Monthly Archives: November 2006

November Winding Down

Wow, what a hectic month. Thanksgiving is behind us now and Christmas is right around the corner. And then New Year’s Eve. I hope everyone had a great Turkey Day.

We went to Tennessee this year for Thanksgiving. My Dad passed away in October and I knew it would a difficult time for my Mom. Mom and my sister, Jeannie met us at my brother Jerry’s home in Tennessee. The food was great and the company was even better.

My yard sale turned out pretty good last week. I think I will actually have a yard sale myself this Spring. Lord only knows I have enough stuff to sale. It is amazing how much “stuff” we collect over the years.

I have been working in my future garden spot. I have been spreading the manure and hay. Starbucks has bags of coffee grounds that you get free and you can add to your compost or garden area. I picked up a bag the last time I went there with my daughter. Looking forward to picking up a couple more of them since my garden area is large.

I think I may have missed the appropriate time to plant bulbs for my flower bed. I will have to look that up since it is still Fall and the temperature here was 64 degrees at 9pm last night. Isn’t the internet great? I love having so much knowledge at my fingertips.

I have a subscription to Mother Earth News and I am thoroughly enjoying the articles. Even my daughter is interested in it. She is really interested in taking care of our environment. The solar homes information and building your own home stuff is really stimulating information. Makes me want to get to work and make my home and life more self-sufficient.

Clean burnt pots

In my family, we love grilled onions. I occasionally let the pans burn a little….along with the onions. Also, tonight I was steaming some vegetables and let the water boil out of the bottom pan. What a black mess in the bottom of my Salad Master Pans.

I added a little bit of Dawn dishwashing detergent in the bottom of burnt pan with enough water to cover the burnt area. Then I put the pan on the stove top and heated it until the water boiled. I have a gas stove so it was very quick.

I then pour the water out, sit the pan in the bottom of my empty sink, and scrub with a green scrubbie. I didn’t even have to use any cleaners other than the Dawn.

It is cheap and just took a little muscle power. Not much though. I guess you could just use a Brillo pad but I like to keep all the cleansers off my pots and pans and dishes, if possible. It isn’t always possible. Sometime the outside of my pots get dirty and I use some Barkeepers friend.

Yard Sales

Preparing for a yard sale is a lot of work.

CHECKLIST:

1. Deciding when to have the yard sale/check weather for rain.

2. Deciding what to sell.

3. Cleaning items, washing clothing, packaging some items together (like sheets and pillow cases).

4. Deciding how to price the items.

5. Finding tables for displaying items.

6. Making posters/signs.

7. Going to the bank for change-coins and bills.

8. Getting up really early to get items displayed before those early bargain hunters arrive.

I am actually having a whole house yard sale for someone else who will not be present. LONG STORY!

I have been to yard sales and flea markets but I am wondering how people decide what to charge. Do you charge a certain percentage of the original price? Say, 10 % of the original price. I am thinking that sounds about right. If a CD cost $15.99, I think $1.50 would be good. A recliner that originally cost $199.00 selling for about 20 bucks. I guess it really depends on the condition of items, too. Then you have to decide whether you want a certain price or whether you should price higher to allow for the haggling of prices.

Well, that is my exciting plans for this coming weekend. I need to have my own yard sale one of these days.

Isn’t amazing how many things we acquire over the years? My family is pretty good about checking first to see if any family member wants anything before we get rid of things. I missed out on some great recliners that my sister, Sandy was getting rid of because we live in Florida and she lives in NC. I didn’t have a way to get them here without renting something to transport the furniture. Too expensive to rent a truck.

Well, time to get going. I am working on step 3 of my checklist which is the most time consuming. Wish me luck.

So much to do, so little time

It’s 6am and I am sitting at the computer enjoying a cup of coffee and half watching a lady on the television teaching exercises. At least this lady is older and isn’t dressed in those skimpy clothes showing all her great curves. I know those women are showing you how great you can look if you exercise, but I find looking at them discouraging. I can’t imagine that I could ever look like them. Afterall, they look 20ish or 30ish. I guess I should imagine myself looking better and not compare myself to them. Right!

Exercising! I keep telling myself that needs to be part of my routine for the day. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit…I usually last about 6 days. lol

Yeah, I will start exercising today…after I unclog my kitchen sink, get a belt for my washing machine, work 6 hours at my job, grocery shop, mail bills, go to bank, make posters for a yard sale tomorrow, buy a present for my nephew and a new answering machine, straighten up my house, and cook up 5 lbs of hamburger meat into four ounces patties.

I use to go back to bed every morning after I got my husband out the door for work at 530am. Now, I find I need the extra time just to get my list of “things to do today” completed.

BUT, I am very thankful that I have the good health to perform these chores and the money to purchase the things I need.

I have already looked at the grocery store circulars and have found a couple of bargains to purchase. I see paper towels and t-bones are on special. yoo hoo

Wow! Christmas shopping is another “thing to do” that I need to start on. Every year I tell myself I will start early and maybe even start a Christmas Club at the bank. So far, no luck. There is always next year. tee hee

Think I will go see if I can get my daughter up for an early morning walk. We discussed it last night but we didn’t say we would start this morning. Wish me luck.