2022 Frugal Challenge

Tonight I was so bored I pooped in a box. Free and makes for an entertaining story, no?

(Ok, so it was one of those "skip-the-colonoscopy" kits... and you don't poop IN the box, you just ship it away in a box....) H is jealous-- because he already has early-stage prostate cancer, he has to get checked the "old fashioned" way... 🤣 🤣 🤣 Of all the things we tease each other about, I never thought, "I get to poop in a box and you don't!" would ever make the list...

So yeah, big excitement tomorrow is that I get to mail a box of poop. I've sent a lot of amusing care packages over the years, but this one in a first... but it's technically a medical necessity, so I don't feel bad breaking quarantine to do the quick drop off...

Because... oh yeah... I'm perfectly-healthy-but-quarantined... AGAIN!!!

This time it's DD14 who has popped positive. We've all been vaccinated, and hers was actually the most recent just a few months ago, but there ya have it! DD18 is feeling sick, too, but her test came back negative. H spends all his time in his man-cave, so we are just keeping him holed-up in there so he can start school next week without worries... He and DD14 never leave their respective caves (on different floors of the house) except for food, so I consider them separated enough.

If you're healthy but taking care of a sick person, it sucks extra-bad, because they are released from quarantine when (a)the symptoms are gone (b)no fever for 3 days (c) AND it has been 10 days since onset of symptoms. For the healthy caregiver, you are quarantined 5 days after your last exposure... which is their 10th day...

That's right... get sick= grounded for 10 days. Stay healthy= grounded for 15 days... (Or basically move out, which is essentially what we are doing for H so he doesn't miss his start of classes. As long as they are feeling better, it looks like both girls should be cleared to go back to school on Monday, but time will tell.

Meanwhile, I have mis-placed my glasses, so I can't be tempted to go out right now anyway! I think the universe is telling me something here... ;P

So yeah, grounded except for a quick drive to the UPS store2 miles from here for mailing of a poop box. My life is fascincating, no? 🤣🤣🤣🤣 But again, at least it's free... 😁

I'm so bored I may actually clean... ;P

jettsmom said:

It's been sitting here almost a year now.

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If it's been that long, his doctor will not be looking for results anymore... so if he does decide to do it, remind him to (a) check the expiration date on the box (yep, poop boxes expire...) and (b)contact his provider to find out the results.

And BROCOMOLI is adorable... but I wouldn't want to eat it

rujerro said:

DH found chickens to smoke.

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I read this and my first thought was my dumb featherbabies with cigarettes hanging out of their mouths... 🤣

I am glad to hear the strike is over... so much stress is terrible!

In the news here... the state dept of health has LOST.THEIR.DAMNED.MINDS!!! DD14 is still symptomatic and feeling like crap, but based on the date of her first symptoms, they cleared her to end isolation today. This is new-- we also got notified through the schools that kids only have to isolate for 5 days now-- either from their first symptoms, or from the date of the test if they are asymptomatic (so again, healthy kids are grounded longer than sick ones, since the tests are hard to get...)

Our plan is still to send her back Monday, IF she is no longer feeling like death... and when they called to ask about her yesterday, the only guidance they gave for the rest of the family was "listen to your body... if you feel sick, don't go to any family gatherings or things..." NOTHING at all about work, or shopping, licking old people... etc... gee, I wonder why we've been having numbers above10k daily lately...

I'm not telling the family about the release from quarantine-- they don't need to know. We are going to sit here like good little bunnies and not breathe on people until the cooties are under control. End.of.story...

Meanwhile, I have been reading a ton-- finally read the Percy Jackson Quintet. Not interesting enough to bother with all the spin-offs... Read the Maze Runner, it sucked so bad that I read the synopsis for the rest of that series and decided it's not worth my time. (I've tried to read most of the bigger YA series as they have come out-- twillight, shadowhunters, hunger games, divergent, the giver, etc...-- many are very well written and it helps me understand a LITTLE of what is going through my kids' heads... but damn, that series is just crappy. I can't believe it was popular enough to spawn TWO movies...

So, tired of reading about dramatic teenagers dying and/or saving the world, I started a fluffy little piece, but it is a bit TOO fluffy... might have to go back and re-read some favorites that I know are good...

dlrcpa said:

Need to do laundry just for 3 odd socks that did not get washed with their mates.

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Lately, I have been trying to safety pin all my socks together... I use very small pins and just leave it there in one of the cuffs, then pin them back together as soon as I take them off. It seems to be working so far, and if I am ever out-and-about and need a pin, I have one! The rest of the family is not adopting this new habit yet, so in addition to making sock matching obsolete (for me) it's been helping me sort, because I just say "Nope, not mine!" (Which is not to say that the teens don't steal my socks anyway... grrrrr!!)

Today has been a strange day... good for the most part, but at the same time, harder than it needed to be (meaning I am probably MAKING it harder than it has to be.)...

Today after a productive morning, I was out doing errands with DD18, and when we pulled up to a corner where there is often a younger homeless woman, I saw that someone had written on the wood post, in sharpie, RIP and her name. I never knew her last name before, but now I know that she died in November (which would explain why I haven't seen her since before Christmas.) With that much, I was able to search and confirm it really was who I was thinking of. Reading between the lines it was probably a drug overdose... And while it has not hit me like a "ton of bricks," it is hitting me like a cinderblock or two... the kind with sharp raggedy edges.

Every time she'd disappear for a while, I'd hope she'd found a better situation. But now, all that is left is her name in sharpie on "her corner." I appreciate whoever did that much (probably her boyfriend,) and now all that is left is to hope that he finds someone to take care of their dog for a while and gets himself whatever help he needs.

Assessing this logically, I feel guilty that I have been wondering when I'd see her again, while she's been dead for over two months. I feel worried for her dog (her boyfriend can make his own choices, the dog cannot.) And it scares me, because I worry that something similar could happen to DD18 if she goes manic and runs off-- at this point there is nothing legally I could do to stop her.

But DD18 was with me today and she had talked to this lady in the past, too. In fact, her first question was "what about the dog?" So that led to a(nother) conversation about good choices.

I am not cooking tonight, so score one for the convenience foods I just loaded back into the newly-defrosted deep freezer. H can handle baking Stouffers Mac N Cheese. I had just bought some supplies to start a new project, but now I won't do that tonight. I am not exactly superstitious, but I don't want the very center of a massive project I'll be doing for months to come to be started in a moment of sadness.

RIP, Dear Erica.

After doing a little more sleuthing on the woman I mentioned, I remain sad, but an important difference is that DD18 has a family that doesn't give a flying .... about mental health stigma and she has a good care team. It means that she is on the right meds, has medical records that show her history (important if she needs to apply for assistance down the road,) and understands that she has a medical condition that is nothing to be ashamed of (but is still responsible for her choices.)

However, this week I am doing fierce-and-mighty-battle with her (and DD14's) school.

DD18 only goes to school every-other day because of her chronic health, so she returns tomorrow. DD14 goes every day, but was still too sick to return today and is basically having to return tomorrow no matter how bad she feels because the department of health just changed the rules to 5 days... so technically she was cleared Friday afternoon.

The reason this is a problem is that the second quarter/1st semester both end this Friday, and both girls have a LOT of work that can only be made up in class (tests they aren't prepared for, etc.) For DD18, honestly, if we can just get her above failing, we'll call it good. Our goal is graduation, not honor roll-- that's just where we are right now...

But DD14 had all A's except for 1 B before she got sick... and now she has a D in one class and C's in several others. She has to make up a test that she doesn't feel ready for, plus finals (they call them "quarterly assessments" these days...) I contacted the school to ask about getting them an extension so they don't have to do a week+ worth of work in 2 days+2short days (1 day+ 1 short day for DD18) and the school was like "They have to talk to each teacher and work that out."

!!??!! I am livid, but waiting to see what "each teacher" says tomorrow before I go total "KAREN" on the school. The best part is when the school was like "Why didn't you report this (DD14's positive test) sooner?" -- Uh, because we didn't get the results until Thursday, when y'all were closed for weather, and Friday I was distracted trying to keep her alive?... (yet that is the day the health department cleared her to end isolation...)

Ergh... For DD18, we just want her to pass, then we'll try again next semester... but DD14 really put a lot of work in this semester, and if all of that is wasted because of red tape and administrative "it was all online" attitude ( (a) no it wasn't (b)she was SICK!!! ) I worry that it will ruin her motivation for the future. Back when I went to that SAME SCHOOL, you got an incomplete "I" and they changed the grades after you had a reasonable time to catch up, and that was POLICY, not "each teacher can decide."

Thanks for letting me vent!

Y'all... get this...

DD18 had a sore throat yesterday and NOW has a positive covid test and cannot go back to school before the marking period ends. Her teachers have excused her from in-person testing, but she has to turn ALL her other work before the end of the day of Friday, including math assignments that she wasn't in school to learn how to do. Because who doesn't want to teach themselves college algebra while fighting off back-to-back plagues-- along with all her regularly-scheduled health issues.

They tried to tell me that DD14 (who feels fine, is more than 10 days past onset, and has a letter of clearance from the health department) shouldn't be in school either... then the snippy nurse said "I'm emailing her teachers... if she starts coughing at all, she has to leave." (Did I mention that DD14 CAUGHT this in school???) We won that argument for now and she is back in class (not coughing) and will see all of her teachers today to figure out what it will take to fix her grades. If they kick her out after that, at least she knows what she needs to do.

So H will continue living the bachelor life on the other floor of the house to keep him healthy. I remain healthy but now my "5 days after they are better, you can come out" clock has started over... But we have everything we need, H can run errands as needed, and I was just going to be home studying for my boards anyway. So it is annoying, but not the end of the world. Imagine how strong my immune system is getting!!! 🤣

PS- In unrelated news, I am going to redecorate the entire house.

Hello Frugals!

Contrary Housewife said:

More seed catalogs coming in the mail. Time to take stock of what I have and start figuring out this year's garden.

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I have been thinking (and saying) lately that I need to get planning on the garden... and y'all are definitely reinforcing that! I feel behind! Now that the kids are older (14 and 18) I want them fully involved in the planning, with their own spaces, and even investing some of their own money... we are AWFUL about planning huge, planting big, then neglecting it all once the weather gets gross...

We are DEFINITELY investing in an electric mower this year!!! The gas powered ones just don't hold up to the steaminess around here (vapor lock and water getting into the gas every derned season...) H wants a battery-powered one so we don't have to deal with a cord... I know his track record with remembering to charge cordless things and would prefer the cord... either way, we need something...

jettsmom said:

We've been watching a lot of RV videos. Everyone seems to name their RVs. I'll just call it the camper van.

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You are right, I see it all the time (there is a campground not far from here where my mom is currently residing.) Lately a lot of them have their @ and #hashtags painted on the side, too, so that you can "follow their adventures." <sigh> everybody wants to be a blogger...

I am hoping to make it out to the RV show here on the 18th... we are not looking to buy yet, and almost-definitely not new, but I thought it would be a fun way to get started on the research (and it's nice to dream...) I am looking at doing some travel nursing starting summer of 25, and would like to take an RV for that (when the locations are temperate enough.) So there's plenty of time to plot and plan.

Meanwhile, I'll be stalking YOUR adventures (Even if you don't have an @ or a # 🤣)

Contrary Housewife said:

They had bok choy at the grocery store this week and it makes a good soup.

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Yeppers, very good in soup... I bought some last week and still haven't used it up, but we have a ton of leftover spaghetti noodles, too, so I'm thinking veggie lo mein... The stalks would be good for that, then the leafier parts in a soup... good thinking CH!!!

Grammarbug said:

Going to make arroz con polo for dinner using cauliflower rice. I’m not telling anyone what it is.

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You'll have to let us know how that goes! H hates most vegetables, including cauliflower, even when I try to disguise it.

Hello Frugals!

I am TIRED!!!

Yesterday I did some necessary home repairs and today was so pretty I got out and did some clean-up in the back yard (not the front, our cross-street neighbors are jerks, and it makes me giggle knowing my still-unraked leaves bother them!!!) I wish I could rest tomorrow with the prediction of snow, but still soooooo much to do around here! No rest for the wicked!

I think we have settled on a paint color for the kitchen-- still green, but lighter than before. Sage-green is super trendy right now, so I am trying to avoid it. Don't know when I'll actually get to painting, but that is a step in the right direction...
Our refrigerator died on us two days ago (we have a mini-fridge so we are getting by.) The cost to repair it was going to be $400-1000 depending on the diagnosis, so with apologies to the planet, we are just buying a new one... H wants to replace the oven and dishwasher, too (both not working right) and I have agreed, but those can wait for a good sale... the fridge not so much... So they are bringing it Wednesday and hauling off the old one, then installing it on Thursday... so I am grateful for my deep freezer to get us through the next few days.

Unrelated:
I encountered a strange thing today... Outside the local grocery, a club (church-based, maybe?) of teenagers were handing out flyers and collecting food donations for the poor-- nothing weird there, but... they were collecting staples like flour, sugar, oil, and pasta... with intention of SHIPPING IT TO SOUTH AMERICA...

I applaud their generous intentions, but... the shipping costs would far exceed the value of the products (which are available locally in the countries on their list...) Anyway, it struck me as a case of all heart and no brain... I must be getting cranky in my old age 😜

Our new fridge was delivered today and the old one hauled away. Hooray! Of course the old one didn't die until just after I'd stocked up on more stuff than would fit in our little mini fridge... grr... We could afford the replacement out of savings, but I don't have to like it!!!

This one is a tad smaller than the old one and is on wheels, which will make cleaning SO much easier! And I will be able to pull it out to paint behind it if I want when I paint the kitchen imminently.

It will take a little getting used to there being an extra drawer where we used to have a shelf, and the shelves aren't really adjustable like the old one, but oh well.

H hooked up the water supply line himself so that we don't have to pay $130 for someone else to come do it... now just waiting to make sure the ice maker kicks on (the manual says give it 24 hours for the first batch, which is odd, but whatever...)

TBH, it's not the worst thing that I was FORCED to discard a lot of fridge-door condiments... It keeps me honest about things being old "but still good!!!" I remember 20 years ago cooking at MIL's old house, and pulling a 20+ year old brown-and-yellow can of dried ginger out of her cabinet-- it had no smell. It had completely decomposed... I don't know when I would have ever used more of that Thai chili paste on the bottom shelf, but derned if I was gonna throw it away!!! 🤣

Weather is looking pleasant-for-February for the next few days, so I am hoping to get out to the yard a bit... but I FINALLY got my test date for my nursing license exam, so I OUGHT to be studying... Meanwhile, I am excited for Friday because we are planning to go to an RV show and start daydreaming about my future travel-trailer. So lots going on here, none of it very exciting unless you're me 😁🤣

Today H and I went to the RV show at the state fairgounds. It was fun to wander through all the different models and daydream. We will still need to spend years researching and negotiating before we settle on anything... he'd buy the 50-ft tour bus with a fireplace if he could, while I could be happy with a well-designed 20ft. Luckily I don't need it for years yet (if at all) so plenty of time.

The new models are definitely beautiful and a BIG departure from the interiors of 10+ years ago-- I still wouldn't rule out something a little older that can be "made-over" as long as it is solid. I was SHOCKED to discover that most of the things I saw today have only a TWO YEAR warranty... and I have seen a couple of 4 y.o. models for sale used that already show water damage. There's a cautionary tale!!!

Anyway, we got in for free, so the cost was just gas and (really overpriced) hot dogs.

Now I am sitting here, post-nap, trying to decide if it is worth it to make dinner (H is out and the kids already snacked heavily...)

Tomorrow I am supposed to go to Philly with Sis and Niece18 to tour the college she wants to go to... I'm not feeling it. My soul says "go on the adventure! pack a cooler! Bake muffins and brownies and cornish pasties! It will be fun!" The rest of me is saying "meh." I will probably go, but I don't know if I have baking in me tonight... I made some iced tea and am freezing it to drink on the drive. That might be the extent of my DIY frugality for this trip... 😜

Good morning, Frugals!!!

The kids are off for Presidents' Day today, so we all got to sleep in (except for H who has something at the college.) I'll be waking them up in a bit to help out in the yard. It will be nice (by February standards) today, but there is rain in the forecast for the next few days, so we'd better do what we can now. (She says as she sits cozily on the couch under a blanket, not moving at all...

I am planning pulled pork in the crockpot for dinner tonight, then we can use the leftovers tomorrow for street tacos as part of our "Ultimate Taco Tuesday" observance.

josantoro said:

before buying an RV... it can be a nightmare to get it fixed. Unlike a car that you could take back to the dealer, each component of an RV is covered by a different warranty. The chassis, the AC, the appliances, etc. And you could be waiting months to get something fixed.

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I hear ya!!! My mom lives in hers full-time and works at the campground, so I hear not only her stories but things that happen to some of the more honest campers (probably wayyyyy more stories we never hear!) She has good work-camper neighbors who help her with little fixes and give her advice, but years ago before she was using it full-time, I had to put it in for repairs and those ^%%* people took over SIX months to fix it!!! They acted like they were doing us a favor by storing it...

Because I have time before I am looking to buy, I want to watch the specs on the specific model H and I liked... see what it looks like 3 years later, what the depreciation is, etc. I have a niece who has an older trailer she is work-camping in as well, next door to Mom... I have a feeling that when they both are ready to quit that life, they might try to convince me to buy hers-- which would be the makeover route... (But TBH, unless it was practically free, I don't think I'd want to that particular trailer.)

Ok, here's me getting up and getting moving... really... any second now...

Have a great day, y'all!!!!

Even though "Disaster Preparedness Month" is in September, with the news being the way it is, I have spent the last day or two topping up my "hurricane supplies" and that sort of thing. I don't EVER want to spend March (or any other month) worrying about idiots creating toilet paper shortages ever again... In addition to regular start-of-the-month planning and shopping, I am restocking/rotating our cans, making sure both bathrooms have TP plus ONE spare pack in stash, making sure we have a small stash of small-bills cash, and making sure our important documents are safe-but-accessible. Tomorrow I'm hoping to do the "big shop" of the month, and then hopefully that will be enough to shut up my anxiety.

Meanwhile, DD18 has been running me ragged... all she wants to do is play her games and she likes working her weekend job, but she doesn't want to do any of her school, even though it is just 3 hours every-other day... She wants to flex her "I'm an adult" muscles, but she has been so unstable lately that we have to balance letting her fly with keeping her safe. But tonight, she shut things down with minimal fuss, took her medicine, and I will go check on her in a minute to make sure she is not on her phone all night... <fingers crossed...>

Grammarbug said:

getting my nails done today.... Need to soak some of my seeds for planting this weekend.

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Heehee!!! These two NEVER go together in my world!!! Even with gloves I manage to get my nails grody even THINKING about the garden! 🤣

josantoro said:

Momentous occasion the other day. I used up the last of a roll of wax paper, that I figure I have had since about 1980.

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Ok, I'll bite... was it like a giant Sam's Club thing? Or do you just not use it much? (Or both?)

jettsmom said:

Dh said we needed eggs, so I bought 3 dozen. Came home and found the 18ct package in the fridge was almost full. He used the last of the other package, so we needed more. 🙄

I also want to try making bread. We never let it cool long enough to see how it slices for toast or sandwiches. Dh just comes in and hacks a big piece off of it, so I never know if it will work.

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Jettsmom-- BTDT with the eggs!!! I found them for $0.25/doz once years ago and bought dozens and dozens... If you are worried about using them up in time, what I did was crack them six at a time, scramble them, then freeze them like that (but you could do whatever quantity works for you... six was right for 2 adults/2 littles at the time for us...) then for cooking you can use 1/4 thawed eggs for 1 egg in a recipe. Otherwise, if you put the eggs in cold water and they float, they have gone bad, otherwise they are fine (if they stand up on end, but don't float, they are fine, just not super-fresh.)

The floating trick has saved me a couple of times when our chickens get clever and we find a little clutch somewhere and we don't know how old the eggs are! 🤣 I am unreasonably jealous of you with all those eggshells for your garden!!! 😁

Good luck with the bread. An OLD trick I learned (that was OLD when I learned it 30+ years ago) is that if you want the bread to be soft like store-bought sandwich bread, you wrap it in a clean dishcloth as soon as it comes out of the oven. I like it with the crusts, but this is from the olden days of "homemade is for the poor, convenience and store-bought is a status symbol." How the times have changed!!! Right up there with "imported" used to be expensive and "local" was cheap! 🤣

Peg- Best wishes for your husband's scan-- I hope it's nothing serious! Great find on the chairs! I look forward to having tablescapes again some year... for now the table is an all-purpose work-center, currently strewn with my seeding mess...

Today was gorgeous and tomorrow's prediction looks even better, so I got some work done in the back yard and have plans for more tomorrow, as well as a preliminary visit to "my" garden at the college (it's an herb bed that has been neglected for years, so I started surreptitiously messing with it a few years ago and haven't been arrested yet...)

A bittersweet moment (another one...) today as I started the process of dismantling the kids' trampoline. We've had it for 10+ years, and they agree that it's time to let it go (I'm mostly concerned about the physical safety at this point...) Still lots to do, but I hope to get it done quickly... like ripping off a band-aid!!! 😥

Oh, and just in case my hair wasn't already turning white... H announced in passing yesterday that the in-laws want to come up from NC in June for DD18's graduation. Just what I needed, 90 days to get the house in inspection order while expanding the garden, taking my licensing exam, getting a job, and-- oh yeah-- trying to make sure the kid even PASSES and DOES GRADUATE... no worries... (I don't think there's an emoji for what I'm feeling) ;P

Very trying day today... DD14 said something mean on her way out the door this morning, not too unusual, but it was rooted in an actual frustration regarding fair division of chores around here, so I tried to have a family meeting about it-- we'll see if there is any improvement, or if it was just a waste of 45 minutes of everyone venting at each other...

Meanwhile, I had to (as gently as possible) tell my sister that I cannot co-sign student loans for my niece to attend the college she was accepted to. It was hard to say no, and doubtless even harder for her to ask-- but after the financial aid it is still about $40k for the first year alone... (and a 4-5 year program, do that math.) I doubt I would even be approved for that kind of money, but if I was, it would be like an unsecured mortgage on my credit report for decades to come even if she DID make her payments and not default-- and if either of my daughters needed me to co-sign for them in the next few years, I would already be overextended...

It is a crappy feeling, feeling like I have let them down, but I just can't do this. Realistically, I don't see how anyone in the family can help with that level of financing-- we are NOT that kind of family... It sucks that she has this dream and it is not looking like it will work... and that is painful for her and therefore painful for the rest of us... but it is reality...

Thanks, y'all, for the support!

I didn't accomplish much today with the kids having a short day at school and a few errands needing to be done... I would have liked to do more (trying to combine trips to save gas,) but the momentum wore off pretty quickly. DD14 was still emotionally all over the place and wanting cuddles between screaming at me... yay for hormones... But one of our stops was Michaels, and she was able to pick up some craft supplies with her Christmas gift card-- so something for her to spend energy on that cost me zero dollars... She realizes she's being unreasonable, by the way, she just has trouble controlling it in the moment.

The crazy wind two days ago knocked down a section of the neighbors (absolutely decrepit, literally rotten in places) fence. They have a pool so they are required by state law to have a privacy fence. I have offered to pay to repair it before, but the old man was a big jerk about it. So I guess I'll just tack a section of chicken wire across the 8 foot opening to keep my dumb birds off his property until he decides to do something about it. Classy, right? I could easily fix it for under $100, but I'd have to be on his side of the property line to do it, and that would require talking to him, so no.

We have a lot of rain in the forecast for tomorrow, and I am honestly looking forward to it so that I have an excuse to not do all the outside work that I haven't been doing anyway 🤣 Tentative plans include DD18 and I having a study date at either the Barnes and Noble cafe or Panera... or both... we both have a LOT of studying to do... 😜