Thrifting Finds #54: Step by Step!

Hi!

Once again, there was diddlysquat in the thrifts this week, though I did manage to pick up something tasty for someone else.

Hubs took off work all last week, and I was off Thursday and Friday.  We did a lot of maintenance-type stuff--got our hair cut, had our eyes examined, got a marriage license :).  That sort of thing.  I got waylaid by a migraine on Friday (I could feel it coming on and between having my pupils dilated and that bright light shining at me, well, that didn't make it any better), but by Saturday I had pretty much bounced back.  Thank you, Imitrex.

Since we missed our usual Sunday rounds last week, Hubs and I decided to make up for it on Thursday.

Is Thursday some big thrifting day?  The stores were packed, despite not having any special sales or anything.  And it was all of them, not just one or two.  They're not that busy on the weekend.  Yeesh.

Didn't find anything, though.  Nothing even slightly tempting, darnit.

So since we already did our usual rounds, we decided to head up to Hanover, PA yesterday to hit a couple of Goodwills and the Community Aid(??) thrift store.  I only found one item, one that probably needs a bit of an explanation.

I have a friend at work who just got promoted and is a HUGE New Kids on the Block fan. I mean, a major major fan.  So when I found this on the shelf, well, buying it was a no-brainer:

1.  New Kids on the Block game!  I had a moment of unease when I realized that I really don't know one boy band from another, and that these dudes might be the wrong ones.  But then I kind of recognized one of the guys from a picture over her desk and figured these dudes were the right dudes.  They also had a NKOTB (that's what people In The Know call them, apparently) lunch box, but I thought that might be overkill.

And that's it, kiddies.  Nothing for your ol' Uncle Veg, nothing for the Hubster.  On the other hand, who knows what we'll find next week, right?  It could be anything!

In Other News Department:  I finally got my FreedomPop phone on Friday.  It's a little early yet to make a final decision, but everything seems okay so far.  Not fabulous, okay.  Which, given the cost, is still pretty good.  I've found that with every new phone I've had, there is a teething period that you need to get through before making a final decision.  I'm going to live with this for a while and see what happens.

Due to the lack of really cool thrifted finds, I am linking up rather shame-facedly with Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting Finds #53: Yeah, I got nothin'

To get right to the point, I found squaddoo this weekend.  We made a few stops on Saturday but nothing good turned up.  Sunday being Easter, the thrifts were closed.

Which is a shame, actually, because Hubs and I went to Bro's for Easter dinner and passed by a Goodwill we had never been to before.  Dang.  Always like to discover a new thrift and unfortunately, we don't get up to that neck of the woods very often.

So yeah.  The only thing interesting enough to report is what happened on April 15.  Tax Day dawned gray and gloomy, which only seems appropriate, no?  The wind blew, the rain...rained.  All in all it was the kind of weather I like (really), until Hubs came in from the balcony to announce that it was snowing.

On April 15.

Snow.

Yeah.

So the next morning, I got to scrape off the cars one more time because why should our weather be normal?

Anyway, all of us here at the Fondue Corporate Offices hope you all had a wonderful Easter and hopefully we'll return next week with some fabulous finds.

Oh. Almost forgot to mention that I tried my hand at making some peanut butter fudge.  Hubby's reaction:  "Shame on you for making me taste that!"  I took half to Bro's house and I'm betting his half isn't going to last any longer than ours.  The fudge turned out to be the exact taste and texture of the inside of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.  Next time, I'm dipping the squares in milk chocolate.

Basho sez "Happy Easter!"

Linking up rather shamefacedly with   Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting Finds--Now With 20% More Vintage Linens!

Here's something different:  I'm not going to start off by complaining about the weather!  It was really quite lovely this weekend, if a little humid.  Turned on the ceiling fans because I absolutely refuse to turn on the AC in April.

So.  We hit our usual spots, as well as a flea market.  Can't tell you how long it's been since we went to one.  The thrifts all seemed to be overflowing with merchandise this weekend--full shelves and unshelved carts all over the place.

And yet somehow there was nothing worth buying.  I almost got a new decanter for my mouthwash, but it was marked $8.00, which was about $7.00 more than it was worth.

Well, there was almost nothing worth buying.  I did get a couple of things, including the above-mentioned vintage linen.  Oh, and there was an Avon lady at the flea market, so I managed to scoop up 10 tubes of the hand cream that Hubby likes at two bucks a pop.  It was worth stopping just for that.  No picture, because who wants to look at new hand cream?

Here's what I got:

1.  Bob Newhart!  Yeah, I'm pretty sure I said sometime back that I wasn't going to buy any more records. But c'mon--this is Bob Newhart.  Unfortunately, it's not the album with the bit about the Grace L. Ferguson Airline and Storm Door Company, but it'll still be good.  Rescue Mission Thrift, $1.00

2.  Vintage Tablecloth!  Christmas tablecloth, no less!  My first!  I can honestly say that this is my first-ever sighting of a vintage tablecloth, much less a Christmas one.  It had some pretty bad stains, but most of them came out with an overnight soak in Oxyclean and Biz.  There are a couple of "shadows" still, but I think a little Spray & Wash and another trip through the washer ought to take care of the problem.  I made the rookie mistake of not unfolding it and checking for damage but luckily, there was none.  I don't think it'll fit my dining room table but on the other hand, there isn't a tablecloth made that will fit it.  So I'll just deal with it.  No tag, so I don't know who made it.  Flea market, $5.00

And that's it for the purchases this weekend.

In Other News:  Your ol' Uncle Veg had a bit of an adventure this past week.  Okay, it wasn't much of an adventure, but you know how I live--anything out of the ordinary is an adventure.  Anyhoo, I got to do a taste test for a spice company!  I don't know if I'm supposed to mention the company or not, but I live in Maryland and it's a major spice company, so do the math.  Basically, I got paid 30 clams to eat two chicken tenders.  Can't say I cared much for either one, but the money was good.  

Edit:  If you're interested, you can sign up here: :  https://mccormickconsumertesting.at-hand.net/tqm/AppForm.aspx

I love doing this kind of thing.  A few years back, I was on a consumer panel for a major power tool manufacturer (again, this is Maryland, so put 2 and 2 together) about rechargeable vacuum cleaners.  I can't remember if I got paid or not, but I definitely walked out with a very fancy Dustbuster, and they also sent me one of those rechargeable jump starters that I put in Hubby's trunk because I worry about him.

Thriftiness Update:  You may remember from last week that I've begun a program of belt-tightening.  Here's the update so far:

Newspaper:  We have officially started our $10/year Wednesday 'n Weekend subscription.  Of course, the old subscription hasn't expired yet, so we're getting doubles.  Which is fine on Sunday, because it means double coupons.

FIOS:  This was kind of a nightmare, but what do you expect from Verizon?  I successfully cancelled our TV service and when I did, the woman I spoke to said "Oh.  Looks like I saved you another $5.00 a month.  I'm not sure why..."  Okay, that's fine by me.  I also asked to have the speed of our Interwebz access bumped up and supposedly that went through as well.  And yet somehow I managed to still save $15.00 a month.

Well, it turns out that the Interwebz upgrade actually didn't happen, which explains the savings.  When I called to get it bumped up, the woman said it would add 10 bucks a month to the bill, which is exactly what I expected.

Until she told me that her system was adding 20 bucks a month to the bill.  Even though it should only have cost 10.  She was understandably confused, yet didn't seem at all motivated to find and fix the problem.  So I left things as they are and for the time being, I'll enjoy my $15.00 a month savings.  I may revisit this in the future, but it's fine the way things stand now.

FreedomPop:  Still have not received my new cellphone, so cannot comment on the service.  Well, I guess I can, since they say it'll take 2-3 weeks to ship the phone, which seems like an awful long time to me.  But I'll hang on and when the new phone arrives, I'll report back.

And that's it for this week's installment.  Linking up with  Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting Finds #51: No finds, but thrifty anyway!

Now that I think about it, this was probably the first weekend we didn't have any snow all year.

So I'm starting to think that maybe this whole thrifting business is cyclical.  Despite visiting our usual 6 thrifts this weekend, neither Hubs nor I found anything worth buying.  I didn't even give in to Empty Hand Syndrome, as I have done so often in the past.

I notice that a lot of people on other blogs I read have said the same thing, that the thrifts have had slim pickin's lately.

So we'll give it a couple of weeks and it'll pick up again, right?

You may have noticed how I've been whining reporting that pricing at the various Goodwills lately has been nothing short of insane.  I was pleased to have my opinion confirmed by another customer yesterday.  She walked up to her husband holding a large white-on-pink Butterprint Cinderella bowl and indicated her displeasure with the price thereon.

Or, as she succinctly put it, "This is bullshit."

I believe the bowl in question was marked $12.00.  It was in good, not perfect condition.  I know that pattern is popular, but I don't collect it so I don't know what the going rate for it is.  Does the price seem out of line?

Well actually, no matter what the going rate is, I think the GW is out of line. I mean, it's a bowl for heaven's sake.  And a used one at that.  Isn't the point of the GW to actually move the merchandise? They seem to be thinking they're an antique mall lately.

Okay, enough of that little rant!

Now then.  Even though we didn't get anything at the thrifts, we didn't come home empty handed.  We got these:

Freebies!  Have you guys discovered Harbor Freight Tools?  It's a chain of stores that sells basically cheap tools.  They're not Black & Decker or Snap-On quality--not by a long shot-- but often they're good enough fer what they're fer, if you know what I mean. It's where I got my rechargeable drill (which works just fine, thank you.)  Anyway, they have a lot of really good sales and almost always have coupons for free stuff--no purchase required.  So I got this tape measure and the multimeter, both for work.  I highly suggest signing up for their emails. Over the course of a year, you can pick up a whole lot of good stocking stuffers.

In Other News Department:

I've been on quite a belt-tightening tear lately.  I'm not really sure why, other than the fact that I'm basically a cheapskate.  So here's where I'm going to start cutting back:

A:  The Newspaper.  We get the daily paper, at a cost of about  $218.00 a year.  A couple of weeks ago, Groupon had a deal to get the Wednesday and Sunday papers only, for 10 bucks.  A year.  Now, I really only get the paper for the funnies and the Sunday sale ads, so the ten-dollar deal seemed like a no-brainer.  Of course, this is the Baltimore Sun we're talking about, where intelligence and/or logic do not exist.  My current subscription runs out on April 28th.  One would think that they'd wait until that was over to start the new deal.  Not so.  So now I'm getting double papers on Sunday (and presumably Wednesday as well.)  Because that makes sense.

Potential savings:  $208.00/year.

B.  FIOS TV.  When we signed up for FIOS last year, I had them add the most basic TV package, which is basically the 3 or 4 networks plus a bunch of Spanish stations.  That added 10 bucks a month to the bill, which I didn't think was bad.  Unfortunately, we also need to rent a little decoder box, and that runs another 6 bucks a month.  Now, we really don't watch much TV (other than DVDs), but it wasn't until I really started paying attention that I discovered we don't watch TV at all.  Well, hardly.  Hubs watched the Tonys or the Oscars or something.  And there was a good six-month period where, even if we wanted to watch TV we couldn't, as neither Hubs nor I knew where the remote was.

So the TV service is going, if I can cancel it without screwing up the rest of my plan, which I think I can do.  I think, though, that when I cancel the TV I'm going to up the Internet service speed for that same 10 bucks a month, if it can be done.  At the very least, I'll save $6.00 a month on the little converter box.

Oh, and by the way, we get the same channels with an antenna, plus a whole lot more.

Potential savings:  $192.00/year, but more likely $72.00/year.

C:  Cell phone.  Currently, I pay $37.00/month including taxes to Virgin Mobile for my service.  This buys me unlimited text and data, and 300 talk minutes a month.  All in all, a very good deal.  I've been with VM for years and years and the service is just fine.  Turns out though, that I don't use my phone nearly as much as I thought I would.  For instance, last month (which was typical, I think), I only used 130mb of data and 35 minutes of talk.  I forget how many texts I sent, but I'd be surprised if it was more than 10.

Enter FreedomPop.  Has anyone tried this service?  I first discovered it when I saw a deal for a phone on One Sale.  I looked into it and kind of impetuously ordered the phone for $99.  Unfortunately, it turns out that the particular phone won't run a couple of apps I need for work, so I'll have to send it back.  But I ordered a different one right from FreedomPop that should work just fine.

Now here's the deal on their service.  They have several different levels, but the one that seemed the best fit for me is 200 talk minutes, 500 texts, and 500mb of data per month.  

The price:  Free.  

There are some downsides, though.  For instance, voicemail is not included.  I decided to spring the $2.49/month for that service.  Even though I don't often get voicemails, I wouldn't want to be without the service.  Also, you can't send picture texts (MMS) at this time, though they say they're working on it.  Youall probably know that most of the texts I send are pictures of weird stuff from the Goodwill.  Not a deal breaker, particularly if it may change in the future. Kind of a biggie is that you can't port your current phone number to their system, you have to get a new one.  That sounds like kind of a pain, but on the other hand, it might be a good way to do a clean sweep and get away from those people you're sorry you gave your number to!

The big question, though, will be the call quality.  They use a different scheme for making calls than most cellphone providers, and I've heard varying reports on the quality of the calls.  Granted, I don't make many calls at all, but when I do, I kind of want them to go through, you know?

Anyway, they give you 30 days to try it out and if you don't like the service, you can send the phone back and cancel and no hard feelings.  I've already signed up, though have not received my phone yet (they seem to take 2-3 weeks to ship.)  If anyone's interested, I'll report back on my findings and let you know what's what.  For the time being, I'm keeping my Virgin Mobile service, just in case.

And if anyone else signs up, you can make them your friend or some such and thereby earn more data each month.  

Potential savings:  $414.00/year

Annnnnnd...that's it, I guess.  Hopefully, there will be some Pyrex or Corningware or something worth buying at the thrifts next week.  

So until then, I'm linking up with  Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, The Nifty Thrifty, and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting finds #50: First Birthday!

Urgh.

Felt a migraine coming on this morning, so I took a  pill for it.  Unfortunately, that introduces its own set of problems, so I'm not feeling tip-top today.

Plus, hey guess what it did yesterday?

It snowed.

Tomorrow's April. This had better stop.

Anyway.  I want to take a moment to thank youall for your comments and emails about our wedding rings.  I love the fact that even though I haven't technically met most of you in person, we're still friends anyway.  Don't you think that's kind of cool?

Looks like we're probably going to go down the Amazon route.  It sounds easy until you realize that they have eleventy-million  wedding rings to choose from, and I'm not good about making a decision.

Plus, we have a birthday!  My cheesy little slice of the blogosphere is officially a year old!  Actually, it was a year old three weeks ago, but I never said I was good at details.

So Happy Birthday to me!  I'd celebrate with a slab of cake, but since I can barely fit into my jeans as it is, I'll have to forego it.

Too bad the pickins at the thrifts were so thin this week.  We had torrential rain yesterday (which turned into sleet and snow, see above) which did not keep people out of one of the Goodwills, but totally did keep people out of the Savers.  I don't know how to explain that.

So here's what I found:

1. Butterfly Gold Casserole!  Let me start out by saying that I do not collect this pattern, despite the fact that I got this yesterday and a gravy boat last week.  I'm going to chalk this purchase up to "empty hand syndrome" and leave it at that.  And since I only have two pieces of BG, it is officially not  a collection.  Whew.  No lid, but I can probably find one later.  Goodwill, $3.00

And by the way, it looks like they've got someone new pricing the Pyrex at the GW.  I saw a Spring Green casserole with lid that I thought I might buy until I saw that it was marked $18.00.  Now, that's probably not a bad price for it (though correct me if I'm wrong), but that seems more of a retail or antique mall price than a thrift store price.  Hubby keeps picking up things he likes, looking at the prices and shaking his head.

What's Cooking? Department The Spotless* Test Kitchens here at Fondue HQ went out on a limb this week, as you'll see in a moment.  But first, a bit of Pedestrian Pasta:

*Totally not spotless

Baked Penne with Meatballs!  Plus a healthy shot of pesto for good measure.  I don't know why it is, but my pasta always seems really dry, no matter how much sauce I use.  Any ideas?  I bake it covered and try not to overcook it, so I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. It's palatable, but never juicy enough.

Peking Roast!  This needs a bit of explanation.  I got the recipe from an old "Hints from Heloise" book.  She said it came from a Chinese hotel famous for its tender beef.  Basically, you marinate the roast in vinegar overnight, then pour it off and pot roast it in coffee.  Weird, huh?  It was one of those recipes that was just so strange that I had to try it.  On the good side, it didn't taste of coffee when all was said and done.  And it smelled great while it was cooking in the Crock Pot.  It didn't look too good--kinda like a hunk of beef floating in ink, but it was extremely tender.  Unfortunately, it was overall kind of bland.  Certainly no more effort than making a regular pot roast, but not really worth making again.  I'm a little skeptical of its Chinese origins, too--one doesn't usually associate China with coffee, you know?

Notice that I managed to sneak in the new Butterfly Gold casserole and the gravy boat from last week?  By the way, the gravy boat isn't that great--the lip is really kind of dribbly.

And that's it for this week.  Kinda slim, I know, but maybe things will pick up next week.  Maybe?

Linking up with  Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting Finds #49: Your Opinions Needed!

Okay, so it was a nice weekend--temperatures in the 50s on Saturday and upper 40s yesterday.

They're predicting snow tomorrow.

Really?  Really??

Last I heard, it was officially Spring.  Doesn't that mean no more snow?  Shouldn't it?  I already put my shovel away, fercryingoutloud.

So you're probably sick of hearing me whine about the weather.  Trust me, I'm sick of doing it.  This just seems to be The Winter That Will Not End.

Right.  Done.  So let's get on to what I snagged this weekend.  Not much, I'll admit, but I'm really pleased.

1.  Not Another Cookbook!  I know, I know, but bear with me, there's an explanation.  This is not a new cookbook, it's a replacement.  I already own one, but it turns out it has a bunch of pages missing (it's like a three-ring binder, and the old, brittle pages aren't very strong.)  I suppose this one could have missing pages as well, huh?  Didn't think of that at the time.  Oh, well.  There was a handwritten recipe inside for Zucchini with Cheese, involving frozen zucchini, cream cheese, and walnuts.  Didn't sound great, so I tossed it.  Goodwill, $2.50.

2.  Ikea Drawer Thing!  I'm not sure what it's official name is--probably something like Kahüppenġloġġ.  Or maybe Dräwr.  Anyway, this has been kind of a Holy Grail for me.  I've been wanting this for keeping tools and fasteners and whatnot.  Unfortunately, by the time I discovered that Ikea sold it, they had discontinued it.  Story of my life.  So I've been keeping my eyes peeled in the thrifts, just in case.  And my vigilance paid off!  Now I just have to do something about those crooked drawers before my OCD sends me over the edge.  Goodwill, $6.50.

And that's all I found, really.  Not much, but both items made me happy.  

Remember the Regal Poly Perk I got last week?

The one I wasn't going to use because it said "Hobo Frank" on the side?  Well,it finally occurred to me that all I needed to do was cover up the writing with a little black electrical tape, and I could use it.  So that's what I did.  Didn't take a picture, but it looks just fine.

What's Cooking? Department

Looks like the Spotless* Test Kitchens here at Fondue HQ didn't turn out anything new or unusual this week.

*Totally not spotless.

A:  Pea Soup!  Hubs requested soup this week, as we're (hopefully) coming to the end of Soup Season.  And since I had 3 pounds of split peas in the cabinet (they're cheap at Aldi), Pea Soup it was.  Threw in some diced ham this time instead of my usual sausage.

B:  Dan's Enchilada Casserole!  Pretty sure I've mentioned this one before.  Recipe came from my friend Dan, and you gotta love the authenticity of a Mexican recipe that started out life in Council Bluffs, Iowa.  I messed up the top when I pulled off the aluminum foil and one of the tortillas stuck.  How was it?  Enchiladariffico!

Your Opinions Needed!

I always refer to The Hubster as my husband, but in actual fact, we're not married.  That is about to change, assuming we can both get off our slothful butts and actually do something.  To that end, we have started shopping for wedding rings.

OMG, have you seen the prices of jewelry lately?

I thought I knew what I wanted going into this, but it turns out I really don't.  Hubster said for me to pick something out and he'd just get the same thing.  So we were looking at gold rings and to be honest, it doesn't look like that's in the budget right now.  At first I resisted, but I'm starting to like the Titanium rings that a lot of places are featuring.  Some of them are really attractive.

So here's where you come in.

1.  Is a ring other than gold "okay"?  I always sort of felt that if the ring weren't gold (or maybe platinum), it didn't "count", if that makes any sense.  Yeah, look at me being all traditional. I know it's silly, but still.

Edit:  Here's why I'm wondering about the gold thing.  My parents had beautiful 18K gold rings and had a wonderful marriage.  I knew a woman who had a jade wedding band, and her marriage was crappy and she ended up getting divorced. And I know a man who has a band made of some other metal--molybdenum?--and his marriage is nothing to write home about.

On the other hand, I know several people who had gold bands and crappy marriages, so now I don't know what to think!  I am the very definition of "wishy washy"!

2.  Is it tacky to get wedding rings from Amazon?  Another silly question, I know.  I won't get a ring from a store I don't like just because it's cheap, and it seems silly to pay the huge markup at a jewelry store when Amazon has the exact same thing for a lot less money. And I love Amazon.   A friend of mine suggested we look for rings at pawn shops.  

Yeah, no.  I don't want to inherit someone else's Karma, and if the ring ended up in a pawn shop, it probably wasn't very good, right?

So what do you think?  Weigh in, either in the comments or send me an email--vegomaticbob at the Gmail place.

Linking up in All The Right Places: Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, The Nifty Thrifty  and We Call It Junkin.

Thrifting Finds #48: Creepy Clown Alert!

Oh.  Em.  Gee.

Yes, I'm going to start out complaining about the weather again.  On Thursday, we had a high of 70, followed by thunderstorms, 70 MPH winds, and temperatures dropping into the teens overnight.  Saturday was sunny and breezy, with a high of 60.

Today it's snowing.

Again.

Work opened at 1:00 which was nice, but really, it just needs to stop.  Now, please.

Okay.  Enough of that.  On to more pleasant things.  Well, slightly more pleasant, anyway.  It was not a particularly good week for thrifting, despite being able to cover all of our usual spots.  We'll start off with something different--one of the Hubster's finds!

1.  Another Stretch Vase!  We seem to be finding these fairly often, which is just fine with me.  This is a slightly smaller one, not sure if it's even a foot high.  Hubs sprinted ahead of me and spotted it, so to the victor go the spoils, or something like that.  Savers, $3.00

2.  Slide Tray!  This, of course, is for the Crestline slide projector I got some time ago, hoping to find some slides.  Naturally, as soon as I got the projector, the supply of slides in the thrifts dried up.  Still, one likes to be prepared, and this was still in its original shrinkwrap, so how could I resist?  Savers, $4.00

3.  Poly Perk!  I've been wanting a little percolator to use at work because I find those K Cups too expensive, not to mention a huge waste.  All that plastic for one cup of coffee?  No, thanks.  So this looked perfect, or at least I thought it did.  I'm actually going to give it back.  See the "5" above the top crown?  That came off easily with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.  Unfortunately, some wiseacre wrote "Hobo Frank" on the other side in Sharpie and I thought I would be able to get it off.  Well, no amount of assistance from Mr. Clean did a thing, nor did straight acetone.  Sorry, but I'm just not going to use a "Hobo Frank" coffee pot.  Especially at work.  Not much harm done, though, as it was only $3.00 at Savers (disregard the "5" as I did.  Didn't even notice it until I got it home.

WARNING!  CREEPY CLOWN ALERT!  SCROLL AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

Would you believe me if I said he looked even worse in person?  Maybe it was his size (almost 2 feet tall, I bet), or maybe it was the pink toenails.  I think, though, it was the lines by his mouth that really did me in.  Eek.

Bargain of the Week Department! Lookit--something new has been added. So I guess in addition to my thrift finds, I'll post my BotW if there is one.  This week it's

Detergent!  Both Rite Aid and CVS had a buy one, get two free sale on Purex.  We've used it before and I guess it works about as well as any other detergent.  Ninety-nine loads worth for $6.29, which works out to 6.4 cents per load.  Not bad.  Hubster figures we do 7 loads of wash a week, so this should last us over three months.  But we won't even start using it until we've run out of the Sears detergent we got at least six months ago.

Which makes me think of something Smart People say:  Buy it when it's cheap, not when you need it.  To which I would add If you'll use it up before it goes bad and if you have room to keep it.  This won't spoil, so I'm not worried if it takes a while to use up.  And I have room to keep it, so win/win.  Frankly, I'd love to be able to buy one of those huge packages of paper towels, with like 50 rolls.  Unfortunately, I'd have no place to put it, unless I threw a cloth over it and made it into an end table.

What I made Department:

Not my picture

Not my picture, either

A:  Chili and Cornbread.  Well, I made the cornbread yesterday, but the chili is from a few weeks ago, via the freezer.  What with today's weather, this will be a good dinner tonight.

B:  Portuguese Spiced Pork and Couscous.  The pork came from that bigass loin I got a couple of months ago.  it doesn't look like much, but it sure is delicious.  This is something my Grandmother made and Mom made, and now I guess it's my turn.  Mine isn't as good as theirs, but Hubby kept going back later for "just another bite."  So I call that a win.

And that's it for this week.  I'm hoping to have a better week next week, but I realize I say that all the time and nothing ever really happens.  Still, doesn't hurt to cross one's fingers, right?

(Whew.  Accidentally closed the wrong tab and I thought I lost this whole post!  Thank you, Blogger for your excellent Auto Save!)

Linking up with Sir Thrift A Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and We Call It Junkin.