Just popped by to say hello

Oh blog, how I've neglected you!

I am having a hard time remembering to update on my blog. My original intent was to share ideas on saving money and to avoid shopping by being held accountable with a blog. Now the blog has taken a backseat.

I haven't shopped since my previous confession. I went in to Old Navy today because I had a gift card. The peppy music and bright colors made me walk right out. Blah.

My trip to Destin will be my next dilemma. My aunts, uncles and cousins will be in Destin all week. Do you know what else will be there? Outlet malls. And not just any outlet mall, no. A really, really rockin' one. The name of the game will be AVOID.

Status Update: Fail

It has been a while since my last blog. I am sad to report that I have failed in my endeavor. I have shopped on numerous occasions, although my spending as a whole has decreased. Since my pledge in February I have purchased:

1. Sunglasses (replacement to my lost pair)
2. Suspenders (they were second hand... not quite a consumer impact)
3. Coffee mug (souvenir from the Keys)
4. Wetsuit vest (another Keys purchase)
5. Yellow jumper (sooo cute! You would have encouraged me to buy it, I promise)
6. Digital camera and underwater housing (That one hurt. It was a borrowed camera and I lost it. I ordered the replacement tonight.)
7. Ipod and ipod player (Technically I haven't purchased it yet but I'm about to. I lost it somewhere on my Keys trip and I would rather sell my liver than go without.)

There you have it, in full disclosure. I haven't met my goal with much success. I have also noticed that spending is a slippery slope. I continue to think of other things I want to buy. I'm trying to be good! Send me some encouragement!

Ooops

Psst! I have a secret. Come closer. Closer. Are you ready? I cheated yesterday. I lost my favorite pair of sunglasses and I replaced them. It only cost $10 but still... I cheated. What to do?

Progress?

So far, things are going well.

I have managed not to do any shopping with the exception of new facial lotion. My ipod is still busted but working. The black hole has slowed its progress. I heard rumors that Verizon will be coming out with iphones at the end of this year. My goal is to hold on to my ipod as long as possible and replace two gadgets with one. My coffee mug has been taken apart several times, cleaned and reassembled. It still leaks.

I received my tax rebate and put the entire thing on my credit card. It felt really, really good. One more month and the damn thing will be paid off in full. I made the payment before I had time to rethink it. It's a good thing too because I could really convince myself that a kayak or additional dive gear is just what I need.

Last week (or maybe two weekends ago?) my friend hosted a "Swap yer Shit" party. Everyone brought over all the things they no longer want or use. Clothes, books, DVDs, gadgets, kitchen appliances, shoes, etc. and we traded. It was a great success! I left with new clothes, a crock pot, a suit and some home decor. It satisfied my shopping needs without spending a dime. All of the unclaimed items were donated.

I have noticed that I am eating out a great deal more now that I am not shopping. I guess it's because I'm saving money so I reward myself by eating out. Other than that, everything is going extremely well.

I foresee the next obstacle will be scuba diving in the Florida Keys next month. I would like to pick up a few items for my dive gear and the Keys is a great place to do scuba shopping. Eek!

$ave Money

Here's some more tips that have been coming my way on how to save money and stretch out the replacement dates of your home products.

1. Add a little bit of water to all of your liquid products. Shampoo, liquid soap, laundry detergent, Febreeze, Downy Wrinkle Release, etc. Go do it now before you forget. Go on.
2. Instead of buying static cling sheets, dip an old sock in extremely watered down fabric softener and throw it in the dryer with your wet clothes. Be mindful to use a dark sock with your dark clothes to avoid fuzz.
3. Forget windex. My Mom always preached the value of old fashioned white vinegar. Vinegar and water cleans the windows great and is also good for stains on the carpet. Mama knows best.
   
4. Tear up an old towel into tiny squares. The next time you reach for paper towels to tackle a spill, grab yourself a junk rag instead. You can collect them in a bucket in the laundry room and wash as needed.

In other news, I think I have some solutions to my previous dilemmas. If my ipod continues to be consumed by the black hole, I'm going to look into transferring my music onto my cell phone. It has MP3 capabilities but I've never looked into it because I always use my ipod. I've had a second MP3 player at my disposal this entire time!

Also, my coffee mug continues to leak. One of these days I'm just going to bring it into the office and remove my need for a travel mug.

I must say, my boss made an excellent point on this subject: it shouldn't count if it's replacement of an existing object. Oh, I like her thinking. Special thanks to Jill and Elise for the brainstorming.

It's only been 11 days but things are going good. Everyone has been extremely helpful and supportive. Some of you have given me great tips which I'm working into my blog to share with everyone else.

Stay tuned for the next blog when I start to discuss the ultimate dilemma... no shopping when you're in NEW YORK CITY!! Ahhhh!

Withdrawals

I had my first bout of shopping withdrawal last night. I dreamt I found a bookstore on campus (go Seminoles!) that was open 24/7 with a huge selection of hardbacks. All the books were half the price of a normal bookstore and they carried the unreleased books to complete every series. (There are several series I’m reading which I’m waiting on the author to publish the next or last book of the series.) I debated with myself whether or not to break my vow of no shopping. Then I convinced myself that reading is for entertainment and doesn’t count as shopping and I bought an armful. It was lovely.

First Hurdle

Well, it's been one week into the challenge and I've hit my first hurdle... well two actually. I cannot live without either.

Crisis #1: Black and Beautiful

I've had my ipod for about 3 years now and named it Black and Beautiful (Snoop Dogg). I dropped B&B Monday morning in my haste to get to work. It slightly cracked the screen and damaged some of the pixels or cells or whatever they're called. It has created what I call a black hole on the screen. Not a large one and it's towards the top - no big deal, right? But each day the black hole is getting larger and larger. It has now overtaken the banner and battery display across the top. At this rate I won't be able to navigate my ipod in two weeks.

What's weird is that when the ipod is in sleep mode, the black hole is the original size and doesn't disrupt the view. But when I wake up B&B, the blackhole is back. That may be the only way to work the ipod in the future. I'll have to wait for it to go to sleep mode and then memorize the steps to select music. That also ruins the functionality of it being a video ipod.

I looked into pricing to replace my ipod -$250. Not terrible for 160 GB.... but I can't spend money!! I'll just have to wait and see what kind of damage the black hole creates in the upcoming weeks.

Crisis #2: Travel mug with a leak

A year ago I spent $20 on the best stainless steal coffee mug in the world. It absolutely does not leak. I enjoyed this endlessly for the first few weeks as I demonstrated the guarantee over my coworkers' heads. They, unfortunately, did not. In any case, the mug was perfect. Several tumbles and curse words later, the mug still works great. That is, until the day I took it apart to clean it. Although it has been reassembled (perfectly if you ask me) it leaks. I learned this the hard way on the way to work. I have tried everything and cannot figure out why it's leaking.

My alternatives are to tolerate a less than adequate travel mug for six months and possibly risk every work blouse I own. Or, I could fill it only half way and reduce the risk of slosh-and-splash. Or, I could relocated my coffee maker to my office and cut out the middle man. I don't really drink coffee on the weekends anyways.

I'll give option #2 a try and if it fails move on to option #3. But seriously, that's a bad ass looking coffee mug, right?