You can’t win a wrestling match against a Himalayan blackberry vine. Some of the creepers are as thick as my finger, with spines the shape of shark’s teeth. If they want you, they’ll get you – and they’ll hold on.
The only way out is to dance.
Re-entry is, um, a challenge.
I stumbled into my apartment at 12:30 a.m. today, dragging/lugging about 60 pounds of luggage from the plane to the train to the downtown bus. It might have been half an hour sooner but I just missed the train, which meant I just missed the bus and had to wait another 37 minutes.
I just missed them because I stopped to help a young mother with her two-under-two kids when we got off the plane. They’d been sitting next to me, apparently on their way to what cartoonist Scott Adams called the Colicky Baby Convention. They were like family, especially since the 5-month-old had thrown up on me during the flight.
Go out to lunch. Seriously.
I’ve eaten in restaurants more often in the past 10 weeks than I have in the entire previous year. That’s not as big a deal as it seems, since in Seattle I cook almost all my own meals. Here in Anchorage, though, my hostess and I like to go to Harley’s Old Thyme Café. I’ve also enjoyed taking my muddy nephew, his little brother and his mom out to eat.
Not that I’ve completely lost my cheap edge: I often use BOGOs or other coupons that I’ve gotten from social media, the Val-Pak mailings and newspaper supplements.
Naturally it would be cheaper to heat up a can of soup. But isn’t it swell to have someone cook for you once in a while?
Carnival time.
My work is in three PF carnivals this week. A big thank-you to the judges.
Tracy treats her feet.
Which giveaway would you prefer on Friday: more spa products or a gift card?
Yet another reason to order your credit report.
If there’s even a hint of impending layoffs at your workplace, get a copy of your credit report. That’s the advice of Gail Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the nonprofit National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
Why? Because potential employers may want a look at it. If there are any errors or delinquencies on your report, the time to deal with them is before you need to make a good impression.
Blog roundup: We’re getting gouged edition.
Textbook sellers want to gouge you. Banks keep finding ways to gouge you. Some states are investigating potential gouges, i.e., taxes on everything from shoe repair to golf to bowling. (Wonder where they stand on the repair of bowling shoes?)
Read on for a chance to learn, among other things, how to put your children on a budget. No more free rides, kiddies.
Giveaway: Treat your feet.
In most of the country — not here — summer means sandals and flip-flops. We’ve still got a month or more of naked toes. That’s why you need this week’s giveaway.
To budget or not to budget?
My monthly health insurance payment has risen by $40, starting now. The increase was anticipated, or at least announced. I’d managed to block the amount, though, so I was still surprised.
My bimonthly electric bill was $22 higher than the previous one, thanks to a Seattle City Light rate increase. An extra $11 per month won’t kill me. But it got my attention.