Feeling all Effervescent About Coke

I wait every year for the month of December.
Why?
So I can cash in my Coke Rewards Points.

If you have a soda monkey on your back(or on the backs of those you love and feed), you can drink Coke products, save the codes up until December and then start cashing them out.  We don't go through Coke products nearly as much as we use to when all 3 kids were at home and younger.  #2 Son prefers his poison in the form of Mt. Dew and the other 2 don't drink soda much anymore.  I will have a Coke now and again but my heart beats for Dr. Pepper if I have to have soda.

Even if you don't drink it much, you can still scavenge codes from friends, co-workers, social gatherings where they serve said products or even from trash cans everywhere you go.

If you see an empty coke bottle with a cap being thrown away, grab that cap.  The code inside it is worth 3 points.  See someone throwing out a 12 pack carton?  Grab the flap where the carton is perforated for the code on back of that, which is worth 10 points.

You have to keep your points "active" throughout the year once you enter them on the Coke website.  This means you have to add codes for points at least once every 3 months, or Coke will expire all your points accumulated on their website.

Throughout the year, Coke "may" offer deals and specials.....like one time offers on gifts or a lower "price" on a reward(meaning you have to spend less points to get something).  Be sure and sign up to receive their emails or check their Facebook page often to take advantage of these type of specials.

And then once a year in December, MyCokeRewards runs lots of specials.  Usually they put the Free 12 packs of Coke products on sale in December sometimes for 30 points(instead of 300 points!).
Many people wait for this all year to get scads of Free Coke coupons. (If you get your codes by not drinking the stuff, they DO have rewards for things other than soda too.)

This past December Coke changed it up and held a "12 Days of Christmas" Deal.  Every day they offered a different Reward(Limit 1)and on the 12th day the Deal was Free 12 packs of Coke Qs for 30 points with a Limit of 4 packs/rewards.
Only, Coke decided to change it to Limit of 1 at the last minute, after advertising for 2 weeks that the Limit was 4.
And people pulled a Peter Finch in "Network", got mad as hell and let Coke and everyone in the civilized world know of their displeasure over this marketing gaff.

So Coke decided to let everyone get unlimited number of free Coke Qs for their points a day or two later but didn't advertise it.
But many people missed it and they got even hotter over this.

Let's just say that this whole thing was a big ball of f**ked-upness and a marketing dept. nightmare for Coke.

Along with the screwy Promotion this year, Coke also had a sweepstakes/game Deal.  For 3 points, you could play a game and have the chance of winning prizes, with a limit of 5 tries per day.

After I had used up most of my points on those Free Coke Qs, I went ahead and threw about 30 points away on the sweepstakes.
I find that it helps when I try to win something, that it makes me not take it so seriously and get "worked up" when I don't win, if I consider any money/points/etc. I use to be just throwing it away.
It also helps make it more awesome if I actually happen to win something! lolol

So here is my Coke haul for 2012 with the few points I manage to scrape together in 2012.

I chose to get a $10 Gift Card for Domino's Pizza.
I snagged 5 FREE Coke 12 packs during the Free Q fiasco days.
I also won twice in the sweepstakes--1 x 20 oz. bottle of Coke(wow! what a prize!!!) and 1 x Prize Pack of 2 AMC Movie tickets and 2 Large Sodas(I bet if I were to price them out, the sodas cost more than the movie tickets).

I will add here that Coke products(12 packs and 2 liters)are part of the Rite-Aid January Promotion(count toward your $100 in purchases)AND give a $2+Up Reward wyb3 12 packs this week(this may be regional).  This is a way to stretch out the benefit of these Free item Qs if you shop Rite-Aid this month.......and I am sure Wags and CVS also have deals coming up that give you a reward back when you redeem your Free Coke coupons.  Just keep your eyes peeled for them!

Just another way to be thrifty if you have to indulge your carbonated self.

Sluggy

Another Fine Mess......

I went to Rite-Aid last night.
And as Oliver Hardy use to say, "Well, that's another nice mess you've gotten us into!"

I just looked it up and though this short film they did was entitled "Another Fine Mess", the actual catchphrase that Hardy used was "another nice mess...".
And thus ends our lesson in the history of comedy for today. lol

At any rate, my trip to Rite-Aid turned out Laurel and Hardy style.
Here is what I ended up bringing home.....

And here are the "normal" deals I got.

*The Dryel was $8.29, but $6.63 after Gold discount and I had a $5 IPQ, making it $1.63 AND it's a monthly +Up Deal this month, so I got a $2 +Up Reward back.

*The Sharpies are BOGO this week(these particular packs reg. price $4.29), and there is another monthly +Up Deal of $2+Up Reward back for each one you buy.  So I spent $4.29 and received back $4 in +Ups.

Now on to the "problem children"....lol

*I was chatting with one of the friendly managers on duty.  She was restocking and blocking the aisle with her cart I wanted to get the Neosporin from, so I asked her to grab one for me.  She hands it over and says be sure and use the coupon in the sales flyer on it.
Huh?, I said.
She said the shelftag has written on it that there is a $1 sales flyer Rite-Aid coupon to use on this product.
OK.....so I scan the sales ad and there is no In-Ad Q for this item and I show her.
She says to me she'll have the cashier modify the price down $1.
So this is why I paid $11.99 for the Neosporin Essentials Pack and not $12.99.
And there is a full rebate on this item, so in the end, I'll have paid nothing for it. 8-)

*I grabbed a bottle of the 1 Liter sized Listerine.  It's on sale for $3.99 and counts toward the J&J Spend $30/Get $10 Promotion AND the Jan. Spend $100/Get $20 etc. Promotion.
My Load2Card has 2 electronic Qs on it for this size product--a $2/1 Q which is older and a $1/1 Q which is new in the past couple of weeks.  I also have an IPQ for $2/1.

Before I handed over any Qs I had the cashier print out the receipt to see if either of the L2C Qs came off.  Neither had.  The manager from before was up at the register so I pitched a hissy fit.
Ok.....maybe not a hissy fit, but I said something derogaroty about this whole L2C set-up.  It seems like I am calling them every week or two and the reason why something doesn't work right is always changing!  It's really getting quite tiresome.....

The manager scanned my Wellness card and she could look at my Wellness account on the register and see every L2C coupon I had!  As a matter of fact, she could see every L2C coupon I had EVER clipped to my card since the program started!  I had 15 pages of Qs(most expired though)!LOLOL  She found both the $2 and the $1 Listerine Qs sitting in my account.  So she price modified the Listerine to $1.99(which is what I'd have to pay if the $2 Q came off).  At that point, I couldn't hand over my $2/1 IPQ too since the price of the item was less than the Q.
So instead of using a L2C and a IPQ on the item and getting it for free, I was going to pay $1.99.
I was ok with that, especially after they had taken the time and effort to make me happy.
Who could NOT be ok with that? 8-)

So I handed over my Dryel Q and then I started doling out the +Up Rewards until I was left with .90¢ to pay(on the gift card, of course), and my receipt with $6 in +Ups printed out.
And before I left the store I saw something on the receipt--seems the $1 Listerine L2C Q had attached to my bill after the cashier had hit total or something!  It wasn't there when we printed out the receipt before.
So I ended up paying .99¢ for the Listerine.  Not quite free but that's ok. ;-)

Now for my tracking for the Promotions....
I have $13.98 for the J&J Deal(need $30).
I have $20.99 for the Jan. Promo(need $100).  I had $19 going into this transaction so that means only the Listerine at $1.99 was added.  The Sharpies are part of the deal but they didn't attach.  I should have $25.28  Grrrrr

I "spent" $18 in +Ups, got $6 +Ups back and I am due a cash refund of $11.99.


This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$37.15
+Ups coming into this trip....$28.50
+Ups used....$18.00
+Ups earned......$6.00
+Ups at the end.....$16.50

 
**GRAND TOTALS FOR JANUARY-so far**

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$62.00
Savings Rate of  100%
Rebates due......$0.00
Savings Rate after Rebates.....100 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$32.50+
+Ups used....$25.00+
+Ups received...$9.00+
+Ups currently...$16.50+  


Sluggy

Food Spending January Week 1/Meal Planning January Week 2

This poster was put out in 1917 as part of a government program to conserve food and eliminate waste during World War I.  Besides feeding the US population, food resources were also needed overseas to feed the troops being sent over to fight.
Herbert Hoover was given the ok by President Wilson to develop this voluntary system that he called Food Conservation.  Hoover wanted to avoid rationing so a campaign to remind people to not overeat, use all food up and not waste anything was started.  The idea of "Meatless Mondays" and "Wheatless Wednesdays" started with this plan.
Hoover was able to reduce food consumption and waste in America by 15% all on a voluntary basis with no rationing!
Not only did the US supply the troops but they helped feed their Allies troops as well.  US farm exports to Europe tripled during and immediately after the war.  The surplus helped alleviate European citizens experiencing a massive post war famine.

I love this line in the poster....."Demonstrate Thrift In Your Home.  Make Saving, Rather Than Spending, Your Social Standard."

Time to get back to the qualities of 1917.

Here is what actually got served last week....

Sunday--Kielbasa on Rolls, Caramelized Onions, Potato Salad

Monday--Chinese take-out for Lunch, then leftovers and appetizers for New Years at home

Tuesday--Lunch out w/Hubs, Leftovers for Dinner

Wednesday--Tacos, Corn

Thursday--Pizza, Caesar Salad, I had soup(not feeling well)

Friday--Subway sandwiches(used a gift card)

Saturday--Leftovers-Chicken and Dumplings/Roast & Roasted Veggies, Ham Rolls

The food spending last week?
There was NO food spending.
Nada.
Didn't darken a grocery store's door last week.
$400 food budget goes into this week intact.

As for leftovers rolling into this week--we have 1 helping of Chicken and Dumplings left, Rolls from Christmas and some Taco Filling.

***********************

Here is what is getting served this week.....

Sunday--Baked Salmon, leftover P. Salad, Green Beans(from the garden), leftover rolls

Monday--Chinese take-out(again!), teen had Taco Bell

Tuesday--Corned Beef, Cabbage, Potatoes

Wednesday--Rigatoni w/Meat Sauce, Brussel Sprouts, Rolls(made into Garlic bread)

Thursday--Cheesesteaks, Creamed Spinach

Friday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing, leftover Rolls, Corn, Cranberry Glop

Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself or Breakfast for Dinner

I'll use up the rolls at various dinners, the taco filling goes into the Meat Sauce for the Rigatoni, the Chicken and Dumplings will be my lunch one day.  We have some Salmon and Green Beans leftover from Sunday which I'll eat for lunch as well.  Saturday we'll have leftover from this week--Corned Beef meal, Rigatoni meal and Roast Chicken meal to choose from for dinners that evening.

Needed at the store to serve this lot?

I'll need a head of cabbage, a roasting chicken, both of which are on sale this week.  I'll pick up some fruit too.  The leftover roasting chicken will either form the basis of a homemade pot pie next week or chicken salad for sammies(if I find a deal on apples or grapes).

There are some great or good deals this week I will pick up too.....Ground Beef at $2.28 lb, Bacon for $2.98, another Roasting Chicken or two at $.78 lb. and maybe some Catfish at $5.99 lb.

Target spending for the cabbage and chicken?  $9.00

Fruit for $7.00.

The stock-ups could go as high as $50 I think.

What's on your menu for the week?  Any good deals in the grocers this week?

Sluggy

The Resolution We Can't Keep in This Country

When we start a new calendar year, we tend to want to start fresh in all areas of our lives.
One of the prominent thoughts at the new year is to get organized or get MORE organized.
Being organized is ALWAYS a worthwhile goal, isn't it?

This is when we see stores haul out big displays and sales on Storage Containers and Organizational Systems of all kinds: from filing systems for the paper in our lives, to the clothes in our closets, to the foodstuffs in our cabinets, to ?.  Every area of our homes is ripe for storage improvement.
And the retailers stand at the ready with shiny new stuff for us to buy to make our lives more contained and organized.

It's true that in order to live a life that's streamlined and functioning well, we need to stay on top of everything in our lives, especially our "stuff".  But do we need to pull out the credit card or bank card or money envelope every January to buy something to achieve a functioning home?
The retailers will tell you YES you DO!
I say not necessarily.

Personally I feel that we don't have an organizing problem in this country, we have a "stuff" problem.

Now think about this......
How many people start out the new year buying containers, spending more money, and either abandon the plan to organize or find that just buying pretty containers and dumping your things in them is not a real organizational plan.

How many do this and by the time next January rolls around, the plan is forgotten and they are again, seduced by all those pretty containers enough to part with more of their money and start the cycle of buying containers all over again?

Do you realize that a fair percentage of people who are clinically referred to as hoarders follow this pattern of wanting to organize their things, purchasing containers/systems, and never do the emotional/physical work to change their habits and organize?  The containers just add to the clutter of their stash and every time they return to this phase of the cycle, more containers are added to the chaos.

Most new year attempts at getting our "stuff" organized are much like those new year resolutions we all make and promptly break or forget by February.  They seem like a good idea at the time, but the follow-through is just not there.

And if after all this organizing and storing away we still can't fit all  the "stuff" into our abodes, there are always garages and storage sheds we can buy, build and utilize.

And if that isn't enough extra space, there is a whole industry that is growing at an alarming fast clip that would love to rent you space for all that stuff you have that you don't need access to as often.  Yes, I am talking about the Storage Facility business.....a Billion Dollar industry that has grown up around our inability to throw things away.

Our homes in the US now are on average double the size of the homes our grand and great grandparents lived their lives in.
We have double the space for the stuff in our lives that they did, yet we still can't organized it all in such a way to fit into the space we have allotted for it.

We have more clothing & shoes, we have more furniture, we have more kitchen gadgets, we have more dishware, we have more food, we have more cars and related equipment.  And let's not forget all the electronic toys they never had, and all the hobby stuffs and sports stuffs.

And then there are the collections of every type, shape and size.  Most Americans collect something and a large percentage of those who collect have MORE THAN ONE COLLECTION of stuff.  And if you are stuck in a perpetual cycle of buying containers every year to corral your stuff, those containers ARE a collection!

If you can no longer use a room in your house or apartment for it's intended purpose because your "stuff" has taken over that room, you may have a problem.

Sure, if your collecting brings you joy and you have the extra space for it, that is great!

But if your things are taking over the space in your home AND taking the place of people in your life, perhaps it's time to take a good hard look at your life and the choices you are making.

If you bought less "stuff", would you have more room in your home?
If you bought less "stuff", would you have more time because you would have to organize and clean less?
If you bought less "stuff", would have have more money in your pocket to spend on needs and not be stressing out at the end of each month that your income would last?
If you bought less "stuff", could you spend that money on the people in your life instead?(And I don't mean buying THEM stuff instead.)

Make 2013 the year you break the cycle of spending on things that are NOT needs, cluttering and decluttering.
Make every purchase you make an INTENTIONAL, well thought-out one that fills a need!

What do you think readers?

Sluggy

My Week of Not Spending & Very Boring Stuff

I didn't set out to do a Week of No Spending but that is how it's turning out.
Perhaps I should not speak of it at this point, so as to not jinx myself.
Oops, too late. 8-)

Our last trip to the grocery store was 12/30, so Day 5 in the new year and no grocery spending in January yet.
Go me!
Our last trip to Rite-Aid was on January 2nd and no cash was spent.
We used a gift card and had Subway sammies Friday evening for dinner.  The gift card was bought last month(and I got free grocery credit toward groceries for buying it), so that spending is on the books for 2012, not 2013.

The only other place I've been so far this year is the Bank to deposit dividend checks from 2012 and to cash a Christmas check for #2 Son.

It's been so bone chilling cold here the less I leave the house the better.

I've been moving stuff around in the house.  Especially all the excess toiletries, HBA and gift items I've hauled home in December for free from Rite-Aid.  It's gotten a little out of control with piles of stuff everywhere up in my bedroom that didn't get put into stockings or wrapped for under the Christmas tree.  The excess that wasn't given out has now been moved into the storage bins and containers with like items so it all can get found when needed as we use things up.  No point in having all this shampoo, deodorant and razors here if nobody can find the fresh supply when they run out of their current one.

Other items have been carted in from the garage into the house to restock from the excess that is stored out there.
I had hoped to spend part of this week freshening up the organization of the shelves in the garage and making sure everything was rotated.  Plus I wanted to do a fresh count on how much of which on the items out there......but it's just too blasted cold out there to stand it for more than 10 minutes at a time. Brrrrr!
Even so, I have discovered that I do NOT need to hit CVS this January to load up on almost free dishwasher detergent for the whole year, as I do every January.  CVS is known for having a killer sale after Qs and ECBS in January on Finish brand detergent.  I generally "buy" 20 boxes each January at the CVS sale to last me all year and it costs me pennies on the dollar.

With the assistance of #2 Son this week, I discovered that I have currently 43(FORTY THREE!)boxes of unopened dishwasher detergent in the garage stockpile.  And that is not counting the 10 automatic dispenser thingies of detergent I picked up at Rite-Aid over the last 2 years. 8-P

I figure I go through 20 boxes a year, which means I am still working on using up dishwasher detergent I bought back in 2010!  LOLOL
Yes, I'll just stay out of CVS this year to avoid anyone from nominating me for that Crazy Coupon Show....

I've also been closing out the balance sheets on 2012 financials.
And slowly putting away the wrapping paper and other Christmas accoutrements, though I haven't tackled denuding the tree and taking that down yet.
One of the more welcomed chores has been the removing of all the Holiday foods, one bite at a time.  lol

I may break my accidental Fiscal Fast Saturday as there are some items I want from the grocery store and the sale week ends that day.  Besides the Subway dining Friday evening, we've been creating meals and eating from what is on hand(see Holiday food status comment above).

In conclusion, it's been a very boring week around the Sluggy place.
Unless you've been inside my brain.  In there, it's been quite lively this week.  Working the money numbers get me all giddy and keep me up late into the night.  And then there are my thoughts about 2013......what to do, what to do!

What do I want to blog about?
What challenges do I want to follow in 2013?
What goals, if any, to concentrate on?
What does life have in store for me this coming year?

The possibilities are endless.
As one Gwendolen Fairfax once said, "The suspense is killing me.  I hope it will last!"



Sluggy