Weekend Damages (6/26 - 6/27)

• Nada

It's all going on the expense report :)

Thursday & Friday Damages (6/24 - 6/26)

Thursday

• $2.01 - McDonald's (Iced Coffee...surprise, surprise!)

Friday

• $1.25 - Diet Pepsi
• $13.87 - Coldstone (ice cream after dinner at Basho..courtesy of Aaron)

Big news, well not really but I'm telling you anyways...I will be out of town until next Thursday evening at a SWS Conference in Utah, which means that most of what I'll be spending (food) will be reimbursed by work, as was the cost of my hotel and flight. So I'm hoping that the blog will be rather lame for the next week or so...for the sake of my wallet. 

Locavore Wednesday Damages

Locavore: a person who eats only foods grown locally. Locavores grow their own food or buy foodstuffs grown within their regions.

• $0

While I didn't spend a dime today, I didn't come home empty handed. Today is pickup day for my CSA! The kikster was kind enough to pick up the goods solo today because I was out in western Mass playing in wetlands. Here's a run down of this week's goods...

• Boston bib lettuce
• Red leaf lettuce
• Arugala
• Spinach
• Peas
• Turnips (not a clue what to do with a turnip...help!)
• Garlic scapes (last week I made garlic scape hummus, this week...pesto!)
• Basil

Good stuff. Aaron is going to have a lot of veggies to eat before next Wednesday because I'm off to Utah on Saturday for conference for work.  Veg out.

Soon to be Spending Spree

Dear Readers,

As you all know, or some of you know, I am currently working full-time and going to school to get my masters. As you can imagine this leaves me very little free/fun time. SO as a haleigh lula I'm done with school Aaron and I have planned a trip for the end of September to celebrate my freedom (for you see he has suffered quite a bit from my schooling as well...think of having to deal with me horribly stressed out, tired and cranky, although his golf game certainly has benefited). Where are we going you ask? GREECE!

We will be spending a day in Athens, I mean you kind have to see the Parthenon when you're in Greece, and then we're headed off for a tour of the Greek Isles. I am incredibly excited. So far all we have is our tickets over there, which you may have noticed I never claimed on this here blog. Well that's because Aaron bought the tickets and I will be covering the accommodations during our voyage. At least that's the arrangement for now, we'll see if we need to even things up a little more as the planning progresses.  

As you can imagine though, this trip will require some moohlah to change hands. All the more reason for me to stop spending money on crap I don't need.

The ante has been raised my friends, game on.

I think I might put a little post-it in my wallet that just says GREECE as a reminder.

Monday & Tuesday Damages (6/21 - 6/22)

Monday

• $12.53 - CVS (odds and ends)
• $28.71 - Hess

Tuesday

• $43.18 - Target (Random crap)

So amongst the random crap was a new Kong ball for Maggie Mae. I will be slowly acquiring new toys, a bowl stand (so her stomach doesn't flip while eating), a leash, clean-up bags, etc. for this beast...

(Maggie is the pup on the left, her sidekick Snickers is on the right)

Here's a little piece of knowledge for all of you dog owners out there...keep in mind that it is totally unrelated to becoming a more conscious consumer. Fill your dog's Kong with peanut butter and then freeze it. It will keep the nugget entertained for quite some time. A lovely treat for them when you leave for work. :)

I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends...

Seriously.

Tonight was a night full of temptations. There was a Sunday night "Styleathon" on the La La. Obviously this is a seriously pot of temptations for me, but I managed to resist. I can't take all the credit though, I don't know that I would have had the strength if I hadn't just read an email from an old friend from the 'Noke, who I haven't talked to in FAR to long. Well she came across my blog and emailed me a pretty amazing story, which I would like to share with all of you (in a slightly paraphrased version)...

She and her fiance recently moved their lives out to CA. You can imagine the scene, their entire lives packed into a UHaul being dragged behind their car. As most of us would do, they took the opportunity to see friend along their journey and after crashing at a friends house they were confronted with a harsh reality when their friend told them...

'hey guys, i hate to say it, but i think your car has been towed.' the car, and the u-haul, were gone from the street. we called the local police dept., towing companies, etc., with no luck. we slowly became aware of what had happened.......... everything we owned was stolen. we had what we were wearing and our cell phones (unfortunately, we had left our wallets in the car, too, as it was basically in our friends' driveway and our guard was totally down).

we immediately concluded that all we needed was each other :) and started putting our material lives back together. and 2 weeks later we moved into our new apt. with two duffels of donated clothes, a 30 rack of budweiser, and a bottle of champagne - easiest move in ever!

there are some moments when i'm like "dammit! i just want my favorite __ back!", but overall, we have replaced very little, and have done some tracking of overall spending, etc., in order to keep a handle on what the theft's cost was to us and our families.


Holy crap. Intense, amazing, inspiring. Love the addition of bud and champagne for your move in, because let's face it...no matter how much stuff needs to be moved, you need a drink to make the move official. It's law.

Thanks for the story Jen, it was a great reminder of why I'm tracking my spending for the year! AND it helped me stave off the drive to purchase any of these items (did you guys really think I could resist sharing my temptations with you? come on now!)...

$25 from $58. Zohba Boutique on the La La. 

$

 $25 from $56. Zohba Boutique on the La La. 

$25 from $64. Zohba on the La La.

$45 from $128. Calvin Klein on the La La.

$45 from $128. Calvin Klein on the La La. 

$

 $35 from $99. Michael Kors on the La La.

Weekend Damages (6/19 - 6/20)

Saturday

•  $0

Sunday

• $57.82 - Planet Dog 

So, I went home to little Rhody for a Father's Day BBQ on Sunday. It was a good time. You know the usual harassment from my father...I need to move back to Rhode Island and live with my parents because I'm going to get murdered in Boston, according to him it's only a matter of time...comforting. And of course the taunts that bacon fat was added to my veggie crumbles and that's why they tasted so good...riiight. Thanks Dad,  but anyways that's not what this blog is about, so let's stay on task, shall we?

I was horrified by the state of my pups Puppia harnesses. I mean they both looked homeless. The front of Megs's harness was half shredded and the clasp on her spare was broken so it's a precarious situation walking her in it for she could break loose at any moment. And then there's Snickers who's harness is duct taped together. So while my parents have totally high-jacked my dogs and I've been told that I can't take them back in October after I will be safely settled in the burbs...I felt the need to buy them new harnesses, because well, they're still my babies. Not to mention if my dad was left to his own devices he'd be fashioning something out of rope and duct tape. So I bought them each a Cozy Hemp Harness from Planet Dog. Hopefully these hold up a little better than Puppia, which I've decided are designed for small dogs who don't play rough (whimps)...not a good fit for my nuggets, not a good fit at all.

And just for fun, I give you... the NUGGETS!

Thursday & Friday's Damages (6/17 - 6/18)

Thursday

• $5.25 - Dunkin Donuts (Iced Coffee and some Munkins for the field...a girl needs to treat herself when she starts work at 5:30AM!)
• $ 30 - Paid to Aaron for a portion of the drinks/food consumed at the Sox Game

Friday

• Free - Iced Coffee from Dunkin Donuts (thanks Aaron)
• $30 - Buy With Me ($30 for $60 worth of food at Terra Del Sol in Natick)
• $20.13 - Roche Bros. (Dinner fixins for Thai lettuce wraps, yum)

Now an excerpt from Jack's personal diary/letter writing campaign...

Dear people who ask for plastic,

Are you kidding me? Seriously, with the plastic bags. Get on board and get yourself some reusable bags already. I mean come on! Your love for plastic bags makes me violent. It's wasteful and disgusting, and just so you know, you're single handedly helping to innocent wildlife, like this little guy...

His name was Theodore, and he died a horrible death from plastic ingestion. I hope you're proud of yourself.

Get it together,
Jack Skellington

Side Note...

Seriously. I hate Kobe. Hate him in his scumbag face. 

BEAT LA! Go Celtics!!

Wednesday's Daily Damage AND Exciting News (6/16)

Today's the day people! The kikster and I picked up our very first CSA basket (in our case we filled up reusable grocery bags) and it looks delicious. After a mildly rough start...we took the wrong back road and were convinced that we'd been had by a fake Farmer Dave, but alas we found them! Here's what we got this week...

• Boston bib lettuce
• Romain lettuce
• 1/2 Zuchini (remember that I split this with Kiki)
• Squash (some mini variety, I should have written down it's name b/c I can't remember)
• 2 Beets
• 3 Radishes
• 1/2 Bok Choy (which apparently is a Chinese cabbage)
• Bag of snap peas
• Garlic scapes (curly and adorable...never even seen these things before!)

So much deliciousness! AND this is only 1/2 of the share! Freaking craziness. Not to mention the fact that I prepaid for my veggies up through October so I feel like it's free (yes, I realize it's not technically but can't you just let me have my moment).

I am trying not to dwell on the fact that I don't know how to cook about 75% of what is in this basket, repeated panicked phone calls to my  mother will take care of that.

Thanks Farmer Dave!

Oh yeah and I didn't spend a dime today. Overall win.

Things I want, don't need, and therefore didn't buy

Okay, so I've been slacking on getting you guys the update on all the goodies that I have managed to resist, either because I just straight don't need them or because they're made by 6 year olds in China, Mexico, India, etc., etc. So here they are...

Cute white capris on the XCVI boutique on Rue La La. 
$29 from $58.

Bag on Jane Marvel boutique on Rue La La. 
$59 from $119.

Alps mountaineering chair on Steap and Cheap. 
$64.99 from $139.
This chair makes the camping chairs I stole from my parents look pathetic, and therefore makes me look pathetic for sitting in them.

Arc'teryx Hercules Hooded Fleece on Steap and Cheap. 
$174.97 from $349.95.

Marmot Rubicon Jacket on Tramdock.
$59.99 from $299.95.
If this were just a rain jacket and not a winter coat I would have considered it much more seriously. My current rain coat is falling far short when it comes to keeping me dry.

Monday, Tuesday's Daily Damages (6/14 - 6/15)

Monday

• 1.54 - Baskin Robbins (much needed ice cream after visiting a horrible site at work...sadly it was hands down the worst service in the world)
• $19.42 - CVS (randomness)

Tuesday

• $2.56 - Dunkin Donuts (Iced Coffee after a long, hot day in the field with the Kikster...this may become a pattern for our Tuesday/Thursday summer project)
• $30.76 - Rue La La

They had me at vegan...

  $29 from $61 on the Jane Marvel boutique on the La La. 

Yes it's imported, but it's vegan (this is the justification I am giving myself...so while it's not local, it is conscious....right?)! I would really like to buy mostly vegan items (shoes & purses) from here on out. The problem I seem to run into, particularly with shoes is that they're horribly, horribly ugly. BUT this bag my friends, is 100% vegan laminated canvas. So you can see why I had to have it.

 
Other vegan items that I may be buying soon...

Tom's vegan, organic shoes...

They look so oober comfie! And, a friend of mine has a pair and she loves them...sold. Stay tuned for that purchase. I'm going to hold off for now, not sure how long I'll be able to stave off temptation though.

Weekend Damage (6/12-6/13)

Saturday

• $5.24 - Dunks (Iced Coffee and Gatorade)
• $10 - Not Your Average Joe's (salad)
• FREE STUFF GALORE - Swap Party

Sunday

• $5.94 - iTunes (Sami's new album!!...had $2.12 on my iTunes account left over from Christmas so really this only cost $3.82...double score)

Buy your copy today!!! I promise you'll love it.

Swap-alop

Another Swap Party success.  Special thanks to Meghan and Jenn for making it happen...again. I remain obsessed with swap parties.

So as promised, here's a sneak peak from the party.

 Literally piles of clothing...piles!

 Happy Girls. Notice Meghan wearing a dress on top of her outfit...well I mean you have to make sure it fits!

There she is again.

My Loot...

• Large bamboo vase
• Small black vase
• Black purse (Banana Republic)
• Black heels (Nine West)
• Cream & black peep toe heels (Carlos)
• Brown & gold flip flops (Tommy Hilfiger)
• 2 Silk Tops - gold and blue (Banana Republic)
• White top with brown details (Forever 21)
• Tan sweater coat (Ann Taylor)
• Greenish tank with noisy little sparkly things on it (Forever 21)...I think that I will need to get one semi-obnoxious tank top at every swap party...this is what I've decided. 
• Two long skirts (to be worn on a trip that I'm planning for next year...more on that later)
• Jewelry - necklace that says believe and a silver bracelet
• Toiletries - lip remedy (Origins), bath ball (Lush...which I will give to my Mom or Auntie Ree), Pantene 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner (for Aaron...like most guys having to use a separate shampoo & conditioner is unthinkable...I mean it would take another 2 minutes off of his life)

 There it is, in all of its free glory. 

 Although, it's hard to pick my favorite...I think these are it. I have been looking for a pair of t-strap sandals for a while now, and here they are! AND they were free. Fabulous.

The sparkly tank in all it's glory. I'm sure I can put this to good use at a bachelorette party.

(Please note: once again, Aaron's fabulous hand modeling skills)

Pretty bamboo vase, reeds weren't included, I just happened to already have them. (actually I have 3 sets of them and I mixed two for this ensemble...it's weird to have 3 sets of decorate reed things, huh...yeah I thought so, ah well)

There were also three items that I got from Court (who supplied close to half of the goods which we swapped!) before we even left for the party...

• Cuisinart mini food processor
• Set of plates
• Metal decorative wall piece

So I know it sounds like I went a little crazy, but I ended up coming home with one bag of stuff and I brought 2 1/2 so really I think I was rather restrained. We ended up donating around 5 large trash bags of stuff to charity too. So really what that tells me is...I am not the only one who buys and hold on to unnecessary items.  Not that I didn't know this before, but the swap party most definitely confirmed this belief.

Friday's Daily Damage (6/11)

Friday

• $31.34 - Hess (feeding time, the nature of the beast...sigh)
• Should have been some $$ for drinks and apps at Tia's with Shaver and Chris but somehow my money ended up back in my bag...thanks Chris. 

I am tired of putting gas in Veruca. I mean she's fuel efficient and all, but seriously it's getting old. I would prefer to be driving...

I give you, the Nissan Leaf.
I thoroughly enjoy the cuteness of this little gem. Thoroughly enjoy it. I plan on Veruca being with me for a while, but next up...electric car, for sure.


I also took a look at the Chevy Volt, and while I also enjoy the Volt, it a little too intense looking for my liking. I mean look at how cute and bubish the Leaf is! AND the Leaf is just a WAY cooler name than the Volt...think of all the naming possibilities.

Okay but enough talk about cars that I am in no position to even be thinking about purchasing, on to bigger news. We're talking Swap Party #2 people. That's right, round two. It's all going down on Saturday evening, same rules, new stuff. I can't wait! Here are some of the items I will be swapping...

• Fleece lined rubber boots with polar bears on them
• The infamous blue sequin top (b/c really when will I ever wear it again?)
• Pair of Nine West shoes (wedge type things)
• Mountain Hardware fleece (gem of my swap items!)
• Various DVDs and Books
• Jewelry that I never wear (think free gifts from Chico's that my Aunt is constantly giving me)
• Ice cube trays (hah, I enjoy a certain level of randomness)

 Stay tuned for an update about what's sure to be some awesome swaps.

Monday - Thursday Damages (6/7 - 6/10)

Monday

• $1.25 - Diet Pepsi

Tuesday

• $5.00 - Dunkin Donuts (Iced Coffee & Bagel...the bagel was terrible if you must know)

Wednesday

• $0

Thursday

• $5.00 - Dunkin Donuts (Iced Coffee &Bagel....again the bagel was terrible. It's 5 even b/c I left my change as a tip)
• $16.08 - Target

Weekend Damages (6/5 -6/6)

Saturday

• $2.13 - Dunks (Medium Iced Coffee)

So I have noticed recently that the price for a medium iced coffee varies from store to store for Dunkin Donuts. What's with that?

Sunday

• $6.89 - Big Y (emergency hairspray and some gum...god love 100% humidity with curly hair)

Thursday and Friday's Daily Damages (6/3-6/4)

Thursday

• $2.82 - Dunkin Donuts (Large Iced Coffee)...I worked late last night (1am) so a large iced coffee was an absolute must to get my day started right...well to get it started at all really.

Friday

• $40 - High School Graduation present for Aaron's little brother.

Tuesady and Wednesday's Daily Damages (6/1-6/2)

Tuesday

• $38.60 - Johnny's Market
• $2.42 - UMass Cafeteria (Diet Dr. Pepper and bag of baked lays) 

Wednesday

•  $2.43 - Dunkin Donuts (iced coffee while waiting for the CSX flagger that never showed up for a delineation...great start to a day)
• $104.95 - Rue La La (Adidas Boutique)
• $39.96 - Amazon

I know what you're thinking...you caved to the LaLa again! Sadly you are correct, but at least I have an excuse! I bought my dad his father's day and birthday present, which may become his fathers day present from myself and my brother depending on whether or not the bro got him anything yet...although he usually relies on me to do that, so I'm assuming he didn't. I also got Aaron a shirt, just because. Granted it's the same shirt that I got my dad...I know...weird, but I like the shirt so get over it. I mean just look how dapper this gentleman looks in the attire...

$35 from $60.

$35 from $65. This is the one that I got for both Aaron and my Dad. 

 I also made a purchase at Amazon for two new books. Hold onto your seat now...they're pretty freaking exciting...

The Newcomb's Wildflower Guide

My favorite wildflower key, which I need to replace the one that mysteriously disappeared from my cube. Apparently I work amongst thieves.

Invasive Plants: Guide to Identification and the Impacts and Control of Common North American Species.

 Needed for my thesis project with the Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary this summer. I will be preparing a report on the status of invasive species and control measure that should be taken in the sanctuary. Hopefully I get it all done by August 31st b/c then I'll be done with grad school!!! YEEESSSS!

I told you it was exciting! Side note: the juries still out as to whether or not I will put all, or some of this purchase on my expense report...

Manic May

Total: $1,528

Housewares: $571 (remember those hardwoods?)
Gifts: $283
Gas: $164
Bars/Restaurants: $154
Health & Beauty: $90
Shoes: $85
Randomness: $65
Groceries: $46
Snackages: $22
Travel: $20
Entertainment: $15
Coffee: $12
Clothing: $0 (the sole $0 category of the month)

Seriously, I am failing at this whole scaling back thing. FAILING! It's quite disheartening to be honest. I promised myself that I would follow through with this resolution though, so I can't stop now. I mean, even if I fail at being a more conscious consumer at least I can keep my resolution to call myself out on mindlessly shopping.

Although, I suppose all is not lost. I mean, I have made some more responsible decisions about where I've been spending my money, even though I seem to be spending every last penny of it. The hardwoods were bought from a local store, my groceries (even though there were very little of them) were purchased at a local grocery store, and some of the random items that I purchased, like the toy toy and treats for the pups were bought from a local doggy boutique instead of Pet Co. or Pet Smart...PLUS a lot of my dough was spent on gifts for others this month, just as a side note.

Sigh, here's hoping that June goes a little better for my bank account.