The last of the Christmas clearance is on drastic markdown in some of the stores. I got some things at 90% off. Some I will use for Valentines. The red, green and white that often occur in Christmas merchandise can be split up and used for Valentines, St. Patrick’s day and general use. I have done this with candies, raffia, bags. In my home state, the two major universities school colors are red and white, and black and orange. This makes for a lot of Christmas and Valentines, and Halloween purchases for school related use. I personally have family in one school, and friends in the other. I have a great bar cookie recipe that uses chocolate with a candy coating which I shall post soon. My mother found it when I was avoiding eggs (it is egg free) and the Dream Bars are addictive. I make them in school colors and seasonal colors. I recently got red Christmas cookie icing on 75% off clearance which I can use soon for Valentine cookies.
Winter clothing is now on markdown, too, while there is a lot of winter weather left. I spotted a couple of long coats in a current ad for $600 and $800 that closely resemble the two heavy navy wool coats that I purchased last summer for $1 each at the resale shop. They will feel good in the arctic air we are supposed to have this week. You can get the best bargains in the off-season because most people buy for immediate use and items stay in the store long enough to reach the greatest markdown. Now is the time to be buying summer and fall items and Easter bunnies, before the season begins and it isn’t on most people’s minds. Christmas merchandise may be showing up in the resale shops now, too, because people don’t want to store something they plan to replace next year anyway.
Christmas and winter clearance
January 23rd, 2011May 10 Tornados.
May 12th, 2010Yesterday was a wild weather day in Oklahoma City. There was an outbreak of tornados, more than we have had all season. The news people had just been commenting what a quiet spring we had been having. Thankfully the death toll was revised down to two rather than the five that was initially thought. Some of the storms passed about four miles south of us, with lots of damage. You can go to www.kfor.com/live to see the noon (CDT) news on weekdays. The site (www.kfor.com) has videos on demand, of storm chasing and tornado damage, too. K-FOR is the NBC affiliate in Oklahoma City. You may have seen footage from them on the NBC evening news or Today. They have an award winning helicopter pilot who gets really close to the storms and follows them to get shots of cars and trucks being tossed like toys and houses exploding and roofs peeling off.
Happy Mother’s Day!
May 9th, 2010Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers and all those who had or have them. I have been away for a while, but I’m back and raring to go. It has been a nice spring so far and things are growing like crazy and blooming like crazy (achoo). I have started my garden, a friend brought his tiller and tore up a spot that I am going to plant intensively and plant the “Three Sisters”. That is a Native American tradition of planting squash, corn and beans together. You plant corn in a patch or field, plant pole beans two to a cornstalk when the corn is about a foot high and can support the beans, then plant the squash or pumpkin to ramble in the corn patch and mulch the rest. The beans also fix nitrogen for the soil. I am planting some stuff in the ground and some in growpots. The ones I have are made of a heavy felt-like material and are called Jackpots. They are available from John Mackenzie in Florida. I am roughly basing my planting on Mel Bartholomew’s “Square Foot Gardening” for the spacing though the Jackpots round out at the top, so they are more or less round. One I have planted already has about a dozen glads, a couple hot peppers, and some green onions so far. It has a little space left yet. I have five more Jackpots to fill and plant.
Healthy Exercise.
April 24th, 2010Exercise is necessary for a healthy heart and a healthy life. Your exercise program doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg. One of the best exercises to start with is walking. One woman began with walking in her yard around her clothesline. Almost anyone can begin with a bit of walking and work up to half and hour a day. Walking shoes or sports shoes can be found at the resale shop. They just need to be comfortable. It is also important for your socks to be comfortable, too. Bunched socks can rub a blister just as fast as poorly fitting shoes. Be sure to properly care for any blisters you might get. Disinfect a sharp needle with alcohol or a flame. Open the blister from the side and express the fluid and cover the blister with antiseptic and a bandage. Take care of the cause of the blister to prevent another blister. Start out slowly if you are not used to walking, and work up over time. Any loose comfortable clothing suitable for the weather will do. If your neighborhood is not suitable for walking, check out local malls (some will open early for walkers) and parks. Walk earlier and later in the day to avoid getting too much sun and heat. Your library can be a source for books and tapes on walking and other forms of exercise. Your pantry can be a source of weights for lifting. Use canned goods and watch resale shops and garage sales for weights to replace them. Some can be filled with water to vary the weight and carry with you when traveling. A mat and a book or tape can get you started on Pilates and yoga. Your library can help you find an exercise group in your area. Some churches sponsor groups.
My Garden.
April 24th, 2010I have been planting a bit of garden as I hope to grow some delicacies for my table. All my houseplants are moved out of the house and garage and in a protected corner to toughen up. I have some grow bags but the least expensive grow bags you can come up with is buy a bag of potting soil and cut a small hole in it and start planting. Poke a small hole or two in the bottom side so excess water can drain out ( you don’t want to drown your garden). In my experience, in Oklahoma city summer sun, bags of potting soil will last at least one or two years before disintegrating. That gives you some time to start collecting containers for your gardening. The operative word here is “scrounge” which means free or nearly free gardening supplies. Some people who are planting in their yard will set the empty pots on the curb rather than saving them, which I always consider free for the taking. Or if you see someone planting in their yard, ask if you may have the empties when they are finished. Landscapers may give you some if you ask, but they may reuse if they grow their own stock. The buckets in which donut shops get the frostings and fillings make good container gardens. Ask there and at delis. Some will save them for you and some just set them out back for anyone to take and you have to make frequent checks to nab them if many people know about them. They are great around the house,too. Buckets require a drill to put drainage holes in the bottoms, but the polyethylene is easy to drill.
Heart Health.
April 20th, 2010A healthy heart is necessary for a healthy life. Heart disease can be reversed with a will and some work, in some cases quite a bit of work. It depends on how bad your heart disease is. The same steps begun before you develop heart disease can prevent it. Diet, exercise, and rest are the keys to heart health.
A healthy diet is plant based and contains 10% (by weight) healthy fats, 70-75 % complex carbohydrates and 15-20% protein. (If you prefer to calculate your diet using calorie count, it is more like 20% fat, 65-70% carbs, 10-15% lean protein.) Sources of healthy fats are virgin or extra-virgin olive oil and other mono- or poly-unsaturated oils, raw or dry roasted nuts and seeds, ocean fish. Sources of complex carbohydrates include whole grains and whole-grain pastas and breads, and legumes, and starchy vegetables. A plus is that these foods also contain needed vitamins and minerals. Sources of healthy proteins are nuts and legumes, lean meats such as bison, venison and other wild game, grass fed beef, lean pork, fish and shellfish, and low-fat dairy products. Round out your diet with lots of highly colored fruits and vegetables. Sugars and fats, including butter, candy and pastries, fatty meats, and fried foods, should make up a minimum of your diet.
Exercise and rest and relaxation are both important to your health. We will discuss these in upcoming visits.
Staying Healthy.
April 19th, 2010One way to save money is to stay healthy. There are many aspects that go into staying healthy. This takes work until you have fully incorporated the principles into your lifestyle and made them second nature. Make home safety, exercise, nutritious diet, weight control, adequate rest and sleep, and attention to personal care all a part of your daily routine and you will go a long way toward keeping healthy.
Gardening.
April 16th, 2010Growing your own food can save you money. Even if you have a small yard, or only a balcony or patio, you can have a few veggies in the flower beds or in containers of some sort. There are even gardens on the rooftops of buildings in New York City. Many cities have allowed community gardens to be established in vacant lots and you can get a small plot to plant some things. Sometimes there is a small administrative fee that also covers the cost of water. What you grow, you can take home to eat. Some veggies are attractive on their own or tucked in among the flowers as greenery. Some flowers are edible and are pretty sprinkled in salads. You can start with a few tools and seeds. Go to your local library and look at books on gardening and veggie and herb growing for information. Agriculture extension will have fact sheets on gardening in general and about various plants in particular, such as tomatoes, root crops, herbs, squash, etc. The fact sheets for your state will be specific for the conditions in your area and will give varieties best grown there. Horticulturists at a local public garden can give a few pointers and extension offices have Master Gardeners who are trained to answer your questions about gardening and suggest fact sheets and tell you how to find them on the internet. The best tasting veggies are the ones you have grown yourself and taken fresh-picked home for supper. Even children may eat something from the garden they would not normally eat.
Hobbies.
April 14th, 2010Hobbies can be an inexpensive, even lucrative way of entertaining yourself. They can also be prohibitively expensive. It depends on the way you look at things. Hobbies don’t necessarily require a lot of expensive equipment and supplies to accomplish. Of course, with many hobbies, you can spend a lot of money on equipment, supplies, training and instruction, but it isn’t necessary to get started. A few pieces of good quality basic equipment and some supplies and some books and magazines from the library, a local club promoting your interest, perhaps a friend who has expertise to offer, classes at the local library or college, a desire to learn, and you’re in business. There are clubs that promote sewing, lace making, knitting and crochet, quilting, music, theater, photography, travel, investments, cars ( you can about name the make and model ), gardening, various flowers, cats, dogs, horses, various other animals, lapidary and gems and minerals, including aspects of jewelry making. If you can’t find a club for your interest, find a few like-minded people and form your own. Newcomers are welcomed, more experienced members are happy to share their knowledge, beginners are helped with their projects and encouraged in their learning. Ask around, at your yarn shop, gourmet cooking store, library, extension office, computer store, camera store, etc. for a group to join. Some newspapers have a column with place, time and day of various club meetings with a name and number of a contact person. In the future we will go into how to find and save money on equipment and supplies, and how to make your hobbies pay for themselves.
Drive Less.
April 11th, 2010Driving less takes a little thought and preparation. Use the main roads and expressways when possible. Fewer stoplights and less stop and go driving means using less gas and using your brakes less. Oklahoma City is laid out in square miles, and mile or half-mile lines are the main roads and therefore through and quicker streets with fewer stoplights and few stop signs. Plan out a route and list stops in order of location so you don’t have to backtrack, which uses more gas. Carpool with neighbors for kids school and activities, or for a job, and other activities. Use public transportation or share a cab when possible. Call and let your fingers do the walking to find out availability of goods, store hours and location ( I once had the address to a store but found out that the way to find the store was to go to a certain auto supply store and go to the back of the building, there was no sign on the street for this particular phone repair shop.) Ask “how do I find your shop?”, “what sign is on the street?”. Run errands when you go out for other purposes and perhaps your neighbors will reciprocate. I once had a neighbor whom I offered to pick up a couple of things for when I went to the store because she had several small children and didn’t have a car. She gave me a long list of things she wanted “because you know how to shop to save money”. I told her I didn’t have time to do all her shopping for her but I would be happy to teach her how to save money when she shopped. ( She didn’t take me up on the offer but if you are a regular at this site, apparently you are interested in learning.)