Discretionary Member Encumbrances

[Wm]

On Fri, 15 Jul 2016 08:57:14 -0400, in gmane.comp.gnome.apps.gnucash.user,
Aaron Laws <dartme18 at gmail.com> wrote:

>>
>> On 7/14/2016 9:46 AM, Aaron Laws wrote:
>>>
>>>> In my personal books, my wife and I have discretionary accounts that are
>>>> populated when we exercise or eat healthily. We then spend the money as
>>>> we
>>>> like. The money never actually moves from our checking account until it's
>>>> spent. How should I be accounting for this in my books? For the two
>>>> transaction types: populating the discretionary account and spending
>>>> money
>>>> from that discretionary account, how should they look? What type of
>>>> account
>>>> should the discretionary account be? Thanks!
>>>
>>>
> Another suggestion I received is to create a liability:Discretionary. When
> money is "earned" into the discretionary pile, the transaction looks like
> this:
> 
> expense:exercise rewards      5
>           Discretionary                              5
> 
> And when money is spent from it:
> 
> Discretionary                 5
>              Credit card                     5
> 
> This has the added benefit of not hitting other expense accounts ("junk
> food" in my previous example). What are everyone's thoughts on this? Thanks
> again!

Currency XXX works well and is meant for this sort of thing.  The main
benefit being you get to choose the rate at which non-monetary
healthy-points get converted to real money at the time of use thus avoiding
having to work out whether Ms's 2 marathon runs in a month are worth more
or less than you having a salad rather than a beer for lunch (or however it
works).

-- 
Wm