Merry Merry Month of May

The numbers for April are in and they're pretty good:

• the budget line for gasoline was $60 but I only spent $45 😁 yippee yahoo! Still have about a half tank of gas left. 
• the budget line for food was set at the usual $280 but I only spent $212 😁
• Utilities came in under budget by $35 😁
• Savings per month has risen to $1200 from $1000 which will shorten the amount of time needed to replenish money spent on new car😁 This means a smaller amount of misc spending money but so far so good. 
• Misc $$ was spent on: two movies- "Game Night" (fairly funny) and "A Quiet Place" (EXCELLENT!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!); two albums purchased from iTunes; a Scotland guidebook downloaded to my Kindle App; $55 spent on fundraising dinner; a pair of gloves used in grooming Luna and Lily ($15 on Amazon - they work really well!); a six-pack of craft beer; a couple of pints after volleyball; $65 spent on a spring tuneup and new rear brakes for my bike; $25 spent at Dollarama (but I don't remember what I bought!); $26 for dinner with family at Morrissey House (it was 15% off for women to make up for gender equity issues!); $15 at Walmart for cat food; $25 to The Red Cross
• Internet bill has risen from $79 to $88  😡
• Paid income tax 😡

Looking ahead at expenses for May:

• As it's my birthday month I get to pay the gov't $120 for a new license sticker for my car 😡
• I will want to purchase flowers for my patio and for the front garden - I'm hoping I can keep my purchases to a reasonable amount - HAH!! That almost NEVER happens - I usually overspend on flowers! 💚

• I will need to keep misc spending to roughly $90 per week so that I can move $1200 to savings. Done  By the end of 2018 my savings accounts will be back to their pre-car purchase amounts!! 😁 I see several trips in 2019!!!

I have budgeted $45 for gas but I hope to spend ZERO now that I have my bike ready as my main source of transportation in the coming months 😁 Also hoping I can keep grocery spending to a minimum.  In aid of that I received and used a $25.00 gift card from Loblaw's to make up for their bread price fixing scandal. That should get me through to the weekend!! I also have $40 in points that I can use for groceries if need be.

Was April kind or nasty to your monthly budget??

January Recap

Due to the terrible events of the past week or two I haven't posted much. So...I'll get back into the swing of things by recapping January's budget.

What went well: (almost everything)

• the cost-of-living increase in my teacher's pension was TO THE DOLLAR exactly equal to the increases in my bills: property tax, condo fee and insurance! Sometimes the system works. That allowed the increase in my Canada Pension Plan ($8.00 whoopdedoo!) to be added to my savings.
• Saving $1,000 per month is very doable. Tsf'd $1100 in January to savings. (Travel fund:)
• Overestimates in utilities put $46 back into my misc budget line. It's just not been that cold so far this winter.
• Didn't have to pay property taxes this month as I am on a 10 month schedule. Went to savings instead.
• Overpaid insurance so received a credit in January and NO payment til Feb. Extra went to savings.
• Received investment income. Rolled it over.
• Due to various bits and bobs my misc spending budget was $675 in January!! Out of that I saved enough to buy 250 pounds sterling! 
• Received GST refund ($105 4 x a year) put it into savings
• Came in under budget for gas $75/$100 & groceries $255/$280. Extra went to misc.
• Even with that I finished January with $31 in my chequing account. Added that to February's budget.

What didn't go quite as well but wasn't too bad considering!

• $60 for eye doctor because of Posterior Vitreous Detachment issue - have a checkup in a week which is also covered by the $60 payment already made. Don't feel too upset about that bill!
• $37 for a prescription

January was a great month!!

Misc spending covered:

• two meals out (Hong Ping with a friend & Swiss Chalet with my neighbour - an annual Christmas treat)
• Wine and Food Show
• Purchased Amazon Prime for a year which also includes Amazon Prime Video streaming. Comes to less than $7.00/month
• Art supplies ordered through Amazon (free shipping :) 
• added $ to my Tim's card and my Starbucks card
• Home Depot materials to fix electrical outlet
• Walmart - craft supplies (political sign-making)
• Google storage
• 250 pounds sterling

Stay tuned for February's budget recap when I proceed to spend twice what I saved in January!!

(Scotland trip is shaping up!!)

Thank you for your supportive comments on my last post. Needless to say my confidence was severely shaken by events that happened a couple of years ago but I am on the upswing and have great hopes for the future!

Part of becoming stronger obviously must take into account my physical shape...or lack thereof! It seems that I take in way more calories than I burn! My mother referred to her tummy as "middle-aged spread" which is scarily accurate as I watch my middle spread to my thighs and butt! I have good intentions to eat right and get lots of exercise but my good intentions are often thwarted by the fact I have so many retail stores near me that offer great deals on JUNK food! No Frills, Giant Tiger, WalMart and not just one but TWO Dollaramas!

I'm (sort of) glad I don't know where to buy
chocolate-covered black licorice!!

My greatest indulgence, as some of you know, is licorice and chocolate. Sometimes I buy dark chocolate instead of milk thinking I am making a healthier choice. HAH! More fool me!

So...anyways I try to balance things out by juicing at least once a day, eating oatmeal for breakfast and having dinners that are mostly based on vegetables. Add to that -daily exercise- which will increase with better weather and I still have a lopsided pear-shaped body but it's strong!!

THIS??

My exercise regime includes walking/hiking on Mon. Tues. and Wed., yoga on Thurs. and volleyball on Fridays. Yesterday it rained ALL day so instead of getting outside walking I rode my stationary bike instead. I hope to gradually increase the length of my walks/hikes so that when Annie's and my trip rolls around in late August I'll be strong and fit (well, fit for me!) Usually I don't do much in the way of exercise on the weekend but I may try to get on my bike for an hour each day.

Or THIS??

It's the age old problem, no?

Makeover Madness

The long list of projects to do around the house (and trailer!!) continues to grow. Dragging my sorry pain-filled butt around to make minor repairs or do some redecorating just doesn't seem like something I want to do right now.

HOWEVER.......sometimes some little thing catches your eye and you realize you need to take immediate action...

EEEEEEEEEK!! Some horrible, hairy creature is living under out bathroom sink!!! And it's GROWING!! And trying to ESCAPE!! Is it a black widow spider???

Let's zoom in on this hideous creature!! Hmmmmm...there's something familiar about it....yes, it's my daughter's hair!! No, don't worry, my daughter isn't living in the cupboard under the sink but some old hair extensions are!! Along with lots of clutter!!

It's time for MAKEOVER MADNESS!! 

Uggghhh! Hair extensions mixed in with a jumble of other crap! It's gotten to the point that when we need to put something away we yank the cupboard door open with incredible speed and toss the item in quickly slamming the door shut again before debris tumbles out onto the floor. It's time to get the mess under control and it'll be a quick, easy on the back, fix!

First I cleared everything out from under the sink.  Kazi went through everything and tossed out most of it :)  I did a quick wipe down and added some contact paper that I had left over from doing the drawers in the kitchen.

I added an extendable extra shelf to help keep things organized, just a few dollars from Walmart.

And...ta da!! All is now organized and easy to reach.  I hope I can keep the momentum going and continue with the bathroom redecorating. I have paint for the walls and cupboard doors, new cupboard handles and some new shelves to put up. Now that my back is on the mend (but not fully mended) it's time to start doing some tasks around the house that won't be too taxing on the back.

It feels great to accomplish something, even if it is relatively minor. Are you working on any little projects??

BUDGET Bonanza!

There is no bonanza, nor any lesbians either so move along to the next blog if you want...

Just another dull look at the budget...but, it keeps my spending in check (sorta)  to look at the numbers weekly. I am thankful that so far April is going better than expected. Now there's something to celebrate right? (completely disregarding that it's only the 9th of April?)

So what's so darn great about April's money so far??? Well....the acupuncturist said I might only have to get one treatment (she says while burning her butt on a heating pad...)

HEY, I JUST SAID BUTT!!(that should increase my readership!!)

I took $500.00 out of savings to cover said treatments @ $50.00 a SHOT that would amount to 10 treatments. So...I could possibly save $450.00!! (some of which I spent already - EEK!!) Money is getting muddled - OH NO!! I hate that! I took $200.00 of the $500.00 designated for acupuncture and put it in my wallet. I paid for one treatment and still have $80.00 left so that means that there is $70.00 unaccounted for!! I bought a book today ($30.00) and lunch ($5.00) so that leaves $35.00. I did spend some money to make a nice Easter - a bit on candy and wine...see how it dribbles away!?! I cannot be trusted with cash in my wallet - it DISAPPEARS!! And if I don't keep my receipts I can't track where it goes!!

Anyhoo I still have $380.00 left for the acupuncturist if I need it.  If I don't then either it goes back into savings or I use it to purchase some things for the trailer.

Speaking of the trailer...I used my misc money this week to buy two zero-gravity lounging chairs!!

I thought they would be nice for my back/butt area and they ARE!! At only $38.00 a piece I consider them a bargain! And that's all I spent (other than what was mentioned above), so my misc budget is in very good shape - see, it all works out in the end.

Gas budget stands at $145 left out of $170 (this budget will have to be increased once I start going to the trailer) and there is $180 left out of $276 in the food budget. Foodwise we are in great shape - there will be no food shopping until there is actually room in the fridge to put more food!!

And that sums up this week's edition of Budget Bonanza!! How's your budget looking?

Lesbian Acupuncture*

*Taking a leaf from Sonya Ann

Lesbian acupuncture - now that creates some crazy visuals doesn't it?

Had my first acupuncture treatment this morning for my back but I don't think he was a lesbian. Just as well. I wasn't really in the mood.

However, it went really well and I might not need any more treatments. I'll wait a few days and see. The doctor said that sometimes muscles just need a reboot, like software, to get them working right again. I felt really good after the treatment and went to the BMO Centre to walk for 1.5 hours (one hour fast, 1/2 hour slow).

This is the BMO Centre - a great photo taken out of my truck window as it was pouring down rain. It continues to be a dismal dreary grey awful wet day - I'm not impressed.

However, that's what makes the BMO Centre so great - it has an indoor walking track!! The main floor is used for soccer but on the 2nd floor is this awesome track which is available to anyone FREE!

                                    

The track goes all the way around the perimeter of the building - it's quite long. I took my iPod and walked along to the beat of the music.

Although there are many many signs clearly posted (left lane for slow moving folks, right lane for fast moving folks and for passing the slow folks) there were still lots of people with their walkers shuffling along in the FAST lane. And there were also groups of people 4 or 5 across strolling along as if they were at the park on a Sunday afternoon clogging up BOTH lanes. Oh well, I made the best of it. Oh yes, I forgot to mention the 3 men jogging on the WALKING track. Diversity - it just makes life interesting right?

As if that wasn't enough fun I went and picked up a few things at No Frills and then bought 2 zero-gravity reclining lounge chairs for the trailer from Walmart. I set one up in the living room as I thought it would be a good way to rest my back. But it seems the cats have sore backs too so we are in the process of wrestling to see who gets to sit/lay there!!

Meowwwwww!!

It's the Little Things in Life...

...that annoy me!! This has been a week of getting those little annoying jobs done. I've been working away at my list and while it's getting shorter I keep thinking of more things to add to it. Grrrr...it seems like the to-do list never really gets to-DONE!!

So far this week I've changed the furnace filter - Luna and I have been sneezing a lot so I thought perhaps there's too much dust in the air? But it needs to be done on a regular basis anyways....
*(Luna has not sneezed once in the past two days...so success??)

Then I returned a pair of Icers to Lee Valley for a refund:

I've worn the "icers" over my hiking boots several times since I purchased them in November and haven't enjoyed the experience. No matter how I adjusted them the toe straps would end up coming off and I'd be trailing one or both icers behind me. They are also heavy and clunky and I think may have contributed to my sore hip. Happily I received a full refund even though I was over the 90 day return policy. I didn't say a word about it and thankfully neither did the cashier!

**(Just so you don't think I'm in danger of sliding off into the ravine here's a picture of my hiking boots - the very amazing Lowa Renegades. I've worn them without Icers on many occasions over snow and ice and find they work very well on their own. Look at that tread!!)

Another nagging errand that's been hanging around for awhile involved a gift I received at Christmas. Kazi bought me several hand towels and wash cloths in "Anchor Grey" from Home Outfitters. Just what I wanted! (she can take a hint hint) But when I washed them prior to using one of the hand towels frayed around the edges. I dutifully went to exchange it but they were out of stock and gave me a gift card. So yesterday I gave them a call to see if they had them in stock now. (after 2 months - see how long I can procrastinate??)

After being transferred a few times and then ultimately cut off (!!!) I managed to reach a real person who set aside a hand towel for me. Well wouldn't you know it came to $2.62 more than the value of the gift card??  Hmmmm...yes, it was on sale originally and now it wasn't!! NOT MY PROBLEM!! The cashier saw it from my point of view (I can be persuasive when I need to be!) and after keying in a discount or two I left with my new hand towel. It sure better not unravel!!

Another odd little errand I had involved this:

I don't know if this will amount to anything but I found an old roll of 35mm film in a drawer whist rummaging for something else. I'm very curious to see if there's anything on it. I can remember when I started using a digital camera - Kazi and I went to Nova Scotia for a highland dance competition when she was 15. Now she's 24 so this roll of film is at least 9 years old! I don't want to get too excited about this but I'm seeing a potential Christmas gift for Kazi (my main photo subject!!)!! Keeping my fingers crossed!  Oh, and by the way...Walmart doesn't do "film" anymore but Shoppers Drugmart does!! But not quickly...

My exercise chart in the sidebar has been updated - "due to weather beyond my control" I've biked inside for the last two days. Today, however, the sun is shining and it's a balmy -2c so after I have lunch I'm going for a hike along the river!! March Mojo Madness continues!!

Spring is in the air!!

Famous last words!!

Have you had any odd, annoying little errands/jobs to complete lately?

I'm HOT STUFF!!

Just in case you didn't know...I'm hot stuff! Usually that's due to the occasional hot flash but today we have HEAT!! From the furnace!! Woohoo! (Let's not go into the fact that I'm super pissed that I have to even TURN ON the furnace in the frickin' middle of September!!)

I prayed for an easy fix and it couldn't have been any easier. Well, it could have been easier if I had just gone ahead and changed the batteries in the thermostat myself....doh!! I wondered about the batteries but since the fan worked and the furnace didn't (on the same thermostat)  I figured it had to be something else. Something big and expensive!

But...when the guy said how about a new thermostat I replied - let's try changing the batteries just in case...maybe they're too weak for the furnace but juicy enough for the fan. Who knows? Well, I gave the guy two new batteries and instantly the furnace kicked in! So now I have to pay a guy in the neighbourhood of $100 for changing two double A batteries for me. I could kick myself...in fact I think I will!

However, let's not lose sight of the fact that I HAVE HEAT!! And not the kind I generate myself :)

Dear Diary:
Oh my it's dark outside yet again. And it rained while I was out but at least the weather gods were nice enough to make it rain while I was in Walmart. Tonight Kazi, Steve and I are going to Kelsey's - I have a gift card :) And then we're going to see Phillip Seymour Hoffman's final movie "A Most Wanted Man" - that will be sad - and I have another gift card! :)

I packed my suitcase and my backpack but need to measure the backpack to see if it's ok for a carry on. Sure hope so, I'm running out of options. I checked the long range forecast and it's supposed to rain my first day of walking but not again after that for the whole trip. Obviously this is subject to change at the whim of the weather gods.

Gotta print off a map of Heathrow airport and also a map of all the bus routes as there are many free routes in the area and 2 that go right by my hotel. That should be fun:) getting from my terminal, get my suitcase, go through customs, find the bus depot, find the right bus, get on and hope for the best!! 

Little surprise in the mail today - a book called "Get by in Spanish"! Yes, I'm going to learn some rudimentary spanish as I hope to walk the Camino some time in the future and I'd like to be able to understand a wee bit of spanish. And it's supposed to be good for "mature" brains - help to keep dementia away :) 

Me

The Wacky World of Weather

I didn't think to take any "weather" photos yesterday but then it would have been near impossible what with the constant downpour and heavy winds. 

Anyhoo, it would have looked like this!

And I was a little busy once I found that the living room was drenched because I hadn't closed the patio doors. Did I say drenched..... I think I meant soaked. I was busy wiping up floors and furniture and now have a lovely display of wet towels draped around the house. I may have to run the dryer as nothing hanging up is going to dry today. Silly me. I was sitting high and dry by my bedroom window glad I was safely indoors and thinking "boy, that wind is strong" all the while not realizing that strong westerly winds were blowing in through the patio doors. 

Oh well, it could always be worse. 

Here's what southwestern Ontario looked like all day yesterday. And today. Can I just point out however, that I am brilliant (accidentally) when it comes to "timing" - I pulled into my parking space yesterday just as a few little drops started appearing on my windshield. By the time I got myself and my packages into the house all HELL broke lose!! Dodged that one...sorta....Today it's only 13c!! Once again I am sitting by an open window and the breeze is freakin' COLD!! 

However....not quite THIS cold!! This is Alberta where winter arrived in summer! They've had over 6 inches of snow and it's still coming down and so are the tree branches. It's a mess out there and I'll take thunderstorms any day over snow.  Which is a good thing I guess since more thunderstorms are forecast and are heading eastward to all my maritime family and friends! 

Watch out!  You're welcome!

Dear Diary:

Brrrrrrrrrr! It's been a long time since I've seen the sun shine and my head is starting to feel the effects of that loss - pound, pound, pound. It's a whole +13c with more rain forecast for today but at least it's not snow like in Alberta.

I got a good bunch of my shopping done yesterday before the rain shut everything down. I went out to MEC and found 2 good pairs of hiking pants - one was on sale and was for "short" legged people like me. Then I found 2 long-sleeved tops, both on sale :) I also purchased 3 pairs of sock liners which worn under hiking socks is supposed to absolutely prevent blisters. I seem to have a major fear of blisters probably due to the fact that I seem prone to getting them. And I bought a "platypus" which is a flat plastic container for water which takes the shape of a bottle when filled. Easy to pack. 

Then off to the Bulk Barn where I purchased cashews, almonds, dates, peanuts, hazelnuts and chocolate covered ginger. Plus a box of CLIF granola bars and a whole bunch of carrot/apple/ginger thingies (like the fruit leathers I used to buy for Kazi before the dentist told me they were the worst things for children's teeth EVER!! (I mixed all the nuts, dates and chocolate covered ginger in a huge bowl and then filled 14 sandwich sized plastic bags. This is my trail food and quite possibly my lunch. My plan is to eat the free traditional English breakfast and then use my trail food to get me through til supper. I need more ways to get "ginger" into my day (for pain relief) so I may take some ginger tea bags and hopefully I can make a tea at the B&Bs I stay at. 

After that was Shoppers Drug Mart to pick up an item for Annie and a couple of things for myself - they had little first aid kits on sale for less than $4.00!! so I bought one for my backpack.

Lastly was Walmart where I bought a long sleeved black top for $7.00 (it's all about layering!) a travel purse (strap goes cross body so that the purse part hangs safely in front) to hold my passport, boarding pass etc - don't want to be rifling through my backpack. Also bought a luggage tag, got a new watch battery as I'll be checking my watch a LOT to make sure I'm on time for the train, tube, plane etc. Also bought 2 sizes of plastic bags to hold my trail food and other items that I'll want to keep dry (daily maps) and to put things in that might break in my suitcase - hydrogen peroxide etc. 

Figured out with the help of google last night how to change the resolution on my camera so I can take more pictures but will also buy another SD card just in case. The one I have is 4g but I think I'll also get an 8g. I'm not a shopper, I'm a picture taker and my worst nightmare would be running out of space on my camera for more photos!!

All that's left to do is lay in supplies for Tisky and get the SD card for my camera. Oh, and laundry...and packing...:)