It’s a familiar sight. You’re out for a late-night stop at Jimmy John’s with the gang and you open up your wallet to pay for the #14 with extra avocado sauce and … blink.

Blink. Blink. Nothing. Nada. No George Washington smiling up at you. No Jefferson to say hello. No Jackson to brighten your day. You are officially broke and have no idea how it happened.

College students are big spenders. They take out student loans and often seem to have a lot of disposable income, or it becomes that way, at least. Its disappearance comes as a surprise. The money wasn’t spent at one time, but a few dollars here and there add up quickly.

Fortunately, there are some easy ways to save money if your change your habits slightly.

Spending blunder one: coffee shop coffee

Almost every one of us has a coffeepot sitting in the kitchen, yet we still stop into Alterra, Starbucks or the Grind to buy coffee. Sure, it may taste better and involves no manual labor besides uttering the order and handing over the cash, but one pays for the laziness.

Average cost: $3 each

Times per week: 2

Semester cost: $96

Spending blunder two: lunch

Of course lunch is one of those pesky necessary things for those of us who eat, but eating out is certainly not. Like the coffee, it is an instrument of laziness. It is much easier to say, “No.2 combo with Pepsi,” and hand over a $5 bill than it is to make a PBJ sandwich before you head to school in the morning.

Average cost: $4

Times per week: 3

Semester cost: $192

Spending blunder three: cigarettes

The power of addiction makes us do silly things. Now I know there are many of us who consider cigarettes a necessary item like toilet paper and heat, but when you think about how much money goes into these sticks of fire, it might make you reconsider your definition of “necessary.”

Average cost: $4

Times per week: 3

Semester cost: $192

Spending blunder four: alcohol

Again, it’s one of those necessary items. College students can’t survive a weekend without a bottle of liquor and a 30-pack of beer. A trip out to the bars will also result in the same reckless spending. Also, like cigarettes, seeing how much the stuff actually sets you back could make you jump onto the wagon.

Average cost: $15

Times per week: 1

Semester cost: $240

Spending blunder five: bottled water

Water is one of those things absolutely necessary for human survival, but buying it in a little plastic bottle is not. The invention of the Nalgene bottle should have made products like Aquafina and Dasani obsolete. Our laziness, however, fuels the soft drink corporations. Apparently it is easier to drop four quarters into a vending machine than it is to turn on the faucet and fill up a water bottle.

Average cost: $1

Times per week: 5

Semester cost: $80

Spending blunder: late-night snacks

By its very nature, intoxication causes clouds in judgment. The logical side of the brain ceases to function properly; it doesn’t send out a little red flag when we jump on the table and start singing, “Man, I Feel Like a Woman” wearing a lampshade. It also cannot do math — an intoxicated mind can throw away money without thinking. Why do you think Jimmy John’s stays open until three in the morning?

Average cost: $5

Times per week: 2

Semester cost: $160

There is no money goblin snatching dollar bills as one peacefully sleeps. Sure, at the beginning of the month, we’re rich, and then, three weeks later, we barely have enough for rent.

But it isn’t that we don’t know where it all goes. It’s just that we don’t think about spending it or how spending it affects our budgets. Budgets are a good idea to concretely map out spending. Set up a budget at the beginning of the month and decide how much to spend on food, beer and cigarettes. That way you won’t end up broke, scratching your head and wondering how it happened.

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