A Week In Dallas, TX On A $93,602 Salary

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This week: a data engineer on $93,602 and who spends some of her money on a lamp making workshop.

This Money Diary was written in the summer of 2025. This is a follow-up diary. You can read the original diary here. 

Job Title: Data Engineer
Industry: Insurance
Age: 26
Location: Dallas, TX
Pronouns: She/her 
Annual Salary: $93,602
Assets:
401k: $37,758.88
Savings: $9,388
ROTH IRA: $11,361
HSA: $6,120.56
Various investment accounts: $500
Checking account: $679.07
Debt: $14,294.27 left on car; $11,046 left in student loans
Paycheck (2x/month): $2,574.47 (plus $80 a month for internet stipend)

Monthly Expenses

Housing Costs: $1,580
Loan Payments: $620 on my car (I only need to pay $500 but I pay extra to get it paid off quicker); $150 on student loans.
401k: $431.5 (I also get a 4% match)
HSA: $315.38
Various savings: $800 (I'm currently saving up for a Japan trip in January 2026, so the bulk is going to that plus my emergency fund)
Roth IRA: $200
Utilities: ~$75-100
Phone: $45 (I'm on a family plan with my mom and brother)
Internet: $60.32
CrunchyRoll: $8.48
Patreon: $9.56
YouTube Premium: $15.14
Pole Studio: $151.98
AMC Stubs A-List: $25.97

Annual Expenses
Renters Insurance: $221.33
Car insurance: $2977 (I'm hoping this goes down next year as it will soon be 2.5 years since my accident)
Travel card: $95

Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes — both my mom and dad have degrees. I remember my dad studying for his bachelor’s degree when I was a kid, so he could make more money for our family. They always told us we needed to go to college and would help as much as they could. I loved science in school, so after graduating high school, I enrolled in engineering. Everyone always gave me advice to make “practical choices”, so I chose the school that gave me the most scholarships even though it wasn’t exciting. It worked out because COVID happened half way through my college experience, so going to an expensive out-of-state school would have felt like a waste. My parents helped me by sending me money when I needed it, but I took on the bulk of the expenses. I also received some Pell grants after my dad passed away during my junior year of college.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s) educate you about finances?
They always stressed the importance of saving money and the difference between wants and needs. There was definitely some fighting behind closed doors and stressors, but they never let it affect my brother and me too much. I didn’t really learn anything about retirement savings or investing until I graduated college, which was a mix of teaching myself and advice from my mom. My mom was an educator at a private elementary school so she was criminally underpaid. My dad was the primary breadwinner for our family and would get stressed by finances, so my mom handled them.

What was your first job and why did you get it?
I did some babysitting/dog sitting from age 13. But my first “on the books” job was when I was 16, working for minimum wage at the mall. It was mainly for buying myself “trendy clothes”, to do things with friends and gas money.

Did you worry about money growing up?
No, if they did, they hid it from us. There was one time my dad got laid off but it didn’t last long because they hired him back two weeks later. We were comfortably middle class and my brother and I never went without our needs being met. We didn’t get most of our wants unless it was Christmas or our birthday. We could afford luxuries like family vacations but they were always on the frugal side, like camping and road trips.

Do you worry about money now?
Yes and no. Yes, as in I used to be a lot more disciplined in savings/investing, but after I went through a messy breakup with a long-term boyfriend I have entered my chaotic spending era. I have been more conscious about my spending lately and have been ramping it down. No, as in I know I am very lucky to have a decently paying tech job in this job market, and I have a lot of time in the future to save and invest. These days, I'm trying to balance my 'fun spending' with saving for the future. They’ve had a lot of layoffs at my company but my position is pretty secure as my work is a high priority — but you never know what can happen.

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
At 24, when I got my first 'big girl job' and moved out of my mom's house. I have my emergency fund that I contribute to every month that I would use if I lost my job. I know I could always move back in with my mom if necessary but I’d never ask her for money. In unfortunate events, she received a large sum of money when my dad passed from his life insurance policy. I’m so grateful she has that to rely on for retirement even though we would all rather have my dad here.

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
When I was 18, my parents gave me the used car my dad drove. When I got in an accident I used the insurance payout for a downpayment on my new car. My mom has told me she has $10k saved for me that she would give me to help pay for a wedding or buy a house, but I have done neither of those things yet.

9:00 a.m. — My alarm goes off. I had a busy weekend so I'm very drained. I scroll in bed until 9:25 when I go to log in for my iteration planning meeting, and run a comb through my hair so I don’t look like a mess on camera.

9:50 a.m. — Meeting done. Go make my bed/start some laundry and let the cats out on their catio. I eat my cookie dough overnight oats that I prepped the night before and make some black vanilla tea.  

12 p.m. — My friends are texting me about the Love Island Reunion watch parties tonight. I send them some places that look good and we agree on one. I go wash my face/brush my teeth (I have gotten in the horrible habit of doing this at noon — don’t judge). The cats get their lunch of wet food and I put some bacon in the oven for sandwiches. The catio gets closed for the day because it is too hot to have it open past noon during the Texas summer. 

1:05 p.m. — I make a turkey club sandwich and eat while continuing to work. I see a mandatory meeting at 10 p.m. that pops up and I audibly sigh. I never have meetings this late, but we are pushing something to prod that I have been assisting on that is not part of my usual work. Luckily, the place we decided on for the watch party is 10 minutes from me.

2:45 p.m. — I get a text from my mom about the total from a lamp making workshop we did this past weekend. I send her my half. $140

4 p.m. — I finish up my work for the day and the preparations for the prod deployment tonight. I go to my apartment gym for a quick leg day.

5 p.m. — Done with the gym. Once home I make a protein smoothie and shower. I do my makeup and blow-dry my hair. Trying to fit with the Love Island theme, I wear a tropical print skirt and a tube top with my Doc Marten sandals. 

6:30 p.m. — I get to the place with my friend S. We meet our other friend M. there. We order Happy Hour drinks and $7 quesadillas. I feel bad for the bartender because he’s the only one working and seems very unprepared to serve the hoards of women coming in. I leave a $5 tip. $19.04

9:30 p.m. — Unfortunately, the reunion is two hours long so I have to dip out early. S. says she will get a ride from M. I feel kinda meh about the whole reunion and am burnt out of Love Island news. I will definitely still be tuning into some social media discourse later, though. 

10 p.m. — I get on my work call, which goes very smoothly. It ends in 20 minutes, which I'm happy about. I get comfy on my couch and finish the last 30 minutes of the reunion and then scroll X/Reddit for too long to read discourse. 

11:30 p.m. — I get up to go shower (I can not get into bed without showering right before) and do my nighttime routine. I read my book, The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz. I just started and I'm getting very invested in it. I try to go to bed at midnight but my messed-up sleep schedule doesn’t let me fall asleep until 1:30 p.m.

9 a.m. — My alarm goes off and I feel pretty well rested, despite the late bedtime. I log in to work and answer some emails. After my daily team standup, I go make some scrambled eggs and a yogurt bowl with raspberries and chocolate chips. I try a new brand of chocolate chips from Aldi and I'm not a fan. I guess it's back to the seven dollar bags of Ghirardelli chips. 

11:30 a.m. — My cats are staring at me like they are being starved, so take a break to feed them. I fold my clean clothes from yesterday and get my life in order.

1 p.m. — After being trapped in a Teams exchange for too long, I go make a turkey club. It’s not brutally hot, so the cats are happily snoozing in their catio. I envy them.

2 p.m. — I go to my apartment’s coworking area because I need a change of scenery. It’s pretty empty and quiet, so I hunker down to do some testing.

4:30 p.m. — I finish up and decide to call it a day. I go to the mall near me to hunt for a new swimsuit. I have been wearing the same two I already have, so I want something new for a few pool-related events I'm attending. I end up in Dillard's and find several good options that are 65% off. I finally decide on a green floral print one and two tops from the clearance rack. $69.17

5:30 p.m. — After walking around the mall, I end up back in Dillard’s shoe section. I find a super cute pair of chunky black fisherman sandals for $56.84 in the clearance section. My emo heart can’t resist, so I get them.

6:10 p.m — Once home I eat some leftover baked black bean tacos with avocado and sour cream on the side. I do the brain-rotting combo of scrolling TikTok with the TV playing YouTube videos in the background. I do this until I have to leave for my pole classes. 

8 p.m. — Arrive at the pole studio and greet a few friends. I'm doing a flexibility class and then a Russian exotic class. The studio I go to is a bit of a drive, so I justify it by doing back-to-back classes. 

10:15 p.m. — Finish up the second class and have a convo with a friend about our relationship/life woes. I also find our Russian exotic teacher is probably going to move next year and am very sad. At least we get one more year!

11 p.m. — Home. I make a protein smoothie and some popcorn and watch an episode of Dandandan while snacking. I shower and do my night routine. I continue reading my book until I fall asleep.

9 a.m — My alarm goes off and I log into my workspace. I join our quarterly connections meeting with the whole department. I let it play in the background while I make some scrambled eggs and frozen waffles. I also make a green tea. 

11:20 a.m. — I order a 48-pack of wet food off Chewy for my older cat. Unfortunately, she is bougie and only eats one specific type, unlike my younger cat, who will eat anything. They both get half wet food and half dry food from their automatic feeder. $68.17

11:30 a.m. — We have a vendor meeting about one of our applications we manage. The meeting goes well, but we have an end-of-month deadline for this, which seems like it will be easy to finish by. 

11:50 a.m. — My younger cat catches a cicada and brings it inside to try to eat. I rescue it from her and throw it back outside where it lives to see another day. She seems very disappointed that she didn’t get to enjoy her disgusting snack.

1 p.m. — I eat the last of my black bean tacos and have a Waterloo Cherry Limeade, too. I put on Vanderpump Rules for background noise while I eat/work. My friend shared her Peacock account with me on the condition that I watch Vanderpump Rules.

4:45 p.m. — Log off for the day. Get changed for my pole class and leave.

7:30 p.m. — Eat dinner with my mom and her boyfriend. He made a delicious Mediterranean salmon with a strawberry salad and it feels nice to have someone make me a meal. My mom and I take her dog on a walk.

8:30 p.m. — Back to the studio for my second class. On the way back, I stop to fill up my car. Everyone says not to pole after eating but I’m the opposite; I can’t pole on an empty stomach. $36.27

10:30 p.m. — Get home and I'm super beat. I shower and make some herbal tea plus a Greek yogurt dessert bowl. I play on my Nintendo Switch for a bit before switching to my book. I get a little too invested and read for too long. 

7:05 a.m. — I wake up to my younger cat having a huge fit. She beefs with any cat she sees outside and doesn’t understand they can’t get to her. I let her out of my bedroom and try to go back to sleep. 

9 a.m. — My alarm goes off and I can’t tell if I actually fell asleep again or not. My shoulders feel like they’ve been hit by a bus; today is definitely a rest day. I get up and log on. I take some Advil along with my morning supplements. 

9:30 a.m. — Join my daily team standup and send out a few Teams messages. We have to meet with the vendor again for an issue and luckily they responded with a meeting time for today. After the meeting, I grab my double chocolate overnight oats I prepped and add raspberries. 

11:30 a.m. — Join the vendor call and they don’t know what to do either. Great lol. I jinxed myself saying this would be easy to finish.

1 p.m. — Eat a turkey club and get ready to leave for my doctor’s appointment.

2 p.m. — On the way to my doctor’s appointment, I need a pick-me-up, so I get a half-and-half tea with peach from Sonic. $3

3:30 p.m. — Done with my doctor’s appointment and I have a small balancer leftover from last time. I pay it with my HSA card. $17.06

4 p.m. — I get home and hop back online. Answer a few missed messages and leave comments on all my stories on the agility board. We switched to a weekly sprints template a month ago and I really like it, my work gets done faster and more efficiently. 

5:30 p.m. — I'm feeling beat from the doctor/flu shot I got. I lay down and take a nap.

6:20 p.m. — It starts storming and I get texts from my friends that the floating sound bath at our apartment pool is cancelled. I am lowkey happy as I want to veg out tonight. I get a refund of $19.32 for my ticket.

7:40 p.m. — I heat up some pre-made chicken tikka masala for dinner and eat it with rice. I have a self-care/craft night complete with dying my roots (I refuse to pay $200 plus at the salon for hair dye), and grouting the lamp I made over the weekend. I also play on my Nintendo Switch a bit.

11 p.m. — Stretch and read my book. I pop a melatonin for some undisturbed sleep. I am asleep in 30 minutes.

8 a.m. — I wake up early for a vendor meeting just to see it got moved to 9 a.m. I go back to bed and scroll on my phone.

9 a.m. — Log in for the meeting. Nothing gets resolved and it turns out to be a waste of an hour. 

10:20 a.m. — Make some scrambled eggs and two frozen waffles. I also have a kiwi and make a strawberry matcha.

10:40 a.m. — I'm pretty much done with my work this sprint, so I do some chores around the apartment and vacuum. 

12 p.m. — I respond back and forth with the engineer I have been collaborating with. I try not to be annoyed as I put in a work order for this assignment a month ago, and he has waited for the last possible second to fulfill it. Typical. 

1:25 p.m. — Eat a turkey club. Take two Advil as I have a waxing appointment in 30 minutes.

2:20 p.m. — Get a wax. This is my first time seeing my waxing lady at her private studio versus at the big box chain I met her at. She gives me a discount for being a loyal customer but I tip 20%.

2:30 p.m. — On the way home I return something to Ulta Beauty and Amazon. I get back $57.54 from my returns, which basically means my wax was free.

2:50 p.m — I stop by CVS for a new claw clip because I stepped on my old one and broke it. I have eight dollars in extra bucks, plus a $10 off $25 coupon, so I get a lipstick, lipliner, and claw clip all for $8.61. Thanks, TikTok couponing.

4 p.m. — I take a long walk.

6 p.m. — My friend with benefits, K., comes over. He found out a month into us seeing each other that he has to move back to his home country in a year's time. We get along really well, so we just keep seeing each other and it doesn’t hurt that the sex is good. I refuse to call it a situationship because I hate that term lol. We go get Pho and he pays.

8 p.m. — On the way back from Pho, we stop at a grocery store because I want a sweet treat. One of his friends calls him and invites him out with his friend group and we decide to join. I get some ice cream, turkey bacon, and a kombucha. $15.20

9:30 p.m — After fooling around, I change into something better and do some quick makeup. We head to his place because he’s also dressed very casually and wants to change. 

11 p.m. — We get to the place. It’s kinda dead so we hop to another place that's more lively, but we have to wait in line for a bit. Once we get inside K. buys our drinks. 

1:30 a.m — We decide to leave and I'm very tipsy but K. is sober and drives me home. We fool around again. I air-fry some Korean corndogs for a post-drinking snack.

3 a.m. — He leaves, which is perfect. I hate sleeping next to a man and would rather have my bed to myself. I shower quickly and promptly pass out. 

Daily Total: $77.81

10:30 a.m. — Wake up. I want to go back to sleep but my brain won’t let me. Both cats are cuddling with me, so I enjoy the cuddles and scroll on my phone.

11:30 a.m. — Get up and make some banana pancakes and turkey bacon. A few friends and I were going to my apartment’s Labor Day pool party but it’s raining. So we decide we'll go on Monday instead since we have the day off. 

3 p.m. — After being lazy/playing video games for a while, I get ready to meet some other friends C. and F. at a board game store. I lowkey want to stay home but know if I lay around all day I will feel depressed. They are going to be playing their own games, but I have some life admin stuff I want to do, so I tag along. On the way there, I stop at the grocery store and get a snack box and an onigiri for lunch. $13.51

4:45 p.m. — The tiredness finally hits me. I head home to chill.

7 p.m. — I eat my leftover chicken tikka masala and commence my rotting session.

9 p.m. — K. comes over again and we go see Caught Stealing. I get my ticket free with my AMC A-List subscription. K. buys us popcorn. I enjoy the movie a lot — I would recommend! 

12 p.m. — Get home from the movie and say our goodbyes. I shower and go to sleep.

10 a.m. — Wake up and scroll in bed. The cats cuddle with me for a bit.

11 a.m. — Heat up some frozen Kimbap. I also make a yogurt bowl with kiwi and honey. It’s still raining so I enjoy the chill morning.

1 p.m. — I go to Aldi. I get hash brown patties, sparkling water, various fruits, a cucumber, peeled garlic, cherry tomatoes, white cheddar, salami, hummus, Greek yogurt, eggs, English muffins, granola, rice, pasta, olives, and chickpeas. $52.68

2 p.m. — I head out for the pole studio and drink my kombucha on the way. 

5 p.m. — I finish up with both of my classes. The first one was another cardio dancing class, and second was level three pole. I eat a protein bar in between classes. The tricks we were learning were very shoulder heavy, so I already foresee the pain I will be in the next day. 

6 p.m. — On the way home, I stop by Raising Cane's. What’s the point of working out if you can’t indulge in some guilty pleasures? I get a three-finger combo with a Diet Coke. $10.38

7:30 p.m. — After showering and doing some very dark makeup, I uber to a friend’s house to chill before going out to the alternative/goth club. $12.89

9:15 p.m. — After hanging out for a bit, we head out.

1 a.m — I head out early because I'm tired of socializing and dancing. I ended up not buying any drinks. I get a ride home with a sober friend. Once home, I heat up some frozen pizza. I start feeling sad and call my ex (we are on speaking terms). We talk about life and I cry some.

3 a.m. — I pass out and look forward to sleeping in for the holiday. 

Daily Total: $75.95

“I need to fix my sleep schedule LOL. And stop being sad about my ex. Other than that, I don’t think I did too badly this week. The shopping I did is very out of the ordinary for me — I usually don’t impulse buy clothes.”