Category: Shopping

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Shopping

A New Deck. A New front Lawn. A New Washer and Dryer

I’m slowly but surely spending my savings on things that I don’t necessarily have to have, but things that I have wanted forever. My lawn is currently segregated. Yep, there is this great sidewalk of Plano dividing my lawn in half and it is keeping the bermuda from mingling with the st. augustine. It’s a religious crisis that has been going on since 1984.

Enough is Enough! The Bermuda is losing this battle and I’m coming in with St. Augustine all over my lawn.

Next in line is a new deck. Why? Because I want to be outside more. I want to be able to enjoy my back yard and I want to invest a little money in my house and continue to make it my own. Sure I could hang on to this money, but why? Responsibility is for boring people who don’t take risks… okay, that’s not entirely true, but part of it is.

Lastly, I want a front loading washer and dryer and a tankless hot water heater. I need them so I can remodel my breakfast area and make it look bigger and more useable. So I’m getting stuff done now while I can and I’m not putting things on hold, life is just too short for that.

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Shopping

Coupons for Online Shopping!

Looking for bargains? Well, if you go to http://www.retailmenot.com/ you can find coupons for most of your online shopping needs. My boss found this and passed it along and said she found a coupon for ever Christmas gift she wanted to purchase online.

Enjoy!

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Health Shopping

Years of Stupidity

Yesterday I went to the grocery store and bought regular groceries. Chips, bread, milk, ingredients for spaghetti and chicken fried rice. I spent 34 dollars on about 15 meals worth of food.  I came home and whipped up a big batch of excellent spaghetti and then put it into individual containers so I could eat it the rest of the week.

So a little history here on why this is important…

For years I haven’t been buying groceries to eat at home because when I go to the grocery store I always buy healthy food and that is expensive and a good portion of the time it rots before I get a chance to eat it. However, I have no problem eating junk food when I am eating out. I love a good Burrito Ultima from Taco Cabana or a plate of chicken fried rice from the local Jade Palace. It’s quick and easy and I enjoy the convenience of eating out, however, we all know eating out gets very expensive. I started adding up my eating out budget and I realized that I spend a minimum of 1000 dollars a month on food and entertainment! Ugh. After I pay all my bills I have 2,000 dollars left over and I spend 1000-1,500 on playing. The rest goes to random expenses that come up, new underwear, a trip to visit friends, home repairs and decorations. I am literally eating and playing myself out of a future.

I enjoy eating at home when the food is good and so I decided that I would save money if I just made the foods I love at the house instead of allowing myself to eat them when I am out and in a hurry.

It’s weird to come to this conclusion after all these years. I mean I am pretty much the same now as I was 5 years ago. I seem to stay about the same weight, however, I also keep spending the same amount of money eating out. Well, yesterday that changed.

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Shopping Stories

Pressed is better than Percolated

coffee_press

One morning while I was in Minnesota my buddy Eric made a big pot of coffee using a coffee press. I’ve never really understood why someone would use a coffee press or how it actually worked and so I asked him, “Hey, what’s so great about a coffee press?”

“The flavor in coffee is in the fat and when you use a filter it captures a lot of the fat and you lose some of the flavor.”

“How does the coffee press work?” I asked, further intrigued by his knowledge of coffee.

“Well, you just grind your beans, then you boil your water. Put the grounds in the press, add hot water and then press the grounds down to the bottom.”

It was such a simple process, plus it looked much cooler than a standard boring coffee pot.

Eric sells coffee at his little side business called Spunky Monkey Coffee and he has a blog where he states, “I have a small coffee roasting business that allows me to introduce people to regional coffees from around the world and shed light on the diversity of flavors within regional coffee.”

I like a good cup of coffee especially when shared with good friends who also enjoy quality food and beverages.

I don’t have a coffee press yet, but I plan on picking one up this Fall because I love coffee in the winter.  If you want to take a look at some nice ones check out Bodum’s selection.  

 

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Shopping

Spunky Monkey Coffee: Put the Spunk, back in your Monk

Are you a coffee drinker? Do you actually budget for your Starbucks habit? If so then you may want to try Spunky Monkey Coffee. My good friend Eric, who is a seminary student in Minnesota, has started up this little side gig and I thought this was intriguing. Being an entrepreneur myself I couldn’t help but purchase a couple bags of this stuff and give it a whirl in the ol’ coffee grinder. I tried the Spunky Monkey Light this morning and had to admit that it is indeed quite tasty. It’s rich and flavorful without being bitter.

When it comes to coffee I can always tell a good cup from a bad cup based on it’s crispness. Cheap coffee lacks personality and depth and often times tastes almost chalky. A better bean produces a better cup and Spunky Monkey sure made a good cup.

I also like supporting small businesses and people just starting out and trying something new. If you like coffee, go grab some from an old Kanakuk friend and tell him Eddie sent you.