Wednesday 7 January 2009

Returns Queen

The temperature this morning was, with wind chill, -47C. It didn't climb that much higher, ending the afternoon at -43C.

It's time for an update, I think.

I spent the weekend having way too much fun with a friend. We stayed up too late, drank too much, played "Guitar Hero", ate pizza, watched a couple of movies and probably embarrassed two of her kids a bit, too. It was awesome. I need to take more time off work and do things like that more often!

I did spend a bit during my hedonistic weekend, however:
Dessert, Coke $23.76 (strawberries, $7.99!! Ouch...)
Milk (x 2), $13.64

I think I made up for that, however (and the fact the purchases were, again, NOT cash), by depositing $36.00 worth of rolled coin into my gift fund on Monday morning. I was surprised I had so much, but it adds up really quickly. Another bonus of cash only - found money in the form of change.

I also returned the second book I bought the other day. I thought it might be interesting, or something I could use, but it's not really designed for single people. It was called "Once a Month Cooking" and had all kinds of recipes and strategies for cooking a ton of food once a month and freezing the dinner entrees. I'm just not sure it would be worth my while to, firstly, buy all the equipment necessary for this grand scheme and secondly, whether it's actually a practical undertaking in a TINY kitchen. I'm thinking most likely not...

Anyhow, I have my fabulous new crockpot and I think that's more than sufficient for one person to make a week's worth of meals.

I've taken out $200 in cash, to have for my new cash only undertaking. I used $3.50 this morning because I woke up at 8am (and start work at 8:30!), so I had no time to have any breakfast or throw something together for lunch. I'm not certain how long this will last me, but I'm aiming for a month. Wish me luck!

Today I made yet another return. I had bought some tape and a tape gun for packing, but decided I could borrow a gun instead. So I returned it!

My total returns for the week amount to $194.66! Most of that is the snowshoes, but that's pretty substantial overall, n'est ce pas?

One of my comments from my last post was from a reporter at the Yukon News, one of our two newspapers and the only daily. He came across my blog and is interested in doing an article about it and my attempts at saving money here in Whitehorse. I'm thinking about this as I think it would be fun, but part of what I like about this blog is my anonymity.

Hmmm...

10 comments:

Sharon S said...

Hi there-well done on the returns, that is a substantial amount, good for you! The newspaper article sounds exciting, but I completely understand your reservations regarding anomynity.

Anonymous said...

I think I would hesitate on the article but it would be an honor to be asked. Good luck with your decision.

Anonymous said...

Am I the only one who hasn't changed the look of my blog lately?! Really must jump on the bandwagon...2009 is the time for changes I guess!

Good luck on your cash only venture. It works for me, 98% of the time. For those 2% times that it doesn't work, I make sure that I leave some room in my budget for those circumstances.

Saver Queen said...

Can you do the article for the paper and still remain anonymous? If you can't, I wouldn't do it. It's not worth it. My blog is anonymous to everyone but I did let a few people close to me in on it - such as my parents, my grandmother, my cousin, and a few close friends. But even that has caused a few problems. First, my mom (probably trying to be helpful) gave the address to a bunch of her friends and our extended family. But recently, my mom was not happy that I posted some personal information under "the 2008 results." She didn't think it was appropriate to reveal that kind of info. (I posted the dollar amount of debt we'd paid off this year and revealed that we've been debt free since the summer.) I think she thinks it is shameful to have debt and both my parents come from families where money is NEVER talked about (I will never know how much my dad makes nor what political party he votes for). It makes me realize that not everyone is going to be supportive and people who know you may judge you. I wouldn't sacrifice my anonymity for some extra visitors... you don't want to feel judged and a part of me wishes now that I kept mine 100% anonymous.

Rina said...

I think you should do the article, but request that they don't use your name.

Give Me Back My Five Bucks has done things like that and always keeps her anonymity...just tell them about your concerns and they should respect your wishes to have your real name kept a secret!

Congrats - what an honor!

Anonymous said...

Wow, the news. Congrats! It might be a seize the moment opportunity. But, I understand the anonymity... not that I practice it. Hmmmm... that's an individual call. ;)

Once, I check out the book you returned. In fact, not too long ago. It's a good book and a couple of the recipes looked yummy. But I think the book is great for people that may be at home all day. And there are some good tips that you might be able to use.

However, I think that your crockpot is a more sound idea. I am hoping to use mine much more this year.

And the 'kid in me' weekend. Fabulous! I really could use one of those. It's been sooooo long.

Keep us updated about the Yukon News!

Saver Queen said...

Mama Bear, I hear you - I wrote an article for the paper in Toronto - but in Toronto you have complete anonymity - in Whitehorse, do you have much at all? Or would people figure out who you are based on the fact that you sit on the board of the Humane Society, and what you do for a living, etc etc...

Canadian Saver said...

congratulatioins on being asked to be featured in your newspaper :-) Good luck making your decision!

I have a book similar to the OAMC and while there are some good recipes, I agree that for 1 or 2 it's not worth the big cooking session...

Northern Living Allowance said...

Thank you, everyone, for the very thoughtful and thought-provoking comments! I had concerns about the anonymity aspect in a small(ish) town, as well as people figuring out where I work, which I don't really want. Neither am I looking to seriously increase traffic and possibly end up with commenters I don't want...

But I think I'll talk with the reporter first, and see what he wants to do with the article and make my decision from there. Can't hurt to collect information and base my decision on that! I think it could be really fun...

Anonymous said...

I so get your dilemna re annonymity and the press!