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Yesterday Barry Sharpless won his second nobel prize.  He is the 5th person ever and only living person to have 2 nobel prizes.  DH was working with Barry when he won his 1st nobel prize in 2001.  It was a privilege to meet, chat, and learn from him.  DH called him a genius and he really was.  I remember being 22 and impressed with his house and the guy himself when I met him.  He drove a Honda Civic hatchback because he didn't care what he drove. ...
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I just came home from my first weekly shop of the month. There will be four this month, so the amount to stay at or under is $25. I spent $23. I bought bread, biscuits, coffee, creamer, powdered sugar, parmesan cheese, canned tomatoes, canned tomato paste, canned mushrooms, granola, and sandwich cookies.
I'm planning on making chicken pot pie, spaghetti, and chicken fajitas (an idea left over from last week). Other meals will materialize, I'm sure. Last week I unexpectedly found...
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It's a miracle, but I didn't have to back out of or cancel the trip!  So many last minute canceled trips in recent years.  So I am mostly in disbelief that we pulled it off.
The trip was very pleasant.  We loved Tucson.  Apparently, sunny (no clouds) and 90F degrees (forecasted) every day means some random rain and thunder just about every day.  That was a pleasant surprise.  Here in California, sunny and no clouds means sunny and no clouds. ...
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We are starting hardcore meal planning and meal prepping to get back into saving money on food, eating better, including a lot more vegetables and a lot less carbs, almost everything from scratch, and slaying the takeout demon and waster of money and tempter of credit card spending.  I spent $301 on groceries yesterday and today from a $500 two week grocery budget.  My goal is to have $100 left at the end of the 2 week pay period to put in the beef fund.  I have...
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I went to DSW yesterday with a $30 coupon. It had to be used on a purchase of at least $49. That's a pretty good coupon! I didn't find shoes for $49 but found the Van's sneakers I wanted (in the kids' section -- but the shoes fit). My receipt doesn't show the price before the coupon was applied, but my end cost was $22. I do pretty well getting shoes at DSW; I don't know how they make any money!
So the month is off to a great start. 
Today I'm going to make Football Soup...
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Fall is here and this past week has been nothing but glorious as far as weather. I doubt if I will be saying that when winter comes, but right now, it has been so nice seeing the lovely skies and the mild weather. So often we don't truly have a fall season...it's blazing hot, we have a couple of cooler days, and then bam! It's winter. So, I'm appreciating the sunny, lovely days.
The end of the week may result in a frost so DH and I are working on getting the garden taken care...
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Well my brother that has a rental has asked my mom if she wants to move in there in april (he currently has tenants) 2023...so we have agreed that she will live with her friend for the next 6 months and split costs and my nephew will live with us till then and then move in with her in april...not that I wanted him to be here that long but I guess it is what it is...and she can stay in that house until she dies...so no more moving for her..which is what she wanted. 
My nephew...
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Housing - $746
Vacation/Travel - $276 (mini-trip to Michigan)
Insurance - $234 (condo, annual)
Utilities - $197
Gifts/Charity - $141 (two birthdays, early Christmas shopping)
Groceries - $100
Personal - $82 (pads, face cream, a comb)
Entertainment - $51 (streaming, football pool)
Gas - $38
Medical/Health - $36 (premium, Beano)
Phone - $32
Clothing/Accessories - $21 (earrings, winter hat)
Laundry - $16
Household Supplies - $11 (bleach, glue, peroxide)
Furnishings/Equipment/Decor...
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Well, what a crazy couple of weeks it has been.  The Mosquito Fire started small, then a few days in there was a very windy day and it grew exponentially.  It was about 2.5 miles north of us and 1 mile east of us, with nothing in between but dry timber.   The situation changed FAST.  Our area was evacuated.  I was at work when it happened.  SB sent me this picture, taken from our little front yard just as he was leaving:

I thought for sure...
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Thank goodness the storm passed us by, we had a few tornadoes and a ton of rain with fierce winds; however, our west coast friends did not do much. 
There is massive damage on the west coast. I’m thankful it didn’t hit us but I’m also sad it made landfall in another area. 
 
Keep Florida in your prayers. 
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I want to first thank everyone for your kind words, thoughts and prayers for my SIL and my family. I am sad to update that she has passed away.
It really is true that you just never know when something like this might happen. My last happy memory of her was  on the boardwalk, enjoying the sun, eating an ice cream and watching the ocean waves. The beach was truly her happy place.
Rest in Peace Bev. 
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I did my final grocery shopping of the month this morning. I had to come in under $19 to meet my goal, and I did -- $18.58. Here's what I bought at Aldi: bacon bits, jalapeno peppers, butter, cheddar cheese, bouillon cubes, eggs, salsa, refrigerated pie crusts, Ritz-type crackers.
Meals that I have planned for this coming week include barbecued chicken, chicken fajitas, spinach quiche, and football soup (a cheese soup with bacon bits, beer, and jalapeno). Other ideas will emerge...
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DL(17) made a solo music album and sold his first copy.  He made $10.
I got my life insurance renewal.  I thought it looked more than usual.  It was 3.5 times higher!  The joys of turning 45.   There's a preferred rate that is about half as much.  I just don't know the odds I will get that, with all my recent health issues.  Will see... 
Ugh, I just got my medical insurance renewal too.  Is a bigger increase (8%) than it has been...
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I said earlier I wasn't getting our state's property tax rebate because I hadn't claimed property tax on my tax form (I took the standard deduction and did not itemize). However, I learned that there is a rebate form for those who did not file taxes -- they don't specifically say that filers like me can use it (it seems to be aimed at people who didn't file at all), but I thought it was worth a try. I did pay property taxes after all. I am entitled to the rebate as much as anyone....
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My grandson's birthday party was great! Food was ordered in, from a local restaurant, and of course there was cake and ice cream. We played cards all afternoon and there was lots of laughter.
The restaurant, for some reason, threw in a lot of extra packets of ketchup. Enough to fill a sandwich baggie. They were about to be thrown away (horrors!) and I claimed them, sealing my reputation as a cheapskate. I don't care. Throwing away ketchup during a tomato shortage is just ridiculous!...
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Well prayerfully we won’t get hit with a storm. 
 
I literally just got an estimate on hurricane shutters, $6k for all windows. The good thing is I won’t have to run around trying to get plywood, nails and someone to put them up once they’re installed. Not to mention, I think I also get a decrease on my homeowners insurance. I’m thankful I have the cash to pay for it. 
 
With the storm approaching I’m also thankful I...
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Well we sent our taxes on the 17th january this year..yes via snail mail as it's the only way we can do it without it costing us over $300 plus to get them done.....it is now 25th sept and we haven't even heard if they have them..nothing is logged into their computer when we check online...I'm not going to chase it up..the last lot from 2019 & 2020 were just completed this year and was a nightmare...so we will wait and see what happens will see if they eventually get to them...I...
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A few days before my sister and BIL were going to leave Texas and drive to Maryland to stay with me for a few days before we all left for our family beach vacation, he had a medical problem and needed to get a pacemaker. He is fine, but they were unable to come for the vacation as he couldn't travel.
So, while this was very disappointing, the rest of us went to the beach as planned. We were having a wonderful time until on Wednesday, when my sister-in-law fell ill and had to be...
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My boss is applying for a new business credit card and is having issues.
Is through our bank, that we have a long relationship with.  They finally told him, "Yeah, we noticed a while ago you had a zero credit score but clearly you had good credit and it didn't affect things on our end."  Re: bank line of credit and personal guaranty (he also has a bajillion dollars).  "But it's going to be a little more work to get around the 'credit approval' robot."  
I...
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Did you see that Frugalwoods moved up from a $10K vehicle to a ~$35K+ vehicle?  😱
I am sure they could easily afford it, and didn't have much choice.  But I just couldn't even imagine wrapping my brain around that.  Yikes!
I am starting to feel like a genius for pulling the EV car trigger.  If it allows us to wait out this used car insanity.  We were so spoiled by the decades that most people turned up their nose at the idea of buying used. 
Oh...
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