Spending too much - or all - money during Ramadan and Eid is a common mistake many of us are guilty of doing. Once the festive holidays are over, worries and nightmares hit us hard; how will we survive till the end of the month?
As many employees in the Arab world are waiting impatiently for that paycheck to finally get handed to them, Arabs in the GCC took to twitter with this hashtag :اعراض_انتهاء_الراتب# (Signs and symptoms of spending your entire salary).
Here are some of the best tweets on this thread:
1. Pulling off the traditional Arab hospitality feat is a bit a bit of a challenge this month
2. And accordingly, friends asking for an invitation are a major burden, so you make up plenty of excuses
-"How about you take us to a restaurant?
-"I'm an introvert, I'm not into outings and gatherings. My world is a world of thought.
-"I swear I know you're just broke and embarrassed! Come on, it's on me."
-"Give me a minute, I'll put my shoes on and come."
3. No more money for shopping
"The streets are less crowded, day and night."
4. Food portions dramatically change
"When you go to McDonald's or Herfy, you order the kids meal."
5. An empty wallet can give you a brief panic attack
6. Or make you appreciate thieves more
"If a thief were to break into my house looking for money, I'd search with him. Maybe we will find something."
7. No money to lend
-"Do you have 100 Riyals?"
-"No wallah I'm broke."
8. Some have it worse than others
"Bad mood, sleeping disorders, staying away from Mandi and seafood restaurants, jittery hands, and dizziness when it's time to pull out your wallet."
9. It's time to retrieve all the change that belongs to you
"I better go to the shops where they gave me bread and chewing gum instead of change, and get my money back."
10. The little ones have their sneaky ways to get money
"My daughter: Mom, how about I tell you a story and you give 5 dinars in return?"
11. Is it time yet?
-"Is the salary caravan here yet?
-"No, it got lost in the desert and robbers took care of it."
12. Some blamed the situation on the absence of saving and proper budget planning
13. While others noted that expats have it much worse
"The salary is a bit late. This reminds us of our foreign brothers who work here and sometimes get their payments delayed up to months at a time."