I didn’t accomplish much today. My girlfriend in NY accidentally called me at 7:30am her time, so it was only 4:30am my time. I did manage to fall back to sleep and when the alarm went off at 9:00am I wondered if I had dreamt it. I left her a voicemail, saying, “Did you call me at 4:30am telling me you had a plumbing problem?” She called back and said she could have gotten over on me by saying, “What the hell are you talking about? You were dreaming!"
Anyway, I just relaxed around the apartment, working on the computer and finalizing the contract with Mayflower Movers, which I have to fax tomorrow. I’m kind of freaking out about it, because it means I have to set a date. I don’t actually have to set the EXACT date tomorrow, I just have to fax the signed contract and then let them know.
I also found out about shipping the car, which is a little complicated. It’s $1,050 to ship from here to NY, but the Mayflower guy recommended them, because having Mayflower do it is over $1,500. The thing is, on their website they say, “Let us know the earliest we can pick up the car and then we’ll pick it up that day, or within a few days.” So, I have to find out if I can leave the keys with someone else and just have them pick it up from the parking lot, or if I have to be there, in which case that means I may be without a car for the last few days, which would stink.
Also, once they ship my stuff I won’t have a bed, or much of anything else, so I guess I’ll be flying out as soon as they pick-up everything and then wait for it in NY. Some of it has to go into storage, so it will give me time to rent room in a storage facility nearby. SO much to think about and it just makes me want to take a nap!
So, I finally got out of the house and drove to COSTCO to get gas at around 3:00pm. I decided to pick up a few other items, so after filling up ($28.19 @ $2.09 per gallon – I was REALLY on “E”), I went inside for my “free lunch.” Hey, I’m definitely not the only person who does it, and besides – I’m unemployed and everyone in this country is pinching pennies, tightening their belts, and trying to save however they can. If walking around COSTCO with my cart three times in order to have enough lox on toasted bagels with cream cheese, salad with low-fat ranch dressing, Ramen noodles, low-sodium vegetable soup, “drinkable” yogurt, and grilled Atlantic salmon makes me cheap – so be it! It was delicious and I thoroughly enjoyed it!!!!
I also bought a 12-pack of spicy tuna sushi (which is the same price as a 6-pack in KEIL’S!), and an 18-serving EASY MAC Macaroni & Cheese for only $6.50. I told Eric that I feel guilty, because I know it’s not dietetic and it’s not the healthiest thing in the world, but I figure at about 35 cents a serving, and with me trying to save money, it won’t kill me.
I used to have this discussion with Eric all the time – it’s impossible to be rich, healthy, and thin. If you concentrate on really being healthy, it costs a fortune. If you concentrate on really saving money (so you can be rich), you eat cheaply and get fat and unhealthy (like stuffing your face at TACO BELL for $4 – which, by the way, I haven’t done for about 10 years!). If you want to be thin, you have to also spend a lot of money, because fresh produce, fish and meat is definitely more expensive that spaghetti, mac & cheese, pizza, or Mexican food, or starve yourself, which means you’re also not very healthy. See what I mean?
That's why you sometimes see very poor people and they're so fat, and you say to yourself, "Why don't they eat less? They'll lose weight and save money." The fact is, they're eating what they can afford, which is unhealthy, fattening, and CHEAP!
So, generally, I’m usually more concerned about being thin and healthy than rich, but right now, I’m concentrating on NOT BEING POOR! I don’t want to spend more than I’m bringing in on unemployment, and I DO eat out once or twice a week (although I was treated on Monday night and Tuesday afternoon!), so I’d rather spend my money on restaurant fare than groceries.
I only have about seven weeks left here, and I’m trying my best to get everything done and keep to a budget until I leave. My daily STARBUCKS runs (you know I went today after COSTCO!) costs me about $4 a day, but I figure I don’t drink or smoke, and this is my only vice!
When I got back from COSTCO I went through more papers and got another bunch of shredding together (which I will bring to the office tomorrow, because I’m taking Tifney out to lunch for her birthday).
I started watching DR. PHIL and fell asleep. When I woke up it was dark outside. I made myself a salad and had six pieces of my spicy tuna for dinner. I didn’t use any wasabi, because the sushi itself was SO spicy. I don’t know what they have in there, but it’s definitely got a kick to it – and I like it!
Then, I got everything set up to do a decoupage project. That means putting a drop cloth on the floor in the dining area, and putting two layers of drop cloths down on my little folding card table. I also fold up three of the four chairs, so there’s no chance I’ll get glue on them.
Then, I lay out all my materials. I am working on a looseleaf binder for Stacie who, as you know, got into the TOP 10 in the MY GRAMMY MOMENT contest. I wanted to do something for her to commemorate this wonderful achievement. Then, she told me that she got SO many wonderful, supportive and encouraging emails when people found out about the contest. They wrote to tell her they were voting for her, to say how fabulous she looked, and what a wonderful job she did. I told her she should print them all out and put them in a binder.
She thought that was a great idea, and that’s when I got the idea to decoupage the binder. I’ve never done that before, but I’ve done a LOT of projects recently that I never did before – like the shoe box-style memory box I did for Kristen, or the collage I made for Elsa and Stephen. It was a little difficult working with the binder, which is just black plastic on top of thick cardboard, but so far – so good!
I stopped at around 11:15pm and decided I’d better blog and watch AMERICAN IDOL and then get to sleep! I already watched THE BIGGEST LOSER, but it was the second half of a 2-hour episode. Last night it must have been on in some areas, but it wasn’t on in San Diego and I was SO mad. The good news is I’ll be able to watch it online, because that’s one thing that is NEVER repeated – reality shows. Once they’re on, they’re gone, unless they get picked up in syndication on another channel.
Tomorrow will be a full day, because I’m meeting Tif for lunch at 11:30am, then I’ll come back with her and visit in the office for a while and shred my papers and send my fax. Then, I’ll come back to the apartment until it’s time to leave for my 5:15pm appointment.
I’m really looking forward to lunch tomorrow, because I haven’t seen Tifney in a few weeks and she’s so much fun!