The Zen of living without credit

Success - or, The Squeaky Wheel Gets The Grease

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 09:27:28 PST

Woo hoo!

I last reported that my area Kroger refused my Internet coupons. Well, I fought back... and won!

First, I called the store itself. Left a message for the manager to call me back. I didn't hear anything, so I called Corporate to find out their official policy with...

$20 Challenge, my kick-off

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 05:37:38 PST

All-RIIIIIIGHT!

I officially kicked off my $20 Challenge last night. Went to get my boys' prescriptions filled and I had two Instant Rebate forms that I printed off the Internet for $10 off Adderall (each of my boys take it). Walgreens took the rebates with no problem.

Ka-CHING!...

Frustration with coupon trains

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 16:10:05 PST

I am not on a coupon train. In fact, I never even heard of them until I started looking here. I thought they sounded like a good idea... so, I've looked around for one that I could join.

All I can say is, you have GOT to be kidding me.

Just about all of them have done everything...

Ack! My Kroger quit accepting e-coupons!

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 13:08:27 PST

Grrrrrrrrr...

Last night I went to Kroger, all proud of myself because I'd had everything planned out, coupons at the ready. I was gonna fill my freezer with Bird's Eye and Green Giant veggies.

That is, until I got to the checkout.

The cashier advised me ever-so-smugly that...

More details on my diet

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 10:51:25 PST

Well, I've had some requests about the diet plan I'm following, so here goes.

It is actually a pre-op diet that I am on, in anticipation of weight loss surgery. I am a candidate for roux-en-y gastric bypass, and I am on this diet in an effort to get into a "weight loss" state,...

Wedding Frugality, Part IV

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 15:00:57 PST

Still more ways to save on the big event.

I never realized how much "extra" stuff was associated with a wedding. Gifts for attendants. Gifts for parents. Gifts for the person you're going to marry. Rehearsal dinner.

Yeah. It's enough to nickel and dime you to death and it...

Grocery price book - how to begin?

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 14:53:48 PST

I've been reading about these grocery price books. Have no idea where to start. Do y'all just stroll through the aisles of the local Kroger and write down prices? Has a manager ever come up and started asking questions? Or, do you wait until you get home from shopping and just...

Menu for the week

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 05:17:46 PST

I am on a medically supervised diet. It's high-protein, but not extremely low carb like Atkins.

Here are the daily guidelines:
> 60g protein
< 60g carbs
< 30g fat

Try to keep the total calories under 1450.

With that in mind, here's this week's supper menu:

Monday: Turkey Loaf (meatloaf made with ground turkey instead of ground beef)

Tuesday: Crock Pot Roast

Wednesday: BBQ Baked Chicken (sauce is spicy and sweetened with Splenda rather than sugar)

Thursday: Meatless Chili (made with veggie burger crumbles)

Friday: Chicken & Spinach Adobo

Saturday: Blackened Catfish

Sunday: Spicy Grilled Marinated Chicken Breasts

For breakfast I usually have either an omelette made with Egg Beaters - they have mixes now with the veggies already in there, the Southwestern mix is fabulous - or I'll have lowfat/sugar free yogurt and maybe a protein smoothie.

Lunch varies, usually it's leftovers from the night before or something high-protein like tuna.

Snacks: low-fat string cheese, beef/turkey jerky, hummus or low-fat cream cheese on Wasa crackers, small piece of fruit, stuff like that.

The toughest thing for me is finding sources of protein. but I'm slowly getting better at it.

Wedding Frugality, Part III

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 21:14:29 PST

I'm throwing rice at the girl that I love
After she just said "I do"

Another part of a wedding that can really hurt the pocketbook: favors. They can be outrageous if you order them pre-made from party stores or companies that make favors. But you don't want to leave your guests...

Wedding Frugality, Part II

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 13:20:40 PST

"I used to think a wedding was a simple affair. A boy and girl meet, they fall in love, he buys a ring, she buys a dress, they say 'I do.' I was wrong. That's getting married. A wedding is an entirely different proposition. I know. I've just been through...

Wedding Frugality, part I

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 08:12:11 PST

We got married in a fever,
Hotter than a pepper sprout...

I got married (again) about 9 months ago and really wanted to have a wedding (I didn't have one the first time). I did it, however, on a cash-only budget. Did I scrimp and save? Yes, but not to the point where I was...

Why Zen?

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 13:09:50 PST

The Zen of living without credit... why "Zen?"

Zen involves letting go of attachments - to physical, emotional, all kinds of things. When we let go of the attachments, then we achieve true enlightenment. We discover that we already have everything we need.

Keeping this in...

A milestone (or, better credit = lower insurance rates)

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 12:35:09 PST

It was time, very recently, for me to renew my auto insurance. Because of my previous credit mistakes, my insurance premiums had been rather high.

Now, I'm beginning to see the benefits of all this work. I contacted an insurance agency that had turned me down just a few years...

Instant rebate for AdderallXR

faliang@hughes.net (Atomic Melanie) — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 12:13:24 PST

I have five kids. Two of them are taking AdderallXR for ADHD. One month, the insurance wasn't in effect and to pay cash for the prescription? Let me just say that I had to pick myself up off the floor. Nearly $500 for two 30-day supplies.

It is nearing the time where I will...