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I wandered over to the Vancouver, Washington Goodwills last weekend and I scored my favorite thrift find ever — a Native American arrowhead collection! For just $12.99 apiece! (Click HERE for additional photos.) Approximately 200 in total, both beautiful and fascinating.
I took three (maybe four?) anthropology classes in college, including “Peoples of The Pacific Northwest,” so I already possessed a small amount of knowledge on “projectile points,” but am now embarking on additional research. Of course I have zero information about where these specific points were found, but so much history can be gleaned from the type of stone, plus the shape, size and notch locations.
Value is hard to determine, but it looks like I could get between four and five hundred dollars apiece for this each framed piece on eBay. However, I’m going to hold onto them for awhile while I indulge in some further research.
You really never know what you’ll find on a Goodwill shelf!
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I was on my way to the grocery store when a “spoon carved” antique dresser caught my eye. Set out on someone’s parking strip, it looked too nice to be a freebie. I was about to knock on their door when their next door neighbor came out from her house. I asked if the dresser was really free, and she confirmed that it was.
I’ve since wiped it down, checked and double checked it for bedbugs, covered the lead painted drawer interiors with contact paper, (leftover from my son’s third grade Halloween costume!) and will have my husband cut a couple pieces of wood to replace the missing drawer guides.
And yes, I’ll be selling it to boost our paltry emergency fund, which has been neglected over the past six years that my husband and I have been putting our kids through college.
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I pulled out my vintage 1950s Henry Huggins books for a reread after learning about the passing of 104-year-old Beverly Cleary. I grew up a few blocks away from Klickitat Street and loved her books. Beezus and Ramona’s schools were my schools, Henry Huggin’s paper route was for the newspaper where my mom worked and Ellen Tebbit’s dance classes were at the studio where I took my ballet classes. Heck, even my old middle school is now named after the beloved novelist!
For those who grew up on Cleary’s books, I highly recommend that you read her two memoirs, which are frank and amazing. Not sugar coated and worth your time.
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My husband and I continue to enjoy mystery shows through my sister’s BritBox subscription, (specifically Shetland, Traces and The Bay) I gave away a number of items through my Buy Nothing group, I picked up two free bags of flexible styrofoam sheets from a local business who gets them in their shipments, I packaged with free second-hand supplies for my eBay shipments, my son and I started listening to the Dune audiobook through the free Libby app and I drove with my son through McDonald’s for free McNuggets after our basketball team scored over 100 points.
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I didn’t buy a Lear Jet.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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I also loved Cleary’s memoirs! 104 great years.
1. Last evening DS#2 came over with the kind of an Easter basket I appreciate. His employer presented staff this year with a practical box of food including staples such as apples, carrots, yogurt,onions, potatoes and 5# of chicken. He gifted the entire box to us and also intends to give us a large bottle of hand sanitizer that I will use to refill our supply as well as his.
2. Menu planning for the rest of the month and looking forward to a frugal Easter celebration.
3. Son #1 will host us for dinner tonight to celebrate DH birthday tomorrow.
4. Frugal planning ahead includes filling up cars ASAP before the anticipated rise in gas prices.
5. Happy that shots are being opened up for everyone. Getting my second covid vaccination Tuesday afternoon and then after an appropriate quarantine a return to my former habits of comparative shopping and rejoicing over thrifty finds. PS: Have never found such a valuable artifact as the arrowheads. Collectors spend a lifetime finding these gems.
1. Had two restaurant mystery shops. Husband and I went and shared the meal at each place. Since they were small, we ate both for lunch on the same day. Free lunch plus $26 for doing the shop.
2. Four gas mystery shops, so $20 free gas total plus $40 for the shop plus four bottles of water since we had to purchase a product from the mini-mart. I don’t have the knowledge and we only have on Goodwill place, so our side gigs are mystery shops.
3. Signed up for a new credit card as our old one was not making me happy. Got a $250 bonus after spending $500, so free money.
4. Got 10% off for paying cash for the crown I needed after biting a tooth in half. Using our cash back credit card would only have given up 2% back, so worth the trouble of getting the estimate and husband going to get cash form the bank while I got drilled. I know this is what an emergency fund is for, but I still hate taking out the money!
5. A friend who runs a small business brought over three 30 gallon trash bags of shredded paper. I mix it with straw for animal bedding and to add to compost. She is always careful not to makes holes in the bags because she knows I reuse them for garbage bags. She also saves her rotisserie chicken carcasses for me and brought three frozen skeletons that are now cooking away for broth. I gave her two dozen eggs in trade, making both of us happy.
5+FF: Spring Joy
1. Became eligible & scheduled a visit for the 1st Covid vaccine @ a clinic in reasonable driving distance.
2. Shopping & misc. wins: Discovered 2 shopping carts linked together @ Aldi so pushed both back to the store to retain quarter; found 2 items on bakery clearance rack & discovered 11 cents in Coinstar machine @ big box; used electronic perks for multiple freebies @ gas station; found 12 cents @ complex mailboxes. Total savings: $4.61.
3. DD & I enjoyed complimentary coffee, sparkling water & snacks while waiting for an oil change for her SUV. Used the opportunity to reinforce the importance of regular maintenance to extend life of vehicle.
4. DD returned several pieces of work gear in near-new condition to former employer for continued use (@ my urging) & we purchased take-out while there. Received complimentary drinks for waiting for order & asst. manager credited generous portion of bill for DD as a former employee. Total savings: $17.10.
5. Recent kitchen creations: Hamburger & Beans, Fresh Steamed Broccoli with sauce, Crockpot Baked Beans (from dry navy beans) & Cheeseburger Elbows.
6. Hauled out the box of accumulated Easter decorations over the years. Love to decorate seasonally to change up the décor with no additional expense.
7. Taxes completed & was pleased that we were relatively close on both federal & state, with overall outcome on the + side.
8. Recently enjoyed the “Jericho” series on Amazon (free with Prime) & are now watching “The Sinner” series on Netflix, as our main sources of entertainment.
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I loved Jericho. Thanks for the nudge to watch it again.
Mary – Being a native Kansan, the setting of the fictional town of Jericho & the references to actual towns in Kansas were especially interesting. Not to mention that it was a captivating drama.
I was just thinking about you yesterday, Lisa M! I made your mom’s crockpot baked beans for my parents’ anniversary celebration (46 years!). I halved the recipe, since it was just our immediate family. I skipped the meat, and they were still a hit. I gave credit to Marita. Thanks again for sharing that recipe with me.
Rachel – I am so thrilled that you used my Mom’s recipe for your parent’s anniversary. Congratulations to them on 46 years together! You were wise to halve the recipe, as the full recipe makes a large quantity & yes, it would work fine without the bacon. Thank you for remembering my Mom’s name (Mareta) & although she passed in June 2020, I know she would be pleased that her recipe is still being enjoyed.
I, too, have made your mom’s recipe several times–for the husband, since I hate beans, and he loves it!
Lindsey – Glad that you are enjoying the recipe vicariously through your husband, even if you can’t enjoy it for yourself. Somewhere, my Mom is smiling. 🙂
Those arrowhead collections are amazing.
1. My sales on FB Market are slowing down but I was able to list a few more things this week.
2. Using pine bedding in the guinea pig cage that I got free in a give away pile when someone moved.
3. Built a bird house out of recycled material and entered it in our library’s build a bird house contest. All materials were free from my basement and it was fun. My son built one as well so it was a fun family project.
4. Taking advantage of free and low cost on line activities/programs… for homeschool this year.
5. Ate the scrambled eggs my husband made with the flavored soy milk. Yuck. But pepper helped. Lol he didn’t realize the soy milk was vanilla flavored. No waste here!
Oh my, what a great find! I have nothing to share but WOW! 🙂 🙂 🙂
1- I was forced to filled up on gas on my way to a doctor appt and got it for just $2.39 a gallon. I was on E because my kids have been driving my car and I didn’t realize it was so low.
2- Immediately transferred our stimulus money to various savings accounts. We had come up with a plan prior to receiving it to make sure we didn’t fritter it away.
3. I have been bad about budgeting lately. But we are clearly spending less than we earn because the money just keeps piling up in our checking account (good problem). Today I sat down and figured everything out. We are transferring some of the money into my ds’s college account.
4. Did a small trip to the grocery store today to tide us over and help use up what we have in the house. I did take advantage of ibotta deals that were too good to pass up. I submitted my receipt, got my cash back and redeemded for a gift card right away.
5. Cooking from scratch, made a triple batch of meatballs, homemade muffins for breakfast, etc.
I loved (LOVED) Beverly Cleary’s books, and also loved one of the BritBox series you referenced, Shetland. We then moved on to Vera, a detective series based on novels by the same author–with a female DCI but less inspiring scenery. We also watched Hinterland, which was good but dark (somewhat tortured chief detective). Any other BritBox recommendations?
I loved Hinterland! Although the story lines were marvelous and I enjoyed the characters, I think the main reason I watched it was for the scenery in Wales. Breathtaking in a way this New England girl never experienced with our oft changing weather here in the Northeast.
Britbox:
Making of the Pembrokeshire Murders. True story.
McDonald and Dodds. Not much scenery, but interesting characters.
Those arrowheads are amazing! Excellent score! The little dresser is so pretty too.
“The Mouse and the Motorcycle” was the first book I ever bought for myself and one my son also loved. Beverly’s writing was timeless.
My frugal things all seem to be around food this week, as we’ve been stretching the grocery budget like a rubber chicken:
1. Used up the last of the frozen bread heels making a blueberry-coconut bread pudding for breakfasts.
2. We were a little short on milk to make the bread pudding, so I juiced a leftover orange obtained free at work and added the juice to the milk. Yummy!
3. Turned a motley collection of apples into two bowls of homemade applesauce.
4. Did some magic with a box of Rice a Roni, Cajun smoked sausage bought with a store coupon and some leftover onion and sweet peppers to make a supper dish everyone liked.
5. Pulled a saved spice bottle out of my stash of saved clean glass bottles and repackaged ground cinnamon after the top broke on the original plastic cinnamon bottle.
TWO HUNDRED arrowheads AND a free antique dresser?! You made out like a bandit! Happy studying your new arrowhead collection–you will share what you find out about them, please?–and happy restoring that lovely dresser. I’ll bet it fixes up beautifully. That should beef up your emergency fund a bit.
I really enjoyed Vera, although my favorite mysteries tend to be of the Agatha Christie era and various Victorian detectives. I may yet have to investigate Britbox, though, because US producers can’t seem to do Victoriana at all well.
There has been nothing frugal about this month. We have the savings to replace the roof, but we weren’t counting on the water heater dying rather spectacularly. No hot water until Monday–maybe. The firm we hired is still looking for a water heater that fits in our utility closet. Fun times!
Did you see the Victorian female detective on PBS? Great fun. Miss Scarlett and the Duke.
I missed that one! I’ll look out for the next time it’s shown. Thanks!
Contacted my insurance to see if they would pay for a device to help my daughter with bed wetting. Since it’s a diagnosis in and of itself, they basically told me maybe, and that it would go into review after the doctor prescribes it. Scheduled my daughter’s overdue check up which comes with a zero copay so I’m not out anything just for trying.
A lady in the neighborhood wanted all her grapefruit and oranges picked so she’d get new blossoms. I got an estimated 60 lbs. maybe more. Couldn’t take them all. Washing them up and stuffing my fridge. Putting orange/rosemary marinaded chicken on the menu. This is how it is in SoCal. Haven’t bought any citrus in years.
I bought a Simply Fit Board at a garage sale. My kids had seen the advertisements and were convinced they needed it. When I saw it for 75 cents, I thought, why not. Well, their interest lasted 1 week and then the thing became clutter. Sold it on Varagesale for $6. Small amount but I like the percentage.
Picked up school lunches for the next three days and then went to the grocery. Used 2 printable coupons and one that was mailed to me after I emailed the company. Saved $3.25 and submitted my receipt to Ibotta, Fetch, and Swagbucks for an additional $3.02 in savings. Basically all those savings just paid for the ice cream that I shouldn’t have bought in the first place. In my defense though, I was going to use my avocado coupons and make avocado mint chip “ice cream” but the avocados were from CA and the coupon was for Mexican avocados.
Picked up some new with tags Tommy Hilfiger sandals for my daughter off Varagesale for $10. Hubby bought her some generic sandals at Walmart. They lasted about 3 months. I didn’t want cheap quality but I didn’t want to pay too much. I was so pleased with this option.
What a great find. Half the fun of Ebay is the research sometimes. It’s always interesting to me.
1. We’ve been enjoying more free food that my daughter brings home from work. This Friday she brought home delicious mushroom/goat cheese/spinach sandwiches, coffee cake, brownies, salad, fruit cups, breakfast sandwiches and a pork loin entree.
2. I’ve been watching The Recycled Life and Laura Caldwell on Youtube as they thrift for resale. It’s entertaining and I learn and get inspiration for my own resale hustle.
3. I’ve been reading library books on my Kindle. I just finished Mexican Gothic. My oldest daughter recommended it. It was very dark and creeepy and not really my cup of tea but I still wasn’t able to put it down.
4. I did a little thrifting with my Mom & Sister. I purchased a few things for Ebay and my Mom found an All Clad grill pan which is something she’d been wanting. They’ve both been enjoying thrifting with me which they’ve never done much of before. While we were out we stopped at a small grocery outlet store (Not The Grocery Outlet unfortunately). Most of the stuff I found was snacky stuff but I stocked up on snacks that the kids have been enjoying including some extra extra stuff oreos (think double stuff on steroids). It gave them all a small thrill to try something different.
5. I’ve been steadily selling on Ebay. My Mom, sister and daughters boyfriend have been donating free boxes and packing material. I purchased some tape at an estate sale and I’ve been printing more on plain paper instead of shipping labels to save money and saving the labels for when I use mylar bags.
The arrowhead collection is amazing. Have you been able to determine if they are from primarily Northwestern Tribes? So interesting…
We have definitely had a lot of outflow this week. We had a costly car repair, and I helped my adult son pay for a dental crown. He moved to a new state and his new dental insurance had a waiting period for use. Since dental problems usually don’t get better with time, I offered my help. As a result, I am also trying to make increase my emergency fund again.
1. I have sold quite a few things on eBay this week. Since there is a fine line between reseller and hoarder, I haven’t purchased anything new for resale recently. I am trying to list things that were not dealt with promptly when I bought them and things from my I-think-I’ll-keep-it stash. Many of these things have sold and happily 3 items that have been listed for a while have also sold.
2. Now that life is getting back to normal. I am actually going places and doing things. I have found that I need to pay a little more attention to my appearance. I was out of some of my make-up. So I traded in my Fetch Points for a gift card to Ulta.
3. My clothing is a mess. I haven’t had to dress in a year and suddenly I need to. I have looked at the thrift stores, but there had not been much available where I live recently. My Goodwill used to be a Honey Hole. I’m not sure if this is the result of management changes or lack of donations. So I used a credit that I had at ThredUP to buy a dress. I will expand my search area next week.
4. I am trying to get to the bottom of the freezer. I am using up the soups and casseroles before the hot weather hits. I have a Turkey defrosting in the refrigerator that I will cook today for Sunday dinner. I will meal plan around the leftovers for this week. I only spent $35 on groceries this week.
5. I am doing all the usual things cooking primarily from scratch, brewing my own coffee, drinking water and buying carefully at the grocery store. I used a $3 digital coupon at the grocery, received $0.30 back from ibotta, and scanned my receipts to Fetch. I just finished a book from the library and have one on hold. Coincidently, it is an Ann Cleeves mystery. These are the books that the TV series Vera and Shetland are based on. We discovered a YouTube BritTV channel and are watching some Poriot mysteries that we somehow missed.
Wishing everyone peace, health and frugality.
Wow, great find with the arrowhead collection!
1. Ran across a church rummage sale this week. Spent $2.25 on two candles and two frames. The candles will sell on ebay, and I will use the frames for cross stitch designs, which sell very fast on Marketplace. Talked myself out of the $50 “Pottery Barn” bench because I wasn’t sure it really was PB and it was so large/heavy.
2. Sold a JCrew shirt and a large lot of Little Critter books on ebay, plus a handful of books on FB Marketplace. Got a few other things listed on both sites. The weather is warming up here, which means I need to focus on selling what I have on hand before the yard sales start.
3. Ebay sent me a coupon for $10 off a $20 purchase, which I used to buy replacements filters for our PUR water dispenser.
4. Met a friend at a nearby rec area where we walked 5 miles of forest and lake trails. I brought her a few hand knit dishcloths and a book I thought she’d like.
5. Stopped at an estate sale yesterday. Prices were kind of high, but I kept looking and found a combo VHS DVD player for $10. Those are easy to sell, I always buy them when I find them cheap.
Prices at my local estate sales are high too. I would have snagged a potted plant, but $12 for a second-hand plant in a generic plastic pot seemed ridiculous.
That is ridiculous. One of the reasons I love to browse FB Marketplace is to see the hilarious prices people expect to be paid for their stuff.
Wow, what an incredible Goodwill find!
1) Yesterday, I saw a great bike repair book listed on my local Buy Nothing group. My teen has been fixing up a lot of bikes during COVID, and is thrilled. The book is in like new condition.
2) Used Fetch, iBotta, etc for grocery store receipts
3) Sold a few things on eBay, including some items that have been lingering forever.
4) Went through the paperwork of having a small local charity (it’s a library from my home town) added to the gift matching at my work. This was, my employer will double my match, which will have a much bigger impact for the library.
5) Used a freebie coupon for lunch for my son. We try to avoid meals out, so it makes the splurges quite appreciated.
I loved Hinterland! Although the story lines were marvelous and I enjoyed the characters, I think the main reason I watched it was for the scenery in Wales. Breathtaking in a way this New England girl never experienced with our oft changing weather here in the Northeast.
My remark about Hinterland was intended as a reply to Mama Minou’s recommendations above. I think I hit Submit twice.
Katy, I’m so thrilled you found the arrowheads. The research will be interesting and in the meantime they look very much at home where you have them displayed.
I grew up on Beverly Cleary’s book too but had no idea she had written two memoirs. Memoir happens to be my favorite genre so I will be ordering these from my library today. Thanks.
1. I found an Old Navy scarf on a trail while DH and I hiked in a State Forest. It’s in excellent shape so I took it home, washed it and will use it next winter.
2. I bought a ham for our at home Easter celebration next week. The cheapest I could find without driving too far for a spiral cut was $1.69 a pound. If something cheaper shows up this week nearby, I’ll most likely buy it and freeze it if need be.
3. I’m still scouring the Salvation Army store and Facebook Marketplace for a replacement rocking chair for my comfy old chair that finally bought the barn. I saved the cushions which are in surprisingly good shape so I need a chair big enough to fit them. While in the Salvation Army Store last week with my 17 year old granddaughter looking for a rocking chair, she wanted to go thrifting for work clothing so it turned into a fun and frugal shopping trip with her. I was able to score a summer top and a pair of dungarees…much needed…Covid 15…
4. I wait for sunny days to do laundry with the intention to hang all washing outside.
5. We’re canceling our 30 day subscription to Paramount tv and our regular subscription to Sling tv. Amazon tv is fine for our needs and wants. As many of you probably know, it comes with membership in Amazon Prime. It comes out to a little over $10 monthly. As we rarely order anything to be shipped, the subscription is for our television viewing. I’m on the fence about Amazon. After reading about their poor labor practices and tax loophole benefits for the company itself, I’m not happy. However, I know they do provide jobs for people, albeit not the most desirable ones. I hope they unionize although I know prices will climb for the consumer. Perhaps it will push more people back to the brick and mortar stores.
I’m in my 70s. When I was growing up we called jeans, dungarees. But I have not heard that term in many, many years. Thanks for the memories.
I loved Beverly Cleary books as a child.
Congrats on the projectiles find. That must have been a thrill.
1. I became eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine on Tuesday. A friend contacted me late Monday night to tell me about an opportunity to sign up for vaccination on Tuesday. It was worth losing sleep over to get up and sign up. and be too excited to get back to sleep for some time. What a mood brightener. I can’t wait for the second dose and the passage of time afterwards. I should be in good shape by early May. My appointment was not too far away and the system was efficient as well. My car probably needed to be driven on the highway anyway.
2. Due to Covid-19 my social life still consists of outdoor visits and Zoom gatherings. We have had nice weather some days so the number of visits has increased.
3. Today is rainy but warm-ish. I took the time to wash several windows. They say to do that on cloudy days to avoid streaks from the sun. I used two old tee-shirts, one was bought by my sister in the 1980s when she went skiing in Colorado and it became greatly mis-shapen over the years. The other was my daughter’s high school gym tee-shirt that has a hole under the arm.
4. Meals at home, meals at home, meals at home. My husband has been trying some new recipes with chicken breasts, the variety is nice. I also make a big pot of soup every week then store it in jars, one serving per jar (and heat it and eat it in the jar).
5. I continue to borrow e-books from the library and my husband has been enjoying physical books received via curbside pick-up.
We’ve stayed out of restaurants for months now too. Told the kids I’d pick up a pizza Thursday when I go to Costco. They were beyond thrilled. LOL!
1. I love Beverly Cleary! May she rest in peace and her stories live forever. I read everything of hers I could get my hands on as a kid. I even went to summer school at a different school so I could have access to their library.
2. The arrowheads are an amazing find. It makes me wonder about the person who carefully amassed and mounted them. You do that person, and all those who crafted them, honor by rescuing and researching them. Even if you sell them, they will surely go to someone with the same respect.
3. For you mystery lovers, a friend who always makes great recommendations just tipped me to “Bodyguard” on Netflix. Our kid is still living at home. He pays for Netflix, so it’s “frugal” for us, lol!
4. I just paid 90 dollars each to repair my two old sewing machines after trying all the usual things and YouTube at home to no avail. They should be good to go for years to come. I could have bought a new, virtually all plastic machine for that, but I love my heavy old work horse machines. They were both purchased used a long time ago, for a double win. Oh, and I needed some heavy duty needles, the repair guy gave me a whole package. Smaller win, but I’ll take it.
5. Hmmm, during the pandemic, I have perfected my whole wheat pizza crust recipe/technique. Now Friday is pizza from scratch night. We have eaten exactly two meals not made in our own kitchen in over a year.
I think that was more like Five Frugal Thoughts, but there you have it.
I vividly recall parts of “Henry Huggins”, and especially re-read her books about older girls: “Sister of the Bride”, “Jean and Johnny”, and “Fifteen.” Her girls grew a little bit with each chapter into realizing they could be themselves, with or without a boy.
1) Discovered that Kroger sells yesterday’s roasted chicken for $4. Cut away the meat for meals and cooked the bones in the Crockpot for 24 hours. I had carrots, celery, onion, and a box of matzo ball mix already on hand.
2) And speaking of matzo ball mix, with Passover, Publix had a BOGO sale on Manischewitz items so I restocked.
3) I had an “a-ha” moment several weeks ago in a Goodwill. I had been looking for a certain style of shoe and found a pair in my size but I put them back and walked out. At that moment for some reason it hit me that I no longer wanted more stuff. I have since brought down my warm weather clothes in anticipation of the changing season and by comparison I don’t have a lot, but to me it seems like too much. Tried everything on and with some year-O-Rona weight gain, some items no longer fit. All this to say that I think I have reached ENOUGH.
4) Husband is changing my oil. He would not touch my old car, but we now drive the same model Honda Fit, savings!
5) $1.05 found on today’s walk. I decided the year end found money will go towards our family gift donation.
Scratch my #4. This was my husband’s first time attempting to change the oil in my car since I bought it. The dealership put the bolt to the oil tank on too tight and needs to be removed by machine. I’ll take it in tomorrow and pay for the change and ask them not to crank it on so tight.
1. Tried to save our old futon mattress for extra company bedding, but it was too hard to store. So I listed it on the Buy Nothing site and it made someone else very happy. I’m happy its being used.
2. Culled through winter clothes before storing them, put some items I didn’t wear in the thrift store bag. I keep that bag in my closet, so if I don’t wear or enjoy wearing something any more, into the bag it goes. More room for me to grab what I’ll actually wear.
3. An old friend came to town and wanted to eat out. DH and I studied the menu online at home ahead of time to come up with the best option for our budget.
4. Looking into getting a night bite guard. I’ve been putting it off but my teeth clenching this year chipped a molar. My sister pointed out that the guard is cheaper than the dental work will be when I chip some more.
5. Increased my HSA account this year so we could buy DH some hearing aids. At least this will be less taxes I have to pay. And he will hear me when I speak, I hope!
Not super frugal this time, but realistic anyway.
Be sure to check out Costco for hearing aids. They are so cost effective, you could easily save enough to buy your nightguard. DH got his there and loves them. Also, Costco’s hearing aid battery prices are great and the inventory is always fresh.
I second the advice on Costco hearing aids. My husband did a huge amount of research before going with Costco, which saved him thousands of dollars. The service on his hearing aids has been excellent and the batteries cost a pittance compared to elsewhere. It’s great not to have to yell to get his attention now too!
Thank you, I will look into the Costco hearing aids. His hearing is the kind that can’t filter sounds anymore, not sure if that makes a difference. He doesn’t need it louder, just clearer, according to the dr.
My husband’s hearing aids do filter sound. He had reached the point that he could not follow conversations in a room with several people, along with needing some more volume. (He can’t hear me if I’m turned away from him and start talking.)
Until he got the hearing aids, which work perfectly, our son used to sit in the back seat of the car and translate for us because his dad would be driving and could not hear well at all out of his right ear, and I have hearing loss in my left ear. So we’d be sitting side by side in the front seat and couldn’t understand each other without translation assistance from the back. Now I just need to get my hearing seen to and our son can retire from that role. 😀
HSA are a great way to reduce taxes and save on healthcare costs long term. It’s a very smart move to purchase your husbands hearing aids with pre-tax dollars!
Hubs got hearing aids from Costco and they were working great until he took 3 showers with them in. Forgot to take them out. He says they sound tinny now. After we get our last shot, next Thursday and do a 2 week post shot stay at home I will nag him to go get them fixed.
I had trouble with the teeth clenching and had to have 2 crowns done for the broken teeth. Stress, I guess.
Anyway, a friend tipped me off that you don’t need to get the teeth guards from the dentist, just get them from Amazon or any place that has sporting goods. Much less expensive.
Wow, what a score on those arrowheads! I loved Shetland and will be looking into Jericho, Vera and the Bodyguard. Thank you all for your recommendations. I very much also enjoyed Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax and The Split.
I loved Bodyguard and watched it in one weekend.
We watched the first two episodes of Bodyguard last night and we are hooked!
I really liked Last Tango In Halifax. I like Nicola Walker in most roles. I’m trying to remember the name of the show where she played an SIO and investigated cold cases. Unforgotten, maybe? It was an excellent police drama. I’ll have to Google it.
I’m glad I Googled it. The name of the show is ‘Unforgotten, and it looks like there are a couple more seasons that I haven’t seen yet. I’m looking forward to the next rainy day….I feel a binge watching day coming on. Yay!
Ah, but did you buy something in the sky??
Cleary’s kids’ books are good, but I really loved her memoirs best. (And she’s completely right about what it’s like to write a book.) I would have liked to have known her…and her husband, too. He sounded like an interesting guy.
Beverly Cleary was super popular in our house for many years. My daughter loved the Ramona series, both my son and daughter loved the series about a cat named Socks while I enjoyed reading A Girl from Yamhill. I did not know about the second memoir but I will now put it on reserve at the library.
The framed arrowhead collections are truly a find! It should be fascinating to research them.
My frugal activities:
1. Now that I am driving more often (work-related driving), the price of gas is going up. I read an article about a study done by GasBuddy on the best day to buy gas. Turns out it’s a a good idea to buy gas on Monday and not so good to buy gas on Friday or Saturday if you want to save a little money when you fill up. I am going to experiment with this as I do not want to spend more than necessary on gasoline.
2. Same article mentioned best days to travel by air. The cheapest flights are those on Tuesday. I am dreaming of the day it is safe to travel again so I can visit my son in San Diego so this info might come in handy.
3. I got my first COVID vaccine and scheduled the second for early April. It feels like a great weight has been lifted.
4. Looking forward with great anticipation to getting my hair cut once I am fully vaccinated. I have not had a haircut in a year. It’s not really looking too awful and it did save me money, but it will be nice to go back to the “old me.” It’s the little things in life that I appreciate now.
We lived in a town with a small college, and gas prices would go up right before moving-in and moving-out days, events like Homecoming, before breaks, and so forth.
A haircut is high on my list also! Getting my second shot tomorrow and since restaurant prices around here seem to have risen dramatically, I will get my hair cut as my post vaccine indulgence, and not go back to regular eating out.
Husband got a $10 off coupon if you bought two entrees at our favorite upscale restaurant, but the prices are so high now that we decided to skip it altogether.
Plan on focusing on small local places with less expensive entrees.
Thanks for the traveling tips. Through booking flights online, DH and I learned that Tuesdays are very often the cheapest days to fly. I had no idea, however, about buying gasoline on Mondays. Great to know. Thanks for the money saving tip.
Oh, I loved Beverly Cleary books. And those arrowheads are amazing. Your dresser story reminded me of the time I walked past a neighbor’s house and noticed two very nice wooden counter stools at the bottom of her driveway. When I went up to her house to ask if she was really getting rid of them, she said that her kids had only been playing with them and forgot to bring them back in.
I always seem to be in the kitchen so most of my FFTs are related to food.
1. Bought plain vs. vanilla yogurt by mistake. Made the plain yogurt palatable in smoothies by using syrup and/or extract.
2. Shredded broccoli stems and made slaw.
3. Made a cracker spread out of leftover tahini, sun-dried tomatoes, and chickpeas. Whirred in a food processor with pickle juice, olive oil, spices and toasted walnuts.
4. Purged my recipe files by tossing any that require expensive ingredients or are ultra-unhealthy. Besides, I probably won’t live long enough to try all the recipes that remain. (Not that I’m actively dying.)
5. Bought a wedding present online from Target and noticed that I had a Target Circle Rewards balance. I hadn’t knowingly signed up for that program but I was able to enjoy $10 off my order.
Totally obsessed with Shetland! A friend recommended it before I had Britbox and I would patiently, or impatiently, for library DVD copies. My friend and I always say that there are lots of murders on the islands – how is anyone still left alive?!
If you think Shetland should be denuded by murders, you should have watched over 20 seasons of Midsommer Murders. There were usually three murders per episode. We also joked about how there could be a soul left in that county in England.
After all those years of watching Inspector Morse, I decided that Oxford must be stacked with corpses too. 😀
DH and I just watched Longmire and I said after 6 seasons how could anyone be left alive in that country in Wyoming.
Or Cabot Cove, Maine– Murder Capital of the United States.
While my Dad doesn’t have quite that many arrowheads, he did find them local. Next time I’m at his house, I’ll make sure I know where they are!
While I doubt the regulars on this site need reminding, I’ll say it anyway – the back up at the Suez Canal will either do a number on the (already not great) supply chain and likely result in higher costs.
I bought a can of coffee ahead of schedule Saturday because of concerns about the supply chain. Coffee ranks with toilet paper and pet food on things we cannot do without at our house.
I used to find a lot of arrowheads when I was younger. One summer in college I tutored reading to elementary age children and gave the arrowheads away as prizes for reaching goals. The kids were thrilled. Strangely, I have never found another one again, so that must have been the purpose they were intended for.
Ruby, your last sentence…lifted my spirit. I too don’t believe that coincidences are always coincidences. And what a thrill for the kids to receive an arrowhead as a reward. I definitely would have preferred an arrowhead to a shiny star sticker on my forehead! As it was, I spent my childhood searching for them and never came across one while my aunt searched the same area and found many.
I firmly believe that once the price goes up on something it never goes down in regards to groceries. Remember when gas prices went up years ago? Groceries went high because of the cost of gas for the trucks to ship the groceries. Jet fuel went up and ticket prices for airplane tickets went up. They went down during covid but are coming back up as more people travel.
I adored Ramona and am envious Katy of you being in the area where these books were set.
1 I had my second COVID jab on Saturday (Pfizer) thanks to my job as a hospital receptionist
2 Walked out of my job as a hospital receptionist as the healthcare company I was working for provided neither a healthy or caring work environment and the backbiting and toxic work environment was taking its toll on me mentally and physically. Thankful for making 2 good friends at this job and the vaccine but nothing else!
3 Exceeded £1,000 in eBay sales in 90 days for the first time
4 Just answered the phone whilst typing this entry and I’ve been invited to interview for a job I applied for in February 2020, recruitment had been put on hold due to COVID, yay!!!
5 Using up, buying only used and definitely not buying anything gold plated!!
Crossing fingers for good luck for you, Joanne.
Thank you Ruby! Xx
Beat of luck with your interview Joanne!
Aaaaargh…BEST of luck…fat fingers and a mind going faster than them = not so great typing!
Just watching the latest series live on tv here in the UK. If you can find the previous series in the USA do watch it, especially if you love Welsh scenery. Called “Keeping Faith”. Just read 2 excellent library books. Both by same American author Jeanine Cummins. Called American Dirt & A RIP in Heaven
Could put them down.
Your Arrowheads find sounds amazing. Happy research!
Thanks Linda. After watching Hinterland I have fallen in love with Welsh scenery. Will try to find Keeping Faith.
I loved Keeping Faith! So glad to know there’s a new season available. Thank you!
Hinterland was a bit dark, although I did enjoy it. Shetland was marvelous, definitely one of the series that I’ll rewatch. I think Tosh is my favorite character on the show. Vera is a longtime favorite…I just wish all of the seasons were available on the same streaming service…some are on Britbox and some are on Acorn, and since I try to keep it to Prime + 1 other at a time, it makes for a lack of continuity from season to season. Another two that I haven’t seen mentioned yet are DCI Banks and Scott & Bailey.
Ordered the energy audit kit from the library. It includes free LED lightbulbs for each patron.
Divided plants that had done great in a challenging space, to better fill the rest of that space. I like to multiply things that work!
Ordered canning lids from Walmart (my least favorite place to shop). I ordered just the one item ( 1 box of 12 lids) for $2.98. It’s near my husband’s work, so he will do curbside pickup. Walmart has been good about stocking canning lids, where most places are sold out.
I was very tempted to buy an electric bike, but instead I bought a new seat for my existing bike. I have back trouble and my old seat was terrible. I do like to ride my bike to do local errands.
Working a long term sub job at a school, an online admin assistant job and keeping up my etsy store. Not much time to spend anything!
I don’t know if any of your streaming services have “Line Of Duty”? Series 7 has just started here in the UK and yes, ideally you have to watch the previous 6, in order! It’s about the AC12 team that investigates misbehaviour – if you fancy a complex tale, it’s perfect!
My husband and I enjoy this one too. It’s on Britbox. Very intense
Line of Duty is soooooooooooooooooo good
Agree with Lydia on Line of Duty. Fantastic series but you do need to watch the previous episodes. Here in the UK, they are all on IPlayer.
Shetland – how are you finding the Scottish accents? I have problems sometimes! But the scenery- mind blowing.
When it comes to difficult to understand accents (for me, anyway), captions save me from losing the plot.
I find the older I get, the more captions are my friend, accents or not, lol. I’ve watched enough television from the UK that I don’t need captions nearly so often to understand the accents, although I still need it to make out local colloquialisms so I can Google the meanings. I find British terms slipping into every day conversations, like when I asked my daughter today if she knew where I’d put the “bin bags”, instead of the trash bags. Luckily, she watches a lot of the same shows and understood exactly what I was looking for!
1. A friend gifted us a 2 liter of soda her kids won’t drink. I don’t usually buy soda so it was a treat for us.
2. We ordered a large item that needed delivered. We borrowed my father-in-law’s trailer and picked it up ourselves saving us a $100 delivery fee.
3. A co-worker was unpacking boxes as she just moved to a new house. She brought in a bag with 3 dressy tops for me if I wanted them. They all still had store tags on them and they all fit me perfectly!
4. I went to the store for a few Easter goodies & wanted to use a $5 off $25 coupon plus a $10 gift card I had won. I also purchased 2 pair of sunglasses for myself as all my others were scratched. Basically after my coupon and gift card, i really only paid for my sunglasses and they 8 items for Easter treats were free to me!!!
5. My co-worker mentioned that she had two gift certificates for dog grooming that she wasn’t going to use and asked if I’d like them. Yes, please! I have 2 dogs and this will save some $.
6. A resident in our community just dropped off a homemade nut roll to me at my work! So sweet!
1. Took a vacation day yesterday originally to go skiing but the Northeast was washed out by a rainstorm Sunday so we opted to relax instead in our neighborhood with two vaccinated friends. We biked around and got cookies from a local bakery. Low cost, incredibly high-value day as it was glorious to see friends and something other than the inside of our apartment.
2. I returned two books to the same friends–lending books between us is frugal, and being a good book borrower ensures that the practice continues!
3. Fridge is almost empty and I like it that way! It means I’ve used all the produce I bought.
4. Navigated an online glasses retailer’s return and exchanges system to try different frames since the first ones I hated. Now I have glasses I truly like and enjoy wearing.
5. Reducing the amount of clothes I own=clearly being able to see what I have. So many options! Loving shopping in my own closet.
What an incredible find on the arrowheads! And that dresser is pretty amazing, too! I loved the Beezus and Ramona books as a child, and my granddaughter loves the books now – although she was initially surprised that those books were around way back when I was her age. My frugal things:
1. My husband and I became eligible for the COVID vaccines, and got our first shots at Walgreens. Such a huge relief to finally be able to begin the process and to do our part in helping to get this awful disease under better control.
2. Walgreens gave each of us a card (besides the vaccine card) that gave us $5 in rewards if we spent $1 or more. While I don’t do a lot of shopping at Walgreens, I’m usually able to collect enough rewards to cover the cost of laundry detergent. I get ridiculously excited over my “free” Tide.
3. Our son and his family were up for several days, and we spent exactly $0 on entertaining the grandchildren. Walking along the shore of our still-frozen lake, running through the woods, bird watching, stone painting and many other free activities kept them happy, occupied – and blessedly tired at the end of each day.
4. I’m making a pot of chili today. Chili purists avert your eyes; while I’m capable of doing a reasonably normal red chili with beef or green chili with pork, today’s chili is an “anything goes” variety. Meaning I go through the freezer and toss in little bits and pieces of things I’ve frozen recently. Today’s weirdness included a couple of Nashville hot chicken tenders (I had my doubts about tossing those in but my husband was willing so I’m going for it), and a small bag of grape tomatoes that I’d thrown in the freezer for this purpose because they were absolutely tasteless when eaten “fresh”. Oh, and one and a half chicken/basil/black pepper sausages were chunked up and tossed in, too. These additions stretch the chili for another meal or so, and prevent things from being tossed out. I hate food waste!
5. Used fuel points to save a few dollars filling up the gas tank.
I believe chili was invented to hide bits of leftovers. Mine regularly hides shredded zucchini, shredded carrots, leftover sausage, shredded chicken and pumpkin pulp.
Pumpkin! What a great chili addition, Lindsey – I’ll be adding that to my growing list of “things I can use to stretch chili.” And just to update, my husband’s suggestion of adding leftover Nashville hot chicken tenders was a big success – it added a bit more heat (we love spicy food) and the chicken seemed to hold up alright. Stay tuned for future strange chili additions, because I’m forever freezing little bits of food. I’m already eyeing up the slice of leftover corned beef in the freezer for my next batch of “what the heck, why not add it in” chili.
Your chili sounds delicious
The arrowheads and history of them are amazing!
1. I have a bunch of new clients as I left the group practice I was in to do all private practice. The owner of the practice sold the group to a mental health agency and they offered me half my salary. So….now I am making my pp bigger.
2. I cancelled plans to eat outside at a farm restaurant the other day as I am broke and need to wait for my next paycheck.
3. Made a delicious dinner from pasta, ground turkey and pesto from the freezer and eggplants (from the day old shelf) and mushrooms. So good. I surprised myself. I suppose anything is fabulous with pesto and parm on it.
4. Putting off unfreezing my gym membership until the tent is off the pool. I have had both injections and would love to get back in the pool but I feel safer with tent off.
5. I am a huge lover of UK and Irish mystery series. Bloodlands is really good. Not a mystery but I just finished Fleabag. So good, funny and touching. It is on amazon prime. Honestly, netflix, britbox, acorn and amazon prime have saved my sanity this past covid year.
When I was a kid we’d go to the creek or lakes and fill our pockets with arrowheads. My dad would pick the best ones out but we played with the rest. I don’t know what era they were from as there are ancient mounds nearby and tribes were also present in last couple hundred years.
My 5
Tired of groceries so saving money there.
Gas buddy continues to help save, sometimes a difference of 50¢ a gallon.
Started hanging clothes to dry on hangers from shower rod again.
Salads, salads, salads.
Hemming shorts from worn knee pants, attaching buttons, and other sew/mendations.
Splurge
The covid cleaning crew that stayed with me drank a lot of coffee and I started using their mini Keurig. It left with them so I looked into getting one but they are pricey. I found a 19 dollar knockoff at Walmart that is working just as great and Wally’s coffee pods are real good and about 25¢ a pod.
That is very interesting about the arrowheads, may I ask where you grew up?
I knew a man who grew up on the TN/ AL border and said he and his friends used to find arrowheads all the time as kids. They were so common that they would skip them like rocks across the Elk River. He once found a necklace in a cave along the bank and at 70-years-old (when I knew him around 2001-02) regretted trading it for some baseball cards.
Near the Spiro Mounds.
https://www.405magazine.com/the-treasure-of-spiro-mounds/
In 2019 there were huge floods in Oklahoma and after the floods receded people were out digging up artifacts along rivers and the Corp trying to stop them. I guess the ground is just full of stuff.
“Spiro started upward spiral in 700 A.D. ”
an article that includes information about other mounds, like Cahokia near St Louis
What a find!
1. I won an auction on an very nice onkyo stereo receiver. Then I won an auction for an onkyo tape deck. The two combined were $54. I used some reward money that I won at work and bought a turntable and new speakers so I now have a component system in my living room. (I also have one in my bedroom. And one in my basement. I like music.)
2. I purchased a winter CSA share and have been enjoying the additional vegetables. Although the cabbage I got two weeks ago weighed about 12 pounds. I still have about half of it. It’s a good thing I like cabbage.
3. I have not been commuting into work and may not for another year. I only have to fill my tank about every six weeks. In fact in three months, I’ve only gone 1000 miles. It’s awesome.
4. My neighbor received ricotta cheese as a substitution for cottage cheese on her grocery order. She gave it to me and I think I’m going to make some gnocchi with it.
5. I hung my laundry on the line Over the weekend. Pretty sure it’s the earliest I’ve ever hung my laundry on the line.
1. We were able to get on a vaccine list locally. Every other list would have us going 50 miles away, and added bonus, it will be the Johnson, & Johnson, so just one jab in the arm.
2. Very unhappy with how quick a pair of Bogs boots fell apart, so emailed with pictures. Received a computer generated response saying they only have a one year warranty. 2 days later, I received a gift certificate online for $90 to replace. Posted the old boots which didn’t leak, on the local buy nothing site. No use tossing if someone had a use. A nice teenage girl got them for her mother. Said her mom had only tennis shoes to wear.
3. Next town over had a bark chip free pile, we hauled 5 pick-up loads home. Tired, but happy with the the end result.
4. And a food bank had an overabundance of milk. Said free to all. Once I got there, they had tons of produce. So came home with bags of apples, potatoes, onions, and a few other things. Never realized the amount of excess food there is.
5. Farm store had an online ad, something I wanted to buy, but couldn’t get there that day. So ordered, and drove over to pick up 2 days later. Saved $5
My mom gave me the arrowheads found on my Grandpa’s property (That was once owned by William Henry Harrison) I couldn’t believe she didn’t want to keep them.
Katy, I believe it may be illegal to sell the arrowheads. I am more familiar with the strict legal regulations around other kinds of archaeological artifacts and I’m not certain about arrowheads. You should check into the regulations before posting them for sale.
I’ll make sure to look into this, there are certainly plenty listings on eBay.
There’s actually a site called arrowheads.com and arrowhead forums. My dad once said when someone wants to sell native artifacts out of the trunk of their car you might want to take a pass. Lol, he had many offers In Oklahoma individuals own land right into small streams like creeks so anything found there is legally yours if you own the land or have permission from the owner. But the Corps of Engineers owns land around lakes and rivers so you cannot legally keep what you find there.
Very cool on the arrowheads. Everyone here has been busy!
1. Hubs and I got our tax money from the feds and state back. Tucked into bank account. First time we got money back in quite a few years. I had to put 7k into my IRA but hubs joked I could take out the next day as I’m 60. So far I’ve left it in.
2.Daughter gave me scratch off lottery tickets for my birthday and I won $105. I gave her $10 as a “finder’s fee”.
3. Hubs has rebuilt our gas grill for the second time. I think the grill is at least 20 years old. Parts were $100 vs a new grill at $400.
4.Still waiting for our stimulus checks. Both kids got theirs direct deposit, even my son in Singapore. Every day hubs brings in the mail and says “My Uncle (Sam) does like me” cause there are no checks.
5. Talked with hubs about his Amazon addiction. He has to tone it down a bit. The last credit card bill was $4k+.
Meant to type “my Uncle (Sam) doesn’t like me”.
I am in awe of your arrowhead find, Katy. They are lovely. I’m very surprised that the ended up on the shelves…that kind of thing usually goes the the on line auctions. Reading about those of you who found arrowheads just laying on the ground brought back a funny story about my bff’s great uncle, who lived in Christmas Valley, in SE Oregon. He used to make arrowheads and throw them out along the road for the tourists to find. I never met him, but I think I would have liked his sense of humor.
I also was a huge fan of Beverly Cleary’s books. Remember Henry Huggins and the guppies? One of the lesser known books was ‘Mitch and Amy’…now that I know that she struggled with reading, I can’t help but think that the character of Mitch was semi-autobiographical. RIP, Mrs Cleary. You made such a difference in so many, many lives.
My FFT for today:
1. I got my 2nd Covid shot today. I can’t wait to be fully covered…another few weeks and I can hug my grandkids again. Woohoo! Washington state is opening up vaccinations to everyone 16 and older in 2 weeks, so my daughter can get hers, too. I received 2 coupons for 10% off any grocery order up to $200 from Safeway, but I seldom shop there as their grocery prices are so much higher than Winco and Grocery Outlet. My neighbors do shop at Safeway, so I’ll give them the coupons.
2. I returned a set of burner drop pans that didn’t fit my stove to Lowes for over $15 back in my pocket, and returned 2 packages of pork jerky purchased by accident for $4.96 back at Grocery Outlet. Grocery Outlet also had Frito Lay party sized chip products on sale for 3.99 each, B2G1, so I stocked up on m th favorite indulgence, Smart Food White Cheddar Popcorn. I’ll be parceling it out for a long time to come.
3. I remembered to cancel a pet food autoshipment from TSC before the next shipment. I signed up for it to get free shipping, but I’m very well stocked up on dog and cat food and don’t need automatic shipments every other month, which is the greatest interval they allow.
4. I canceled Acorn before the next month’s charge was due. For now, I’m totally enjoying watching Time Team on YouTube. Between Prime, which is worth the cost for the free shipping as well as the shows, YouTube, some of the free TV apps, and free trials, there’s more available than I can find time to watch. $14/month vs Dish at over $100/month. Kicking myself for not switching years ago!
5. The latest incentive check pretty much paid my property taxes for the year, my adult daughter used hers to buy new tires for our horse trailer, an electric fencing system to break down our pastures into paddocks for rotational grazing and a new horse she really wants…being able to pay her own horse related expenses is frugal for ME, and my taxes are nearly ready for defiling. I’m starting seeds at home for my vegetable garden rather than buying any plants, I’m still reading through my home library, and after ordering a bargain pack of logic problems and fill in puzzle books, I have received a duplicate order. As the same company sent me a huge order after I’d canceled it and received confirmation that they had canceled it, then told me I could keep the order, I’m assuming that I can keep this smaller order, too.
I need an update on those framed arrowheads! 🙂