However, unless you have a family of strapping lumberjacks or budding football players who all want to eat the same thing,  it can be daunting on more than one level!  Storage and spoilage being the main issues, after all there is no point in saving money is you have to:  store them forever, or throw half of the produce away – that’s just a waste of time and effort.

Consider,  forming a co-op group with your friends,  family, co-workers, mom’s group, playdate/church crowd,  or team parents (snack for games)  etc.   No-one is too proud to save some money right now!  Make up a produce list, you may want to take turns (or volunteer to do it if you know someone is hard pressed) and split out  the goodies at your next get together.  The savings will more than make up for the cost of the coffee and it provides a good excuse to network!

It is even possible to share a membership at one of the big warehouse stores (in fact that’s a good idea even when you don’t co-op on the groceries and supplies)  or if someone volunteers to make a trip to a farmers market or ‘pick your own’ venue  you can split the cost of fuel.

Sometimes the key to being frugal is sharing the bounty!

If you have a leaking/dripping tap contact the manufacturer and they will send you the replacement piece for just the cost of shipping.

As well as getting rid of the Chinese water torture – drip, drip, drip-drip – you will save yourself on average 3 gallons of water a day- which is over 1,000 gallons per year , energy savings too if its the hot tap!

The cost of water varies widely based on the area you live in,  but no matter how much it is,  “many a muckle maks a mickle” to quote Scottish Bard – Rabbie “Robert” Burns or for those who do not speak in the vernacular:  many pennies make a pound (a penny saved is a penny in your pocket).

For more information check out the manufacturer’s website  http://www.Moen.com.

does it strike anyone else as laughable when the catchall phrases at the end of television ads come on….

“In case of erections lasting more than 4 hours contact a Doctor”… What did they think the reaction would be, say a prayer of thanks and throw a party.  After all its just supporting what we’ve always known ladies!  Men have 2 brains and only enough blood supply to run one at a time

Someone is obviously  just worried that our newly equipped pole vaulter could be declared brain dead while wandering around with ‘a gun in his pocket’ and a big smile on his face.  Especially if the woman in his life is yelling “oh do stop playing with that thing” or worse still “put it away”!

As I said I have a weird sense of humor!

What struck home was when Ray’s character goes on his first date in 20 years! At one point he is playing ‘horse’ at his date’s driveway basketball hoop to decide whether he is going to kiss her or not! Pretty funny and all too true.. what are the social norms? How the H E double hockey sticks do you get out there again? and once you are what do you do?

My dating experience in the last couple of years has been nothing short of pathetic, actually pathetic doesn’t even come close! Those who ask me out either look like Father Christmas/Santa Claus (nothing against the big guy, but sitting on his lap doesnt do it for me – primarily because I don’t want to feel like I’m consigned to be chubby little Mrs Claus) or the closest they’ve ever come to a good book had a superhero on the cover. Not that I want to have discussions on Proust and Dostoyevsky but it would be nice to talk to someone who didn’t think they were the new drafts for some hockey minor league team.

My sister assures me that if I was in the UK I would be up to my elbows in men, meanwhile American men have the cheerleader complex ~ they still want to date the cheerleader who wouldn’t date them in High School.

Where do you go to meet the opposite sex? I bumped into a cute guy at the supermarket, beautiful blue eyes! seemed intelligent, said he was an engineer … all was going well and my girls (bless them) retired to the other end of the aisle and didn’t start to fight for a change. Then my daughter interrupted and asked about a garden snake, (we were in the magazine aisle). I was in mid reply saying “I think you mean a Garter snake” when Mr Wonderful pipped up.. “Oh No! she’s right I saw the angel tell her”. Sigh.. can you say land speed record, that’s what I broke finishing the shopping.

My plan is just to be me and go to the places that I go and (yeah! right .. not hold my breath)………….

Any one got a better idea?

Remember that shoveling show is really good aerobic exercise!  Keep the weight on each shovelful low to tone instead of bulk up!

Spray your shovel with non stick spray (like Pam) or grease it with shortening (Crisco) – this will stop build up on the tools.

The same applies to automatic snow movers (not blowers)  add a light coating of non stick to the edge of the blades and NO buildup.

A sprinkling of cat litter, or sawdust to the cleared driveway gives added traction.  Salt works well but also carries big negatives where the driveway borders flowerbeds (salt is a drying agent on plants and  increases corrosion on vehicles.)

Don’t worry – help is just a pantry away.  Grab your jar of peanut butter or shortening (from the holiday baking),  dab it on the label or sticker ~ set aside for a couple of minutes, the rub gently.  Clean off the remaining residue with a soft cloth in circular motions and voila!  ready to wrap.

**Have you noticed how much quicker wrapping comes off than it goes on – you spend hours getting everything ready but it seems like its over in minutes! Ho Ho Ho.

Here is hoping that there is something nice under the tree for you that you didn’t have to wrap. Happy Hannukah! Merry Christmas! & Have a Cool Yule.

For me a spark ignited shortly after I started high school,  probably a common enough occurrence I would image.  I had always been the quiet one in the family, somewhat of a tomboy but definitely no scholar although habitually with my nose in a book or preferably with a book in one hand and a line of view to the flights of fancy of  Children’s Hour on the BBC.  I had an imagination that was certain, but I was no match for my younger sister whose academic prowess was renowned even at an early age and who’s precocious humor charmed all around her.

In those days kids of 11 went through a ritual hazing similar to the SATs, basically IQ testing with a strong emphasis on comprehension I think.  I can’t say I actually remember taking the tests but there definitely wasn’t much math involved, because Mr. Phimister had already declared me to be mathematically illiterate!  Well, somehow I aced the test and ended up being placed in one of the top academic streams at the high school.  Most of the kids around me went to the local technical school instead.   I was stunned &  it must be said a little triumphant (although I did worry that someone had checked the wrong box), my parents were stunned and my teachers were amazed.  In fact, the only person who seemed totally unsurprised was the elderly lady at the library who had long since given me a ticket to the mysterious adult side because I had read everything there was in the kids section.  As she said “Books are knowlege, knowlege is power” and that was my first key to the kingdom.

In my first year of high school I found my niche and plodded along quite happily hovering on the edge of a number of different cliches until I found my own.  I wasn’t the sharpest in the class but neither was I the dunce,  I was suddenly up to my ears in formal academics and did pretty well.  I avoided the rich and snobby kids and the wild kids and meandered down the middle of the social world.

I went to an all girls high school with 300 girls in my year, 150  in higher level academics and 150 in slightly less academic classes. The school had a compliment of about 1700 girls ranging from 12 to 18.  By whatever chance of fate, I ended up in the highest academic class for my year!

I’ve been thinking about this lately, my daughters have both just transitioned into new schools , one to middle school and the other high school and we’ve just been pulling together holiday gifts for kids at school and working out who they know or can swap gifts with.  I was reminded of how I met my first  high school friend.

For the first couple of months I stuck to those few who had transferred over from my junior school although none were in my classes.  Margy was in my class,  our ‘home’ room was the Domestic Science room,  so we didn’t have the advantage of a real desk or locker to store our stuff in and had to lug it everything around with us in our satchel or wicker basket.    When Christmas came around, we were just finishing assembly when Margy reached into her satchel and thrust a small package into my hand.  I felt a little awkward since  I didn’t have anything for her but I was thrilled.  I went out that day and bought her the little pottery animal that was missing from her collection but I definitely got the best of the deal.

What was the treasure? A Collins pocket dictionary ~ are we sensing a pattern here!?  I found out years later that she just had an ‘extra’  gift but I will be forever grateful for that and the friendship it cemented.  It has had a huge impact on my life, both the friendship and the dictionary.  The former because Margy was/is a great and stoic friend plus she had a huge cadre of acquaintances  who opened up their ranks to me.  The dictionary because an edict my Father had passed a long time before (as a punishment!) to read and digest a page of the dictionary a day became a habit.

While I had always loved to read I began to love words.  As I began to travel I realized that I love to write, anecdotal hyperbole mostly but.. after all storytelling and verbal histories are part of our heritage.

In the re-telling of meeting my first friend in high school I linked my daughters present with my past in a very tangible way.  They certainly know  how much I value using the correct word and they are beginning to realize the importance in that skill.  They also use my dictionary daily (thank you Margy!) less for spelling as definitions since it is a family joke that I spell color with a ‘u’.  After all “books are knowledge and knowledge is power!”

What that little battered blue dictionary  taught them this week was the ripple effect of reaching out a hand, in this case by buying an extra gift with no expectation other than to make someone smile ~ who knows what impact it will have on the donor as well as the recipient.

Of course for me it’s more,  my love of books took me where no-one expected me to go, it turns out I’m pretty smart too.  And a little blue book full of words gave me my first grown up friend and helped me reach my children at a tough time in their lives.

I’m not 12 anymore but words are central to who I am,  it doesn’t matter what else you go through sometimes you need to regroup and go back to the basics.

I’ve been raising my girls on my own for nearly 12 years and had taken a job that allowed me to be around, but it was becoming more and more difficult on limited money and recently with the reversals in the economy my firm cut my hours.  I’ll admit I panicked but since our standard of living has been pared down to a minimum for years there wasn’t much room to cut, the prospect of Christmas on half pay was grim.

I had just started this website and didn’t want to give it up, this really matters to me.   Instead I looked inwards at my skills, at my power.  I am an excellent communicator, a great administrator, very analytical  and empathetic to a fault.  I had also started to build a business network, (including many of my clients who appreciated my handling of  their work) to launch this site.  I decided to contact them and tell them about “Thoughts…” but also to put the word out that I was looking.  I heard lots of stories of how people are dealing with our economic challenges and received overwhelming support and admiration that my response had been to put emphasis on inspiration.   I was offered somewhere to stay,  lots of encouragement and  I’m now starting an exciting new career.

While I’m sure that my new work will quickly become a passion this website will remain.  Above all I’ve found that whether you are passing on an extra gift ,  sharing part of yourself  be it:  a kind word, your attention, your interest in what or how someone is doing, a smile or an outstretched hand;  it’s all the same.   Call it the power of reciprocity, quid pro quo or simple human kindness it’s amazing what doors and hearts can be opened.

The problem is,  that the time you’re thinking about doing this is usually at the end of the year, just after all of the expense of the holidays and just before those huge credit card bills come home to roost,  eek!

Here is a slightly more proactive approach that you can try during the year,(much like my earlier comment on round up your bills).  Round up your mortgage payment!  If you add in an additional amount each month, you may equal or exceed the amount of a months payment over the year, but taken in smaller increments. (As the saying goes~ how do you eat an elephant?, one bite at a time!)

A good time to  take a look at this idea is when the bank makes an escrow account adjustment, if they have lowered your overall payment  continue with paying the old amount.  If they have increased your payment, look at rounding the new payment up to the next whole number.  If you can add $80 – $100 per month you will be doing well, taking this stance can dramatically reduce your mortgage term. And the good part is you don’t have to make it formal and do it by autopay but when you do have the ca$h ~ round it up.  Plus IF your bank will allow you to prepay the interest ~ that gives you a bigger deduction of mortgage interest for your tax return.  Added bang for your buck.

We’ve heard this saying all of our lives but tend to think of it in terms of putting money away in a jar, piggy bank or bank ~ if you can’t or don’t try this instead….

When you are paying your bills round the payment amount to the next whole dollar or better still to the next round number, so $131.12 becomes $132 or $135, $46.25 can become $47 or $50.

Unless you are counting every penny you wont miss it ! and when cash is tight you can use the slack or find you have paid down any balance quicker.  It also makes it a lot easier to balance your accounts or total up your spending.

When withdrawing money from your accounts, whether at the ATM or bank counter, credit card cash advance or debit card cash make the withdrawal for an uncommon amount (so not $50 or $100) but instead $30,$60,$90 etc. 

What does this achieve?  It sets a standard pattern for your account, so if anyone else makes a withdrawal (either family member or stranger) without knowing your pattern it will be obvious (unless they read this article too).  This also helps you identify any strange withdrawals, in these days of  identity theft the banks are more obliging but the more proof you can give the better.

My youngest had a sealed account at our bank, no check book, no debit card so I assumed the funds were safe!  Wrong, someone at the bank miskeyed an automatic withdrawal for a gym membership and even once I found out they would reverse it ~ they said my daughter may have done it or have given permission!  At the time she was 9.  I resolved the issue eventually working with the gym, (although the bank would never give her back the lost interest on the hundreds of dollars taken out) and closed the account at this bank.  But….%).