A little bit of fun from the Halloween decorating contest...


Don't be alarmed. $4 buys a big bottle of red tempera paint. Cut it a bit with water to get to blood consistency (as opposed to paint consistency), lay out your butcher paper sheets on concrete, and flick gobs of paint with a spoon. Its all in the wrist. I thought of Jackson Pollock rather than Freddie Krueger. Tape up when the paint kinda dries. The effect is even better when the paint is a little bit wet and gravity helps out.


Our auditor's headstone, in progress...


And a puking pumpkin.

Thursday
Saving log - $0
Spending log - $12 lunch

Friday
Saving log - $6 tip box
Spending log - $9 groceries

We put the finishing touches on our "Vault of Eternity", did a little work, set up for the potluck, toured and took snaps of the other floors (the fear floor was very good - each cubicle had a fear), ate at the potluck, did a little work, voted for the favorites (of course it was us), cleaned up and broke down the decorations, did what I really wanted to get done that day.

Not a bad day until I found out that Studs Terkel died. RIP, Studs. Even twenty five years ago in Chicago, when I saw him perform in the red-checked shirt, he seemed old to my then teenage eyes. I learned from him that if you really embrace what you are, the name can't hurt you. One of the young college Republicans at the time called him a socialist. "Of course I'm a pinko socialist," he roared. "What's your point?"

Substitute "frugal" "cheap" or "thrifty" for socialist. Of course I am...what's your point?

Tuesday
Saving log - $2 tip box
Spending log - $8 lunch + $3 snack + $2 donation

Wednesday
Saving log - $2 tip box
Spending log - $8 lunch + $10 art supplies

Busy, busy, busy.

Work is heating up a bit, and for the internal giving campaign, one of our contests is a Halloween floor decorating contest. Down in our basement, we have so much - corridors where we can dim the lighting, an old vault, elevator out with a caution partition, all the cardboard we can possibly want. Our concept is a graveyard. We are busy making headstones, banners, brought out our fall and Halloween items. My headstone is particularly lovely.

Picked up some red tempura paint - I plan on decorating the vault with a hanging white paper curtain splattered with tempura "blood". Reverted to childhood by drawing my hands and arms on paper, cutting them out of the paper, splattering them with red stamp ink (this was before the red tempura), then sticking the hands under the elevator caution partition.

Thank you all for the ideas for a cheap Halloween costume. I got inspired last night by a photo of ... candy corn!

So white sneaks, long white socks, orange pants, light yellow long sleeved top, yellow hair dye. I saw a pair of orange pants at Value Village for $20... too rich for my blood. I got a pair of white jeans for $7, and two packs of tangerine Rit dye for $3/pk. I used both packs - I want the pants brick orange, because the dye always dries lighter. The pants are soaking now.

Festive, warm, non-slutty, funny, simple.

Oh yes, found a penny in the QFC parking lot.
.15 -.01 =.14 to go to equal my T-bill interest.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $10 brunch + $60 groceries

Food is starting to become a bit cheaper again - I picked up canned tomatoes and canned chickpeas for .50/can. Pretty reasonable for Seattle.

Did the 6 mi mega-walk today, ending up at Goodwill. I pored through the costumes and Halloween whatnot, and as I did so, I thought, "why am I shopping for a costume that I'm going to wear once, don't want to store, and am spending money for the privilege? Clearly, I'm not feeling any inspiration or love. I remember feeling as a kid that Halloween was a kid pleasure, and the lack of Halloween must be an adult pleasure. No candy, maybe, but you didn't have to think about what you wanted to be - because as an adult you were it - and you didn't have to wear cheesy stuff in the snow (this was Wisconsin) and put on a mask.

Maybe its too early for me. I get into holiday spirits a couple of days before - when necessary.

Because its Sept 19

collectings - $1 treasure box
lootings - $15 raw fish cut by ninja

Avast ye hearties! The day was one big aaaarrghh! I took me treasure box to the bank, got one hundred doubloons (my jaw be tired from biting down on EACH of them!) in case we were raided over the weekend by the FDIC navy, then walked over to a spot where I knew that if Woo Hoo made other pirates walk the plank to keep their treasure, I would get a good picture. One picture is worth a thousand aaarrrghs, ye know.

The flat side of me spyglass was busted! No picture! I would ave thrown someone to the sharks if I could. Maybe draw and quarter them first.

Back on the ship, I went over the log of other possible pirates. Bad times means good slaves and wenches could be had for cheap. Spent the time between high sun and grog time clicking fer more of me doubloons.


Translation: Put in the tip box savings into the bank, got 100$ in case things got frozen over the weekend. Walked past the WaMu Center and was about to take a picture when I discovered that the LCD screen on my camera was busted. I was mad, and depressed. (and yes, I will replace.)
At work, I looked over who we were going to interview for temporary staff. The recession means we are getting some applicants who look really good. The rest of the afternoon I finished up a database project.

N.B: comparing 18th century pirates to 21-century investment bank.... Couldn't resist.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3 coffee, bagel + $9 lunch

This weekend, I did my gym laundry. Note: I do it every second or third week... not just on holiday weekends. But I bet if I did my gym laundry less often I wouldn't have an issue with machines.

Normally I bring my gym clothes back on Sunday and then walk, but since Monday's a holiday and Monday's when I'm thinking of going, well, waiting until Monday and hitting the gym beforehand was hitting two birds with one stone. So I hit the gym today and did an upper body routine from November. It still whipped my butt. Definitely a labor-ed day.

Afterwards I had lunch at a pho place near Macy's (didn't go in), and wandered a bit.

Last Saturday, DH and I went over to visit our friends in Duvall. They confided to us that they could not, for love or money, get a HELOC from any Seattle bank (tried WellsFargo (WF) first) to fix their roof. They were asking for 12K. It was suggested to them, in all seriousness by WF, to collect 6 credit cards. Yikes. But it is very telling - the friend tell us they have credit scores in the 700 range, and have converted their loan from an ARM to fixed rate.

SillyOleMe blogged about this in her life, I want to mention it here to let her know that no one is loaning anyone anything. Don't take it personally. Its the recession talking, and its saying, "cash is king."

There is fun to be had in noting some of the finances from the Montana vacation:

We drove 12 hrs from Seattle to Bozeman. Both DH and I have pretty good bladders - only a couple of "rest" stops. Special note: Near Exit 2 on I-90, the rest stop dependably serves coffee and cookies for "free" but they advertise a small donation. I missed giving the donation heading to Bozeman, so I put a $5 when we came back. After all, it takes a certain something to volunteer to serve travelers coffee and cookies.

DH had noticed that the gas mileage had been pretty crappy for the white 92 Buick Cushmobile in Seattle (about 15 mpg). He got it tuned up and we checked during the trip - 29 mpg! Speed limits varied between 65 - 75 mph; we kept our speed 3-5 mph over. Not the speed demon, but not the pokiest. Noticed that no one was doing the 100mph bit (the speed limit for Montana at one time was "cautious and prudent"). About $150 on gas.

We got about a week's worth of groceries for $75. Grocery prices seemed to run $1 - .50 cheaper for most things, and there's no sales tax on food. Restaurants, however, are just as expensive in Bozeman as in Seattle. Propane prices (electricity, the stove, and the refrigerator ran on propane) were about 50% higher than gasoline prices. $40 for propane.)

MIL took us out for a couple of restaurant meals, and we made a Costco run (she LOVES Costco). I know she wants to "help", but I don't like being too gifted, and its a control issue for both of us. When she volunteered at the MOR and asked us to run some errands with her car, we filled her gas tank just to pay her back a little bit. The Cushmobile was formerly hers; her "new" car gets only 15 mpg!

And what is it about Costco that just makes me sleepy and make poor spending decisions? They must put something in the air or in the samples. Ten minutes in, and I wanted to drool over the cart and load things in mechanically.

The title taken from a Lewis and Clark entry. Every time I go to the cabin and people ask where it is, I get it wrong. We were 60 mi east of Butte, 50 mi west of Bozeman, in the Deerlodge-Beaverhead National Forest, in the Tobacco Root Mountains, near South Willow Creek, about 10 mi or so away from Pony, Montana. We also spent a little bit of time in Bozeman, Montana.

The Tobacco Root Mountains


The cabin in the woods. The idea from the Forest Service perspective is to have it melt away. Our project was to pull down a fence that DH's dad built and the Forest Service wanted it down. The X's out front are the cross posts with the nails that should head to the dump.


The back deck of the cabin in the woods. That lighter colored wood cube on the right is the shower.


A creek runs through it, but there is quite a cliff before you get to it.


Action shot of DH with the chainsaw.


This is not a happy picture. The forest is mostly spruce and lodgepole pine. All the red trees are dying from spruce beetle. Next year they will be gray and they will turn into vertical fuel for the next forest fire. Only two good weeks of killing frost at -40F can reliably kill the beetle. (N.B: I'll have to rethink that -40F comment - it was told to me in a casual conversation. See comments for more)


The stereotype of Montana. Works for me.


The better half of a Montana couple (a man and his dog), and at the Pony Bar, he's likely to have his own pint.


We got a little citified, too. This is Big Al standing guard at the Museum of the Rockies (MOR) in Bozeman. If you have a dino-mad child, MOR is the place to go.

I need the (again) because I used the title once already. I'm back from Montana, with a few focused pics (merch is so picky. ) I'll see if I can wrangle DH's pic of me with the chainsaw, massacring a fence.

It was cool and refreshing (70s), quite a change from what DH and I drove into in Seattle (90s).

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.86 coffee* + $6 curry

*A co worker gave me a $5 coffee card as a thank you for helping her out on a project. Because I buy the 12 oz straight drip coffee, I figure I have about 2 1/2 servings of coffee.

Very useful this week. I'm again at the end of the month with $40 to spare so I'm feeling the frugal burn.

Decided to again go to the curry place. I looked more deeply at the menu and discovered that all the curries not on special all went up about 10%. I know how the owner's funding the $3.99 special. I would have eaten the special, but brown lentil curry is not my thing.

Going on vacation August 1 through the 15th, so I've suspended heavy duty saving and buying DRP stocks until I get back.

Decided to just be and not blog-be this fourth. Brought watermelon, feta and mint salad to a 4th potluck to our hosts who live on Cap Hill, within 200 yards of a very decent lookout for the Lake Union fireworks. The salad was good, and recipe was straightforward (Watermelon, feta, mint in whatever proportion tastes good), but perhaps a bit too advanced for the palate of the party. About 2/3 of it went, while the 1/2 of the watermelon that I didn't use went right away. Oh well, that's why they call it "potluck".

The view looking out over Lake Union. The large barge in the middle is where fireworks are shot off.


I brought a little tripod for the fireworks, so I tried out snapping firework pictures. My digital camera had a firework setting, but it needed a good 15 seconds between shots to reset, so it meant basically hitting the button over and over, hoping for the best. Here's one of the best, much better than last year.


Here's where the digital camera is frugally awesome. I snapped well over 100 shots. No way would I even think of burning off that much film just to experiment and learn. But if the only downside is that it just eats up camera memory, and you delete the bad ones, the worst that can happen is if every picture is bad, delete them all.

Still no laptop, so DH took me to the laptop shop...

Me: So how's my laptop repair coming along?
Guy at the Shop: What is your last name?
Me: (told him)
Guy at Shop types a bit, then says: We told you that it can take anywhere between 1 and 2 weeks... (and then blinked at me blankly)

Good gravy, I know that! Could it have killed anyone to say that "we are in the midst of fixing, and we are so very glad you showed up but it will take awhile because we want to do a good job?" Bueller...Bueller?

But then I remembered the stereotype. No social skills. No wonder why computer networking and its multiple components often don't work well together. Their creators don't work well together so they make stuff that doesn't work well together.

But DH and I had some success - we bought 3 very large tomato plants for 10$. I'll put them in tomorrow. Today I walked another 6 miles, tomorrow it will be digging and weeding for a little upper body workout.

More recession-y observations: along my walk I saw at least 30 placards and sandwich boards advertising condos; the ice cream shop is advertising that they are open until 7 (okay that might be weather); at every bus stop along my way I saw at least one person waiting for it, and as the bus passed me, most had a very decent load of passengers (and this was Saturday during a holiday!)

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.25 coffee + $13 lunch

Yet another day without my laptop. I'm getting the shakes now. . DH promised me that we will visit the shop to see how its coming along. I have to say that there is one advantage for having a 4 year old laptop - no one will want to steal it. But I'm worried that they'll say, "everything has gotten cooked, nothing survived."

Sent another $40 to my 3M DRP. The notice that my last $40 bought x.xxx shares with a little deposit slip and a return envelope. Its always my signal that the ball is bouncing on my side of the court.

Finished my performance review and sent it to my supervisor. This year, as a novelty, my two employees sent theirs to me. It will be weird sitting on the other side and judging them.

Ah, a three day vacation coming up!

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.25 coffee, bagel + $700 glasses, eye exam + $8 lunch.

Eyes, that is.

I'm 46 today. I had two birthday errands: glasses in the morning, and gym in the afternoon.

Glasses - the original plan was to check but assume that the old prescription would hold and I could simply get a second pair of frames and lenses. It turned out that my prescription had changed sufficiently so that I really couldn't use my old prescription for my second, but I could get new lenses for current frames, making up the second pair. The last test was to dilate the pupils of my eyes so the optometrist could check most of the back my retina to identify detachment, degeneration, the optic nerve, etc. Two sets of eyedrops - the anesthetic drops to prevent the sting and the dilator. Everything checked out well - no glaucoma, no degeneration, no oddities on the retina. Just more floaters in one eye than in the other. What is ... nah, don't tell me, I don't really want to know what causes the floaters. :P

The two pair of lenses and one pair of frames were quite expensive, as you can see above. I was a bit more nearsighted, I needed progressive lenses (my current pair is the first one I had) but my astigmatism improved slightly. It makes for a complicated prescription. I just have to think that its to make an heir and a spare, that I do this every 25 months, and I have savings for it.

Then it was to make it through my plans half blind (only 6-10 ft was okay) and avoid the sun at all costs for at least 4 hours. Just another reason why it paid to be a bus devotee. I could sit in the dark, rotating section of the articulated bus. Seattle helped out too. It was sunny when I left the optometrist - within an hour it grew cloudy and rainy. Thanks, Seattle, I owe you one.

Gym was fine, except for the fact that I was doing stuff while my eyes were dilated. We kept it simple.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $1.64 coffee, bagel + $10 lunch + $12 office supply store + $1 chocolate

Today was a day off. Extra nice when you are off and the rest of the world has to work. Used the get-one-free punch on my coffee card, went to the chiropractor, then had lunch with lawyer friend's partner and screenwriter friend. Lawyer friend's brother is doing much, much better - he's heading out of ICU and into a regular hospital bed.

Mostly putzed around and did a little shopping. As I headed home it occurred to me that with the long walks that I've been taking in the last 2 months means that if something awful happened - natural disaster, attack, etc - I know I can walk home. It might take 2.5 - 3 hrs, an energy bar, and the bridges would have to be passable, but I could do it. Physical fitness equals reliance equals emergency preparedness.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.30 coffee, bagel + $13 groceries

No financial decisions or shallow financial philosophy today.

Spent a mostly nice quiet day at home; I just went out to have my Sunday coffee and bagel, read the Sunday paper, picked up some blue cheese, almonds, a box of salad. Came back, did my laundry, cleaned a bit of the house and made a non-traditional Easter meal of homemade beef stew which should last me for a few days.

Saving log - $0
Spending log - $3.28 coffee, bagel + $1.65 coffee + $6 pho lunch

DH worked President's Day, while I could play. It was a glorious sunny day, which never happens in Seattle this time of year. Mostly did errands - made the chiropractor appointment, then walked north through the Pike Market, through Belltown, then cut through some of the Sculpture Park, Myrtle Edwards Park, then the park maintained by the Port of Seattle, then crossed over the Amgen double helix bridge - about 4 miles.

Picture time!

This one was actually taken last week at the Pike Market. How did he get that cat to wear that hideous sweater?


The one thing I missed seeing the first time at the Sculpture Garden was the Neukom Vivarium. Its a nurse log gently and greenly rotting under green filtered glass. Simple, but refreshing.


A very different perspective of one of the bits of sculpture. If you don't know what a typewriter eraser is...well that dates you!


Shot of glorious blue water and blue sky, with a freighter and ducks.


More blue sky, a squiggly tree sculpture, a red ampersand sculpture, and the PI globe.


Inside the Amgen double helix bridge.


Then the bus mostly home. I'm doing my taxes late this year. Normally I do them myself and get right on it to have it over and done with...but because I inherited and sold property, received a 1099 where I might have to fill out a Schedule K, and earned decent money off of taxable investments, well, discretion is the better part of valor this year. I made an appointment with a local CPA this afternoon three weeks from now.

One last thing - I managed to score two fantastic deals at two different grocery stores 1. on frozen vegetables - .99/lb for frozen corn, peas, peas & carrots, green beans; 2. ground beef at $1.49/lb. The freezer is full.

Saturday
Saving log - $0
Spending log - $13 brunch + $50 wine + $30 groceries

Sunday
Saving log - $0
Spending log - $3.38 coffee, bagel + $16 thrift store + $11 groceries

The shopping spree continues. New Years is the big day for liquor - all the wine shops are open, even on Sunday. DH got champagne with his own money - I went for 3 nice bottles of vino to go with our vast collection of 4 buck chuck. You have the nice wine first and then deploy the chuck for the second bottle. Not as if Robert Parker's coming to visit.

I've been going to the gym on Sundays for the last few months to get that 3rd session a week in. I've been on a plateau for a whole year now, and while I'd much prefer not to be, at least I've only been gaining and losing about 3 pounds even during the holidays. Any how, I just didn't feel inspired by going to the gym today. Instead I caught a bus that would drop me off on 24th Ave NW and I walked back - about 3 miles.

Of course I did a little shopping at the thrift store and a grocery along the way. I picked up another pair of jeans which were new, fashionable, and fit. I would have preferred them to be $5, but you can't have everything.

The groceries were for a nice New Years Eve to hole up in. DH and I have no plans for going out - just staying in, drinking champagne, seeing a racy DVD, and figuring out my net worth for you all!

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.19 coffee + $10 lunch

This week has been very quiet. Just to recap, I've worked on Monday, Christmas Eve, and today, Boxing Day, but I am taking Friday off just for a break.

If only a commute could be as nice as it was on Christmas Eve. DH drove me - it took 15 minutes - while coming back I was one of three people on the bus, a bus which lately has been stuffed to the gills until it hits Ballard.

Christmas was pleasant and low key. DH and I had a similar pattern - we each gave the other electronics for the house. We upgraded the TV and CD/radio/MP3 player in our little "starter" duplex. We then went to a potluck dinner Christmas.

Boxing Day was only a little bit more lively, but still pleasant. The last survivor of the temporary campaign staff is leaving at the end of this week, so we took him out to lunch. I got caught up, went to gym class, and answered the phone only once today. A miracle.

I haven't been posting many pictures lately. The auditor next door at work was in the midst of decorating her tree. I loved the top. Have a King Kong Christmas!

Friday
Saving log - $4 tip box
Spending log - $1.19 coffee + $8 lunch

Saturday
Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $13 brunch + $231 Christmas gifts + $40 dinner with friends

Sunday - $0 tip box
Spending log - $16 Walgreens

Finished Saturday with the Christmas shopping - whew. This weekend I saw a lot of shoppers and the stores were busy.

Once you buy more than one package, the hard part comes when you have to lug the loot on the bus. I thought I had just missed the bus, but luck smiled on me - the bus I had missed must had been extremely late because another my-bus showed up a minute later. It was especially lucky not only because I caught that one, but since the extremely late bus forged ahead it picked up all the other riders before my bus came. It meant lots of empty seats that stayed empty and no bashing of others with the boxes as I tromped down the aisle to get off.

We were also supposed to see I Am Legend with DJ friend and his DW at the IMAX. The IMAX projector broke Friday night, so it was just like the airlines - we rebooked. And we got several free passes for our trouble.

Saving log - $5 tip box
Spending log - $1.19 coffee + $9 lunch +$172 sister Christmas gift

Went to the fishmonger today to buy and ship sister's Christmas gift. Bought two large steelhead salmon fresh off the boat along with a cooked crab, then had the salmon filleted. Most of the cost is coming from the shipping - since its fresh fish, it has to get from Seattle to Milwaukee the next day.

I bought two fish and got them large enough so she couldn't just cook and eat it all at once. I figured that she would give one of the fish to a couple in the area - dad's friends, who took care of dad, the house, and the grounds a bit. Now this couple have been helping sister out - since they live nearby they keep an eye on the farmette and have been good friends of sister. So its a sneaky political tactic - I'm sending two gifts in one.

About the crab...well, I had a chat with sister when I was there in October. Last year I gave fruit of the month, figuring they were sick of fish. No, no, no they were not sick of fish. The fruit was good, they said, but cripes they can get good fruit anywhere. Salmon and seafood - in Milwaukee that's pricey. What about crab, I asked. Sure, put one on top!

Best of all, I know the fish hadn't been flung around. You all know my opinions on that score - why bore you this year about it.

Saving log - none, haven't been close to the tip box

Spending log (22nd) - $3.25 coffee, bagel
Spending log (23rd) - $3.25 coffee, bagel + $.45 apple + $23 tickets
Spending log (24th) - $3.50 coffee, chocolate croissant + $44 groceries ($4 groceries + $40 as a point of sale ATM)

Had fun for Thanksgiving. Our Duvall guests - who usually are late - didn't arrive at the same time the turkey got done, at least arrived soon enough so that the turkey was still good. We did the traditional - rubbed with kosher salt and sage for 1 hr, wiped salt off, poked skin with rosemary (which we had a lot of), roasted with a tent on it for 4 hrs. Didn't stuff it. Made the turkey, mashed potatoes, dressing, cranberry sauce, roasted brussel sprouts with pecans, and we had a bit of the dessert that I made for the next party. Our guests brought zucchini/cranberry/oat bread, greens (love greens!), a bit of muscovy duck (very dark meat), squash casserole.

Arranged the dining room table in the living room (more space) and used the large coffee table 3 ft away as a buffet for the turkey and dishes. Nothing that scares me more than juggling a lot of dishes with the wine glasses, the centerpiece, and the plates. Just makes everything easier.

I got a lot of raves for the dessert, so to keep me from typing it twice, here is the recipe...

Pear Mango Cranberry Crisp

Filling
3 large bartlett pears
1 12 oz package dried mango ($5 at Uwajimaya)
1/8 bag of cranberries
zest from 1 orange peel
sugar
lemon juice, water

Grind cranberries in a small food processor, put in a bowl, add zest, add 1/2 tbsp sugar.

Soak dried mango in warm water until softened (about 1 hr). Drain completely, chop coarsely

Add a tbsp of lemon juice to 1 quart water in a bowl. Slice unpeeled pears lengthwise into 1/8 inch widths, getting rid of seeds and the woody center stem. Slip pear slices into lemon water.

Crisp
3/4 cup flour
1/2 sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick cold butter
(amounts can be doubled if necessary)

Mix dry ingredients well. Chop cold butter into small pieces, cut butter into the dry ingredients using a fork or a pastry kneader. Don't overwork it - the topping should resemble coarse breadcrumbs.

Drain pear slices and arrange them evenly & lengthwise in an ungreased shallow pan. Sprinkle with sugar (optional-pears and mangos are going to be sweet already). Layer the chopped mango over the pears. Dot with the cranberry mixture. Sprinkle everything with the crisp mixture.

Bake at 350F until fruit is tender, juices are bubbling and crisp is golden brown. What worked for me was baking the crisp at the bottom of third of the oven until the fruit filling was done, then I put the pan over the broiler and broiled the top for about 5 minutes.

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.35 coffee + $8 lunch

Doing my list of of make-aheads because the turkey will take up all the room in the oven:

Cranberry sauce
Cooked potatoes (heat them through then mash)
Chopped celery and onion for the stuffing/dressing
Making the dessert

DH and I discussed what we would do with the turkey that we haven't done before - we have done the black turkey, the grilled turkey, the brined turkey, the heirloom turkey (yum!, but you had to have planned ahead and got your order in in March) and I've put my foot down...no deep fried turkey. So who knows? Maybe just rub it down with salt, then stick butter and sage underneath the skin and roast. You know - the normal way.

Then we had the debate between stuffing and dressing. Stuff the turkey, or not? Thinking not, because of speed and the stuffing will get into the gravy. An unstuffed 20 lb turkey will cook faster, and the turkey will make more gravy.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone!

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.30 coffee + $15 chirashi lunch.

Keeping on an even keel financially. Collected $49 from my tip box this month and put it into savings. I've been debating putting some new money into a WaMu 9 month CD, but WaMu got caught doing some interesting things during this subprime mess. Sure, its FDIC insured, but is it worth the agita?

We are now all busy at work. My supervisor and I went through my 6 month evaluation, which was successful. I'm the boss of DJ friend so I'm happy that I'm keeping things in a good place there. My other employee is working out very well, too - I've given her a bit more responsibility and she's run with it...that was good to see.

DH picked up our turkey - its huge, but it means that everyone will get a lot of turkey, darn it.

I'm usually not jealous of other people's thanksgivings, but my temp guy is heading back to Oregon to a Chinese feast of seafood hot pot. The WASP traditional feasts are nice, but the ethnic traditional ones are much more memorable. I was invited to an Iranian thanksgiving with turkey, pilaf, and a gigantic bowl of pomegranite pips. Just take your favorite feast food, make a ton of it, and enjoy.

Saving log - $8 tip box
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $5.45 lunch

One of my DRPs has spun itself off, so I am getting the paperwork for it, a 1099-B and a semi-surprise check for a fractional share. Into savings it goes - $42.04. The transfer agent finally cashed my $500 check to buy more stock.

Plan on hosting a small Thanksgiving here at my place, then head to lawyer friend's larger party for dessert.

To give myself a little break from the kvetching. Fall is here, the bus rides are getting darker and darker, but the views are atmospheric!

From a stopped bus off the Ballard Bridge at bit after sunset.


Mid day in Occidental Park - the tree leaves obscure Smith Tower. In the early 20th century, Smith Tower was the tallest building west of the Mississippi.


Benaroya Hall in the early evening. Blurry, but I just loved the purple lit windows.


A neighbor got into the holiday spirit.


Last night DH and I went to a Halloween Party - I didn't do much in the costume department, just sprayed some green hairspray in my hair and smeared some fake blood on my face. Total cost - $2. Bought nuts for the potluck tray - $10.

Saving log - 0$
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $6.50 lunch (footlong to nosh on for two days)

So lately watching my stocks and 403Bs is like playing eensy weensy spider over and over. Spider is at the top of the waterspout (last Thursday), the rains came (Friday) and washed the spider out, and now the spider's crawling back (Monday). I've got to stop monitoring it so much.

This Halloween my ambition is just not into the costume. I might just put a big fake blood spot on my forehead and call it a day. The Halloween potluck, on the other hand, I'm ambitious about. Go figure.

I'm working on a dark "Goth" potato salad - with purple potatoes, beets, red onion, pecan (walnuts weren't dark enough) dressed with olive oil and a bit of pesto. In other words, if you dribble, it will stain.. So far, the only way I've found to keep the purpliness is to get small, deep purple fingerling potatoes and steam them making sure that no potato touches the boiling water. Boiling liquid just kills the purple.

Savings log - $0
Spending log - $3.28 coffee, bagel + $16 gym shorts

It was 80 today. I wore shorts in public for the first time in 10 years. Actually they were gym shorts, so my trainer was excited too.

The second insurance estimate for the farmette was even a better price than the first one, which is a little weird to me.

Hope you all had a great fourth! The Lake Union fireworks show was lovely, but the 1 hr traffic jam at the end was a nightmare.