I lost my dog today

My little guy was a 14 year old chihuahua. Brave...oh my was he brave. And with such an adventurous spirit. He'd been healthy his entire life, but the last three saw drastic changes. Blindness. Partial hearing loss. Two tumors removed. His gait also went through a change, subtle at first. The first year saw merely a strange little step here and there. Another goes by and it's impossible to make it up and down steps. This final year, he barely left his bed. I also began to notice a subtle sort of confusion. Boo would pause at random points, his "gaze" locked onto nothing. His gait became even more unsteady. Two nights ago, he stopped eating and would not get out of his bed. When I lifted him, he was as limp as a rag doll. I thought perhaps he would go peacefully that night, but he held on. The next day I took him to the vet. 

He seemed more alert than the previous night, but on the trip to the office, I noticed how prominently his little spine stood out and how sunken in his haunches had become. His breathing also seemed more labored than usual, with a sort of rasping shudder at each intake of breath.

His adventurous spirit raised its head just a little once we reached the office, and he eagerly sniffed and explored...but had to pick himself off the floor every few steps as he stumbled and fell. The doctor said we could do an endless battery of tests. We could also try to treat the symptoms as a simple infection and try to make him as comfortable as possible, but when I asked her what she would do, she said something that really resonated with me. She asked what was the one thing I could say about Boo. About his personality and what made him…well…him. I told her that he was the bravest dog I've ever seen and loved and embraced life. Then she asked if that was still who he was. I thought about him as he is now. Jumping at every noise. Too weak to explore beyond the confines of his dog bed. Barely being able to take two steps without collapsing. Yes, he was still brave, but his little body was so ravaged and tired. Perhaps we could have treated the nausea, given him fluids to counteract the dehydration, and given him medicines to manage the pain, but the legs would never regain their mobility. He would spend the rest of his remaining days (which I did not believe would be long) confined to his bed…not seeing, not hearing. If I did that, I would be doing it out of selfishness, and because I didn’t want to let him go.

Making the decision was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I sat in that room endlessly repeating “I don’t know what to do” and crying until my voice became hoarse. I called friends. I called family. But once the choice was made, I felt…no, I KNEW it was the right one. 

They gave him the sedative, and I held him in my arms until he fell asleep. I told him I loved him. Petted and scratched all of his favorite places. Whispered how we would see each other again. Sang him the silly song I had made with his name all those years ago. The happy song I would hum and sing to him during our quiet, cuddling moments. And then I let him go…

If you can hear me, my brave little man, I want you to know I meant every word.

Dollar Tree Pitfalls

I notice that a lot of my acquaintances shop at dollar stores thinking that they're saving vast sums of money, but I'd like to caution people against making that assumption. Yes, these all-things-for-a-dollar stores seem like they can't be beat, but you've got to look at quality and quantity before making the decision to buy. At my last trip to the Dollar Tree, I made several purchases and wanted to review them here.

1 can of black olives - Cheaper than Lindsay Olives by around 60-70 cents per can, but the taste was mildly floral and the texture mushy. Waste of money.

1 jar of green olives - Cheaper than Lindsay Olives as well, but the taste was just bad. It was olive-like but really salty.  Waste of money.

1 package of pocket sized facial tissues (Minnie Mouse design) - Pretty good deal here. Kleenex has pocket sized facial tissues priced over 4.00. Their pack comes with 8 versus the Dollar tree's 6, but it still makes this a good bargain.

1 container of Dial deodorant. 1 container of Lady Speedstick deodorant. Both are roll-ons. Both work well. Both were a dollar. However, each one was 1 fl oz or more less than my Suave. Which, if I remember correctly, costs me about 1.68. Verdict: it's still a decent purchase, especially if you like those brands. However, I'll stick my Suave.

1 package of State Fair corn dogs. Two per package for one dollar. When I opened that package up, I had to give a little giggle. Inside were two of the tiniest corndogs I'd seen. Not as small as the Krystals cornpups, but not that much larger either. Verdict: Well, two of those could make up one State Fair dog. You get 5 or 6 of the regular ones per box for less than 4 dollars...so I'd say this is a pass. Plus, Publix sometimes has SF corndogs on their buy-one-get-one sales, which would drive the price down to around 2.00 per box of 5/6.

1 Tin of smoked mussels. Very tasty. No grit. The little metal tin was fully stuffed with these plump little beauties which I hate on saltines with a bit of hot sauce. Verdict: will buy every chance I get.

1 Cheese grater. Cheap as anything but it works. I had found some at thrift stores, but they all had rust on them. Yuck. And the ones in the regular stores all began at around 10.00. So I'm happy with this purchase.

Steak knives. Also super cheaply made. Small too. More like a paring knife with a serrated blade. However, it slices through meat very well, and that's all I want it to do. Verdict: happy with purchase.

For me, this experience has driven home the fact that these dollar stores do have good deals. I love to get greeting cards and party supplies there. Gift bags are an awesome deal, and sometimes you can find really good bargains on boxes and bags of name brand candy (though be sure to look at the servings size to make sure you're getting as good a deal as you think). However, I was disappointed with almost all of my grocery purchases and will be very selective in making future grocery decisions in these types of stores. Because despite saving some money here and there, I also "lost" three dollars.

Some tips for saving money

Look for sales and buy only what you will actually use. For example, it's no good stocking up on broccoli if you hate the stuff, no matter how good a deal it is. Personally, I love the Publix Buy one Get One Free sales. Even though their regular prices are higher than some of the other discount stores like Walmart, with the BOGO offer you manage to save quite a bit. A lot of it is processed foods, but if you're like me, you do a combination of fresh and processed...because with a 50+ hour week, I don't have time to play Suzie make-from-scratch Homemaker.

Some things I am always keeping an eye out for:

Canned fruit
Canned vegetables
Frozen vegetables, especially Birds Eye
Pasta
Spaghetti sauce
Bread
Cheese
Processed meats such as hotdogs, sausages, ham, and bacon

I try to limit myself to these items, but Publix does have recurring BOGO for other items such as chips, cookies, chocolates, sodas, Ritz crackers are almost always BOGO every month, and frozen entrees.

I do indulge in a few convenience meals, but only because I can stretch them out to multiple meals by adding fresh vegetables and pasta. The Margaritaville Shrimp with Cilantro Lime is great with summer squash and penne. And I just love pairing Bantry Bay mussels (either the tomato or garlic butter) with fettuccine. When you factor in the BOGO offer and adding the pasta and veggies, you're looking at 1.50 per serving.

Speaking of adding veggies, another way to save money is to cut down on meat. Meat is expensive. Let's face it...it's not all that great for us in large amounts anyway. And to all those who might seek to undercut this idea by citing the whole caveman argument, I suggest talking to your cardiologist about the 2 pounds of red meat eating habits Americans are indulging in these days and how it's affecting our health.

Which is not to say that you should eschew meat altogether. I love the stuff. However, there are plenty of tasty options to supplement (not wholly replace) meat on your grocery list. I try to have at least three meals per week that consists of no meat. Some would recoil in horror at the thought, but it's actually quite simple. Cereal and milk. Oatmeal and fruit. Pancakes. Waffles. Salad. Veggie wrap. Beans. The possibilities are endless.

My two favorite that I have almost every week: veggie spaghetti and pinto beans (not together).

Veggie spaghetti is awesome. All you do is saute some of your favorite vegetables in olive oil before adding the sauce portion. Now, my aunt makes homemade sauce. I prefer jarred. It's faster. I grew up on the stuff. Plus, homemade sauce is always too acidic for me and gives me awful reflux. My favorite mix of vegetables is diced tomatoes, yellow squash, onion, and green bell peppers.With the veggies and sauce, I have enough to mix with an entire box of thin spaghetti...which comes out to around 8-10 servings, depending on portion size. I freeze this in containers which hold around 2 portions worth and just grab one out whenever I feel like taking a portion to lunch and maybe eating the other for dinner the next day.

As for pinto beans, I love the stuff. My best friend is a hummus lover, but I'm not a fan. Too many hidden calories from the oil it's emulsified with, and I'm just not too keen on the flavor of chickpeas. Now pinto beans on the other hand...everything you can stick into hummus, you can scoop up pintos with too. Celery, crackers, pita. Plus, you can make a dish of it all by its lonesome. Can't really see myself spooning hummus over rice. The best recipe I've found has been from an online site that I can't seem to find right now, but I'll post the link as soon as I do...credit due and all that. However, it's really quite basic. Pinto beans, a cut up onion, a couple cloves of garlic, salt, water. Put into a crockpot on low for 7-8 hours. Drain off as much liquid as you'd like (depends on how thick you like it), and blend in a blender or with a stick blender. Tastes just like the restaurant stuff. Hello Homemade Bean and Cheese Burritos. Nice to see you Meatless Nachos. What big grains you have, Mr. Pintos and Rice.

Thrifty style

One thing I noticed on a lot of frugal blogs was that a lot of the blog writers purchased their clothes at thrift stores. Now I routinely zero in on clearance racks to save a few dollars here and there, but even at 75 percent off, a shirt in a department store can cost 20.00 or more. All shirts at the Salvation Army are 3.99 and apparently there's a special each week where they choose a color, and if the tag of your item matches that color, you get an additional 50% off.

Thrift shops are considered trendy these days, so I was familiar with them, but the one in my hometown was grossly overpriced and carried items that you couldn't give away, so I didn't have a good experience with them. But after seeing some of the nice items thrifty bloggers shared, I decided to give it another shot.

I have to admit that it was fun. Be prepared to spend a lot of time browsing. The clothes were not grouped into any size categories. XS was right there along-side 3X. But at least they separated by gender and adult/kids. Two thrift shops later I walked away with four shirts.

Sorry about the picture quality. My digital camera is on its last legs...think it's going to have to go on the auction block for parts. Next time I'll take pics with my phone.

Cute little cotton ribbed shirt. I paired this with a medium brown khaki and brown flats

Susan Graver tunic. I love these slinky types of shirts b/c they require no ironing. LoL. It's not really my style as-is, but I plan to add a black camisole, black belt, and scarf.

Just your average long sleeved tee. This one has small beaded embellishments around the collar. I can wear with slacks and maybe something sparkly in my ears or dress it down with some jeans

I was hesistant to get this one because we don't have long winters down here and it's basically a sweater, but it's actually a lightweight cotton type of sweater. The brown camisole underneath is mine (best thing I ever did was buy a bunch of these in different colors years ago from Lane Bryant...back when the stuff they sold was quality...they're 10 years old and all still look brand new). I plan to pair this with dark brown slacks. The color is an interesting mustard yellow with a hint of green/brown. 

All four shirts = 16.00

Transitioning to a life of thrift

Well, the last month has been a crucible of sorts. I managed to downsize quite a bit, but I still spent waaaay too much money. Add to that the transition of going from a monthly to bimonthly paycheck (thus necessitating payment of half my monthly bills one month ahead) at the same time I'm dealing with deposits and installation fees and whatnot...

In summary, I'm dead broke.

Which is actually a good thing because it made me take a hard look at my life. I'd talked about the clutter. Now I'm looking at the waste. Thousands of dollars wasted on "splurges" and "indulgences." Now I'm not saying that I need to live like a monk, but I also don't need to routinely spend 60 dollars on a single meal or an obscene amount of money on a trip to the salon. What's more, I work in a career where a high portion of the population live at or below the poverty level. They make ends meet on a fraction of my pay...and here I am barely getting by. I'll be honest; I'm ashamed of myself. And I'm tired of the debt. I'm tired of feeling like one month of unemployment would sink me.

It's time to start a life of frugality. In baby steps.
 
Obviously, the first step was looking at what I can and cannot live without. One thing is for certain: I can't get rid of my internet...not gonna happen. In addition to helping me save money (DIY videos, access to sales and online auctions, etc...), I need it for work. I thought about getting rid of cable, but with the promotional deal I have now, it's only 10 dollars more for cable and internet than internet alone. If I didn't have cable, I'd spend way more than 10 dollars on a single trip to the movie theater...even with my monstrously large dvd collection. I'm going to try and make the transition to life without cable, but I'll probably wait until after the promotion ends. Remember, baby steps.

Restaurants. It's going to be hard to cut back on this one. I tell you, moving to Savannah was as tough on my waistline as it was on my pocketbook. Some of the food here is divine. Especially the seafood. I think that if I say "never again visit a restaurant," I'd end up going crazy with splurges. So I'm going to start with no more than 2 visits a month and no more than 10 dollars per visit. To those who have been pinching pennies for years and years, you might be rolling your eyes, but that's actually a huge cut for me. Not so much for lunch...I've almost always brought a lunch from home and my job offers affordable meals as well. It's dinners that do me in. You're tired. You're hungry. You pass by 20 different restaurants on the way home. You think how easy it would be to just hop on the computer and order a pizza...it even comes with illustrations showing the cheese and onions and mushrooms being added with each click. Hmmmm. But I am going to resist. Plus, there's one meal in particular that I want to make a habit of getting because I can use it to make three separate meals, all for under 10 dollars. But more of that later.


So I've been scouring the internet, "stealing" ideas here and there from those who have been successful in living the frugal lifestyle. In the next few posts, you'll see how I try (and sometimes fail) to emulate them.

Moving is so hard to do

I have so much stuff!!! When did I accumulate so many things? Useless things at that.

I've made up my mind to seriously downsize prior to moving. I want no clutter. I want nothing in my life which takes up space and contributes nothing to the quality of living. So with that, I made up my mind to go through each of my rooms and clean house.

Boy, did I seriously underestimate what this would entail. Trying to get a little out of this downsizing project, versus simply stuffing everything into a Hefty bag and carting it off to Goodwill, I've been attempting to sell a lot of what I'm discarding. I've got over 26 listings on ebay right now (am so dreading packaging all that up for shipping) and will probably be listing several more items before it's all said and done.

Purchasing-wise, I've been rather good. I've limited my spending to a couple of decorative items, a crab pot (coastal living has its perks), and a dresser.


The internet has been an invaluable resource throughout all of this. Not only in finding a place to live (I shudder to think where I could have ended up without access to apartment reviews) but with helpful information with regards to any and everything. For example, I had thought I would have to spend a large chunk of my budget buying a new couch (the back cushions being demolished by the dogs perching there every day for the past 8 years) but found this wonderful posting on how to clean and restore life to worn down couches.

Easy and Inexpensive Saggy Couch Fix

I'm even managing to put my mom's dated green recliner to good use once it's made a bit less unpleasant on the eyes via an espresso slipcover.

Admittedly, I'll have to purchase a few items here and there, but I'm making a conscientious effort to curb the spending and not start out my new journey with new debts.

One of my few decorating splurges.

Any moving tips you'd want to share?

Savannah or Bust!

So it's official. I'm moving to Savannah! 

I've been thinking about relocating for a while now. Don't get me wrong; my hometown is a wonderful place to raise a family, but I don't have one. As such, I was always mentioning to friends that I would like to move to a larger area that had a bit more to offer a singleton than dinner and a movie every weekend. Quite frankly, my waistline can't take another year of cultural stagnation.

I'd narrowed my choices down to three cities: Atlanta, Savannah, and Tallahassee. Job searched ensued and a position was attained in Savannah.

Funny thing is that I've never been. Atlanta, yes. Tallahassee, many times. Savannah, nada. The first three trips to the coast were done with little fanfare and no touristy strolls. It's a three hour commute from where I currently live, and all I was concerned with was making the good time, not getting killed on the highway, and not getting lost on my way to each interview. However, I did indulge in a lunch stop to enjoy some Korean food at a restaurant called Kimchee II.

Dukbokki. Extra Spicy.

After being hired, it was time to look for a place to live. My best friend had lived in Savannah previously (and loved it) and volunteered to act as guide. I ended up submitting an application for an apartment, and we spent the next few hours visiting the Squares, walking along the beach at Tybee Island, and taking in dinner and a show at Mirage, a Moroccan restaurant.

Bellydancer at the Mirage

 Then we finished off with a stroll down River St. A wonderful part of Savannah that reminded me a great deal of New Orleans. Street performers, crab-shaped salt and pepper shakers (along with a gazillion other coastal souvenirs), live bands, eateries, and cobblestone streets. Perhaps it's the Southern mannerisms or maybe it's just that the heat and humidity that induce a sort of languidness, but there's an energy on River Street that I found both exhilarating and relaxing...as contrary as that statement seems.

What exciting parts of Savannah have you discovered?