Why I turn off things

Normally I am off the computer by now and I am running behind again. I got up late so the day is partly shot already. Anyway I started turning off the power strips for the modem and the T.V.'s during the day to save on the power bill for the most part around here. Then next reason why I shut off the modem is to have it reset. One of the things that the teck people at the cable companies don't tell you that when the net is slow on your end to shut off the modem for about 5 min if not more and turn it back on. Pluss you have to clean out the cookies also off the explorer and thru windows and do a defrag also on the computer. The cable modem is running slow today and I need to reset everything here. I haven't yet finished the rearangeing of a couple of rooms so while everything is off I will be doing somemore today. Pluss it gives me a chance to marry acouple of buckets togeather that are only half full. Now to really think of to get some things out of the storage unit for my bedroom so I will have more room around here and get the one junk dresser out of the room while I am at it when people start showing up here. Ok folks have fun and play hard. As I begin to plot for the day.

Now I don't mind

I really don't mind being alone around here in the can. The reason why I say this is becuase, I can get more done around here without a problem at all. I ended up starting reorganizeing the spare room this past weekend and will finish that up here this week I am hopeing. Along with my bedroom. I have to laugh about this only becuase I am finding stuff that I knew I had and forgot where I put it. I am also still working on the new budget for the next 6 months while I am at it all. Since I work for 15 min and have to sit down for about 15 min also thru the day. It seem that I get more done by doing that thruout the day than working an hour a day as some folks have told me to do. The 3 folks who told me that have an extra 4 to 6 helping hands to go along with work an hour a day also. Well the Hippy also came in for dinner lastnight and asked if I had cleaned the cabnet doors while I was at it. I said no becuase I haden't at the time. I will get that done after I get everything else done and wipe them down with old english after I get done wipeing the doors down. They will be oily for about 3 days untill everything soaks into the woodwork. It keeps the doors from splitting also. Ok folks have fun and play hard.

Nice suprize

I got the hippy home for a couple of hours today. So I get to streach the leftovers and soup for the week. Pluss I found out that one of my uncles needs both knees done. Not good in my book from what I went thru with my knee. Well all said and done I know my Randy will take care of his daddy eather way. Well after I thought about today and got some things done I diden't get much done eather way.

Well yesterday went well

I made it out some yesterday morning for the UPS store and the Family Dollar store. My slideing door is froze shut and found a few things to unfreeze it. It was so bad out yesterday morning that I am happy that I dident drive out to Collins. I slid all the way home from the store. When it is below 20 outside salt does not work at all on the roads. At least the plows were out trying to scrape the roads as much as possible. Anyway after I got back I started in on the cleaning and got most of the list done for yesterday. Today will be to tackle the spare room, liveingroom, and bakeing day. With only about 2 weeks as a count down untill a friend gets here I have to bust my toush to get a room ready for him. So the spaire room is nolonger my pantery at all. The Hippy was still laughing lastnight about it all. It looked like a bomb went off of food T.P. and paper towels. And I got almost everything put back togeather out here in the liveingroom. I have 2 totes out and one needs to go into the bathroom. The other tote is for the free stuff that has came in the mail for the household. That will end up in the kitchen. Now with my place I have limited space with 700 square feet. So I have became creative on what I do for storage and had no choice. I have a tote for the canned veggies and that is under the one counter that sepperates the liveingroom from the kitchen. Also I have storage shelves all over the place holding the other food items that I use that woulden't fit into the cabnets. The fun part about this is do I have enough of regular items to last for the rest of the month. Now with yesterday for most of the day the computer was off so was the T.V. It dident hurt one bit at all. I am shifting some of the things that I have been doing thru the past year also. I don't mind letting the dishes go for a couple 3 days here during the week at all. Since for about 5 days a week there is only me here. Also I will be cleaning like normal for the most part while I am at it and cutting down on everything. I can keep busy during the times that I am alone. Ok folks have fun and play hard.

Trying to keep warm

The snow is already 2 feet and counting outside today. Now I hope that the back door doesen't freez up this year. The space heater is ready to go just in case if it does. What a day and thank goodness I made soup for dinner. Also I sent the Hippy off with a hot meal while I was at it. One of them days to start worrying becuase of the weather. We both seen someone slide off the 190 while I was paying a bill. Now I will deffanatly stay home. Even I was slideing around and I have some weight in the back of the van. Cat litter is a wanderfull thing for weight. Now for Winter driveing I do have stuff in the van. Like 2 blankets and a few other things. I haven't put a candle in there yet at all. Then again this year I am not going to far from the can neather. There comes a point in time to just stay home to be safe. Now a couple of friends of mine have went to the Tier to do things in thier place. The heater that they have is putting out heat but since they havent heated the place for awhile it is about 60 with the pellet stove going and the toilet still froze. If you are reading this you 2 put a space heater near the cammode and salt in the tank pluss the bowl. That is what I get for working in a cold wearhouse without heat for the most part. Pluss if you have a 2nd story bathroom after ya flush throw salt in the bowl. It wont hurt nothing at all and it will keep the pipes pretty much moveing. That and takeing the tank lid off with opening the cabnet doors on the sink. Sounds wierd but it works. The Hippy said anti freeze from the car works also. I was told salt and heat. Oh well now I am not to worried about the bathroom here freezing up since everything is open to the heat and that room is the warmest room of the place also. I even crack the kitchen lower cabnet doors open to let heat into there since it is the furthest from the heat. Heat tape is a wanderfull thing also. What heat tape does is it is like eletrical tape with a wire thru it, you plug it in and it turns on and off to keep the pipes from freezing up. Now for here yes the can is a trailer. It costs about 5 dollars a month to run the heat tape. I would rather spend 5 dollars extra for the power bill than have a 1000 dollar bill for a busted water pipe. Pluss the water bill to top it off. Now for here I can say that. When it is about 15 outside not includeing the wind chill if not lower than that at this point. Well as I had said before I have worked in pretty ronchy conditions in my life. Where 3 space heaters should have took the room to about 90 it was about 32 in the room with all 3 going. It was about 12 below without the heat in the building. Even though some of us had good laughes out of the one building. Between the snow drifts, the raccons, mice placed in computers, and the burning of the pants. There were alot of laughs and pokeing fun at. In one day I hit 2 mouse houses and several ones that were petrifide on top of it. All I asked of the guys was to dump the bucket that I had becuase I am short. Nothing scares me except for when my Sister-In-Law was around. That is why the guys never put live nor dead mice or rats in what I was pulling apart. And the wall of power supplies on my desk with a space heater. I was warmer than the 2 others at the time with a frog heater going. Mettal conducts heat and I found a way to keep warm. If I could have figured out a way to make a roof for the wall I would have done it. And of course there was the shake up and I survived that one with the skin of my teeth becuase I was still on medical at the time and the doors still shut becuase the boss switched the bosses around once again on the floor. Oh well on it now Alot of folks have been laid off and or the doors to a company have shut tight on them. Now with myself every time I am on unenjoyment(unemployment) I cut way back on alot of things here in the can. And I always do try to live below what I bring in anyway around here. Some months it is hard I won't deny that at all. This is why I say take a look at the budget that is there and are some things really nessesary like the coffee at Starbucks while you are looking for a job?????? Or that cute outfit that is full price at the time? Now with my budget I don't go out to get coffee nor the cute outfit at all when I know that Food and other things are more important. Pluss I have not went out to eat for at least a month at all. I have started cooking at home from scratch once again and the cheaper the better in my book. Leftovers are even better the next day. Alot of the times some folks have told and asked me why bother with leftovers. All I can say is it is food and I don't have to cook for a couple of days. Pluss there is soups around here also. I do not have to pull from the deep freezer everyday to feed myself at all. Nor go outside to heat up a grill also to cook on becuase of no gas in the place. Yes I have eletric appliances and it does me no good if the power goes out. Eather way I get to eat around here. Ok folks have fun and play hard.

I will admit

Now for yesterday the Hippy got me out for a bit. Talk about just plain out cold lastnight. I got to look around the Dollar General also. I found alot for the wish list and diden't get except for what I needed. And what I got was cheaper than Walmart. I did find more bathroom cleaner on sale that is the Green Works also. Now normally I won't go to any stores untill about the middle of the month and last night was a fluke for somethings that I really needed. Anyway the Hippy in my place wanted some goodies for the other kitchen so we all went. All I could do was laugh about it and limp thru the store. What the Hippy and I picked up was under 20 dollars apiece. The poor cashier thought we were just plain out nuts. I got to looking at more blankets for my bed and other blankets. I will wait untill they go on sale at the end of season also. We don't need anyone to be cold in my place. And let the fun begin once again around my place for to clear out the one room in the can. Now I should have picked up a few more totes lastnight and I diden't. So I will end up combineing several of them togeather within the next few days here. The nice thing about a friend staying here is that the can will stay cleaner becuase I will start pushing myself. Another thing is that I have moved most of the food items closer to the kitchen while I was at it yesterday. I got to laughing during it all becuase now all I have to do is throw open the one cabnet and pick out what I want for the day. I diden't forget what I had here in the place I just coulden't get to it since I am short here. Pluss to much stuff here in the can. Oh well at least it is here. Ok folks have fun and play hard.

Thinking of how lucky

At this point I will say that I am lucky that I can take my time on the cheapness still. Even though I have made a resuloution to myself this year to do better. I did get the water bill down to 44 dollars every 3 months now. If not less at this point in time within the next 3 months here. Now lastnight I did have dinner under 2 dollars a person pluss leftovers. Anyway I have been rearangeing my place for most of the day today. It hasen't been all that bad so far and I still have alot to do around here still. The liveing room is still torn up and I will get it picked up by Monday at the latest and the totes moved from one room to the other. As I say small bite at first for anything then go from there. IF not it is over welming for anyone to do at one time. Pluss later on here I will be walking over to Walmart for acouple of things. I can't stand when I run out of some things here in the place. Need I say more for some things. I refuse to have a bucket in the bathroom for homemade products when they are cheaper than I can make them still. It is a fine line when you know when it is cost effective for some things and not others at all. I myself are not saying that it won't work, it is not for me is all. There are always lines of not to cross and I won't cross some of the lines at all. Maybe becuase I can grab the garbage out of the bathroom once a day instead of a bleach load 2 times a day if not more. Sorry if you are a Male reader here. I will be the first one to admit some of us are heavy flow and others are not. If you are not one of the heavy ones that is ok also. Ok folks on that now have fun and play hard.

Just to cold out

Well 6" here in snow and I don't want to know about the Southern Tier in how many feet they already got. I just hope they got the one pellet burner going to keep warm with. Anyway I am already plotting on where to start in the can here for cleaning. It's not so bad when I start doing this at all. With everything going on at this point I have to get cracking to clean out the one room of my place also while I am at it all. Part of it is I did let that room go the other part I need to fit a bed in the room also. At this point in time it is only about 5 outside and I would rather clean inside than go out. Oh well lets see what I can do before I sit back down once again. Have fun and play hard.

I was listening to the news the past couple of days

I have noticed in the news lately that more folks have been joining the unemployment lines once again.  And I just wander how many of the folks who have been on lay-offs in how much time they have left on the unemployment checks.  Well I still know some folks that are working and they have over extended them selves also.  The Hippy just shakes his head at some.  Some have asked the Hippy in how I do things also around here and how we have managed liveing off of one income at times.  Thru the years I did find my nitch on alot of things that I do.  I have also thought of what I did when I was 16 and first out on my own also and pulled some of the things from then that worked out for me.  Like useing less laundery and dish soap.  Along with a leaky washer that I can laugh about now.  I will say between the Tide and Tandal laundery deturgants it took up the hairspray off the floors and grease spots.  Alot of things have did double and triple duty in my household that I have stuck with alot of what I have noticed that worked.  Like dusting with the used dryer sheets pluss there's less of a chance to throw out sparks of the electronics in the household also.  With so many things that I have tried out the dryer sheets and the bread bags have stayed around more times than not here.  I keep a grocery bag in the bathroom so when the laundery is done I can throw the dryer sheet in the bag.  About once a month or so I do hit up the T.V. with glass cleaner.  Now I do have to watch in what I use becuase of the bird here.  I have switched over to the Green Works products for the most part.  I can streach the product out and not have to worry about not haveing enough also.  I remember about 2 to 4 years ago someone asked me if they could go grocery shopping with me I said lets go becuase it was that time to go anyway.  The person who went with me couldent believe in what I did.  I had a months worth of meals for about 60 dollars.  Also she started hollering about that I had more in my cart for less than what she spent also.  That was without coupons becuase the place we were at diden't take them at the time.  I know with some folks they don't sit down and plan the meals for the month at all.  In the mean time when they don't they end up with alot of the same thing month after month also.  With myself I use a daily planner that I can write down the 3 meals a day for the month.  Then I take the planner and an extra list with me when I go do my shopping at all times and some folks are amazed that I do have things wrote down.  Then this way I know of how much and of what to get for the month.  I have got into the habit of getting flour also for alot of the cooking and bakeing that I do.  Also I have been asked out in the store what if I don't want what is on the menu for that day.  I mix up the days and what I wanted for that night and mark it down for the day of what I traided it for.  Once I figured it all out with the meal planning it became easier on me.  I write down the main course then build the meal off of the main course.  Lets say you want meatloaf one night,  mashed potatoes and another veggie goes with the meatloaf.  Now with my household I do have instant potatoes around here.  The trick of that is to put more butter and milk into the mix to streach them out and they taste better that way.  Now the Hippy has laughed at times becuase I do use powdered milk also around here for cooking and bakeing.  I don't buy milk at times becuase of where I am at in the month.  If I am at the end of the month I don't run out and get just the milk at all I wait untill I go shopping for the month.  Ok folks hve fun and play hard.

New Years once again.

Now I am impressed that it went well lastnight and this morning.  Well I have totally swore off resolutions for the most part anyway.  I made one lastnight and this morning to be done with it all.  Also I diden't say all the New Year resalution anyway.  I am famous to do stuff like that.  After all of us that were over here at my place I had been asked for the flat bread recipie that I made once again.  I started hot and heavy for the part of the new year of what I said that I would do.  I wanted to be cheaper this year and I started that part once again.  There are sometimes that I will fall flat on my face becuase that is how it goes with me.  And the true test is going to be here within the next 18 days.  I know with some things that I will be doing is a trial and error things and that is ok.  If I can stick to streaching out everything here and reuseing everything that I can possibly reuse untill it eather is so tatered by the time I am done or it just plain out says that it is not gonna play anymore I have done what I set out to do.  I think the biggest battle is going to be is myself hanging laundery out here come spring once again.  Maybe not since the person who had asked for a place to stay wished that where he was at did the same thing.  Anyway it will be a challange here untill everyone gets on the same page here in the can.  We all had the giggles lastnight after we ate all night around here.  Part of it was becuase I did go the cheap route for dinner.  And there was no turkey in or on the pizza.  At this point I am so sick and tired of turkey that I don't want to see another piece of it for awhile.  So now comes the fun part of things here becuase I have other things to cook now after the holidays.