees were quite low being 0.1%. My goal for this investment account is to set it and forget it. It is an example of how investing should be made simple, which is area I will be exploring further in my modern portfolio course.
My saving rate has increased from £300 to £400 as a response to a lack of job security in the foreseeable future. I have bought £120 of Cloudflare which has gone up 30% in 2 days so I feel like a genius. Additionally, I bought £40 of Ethereum and Immutable X (IMX) equally. IMX is currently my highest conviction investment due to its emphasis on gaming and its big name partnerships. Debt is at an all time low, a mere £44. Finally my emergency fund pot has reached a cute £200.
March was slightly better than average, in terms of my outgoings. From this point forward I will be investing and saving significantly more. Up until now I had been quite careless because I felt my job security gave me a cushion of cash every month. However the changing circumstance has required me to be more financially diligent and plan for the worst outcome. Which is me, without a job and losing money on daily trying to trade derivative NFTs.
