It Changed My Life!.....Seriously.....

Dear Anonymous Blog Writer Who I Follow & Read,

I am so glad you decided to go to a Blogging Conference.
Really....I am!
I hope you had a blast.
And I already know that you did!

Because, between me and you, THAT is the point of attending a Blogging Conference.
Spending all that money to spend a long weekend away from home with other Bloggers is just an excuse for having a party.
The only people who actually make money from Blogging Conferences are the people who are in the business of setting up and running conferences.

I know, I know.....you will defend your choice to go by saying that it's "important" for your Blog.....
That you are learning so much from your fellow Bloggers......
That you are "connecting" with corporations......
That you are getting "your brand" out there for all to see.....
That you are treating your blog as a "business".....

But let's get real here.
Unless your blog really is a "business"......meaning you make enough income off of it to support yourself.
Unless you really learn something that will benefit me as your reader?
You are going on vacation.

I really don't care that much about your conference experience.
I don't want to hear how you agonized over every article of clothing you brought to find the perfect ensemble so you could go whore yourself for swag or get stinking drunk with your bloggy friends at the after party in the hotel suite.

I don't want to hear about the ridiculous spread of food and the ice carvings.
I don't want to hear about the corporate booths full of mousepads, t-shirts, samples of products, hats, etc. etc. etc. and how much flirting, smiling, cleavage, fake enthusiasm & interest, etc. you had to show those corporate stooges in order to haul a suitcase home bulging with freebies that just add to the materialistic waste stream we are already drowning in in this country.

Losing your dignity over a sample free roll of Charmin is NOT empowering to women.

Constant Tweets for 3 days and multiple posts about how FABULOUS it is to be there and LOOK AT ME! in Yet another Photograph with these other tipsy, smiling Bloggers just makes me want to hurl and block you into eternity.

So next time........and I DO KNOW there will be a next time because you are an attention junkie.......go spend your money(as long as you aren't in debt and you don't pay for the trip with credit)and have a great time!
When you get home, write ONE POST complete with links, photographs and your profound words about how this 3 Days have "changed my life".
One Post.
So that if I don't give a rat's ass about Blogging Parties I can easily scroll past it and we can get on with our online relationship.

Sincerely,

Your Reader(for now)


Sluggy

Food Spending August Week 1 & Meal Planning Week 2

Ain't it the truth.....

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And here is the "meal plan" that actually happened last week.....

Sunday--BBQ Chicken, Collard Greens

Monday--Hamburger Helper type casserole, Pickles

Tuesday--Leftovers/Fend For Yourself

Wednesday--Subway Sandwiches

Thursday--KFC, Mashed Potatoes, Coleslaw, Biscuits

Friday--Leftovers/Fend For Yourself

Saturday--Fried Fish, Yellow Squash, Coleslaw

I cooked 3 meals at home last week.  Hubs and I got a sandwich on Wed. since no one else was home, I didn't see the point of cooking a big meal in the heat.  KFC was our splurge/eating out for the week.  It gave us 2 full meals worth for $21.

#2 Son wasn't home for dinner Mon.-Fri. due to band.

The weekly food spending was $119.98 done in 2 trips to Weis and 1 trip to the local Shursave Market. I had a $5 WYS $50 Q for Shursave so I bought ice cream, milk, carrots, 2 types of fruit, deli meat, 2 loaves of bread, tartar sauce, 6 jars of spaghetti sauce, 6 bottles of salad dressing and 2 boxes of tea bags.

The last few items were part of a Spend $20/Get $7 Catalina Q Unilever Deal.  The 2 trips to Weis to do the Purina Dog Food and the Nestle Deals.   The Purina Deal didn't produce the Catalina so I got a $10 gift card which I promptly forgot to use for the Nestle Deal. doh!  I did receive the $5 Cat for the Nestle Deal.  Between the 2 stores I have $12 in Cats and a $10 Gift Card to spend on future free food in the coming weeks.

Besides the Cat Deals at Weis I picked up some cheap chicken cutlets, pork ribs, some steaks and some reduced bakery muffins.

I have $280.02 left of my $400 food budget for August.

Going into the new week I have the following leftovers to use up......nothing at all.

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This week's menu.....

Sunday--Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti, Green Beans

Monday--Meatloaf, Squash Casserole

Tuesday--Tuna Helper, Tossed Salad

Wednesday--Chicken in the Crockpot, Stir-fry Veggies

Thursday--Tacos or Taco Salad

Friday--Pizza, Salad

Saturday--Leftovers

I have squash and green beans to use from the garden this week.  

We are suppose to have some cooler days this week so I'll be turning on the oven 1 or 2 nights(2 nights if I make a homemade pizza instead of using one of these gift cards I have for a couple of pizza places around here).  I'll make enough meatloaf for leftovers.

What I need to buy this week to serve this menu?..... lettuce.  Also more lunch  meat, fruit, eggs, yogurt and milk for non-dinner needs.   This should be a light week for groceries.  I'm figuring $30 for all.

So what's on deck for your menu this week?

Sluggy

"Finally Frugal and Happy" Blog & Judy UPDATE

I finally heard back from Judy last night via email.
She is ok first off.  She isn't sick or anything.

She IS dealing with some "personal family issues" which necessitated her shutting down her blog again.
I'm not at liberty to go into the details but trust me, she had to!

Between work and these personal issues she hasn't even had time to bop around and read/comment on the blog of anyone else either.
Is her blog gone for good?......not sure.
This is just how it is with Judy for now.

If anyone wishes to contact her, feel free to email me a message and I'll send it on, or leave a comment on this post and I'll tell her to get her rear over here and read them.

It saddens me and makes me angry to see her going through the crap she told me about that I can't share.

I think Judy could use a little encouragement for all of us right about now so leave her some love if ya can!

Sluggy

Guess Where I Went Today?

If you answered Rite-Aid, you'd be RIGHT!lol

Actually I went yesterday afternoon too.
I went in on Friday afternoon with $14 in +Ups and used my Wellness card......

I'm do this quickly and not bore you with the intimate details because most of these deals ended Saturday night.

This lot of stuff cost me $.77 on my gift card after Qs/sales and used $5 in +Up Rewards.  I received $15 in +Up Rewards back(2 x $2 Pantene, $3 WYB Crest Rinse, $4 StingEase Max, 2 x $2 Oral-B Power Toothbrushes).  The Reach toothbrushes also counted $8 toward the J&J Spend $30/Get $10 +Ups Deal, so I just have to spend another $22 to get that $10 reward.

Used $5 +Ups, Got $15.....$14 going in - $5=$9 + $15=$24 +Ups.

Next Transaction was on BIL's card.....

This lot of stuff cost me $1.91 on my gift card after Qs/sales and used $16 +Up Rewards.  I received $26 in +Up Rewards back(2 x $3 Nivea Body Wash-part of the Gillette BW Deal, $10 Monthly WYB $20 Nivea, 2 x $2 Pantene, 2 x $2 Oral-B Power Toothbrushes, $2 WYB 3 $1 Toothpastes).

Started with $24+Ups - $16+Ups=$8+Ups + $26+Ups=$34+Ups.

Back to my card again and I bought this stuff.....

This lot of stuff cost me $.45 on my gift card after Qs/sales and used $6 in +Up Rewards.  I received $16 in +Up Rewards back(2 x $3 Oral-B Toothpaste, $10 WYB $30 J&J Deal).

Started with $34+Ups - $6+Ups=$28+Ups + $16+Ups=$44+Ups

And one more transaction on my Card again......

I spent $.34 on my gift card and Qs/sales and used $10 in +Up Rewards.  I received $13 in +Up Rewards back($3 Crest Rinse, $5 Lanacane, $1 Lanacane-a monthly maybe?, $4 Revlon WYB 2 beauty tools).

Started with $44+Ups - $10+Ups=$34+Ups + $13+Ups=$47+Up Rewards.
The Revlon tools qualified for a $2 Single Check Rebate as well.

So to recap, I put $3.47  of Out of Pocket expenses on my free gift card, brought home $244.34 worth of toiletries, grew my +Up Rewards from $14 to $47 and Rite-Aid is sending me a $2 cash rebate also.

I made a few mistakes this past week running my Deals at Rite-Aid but all in all?.....I was tearing it UP at Rite-Aid. ;-)

And I did a lot of this on Saturday......still product in the stores at the end of the week for a change.  I gave my fellow shoppers plenty of opportunity to get these deals this week, before I swept in and finished my shopping off on Sat. afternoon.   I detest shelf clearing but if it's 4pm on Saturday and the sale ends on Sat. night at 9pm, I will take the last 2 of something at that point......or maybe get a raincheck. ;-)


No excuse for dirty hair or teeth in this house now.....!

August Grand Totals so far this month.....

Out Of Pocket....$0  cash
Value of items bought....$244.34
Savings Rate of  100%
Single Check Rebate due....$2.00
After SCR applied, Out of Pocket....Stil $0 lol
Savings Rate Still  100%

+Ups at beginning of month...$14+
+Ups used....$37+
+Ups received...$70+
+Ups currently...$47+ 

Sluggy

What's Growing in Sluggy's Yard?

Well the first obvious answer to this question is weeds.  *rimshot*

Since we finally got lots of rain last week, the plants are perking up around here.
And that includes the plants I want to grow AND the ones I don't want, the weeds.

We had to do some more bean picking this past weekend.....

We'll be getting another mess o' beans at least from these plants before they are done.  This variety is called Gold Rush and they are an early variety.

After picking beans, I had Hubs thin my Collard Plants.  We never thinned them after they came up and they are really going wild, so it was way past time to reign them in.  Here is what he pulled up....

They could have stood even more thinning.
Here is what I harvested after cutting the leaves off....

They overfilled my ginormously large colander.
After a nice cold soaking bath with salt in the kitchen sink(coarse salt helps remove the dirt), here is what went into the pot with a small portion of salt pork(cut into lardons).  I also season with freshly cracked pepper and a small amount of sugar(especially if the greens are picked before the first frost as they tend to be bitter and this cuts the bitterness).

I didn't have to remove many of the spines, as the leaves were so young that the spines weren't tough and large.

We ate the Collards with some Barbecue Chicken last Sunday night.  I forgot to get a photo of the finished product.....*burp*. hehehe

While the yellow bean plants on one side of the bed have been fruitful, the vine beans on the other side have been not so much.
Ok, I take that statement back.
These plants have not yielded a single dang blasted bean....yet!
But the vines?
Oh, they are doing a mighty fine impersonation of Kudzu!
And if you are a Yankee or a West Coaster, this is what Kudzu looks like....

Let's just say it is a rather "prolific" weed that grows quickly and swallows up anything in it's path.
In the Summer down South, you don't leave your windows open at night for fear that the Kudzu will come into your home and strangle you in your sleep.lol

Here's what the backside of the garden bed from the deck view looks like.....

They have topped the deck railing and are growing back down again behind the deck box onto the deck.
Now do you see the resemblance to Kudzu?......

And on the end they have overtaken the bird feeder pole and are about to consume my wind chimes.

Totally amazingly lush plants but no blooms yet, let alone actual baby green beans.

So what is growing in your yard this Summer?

Sluggy