Friday, September 27, 2013
Thursday, February 18, 2010
New Game?
So I was stumbling this morning and came across this article about a new and interesting "game" (http://randymurrayonline.com/2010/02/15/the-spend-nothing-game-%E2%80%93-how-long-can-you-go-without-pending-any-money/). It seems like more a prescription on how to live your life wisely (i.e. keep yourself from drowning in debt) rather than a game, but it reminded me of a "game" I played in high school.
When I was dating one of my now exes he had this weird obsession with not spending single dollar bills, and I don't use the word obsession lightly (some of you remember). He challenged me to do the same, so I did. Basically it worked like this I could spend all the coin, fives, tens, and twenties I wanted, but I couldn't spend singles - I had to save them. Which I did in a Chuckie shoe box in my closet and of course I put them in alpha-numeric order by their serial numbers. I know, that may have been way over the top. The saving was tough at first. I mean, your at the gas station buying a soda for - what did it cost back then? Less than five dollars for sure - the cashier sees that you have a whole mess of singles, but you pull out a twenty? They looked at me like I was nuts sometimes. Especially when I'd get up there, open my wallet with ten singles and I'd say "Oh man, I don't have any money." Anyway. I think I ended up saving something like $1500 in six months - and this is back when I was 16 or 17! It's a good way to be frugal. It also makes you think about what you're spending your money on, because you have to actually think about the money.
Anyway - I think I'm going to try this again. Sixteen years later it'll be an interesting experiment.
When I was dating one of my now exes he had this weird obsession with not spending single dollar bills, and I don't use the word obsession lightly (some of you remember). He challenged me to do the same, so I did. Basically it worked like this I could spend all the coin, fives, tens, and twenties I wanted, but I couldn't spend singles - I had to save them. Which I did in a Chuckie shoe box in my closet and of course I put them in alpha-numeric order by their serial numbers. I know, that may have been way over the top. The saving was tough at first. I mean, your at the gas station buying a soda for - what did it cost back then? Less than five dollars for sure - the cashier sees that you have a whole mess of singles, but you pull out a twenty? They looked at me like I was nuts sometimes. Especially when I'd get up there, open my wallet with ten singles and I'd say "Oh man, I don't have any money." Anyway. I think I ended up saving something like $1500 in six months - and this is back when I was 16 or 17! It's a good way to be frugal. It also makes you think about what you're spending your money on, because you have to actually think about the money.
Anyway - I think I'm going to try this again. Sixteen years later it'll be an interesting experiment.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Booties
So Andy and I decided that the girls needed booties for when we take them skiing. Well, Andy suggested it and I just about had a conniption fit I was so excited. I'm never allowed to get the girls sweaters or booties or anything, so I jumped at the chance.
Now, there's a good reason I'm not allowed to get these things for my girls - they hate them. Well Maggie does. Scout seems to tolerate just about everything pretty well. Some of you may have witnessed the paralytic affect of putting any kind of cloth on Maggie's back when she was younger. It could be something as light as a bandanna draped across her back and she was convinced she could not move. Well she's gotten over that. She'll also reluctantly wear a sweater if I can sneak her into one. Her Pop promptly removes it of course, especially if she fusses, which she is likely to do. The first time I put a sweater on her she literally hid under the Christmas tree, paralyzed, until Andy came home and crawled under the tree to drag her out and take the cursed thing off.
Anyway, I digress. Well we took a special trip to PetCo for the booties. Man are those buggers expensive, but I convinced Pop it was good for the girls. We measured their little feet and got the proper sizes.
Once home, I ripped open the packaging and started reading the instructions. Instructions? You ask. Don't you just put them on. No of course not, well - yes, but then there is the adapting period, so I read about that. Your supposed to put the booties on and let the dogs get used to them. Oh heck yea! I decided I must video tape the event, and did so each of the three times we acclimated them to the booties.
I watch the video's often, but I'll only post one here. The longest one.
Of course, then we took them out to the country (video camera in hand) and sure as s**t if Scout didn't loose two of her flippin' booties before we'd even started skiing. Darn things are now somewhere in the snow on Buena Vista...Maggie's worked though. She hates it when they are on, but you can tell from the second video that once in the field the thought of beating the be-jeezes out of her sister is too tempting to make the booties an issue.
OK - I'm sick of waiting for the video to load, so you're just getting the second video today...I'll try the other one tomorrow when I have more time.
Now, there's a good reason I'm not allowed to get these things for my girls - they hate them. Well Maggie does. Scout seems to tolerate just about everything pretty well. Some of you may have witnessed the paralytic affect of putting any kind of cloth on Maggie's back when she was younger. It could be something as light as a bandanna draped across her back and she was convinced she could not move. Well she's gotten over that. She'll also reluctantly wear a sweater if I can sneak her into one. Her Pop promptly removes it of course, especially if she fusses, which she is likely to do. The first time I put a sweater on her she literally hid under the Christmas tree, paralyzed, until Andy came home and crawled under the tree to drag her out and take the cursed thing off.
Anyway, I digress. Well we took a special trip to PetCo for the booties. Man are those buggers expensive, but I convinced Pop it was good for the girls. We measured their little feet and got the proper sizes.
Once home, I ripped open the packaging and started reading the instructions. Instructions? You ask. Don't you just put them on. No of course not, well - yes, but then there is the adapting period, so I read about that. Your supposed to put the booties on and let the dogs get used to them. Oh heck yea! I decided I must video tape the event, and did so each of the three times we acclimated them to the booties.
I watch the video's often, but I'll only post one here. The longest one.
Of course, then we took them out to the country (video camera in hand) and sure as s**t if Scout didn't loose two of her flippin' booties before we'd even started skiing. Darn things are now somewhere in the snow on Buena Vista...Maggie's worked though. She hates it when they are on, but you can tell from the second video that once in the field the thought of beating the be-jeezes out of her sister is too tempting to make the booties an issue.
OK - I'm sick of waiting for the video to load, so you're just getting the second video today...I'll try the other one tomorrow when I have more time.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Yea New Post!
So Tracy complained the other day that I need to update my blog, and obviously I do. It's been since October, but man has a lot happened since then. I've been terribly busy at work and at home. So here's my new post. It's a spring/summer picture. It makes me wish it was warmer out, even though I do like the snow.
This is Peso, our smallest red foot tortoise. She is about 8 or 9 years old and extremely friendly (or food oriented, depends on the way you look at it). All three of them are actually pretty food oriented. In the summer the three red foots and the leopard tortoise have run of the yard, which they love, and when we come outside they often times come to us thinking we have food for them. The big male, Spike, is the most food oriented. Peso is the friendliest, and Sylvia basically ignores us. The leopard tortoise, Casanova, totally ignores us and spends much of his time trying to get out of the yard.
So, there you go Tracy. A new post.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Halloween
OK, so if you know me at all you know I hate Halloween - except the dressing up part. I know, I don't quite get it either.I totally dig getting all dressed up for work and showing off my costume - this year I was a nun. I think I pulled it off pretty successfully. Apparently we had customers asking if I was a real nun, I even had one little girl stop and gawk at me outside my office until I looked up at her (sternly of course, had to stick with the character).
The thing I hate about Halloween is little and not so little kids dressing up and begging for candy at my front door. Don't get me wrong, I was one of the little beggars when I was a kid to, but I am pretty sure I always said "Trick or Treat" and "Thank you". Anymore the little beggars hold out a bag and stare at you until you drop candy in. Last time I gave out candy was when I lived in Rio. Some too old to be trick or treating kid looked at the candy I gave him and said "That's it?!"So, now I don't give anymore candy out. I hide in a back room with all the lights off in the front of the house waiting for the designated time to be over. Little beggars still ring the bell. I'm a prisoner in my own house!
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