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Home > Archive: June, 2007

Archive for June, 2007

Checking it out.....

June 26th, 2007 at 10:22 pm

I didn't realize that my jewelry and I have the same checkup months. Not until yesterday. I went to the doctor for my meds checkup and realized that I needed to take a couple of pieces of jewelry for checking and cleaning this month under the warranty for the gems. Since they are both in the next town and since I have been trying to save money on gas, I decided to do everything in one trip that I could. So off to the doc for me and the jewelry.

The doc was running a bit behind, so I filled up my car with gas, got a snack, browsed a used bookstore, and returned to the doctor. I thought I did pretty well. Most everything, including the co-pay, was in the budget. Then, off to the jewelry store which didn't cost anything. I passed up all the other shopping I could have done in that area except I did browse another bookstore. Unfortunately, I didn't get out of there empty handed. Rats. Oh well, my meds are doing great. And so is the jewelry. Now, the jewelry and I can go another six months until the next checkup.....

The Dunkin Donuts Lady....

June 22nd, 2007 at 06:47 pm

My favorite donut is the Dunkin Donuts buttermilk....or is it the coconut....At any rate, there is a Dunkin Donuts in a neighboring town that we occasionally stop at to get a donut for a treat. Goes back to our early married days when that was what we could afford for a trip out. This Dunkin Donuts has been taken over by the cutest, funniest little lady. We have some wonderful Vietnamese friends, so I was not surprised when I met this little Vietnamese lady that she would be funny and charming. Not only that, she is a great saleslady. She teases and laughs with you until you leave with a dozen. Since she's been there, we've never gotten out of there with less. No matter what we have planned before we stop. And she is very generous. She throws in extras so when you get home, you find out you have fifteen or so. It's always a treat to find out what kind are the surprise donuts. We can't eat all these at once. I finally figured out to freeze them. I individually wrap them in wax paper and tuck them into his and hers freezer bags--we don't like the same kinds. And we gradually eat them up. So she does us a favor. We get to have a treat more often and save gas from going to get them. I ate the last of my donuts yesterday. We've got to make a trip to that town this afternoon. Maybe we'll visit the donut lady.....

Electrifying....

June 20th, 2007 at 04:52 pm

I blow out lightbulbs by the roomful. I can literally go from room to room blowing out bulbs as I go. I even blew one out in my MIL's house that had never had to be replaced. One theory suggested is that I am sorta electrifying. I did stop watches as a kid. (Yes, I was a wild-haired tomboy, but didn't look THAT bad.) My parents had to search for an anti-magnetic watch so I could actually use one. Any others would stop within minutes of me putting it on. Now, I don't know if that means anything, but it sure made life interesting.

Yesterday, I bowed to the wisdom of the forums and bought some of those new lightbulbs. Those energy saving things. I bought two on sale and used them to replace the blown bathroom one and its companion. I bought natural sunlight ones and so far, they are pretty cool. I figure with my blow out rate, it won't take me long to replace the house lights with these kinds. I can't wait to see how much I save in electricity over the year and the cost of the mucho light bulbs we buy. I just haven't figured out what I'm going to do with my stockpile of regular lightbulbs. Oh well, at the rate I go, I'll probably use them up before I get enough of the energy savers. I just hope that I'm not too dangerous for these new bulbs.....

Moving Along.....

June 19th, 2007 at 03:49 pm

helping another set of kids move is where I've been hanging out lately. A month ago, we helped DD move, this time DS and DIL were moving. In addition, they were slightly downsizing, so they had to go through their stuff and make a ton of decisions. They did really well. I supplied some suggestions, another pair of hands and sweat. The periodic rain drove them crazy, but I loved that it cooled it down. Fortunately, they have some friends helping with the furniture and DD helped a lot the first couple of days carrying, papering kitchen cabinets, and washing up stuff. I boxed and cleaned and whatever was needed. I tend to do well with the boxing up part. I had some extra gas expense getting there, but not that much while there. I stayed in one place a lot. We did have a lot of eating out expenses, but we had a chance to get away, talk, relax, and laugh. It was good therapy for the kids. The whole moving thing was getting to them by the end. I talked to Hubby about the expenses. He agreed that since our budget has been challenged twice with moving trips and since our vacation (supposed to have been this past week anyway) had been canceled even before this came up, we would use our vacation money to pay for the food bills. I stayed with DD because a friend was staying with DS so my expenses were mainly food. The workout was as good as a gym's and I got to eat and hang out with the kids. They each gave me some cool things that I brought home to use. Also, DD made me a terrific apple pie. DS got me some CDs of music one of the groups he played with recorded this spring that I can't wait to listen to. I don't know why I put them in the trunk and didn't listen to it on the way home. Sheesh. DD paid for me a meal and a book. DS and DIL bought me a meal. We spent some good times together in the first move, also. Getting food, going to a school concert, getting desserts. A bit of shopping. So both moves add up to a mini vacation for me.

Hubby badly twisted his knee while I was gone so he's been laid up trying to get well. He missed coming with the truck and helping this time. He also missed hanging with the kids for Father's Day. We'll try to make it up for him. He also had to leave the housework for me. Oh well. And I have to mow the yard for him this evening. Sigh....my vacation is over....

Singing in Harmony.....

June 11th, 2007 at 07:31 pm

It's funny how you can overlook things until they really strike you. The master bathroom toilet loves to eat itself. We've replaced the innards in that thing a number of times. Sometimes, it will just run and run. Sometimes, it does other things to let us know it is ready for a new part or two. This time it was singing. We've been gone so much that we sorta ignored it until just recently. Until it started singing in harmony with itself. Now, I have never heard a two toned song from a toilet before. And occasionally it would sing opera--long drawn out songs. You couldn't use it at night because you'd wake up anyone in the house. So this weekend after we returned from a family birthday bash, we decided that as much fun as having tunes in the plumbing was, we needed to once again replace the parts. The plumber that replaced the seals and innards in the hall bathroom put some fancy heavy duty thingy in there that we love. Probably if we searched, we could find another one of those. But, in the interest of getting it done in the time allowed, we opted for the local hardware store. Didn't take long because Hubby has done this so many times. And the money is in the house repair fund. But now, no singing. I'm glad, but occasionally I miss the music....

Ups and Downs.....

June 6th, 2007 at 09:58 pm

I've been sick.....again. This time a stomach bug. Sheesh. This is the third illness/infection this year. I don't think I've had that many in the last several years combined. There are ups and downs to being ill. On the down side is you feel absolutely lousy. You can't get anything done. You can't eat. If you feel bad enough you are out a co-pay at the doc's and more medicine. However, there is an up side to this. You don't go anywhere. You don't use gas. You don't spend any money. You don't eat up much of your groceries. You cut out all that junk in your diet you've been meaning to throw out. And you get around to reading that good book you've been trying to read. That relaxation you've been trying to get around to having all of a sudden is mandatory. The sleeping in without guilt. And you get charge of the remote for the tv....

Bugged.....

June 3rd, 2007 at 05:13 pm

Growing up in the country, our biggest indoor problem would be field mice that wandered inside. After moving to one of the more tropical parts of the country (I guess it is technically subtropical?), I encountered a whole new creature. The palmetto bug--a huge roach that lives outdoors, can run like the dickens, and flies. I remember eons ago seeing a movie with a best friend that was about killer roaches and never thought I'd see one that size in real life. Those thing are creepy. They come into the house every so often and drive you crazy. They skitter about and you can hear them at night. I've been watching tv and had one bonk me on the head as it flew by. They defy you to catch them. And if you happen to actually catch one and try to kill it, you have to beat it to death with sickening crunches. They are armored or something.

Last night, DD's kitty woke me up while stealthily creeping along my head. I could hear her make that chittering noise that she uses when she is stalking something. I thought it might be a geckoish thingy that gets in every once in a while, but then I froze. Did I have one of those roaches by my head? I know people don't really believe me, but I got bit one night by one of those things on the hand. I woke up in time to fling it off and it left a little hole in my thumb. Before I could react this time, the kitty pounced and ran off. Thinking she must have won, I went back to sleep. This morning I found the bug lying on its back dead as a doornail. It's not the first she's caught. She catches maybe one a month. I hardly ever see a live one anymore. I'm grateful to her. Sure, she attacks my leg or arm occasionally and sheds all over my dark stuff. But she gives us cuddles, purrs, laughter, and she kills big bugs. Don't have to pay extra for extermination. Gotta love her!

Driving forward....

June 2nd, 2007 at 04:41 pm

The truck work was a bigger bite than anticipated. It needed brake work, shocks, and alignment. To the tune of 825 dollars. At least we found out that the tires are good for another 10,000 miles so we won't be needing the tire fund yet. That's good, because we used it plus the remains of the auto maintenance fund to pay for the other work. Before hanging around here and learning to save up in these categories, a big bite like this one would have been a lot harder to handle.

We're going to try to use this weekend to get rid of stuff. I've been stashing stuff in the garage for removal and Hubby just went nuts through his closet and cleaned it out this morning. So we've got a bunch to get rid of this afternoon. We do need to spend some money getting a couple of things for hurricane season that we have used up. Propane and tarps come to mind right now. Sometimes you have to spend money just in case.

One little rain cloud dumped a bunch of rain on our little lawn this morning. Now, it is too wet to mow and really steamy. I think we'll hold off loading the truck until the bed dries and the air is breathable again. At least, they tell me in this climate you don't get as many wrinkles....

Random Screws, Nails, and Keys....

June 1st, 2007 at 05:52 pm

I just threw away another random screw I found in the kitchen. Don't have a clue as to where it originated. The OCD in me wants to keep it indefinitely, just in case. I've already kept it for weeks and still have no idea. I have so many of these encounters with screws and nails. I find them everywhere. Wish they were coins. THEN, I'd find a use for them. I also have a ziploc bag of keys. I have a bunch that I've gone through and labeled, but I also have a bagful of random keys that I have no indication of what they unlock. No matter how many screws, nails, and keys I get rid of, they seem to be replaced by others. And they all remain anonymous. I wonder how many times I've moved these things around. Hubby has an organized thingy with all kinds of screws and nails in it. I really don't have to keep up with these things. I think it is just an indication of the mindset of keeping everything you might be able to use. But the more I let go of things, the less I seem to buy. An interesting dynamic. So, I'll let go of these random bits of things and hope that it translates into money....