Our tax return arrived this week and CC and I have been working through the list of home improvement-esque purchases. We've made lists - pared them down - thought of new items - discovered creative ways to save on list items.
My two favorite examples: REI tent I crave = $158, Target tent = $35. Since we're not 100% sure how much we'll enjoy camping, this year we're going for the Target tent. Second, the nice vacuum we bought several years ago isn't working - but we've found a vacuum repair shop.
So today was the day to pull the trigger on cookbooks. I've been checking them out from the library for the past couple of months. Since we're moving back to the mostly-vegan diet, I wanted to invest in a bunch of cookbooks to use. Additionally, a couple of the library books were good, but we felt like the receipes could be tweaked to improve things. And while I'm sure that my handwritten notes would benefit future library patrons who checked out the book...
The six books are:
Vegetarian Times Cookbook
Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure
Veganomicon
Vegan with a Vengeance
Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way
The Asian Vegan Kitchen
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Shortest North Dakota trip, ever
CC and I drove up to Fargo on Thursday. We were going to spend the night hanging out with my little brother who's in college in Moorhead, continuing on Friday to Jamestown to spend the weekend with my parents.
I called Mom to let her know we'd arrived safely in Fargo and she asked if I'd connected with Dad - he'd been calling repeatedly. She told me she'd been working all week to prepare a room for me and a room for CC - and would that be acceptable? I calmly said no. Then she asked if they could pay for a hotel room - I said that was fine.
We then tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to have a fun night with my brother.
When we got to our hotel, I checked and my father had left the following voicemail:
"Yeah Nathan, this is your Dad. Um, I understand that you have not, that we were expecting you to be communicated with one way or another but I understand it’s not done but here’s the bottom line. For your visit with us this, um, weekend we are preparing separate bedrooms for you and for Cory and expect that your sleeping will be in accordance with that. If you feel that this is, um, an inconvenience to you both and, um, you feel that’s unacceptable, we will, um, pay for, um, staying at a hotel while you’re there. This is very distressing to your mother and, um, and that’s why it needs to be talked about because, ah, we’re concerned.
We very much still want you to come visit us and, um, pray this isn’t going to be an issue because we love you both dearly. But as you know what, you know how we feel about the issue, so. Call me if um, later, if you um want. But, um, this needs to be talked about. Or at least you need to be aware of this. Thanks. Love you very much. Bye." [my italics]
We drove back to Minneapolis on Friday.
I called Mom to let her know we'd arrived safely in Fargo and she asked if I'd connected with Dad - he'd been calling repeatedly. She told me she'd been working all week to prepare a room for me and a room for CC - and would that be acceptable? I calmly said no. Then she asked if they could pay for a hotel room - I said that was fine.
We then tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to have a fun night with my brother.
When we got to our hotel, I checked and my father had left the following voicemail:
"Yeah Nathan, this is your Dad. Um, I understand that you have not, that we were expecting you to be communicated with one way or another but I understand it’s not done but here’s the bottom line. For your visit with us this, um, weekend we are preparing separate bedrooms for you and for Cory and expect that your sleeping will be in accordance with that. If you feel that this is, um, an inconvenience to you both and, um, you feel that’s unacceptable, we will, um, pay for, um, staying at a hotel while you’re there. This is very distressing to your mother and, um, and that’s why it needs to be talked about because, ah, we’re concerned.
We very much still want you to come visit us and, um, pray this isn’t going to be an issue because we love you both dearly. But as you know what, you know how we feel about the issue, so. Call me if um, later, if you um want. But, um, this needs to be talked about. Or at least you need to be aware of this. Thanks. Love you very much. Bye." [my italics]
We drove back to Minneapolis on Friday.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Magic 61!
Yesterday I had blood drawn to check cholesterol, glucose, liver function, etc.
Today was the results show.
Good news!
Cholesterol – was 260 – now 199 (61 points lower)
Triglycerides – were 365 – now 304 (61 points lower)
LDL Cholesterol – was 138 – now 99
Blood pressure and liver functions were both normal!
Glucose is still a bit high, so I’m going on a medicine for that.
We chatted about the new diet. I rambled on about Omega-3’s and sardines. The new plan is to stay on the cholesterol/blood pressure/glucose medicines until May and recheck. If things improve even more, we’ll start dropping the medicines (I’m on the lowest doses of each right now).
Today was the results show.
Good news!
Cholesterol – was 260 – now 199 (61 points lower)
Triglycerides – were 365 – now 304 (61 points lower)
LDL Cholesterol – was 138 – now 99
Blood pressure and liver functions were both normal!
Glucose is still a bit high, so I’m going on a medicine for that.
We chatted about the new diet. I rambled on about Omega-3’s and sardines. The new plan is to stay on the cholesterol/blood pressure/glucose medicines until May and recheck. If things improve even more, we’ll start dropping the medicines (I’m on the lowest doses of each right now).
Friday, February 13, 2009
Moment of Weakness
Hungry this afternoon and Doritos in the vending machine were calling for me.
Upon arrival, realized I'd spent all my cash at lunch.
Upon arrival, realized I'd spent all my cash at lunch.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Saving $1000 next year
Our T-Mobile shackles disappear this month and I've been eagerly shopping around.
I know CC would adore an iPhone, but we both know that's not in the cards. On top of the $199 to buy the phone, the voice/data plan runs roughly $85+ just for one number.
Here's how the 2009 plan is shaping up.
I'll switch to a pre-paid plan. With both T-Mobile and AT&T, $100 buys 1000 minutes that don't expire for a year (and if you buy another $100 card next year, the remainder rolls over).
For CC, we'll go with one of the options below:
1. Basic plan with Sprint. $29.99 buys 200 anytime minutes and free nights & weekends. Plus $5 for 300 text messages.
2. Basic plan with T-Mobile $39.99 buys 300 anytimes minutes and free nights & weekends. Plus $5 for 300/200 text messages.
3. Modified pre-paid plan with AT&T. $40 montly buys 300 anytime minutes and 500 night and weekend minutes, that rollover. $5 monthly gets 200 text messages. No annual contract.
Seems sickening to think that even with this new budget plan, we'll still be paying $700 for one year of cellphone usage.
But... I added up last year's bills - $1,734.07.
I'm going to have a cup of green tea to celebrate.
Just to review - over the last year, our
I know CC would adore an iPhone, but we both know that's not in the cards. On top of the $199 to buy the phone, the voice/data plan runs roughly $85+ just for one number.
Here's how the 2009 plan is shaping up.
I'll switch to a pre-paid plan. With both T-Mobile and AT&T, $100 buys 1000 minutes that don't expire for a year (and if you buy another $100 card next year, the remainder rolls over).
For CC, we'll go with one of the options below:
1. Basic plan with Sprint. $29.99 buys 200 anytime minutes and free nights & weekends. Plus $5 for 300 text messages.
2. Basic plan with T-Mobile $39.99 buys 300 anytimes minutes and free nights & weekends. Plus $5 for 300/200 text messages.
3. Modified pre-paid plan with AT&T. $40 montly buys 300 anytime minutes and 500 night and weekend minutes, that rollover. $5 monthly gets 200 text messages. No annual contract.
Seems sickening to think that even with this new budget plan, we'll still be paying $700 for one year of cellphone usage.
But... I added up last year's bills - $1,734.07.
I'm going to have a cup of green tea to celebrate.
Just to review - over the last year, our
Monday, February 9, 2009
No barfing!
Made it through this latest weekend without getting sick. Quite a treat. So we finally put away the Christmas stuff. Well, to be more specific, we put things in boxes and tubs and everything (except the two large tubs) has been put away.
Getting mentally prepared to head back to North Dakota the weekend after next. Mom has requested that we don't make curry ("Dad's stomach...") and she doesn't want anything "too weird". She told me today that she's making salmon for dinner. She doesn't mind as long as she doesn't have to touch it.
Comments like that remind me of Sandra Dee? Have you seen "Semi-homemade"? She never touches any of the food. She uses tongs to apply dry rubs. Sandra Dee would be on my least-favorite folks list except that each show includes a themed boozy drink. I don't mind big-haired, Christian, suburban housewives that drink. Semi-boozehound?
So I'll finally be showing CC my old haunts. I'll take him to the concrete buffalo statue, drive by Perkins (we'd gather there after finishing work at the video store and chainsmoke), and see the high school (they tore down the junior high last year). 
Maybe some night we'll take my little brother to the Eagles club. The year before my move to Minneapolis my co-worker friends at the video store were finally old enough to drink. We frequented the Eagles - I loved the pink scolloped vinyl booths. I never frequented the other bars in town. During a venture to The Office, I heard two meatheads discussing Ford v. Chevy trucks ("Well I rolled my Ford truck.") and at The Brass Rail I ran into a classmate who still had that flippy bangs look going on.
Plus you can still smoke in North Dakota bars. Ick.
The grand tour of Jamestown will probably take 30 minutes. Sad.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Reinstituting Goals
Starting again in February, I'm going to refocus on goals. And borrowing a page from Carol, I'm going to have a single goal in each of several groups. I hope to finalize the categories tomorrow, but I've got a rough idea already.
Not too much to tell lately. Both CC and I fought a 24-hour something. I got sick Friday night and couldn't sleep. After hours of shivering, I finally threw up and then spent the day in bed. That makes two consecutive weekends I've spent fighting illness. And I'm sick of it.
Both CC and I considered vegan month a success. We haven't really begun the transition to the anti-inflamation diet yet - I think we'll make it a month-long process, otherwise we'll end up tossing a bunch of food. And tossing food is neither green nor thrifty.
I'm very eager for spring.
Not too much to tell lately. Both CC and I fought a 24-hour something. I got sick Friday night and couldn't sleep. After hours of shivering, I finally threw up and then spent the day in bed. That makes two consecutive weekends I've spent fighting illness. And I'm sick of it.
Both CC and I considered vegan month a success. We haven't really begun the transition to the anti-inflamation diet yet - I think we'll make it a month-long process, otherwise we'll end up tossing a bunch of food. And tossing food is neither green nor thrifty.
I'm very eager for spring.
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