It hardly seems possible that The Mama has been gone a year.. until it starts snowing, and I try to call her to sing "Jingle Bells." (An odd tradition in our family.) Or I finish up an appraising job -- then plan to call her on the way home. Or...the "Poor and Needy" business. If someone in the family gets an especially good bargain, or a raise, or some kind of financial windfall, you call the others and brag about it. Then your callees start moaning about how they're so "poor and needy." (My big strong dad started this whole thing, and used a tiny squeaky voice while claiming that he "needed help.") The caller then promises to send money: a penny, a nickel, a dime...even a dollar, if they're feeling extra generous.
I know. Weird. But it's what we do.
I'm told this urge-to-call goes away, eventually. But it's still there in the case of my dad, who has been gone since 2009. Perhaps that is how you remember people you love, in spite of their absence. I miss you, Mom and Dad. See you soon.
This month was a quiet one. It's not uncommon for us -- we often 'hunker down' this month, and travel in February. (Besides, I had some flu toward the end of the month, as well.) But this winter, we're staying put on our friends' ranch -- but in the main house, rather than the fifth-wheel. (They're spending the winter in Phoenix.) We continue to clean, repair and tidy up. Ruby does her part by chasing away those pesky deer, chewing out the neighbor dogs, and strutting around the place.
FRUGAL HITS
(Some of these are from late December)
*A $5 Michael's coupon -- used it toward a present. (On clearance!)
*Got a $150 Amazon giftcard for opening a credit card. Hooray for bonuses like this!
*Bought some Valentine's presents -- plus discounted containers of olive oil, nutmeg and cinnamon online. Free shipping. (Amazon Warehouse).
*Watched a LOT of movies. And documentaries. And political diatribes. It's messy out there right now.
*Ordered funeral flowers via Sam's Club, for a much-loved aunt who died early in January. Boy, these are expensive...but Sam's includes free shipping, at least. And because I ordered via Swagbucks, credits were given. I can use those toward a 'free' giftcard soon!
Swagbucks is one of the easiest ways to accumulate points toward giftcards and more -- just by using it for your searches, taking a daily poll...and going through it for bigger purchases. (Even Walmart and Home Depot). None of these actions are required -- they're all voluntary. And joining up is free. If you haven't done so, you should consider it. (Yes, I'll get a little 'boost' if you do this. But that's not why I'm recommending it. It really is worth it.)
*Put away holiday items and tidied up. The Brick got my new planter/speaker to working. It was christened with this fine song:
*Bought extra stamps -- before the price went up.
*A package from United Health Care -- $40 every three months to spend on things like Pepto-Bismol, bandages, allergy meds, etc.
*The Brick's latest present to me -- I love it!
*Bought hardly any Christmas markdowns, except a few bags of candy and some 90%-off candles. I just didn't see anything we really needed. Tried desperately to stay away from Amazon Warehouse and other clearance sites... and largely succeeded.
*Another huge chunk of an order cancelled. I don't think I'll be ordering much from World Market anytime soon, after this recurring debacle. They were the ones who approved -- then cancelled -- much of last month's orders. Amazon Warehouse has done it to me this month, too.
*Used up leftovers. Put some in the freezer for later. Made a batch of pea soup, plus Hoppin' John, using one of the hambones, that the Brick said was my best yet. Used an old tube of marzipan for a delicious pound cake. (I'm baking a lot more lately, since our local thrift shop stopped offering free bread.)
*Driveway was plowed. (After a horrendous trip home during a big snowstorm.) The Brick worked on the tractor, replaced a water filter, fixed the refrigerator and some other repairs. We did some household chores, as well, to keep things tidy.
*Bought kids' gifts for the Mexican orphanage ahead of time -- it is getting increasingly difficult to find inexpensive gifts when they're needed. Our friends (who take the gifts down) have a storage room -- I put them in there. One less thing to do in the future.
*More books from the library's used booksale room. A few items from the thrift shop, at 20% seniors discount. Nothing huge.
*Shirley Temple, in cobalt blue. $2.99. I love these antique collectibles.
*Started funding my 401K again... index funds. I plan to do this, bit by bit, every month, instead of making one big contribution. That way, any changes (I'm worried more about the negative ones) happen less-- and more gradually.
*Used a blank journal from the present box for my 2023 calendar -- and added an extra notebook ($1.25 from the dollar store) for the financials.
*Filled up a shopping cart with 'sale' postcards on Ebay -- then closed it and cancelled the order. I did buy a birthday present for the Brick, plus charms and a photo. (See below.)
*$5.35 donation to Wikipedia.
*Watched the Michigan/TCU game at Red Robin -- paid for by gift card. Sold a batch of Red Robin stock - purchased when it went rock-bottom last month -- and made a nice little profit. (Then again, if I'd hung onto it for at least another week, I would have made more. Oh well.)
*Free meals at Rodizio Grill, plus wine, thanks to a contest I won in November. All we paid for was the tip -- and the parking. Note to self: smuggling out the half-bottle of leftover wine under your jacket was kind of fun, too.
*Grocery buys: $2.27 gallon milk, chicken breasts, 97 cents/lb, 1.27/lb spiral-cut smoked ham...all straight into the freezer. Also: 2 free cucumbers, from the rewards program. (Safeway) Half-gallon milk - 99 cents (mostly in the freezer), sirloins $3.97/lb, coupons for $5 off. I haven't been shopping there much in recent months -- so the latter is probably a bribe. Oops- I mean 'incentive.' (King Soopers)
*Flowers for 99 cents, ($2.99 discount - $2 coupon) I also got a $3.99 plant - half-price.
*Two pizzas, leftover from a church event. (One went into the freezer for a supper later; we had the other for breakfast the next morning.)
*Found two pennies! In 2022, I found a total of $2.32, including that stunning $1.10 in April, from a Coinstar return slot. As the Brick gleefully enjoys pointing out, it isn't much -- but it is something, (The Mama squirreled change and bills all over the house -- by the time the dust cleared, we'd found $111-plus. And I heard about another cache, above the sink, that Niece & Nephew will excavate when they renovate the bathroom.) One of my blogger friends says: pay attention to the pennies, and the dollars will take care of themselves.
*Holding WAY back on the use of eggs: we have 1 or 2, instead of 3 for breakfast now. (Confession: I never liked eggs that much, to begin with, so this is no great sacrifice. I basically make them for the Brick, or reserve them for baking.)
*Said no to $60 symphony tickets. (Yes, I would have liked to have gone.)
*Split the 'Seven Fish Dishes' responsibilities with two sets of kids. (I just checked the pantry -- what am I going to do with all those cans of crab??)
*Kept the heat low in the house. (The fifth-wheel is largely winterized. Only a few items left in the garage, except for storage in the loft.)
*Attended our friends' wedding...and gave them the "Mawage" mugs, plus a candle and some silverware I'd picked up on clearance at Tuesday Morning. Oh yes, a video, too.
We had a great time. What a lovely wedding.
*Picked up some teaching/appraising gigs for 2023. Business is picking up again. Whoo hoo!
*A small raise in Social Security -- and the Brick's monthly pension check. Always welcome.
FRUGAL MISSES
*Ran month's-end numbers for December -- and 2022. Also figured up expenses and income from The Mama's estate, and copied in the amounts we paid (or received) for items like the fifth-wheel, our house sale, etc. This is not fun, but it's necessary -- and surprising -- to see the income and outgo for each month.
We did ok for December, but spent much more than planned for 2022, thanks in great part to having to buy a storage trailer in Michigan. (Which is now parked on our nephew and niece's farm -- formerly The Mama's.) Very little income (for me, because of the Michigan stay) and two long trips, back and forth from Michigan and Arizona, didn't help matters any. We also had to make several large payments in December for 2023 commitments. (Like the upcoming cruise.)
*Still no income tax refund from the 2021 taxes. Are we going to get it before April?
*Milk went sour after we didn't use it as much -- because of our new cream schtick for our coffee. I salvaged it, though, with biscuits and other goodies. No other leftovers went bad, fortunately, although some bread got mighty old.
*Had to ask to get all the Red Robin bonus cards. (We only got one, which I gave to a friend. Five more are due.)
*Ordered charms. No, we didn't need them. Yes, I can use them in the near future for gigs. Yes, I got a good price on them. Including this celtic cross charm.
*Huge tussle with the medical company about covering eardrops for the Brick. Also, some dental expenses added to the fun -- $1800. (sigh)
*Bigfoot went begging. I'd gotten Bigfoot push toys and cutouts on purpose to use during the Seven Fish Dishes dinner. Did I remember them, enough though they were in the truck? Noooo... I can't feel too bad, though. We also forgot to use the Christmas crackers Daughter #1 had found in her stuff.
*Bags are extra now in Colorado, as of 1/1/2023. If you don't bring your own, it's 10 cents for a flimsy plastic bag. Fortunately, we have lots of tote bags. I have noticed that most people aren't buying bags either, even if they forgot their totes. They just pile their buys in the cart, and load the car from there. (Thanks, Sam's Club, for teaching us that we can do it that way.)
*Twice now, I've had to argue my case at grocery store customer service spots -- about being charged full price for items on sale. I've always made my point and had the money refunded. But before this, I was always taken at my word, too. (The second person was apologetic -- she said they'd had a bunch of 'scammers' lately, insisting on groceries they said they were supposed to get for free. "Do I look like a scammer?" I asked. She shook her head.)
*Bought a blue and white coverlet -- dated 1858, and in terrific shape. I did manage to negotiate a small discount, plus free shipping.
*Got a Baby Doe Tabor photo I don't need... yet. But I honestly think it will come in handy in the future. Baby Doe is one of my buddettes -- she appears in the Ghosts & Legends book, but I plan to write more about her in the future. And the total price wasn't toooo bad.
Last month's report is here. January 2022's report is here -- and the year before that.
We'll continue to stay put in February -- but I'm looking forward to cozy evenings, hot soup...and time with my best friend. Here we go.
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