7 Quick Takes: Vol 10

1.
You know those perfect (feeling) days? The ones where everything falls into place, and you can't help but smile constantly about it? A week ago Friday was one of those days. We took a day trip to our hometown (which is only 25 miles, fyi) for the annual art and craft fair. We wandered the streets looking at handcrafted beauties while I made notes (in my phone, teehee) about new craft projects for the house. I ran into no less than 10 people I knew. Hugging ensued. It was warm and sunny, but not unbearable. The crowds were there, but not in any ridiculous fashion. We finished up at the art fair in near record time without feeling rushed and took a few minutes to share an elephant ear. Are you familiar? Fried dough, dusted in sugar and cinnamon? Yes, please! Instead of carnival food (except our fried dough friend), we decided on a local hometown hot spot for lunch. The bill was likely less than it would have been, the food was amazing, and no one got food poisoning from some crazy carnie in a tin wagon (which kind of terrifies me, in general). After lunch, we drove out to the beach to stand in the face of amazing beauty with our toes in the sand while a friend's little girl played her heart out on the slides. The way home from the beach included a stop at the best ice cream stand in the whole town (and once we got home, a nap came next, thank G-d). It was just a perfect day, full of snapshot moments, good laughs, and great friends.

2.
The 4th of July was equally fun. We ate an early dinner at home, headed to the lake, saw some old friends, met some new ones (thanks again to the biker's for letting us park in their yard ...), watched some spectacular fireworks, and then had some sparkler fun of our own once we got home. Only at my house will 20something boys get so blasted excited about $1 store sparklers.

3.
I'm working another part time job at a place I worked at previously to cover someone's maternity leave for 8 weeks. I don't know if it'll really only be 8, or if she'll change her mind and want to not come back. I have to leave at the end of 8 anyway, because the teaching year starts then, but regardless I find myself secretly hoping that she decides to stay home with le bebe for awhile. I'm getting old and becoming a softie, I think.

4.
Yesterday, Be and I had a our first "date" in a terribly long time. My mother had to attend a work meeting on the other side of the state (about 2.5 hours), so Be and I tagged along and had amazing fun while she was at her meeting. We strolled through the Swedish homegoods mega store, IKEA, dreaming of kitchen remodels and comparing counter top qualities like we are even remotely close to that kind of project funding (hahaha!). We ate at my favorite Middle Eastern place (which they only have on that side ... boo), a first for Be. The food was awesome, the service amazing, and it was just the two of us ... chatting, sitting quietly, not listening to anyone complain about anything. After picking up my mother once her meeting concluded, we even squeezed in a stop at a local East Side grocery that was tripling coupons (There will be more on this soon ...). We don't even have doubles here ... ever, so I was terribly excited (and super nerdy) about the whole thing.

5.
I am well on my way to a little more organized and a little more scheduled. I'm kind of stoked about it. We had a sweet organizing system and routine before we moved here, and somehow my brain thought you could use the same rules in a giant old farm house as you could in a tiny 700 sq footer. I was mistaken, obviously. There is much more to clean here; more space to wreak havoc on. The plan for keeping 700 sq feet looking pristine does not lend itself well to a multiplication of grandeur. Somehow, though, my brain kept trying to follow the same rules, the same timelines, the same systems ... and losing. I'm not saying the whole thing needed to be scrapped, but some changes needed to be made across the board. I have finally stopped putting them off. Yes!

6.
I' going to try making cherry jam ... probably Sunday. Be afraid, as I am of all things liquid, sticky, and molten.

7.
My nose hurts. Just on the right side. It's sore, apparently, because in some fit of sleepy craziness, I pulled (and quickly, with some force) my teeny tiny nose ring out. I've had the darn thing for 4 years (I think ... maybe more ...), and never have I caught it on something in a way that could possibly pull it out. It sits flush with my skin. It's hard to take out when I want to. It's not awful, just sore. The scarier thought ... what in the world was I dreaming about?



Simply,

Em.

For more Quick Takes Fridays, check out Jen at Conversion Diary.

The Everything Post

Where have I been all this time?! My goodness how one day turns into 7 before you even know it. I've had all the things I wanted to post floating around in my head, but it's officially 937 degrees Fahrenheit here (ok, high 80s, probably low 90s today) and when it's that hot I want to do nothing but find a semi-reasonable place to sit (like the basement, in a corner, where it's 'cooler' ... by 2 or 3 degrees) and not move a muscle lest the Niagra Falls of sweat come forth from all parts of me at once. I hate being hot. Hate it. This is why we live in MI and not a warmer state. I would melt. It may happen this week, and I have the mop at the ready in case. Here we go, everything all together now ...

Some Quick Takes
1.
I already told you it's hot, but it begs repeating. I do not like sweat rolling down the sides of my face because I'm standing still washing dishes in less than completely sanitary tepid water because I may just die if it were any warmer. I would really like a breeze, any breeze, even a hot one, to cut the density in the air. We do not have air conditioning, lest you think I'm complaining about hot weather for fun. I know there are many of you that survive much hotter temperatures also without AC, but seriously ... I can't take it. We don't have AC for a number of reasons.

1. It's reaaaaaallllly expensive for my electric bill.
2. It's not so fantastic for the environment with all those AC units pumping out exhaust and such.
3. If we did, I would not be able to control myself and we'd likely have it set at 35 degrees from March until October, bringing us right back to point number 1. When AC is involved, my rational mind desolves to putty and I have no self-control. Total abstinence is out only sound option.

2.
I don't like to cook when it's hot, but this morning I convinced myself to get a roast into the crockpot since I was awake anyway and eventually we'd have to eat. I'm calling it a gold star day just for that. Haha.

3.
I had an unforutnate accident on Sunday that now requires a dentist's appointment and a lot of my conscious attention as to not show anyone the monstrosity when I speak. It doesn't hurt, but come Friday, at the dentist, it likely will. Thank heavens for dental insurance.

4.
The summer semester started yesterday. I promise I was not intentionally skipping class. I really honestly thought it was a T/R class, not a M/W one. Not until the email hit my phone from another girl asking where I had been did I go look at the course schedule. I've been convinced for months that it was on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Ooooops.

Some Shopping Round-Up
I went to Costco and Meijer on Friday. There weren't any super amazing deals I needed to get in on, we were just out of a couple things that I had been putting off picking up for ... more than a little while. I did manage to get one box of half-price minus $1 coupon Snickers ice cream bars, and a raincheck for 12 more. Now, to find coupons ... Em is hot and needs ice creams!

Some Simple Sunday
What's better on a Sunday, especially Father's Day, and most especially when it falls on the longest day of the year ... than a late evening trip to the lake? It was hot. We were melting. We piled in the car at 9pm and headed to the lake for a quick swim. A little chilly at first, sure, but once initially submerged, swimming was heaven. It was like magic. Not hot. No longer puddling into your shoes. Just cool and marvelous, plus the beginnings of a sunset while we were swimming made for an marvelously simply Sunday.

Some Menu Plan Monday
M: Sausages on the Grill, Chips

T: Crockpot Beef Roast, Potatoes, Greens & Spinach Salad

W: Hamburger Helper (which I don't like, fyi), Greens & Spinach Salad

R: Fried Chicken Salads, Cut Veggies

F: Survivor Night ... eat what you can find, or starve. I will likely be having milkshakes ... and pudding ... and other things that don't hurt one's already hurting post-dentist teeth.

S: Pork Chops, Noodle Side, Steamed Veggies, Green Salads

U: Zuppa Toscana

Some Gratituesday
For more Gratituesday, check out The Heavenly Homemakers.
Today, I'm grateful for ...

... warm weather that helps my garden grow, even if it makes me terribly uncomfortable.
... cool swims at dusk.
... ice cream.
... self-employment.
... the appreciation of the women I work with.
... crunching on ice cubes, even if it's horrible for my teeth.
... dental insurance.
... Be, who although I currently look funny, still loves me.
... the tiniest hints of a breeze.
... getting up early of my own volition.
... schedule switching.
... the AC in my car being functional.
... a cool basement to retreat to.
... the library, full of great books, for free!
... money in the bank, bills paid.
... a clean house, easier on the hot weather sanity than a dirty one.
... grace.
... every day, hot or not, that I get to live in this perfect world.


Wasn't that wacky? So long as I don't melt, regular posting will resume. If, instead, I turn into a giant puddle of crazy, I can make no guarantees.

Simply,

Em.

Summer Fun! (on the cheap ...)

If you happen to be relatively local to me, there's a list of great stuff going on to fill your summer date book with below. If you aren't so local, check out your local chamber of commerce, library, or civic association for events calendars. Summertime is always full of pretty cheap or free community events, no matter where you live. Don't miss out because you aren't in the know. Just google your town and find some freebie fun for your family (hooray alliteration ... haha). Festivals, library reading programs, fireworks, and car cruises abound. I cannot wait!

On the Lakeshore ...

Brown Bag Film Series at the MMA
Grab your lunch and meet up at the art museum for a 30 minute film. Admission to the film is free, though I think they still charge for museum admission if you want to browse the galleries afterward, and there are cookies! Check out the downtown schedule for details.

Movie Nights at the LST
Bring a blanket or a lawn chair and head down to the Mart Dock for a free movie every Friday on the deck of the historic LST (Landing Ship Tank ... it's a boat ... a huge one, if you haven't seen it). The deck opens at 7pm, and the movie begins at dusk. You can bring a cooler and snacks, or purchase them on site for $1. A schedule of films can be seen on the downtown schedule. Although there's no admission cost, donations are accepted and all proceeds go to the Restoration Fund of the LST. Movies under the stars ... for free ...?! Score!

Parties in the Park
Live music (the link has the schedule), kids' games, and positively a ton of people you forgot you knew will be at Hackley Park in the middle of downtown every Friday from 5pm-930pm. Entrance is free, but food and beverages are a little on the pricey side so I suggest eating an early dinner at home before heading down there. I don't honestly remember if they let you bring food in or not, but I do know outside beverages aren't allowed. The best part, all proceeds go to the organization that is "sponsoring" each week. They provide the volunteers and the PITP organization compensates them according. Come out to the park, hang out with your friends, and support the organizations you know and love.

Summer Celebration
Most of the events surrounding SummerCel have some kind of cost associated, sometimes a rather significant cost if you're considering a night out with one of the live 'big name' bands. However, a number of the events going on around the Main Stage are free, especially the ones targeted at kids. Be careful to avoid the midway if you're not into dropping tons of cash on junk food and stomach turning carnival rides. Flip through the schedule, though, there may be something going on for free or pretty low cost that may interest you, like the Community Picnic where each food item costs only a quarter or the Safari-Me Petting Zoo. Also, scope out a free spot to park your car and catch the fireworks on July 4.

Star Gazing ... Inside
The Carr-Fles Planetarium at MCC offers free planetarium shows to the public on Tuesday and Thursday nights at 7pm.

Vacation with Purpose
If you're so inclined, the Maranatha Bible Conference offers free entertainment on Saturday nights at 7pm. There are other free events as well mixed in with their admission required ones. You can check the summer program schedule here.

Tons More!
Events can be found here, here, here, and here. There are also library programs going on all over the area, so check out your local LLC library for details, or the Hackley Library which even has an Adult Summer Reading Program in conjunction with their kids' programs.

Surrounding the Lakeshore ...

Fishing Weekend
Don't have the cash for a fishing license?
(although, I would strongly advocate the purchase if you have the time, location, and fish population since it's ... free food that can easily recoup the cost of the year long license)

Join in the fishing fun anyway by participating in the Michigan Free Fishing Weekend. No license required, just grab your pole and head to the closest stream (in MI that's approximately 12 feet from anywhere you live) for some quiet time and hopefully some free dinner!

Anything Else?
Are there other sweet freebie events going on that I don't know about? Nation wide programs you want to tell me about? Great local programs in your community that you'd like to brag about? Let me know in the comments! I'm looking for freebie summer fun and date night ideas (remember, we need those date nights ... badly).


Simply,

Em.

7 Quick Takes: Vol 7

1.
I'm toying with the idea of another blog (as in, in addition to rather than in place of). There are approximately a million things I want to write about all around a common theme, but it is one that although linked to the thematic direction of this blog would likely overtake the parts that it is not so connected to. I don't really want that. GSF for me has been a place to be grateful, seek simplicity, and practice frugality. This new idea would be grateful and likely connected to the reasons for which I seek the simple over the complex and the frugal over the luxurious, but would be far less practically oriented (fewer GDAs, coupon breakdowns, recipes, etc). I don't think I want a replacement, just an alternate place to also write. You could read both if you wanted, but at least you'd still have options. Now, to decide the name (this part takes me the longest of anything ...).

2.
I'm learning that my body doesn't like commercially produced fruit juices. It used to be just orange juice, which I blamed on the ridiculous citric acid to actual soluable fiber ratio. Then it was anything orange juice made an appearance in ... Mountain Dew, for example. Now I'm also having problems with grape juice (and if that ... then, wine? noooo!). Before I call it quits entirely I think I may drag my juicer out of the cupboard as the fruit crops start to come in and give making my own a go to see if the problem is the juice itself or the commercial process (and assortment of unnecessary crap ingredients). Then the question becomes ... how to store already homemade juice for once the availability of fresh fruit diminishes?

3.
Remember my favorite thing about Sundays? Yea. Apparently not this week. My schedule (I even hate the use of the word 'schedule' in reference to a Sunday) consists of meeting a friend for church, then driving to our hometown for an early afternoon graduation open house, then driving across that town for a late afternoon graduation open house, and then making it to my cousin's wedding reception. Argh! That's pure craziness, but the prospect of eating cake three times in one afternoon/evening does have me a little twitterpated (I loooooooooove cake!).

Now, to figure out 2 frugal graduation gifts and a frugal wedding gift. I should consult my gift closet, but it's currently stocked only with plastic cups and Halloween candy. Hmmm. I have 2 days to figure this out, my lovely friends of the interwebs, and I would adore your help in the comments section. (pretty please ...?).

4.
Not that it's all that exciting to anyone but me, but the data for my summer research has been tabulated and analyzed. Those of you who've been involved in research projects like this know the sigh of relief I'm breathing right now knowing that all the (f)tests and ANOVAs are done and accounted for. The remainder of the paper still needs to be written ... the results and discussion portions, but really I'm just glad we only had a few data hangups getting to here (mostly involving spelling inconsistencies in responses ... which the computer does not like at all). I do need to write the rest of this paper before Monday (is it Friday already?! My word!). Also fabulous, the data analysis proves our hypothesis, which is way cooler than it not.

5.
I want to go here, please. I may have to start fundraising once I decide when exactly would be the perfect time to go. My initial thought is of course ... winter, because winter in MI is less fun than winter in Morocco and vice versa for summer since Rabat is in Northern Africa. I really want to volunteer abroad, and have for quite awhile. I just hadn't found the place that felt right. Just imagine ... Em walking down a tiny market street, eating the most amazing hummus and falafel purchased from a street vendor, speaking Arabic to cute little kids, and working with the local women's group on organizing actions. Beautiful. I am so in, as soon as I find $6,000.

6.
I am really hungry to lo mein thanks to a conversation I am having this very minute online while writing this post. I loooooove lo mein almost as much as I love cake. It's my first and favorite pick at every Asian resto we've ever been to, and the more I talk about it right now the more tempted I am to gnaw off my own left hand. I also haven't eaten lunch yet. Hmm. Now, to find some fabulous Chinese noodles ...

7.
The mailman was nice enough to bring me a $27 (and change) check this week from the good people at Inbox Dollars. This is the first time I've actually received money from them, so they finally get to go down in my "Absolutely Legit" column. I click through some emails, they send me some money. I am ok with that arrangement. Mostly, I was just excited to get free money in the mail. If you want in on the deal, feel free to click the link on my right sidebar under 'Places I Dig' (or just google it if you're not as comfy with referral links ... I care not either way).


For more 7 Quick Takes Fridays, check out Jen's blog.

Simply,

Em.

7 Quick Takes Friday: Vol 6

1.
This quick takes comes to you live from the university library where I am trapped before 8am on a Friday tabulating data for a research project. I do not like this library. I do not like tabulating data. I do not like 8am on Fridays. That's a lot of not liking in one paragraph. We are currently waiting for our third group member to arrive, and as the time ticks past her expected appearance time, I tend to get a little more irritated. Em does not like people who cannot read watches or plan in such a way as to not inconvenience others.

2.
"Worry does not empty today of its sorry. It empties today of its strength."
That's a Corrie Ten Boom quote, and a fabulous one at that. It came to me in an email, tucked away on a sidebar, not at all part of the primary message. It struck me the most though. I am a worrier, more so of late than usual. I get heartburn or pull a muscle in my chest, and I immediately start to get anxious about having a heart attack ... not so much in a hypochondriac way, but in an "I must evaluate and spend tons of conscious energy on every single possibility" way. I worry about our health, our money, the house, the tender little plants trying to take root in the garden, the economy, the environment, religion, relationships, burned bridges, potential opportunities, the pets, whether we'll end up with kids or not, if I'll have to walk to class in the rain again, zombie apocalypse, budgeting, aspartame, pesticide, GMOs, imperialism, skin cancer, world politics, my family, driving in the snow, and tetanus.

This is of course not an exhaustive list, but it is entirely exhausting. Corrie Ten Boom is absolutely correct, worrying zaps every bit of strength that could be better directed at accomplishing things, building relationships, loving people, and the like. I am trying to learn to give this anxiety away. Yea ... let's just say I need more practice.

3.
I'm working on changing our diet around a little, hopefully to include the increasing availability of fresh produce and whole foods as the seasons allow. I'm trying to find a balance between sustainable practice (buying locally and in season) and increasing our regular intake of fresh whole foods. I do not know how to strike this balance when it isn't summer, so any of your suggestions (from those who hail from states covered in snow for what feels like 11 out of 12 months a year) would be greatly appreciated.

4.
I am exhausted. I am not entirely positive why. I've been sleeping a solid amount, more than usual in most cases even though I've been getting up earlier. I start strong, but within a few hours I'm ready for a nap and by late afternoon I don't want to even think about moving. It's an all encompassing exhaustion ... don't even want to think about holding my head up anymore tired. I'm eating enough calories/protein. I'm sleeping ok. I've even been getting more exercise between walking and playing Farmer Em (which should increase my energy), and yet ... still completely zapped. Ick.

5.
As promised, I must include another reference about hockey. The Adored Red Wings have made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. The first game is tomorrow, and the coverage should be on your local NBC affiliate. Really, you should be watching ... and rooting for the Wings lest you be drug into town square for tar and feathering. I suppose you could support the Penguins ... but ... eh ... I don't know if Pennsylvanians even do that. I kid, of course ... but not really.

6.
I'm currently reading a biography of Maria Montessori (not the one linked, an actual book). Ah yes, love love love all around.

7.
I have zero plans for the weekend. This is slightly unusual, and makes me nervous that I'm forgetting something. Maybe I'll spend some time napping or reading in the sunshine (assuming we get sunshine this weekend ...). Or, maybe I'll clean the office. I don't even know what to do with myself. It's one part terrifying and one part pure excitement. Do you have plans for the weekend?


Simply,

Em.

ps, for more 7 Quick Takes Fridays, check out Conversion Diary.

7 Quick Takes: Vol 4.

For more Quick Takes Fridays, check out the Conversion Diary. Good stuff, I promise.

1.
I am so absolutely livid this very moment that I don't know if I'm going to make it through this post. To make a long story short, an organization was supposed to pay me a very large amount of money (ok, large for me ... probably not really at all that large for the rest of the world) in a very specific timeframe. When that deposit did not appear as promised, I called them on the day it was supposed to post (they're usually early, which is even more befuddling), and was told that they "Um ... er ... uh ... forgot." WHAT?! You forgot to do your job?! Your one and only job, to pay people, and you forgot to do it?! Awesome. Great. Fabulous. I was then promised it would be fixed right away and taken care of overnight. When I checked my online bank this morning, nothing. When I used my 'bank on call' phone number, thinking perhaps my online banking was less cool or up to date than the other (uh, wrong, by the way ... desperate times, etc etc), nothing. When I called my bank's customer service line to see if they perhaps could see something I could not (a super pending, not accesible to my screen yet something) and then sat on hold for 30 minutes while they dug through a million records and places looking for the deposit, still ... nothing. Now, no bill paying, no grocery shopping, no ... anything until this deposit shows up. Greeeeeeat. Thanks.

(insert elevator music or a dancing monkey show to entertain you during the time I've gone to calm myself down before all of my 7 Quick Takes turn into bitter rants about crap I don't like)

2.
I had great fun yesterday chatting with an old friend over far too much coffee. There are nothing like solid friends, the people who know you (crazy or not), love you, and listen to your chaotic ramblings or not-so-hilarious stories. My thanks to him for the evening. It was a good reminder that even though we spend less time together than we did in undergrad, the friends made in college, in struggle, in intense circumstances, are still the best ones around. Good friends are good for the soul ... like chicken soup without the having to kill chickens part.

3.
My next door neighbors are being foreclosed on, or at least that's what we hear from their insane screaming at each other (when they aren't running their semi-lucrative narcotics selling business, that is). There are four houses on this side of the block. The one to the left of ours has been empty for months, also a foreclosure. The one on the far other end has been empty since long before we moved here 2 years ago. It is owned outright, but the foundation is crumbling under an otherwise really nicely remodeled house, and the owners decided to move rather than spend the enormous amount of cash lifing a house and repouring a foundation would take. I suspect one day it may just fall over. Now, the house between that one and ours will be empty as well. We keep talking about how sweet it would be, if we had the cash, to buy one or the other of the lots next to us so that we would have enough acreage per the township zoning ordinance to keep animals here. I wonder how low the prices will go ...

4.
Have you heard about the giant public debacle that was the 'Oprah Sends Millions of People to KFC for Free Chicken' event was? KFC stopped honoring their coupons, instead offering "rainchecks" for "later dates", which I suspect probably means ... never, because they "underestimated" the response. This is Oprah we are talking about here. When she says "Buy this (insert car, book, fashion accessory, etc)!, people do it post-haste. Did they not consider an even greater response if she said, "Go get this for FREE!"? This has spurred a hilariously wonderful selection of internet ramblings, especially between KFC and El Pollo Loco (which we don't have here ...). For your giggling pleasure ...



Oh! And!



Ahahahaha. I am endlessly entertained by corporations battling each other online. Nicely done!

5.
Be was released from the care of his surgeon on Wednesday, after 18 months. He will continue on a 'maintenance regimen' at physical therapy to make sure he doesn't regress for awhile, but the PT has written his 'permanent restrictions' so they believe it likely that nothing will change much. On the one hand, a huge sigh of relief that he has healed enough after 2 surgeries and countless thousands of hours of physical therapy that he no longer requires the constant attention of a surgeon. On the other hand, mildly difficult for him to handle because it means the status of his knee is probably as good as it gets. This is not the same as before the accident (obviously), and he is having a bit of a time coming to terms with that. When he still had doctor's appointments, there seemed to still be a chance that the knee would somehow go back to the way it was, its strength, stability, functions, etc.

This release also means a number of other implications regarding courts and trials and lawyers, but nothing I can tell you about. Big ole complicated mess, it is.

6.
The Red Wings (if you don't know who that is ... we may have to talk ...) won their series last night 4-3, meaning they move on to the conference finals against the Chicago Blackhawks on their road to the Stanley Cup finals (Please note, when following that link, who is pictured holding the Stanely Cup last year ... oh yes, the Wings. Note also, the number of times they have won the Finals through the history of the cup. Yea, we rock.). Hockey is the only professional sport that I watch, because I am from Michigan, and it is required here by law that all residents watch, love, and defend the honor of our adored Red Wings. I'm more of a college sports fan, which also stems largely from being a Michigander and attending a Big 10 school. Go BLUE! As such, there will be much tension and anxiety as the Wings try to make it through to the finals. There will likely be cursing, popcorn throwing, and if we're lucky some jumping up and down. It is Stanley Cup season in MI ... it's what we do.

I just spend a solid 10 minutes trying to find you the YouTube of a hilarious McDonalds commercial that runs in Michigan which lists the things we love here. Driving cars, working on cars, snow, and our moms are all on the list. Hockey also appears ... 5 or 6 times in the course of the commerical, and is the only thing that is repeated. It's terribly funny ... er ... true .... er both, probably.

7.
Did you know the US Postal Service hates recycling? Yea. They do. No lie. Apparently, they made it illegal for you to reuse a Priority Mail box for shipping other things, even if you turn it inside out or cover all the previous markings. That's annoying. Thanks for not loving the planet, Post Office. Thanks a ton. I'd suggest we all send them letters in protest, but if the rest of your local Post Office's are anything like mine, I doubt they would ever get delivered ... to themselves. The telling of the trials and tribulations of dealing with our local Post Office will be saved for another day, probably right after the next time I stop by to mail something and they are randomly "closed" because the 1 lazy, lonely guy that works in our tiny Post Office hates 1. people, 2. work, and 3. working with people.

What's going on in your life this week? Write a Quick Takes! It's fun times.


Simply,

Em.

7 Quick Takes: Vol 3

1.
Mashed potatoes with cream corn on top may be the ultimate comfort food. I made some last night, and the leftovers are sitting in front of me now in a place I like to call carb heaven. Oh. My. Word. Pure looooooove.

2.
I have to go back to classes next week. This does not make me all too excited, honestly. I'm just starting to get into the 'no class' routine of reading mass quantities of library goodness, making homemade dinners without the pressure of schedules, and enjoying the sunshine (if it would ever stop raining here ...). The thought of returning to the drudgery of non-expressive thought and unoriginal research makes my stomach turn. Please, no. This happens every time we have a semester break, because I have the time for my brain to start protesting the torture it endures the remainder of the year. My soul is not nourished by this program anymore and it tries to revolt and cast doubts on my continuing any time it has the chance. *sigh*

3.
I picked up new library books on Wednesday. I have Plain & Simple and Everyday Sacred by Sue Bender, Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, and The Third Jesus by Deepak Chopra. I already finished the first Bender book, and although my intense fascination with the Amish remains, my curiosity was not at all satisfied by the style of her prose. It's fragmented in parts, more a personal journal than a published piece of literature, and it is kind of deterring me from reading the other one if her writing style is going to be the same. I'm also reading Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah at the same time. Babies killing babies often gets too intense and I need a less brutal literary break to recollect.

4.
Speaking of books, I would really (reeeaaaallllyyy) like bookshelves in the office. I have 3 little cubbies on the hutch over my desk that currently hold my top 25 books, but the boxes and boxes of other favorites stored in the back of the office closet are aching to be out in the open as well. Book shelves, however, are not in the budget currently. Maybe I'll get garage sale lucky this summer and find a set in need of the touch of handy Be that will do the trick. Keep your fingers crossed for me, ok?

5.
I'm thinking about trying out a new church experience. I hesitate to write about it because I'm not yet ready to explain it to the world (even though my neverending urge to write and be public about everything is fighting me) ... the choices, the possibilities, the reasons. Can a girl just do something new and not have to explain herself to everyone and their brother? Not here. Not in the CNK (the airport designation for my town if we were to get an airport ... haha). Not in this house for sure. The power of judgement and influence is strong, especially subconsciously, and although not an excuse really, is something I am desperately working to get over.

6.
After 2 years of composting at this house, and after much complaining about the entire process, my little brother suggested today that we get a tumbler. Surprise! He is the last person on the planet I thought would advocate for composting in general, let alone in cooler manners than the giant pile method we use right now. Perhaps the green revolution is getting to him as well ... hooray!

7.
2 different rewards programs I really liked are either going away completely or changing so radically that they're much less fun than before. Walgreens has announced the end of the EasySaver Rebate program, and since we don't have a CVS nearby, here's hoping either the Register Rewards deals they come up with are amazing (though will be a lot of money out of pocket) or that I can get a grip on the Rite Aid Single Check Rebate program instead. Goodbye free and easy Walgreens fun. (sad face!) Speedway, in turn, is changing their Speedy Rewards program to increase the number of points required for gift card redemption as well as changing the kinds of things you can get giftcards for. Boooooo. Knowing this in advance, my whole family cashed in our 50,000+ collective points last night before the new system rolled out this morning. Hello Speedway cash, hello free money, goodbye program I liked a whooooole lot.


For more 7 Quick Takes Fridays, check out Jen's blogging at Conversion Diary. Just click the graphic at the top and head on over.


Simply,

Em.

The Unintentional Baking Day

I had no intention of baking today, even after we ran out of bread two days ago. I had class until early in the evening. Then the dog had an appointment at the groomer's. There are a million things on my to do list in the week before finals, and baking was nary near the top of that list. I even read Crystal's Baking Day post this morning and thought, "Ah, man, we need bread. I just don't have time today." I got home a little before 6pm, Be decided he could take el dog-o on his own, and I unhappily went about making a quick dinner (read: not the one on the menu ... because I was convinced I didn't have enough time or energy to make it).

I turned the oven on for garlic bread to make dinner seem more substantial and less cobbled and rushed. While my one pot thrown together dinner was simmering, I convinced myself to throw the bread dough ingredients in the stand mixer so they could spin themselves around while I tended to dinner (what? you think pots stir themselves? More like, Em watches pot bubble as way to get out of making bread, perhaps?) since the oven was on already anyway. Then I remembered the crazy thing about bread ... it has to rise ... a lot. No way I was leaving the oven on for 4 hours so my bread could make it through both rises. Ugh. Now what to do with this residual oven heat?

Ah yes, these ...
Those are Molten Chocolate Chip Muffins ... a magical creation out of necessity when after promising my brother's girlfriend I'd make peanut butter blossoms (so she'd unwrap the kisses while I multi-task-o-rama'd) I realized I couldn't find the vegetable oil. A couple freebie muffin mixes from the lower pantry, a handful of already unwrapped kisses (lest her effort be for naught) plopped in the middle as they came out of the oven, and voila! Molten cake meets muffin tin! It so happens someone(s) made off with two of them before they even had a chance to cool. It may have been the Baked Good Bandit ... or perhaps Quality Control.

We finished up dinner, I did the handful of dishes there were, and went about doing homework (and owning Double Jeopardy). The kitchen timer let me know the first bread rise was done, and it took me no more than 5 minutes to punch it down, knead again, split the dough, shape it, plop it in the loaf pans, and put it back on the back of the stove to rise with the aid of residual oven heat from the vent. Then it was back to homework (and Biggest Loser on TV ... I love transformative moments on television) until the timer went off again. I set the oven to 350, tossed my bread inside, and had another moment of frugal despair ... "What am I going to double duty the oven with this time?!" Having found the vegetable oil (which was right where it always is, by the way, despite my best efforts to completely overlook it about 12 times) in the interim, I decided on peanut butter cookies since I had already promised them. They came from another freebie mix (shhhh, they're ruining my Betty Crocker street cred!), and by the time the bread was done they were ready for the oven.

See how excited Donald Duck is about baked goods?

TaaaaDaaaa! Two loaves of honey wheat bread and 3 DOZEN (how in the world did that happen with one lonely cookie mix?!) peanut butter blossoms cooling on my counter. I turned the oven off and left the door half way open (since we don't have small children ... probably a less brilliant idea if there are small fingers that could find their way into open oven doors) so the heat we had already created (and paid for!) could warm up the kitchen and living room instead of being funneled out through the duct work. I did the second handful of dishes, cleaned off the counters, ate a cookie, and thought about how close I was to none of it happening in the first place.

I am a busy girl, but 'busy-ness' is also my number one reason (excuse?) for not doing things. I keep trying to convince myself that there isn't enough time, or that things like baking are too complicated and will have to wait for another day when a pristine plan can be arranged. I am working on this. The reality is, though, that it took almost no more time than I would have spent in the kitchen anyway. I had to wait for dinner to cook, so why not throw together bread dough and muffins? I had to turn the oven back on for the bread, so why not put a batch of cookies in? I had to wait for the goods to cool before putting them up, so why not knock out the last of the dishes so I don't wake up to them tomorrow? I didn't really have to clean the stove with steel wool after that, but it was bugging me.

The moral of the story is, frugality takes time, yes ... but not nearly as much time as we like to pretend. If I can multi-task a few things, keep my kitchen clean, fill up our stash of homebaked (and FREE!) goodies and not really take any longer than usual anyway, why not? Once I was done, I felt better. I like to make things. I love to bake cookies (mostly, so I can eat them). I dig the frugal/homemade/green-ish lifestyle. I just don't always believe I can pull it off (yea, even the frugal commandos have doubts), and when I finished up, this post from Laura was at the top of my reader. How timely, indeed.

Now, I think it's time for (another) cookie.

Simply,

Em.

Hey there! You know what's better than a cookie? A book about how to make cookies. You know what's better than that?! FIVE books about making things, including one about baking and another about chocolate. You know what's even cooler? They could be yours! Check it out and enter the giveaway!

Gratituesday: He is ok.

Have you checked out Laura's blog yet? Click here!

Not Very Grateful Sounding Intro ...
Can I just tell you, before we get on with the grateful festivities, that I hate having to preface all of my entries lately with, "I'm so sorry I haven't been around. I'll do better, I swear."? I do. I wish I could blog full time and not have to worry about any of it. Life does not agree with this idea right now ... pulling me from blogging to school, homework, housework, sleep, managing Be's injuries and doctor's appointments, and a host of other less fun things to do than write for you. I feel like I have to apologize for my life, if there are any of you out there left to apologize to. I'm (secretly) currently afraid of my stats counter. *sigh* Today is not the day for pity parties about time management. Today is Tuesday! Gratituesday! And now on with it ...

Much more Grateful Sounding Here ...
My dad had open heart surgery yesterday. They cracked open his chest and did a quadruple bypass of some mostly blocked arteries. I am still kind of in a blur about the whole thing. He was not a cardiac patient, really, until about 2 weeks ago. He did not have a slow decline of repetitious pills and appointments and the like. He had some high blood pressure, but it was managed well with medications. Then, boom! Chest pain led to a stress test which led to a cardiac cath which lead to an appointment for open heart surgery yesterday.

First and foremost, I am grateful for his surgery being successful. As I write today, he's still on a ventilator (standard post-open heart procedure, fyi). I just talked to the critical care nurse in his room (because the hospital is 40 minutes from here ... in the opposite direction of school ... ) and they're going to try to get rid of the tube this afternoon. He was already waking up when I saw him yesterday. He didn't experience any major surgical complications, and honestly save the hundred tubes everywhere, he didn't look all that bad post-op. For all of that, I am grateful. For the grace that saves him, I don't even have words.

I am resisting telling you all about how cool my dad is because it sounds too much like eulogizing in my very superstitious head right now. He's a funny guy, though. You might like him. After many, many cloudy days, I'm just grateful that the sun is starting to peek out.

Thank you, thank you.


Simply,

Em.

Honey, I'm hoooooome!

Hello?

*tap tap*

Is this thing on?

I'm hoping a handful of you are still out there after my all too long vacation hiatus. We went to Disney, did all those great Disney things, had a blast, and didn't blog a single second we were there. $10.95/day for WiFi? Um, no, not from the pocket of a frugal blogger. So, we did without using the internet, and other than the 650 emails I came home to, it was the best feeling. I did miss my bloggy friends for sure. I feel so behind in keeping track of everyone's lives. Ha.

My house is of course a mess. I promise I didn't leave it that way. I know the 'Rules of Simple Vacationing' ... do one thing, and one thing only, clean your house so that you come home to something at least reasonably serene. Check. What I did not consider was the possibility that the people housesitting for us would then go on to wreck the entire place. *sigh* I am in no mind or mood for cleaning it either, as I seem to have brought home some awful Tropical Bird Flu (ok, really, it's just an awful chest cold/flu/bronchitis thing, don't call the CDC) and feel like death warmed over. Intead, I am inclined to try to catch up on my blog reader, drink hot chocolate (it's snowing again!), and try to cough the last of this stuff out of here. Want to read along with me?

Sarah deals in using up freebie pie crusts. I didn't get in on this deal, but from the looks of that elephant ear, and Be's absolute adoration of pie, I think I probably should have.

The Good Human cancelled his trash service to be more cognizant of what he was throwing away (and to save money!). We are working towards a similar goal here. We only fill the trash bin every 2-3 weeks rather than weekly. If I could get it lower, and Be could drive the Jeep, we'd likely be on the same program.

Broke Grad Student lays out the 5 stupid ways we waste money. Guilty on all accounts at some point, for sure.

Crystal always has all the good deals, including this post with 2 different ways to get a FREE Arby's "Roastburger". I'm still trying to figure out what the heck these things are ... and how exactly they're browned but not "fried" (magic? me thinks so). I don't generally eat there, but a freebie lunch for my family? Ok by me.

JD's wife, Kris, is a seed starting machine. I looooooooove posts in the late winter/early spring about seed starting because it means it will be time to put those little germinators to dirt in this house very soon. I love gardens. I love growing our own food. I love the look of those cute little seed pots all in a row. Love love love love it! Where is my seed catalog?

Pizza Hut Book-It is now open to homeschoolers. Book-It is that rad program where you read books in order to get free personal pan pizzas. Reading is fun. Pizza is fun. Reading for pizza is fabulous. I loved this program as a kid, and now everyone can do it! Hooray! Thanks, Crystal.

First, I absolutely adore the Happy Housewife. Now, she's making pita in her bread machine. I love pita in ways I cannot explain. It is the perfect bread. I could eat it constantly, with every meal, as the only food allowed me for years. Now, I kind of wish I had a bread machine.

Are you a baggie washer? We are. Gayle is. It's not lunacy, I promise.

I'm feeling absolutely blah today. Lisa at the Simple Mom has 16 tips for increasing your energy levels. Maybe I could just get over this Tropical Bird Flu and call it good?

Or maybe just a nap?


Simply,

Em.

Gratituesday: Huge News Edition

For more Gratituesday, check out Laura's blog.

I have BIG news!

We (my brother and I) have the most amazing mother on this planet. She is that crazy fun mom that still knows how to make everything better, find your missing sock, and laugh at herself. She is so strong, an immense model for women everywhere ... most specifically me, and she doesn't take any crap from anyone. I have her same no-nonsense attitude ... just possibly amplified to 11. I feel like I could go on for 100 years and still not say all the good things about her. For her, for our relationship, for our living situation (we own a house together that we all live in -- crazy fun), and for every single day that I get to share my life with her ... giggles, hilarious stories, sous chef dinner duties, and the occasional tears. I love you, Mom. For you, I am most thankful.

Enough suspense? Really?! Come on, lady, where's the BIG news ...?!

My amazing mother has a birthday coming up a week from today. It's a big one, this birthday, like the capital B-I-G kind. 3 years ago, around her birthday time, my brother and I were sitting around dreaming of places we could whisk our mother off to for her BIG birthday this year. She deserves more than I can ever give her, and we wanted to give her one of those 'experience of a lifetime' kind of trips.

But ... what about your frugal life? ... your debt?

Yea. Exactly. I mean, where can you really 'whisk' someone off to when you have a bare-bones-we-just-keep-the-lights-on-and-try-to-climb-this-mountain-of-debt budget?

Well ....

3 years is a long time to plan. Really, it's a long time to save. We spent almost none of that time actually planning. We knew from the word 'go' where we wanted to take her, we just didn't know how we were going to pay for it. I am happy to announce that through budget tightening, extra income acquisition (eBay, craigslist, surveys, cashcrate, inboxdollars, etc), collecting change, shorting the grocery budget, and doing odd jobs we have managed to both keep up with the debt snowball AND fund this BIG birthday vacay. *whew*!

Alright, already! Where are you going?!

Ok, ok ... we are departing on Thursday, southward bound to ...



That's right! We have a date with a mouse. We shall return (never? please? ha) on Sunday, 3/8. I will endeavor to blog from Orlando, assuming Be packs the laptop. If you don't hear from me, he probably left the computer at home, or I'm simply far too busy living up the not-so-wintery Florida weather and spending time with the most deserving woman in the world. To her, I am forever grateful.


Simply,

Em.

The Pinocchio of Bloggers ...

You know how Pinocchio asks all the time about being a 'real boy'? That's how I feel about blogging today. I never set out to be a 'real blogger'. I mostly wanted a place to share this crazy frugal life with a handful of my friends who both a: think me crazy for washing out ziplock bags and b: secretly want to be frugal-cool (... or not so secretly as in the case of my buddy WesO who thinks my breakout calculations of what dinner ingredients cost are fun ... nerds unite!). I never thought I'd be bloggy friends with a bunch of amazing people, or that I would participate in regular features like today's Gratituesday. Today brings the next big step ... a blog carnival.

If you follow me on facebook, you would have seen my status about entering the carnival yesterday. I entered the 164th edition of the Festival of Frugality hosted this week by Broke Grad Student, and my entry on the (not-so-traditional) way we reused our holiday wrapping paper this year was accepted for inclusion. If you're looking, it's second from the bottom, haha. Now, I'm not entirely sure how these bloggy carnivals work exactly. I have a small inclination that they accept everyone that writes anything at all related to the topic. I am ridiculously proud regardless.

Someday, I'll be a real blogger.


Simply,

Em.

Links All Around!

I could tell you that I'm posting links despite my impossible Sunday schedule, but really I simply have a giant list of great reads from an evening of sitting on my couch, feet up, trying to recover from the whirlwind sleepless reality of coaching my kids through a high school level state debate tournament. Yes, it's 7pm and I am still in my pajamas. Slacker, am I (and loving it).

Angela at Random Musings wrote what may (hopefully) become a new regular feature highlighting sweet local Michigan products. I love buying local, and feel very strongly about supporting the (absolutely horrendous) Michigan economy any way I can. I encourage you to buy local as well. Or if nothing local meets your fancy, buy Michigan instead. We could use the help.

The Happy Housewife had a paper control problem, and posts about remedying it with a binder system. I think everyone on the planet may have a paper control problem, and this post may actually be the solution. We had a near meltdown over not being able to find a certain stack of paper at this very house earlier today, and I may have to consider switching my 2 file crates smashed full of too many folders hidden under a table system over to something else. Binders ... now that would prevent me from having to buy an evil (and super ugly) filing cabinet.

There is also a Hot Breakfast Challenge going on at the HH. We are those people with a ton of basically free cereal on our shelves, and since I'm not the throwing things away for no reason kind, it would be difficult for us to abandon our mass storage of fiber-laden goodness in favor of buying other (new) things. In the future, I absolutely agree with the merits of eating a hot and healthy breakfast. In the present, we need to get through the rows of cold cereal first. So, in the name of at least being healthy by eating breakfast in the first place (something we often skip around here), we will be doing a Not Hot Breakfast Challenge of our own this month. Join in! Breakfast all around, hot or cold, in February.

You know those commercials on TV about how 'cool' HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) is? Yea, the ones put on and paid for by the 'Corn Council' or some equally entertaining and alliterative lobby group paid to find research to meet ideals rather than changing ideals based on research. Well, if you were at all compelled by them (the commercials), check out the recent article at The Good Human about mercury in HFCS. Eeeeeew, gross.

I love Sara and her fabulous blogging. I also love this snappy little number that she was doing a giveaway for last week. She is one snappy mama with wonderful taste in art and absolutely divine ideals. I *heart* her blog. You should too.


Sooooo, that's just the highlight of the sweet things I read this afternoon. There are tons more great posts in my reader I have yet to get through. Oh how I love having a blog reader so I don't miss all the great stuff when I'm not online. I hope you had a fab weekend, all.


Simply,

Em.

Difficulties Indeed.

I'm back!

What was supposedly a broken monitor or graphics card turned into a burned out power supply and a totally trashed motherboard. Of course, it took Be a couple days to figure this out, and then took me another couple days to decide what I was going to do about it. I mean, what's a frugal (read: mostly broke) girl to do? My options included buying a new motherboard and power supply (and graphics card ... because the motherboard killed the original one) or to buy a whole new CPU. I spent a lot of time weighing the options, looking at the long term impacts of each, checking out features, and complaining a LOT about not having my PC to work with. I not only blog from it, but also run another home business, teach high school kids, and go to school (still ...). All of those things require personal computing capabilities, and while I concur with those frugal headshakers out there that I could survive without my own operational computer by hitting up the school library or a public one, I knew that I at least had files I needed to retrieve from my (hopefully) OK hard drive.

So I thought.

And I thought some more.

(I need a lot of time to make decisions about spending money ... you should see me grocery shop ... takes for-ev-er)

And then all my thinking was for naught when Be walked in the house with a new CPU, gifted to us by a lovely someone whom I already adored. A huge huge huge huge thank you to them!

So, I'm back. I'm blogging with Vista now ... which isn't as weird as I thought it would be (the Vista, not the blogging). Just in time for me to get back, however, is an upcoming holiday from feeling bad for not posting (read: vacay-ish). I will be leaving Wednesday afternoon (-ish) for a state finals tournament with the kids I teach/coach that goes until late Saturday (hopefully, late means we did well). I will endeavor to blog, but more likely will be busy preparing my kids between rounds and the like. Know that I'm thinking of you, and of a ton of things I want to write about (including shoppping last weekend .... Me: 1, Walgreens, 0!) for you.

I will return ... I promise. As for Menu Monday, we have a menu but it's unlikely that anyone in this house will follow it while I'm gone. Pizza Rolls and freezer food for them, I guess.


Simply,

Em.


PS, while I'm gone head over to The Grocery Cart Challenge and check out the Keurig giveaway. I've used those machines before and they are rockin' cool. Now, to figure out how to fill your own pod thing and escape having to buy expensive refills ....

Weekend Recap

When one plans menus, one should always check if everything you need for a recipe is on hand. At the very least, that there is something that can be substituted lurking in the back of your pantry. One should not, however, plan to have chili only to realize Monday that both the tomatoes AND the black beans (or any beans ... except garbanzos) that you were convinced were plenty stocked have actually run dry. Ugh. I like to *think* I have a solid handle on what is or isn't hiding in the pantry, but this week between not checking and not making it to the grocery store until Saturday night (super late), we had to move some things around.

Monday ended up being venison ChiliMac Helper. Low, how I hate the box powdered magic meals, but somehow they still rescue me from time to time. I should just stop acquiring them (for free usually), but it's nights like Monday when I'm happy to have a handful of them.

Tuesday we were on menu mostly, except the family wanted mashed potatoes rather than au gratins. I also made a pot of herbs de provence rice to go with my make believe chikin tenders (I don't eat pork ... or meat, if I can help it ... mostly, ps).

Wednesday we had neither ground beef nor diced tomatoes. I had been planning on shopping Tuesday. Lesson learned: Plan your menu only around things you already have, rather than things you may or may not get to the store to pick up. So, instead we pulled out some freezer meatballs (oh thank you, freezer, for being the keeper of such wonderful surprises!) and build a quick red sauce for spaghetti. I turned a crusty loaf of french bread into garlic cheese bread and we called it good. Yum!

Thursday was supposed to be something ... I don't even know. When I called home to ask someone to take the meat out of the freezer (because I perpetually forget to do it ... our freezer is in the basement of an unattached garage ... can you blame me? out of sight = out of mind), I was informed that my mother was treating the family to take out Chinese. Hooray! Fried rice and lo mein for me, please. We still have leftovers, and I endeavor to think of *something* to do with all the extra white rice they sent us.

Friday and Saturday I was gone at work. I have no clue what they ate, but likely one part leftovers and one part drive thru if I know them well enough.

Sunday was supposed to be a roasted chicken. Yea. After being gone for two days, there wasn't so much a likelihood that I was going to do much of anything. I didn't even change out of my pjs. The boys decided on pork steaks and chicken breasts, potatoes au gratins, and another quick change french loaf turned garlic bread.

The moral of this week's story was flexibility. Sometimes juggling is required, and keeping an open mind keeps us out of the take out window. Stay tuned for the upcoming week's menu, and keep your fingers crossed that I actually go to the grocery store at some point.


Simply,

Em.

Happy (Day After) New Year!

New Year's Eve is a big deal at my house, primarily (ok, entirely) because it was on a New Year's Eve that I fell for the adorable Be. 8 years and counting, and I think he's a keeper so far. I had (semi-) intended on getting online yesterday to post some heroically eloquent goals/resolutions/summary/something post, but instead spent the day sleeping in and hanging out. It's a holiday, right? Holidays are for watching Iron Chef marathons and forgetting to cook dinner ... or at least mine was. Because of this (semi-) unintended hiatus, I don't exactly feel like it's the New Year yet ... like the new year's beginning has been put on hold because I didn't get my act together in time. Thank you world, for holding out in 2008 while I figure things out. I appreciate it, haha.

This would be a perfect segway into that blasted goals/resolutions/summary/something post, wouldn't it? Yes indeed, except ... I didn't write it yet. I have notes scribbled on an envelope, but rather than posting more, I have to take that envelope to the office of the district court and attempt to convince them the citation they gave me was bogus (long story ... ugh). Who schedules hearings on the 2nd day of the year, a Friday no less? My spidey sense tells me these will not be happy people that I'm going to see, not happy at all.

So, there's more coming, I promise. First, I have to go fight the man.


Simply,

Em.

Attitude is Simply Everything.

The Saturday before the holiday, we were doing laundry and preparing some snacks for a handful of friends intending to brave the blizzard to hang out in our basement for the annual gathering of our friends from college. Less than 10 minutes after rebooting the laundry (read: switching loads, for those non-household productivity nerds out there), the mud room grew intensely quiet. The washer was still running, but the dryer stood silent. I figured perhaps someone had set the timer to the air dry or fluff cycle mistakenly, but of course no such luck. Be fiddled with it for awhile, but without a brand new motor, there likely isn't hope for the old beast.

This is not the end of the world. Sure, we had a washer full of clothes that needed to be dried. Sure, Be was leaving in 2 days for a week of holiday festivities 4 states from here. Sure, we have 5 people's worth of laundry to do every week, but still ... not at all the end of the world. The easy solution would be to put the washer through an extra spin cycle and then hang the damp clothes on the line in the bathroom. (Yes, really, we have a clothesline in our bathroom ... it's kind of huge ... I love it.) Easy peasy, really. We have another dryer in the basement of the garage which needs a part from the appliance store to convert it from natural gas to propane, but that's easy enough to order. Be is mechanically inclined, and I wouldn't even have to call the appliance company. Easy enough, right?

Right. The story should be over. Girl's dryer breaks, boy orders part, girl hangs laundry on the already established laundry line in interim, boy replaces part, girl resumes using dryer. That's not so complicated is it? Or, in my world, it could go something like girl's dryer breaks, girl's family has giant fit, boy neglects to order part, girl continues to suggest hanging laundry on line, girl's family throws tantrum about stiff jeans and scratchy towels and high tails it to the laundromat to PAY for both washing AND drying.

Ugh. I, in turn, am protesting. I live with all adults. They make adult decisions, no matter how I try to influence them. 3/5 of them are at this very moment at the laundromat pumping what will likely equal a wee fortune in quarters into the machines because they insist that line drying is either impossible, impractical, or the root cause of several contagious diseases (work and effort are on the list). Add that pile of quarters to the cost of snacks and sodas that inevitably comes with sitting bored in a laundromat attached to a gas station watching your clothes spin around, and my frustration only grows.

Ugh.

I, the grateful, simple, and frugal blogger will not profess to perfection. I have not always been all three of those things. I will confess to crimes of ingratitude, intense complexity, and frivolity with both money and resources in my past (and occasionally my present ... but I'm trying, I swear!). What I don't understand, though, is throwing away money when there are easy, simple, and FREE options available. Sure, line dried clothes are not Snuggle-brand soft, but neither are the clothes that come out of our regular dryer. Today, although I am ever grateful for the people that make up my family, I am having a hard time understanding them.

Why is it so impossible to consider just making do with what you have?

Likely because we no longer live in a society that values making do, thriftiness, or resource ingenuity. They are products (as am I, really) of a "right-now-I-must-have-everything-I-want-and-more" generation full of clutter, unending advertisement, and ever faster standards of production and efficiency. Can I blame them, then, for wanting to continue using the modern conveniences they're so used to? Sure I can. The environment one is a product of may well be an influence, but it is not the only one. The attitude with which one approaches life, and the things that make it life (inconveniences, curves in the road, stumbling blocks all come to mind) is really the key.

That attitude is what makes automatic and unconditional gratitude different than ingratitude. It's what makes simplicity different from clutter and chaos. That attitude is what makes frugality different from wastefulness, and what breeds contentment from the have rather than the have not. I am more committed to that attitude than ever as we begin this new year, and you can look forward to GSF continuing to be a haven for the like-minded.

In the meantime, I'm going to be grateful I'm not sitting on some hard formica benches paying money to watch my clothes dry. Until next time, I'm ...

Simply,

Em.

Instant Gratitude ... just add water.

I am not a fan of snow, never have been and likely never will be. It's cold and slickery. It keeps me bound up in the house for months at a time, it drives away the sunshine, and it makes me keep all the windows shut (thus preventing fresh breezes ... one of my favorite things). Never, really, are you likely to hear me say that I'm grateful for snow (no, not even for a white xmas ... bah humbug).

Today, is different.

After 7+ hours spent in the basement mopping up bucket upon bucket of water as the 50 degree temperatures melted the 4 foot drifts of snow in front of our house, I am on the brink of a change of heart. Our basement (where I keep my shelves and shelves of stockpiles by the way), has been attacked by the puddling and pooling liquid horror that is an unseasonal (and massive) snow melt. We have a tiny pump sunken in a hole under the floor that attempts to prevent the water from spilling out into the main room, but it's not so much doing the trick today with 2 months worth of snow melting like magic in a matter of hours.

Today, I would be very grateful if it were to snow ... or freeze ... subarctic style freezing, please. I am grateful for a (mostly) willing family of moppers, and for the water problem being in the basement rather than say ... falling from the ceiling.

I sure wish it would snow, though ...


Simply,

Em

Frugal Ingenuity

The boys (Be and my brother) have long wanted gym/exercise equipment at our house, or a gym membership. Neither of these things are in our budget, nor will they likely ever be. Instead of resigning themselves to be gym equipment-less for life, they went about creating their own while home together last weekend.

One roll of high strength rope, 2 very basic pulleys, a piece of PVC pipe, and a concrete block later, they have created an entire exercise regimen based on basic leverage and strengthening systems. We already had the concrete block and the PVC pipe, the rope and pulleys were picked up at Tractor Supply for $29. They also used the rope to make jump ropes, and have a ton leftover for future endeavors of frugal creativity. I haven't been so impressed since they built an entire wall of shelves in the basement from only the scrap wood from a set of box springs.

They often think that my frugal grocery shopping, meal planning, wacky food combos, and preserving efforts are a little crazy. To be quite honest, if I let the boys have their way, I think we would eat $4-5 frozen pizzas and $18 steaks. It would seem, though, even amid their bawking and doubt they have caught the frugal bug themselves. It may be that they've simply resigned themselves to us not having money for excesses, but I like to believe from the excitement and pride on their faces that maybe they are starting to think frugality is cool. I'm grateful for their ingenuity and spirit regardless.

Now, off to dehydrate more tomatoes. Keep your fingers crossed that the 40 or so green as grass in my garden will turn before it freezes.


Simply,

Em.

Good Deal Alert ...

Run, do not walk, to Meijer.

They're running a 10 for 10 (11th free) sale, of course. That's not entirely amazing or unusual. What's awesome is that Breyer's Ice Cream (pints) are included! A pint of some pretty fab ice cream for 90cents when it's all said and done. Yay! I already stuffed my freezer with them this afternoon, and B has already polished off a solid portion of the Butter Pecan collection.


In other news, I'm still running behind. I haven't done the Top 'O the Month post yet, or the picture posts about our gardening adventure, or the menu, or the recaps ... ugh. We've been eating on the fly here. I've been working like a crazy person and doing a great deal of chauffering when not working, so I'm spending almost no time online these days. I don't mean to neglect you, dear frugal blog readers. I'm trying to manage my time a bit better in the upcoming weeks, but there are new and ever changing challenges to that goal on a daily basis. Things are ridiculous sometimes.

Ah well, there's always ice cream. Mmmmm, black cherry.


Simply,

Em.