I'm So Excited!...In My Boring Sort of Way

But then again, it doesn't take much to make me excited...lol

I just wanted to jump on here quickly while I had a spare minute to let y'all know that the series, "Who Do You Think You Are?" is premiering tonight on TLC cable channel.  The series ended a couple of years ago on NBC but has been picked up by TLC(or as I like to call it, "The weirdoes and train wrecks of humanity channel").

I can't wait for the start time of 9pm Eastern time.
The episode synopsis says, "Kelly Clarkson explores her lineage and uncovers an ancestor deeply rooted in American history in the season premiere."

Oooooo!
Sounds like an ancestor who came to America way back, doesn't it?

If it's far enough ago, I wonder if her ancestor knew my ancestors?   We should so totally get together for tea and a chat about it, don't ya think? lol

I am so glad it's mid July because finally there is something to watch on tv in the evenings besides old movies on the old movie channels that I've seen a bazillion times already.

Last Thursday PROJECT RUNWAY debuts it's Season 12.

And my guilty TLC pleasure of HONEY BOO-BOO(Hey! Don't judge me!) Season 2 premiered last Wednesday.
I think Mama June is awesome sauce......

And then when my heart couldn't take much more excitement SISTER WIVES premiered on Sunday night.
Lord help me!

Though I am getting a bit bored with those sister wives.  Doing a trade show for My Sister Wives Closet in that part of UTAH?  What kind of reception did you expect there?  I bet the tv producers suggested they do that show just so they could get some folks on camera to comment on how much they hate "pligs" and how they are going to burn in hell.
Go do a real trade show in Vegas or LA sister wives if you want to make some $$$.

So today another hour of scrumptious tv viewing is added to my schedule with WDYTYA.


And come August 14, be still my heart!, we get the Season Premier of DUCK DYNASTY!
I cans hardly stand it folks!!

We'll be on the road on the 14th but I'll be sure to get to a tv set in time for that show too if I have to bribe or kill someone.
Hey!
I need my weekly dose of Uncle SI, Phil, Jase, Willie, Godwin and Miss Kay.

And as Miss Kay would say......

"She Gone!"

Sluggy outta here


 

This Week On The Dining Table

 Nothing new or exciting this week in the food category so feel free to just "move along".......

 

Here's what was planned last week--

Sunday--Chicken Fajitas(using some tortillas and pepper strips)
Monday--BLTs, cole slaw
Tuesday--Chicken Sandwiches(using some hamburger rolls), corn, pickles
Wednesday--Lasagna(using some of the mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (Very small piece for me but a really big salad.)
Thursday--Pork Chops, Green Beans(from last Summer's garden), Roasted Potatoes or Mashed
Friday--homemade Pizza(using more of that mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (I'll have leftover something instead and a salad.)
Saturday--Leftovers 

 

Everything served as planned until you get to Thursday-Saturday.  We did an assortment of leftovers instead on Thurs. and Fri. and Sat. Hubs and I used a gift certificate we had for a local restaurant that was expiring in Sept.  Dinner that night cost us $3.01 + tip....woohoo!lol

So Pork Chops and Pizza are moving to this week's menu.

As I posted yesterday,  I spent $42.19 on $81.86 worth of groceries at 2 stores last week.
 

This means I have $98.50 left in my food budget for the next 10 days of meals.

 

Going into this week the leftovers that remain are-some fajitas filling, garlic bread, some shredded mozzarella and a large hunk of that Lasagna I made.  We'll have 1 more meal out of that this week and once I make some room in one of the 2 little freezer compartments, I'll throw whatever is left in there for later.
I also cooked up all that chicken I got the deal on last week so I need to use it this week or freeze it.
 

(I've made bold the leftover items I've used in the menu below.)

 Here's this week's meal plan--
 

Sunday--Potato Crusted Flounder, Roasted Potatoes and Onions, Brussel Sprouts
Monday--Tacos, Corn
Tuesday--Lasagna, Garlic Bread, Salad
Wednesday--Chicken medallions, Spinach, Squash or Zucchini
Thursday--Pork Chops, Green Beans(from last Summer's garden), Mashed taters, Applesauce
Friday--homemade Pizza-maybe barbeque chicken pizza(using more of that mozzarella cheese & cooked chicken), Green Salad
Saturday--Leftovers

On the shopping list for these meals--chicken deli meat, lettuce, tomatoes, fresh squash or zuke and fresh fruit.

 

I'm figuring about $20 for the list above.   If I happen upon a "stockopportunity" I'll have about $78 left in my July budget to take advantage of it.  If not, the leftover budget money will roll over into August's fund.

That's what's appearing on the kitchen table this week here at Chez Sluggy.

 What's getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Sluggy

I Wonder If They Will Relist It?

Well I missed my chance to own a major American city, dagnabbit!

And it was going cheap.......real cheap!

Sluggy
 

Oh I Forgot Something.....

When I was showing y'all the detritus Firstborn had bagged up to throw out from his old room last week or so, I forgot to include a picture of this "gem" I dug outta the trash.



And come January, I'll be wearing this lovely item......

 Sluggy

Talking Sexy Grocery Talk

Well I didn't get by on groceries this week with spending $25 but I did only spend $42.19 total.

I got the few things I needed for this week's menu(milk, ricotta, deli meat, lettuces), but Weis(PMITA)Markets had a $5 off $50 Coupon in the flyer so I figured I'd pick up a few more things we can use soon(and that were on sale this week) and get to the $50 mark(before coupons)so I could get that extra $5 discount.
I ended up buying $81.86 worth of groceries for $42.19 after Qs and discounts used.
That's a 48.50% savings rate. ;-)

Here's what I got....

Weis Ice Cream for #2 Son...$1.49 wflyer /Q
Cheez-its for #2 Son....$.99 w/flyer Q
2 Bagels....$1.18
2 containers of Ricotta Cheese....$5 on sale
1 bag of Salad.....$1.95 w/50% discount sticker
1 loaf garlic bread....$.99 w/50% discount sticker
chicken deli meat.....$5.99 on sale
container of milk....$1.83
2 diet drinks.....$2.00 on sale
8.50 lbs. of chicken breast.....$6.98 * on sale w/$6 in instant Q
large bag of dog kibble......$9.99 on sale & w/$1 IPQ
6 large cans of wet dog food.....$6.00 on sale

Subtotal before all Qs was north of $60.
After all Qs the subtotal was $39.39 and the tax brought it to $40.52.
I also bought a head of green leaf lettuce this week at a different store on sale for $1.67.

* The chicken was a great deal.  Reg. $2.99 lb. split chicken breasts were BOGO free this week.  I walked into the store to find some packages were getting close to the sell by date so they had $3 instant discount stickers on them.  I found 2 packages within .63¢ of price to each other and paid the higher $12.98 price for 8.50lbs. total.  Then 2 x $3 discounts came off at the register making my chicken $6.98 for all.  That's .82¢ lb. for chicken breasts.
The packages got broken down at home and smaller portions packed into the freezer for use later next month.

Basically by buying some things ahead & a couple of treats real cheap, for #2 Son using store Qs in the flyer,  I saved an extra $5 on stuff I would have bought in the next 2 weeks anyway.

I am left with $98.50 in my July food budget for shopping the 22nd through the 31st.
10 days and we have lots of stuff here already so this should be a walk in the park to stay under budget in July.  I'll be making my menu up this weekend for those 10 days using proteins & grains/bread already on hand.  The grocery monies will cover fresh veggies and fruits I find at a good price and in season this coming week.

Sluggy

A Rare Occurance...Enjoy The View While You Can!

I can't believe I forgot to mention this before now!

Lookie at the view out my front door I've had all week.....

If you are new here and you have no clue why I am showing a picture of my neighborhood, looking down the street, here is what is usually parked across the street from my house.....

We call it the "Behemoth".
Well that is the polite thing we call it.

8-)

No clue how long I can continue to bask in not having that eyesore parked there.
But I'll enjoy it however long it lasts.

Hey!
I got nothing against having a huge ass travel trailer.
Just don't park it in your driveway all year, especially if your driveway is barely long enough for it.

Sluggy

I Scare People

Ok,
I can't help but feel "painting envy" when I go over to Alex's Blog and see that the guy painting her living room is almost done and by the end of the weekend, Alex will have put back together her room for the grand reveal.
So jealous.....

It's been over a week(9 days to be exact)since the local handyman franchisee came over to our house to take photos and take down all the information on all the projects we want/need doing over here at Chez Sluggy.
A week and not a peep outta these guys on an estimate of what it will cost us.

We ended up with 7 separate "projects" that need doing here, when the handyman was finished writing them all up.

1.  Repair/patch ceilings/wallboard/doorway edges in assorted rooms.
2.  Paint entire downstairs and upstairs hallway.
3.  Finish crown molding in living/dining rooms.
4.  Fix and rehang hall closet bi-fold door.
5.  Rip up carpet and install bamboo flooring in living/dining rooms.
6.  Replace trim around garage door and replace decorative shutters on 3 windows on front of house.
7.  Clean and paint(or replace with metal/vinyl) decorative attic vent on front of house.

Do you think I scared him away?
I do.

Maybe I should have eased into this by only letting them know about 2 or 3 projects.
And then when those were completed we could contract with them to do the others.
Yah, maybe I should have done that.

But I didn't.....because I have NO PATIENCE dang it!!
I want this stuff done and I want it done, like yesterday.

It's been so long since I've had an actual living room that looks and is used like a living room.
I just can't help myself.

So I sit here trying to not glance furtively at the telephone and by using my mind control abilities WILL IT TO RING!
Grrrr......AAArgh......sigh loudly......*drop head on desk and whimper softly*.......

And someone please if you see my Hubs in real life, remind him that I am waiting for him to take the pile of broken electronically crap out of the center of the living room and drop it off at Best Buy NOW.
Doing it yesterday would be even better.

Do you believe me now when I said I am no patience?!

I swear, if I could lift that TV it would be sitting out on the curb as of 2 months ago.
So tired of it.

So what do you think?.......did I scare him off?

Sluggy




 

Can It Be? Why Yes, It's a Road Trip!

Tanner talked about taking vacations today on her blog.
That got me into the mind of telling everyone about our "big vacation adventure" for the year we are starting shortly here at Chez Sluggy.

Hubs sister is getting married.....again.
Ok, that wasn't nice was it?
She was married a few years before Hubs and I did the deed back in the early '80s.
But that one only lasted until about 1984 when she and her hubs divorced.
She's been single ever since.

She finally found someone she wants to share her life with again and they are getting married next month......out in Illinois.

So Hubs and I are using this as the starting off point to plan a vacation.
Since there is little to see/do in the part of IL where she lives(other than watching corn grow), we are planning on making a big adventure and many stops along a route that will begin in eastern PA, swing through OH and IN, into IL and then to TN and through western VA and back up to PA and home.
10 days of meandering across 9(or 10) states in a 1,500 mile loop.

Yah, I am tired just thinking about this..... lol

I have gotten in touch with a few people who we are making stops to visit with so this trip is getting a bit more interesting.
And we are trying to do this thing on the frugal dime.
Well except for the car rental since we aren't using our vehicles to do all this driving.

So I am taking ideas for things to see/do along the way.
It can be a quick short thing/sight to see or something more substantial.
And remember we enjoy seeing/doing weird stuff like....

walking Indian mounds

visting dead ancestors in Confederate cemeteries

going to farmer's markets

shopping for grocery deals on vacation

going up in dizzily tall bridge towers

eating fresh seafood at roadside shacks

smuggling Cuban cigars across the US/Canadian border(did I really do that???)
No, I meant going to a Chocolate Museum in Canada......yah, that's it......

eating at truck stops....on purpose!......

stalking Stephen King's house

Plus many more offbeat things.

And if you are in the area(or think you are located where we'll be passing through or stopping), and think your life would be greatly improved by meeting me and Hubs, shoot me an email privately and I'll see if the planets will align and allow a meet up.

Sluggy

 

Sluggy's Boring Blog Box Giveaway......Time to Enter to Win It!

Can it be?

Is Sluggy giving away another box of awesomeness already?!

 

Well the answer to that is.....Yes, yes she is!

It's another of Sluggy's BORING BLOG BOX GIVEAWAY!

 

Here's how it works if you are new here.......

 

I put things in the box(mostly what I have gotten for free or almost free)each week and when the box is filled we draw a winner from all the entries received.

 

This time the Box of Goodies is ALL ABOUT THE LADIES with things for your Girly side.

No shaving cream or manly stuff in this box folks!

Here is what went into the Box today......

 

 

 

1.  Lots of little sample tubes and bottles of creams, lotions, sunscreen, facial scrub, etc.

2.  4 samples of name brand perfumes.

If this is your first time, please go read all the rules for these Giveaways HERE.  *As always, if you are located outside the US, you CAN enter and win but weight restrictions/shipping costs may mean your prize box will contain less items.*

***Time to enter.....You can enter on this Giveaway post until I close this post to entries.

1 entry per person per day on THIS POST.
Leave your name/email address and a COMMENT on this post.  

This week I want to hear about how you feel about Summer and Summer weather.

Has your Summer been a good one?

Are you ready to see it go and move onto Autumn or no?

Hot weather is my least favorite of all.  I grew up in the south(if you hadn't heard me say that a billion times already)but I never got use to being uncomfortable in the Summer due to the heat and humidity.  By mid-July I am SO ready to move onto the Fall.

 

You can come directly to this blog post or find it through the link on the right side bar to leave 1 comment per day.  The current Giveaway Post will be linked right at the top of the side bar.

Please NOTE--You MUST be a follower to enter the Giveaway.  If you aren't one, just click on the "Follow" button on the right hand side of my blog to become a follower.

There are 2 ways to get 2 EXTRA entries on this and each new Giveaway Post.......

1. Put my blog on your blog's Blogroll.  Leave an extra comment for this entry on THIS POST with the URL of your blog so I can go check it out. **If I'm already on your Blogroll, say so in an extra entry comment once each week of this giveaway.

2.  Blog about this Giveaway on your blog with a link to this post.  Leave an extra comment for this entry on THIS POST with a link to your blog post so I can go view it.  You can do this extra entry once each week of this giveaway.

 

These giveaways run about 4 weeks, depending on how often I get a blog post done.  The winner will be drawn from all valid entries received before the closing date of the giveaway.


 Any questions?  Just email me.

Happy Entering!! 

Sluggy

Me & the Hoff Baby, Me & the Hoff!

A couple of months ago I went to look at my blog "stats".
Blog stats don't occupy every waking hour of my mind like they do some out here in blogland, but now and again I get curious and when bored I go gander at them.

I am a small potatoes blogger(and I sort of like it that way), so my "stats" aren't really anything to brag about. 8-)

Stats are the stuff like what kind of machine are viewers to your blog using(Windows at 75% of my viewers), the words or phrases that are most often searched on to find your blog(3 people landed on my blog recently by searching the keyword phrase "cliff diving"...wtf?!), what blog posts are the most popular/most viewed(not surprisingly a recent post from July 12th but also a genealogy themed post from May 2nd has 33 page views), where viewers come to your blog from in cyberspace(Google and the One Family One Income Blog are high on that list currently).

And then there is the stat that tells you were in the world your viewers are located and THIS is where things get "interesting".

Since I am American, I write my blog in English and I write about my life here in the USA, you would think that the majority of my viewers would be in the States, with a good smattering of Canadian viewers, and then some additional readers in places where English is a major language, like the U. K., Australia, etc.

And up until a few months ago you would be correct.

But I noticed something bizarre in the Spring.
The majority of my audience of readers is NOT from America, or Canada, or the United Kingdom or even Australia.

No, I have been "Hassellhoffed".
For whatever reason, I am BIG in......Germany!

I know.....you are thinking to yourself, "Self?....WTF?!"
And you know what?
That's exactly what I am thinking to myself.

W.
T.
F?

Indeed.

I don't know if this is some weird fluke black hole of the internet causing this or if a big portion of German blog readers suddenly have confused me with David Hasselhoff.

*By the way....I just discovered that yesterday was David Hasselhoff's birthday.
Happy 61st David!

Hey, I do sort of resemble a 61 year old American actor, singer(sort of), producer and ex-sex god.
If the lights are down low enough that is.....

I had a smokin' hawt body like that many MANY years ago.....and I didn't need to photoshop it.
Only with a lot less chest hair.

And just to prove that I am NOT making this up, here is a screenshot of my audience stats for the week of July 11-18, 2013--

(Click on the graphic to 'Embiggen' for more details.)

My US audience for the week number is 2,582.
That's only my second highest viewer stat.
My Germany audience for the week sits at 27,954.

Yes, if you add up all my viewers from the next 9 top countries of readership, that number is only 3,320.
I have 88ish times more viewers in just Germany than I have in all these other countries?
Really??!

I know this is some sort of weird abhoration(that's been going on for months now!)or someone in Germany is sitting at a computer all day and hitting the refresh button on my blogsite over and over and over again in order to play some sort of strange internet prank on me personally.
But hey!
I'll take what I can get and enjoy this while it lasts.

And because I have mentioned David Hasselhoff and shown his photo so many times in the blog post, I reckon I'll have even more German viewers in the next few days! lol

I can now state for the record that I am truly like Hasselhoff, Big in Germany!

Never mind not Hasselin' the Hoff.....

Don't Hassel the Slug!

Sluggy

The Good, The Bad & The Mundane

First for the Mundane......

I finally sat down to pay some July bills this morning.
I can't believe we are already on the backside of the month!

Everything is paid up and I still have money leftover from the 1st paycheck this month.
Go me!! ;-)

I figure about $750 more in spending until the end of July here...between prescription refills, the couple of regular bills not received yet, gas fill ups for Hubs and a bit of miscellaneous/cash spending.
We have another paycheck before the month ends so unless something really expensive pops up before August, I should have a healthy chunk of change to put into my Savings Challenge goal.
Go me again! lol

I'm going to enjoy having spare money this month because next month the semi-annual car insurance premium is due.
*sad face*

On the Good News side of things.....

 

Firstborn got a job!!!!!!
A real, fulltime job that pays a decent amount.

It's not a teaching position but having an education degree helped him get it......that and having worked every summer for the last 6 years w/special needs campers too.
It's something he's comfortable doing and is a great fit for his skill set until he lands that teaching position he hopes to one day find.

Plus he and the girlfriend got approved for the apartment in Pittsburgh they wanted.
So they are making plans for the "big move" to P'burgh next month.
And since Firstborn got a decent job, even though we had to cosign their lease, they will be able to afford to pay the rent, the utilities, gas, food and student loans.  His expensive craft beer habit will have to be put aside for awhile though....

On the Not-So-great News.......

Why on earth do they make swimming pools out of metal that rusts?
Seriously.
If you are fabricating something to HOLD MANY GALLONS OF WATER, why would you NOT use stainless steel or heavily treat said metal sheeting with rustproofing?
Oh yeah.....because they don't want your pool to last more than 5 years so they get to sell you another one, and at a higher price because that will go up over 5 years like your blood pressure will when you find out you need to basically replace your pool.

Hubs has had a pool liner leak he has been trying to find all season.  We have taken the liner partly off to patch this and that numerous times.
But the water level keeps dropping and it's not all due to evaporation.
Something was up and it wasn't the pool water.

And Hubs keeps refilling the pool and my water meter keeps spinning like a crazed hippie hyped up on meth at a Grateful Dead concert.
Kaching!
Those regular bills that haven't arrived yet this month.
Yah.....the water bill is one of them and this will not be pretty when it does get here.

As for the pool--
Hubs has stopped refilling it and it's about bone dry now and the source of the problem has finally been found.  The bottom where it meets the side of the wall of the pool is where the leak is.
And it isn't just a leak, it's dry rotted such that if you took your finger and poked the liner it would puncture and then you could run your finger along the bottom and open up a gash the size of a Volvo.
Ok, so that's a real weird metaphor/simile(never could remember the difference between those two!)but it's fairly accurate because most everything about my life is strange/bizarre/funny.

The verdict is we need a new pool liner.
Plus the skin/metal walls of our pool are rusted and rusted through in a couple of spots.
So putting in a new pool liner is just asking for it to be torn by jagged metal panels.
I'm not sure what we are going to do about all this.

Basically, we need to replace most every piece on this pool.
And while I do enjoy having it for the 2 months a year we get to really use it, I don't know if it's worth replacing at this point.

* We just have one kid left at home and he never uses the pool.
* And it's a big expense between the cost of the pool parts itself, all the water needed to fill and top it off each year, the electricity to run the pump all season and then all those pool chemicals....oy!.....the chemicals that cost an arm and a leg.
* Plus we will be moving in a few years, so why bother putting up a new pool?  I hear it can make selling your house more difficult if you have either an in-ground or above-ground pool.

I sure wish we had a community pool like in our old neighborhood.  If you wanted to use the pool you paid a yearly fee which was quite reasonable.

I am thinking maybe to go the hot tub route instead.
Granted it isn't cool and refreshing in the Summer and you can't swim in it......but it can be used almost year round here if located in the right spot because it's heated.
And relaxing in a spa with a glass of an adult beverage is almost as good as a refreshing dip in a pool when it's 90 degrees outside.

What do y'all thing?
Replace the pool, get a hot tub instead or just do without for the time being?

Sluggy

All I Am Going To Say On This

While I have stayed out of the blogger fray on this Zimmerman/Martin Shooting and Trial until now I will share some of my thoughts with you all here.
Feel free to move along and not read this if you can't help letting emotions cloud your powers of reasoning.

It really doesn't matter what anyone thinks happened or didn't happen in those 2-4 minutes that are unaccounted for in the timeline of this incident. The only ones who truly "know" what transpired and in what order are Messrs. Zimmerman and Martin.  Ultimately the state of their immortal souls is between their individual consciences and their makers(if they believe in one).

I believe cases like these, which are labeled racial incidents but aren't necessarily so, are used to push certain politic groups agendas forward and these groups really don't give two farts about the actual humans involved and what the resulting Trial Circus does to their lives.

And the trying in the court of public opinion and the media only serves to divide our country as a nation.  But that is how the Powers That Be keep control over us all, by diverting our attention and separating we, the people, from each other and thus dissipating our group power.

If the race baiters like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton truly cared for their "people", where is the outrage over the thousands of African American youths that have been killed in the time since this highly publicized deemed "racial" killing occurred, African American youths who have been killed by other African Americans in their own racial community?
I think rapper Lupe Fiasco said it best in his tweet....."Yeah gimme that anger...once again that rage...that misguided angst when you true enemy is your own complacency and cowardice.".

Our lives are all about the choices we make.  As PF bloggers you all know that if you are in a bad place with money, it isn't only because of bad luck or for no reason.  Primarily, you make your own luck in life by the choices you make throughout your life.  Sure, a fluke thing can happen to throw your finances into a tailspin but it's all those decisions you have made, all those little, seemingly insignificant and "unrelated to any other choices" decisions you made, that pile up year after year which had formed the path on which you are now trodding into your financial future.

Life is about personal responsibility.

And much like the financial decisions you make over the course of a lifetime, you make other non-financial decisions too that have led you to where you are today in life in all aspects of that life.

This article HERE sets the Martin/Zimmerman incident on it's ear, by presenting that while this shooting was what many call tragic and certainly a needless waste of human life, that it could have possibly been avoided or drastically altered by the actions and decisions made by, Trayvon's parents and Trayvon himself.

By making the personal life decisions that they did, shouldn't his parents be held accountable for forging the path that led to a drugged up 17 yr. old gang member from a broken home in the first place?
The fact that his parents didn't put this kid's needs in life ahead of their own wants and desires speaks volumes about them in particular and about our society as a whole.
Kids are not throw about objects that you have just because you can and only take care of when it's convenient for you and the life you lead.

I know "the system", since it is run by fallible humans with their own issues, to an extent is still rigged against certain classes of citizens, but you can't blame "the man" for all your failings and ills in life and take no responsibility for what befalls you.  Sure, you may have more challenges in life than the next guy/gal due to who your parents are or what socio-economic class you/they are from, but many in our world have risen above challenges and by making those little choices, one heaped upon the other, have built lives that honor themselves and their families.  I can cite you volumes of  cases of "the world was against them but they rose above their situation" people.


I feel for both families of Messrs. Martin and Zimmerman.
But I want to tell them maybe instead of looking to other's faults we should be looking within at our own hearts and the place of personal responsibility in our lives for that justice  that they feel is still eluding them.

God speed George Zimmerman.
Rest in peace Trayvon Martin.

Sluggy

Blog Business and Linky Love

Taking care of some blog stuff today and sharing some linky love.  These links may inspire you, or call you to act, or broaden your knowledge,  so sit back and enjoy. 8-)

** First up, I had a request from a longtime reader, Syama.
She had a blog a year or so ago and was a regular commenter here under the Non De Plume of Free!,  but "life happened" and she had to shut her blog down and schooling kept her from being around the blogisphere.

She is facing a medical crisis now and reached out to me to help her publicize a site she has created in order to raise funds so she can go to MD Anderson in Houston TX for cancer treatment.  She needs to raise cash for plane tickets for her kids so their grandparents in CA can care for them while she is undergoing treatment.
If you think you are in a position to donate to her cause or can share the site somewhere else, go check out her page on this site HERE.

** Secondly, I received a note from someone named Heather.  I'm not sure if Heather is a regular reader or hit on my blog by chance, but she asked that I put a link to a site featuring a video she is the subject of on my blog.  In her own words she said, "My journey with cancer was a terrifying one and I'd like to turn my pain into purpose and become someone that other people can look to for guidance, inspiration, and hope in situations like my own."
She received a death sentence from a little known, deadly form of cancer and after intensive treatment is here 7 years later to give others hope.
Check it out HERE.

** Thirdly, I received an email from someone named Sage who has been reading my blog.  She says she has a website to help folks choose non-contract phone plans located HERE.  It looks like a legit informational site from what I can tell
Check her out.

** Fourth on the agenda, I was contacted by a longtime reader(unbeknownst to me)named Tina who started a blog 3 months ago HERE.
She requested that I put her on my blog roll. 
Now I am happy to oblige since her blog looks like something some of my readers would enjoy.   She's an artist, crafter, teacher, gardener, etc. etc. etc.

Let me say, it takes a certain amount of oh, how shall we say?...."balls" to ask to be put on someone's blog roll when you yourself do NOT have a blog roll(or page of links to others) to reciprocate a link back to that person's blog.
So for having "balls" Tina goes on the blog roll.
I like folks with "balls". ;-)


I am happy to encourage and share stories and other blogs on here so feel free to contact me if you would like me to post about you or your site.

And as always, if any of these folks have links and are selling something, I am not endorsing those efforts or sending you there to hand over your hard earned dollars.
I try to check out everything I am sent but I can't be held responsible for where you and what you see/do/go beyond these links.

Sluggy

 

The Boring Blog Box Giveaway Winner Revealed!

 

We had 45 valid entry comments over the coarse of 4 blog giveaway posts.  I used the highly scientific method of putting all the names onto slips of paper and drawing one from a basket.

I am here to tell you the results now.

 

 

Sonya Ann from A Mom, Money & More Blog.

Congratulations Sonya Ann!

Now if you will just email me your mailing address privately, I'll have this fine box of goodies on it's way to your house shortly.

Stay tune everyone else for another Box of Goodies to begin this Week!  Who knows?  You might snag the next box.....

And thanks to everyone for reading and playing along.  8-)

Sluggy

Just a Reminder....Giveaway Ends Tonight!

Don't forget to Enter the Giveaway.
Today is your last chance as it ends tonight at 11:59pm.
Use this link HERE or the one on the right side bar over there ----->

Sluggy
 

This Week On The Dining Table

 This reminds me, it's almost lunch time! woohoo!!

 

Here's what was planned last week--

Sunday--Leftovers(Quiche or Enchiladas)
Monday--Hot Dogs(on leftover buns)w/Chili or Burritos w/Chili
Tuesday--Chicken Salad Sandwiches, boxed veggie
Wednesday--Eating out after taking #2 to camp
Thursday--Mushroom Parmesan, Salad
Friday--Probably more leftovers
Saturday--Salmon, Coleslaw, boxed veggie

 

Everything was served as planned except for Fri. and Sat. meals were switched.

 

It was another big spend grocery week here with the addition of stopping at the grocery outlet on Saturday.  I also bought some food items at Big Lots the previous week and forgot to add those costs in to my spending.  I spent $167.64  on $298.93 worth of groceries at 3 stores last week(+ 1 from previous week).   So much for my "only spending $38 on food" last week, huh? lol
 

This means I have $140.69 left in my food budget for the rest of July(or $70+ change for each of the next 2 weeks).
I have a 43.56% savings rate at this point in the month.

 

Going into this week the leftovers that remain are-some chili, hot dog and burger rolls, small tortillas, a portion of salmon, cole slaw, chicken salad and some pepper strips that came out of the freezer. 

I also have a large quantity of mozzarella cheese that was in the freezer that needs to get used as it's taking up fridge space and won't last forever in there. 

I'll have some of the chicken salad for lunch today and the rest I'll feed to the dogs w/their dinner-no grapes in it so no worries.  We've had a lunch and a dinner using it and it's not going to be "fresh" beyond today so the pups will feel special tonight dining on human food.

 

(I've made bold the leftover items I've used in the menu below.)

 Here's this week's meal plan--
 

Sunday--Chicken Fajitas(using some tortillas and pepper strips)
Monday--BLTs, cole slaw
Tuesday--Chicken Sandwiches(using some hamburger rolls), corn, pickles
Wednesday--Lasagna(using some of the mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (Very small piece for me but a really big salad.)
Thursday--Pork Chops, Green Beans(from last Summer's garden), Roasted Potatoes or Mashed
Friday--homemade Pizza(using more of that mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (I'll have leftover something instead and a salad.)
Saturday--Leftovers

It's going to be a scorcher this week so I plan on running the oven Tue. and Fri. only.  I'll cook the lasagna on Tues. while I am cooking the chicken for sandwiches and on Wed. we can reheat the lasagna in the microwave oven.  The pork chops and potatoes on Thurs. will be grilled outside.  I might attempt grilling the pizza on Fri. instead of using the oven.  Wish me luck with that! lol

On the shopping list for these meals--Ricotta cheese, lettuces and turkey deli meat.  That's it.  I may pick up some OJ and fruit(maybe a cantaloupe)but we still have cherries, grapes and that watermelon I didn't slice up yet so we are good for now.  I'll be going to the farm stand next week so saving my food budget money for fresh local veggies at the end of July.

 

I'm figuring about $25 for the list above.  After last week, I need a low spending food week. 8-)

That's what's appearing on the kitchen table this week here at Chez Sluggy.

 What's getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Sluggy

Music Camp & Grocery Porn

So we went back to the teeny tiny town where #2 Son was attending music camp at, on Saturday.
Daughter attended college her freshman year in a town that she said was Podunk, PA.
I told her that the college town this camp was in was even smaller and so small in fact that if you blinked, you'd miss it. ;-)

Finding the theater building, where the concert was to be held, wasn't easy with the map we had. In addition, because of the ongoing construction, some roads were closed and NO ONE put any signs up to help direct us to the appropriate place.
But despite the powers-that-be's best efforts to thwart us, we found the venue.

A photo of the stage before they began.....

An amusing note here**

#2 Son is known far and wide for his forgetfulness when leaving the house.  He always has to make multiple trips back to his room before he leaves the house, as he is forever forgetting stuff.
We saw the camp kids file into the theater and take their seats down by the stage door....only we didn't see #2 Son among the crowd.
Hubs turned to me and without missing a beat said, "I bet he had to go back to his room for his flute."

Yep, we know our kid....

So here are the gratuitous photos of #2 Son with others playing their instruments.
They opened with Boismortier's Allegro in A Minor.  The person on the far right is the flute professor.

Here's a video of the piece being performed by others....

Then the flute choir did "Rockin' Roses" from "The Flute Garden" by Ricky Lombardo.

You will notice the ratio of girls to boys here(one of the guys pictured wasn't a student either).....

Here again, if you want to hear the music, is another group performing it...



There was also an oboe/bassoon camp going on....

And a clarinet camp as well....

The clarinets performed "Crazy Train" as one of their numbers. lol
Ayh, Ayh, Ayh......



*Not the Music Camp students.* lolz

And the 2 girls in the Clarinet Camp photo above on the right hand side were playing Bass Clarinets, which I have never seen before.
Basically this instrument looks like the illegitimate offspring of a clarinet and a saxophone if they had sex......



How about a little Lady Gaga on the Bassoon?



Here is a video of the flute professor's flute choir at the university performing.....




 #2 Son had a grand time and hopefully is jazzed to practice more frequently now.
He is lusting after the bass flute one of the girls had at this camp....

Keep dreaming kid.....at $4K this ain't happening!

We stopped to eat lunch just outside of town after the concert at Eddie's Restaurant....

I had the beer battered fish and chips special.
It was NOT very special is all I am going to say.....

Then we made one other stop before we arrived home.  We had passed something called the "Surplus Outlet" and I had meant to have Hubs stop on the way home from dropping #2 Son off at camp, but I forgot.
This trip I remembered to have Hubs stop after we got south of Williamsport.

I thought from the outside of the building it was sort of like Ollie's  but it was a Grocery Outlet. 

It's a cheap ass grocery store and it's Amish owned so closed on Sundays.
I told Hubs after we went down a couple of aisles that is was like shopping in my stockpile in the garage, because some of the stuff was past the "Sell by" dates. lolz

I did find some good deals however.

Crushed tomatoes for .59¢ a can.  These have a touch of salt in them but still ok for my RS diet.

Large cans of green chiles for .50¢ each.  These go for $2.49 at the local Weis PMITA Markets.

Containers of Equal(equivalent to a 5lb. bag of sugar)for $2.89.

And then there is my favorite find......

No Salt Heinz ketchup for $1.09 a bottle.....and it has a Dec. "sell by" date.
This stuff is $2.69 a bottle in the stores in my town and the cheapest place to get it is Wegman's for $2.29.
It was less than half that at this place!
5 bottles I picked up plus the 2 I had at home in the stockpile should last me awhile.

I picked up these as a treat for #2 Son.....

$1.50 a box.  Still pricey for my blood but more reasonable than they are at the Holidays.

And I bought myself these.....

$3.39 each
I don't know how much this stuff runs when you can get it at the Winter holidays but I know it's nowhere near that price.
Plus it's chocolate and nuts and it's low in sodium.
A heart health snack of sorts. ;-)

And then I couldn't resist this.  Just repeat "Precious, precious" in a Gollum voice in your head as you look at the photo.....

A case of Reese's PB Easter Eggs for $5.99
On sale at Rite-Aid as Easter time you can find these for about $2 for a 6 pack(reg. $3.99) which comes out to about .33¢ each.
I got 36 in my box so these are about .16¢ each.

I also picked up a nice watermelon for $2.99.  They had some deals on frozen foods and refrigerated things(like Heluva Good dips for .99¢)but we weren't equipped to cart that kind of stuff home in a hot car trunk.

Now I have to find a good cool place to hide these PB egss from #2 Son and not eat them all at one time myself.
It's tempting....lol

And looky here what I saw at the intersection ahead of us when we pulled out of the Surplus Outlet.....

Didn't know there were Amish this side of Williamsport.
Learn sumthin' new everyday, dontcha?

After the Surplus Outlet I read on this book until we got home......

It's one of the books Firstborn had to buy for some college class, that he cleared out of his old room when he was home.
It didn't even look like he opened the thing!
Anyway it's all about all the behind the scenes goings on and history of the development of Valley Forge area as a public park/historic preservation site.
Details all the shenanigans, in-fighting, back room deals, power struggles between individuals, groups, the state and the federal government to control this historic site.
Man, just shameful behavior by most but not surprising if you know anything about politics and human nature.
Read this and you will never think about your government or view a national park/site in the same naïve way again.

Between the crap in this book and the current culture in this country, me thinks we are all doomed......

I'll try to be a little less morose tomorrow, promise! ;-)

Sluggy

 

Sometimes......

....I wonder about my brain.

When we went to see #2 Son perform yesterday at the "End of Music Camp Concert", afterwards, #2 Son asked me if I had taken video of him playing his flute.
I said NO Silly!.....I have a camera that only takes photos.
It's an inexpensive little thing and it only takes still shots.

To which #2 Son said, "Um, no....you can take video with it."
Now how did he know this and I didn't??

Maybe it's because I NEVER READ THE MANUAL that came with said camera?
Might be......
8-(

So I hit some teeny tiny buttons on my camera this morning(Why do they make these buttons so dang blasted small anyway!?!?) and I found out yes, I CAN take video with my little camera!
Too bad I didn't find out in time to record #2 Son's concert performance for posterity.... 8-(

So here is what I did this morning to test out my video capabilities.
Remember, I am NOT a highly skilled videographer...... LOLZ

Sluggy