Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1 apple

I'm not into using Twitter for a lot of stuff - I'm a newbie on a cell phone and I can't afford unlimited text messaging - but I found that both the Seattle Police Department and Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) twitter. Turns out that my neighborhood is a hotbed of crime - one of our neighborhood banks (rhymes with yank of chimerica) was robbed several times last month.

At least the next time bus transit breaks down due to a shooting or snow, I'll be ready.

Time to monitor how quickly the minutes disappear and plan accordingly.

Found out in the Phinneywood blog (a blog about our local neighborhood) that our street is getting a sidewalk all the way up until our block.

Our neighborhood is infamous for never getting sidewalks, despite being a part of Seattle since 1952(!), so I have to assume that this sidewalk construction initiative is one of those "shovel ready" projects in the stimulus package.

If only it reached one more block. I'm a taxpayer, too!

Wednesday
Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $15 groceries

Thursday
Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $20 dinner

The week I've found 1 penny on a clean sidewalk, 1 penny on the crosswalk right at the curb with a cigarette butt three feet away, and 2 pennies at the foot of a tree near several cigarette butts. All in downtown Seattle.

Nothing to see here, just

testing the hypothesis, move along....

Today was the day of the Greenwood Art Walk. We did a bit of walking, and saw some very pretty stuff. The only picture that really turned out were these amazing gold and brass wire baskets in a neighborhood Taoist space.


But really, what made me smile were the couple of yard sales and allied sales happening all along Greenwood Avenue today.

I took a pass on this one, but it just made me laugh out loud that someone conceived that two nouns - "Kansas City Chiefs" and "crockpot" - could be brought together.

Not only brought together, but after conception, somebody had to buy off on making more than one, and to advertise them. I'm guessing that they were quite the thing for beef bqq for those Arrowhead tailgate parties in the 70s.

However, I did bite on another item that made me smile. Who would possibly use a Beetle Bailey cloth wallet?


Yeah, me. For $9.50.

I bought this bad girl in a little tent kiosk on Greenwood that sold great cloth purses. I have too many purses, frankly, so I have to use what I have. But this was handmade by a woman who somehow found Beetle Bailey comic cloth, someone again had print Beetle Bailey comic cloth, and someone had to figure that Beetle Bailey printed comic cloth would sell well enough to justify the whole thing. Given that chain of crazy decisions, how could you walk away?

You might remember the too expensively priced near-shack that I sometimes walked past. To refresh your memory on previous posts...

Part 1

Part 2

I walked past it again last week. They got rid of the fence, but now the hedge is sprouting...


Along with an exciting yellow sign...


So let's recap, shall we?

Feb 2008 - 499K
April 2008 - $445K
July 2008 - $395K

then no sign, seller has given up.

May 2009 - probable teardown.

Can't say that this will be fantastic either. The lot isn't big enough to support much of anything except a house with a yard.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $12 breakfast + $10 bath salts and apple

I overheard this night as I walked through the Summer Streets program: "If you don't want to learn about memoir, try using our teleporter ... or study alien spores and brains."
(from the guy out in front of Greenwood's Space Travel Company - its a front for a non-profit writer's group).

Made me smile.

Again, I jogged the 3 miles, aka the mock 5K. Also did it in 47 minutes, jogging all the way, so it wasn't a fluke that I did it. Also my hips felt far, far better than last week. I could actually walk back home after the jog - much slower and took much longer than 47 minutes.

Planted purple carrots in an orange po- um, CONTAINER. Who says p-um, CONTAINER gardeners don't have a sense of humor.

Read an

article in the New York Times today whose tone saddened me a bit. I'm not frugal as a competitive sport. I'm frugal because greater amounts of savings makes me comfortable in my place in society, and I'd rather have the money rather than greater amounts of branded stuff. I'm quiet about my saving in real life. If times get much worse, its really best not to brag about what you saved.

Monday
Saving log - $4 tip box
Spending log - $20 chiropractor + $2 conditioner

Saving log - $4 tip box
Spending log - $.75 paper

The Seattle Post Intelligencer published its last edition today. I picked up a commemorative copy at the Safeway today. The top section had a series of lovely pieces of Seattle and PI history, so ...

would the bastard who stole it from the lunchroom bring it back or ELSE I will have to curse their Final Four picks. And trust me, I can and will make sure that you not only will not win, but that you will be the laughingstock of the basketball pool.

I mean it, man.

On a serious note, I'm saddened and a tad scared about the PI closing. Its supposed to live on as an online outlet w/blogs, twitters, commentary, but somebody has to physically go out, do the legwork, take names, write the story and do all of those things that afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. Blogs reflect the news. If there is no reported news, we reflect nothing.

But we'll see.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $12 breakfast + $42 pet supplies + $29 clothes

I feel so contrarian these days. I've been frugal when everyone has been spending like mad, and now I've been spending when everyone else's wallet has snapped shut. Thank me in a few months - shopping's kind of fun when no one else is doing it.

I didn't do a super long walk, just a little jog and a walk along 85th to 15th NW. I went to Petco and got kitty shampoo, 2 finger toothbrushes, a roll of Paws away (double sided tape that inhibits scratching), litter odor neutralizer, and 2 cat toys.

Then I hit the Macy's of thrift stores - Value Village - and picked up a small bowl, a small metal colander, a large cast iron platter/candle shelf thingee, 1 pair of jeans (tossed out a pair last week), 3 spring knit tops. All for $28 and change. I was a tad surprised to find that towels were going for $2.99 apiece...new ones are $4.99, so you might as well get them new. Nothing like cheaping out and getting athlete's foot or something.

I'd like to get some large pots or some ceramic flats - I'd like to grow some lettuce and a few flowers this year in pots on the patio. Seattle has a good climate for lettuce, usually, so the plan is sow the seed densely, let it grow out for about 6 weeks, mow, then rinse and repeat.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.35 coffee, bagel + $3 hot dog + $6 batteries & box of creamy tomato soup

Very quiet non-work day. Walked about 2/3 of the way around Green Lake, then headed up to Greenwood Avenue for the ATM, and a stop to get AA batteries for the digital camera, or about 4 miles.

Found .26 in the Fred Meyer parking lot (a quarter and a penny). I managed to also find another quarter last night also. Last night I heard on NPR about a family of 5 who managed to save $1000 worth of sidewalk change in about a year. I'm not sure whether they are walking in a city where parking lots are paved with change or many people have holes in their pockets or whether with 3 small children their helpers are low to the ground - $1000 is a lot of sidewalk change. Good for them, but your mileage may vary!

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $32 kitten chow + $35 groceries

Freakin' icy again today, so I burned another PTO day at work. Our work hours have been around 11-3, the car deals with snow better than ice and slush, and then there is the 2-3 hr evening commute. I did the critical time tasks yesterday, I had the PTO time, and tomorrow's Christmas Eve.

But DH and I were productive: Morgan went to the neighborhood vet. She's a girl, no chip, 6-7 months old (the vet showed us her baby molars), no scar or tattoo indicating she was spayed, no feline leukemia, and at 5 pounds with a little fat on the lower underside, she was just a teeny bit overfed. Not obese, just back off the food a bit and don't worry about the shortchanging the kitten development. The vet opined that no kitty just eats what s/he needs then stops with an eternal buffet in the food bowl. He suggested a decent premium brand kitten food, but only 2 feedings at 1/8 c each. In other words, 2 tablespoons. The big bag of dry kitten/cat food is going to last awhile.

"She's a blank slate," the vet said.

Today Morgan got her battery of shots: rabies, distemper, leukemia. DH bought the shots, I'll buy the spaying and chipping...which we'll do in January.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.50 coffee, bagel + $11 ground coffee + $22 groceries

The cold front hit Saturday night here in Seattle. I don't think we even hit freezing today. Only walked about two miles maybe today, to 70th Street and Greenwood then back. If the sidewalks were walked on it wasn't too bad, but as soon as you hit a shady untraveled patch, it was killer. This is my third winter I've pulled out my

Yaktrax.

Seattle's a funny place when it comes to winter. With so many transplanted mid-westerners (like me), you think we'd take the reins and sand our walks. Nope. Much more fun to complain like the natives and wait for the ice to melt. Which it won't for at least 3-4 days.

Got home fairly early so I made my lunch and snack for tomorrow. I expect that it will be quiet at work tomorrow - the fundraising temp staff's last day was Friday.

Spending log - $15 gloves, hoodie + $21 groceries

Realized as I began my six mile walk that it was far colder than I was dressed, so I picked up gloves and a medium (cut large) grey hoodie at Walgreens. It was a toasty warm hoodie, but it also seems to be lucky in another way: I found change on the sidewalk within a block of putting it on. I also found 11 cents as I cut through the Safeway. Basic gray lucky recession hoodie.

On my walk toward Fremont I saw this performance:

Coming back, I walked past them again. No babies in the baby buggies, all had enigmatic smiles.

The second performance? My blog. For laughs, I put in my blog address into

Typealyzer - which analyzes your blog according to Myers-Briggs.

My blog: ESFP.
Me: INFP.

They got the feeling, perceiving bit right. I'm flattered a bit - I just don't think of myself as a performer in any sort of way. Typealyzer seems to do a very quick analysis. I think its checking for verbs and active/passive voice on the first screen of posts it sees. Methinks for laughs I'll bore you all with a couple of heavy duty analysis type posts and see if it changes thinks a bit.

Saving log - $2 tip box
Spending log - $8 lunch + $.60 apple + $70 laptop memory

Yeah, I know, blogging from work. Ay yi yi! I'm doing it only because the memory on my laptop completely gave up the ghost after I posted last night...maybe the memory did it in memory of the jumper. I bought 2 of my memory (has two slots) for $70.

Voted today. I got there at 7 am, and gutsy me, voted using an electronic ballot. I'm very lucky with electronic devices, and I was when I finally got on, but a word to the wise, if you see the person in front of you poring over the voters guide while you are waiting to vote electronically, do not hesitate but go back and get a paper ballot. Voter guides and electronic ballots DO NOT mix. Electronic balloting works best if you have your list and go boom, boom, boom.

But the 20 minute wait had its charms. It was, supposedly the last time we will have polls in King County. This, and then vote by mail like nearly every other county in Wa state. Of course they said that two years ago. We'll see. I like to go to the polls, it breaks up the routine.

The charm was people watching, especially the provisional ballot meltdown line. There's always someone crying, "it always happens every time, you miss me from the voter rolls, you hate me and my kind and..." I stopped listening after a bit. My advice to the crier is to vote more often than every four years. Every year in September & November there seems to be something to vote for. Do it often enough and you work bugs out - you get your voter card, you know your precinct, and best of all, you know all the usual suspects who work the polls.

Oh yeah, got my free coffee afterward.

Saving log - $0 tip box + $40 DRP1 + $100 DRP2
Spending log - $17 brunch (for 2)

We finished a brunch card, so we got a free entree this morning. Top of the month we paid the rent, and I figured out how much to put into DRPs. Funny how when I send a bit of money to the transfer agents I get bummed if their stock prices go up.

Seattle is wearing its November soggy togs, but the leaves are much better this year than usual. Hard to find small change through the leaves.


But along my walk, I've been noticing the signs of the times. Exhibit 1: a bit of paranoia. He's had this sign for years, but the sign itself is a fresh version.


There's that word "layaway" again, this time out in front of a hip Seattle boutique.


Not a funny or a repent sign in front of this church, more of a "we've all lost money together" vibe.


This condo was for sale for the longest time with no bites. Now its time for a different tack.

A different sign had "only 3 left". There were 6 "townhomes" (why can't anyone say house anymore?). A 50% closing rate is decent, but belies the urgency of the "only". It always pays to do the math.

The lack of a sign is the sign here, yet the sign post remains. A bit of schaudenfruede here - the sign had a price of the princely sum of "$750,000". If I'm asking for 3/4 of mil, the least I could get is a perfect picture window (note the plastic). Back to the picture. No sign, so did the house get sold? Unlikely - why keep the sign post? Rented out - perhaps, because there were fresh items in the window. Owners give up for the selling season? Probably. See ya next spring.


Our final exhibit. It made me laugh. I'm fairly sure, based on the placement and expression of the various characters, the bar is advertising to Democrats. Alcohol is the universal solvent - equally useful in both celebration and condolence. Can get them coming and going, as grandpa used to say.

Saturday
Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $13 brunch + $5 grocery (produce) + $5 night trip

On Saturday night, DH and I took the night Seattle Trolley Tour. Its run by

MEHVA - cost was $5 for a 3 hour tour. It was very fun and historic ... however, you will be sitting on a historic bus/trolley for 3 hrs, so a word to the wise: there is a certain amount of stamina required. Again, MEHVA - a non-profit - collects buses and trolleys, but to keep them in good condition, they must be driven around. They would be driven around anyway, so MEHVA charges the rest of us to ride along.

Our chariot for the evening - a circa 1940 trolley. This trolley runs completely on electricity: two poles attached to the roof of the trolley run along a double electric track about 25 ft above the ground.


Since we could only go where the double electric track still exists, and the 68 yr old trolley doesn't have enough of a counterbalance to handle the top of Queen Anne Hill, our itinerary was: from 2nd & Main, Beacon Hill, International District, Pioneer Square, Pike Market, Belltown, lower Queen Anne Hill, then back downtown, Eastlake, over to the University District, Montlake, Capitol Hill, then 2nd & Main again.

It was the perfect time to try out the night landscape setting on my new camera ... so let me re-phrase that: its the perfect time for me to inflict night camera pictures onto my blog readers.

Inside the trolley - they went all out and maintained the old placards, too. Hmmm, I should look into that.


King Street Station - where the Amtrak goes. I seem to remember that this station is also being renovated.


Hey, who let the Alaskans in? (N.B: Washington state is the closest in the lower 48 to Alaska).


Close up of some neon on Stewart St.


I apologize right now - no tripod, no sharp night pictures of the Seattle skyline. Maybe next year. You'll have to settle with the artistically blurry ones.

One of the layovers - this one in Queen Anne. At our layover in the University District, we were swarmed by college students who were fascinated because the trolley looks so different. It warms my heart that they were interested. DH and I suspect that we had a couple of college stowaways riding from the U-District back to downtown. Touching that we were cool enough that they would do it.


The Saturday night action on the street. We were stared at and waved to numerous times. Funny story - as the trolley was navigating through Queen Anne, a young couple got to the driver's side of their car. I suspect that they were hitting two social events last night because when the young man got to the car, he took off his shirt to change presumably for the second event. The middle-aged woman watching him in the trolley began to shriek with laughter. I still think she owes the bus driver a big tip.


In short, cheap, fun, historic, green. What's not to like?

Friday
Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $4.50 groceries + $40 weekend money

Saturday
Saving log - $0 tip box + $100 Drp
Spending log - $5 latte & 3 tea cookies + $15 groceries

Yesterday I along with several other co workers went on a volunteer project - painting hallways. Those of you who are budding gym rats will appreciate that painting walls with a roller is all lats. Because I was stiff and sore from yesterday (not to mention was working out lungfuls of paint fumes), I took it easy this afternoon, walked a little bit, and spent a nice 40 minute break with a green tea latte and a couple of cookies.

Lately I've noticed other symptoms of recession - several local businesses that I frequent now promote coupons and have punch cards. I use punch cards as much as the next person - religious with a few, not so religious with most. My only tip on how to use punch cards (and their cousins, gift cards) is to store them in

a business card carrier, rather than busting your wallet. And when you fill your business card carrier, its time to clean it out of the punch cards you don't use. Anybody trade cards?

The final thing that I've really noticed is the proliferation of water-filled dog bowls in front of businesses on Greenwood Ave. Dog bowls started first with some of the coffee shops around, signaling a dog-friendly business. Today I saw a dog treat dispenser beside the dog bowl in front of one coffee shop (okay the one I stopped at), a high end silvery dog bowl in front of a sidewalk ad listing spa services, and a large tupperware bowl full of water in front of a hair salon. No dog bowl in front of the business you'd expect a dog bowl in front of - a pet food store.

So what gives with all the dog bowls? I can kind of see it if you are setting a dog bowl in front of an in and out service. Tie up your dog and give him something to drink while he waits for you. But the one in front of the spa? Hmmm. That could be a long wait. Maybe its smart - the dog stops for the water, forcing its owner (the tail) to stop and read the signs about what the business does.

The dog treat dispenser definitely picks up the game. Its a modified bubble gum machine. Treats are .25 apiece, with a sign that plaintively tells the owner not to hide this fact from the dog.

Well, if the dog had its own allowance...

Saturday
Saving log - $0 tip box + $35 drp
Spending log - $15 brunch/coffee + $12 produce

Sunday
Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.25 coffee & bagel + $4 latte & cookie

This morning we stopped into our local Sunday coffeehouse, expecting a fairly quiet coffee and Sunday newspaper reading. People were swinging from the rafters! We asked what was up ...

Owner: We got refugees from the Tully's Coffee across the street (87th/Greenwood). They closed.

Us: Huh? That was quick.

And it was quick - Wednesday nothing was amiss. The notice went up on Thursday. By Saturday they were closed. By Sunday, you can see the newspaper shroud along all the windows. About as fast as the Alaska Deli downtown...although at Tully's least there was a note.

There seems to be a spectra of closure styles.

You have the never-ending closure style of the Oriental rug stores in Pioneer Square. It wouldn't surprise me if those stores have only two signs - an Everything Must Go Sign and a Grand Opening sign - and the owner flips a coin to determine which one they put up for the month.

You have the political statement closure: a news-worthy proprietor who is retiring or the rent's going up. I call it a political closure because it usually takes several months with some local ain't-it-a-shame or shed-a-light-on-other-issues press. I lump the Starbucks closures in that category. Anybody go to that Starbucks on Dexter and Aurora? Its on the list.

You have the clear must get out by the end of the month sale and closure. My CD place was one of those. Burn off as much inventory in that last month as you can, with the goal of leaving only dirty carpet on the first.

To me, the oddballs are the really quick closures. Last year, the Denny's in Ballard closed with incredible speed and no particular warning. One Saturday we ate there, the next Saturday that Denny's sign was down, and the place was boarded up. Now this Tully's. Perhaps it makes a little bit of sense when a multi-branch company does it - they move the inventory out within a few hours, leaving cricket chirps behind.

But the Alaska Deli? Still a mystery - it was in the midst of construction, but it had been in the midst for a month or two, it was clearly marked Open with clear sidewalks. Frankly, with all the construction guys swarming around it should have been doing the business of its life. May 30, it was selling coffee; June 2 the door was locked. The extra mystery is that the Alaska Deli's stock is still mostly there even now. (this pic was taken in early July)


I'm probably reading too much into these quick closures. But a business has some sort of relationship with its neighborhood, and its customers. Do these quick closures tell us that we don't care or that we might care too much?

Savings log - $2 tip box
Spending log - $1.50 coffee + $11 lunch + $4 dinner for two.

Not much is happening at work in these past two days. But this morning I walked to my stop and found this:


Which means only one thing - the Greenwood Seafair Parade. DH joined for a bit this year - I sprung for Greenwood Market $2 brat special for each of us: brat, potato chips, bottled water. The parade suffered a bit from timing issues, as in "when the (*&)(*& is this starting?". I told DH the only way to make it go faster was to walk backwards along the route. Most of my pictures are blurry, of which I will now bore you forthwith.

The motorcycle drill team:


The QFC shopping cart drill team:


The Seafair Pirates are now equal opportunity. A little something for the three guys who are reading - besides, we are a family blog.


And finally, keepin' it fiscal:


Bonus points that adults would dress up as checks and tax forms.

Saving log - $0
Spending log - $50 clothes + $30 groceries

This weekend I walked about 4 mi each day. My itineraries:

Saturday - Golden Gardens/ Shilshole Marina/ top of the Burke Gilman along Skyview Ave/ Hiram Chittenden Locks/Fish Ladder/ Market St in Ballard

Sunday - north on Greenwood Ave/ 105th to Northgate/ Mineral Springs Park/ Northgate Mall

Didn't find any change on the sidewalk, but there was no admission to get into any of the parks, the fish ladder, or the Locks. So they were both nice, cheap urban hikes. I will still have to think about the ultimate destination. If its to a mall, then there's the thought of shopping. It sounds so dang obvious, but if you want to avoid spending discretionary money, you have to avoid going shopping.

Tuesday
Saving log - $4 tip box
Spending log - $1.50 coffee + $1.70 decaf coffee + $9 lunch & snack

Monday
Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.50 coffee + $9 lunch

You might remember a certain shack that was apparently to be had for a certain princely sum of $499K.

http://baselle.savingadvice.com/2008/02/22/the-housing-bubbl...

I promised to follow it down. And down it is going.

Feb 2008 - $499K
April 2008 - $445K
2hrs ago, 2008 - $395K

Still too much even with a 20% haircut.

Yesterday afternoon I found my electronic pay stubs, which list my 403B contributions. I changed my withholding after Q1 2008 to shelter a few more dollars from taxes and I aimed for the limit of $15,000K. (I know the limit is $15,500; I wanted a little breathing room) The good news is that I will get a 4% raise, possibly a 6% raise, which is, in a sense, bad news if it tips my 403B withholding above $15,500.

So I added up what I already put in. I get paid 24 times. I calculated my current withholding times 1.06, and got an estimated withholding. I figure I will be just under the limit with a 2008 withholding at $15,445. Cutting it a tad close, so I will look again on the August 15th pay stub, just to make sure. I'll have 4Q to adjust if I go over.

Yesterday, I explored a new walking route from downtown to home:

Downtown to Stewart to Eastlake to Roosevelt to Ravenna to Green Lake and then home. It was a great route - I made it to Green Lake when my 48 bus came a few seconds after I stopped for a little break. I gave into temptation and took it. I figured I walked about 5.5 miles in about 2 hrs, and it would have been another 30 minutes to get home.

All told, it was one of the prettier and more pleasant routes. It was a tad close to I-5 on the right, so I got a fair amount of freeway noise. On the left, I got great views of Lake Union, all the businesses along Eastlake, and the public art embedded in the street corners. The public art is a series of square sculpted friezes of microscopic critters - rotifers, diatoms, algae, paramecium. The sculptor has a serious rotifer fixation! They are kinda cute in the microscope, however they do cause pretty serious dehydration in children, so that cancels out their cuteness.

And I crossed the University Bridge. Not as easy as the Fremont Bridge, but much, much nicer than either the Ballard or the Aurora Bridge.

I wish I would have brought my camera. I saw at least 5 good shots that I wish I would have gotten. I'll have to think about walking along Fairview, one block over from Eastlake...right on the water.

Today I took what I thought would be an easy day. Just Greenwood to Fremont. But I still had some "gas in the tank", so I walked along Leary, with the plan to catch the 28. But I saw 3rd Ave NW, and decided to walk that, just to see what I could see.

3rd Ave NW is one of the those "secret" residential arterials. No bus line serves it. The local car traffic moves along pretty well at a high 35 mph, from 39th St all the way up to 105th. (I only went to 85th). Its one of those roads that will help you out of many a commuting jam. Just don't tell anyone!

Oh yes, this route was a bit more profitable - I found a dime and a penny on it. .11!

With all of that introduction, here is the only grocery store on 3rd Ave NW until 85th. Let's hope that Mr. (Invisible) Hand doesn't get wind of it.

Happened today. For the financial diary part, I spent only $1.00 at it. The recession and $4 gas has hit here a bit also - in past years, the car show sprawled from 87th to 66th or so. This year, it "only" extended to 71st. But there were some very fun and frugal things at it.

For Ima Saver - a 60s red corvette. I think its a '62. There also was a '67 there.


My favorite exhibit - MEHVA (Metro Employees Historic Vehicle Association) always brings one of these babies out at the car show. If you were trying to get to downtown Seattle from Greenwood 40 years ago, your 5 bus looked like this.


The other reason why these old buses are great is that the MEHVA run historic Seattle tours on these old buses - 4 hours for $5. I wanted to get a schedule and remind myself to try it out. Much better cost to time than a Duck (1.5 hrs for 25$) - although no intentional water trips.

http://mehva.org/schedule.php

Many more solar and electric cars and trucks than in years past. This is a solar truck. Battery storage underneath the truck bed.


Perhaps a Boeing engineer had a tad too much time on his hands? The driver's cockpit of blue velour looks comfy, but there is a jet engine about 6 feet behind you.


Finally, high tech to a much lower tech: the leather car. I thought when I came up to it the leather was a case for the car underneath, but the door handle was attached into it, and in places you can see the metal frame underneath where the cow hide stretched over it. This car was made in Czechoslovakia in 1962. Only 10 exist in the US.

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $1.50 coffee + $22 energy bars

I had every intention to make it a no-spend day, but my trainer asked me to buy a box of energy bars from her to get a bonus. She's never asked me before because as she says, "she sucks at selling supplements", so I don't expect her to ask again. Besides, I can always say that I'm finishing off the box I bought. It just so reminds me of high school band selling candy bars that it made me laugh.

Did look at the grocery flyers today - the sales start on Wednesday finish on Tuesday. Coming up on the 4th of July, its an okay week for produce - $1/lb for peaches, broccoli, cauliflower. But $1 seems to be the floor this year which is depressing compared to years' past.

Took a couple of pictures of items that I want to remember. The Ballard Denny's got destroyed this morning. I had eaten here in the past couple of years - Just pick any Saturday that I blogged in 2006 or early 2007.


And to remind myself of persistance, I took a picture of the last holdout of Ballard condo development. She didn't sell, despite being offered up to $1M for her little house. She died in her house a couple of Sundays ago - some folks stuck flowers in her fence. I have to admire that, but when sister and I faced a similar decision, we sold.

Now that I have my laptop back and I have all these pent up posts .. ker pow.

Friday on the bus I caught this:


And tonight:


So far the neighborhood Arco is holding at just unnnddder $4. $3.98/gallon.

I also read about some gas stations having yet again to retool their pumps or charge by the liter or 1/2 gallon because their dollar digit didn't go up to 4. Seems like very poor planning to me. I can understand if you didn't go up to the dollar, but if you bought a gas pump that went up to the dollar, why only 1-3? Why not spring for all the digits, 1-9$? Why would you even bother making a pump that only did 1-3$? Base ten was invented for a reason.

Friday
Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.25 coffee + $1.50 coffee + $15 lunch + $55 dinner for two

Saturday
Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $20 2 bottles wine + $5 lamp

Again, the Greenwood Art Walk. I didn't go through the whole thing because, well... let me tell you below.

I saw a lot of wonderful photographs and caught up with a couple of the same artists as last year. I would have loved to buy a couple of things, so I thought I'd do the frugal thing instead and take a few myself of the day.

Who wouldn't love a bucket of marbles? Plunge your hand in -- they are amazingly cold.


The lamp store always amazed me. Every other store, the wares are laid out along walls, or they come up through the floor. Here, you are encouraged to look up at the constellation of lamps, your nose brushing against price tags. It makes the ceiling seem bright and ciliated.


Some urban edginess between the Greenwood Library (left) and a brick apartment building (right).


I thought that the pug pulling against his leash was pining for his master. Nope. His leash was just an inch short for he really wanted. See that little bit of orange kibble to the left of his paw? "Sometimes he loves me for me," his owner (dark orange and black fleece) said. "Sometimes."


Here's the reason I cut my Art Walk short. I took a break and walked into an estate sale a block from the Art Walk, chatted with the cashier, turned to the left and saw this gorgeous brass lamp. I must have been in a lamp mood from the lamp store. Here's an action shot in my living room (apologies for the mess).

What a deal - $5!

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $3.60 coffee, doughnut + $6 garage sale + $14 brunch + $15 grocery

Well, we had it all weather-wise at the Greenwood Garage Sale. No takers on my invite from this blog, however in the spirit of karmic whatever my housemate from my grad school days walked by, training for the Susan G Komen walk. Hadn't seen her in 15 years! We caught up a bit, at least as much as one could in 5 minutes.

Apologies if I missed you if you showed late. I came about 15 minutes early, then waited the academic wait of about 10 minutes after 9 ... but deals await and there is no rest for the wicked!

Across the street from the pick up point, they were setting up for my first stop of the day.


A little flea market/plant sale/bake sale in the lower parking lot of the Phinney Neighborhood Center.


We had snow, we had rain, we had cold. Mad props to any life form having sex outside in this weather. Not even drunk University of Alaska college students would think of it!


Since hunting for cheap deals in bad weather seemed so very Scottish, the bagpiper at the church rummage sale at 70th and Greenwood fit right in. Slim pickings at the rummage sale.


For 6$ I bought: 1 small hammered metal dish, 1 bundt pan, 1 scent diffuser, 1 barbeque fork with a thermometer attached for DH, 1 deck of "Wall Street's Most Wanted" playing cards (Broken Arrow, I'm thinking of you here). DH wanted to try bundt pan meatloaf, I don't bake, hence no bundt pan until now. I bought some aromatherapy scents in Paris. At the time, I thought, "why buy the scent diffuser and waste the space in my luggage when I can get one in Seattle?" I priced simple ones in the $15-$20 range. This one's battery powered with a little pump. $2.

Not bad for a couple hours work. I met one of my coworkers shopping. We both agreed that we were hard core, but it was too cold to keep at for more than a couple of hours.

Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.19 coffee + $13 lunch

Just a little reminder that the Greenwood Garage Sale is this Saturday, April 19.

http://baselle.savingadvice.com/2008/04/05/join-me-the-green...

If you wish to join me at 9 am, but are a little shy, let me know by email at


That way I know about how many maps to snag. I'll be at the meeting site, rain or shine (remember the prices go down when it rains!)

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $13 brunch + $4 coffee, water, apple

Well, I was curious, so I checked it out. Yes, I can walk from 4th and Pike back to my house in Greenwood. Talk about an extreme commute. Whew!

It was such a nice day. Too nice actually for this project - it hit the upper 70s, so walking got quite warm. The best walking weather for me is low 50s. Then you get just warm enough to be pleasant, and you want to keep moving to keep warm.

Anyway, if you are familiar with Seattle, its long and lean and if you are going north you have to pick your bridge. For this experiment I went direct - walking along Aurora Ave, picking the Aurora bridge. It took a soulless hour twenty minutes to go from downtown to Fremont; then I rested a bit, got myself a water and an apple in Fremont; then another rest at the Phinney Neighborhood Center; then home. Including the breaks, it took 3 hrs and 5 minutes.

Next time, I've got to think about hitting the Fremont bridge. Crossing that one on foot is far less scary for someone with a fear of falling.

I'm proud of myself. In a true emergency, even something like a repeat of WTO, getting home in 3 hrs by my own steam has got to be better than waiting 3 hrs for a bus.

10 blocks from home, I photographed a joke at the Greenwood Space Travel Supply Company.

Thrifty Ray brought up a good point about a month ago that we haven’t had any face to face events amongst the bloggers and readers on Saving Advice. I’d like to rectify that by inviting anyone who is reading this blog, especially in the Seattle area, to join me at the Greenwood Garage Sale on Saturday, April 19th.

For more information about this little soiree:

http://www.phinneycenter.org/events/garagesale.shtml

Usually over 100 families participate. In addition to the yard sales, the Phinney Neighborhood Association holds a flea market, the Greenwood Fire Dept holds a tour of their digs, and a number of kid entrepreneurs sell cookies and lemonade. It’s a 30 block square area so there will be some walking, but the #5 bus runs every 20-30 minutes.

We’ll meet at 9 am on the 19th at the little park by the Phinney Neighborhood Association on 67th and Phinney Avenue, North Seattle. The meeting site looks like this:

which is right next to the Phinney Neighborhood Association:

And coffee's 30 ft away. How's that for convenience!


I will provide paper maps of the event.

Wear comfortable shoes, bring along a bag, a bit of money if you are in a shopping mood, and/or a digital camera. Since this is a frugal event, bring a lunch if you like. There are a couple of grocery stores in the neighborhood.

If you are interested in joining me, please reply in the comments. Hope to put some faces to usernames!

Saving log - $0 tip box
Spending log - $4 coffee, bagel, apple + $8 CD + $20 sushi lunch

I walked a huge amount today, and began to jog. I'm a terrible jogger, but dammit, since I bought warm running tights I'm going to see if I challenge myself a bit more. As if walking from 92nd to 35th and back ain't enough.

I did manage to jog about 5 blocks. I'm no runner, have no bounce in my shins, and got winded quick, but I'll see if next week I can do 10 blocks.

The worst part though was midway, because I landed in Fremont, where I bought and ate my apple, but then I flipped through the used CD store, walked through the Fremont Sunday market, found the Theo chocolate store (and they give tours of the factory, FYI). I managed to sniff and enjoy the store & amazingly, didn't sample any. However, tired and hungry, I succumbed to conveyor belt sushi, picking and enjoying the most expensive plates. Luckily the most expensive plates were $4 apiece.

It did mean that I felt that I had to walk back. And now I've go to think about my endpoint at the end of my walks - I don't want to turn them into rewards where I spend a lot of money.

Checked my bank account online. Tomorrow is the last day of the month when we get paid, but the next paycheck was there already. Nice. I was expecting that the net $ of my check would drop due to the increased 403B withholding ... A pleasant surprise that I miscalculated - March 31 should be the last paycheck of 1st quarter 2008.