It's another Sluggy's Boring Blog Box Giveaway time! Sorry I didn't get to pulling a winner for the Giveaway yesterday. I was quite busy and just ran out of time.
With that said, I let Random dot org pick the winner this morning and without further ado the winner is......
We float as Hubby is German and I am 1 % of everything possible LOL. We might do corn beef hash. Hubby's great grandmother always celebrated planting peas on St Patty's day. We plan to do that this year.
Congratulations Chef Owings!
You have 48 hours from the time stamp when this post goes live to email me your full mailing address. (My email addy is in the side bar under "About Me".)
If she doesn't contact me in time I'll pull another name to win the box o' goodies.
Thanks to everyone who played along this time and I'll have another box up for grabs real soon(if life doesn't get in the way). ;-)
Not a very long list this week of Frugal wins. Life is like that, right?...sometimes you win a lot, sometimes you don't. 8-)
* Last week I went to use my windshield wipers on my car and one of them broke(that makes twice within a year-the last time one flew off the car!lol). Hubs took the car up to the auto parts store and had them replace both wipers. Afterwards he noticed they only charged him for 1 wiper and discovered they were running a BOGO grand opening sale on wipers. So he took his car up the next day to replace his wipers. Half price wipers for the win!
* Rite-Aid + Coupons + Ibotta + Bonus Cash + Shop Kick + Fetch=moneymakers this week at Rite-Aid.....
A $9.24 moneymaker.
A $195 moneymaker.
* I found money!
This dime was found at Rite-Aid in the middle of the floor at the entrance on Monday.
This penny was found in front of the pharmacy counter at the Rite-Aid where I got my covid shot on Tuesday.
And these two pennies were found in different places in my Rite-Aid on Wednesday when I went to finish my Ibotta MidWeek Bonus and pick up an Rx.
Total Found This Week..... .13¢ Total Found This Year.......$1.65
That's about it for this past week other than only spending $7.94 at Weis(PMITA)Markets on groceries this week so far.
I needed to spend/roll more Bonus Cash plus I needed 4 more unique offers to get my MidWeek Bonus on Ibotta so I did this on my card.....
1 x Axe spray deodorant....$6.69 1 x Vaseline men's lotion....$8.49 1 x Degree men's deodorant..$5.79 1 x Suave men's body wash...B2Get1 Free 1 x Dove men's deodorant....B2Get1 Free 1 x Dove men's body wash....$7.29 1 x Got2Be men's hair styling product clearance=$1.99 1 x Centrum vitamins=$7.49 5 x Got2Be hair color chalk clearance($1.74 ea.)=$8.70 1 x Nutella on the Go 20% Gold Discount=$1.51 1 x L'Oreal lipstick clearance=$2.37 1 x Sally Hansen Miracle Gel nail polish clearance=$2.49 SubTotal....$52.81
Coupons Used 1 x $10/$50 Rite-Aid Q=$10.00 1 x $2/2 Dove men's items L2CQ=$2.00 1 x $1/1 Vaseline men's item IPQ=$1.00 1 x $4/1 Centrum item IPQ=$4.00 1 x $3/1 L'Oreal cosmetic item IPQ=$3.00 1 x $1/1 Degree item IPQ=$1.00 Coupon Total....$21.00
$52.81-$21.00=$31.81+$1.84 tax=$33.65 paid with Bonus Cash.
I earned back $4 in new BC(2 x $1 wyb2 Axe/Dove/Degree/Suave, $2 Centrum). I earned back $17.50 on Ibotta(5 x $2.50 Got2Be, $1.50 Got2Be, $1.00 Sally Hansen, .50¢ Nutella and $1 Midweek Bonus, $1 Got2Be Bonus). I earned back the equivalent of $14.10 in Shop Kick points for buying 5 of the men's items.
BC used......$33.65 BC/cash back/Shop Kick earned...$35.60 That means I got paid $1.95 to take all the items above home. 8-)))
I might have another transaction in me before the weekly sales end at R-A, if some of my Ibotta offers reset by Saturday.
If you ever do a DNA test to check on your ancestral origins I have found out that it will change as the pool of folks who also test on whatever company's website changes.
As more people are included in the genetic pool it will affect how your DNA is read and placed into certain ethnicities.
This past weekend for some reason I went and took another look at mine, my son's and my brother's DNA results again. I initially had my DNA tested in 2013 and my son and brother's both tested in 2015.
Back then my results came back in a pie chart form........
My DNA was 98.86% Western European(they had a 1.44% margin of error back then so it "could" have been 100% Western Europe).
It also came back with a 100% makeup of Orcadian population. This refers to the Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland(which are part of modern day Scotland)so includes Scottish, English, Irish, and then Viking and other Scandinavian populations.
So when I went back recently to look this is how my DNA results have changed.
First my map(they highlight places on a map now instead of using a pie chart....
You'll notice I have 3 areas highlighted--Ireland, Finland and the areas around Greece. And here is my % breakdown....
Europe 100%
Western Europe Ireland 95%
Southern Europe Greece & Balkans 4%
Finnish Finland <2%
GREEK?! WTF and where the heck did that come from?!? lolz Well I do like Greek food. ;-) And now ALL my Western European DNA is Irish?
Now let's compare my DNA with my brother's(and yes, we are full siblings so nobody was adopted nor did one of our parents have an affair or something).........
Brother's map.......
Areas highlighted include Iceland, Sweden, Norway-Finland-United Kingdom-Ireland-Poland, Denmark, Germany, Austria and France. And you'll notice how his areas overlap too, one with another.
But the glaring difference you'll notice is he has no Greek or Balkans like I do!
And his % breakdown.......
100% Western Europe
Ireland 56% Central Europe 36% England, Wales, and Scotland 4% Scandinavia 4%
Finnish Finland <1%
Lastly, let's take a look at my son's map. Note that half son's DNA comes from Hubs. Hubs ancestry is 50% Italy from his father and his mother gave him Dutch, German mostly but a little bit of Irish and English.
Son's % breakdown......
Europe 100%
Western Europe Ireland 43% Central Europe 29% England, Wales, and Scotland 7%
Southern Europe Italian Peninsula 13% Malta 5% Greece & Balkans 3%
So if you take out the Southern Europe piece(Italian Peninsula and Malta which obviously isn't from my side)son's map looks mostly like my brother's map rather than mine! Except son has that weird Greek thing like I do.
So my son on paper could be my brother's son rather than mine! lolz
Now if you combine mine and my brother's maps it makes sense to what the paper trail so far has been...well, except that Greece & Balkans thing. And I suspect that something I've been pondering about my Y-DNA may be true and if so, it would have made my father happy.
More on that later.
For now let's raise a green beer or rather a good Irish beer(I'll take a Guiness Stout!)and celebrate our Irish heritage.
The Irish, much like the Jews, Africans who were enslaved in various countries and others have experienced a Diaspora of their people from their homeland over the last few centuries.
First the English tried to eradicate the Irish and take over Ireland itself by force, giving their lands away to Scottish peoples who emigrated to the Emerald Isle. Then the English and the Ulster Scots used the 2 Potato Famines to starve out the Irish and the Irish natives began a mass exodus in the 1840's to the lands west-the US, Canada and Australia mostly. Some Irish were also part of the "transportation" scheme whereas England got rid of any poor and/or criminal element by shipping them overseas to one of various English colonies. The Irish who fled to the US's eastern cities(especially New York and Boston)didn't find a hearty welcome. Being new immigrants they were at the bottom of the food chain and there were "No Irish Need Apply" signs everywhere. The only group that welcomed the Irish off the ships in the North was the US military if a ship arrived after the start of the War Between the States(1861-1865). Recruiters for the Union army met arriving ships at the harbors to sign newly arriving Irish emigrants up to fight in the war for the Yanks. Not even citizens they were asked to die for this country in battle yet no business would give them a job thus many had no alternative but to muster in. The Irish had a rough start in the US but over time and due to their ability to overcome oppression have survived and thrived here in America.
If you descend from the great Brian Boru or not(and if you have ancestors with the surname of O'Brien you are)let's wish Sláinte to our tribe!
I post this song every St. Patty's Day....
Here are some more Irish bands or songs for your enjoyment.....
And lets close with this lovely traditional song......
8 x Garnier Whole Blends shampoo on sale 2/$7=$28.00 1 x L'Oreal Elvive shampoo 20% Gold discount=$4.59 SubTotal.......$32.59
I used these coupons-- 1 x $5 when you spend $20 R-AQ=$5.00 4 x $4/2 Garnier Whole Blends IPQ=$16.00 1 x $2/1 Elvive shampoo IPQ=$2.00 Coupon Total....$23.00
$32.59-$23.00=$9.59 paid for with Bonus Cash.
I earned back $10 in new BC($10 wyspend $30 on select shampoos)so a slight moneymaker.
Then I bought this on Hubs card to spend down some BC........
1 x Bic Flex 3 razors 20% Gold discount=$6.39 1 x Bic Flex 5 razors 20% Gold discount=$5.99 SubTotal.....$12.38
I used 2 x $3/1 Bic Flex In-Ad ManuQs=$6.00
$12.38-$6.00=$6.38+.39¢tax=$6.77 paid for with BC.
There is a Bic promotion running until the end of March HERE. Spend at least $5 after coupons and tax to be entered into their Sweepstakes and earn a $5 rebate. It's a limit of 4 submissions per household. I've already submitted for the $5 rebate so these 2 packs of razors "cost" me $1.77.
Then on Monday I went to do the new weekly deals, using a $10 wyspend $50 R-AQ and got this........
2 x Depends Silhouette underwear on sale=$24.00 1 x Huggies Pull-ups on sale=$8.99 1 x Centrum Vitamins on sale=$7.49 1 x Himalayan Ashwagandha 20% Gold discount=$9.59 SubTotal.....$50.07
Coupons Used 1 x $10/$50 purchase R-AQ=$10.00 2 x $2/1 Depends item IPQ=$4.00 1 x $2/1 Pull-Ups ManuQ=$2.00
1 x $4/1 Centrum IPQ=$4.00 1 x $5/1 Himalayan item PeelieQ=$5.00 Coupon Total....$25.00
$50.07-$25.00=$25.07 paid for with Bonus Cash.
I earned back $18 in new BC($10 wyspend $30 Kimberley-Clark, 2 x $3 Depends-double dip, $2 Centrum). I submitted to Ibotta and earned $15 in rebates(2 x $4 Depends, $2 Pull-ups, $5 Himalayan).
I also submitted my receipt to Fetch and earned $1.31 in points there for the paper products.
Total spend in BC...$25.07
Total earned back in BC/Cash/Fetch pts....$34.31
A $9.24 moneymaker!
The Depends are headed to the food bank, might sell the diapers and the vitamins and Ashwagandha are headed into the toiletries stockpile.
And I have 3 of the 8 rebates to earn my $1 MidWeek Bonus on Ibotta. Not sure if I'll finish it but it's an option.
*****Covid Vaccine Update****
This is the strangest thing.
I guess I put it out into the universe yesterday, both on the blog and was venting to my dentist(and her to me)while she repaired my broken tooth about this whole clusterf**k situation on getting an appointment for a vaccine here in PA.
I got a phone call around 8pm Monday night(which I didn't answer thankfully)that went to voice mail. When I went up to bed later I played the voice mail and it was a pharmacist at a Rite-Aid up in Sayre PA(right on the NY border across from Elmira NY). He said to call him back. My first thought was that they had a shot appointment open(vaccine on the brain lately here!lol)even though I KNOW Rite-Aid's system doesn't keep your info when you go on their website looking for an appointment opening and they don't have a waiting list you can sign up for.
But I had a feeling so I went on the R-A website and searched stores in that general area and I FOUND A VACCINE APPOINTMENT IN A R-A ABOUT 20 MINUTES SOUTH OF SAYRE!!! And yes, I am screaming. ;-)
Of course it's a nighttime appointment and we are suppose to get icky weather today/tonight but I don't care!
Just to be sure, I called this R-A this morning with my confirmation info to make sure it's not a mistake(what? Rite-Aid make a mistake?!lol)and I am really on the list because it would be annoying to drive all that way just to find out I don't have an actual appointment. And yes, I am in like Flint!
After hanging up with that store I called back the other R-A pharmacist that had called me last night and left a message. He asked me about a medication I am taking and whether it's working for me?
WTF?!? I said yes, it's fine and before he could hang up on me I asked him why he had called about that, especially because I have never had an Rx filled there nor been in that store. He said he gets that a lot.....R-A pharmacists are instructed to make these type of calls to ANY customer in the R-A system if they have down time to check up on if they are filling their meds. ??? So if you don't fill a medication and you buy your Rxs at R-A, don't be surprised if a pharmacist at a store you've never been to cold calls you and asked about a drug you are taking.
If I had picked up the phone for his call that evening and heard him say all that I wouldn't have thought about searching on my phone for an appointment up in that area of PA at 10pm Monday night. My brain wouldn't have gone to the place where I thought that pharmacist was calling about a vaccine opening.
I still find this weird.....but I got an appointment, woohoo!
Of course this also means I have to drive all the way back there in a few weeks for the second shot since they didn't get the J&J vaccine. I'll gladly go back if this helps end this crap!(Plus I can browse around a new to me R-A and maybe find some deals. 8-))
