I wasn’t so prolific with the getting rid of stuff this week, unless you count using up bottles of IronOut, Vanish, phosphoric acid and bleach that have been laying around for a while. No, I didn’t use them together, because that would have been stupid and potentially deadly. I know some of you are thinking that an earthy person like … Read more
The other title I had in mind for this post was “Mending Socks – No Darning Required,” but who wants to read about that except for crafty/thrifty nerds? This way, I might suck in my friends who think that mending socks is only for old ladies in Dickens novels. A few years ago – maybe in 2007 – my friend … Read more
Today was a “look in the kitchen cupboards for stuff you haven’t used in forever, then Google said item and the word ‘recipe’ so you can finally use it up” day in my household. I found a package of potato flakes, even though I never make instant mashed potatoes. The Great Google brought me to a potato flakes discussion on … Read more
No, I’m not talking about heaven. I’m talking about a free bus ticket to La Crosse. After my driver’s license was misappropriated three weeks ago, and the bus driver took his own sweet time to get it back to me, the bus company gave me a voucher for a free ticket. So I went this weekend to the scenic bi-state … Read more
I’ve been accused of loving upstairs cat (aka boy cat) more than downstairs cat (aka girl cat), with the fact that I take more pictures of upstairs cat being brought forth as evidence in support of the allegation. Actually, I’ve tried videotaping downstairs cat’s antics numerous times, but the videos never turn out because she’s black and the rug on … Read more
One of my “on the brighter side” thoughts when I found out I no longer had a job was that I’d have more time for exercise. I used to bike 100-300 miles a week in the summers, but the hours I was working at my last job made that impossible. I usually logged my very short commute and little more … Read more
I needed to take the intercity bus this weekend and decided that, instead of purchasing tickets online like I usually do, I’d ask about paying in cash. I’m trying to move to a cash system for non-fixed expenses, so I don’t charge things to my credit card and forget about them until the bill comes. (I’ve never been a credit … Read more
I’d originally thought about calling this blog “My Buy-Nothing Year,” but I knew that title would be disingenuous at best. Yeah, I could commit to not buying any durable goods for a year, and I might even be able to commit to buying no food for a year – there’s always plenty of good bread to be found in bakery … Read more
I prefer to think of myself as exceptional, and I suppose that I still am, at least technically. However, being unemployed doesn’t exactly make you unique these days. It’s been several years since I’ve lived below the poverty level. When I got my first job paying an Upper Middle Class salary, I decided to reform my years of tightwad habits … Read more
I ran out of cherries to pick on Wednesday — at least, the sweeter ones. The tree with the more bitter cherries still had plenty, but I decided that it might be best not to pick them, as I then would feel obliged to juice them, and that could very well mean a most unpleasant drink. With no cherries to … Read more