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!!)

Foto Friday

Sooooo, a year ago today my favourite walking spot was flooded.

I usually cross this bridge which is about halfway through the forest, but as it 

was under water I had to turn back.

 Not a flake of snow to be seen and it was a gorgeous sunny day. Unlike 

today which is cloudy, snowing lightly and feels like -12c.

That chair looks pretty inviting!

The Thames River flooding its banks.

The current is rather robust!

And lookee here, my snowdrops were pushing up through the wet soil.

I just peeked out my window and there's only snow in my flower bed.

I'm not yet feeling my normal happy, sarcastic self. I went to a vigil Wednesday evening for the six men shot to death in a Quebec City mosque and tomorrow is a "Day of Action against Islamophobia and White Supremacy" which I'll be attending.

I unfriended a couple of people on Facebook (one an extended family member and the other one a person from my hometown). I couldn't take their hateful and ignorant comments. Perhaps I should have tried to reason more with them but it got to the point where they're not listening - they're just spewing racist hatred.

That's it for today.

I am Sad and I am ANGRY

...and I can't get my head around the slaughter of 6 Muslim men (any several severely injured) while they were at worship last night in Quebec City.

Soup Anti-Nazi

$276.14 - that's how much I spent on groceries for the month of January. I budgeted $280.00 so came in under budget by a tiny bit. I told someone today that I came in $25 under budget but since then found another charge of $20.88 that I missed on my Mastercard bill. Poo. But under is under in my books so bwhahaha! Oh, and speaking of poo this covers cat litter and dry food for Luna and Lily. If I buy it at the grocery store - even if it is stuff we don't eat - it comes our of the grocery budget. Laundry detergent, ibuprofen, toothpaste, shampoo...blah blah blah.

Part of how I keep my food budget low is to make everything from scratch and make BIG batches of things like soup & veggie chilli. (and that way I don't have to cook something new every single night...bwhahahaha!) Whatever we don't eat goes in the freezer. Being a "soup anti-nazi" I PUSH soup on people, especially my daughter. The soups I make are meals in a dish and she much prefers something homemade for lunch instead of eating fast food. (Not to mention she saves money eating her ma's cooking!) She wan't always like that but now, thankfully, she really appreciates the healthy food that we eat. She's not big on meat (pork & beef), me either, so we eat poultry, fish, shellfish and veggie-type meals.

Yesterday I was hankering after some Greek Lentil Soup.  Yeah, weird right? Usually I hanker after chocolate! Fortunately the ingredients I needed to make this soup were all in my pantry and/or fridge. There are a number of things I never let myself run out of- namely: diced tomatoes, veggie or chicken stock, lentils, many kinds of beans, split peas, soup mix, quinoa, fresh garlic, carrots, onions, potatoes and celery in addition to a wide wide variety of spices and hot sauces. So I had everything I needed on hand. Saves me a trip to the store where I would inevitably buy a few things (chocolate) NOT on my list :)

This soup is absolutely delicious!  It's one of my favourite recipes not only due to its deliciousness but also because it is so quick to prepare - you can make and simmer this soup in 30-40 minutes max. and you don't need 20 different ingredients!

Unexpected guests? This is your go-to recipe! (I sound like an infomercial!)

Saute' your veggies and garlic...

 Now that I have a handy dandy chopper I can dice my veggies in seconds :)

Always in my pantry! (If I have my own chicken broth I'll use that but most of the time I'll use a carton from the store.)

Throw in remaining ingredients including a bay leaf, a bit of basil and thyme.

Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. That's it!

I also always have a dollop of sour cream and/or plain yogurt on hand which really mixes well with the overall flavour.

The cost?
a generous 1/2 cup lentils      maybe 5 cents?
diced tomatoes  1/2 can = 50 cents
1 large carrot (or use baby carrots if you have some you need to get rid of)   =  20 cents
1 or 2 stalks of celery (can be limp like mine was :)  =  20 cents
1 yellow onion    = 30 cents
2 cloves of garlic = 10 cents
spices = 30 cents
1 container of broth = 1.00
1 teaspoon of sour cream = 10 cents
Total = $2.75!!! /6 servings = $0.46 per serving!

Good night nurse!! (as my grandma used to say) I'm going to have seconds!

Foto Friday For the First Time in Forever!

Before I check my photos to see what was happening one year ago today I'm going to predict there will be snow. And cats. And maybe a creative project. Yes, I am pretty predictable! Okay, drum roll please..........................

.......I called it! Luna and Lily are curled up together on the futon in the TV room. Sadly, they no longer curl up together; instead they fight over my lap!

Awwwwwww.....!

Not a lot of snow... I thought there'd be more. On another sad note we are getting next to NO birds this winter at our feeders as they are able to feed themselves. So CAT TV is a bust so far this (non)winter.

Carvings from the workshop:
-a couple pieces that haven't been hand sanded to a glossy polish yet...

Should I put them together as a pair? That was my original plan...

Polished!

Which way to display it?

Instead I decided to use a shadow box to display this piece because it was a very thin slice of soapstone and I carved it in relief; ie it has a flat side. You can see my hands taking the photo :)

My life needs an injection of excitement! What should I do to spice things up a little?

Marching for Women's Rights/Human Rights

So much has been said already about the Women's March of January 21, 2017.

I'm not going to repeat all that has been said for and against Trump.

But I am so proud and thankful to have been a part of the largest movement in the world.

This movement transcends Trump and reaches to the furthest corners of our planet.

Anyone who lives a life that is not safe can take refuge in this movement.

The immense support I felt and the solidarity and love

of all participants, be they women of any colour, be they children, be they

men, be they First Nations, be they sidelined by sexual orientation or hate - 

all are one and equal and will never stand alone. 

We are just getting started.

An Electrifying Frugal Hack

Once in a while I try to fix something myself instead of calling for a repair person.  I have this vision of myself as a handy woman. A couple of times I've even followed instructions over the phone from my internet company, the hydro office and my furnace repair guy.

A friend told me that she had replaced all the electricity receptacles in her condo. So...

I thought...how hard could it be?

Not very as I found out.

This outlet in my kitchen had thrown out a couple of sparks so

I decided to replace it myself after watching
many DIYs on Youtube. 

 You need some good flashlights as of course you have

to turn off the electricity....

And, not shown here...I used a thingamajig to test if

there was any charge...

I really don't want to be electrocuted!

No charge so safe to continue...

 Also not shown...

I made a diagram and took photos (obviously)

so I'd know what wire went where. 

Instructions also came with the

new receptacle so this was a very easy process...

I'm guessing that perhaps the problem with this receptacle

was caused by all the plaster and caulking used when the subway tiles were

installed. There was guck everywhere so once I detached

the wires from the old receptacle I did some

cleaning of the space.

Once the wires were detached I hooked up the new receptacle

according to my diagram and pushed it back

inside its wee home...

 Put on a new cover plate...

 ....turned the electricity back on....

and TA DA! it works... just like magic!

You may or may not wonder why I didn't use a white

receptacle and cover plate to match the tiles...

Well, because all of the receptacles in the house are "ivory" and I 

didn't want to make the investment until

I knew whether this was a job I could handle or not...

turns out I can!

Total cost of this repair:

$22.88 for the new receptacle, the cover plate and

the voltage tester.

Boost to my handy woman self esteem: 

priceless!