day 170-mccain says... i dont need your money

wrapping up
327.17 at the start
a buck64 given back
the kitty stands at 8buck8

maximum spending tomorrow
9buck72

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 115- nutter butter

wrapping up
415.81 at the start
a buck73 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck68

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck32

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 114-white castle

wrapping up
417.70 at the start
a buck89 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck77

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck41

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 113-rum for one.

wrapping up

418.78 at the start

a buck8 spent

the kitty stands at 3buck2

maximum spending tomorrow

4buck66

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 112-grill brush

wrapping up

420.37 at the start

a buck59 spent

the kitty stands at 2buck46

maximum spending tomorrow

4buck10

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

almost caught up...

things have been a bit crazy for me... finding time to blog or the energy even has been difficult.

i am almost back..

i feel ashamed especially when the economy is going to shit.

and now i have to run...

another thing to do.

stay tuned.

day 111- now i can see my coffee.

wrapping up
421.66 at the start
a buck29 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck41

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck05

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 109-q-tip holder

wrappping up
423.05 at the start
a buck39 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck06

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck70

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 109-once upon a time there was an engineer...

wrapping up
424.58 at the start
a buck53 spent
the kitty stands at a buck81

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck45

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 108- breakfast bars... i might be needing them

wrapping up
426.27 at the start
a buck69 spent
the kitty stands at a buck70

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck34

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 107-a can of pringles and a future wi-fi card booster

wrapping up

426.27 at the start

2buck15 spent

the kitty stands at a buck75

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck39

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 106-is it body wash or just liquid soap?

wrapping up
430.05 at the start
a buck63 spent
the kitty stands at 2 buck26

maximum spending tomorrow
3buck90

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 105-microwave hot plate.. it's really not that big.

wrapping up

431.94 at the start

a buck89 spent

the kitty stands at 2buck25

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck89

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 104-into the halls of medicine

wrapping up
433.33 at the start
a buck39 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck50

maximum spedning tomorrow

4buck14

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 103-you dirty rat.. er little mouse

wrapping up

435.17 at the start

a buck84 spent

the kitty stands at 2buck25

maximum speinding tomorrow

3buck89

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 102-get excedrin and it's gone

wrapping up

436.64 at the start

a buck47 spent

the kitty stands at 2buck45

maximum spending tomorrow

4buck09

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 101-99cent shampoo..

wrapping up
437.63 at the start
99 cent spent
the kitty stands at 2buck28

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck92

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 100-pumpkin seeds.. long before halloween

wrapping up

439.19 at the start

a buck56 spent

the kitty stands at a buck63

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck27

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 99-travel bags for the plane and the satchel

wrapping up

441.05 at the start

a buck86 spent

the kitty stands at a buck55

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck19

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

where did i go?

i'll be back asap.. things are crazy, but i am still helping the economy a buck64aday. i got the junk and the pics to prove it.

updates are coming soon as well as time coming up to give me some more time to really dive back in.

sorry to all you readers out there.

we got over 250 days to go.

don't miss out.

day 98-baking soda....

wrapping up
442.73 at the start
a buck68 spent
the kitty stands at a buck77

maximum spending tomorrow
3buck41

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

i believe in crystal light. 99cent

wrapping up
443.81 at the start
a buck08 spent
the kitty stands at a buck81

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck45

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 96-love me some combos.. love them buck99

wrapping up
445.80 at the start
a buck99 spent
the kitty stands at a buck25

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck89

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

more chemicals

wrapping up
447.59 at the start
a buck79 spent
the kitty stands at a buck60

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck24

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

pasta for the riad

wrapping up
448.96 at the start
a buck37 spent
the kitty stands at a buck75

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck39

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

cheap ass cookies

wrapping up
450.41 at the start
a buck49 spent
the kitty stands at a buck48

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck12

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

mentos.. the fresh maker

wraping up

451.90 at the start

a buck49 spent

the kitty stands at a buck29

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck93

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

candy that no one will want but me.

wrapping up

452.90 at the start

a buck spent

the kitty stands at a buck14

maxiumum spending tomorrow

2buck78

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

i like mine cold as ice... i'm willing to pay the price.

wrapping up
454.68 at the start
a buck78 spent
the kitty stands at fiddycent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck14

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

coffee filters forever

wrapping up
456.22 at the start
a buck54 spent
the kitty stands at 64cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck28

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

fresh like an irish spring.

insert picture of bars of soap here.

wrapping up
457.78 at the start
a buck56 spent
the kitty stands at 54cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck18

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

when old man strength isn't enough

wrapping up
459.41 at the start
a buck63 spent
the kitty stands at 46cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck10

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

back scrubber for myself and the lady

for getting those hard to reach places

wrapping up
461.40 at the start
a buck99 spent
the kitty stands at 45cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck9

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 84- it's not real. it's rea(accent over the 'a')

welcome to a lazy purchase. really the only thought i had was that i have had recipes that called for lime juice and i did not have any around.

of course i should always have limes around, but sometimes... well all i have is a lemon and that just does not cut it.

lime is different...it is distinct. for a buck79 i will be able to fulfill my (or the lady's) recipes... the rest i can use for maragritas.

this reminds me. a week or so ago i put a bunch of jalepenos into a bottle of lower grade tequilla. the purpose? making some "burn your ass margaritas". we tasted it this past weekend and it burned us up.

i can use the remnants of this bottle to make some maragrita mix. the real stuff, not the mix you buy in the store.

this purchase just got a bit more interesting.

all i need is some triple sec and it's a go.

it seems that everything i buy requires me to buy something else. for the past 80 something day this has been going on.

i have not officially spent even 450buck, but spending a buck64aday seems to make me spend more and more.

here's to stimulating the economy.

wrapping up
465.10 at the start
a buck79 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck71

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck35

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 83- criss cross apple sauce.

it might be like baby food, but there is something about applesauce that is so comforting. sure it's just smashed up apples with some sugar and some other stuff i cannot pronounce, but it was for the most part one of my first tastes of that thing we all like to call dessert.

it probably was yours as well.

apples are good for you too. they keep the doctor away and are good for the flossing.

i always say there is nothing like eating more food to get the food out from between your own teeth.

this six pack of applesauce ran me a buck a buck59. i probably won't eat them all until i can remember to pick up some karo dark corn syrup.

that was one of mine, and my siblings, childhood desserts. my mom would open up a can of apple sauce and pour some into a bowl for each of us.

we would then make a little divot in the mound of sauce and our mom would pour karo into the middle. this was the eighties.. the seventies... i wonder if people still do it today.

really.. it's very tasty. cheap too.

for me a whole can of applesauce is a bit much, but with these portion cups i think i can manage, plus i only have to wash the spoon.

now i have to find the corn syrup. if you see it in the grocery then pick some up.

you won't be sorry.

wrapping up
466.69 at the start
a buck59 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck86

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck50

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 82- all bathrooms should have a hand towel.... fo' sho'

this one was a roommate request, and really i could not deny riad this one. i cannot tell you how long we have not had an official hand drying towel in the bathroom here at the pitt.

it's been a while.

i had a hard time finding one for the traditional buck64. i suppose i could have saved up some kitty for the towel, but really i thought i should save my money for something else.

after all i earned it... or at least the government said so.

finally i have found it. for 99cent at that . now that's a savings.

linens for 99cent are worth just about that. it's cheap.

worth about three washes cheap.

you might think that three washes is not that long a lifetime, but around here that could be months.

personally i am not that big a fan of the communal handrying towel. while i don't think that the roomies are dirty i tend to have some some terrible thoughts of the "drying towel".

the unsanitary linen drying towel was after all the impetus for the invention of the paper towel.

in my mind, unless you have a dedicated regimen of washing said towel then you should not have one hanging up in your bathroom inviting every hand to rub it.

think on this...

you are visiting a friend. you use the toilet. you have to use their one-ply t.p. as you did not bring your own. muttering to yourself you carefully wipe your business and think of all the people who have come here and mistakenly had a paper breach. not you of course. you were careful.

after dropping your friends off at the pool you go to wash your hands.

now to dry... hmm...

gotta love them paper towels.

wrapping up
467.68 at the start
99cent spent
the kitty stands at 2buck81

maximum spending tomorrow
4buck45

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 81- wiping your ass with the angels

if you are into the whole "there will be angels when i die" thing, then you might think that you will have to wait that long.

i say you don't. i say there are angels right here on earth.

they are amongst us.

they are there watching over us during own most personal moments.. guiding us... helping us to not scratch up that area that is down there. only the angels will save you from the "ass that burns".

only angels will be there to save you from some one ply copycat that will only break on you at that one wrong moment.. soiling your phalanges as they mistakenly break through.

i know its gross.. it's crass, but we have all been there. someone should publish a photography book of the looks on peoples faces as there finger breaks through with some sad one ply, only to discover what the tp already knows. this book to me would be hilarious. the reaction of people at the one moment where they know they can facially repond without anyone seeing.

just imagine the pictures. i know its a bit nasty, but think on it for a second.

and your done.

lesson in all this?

don't buy the one ply.

my brother's ex once bought the stugan out in jersey a nice present.

30 rolls of one-ply marcal ass paper.

gee thanks cokane...

i have spent the past two years in fear of fingering my own soiled sphincter.

we are down to the last roll thank god.

soon i will be wiping my ass with the angels. for a buck59 i can clean my butt the best way an american can. with some double ply cottony soft toilet paper.

i can't wait.

wrapping up
469.27 at the start
a buck59 spent
the kitty stands at 2buck16

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck80

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 80- polar bears dancing in the sunshine on a floating iceberg

our arctic ice cap is shrinking... shrinking.. shrinking. why? well no one wants to say why. we have all these scientists and all this data, but in the end no one will admit as to why it is happening. the only thing they all can agree on?

if the ice melts then most of us will be under water. at the very least be wading in it. though this kool tite bag will keep my cold stuff cold and my hot stuff hot, it is not going to help save the world (or at least the low lying areas from an aquatic death).

for a buck37 though, i will be able to do all these things, while looking at the mockery of a polar bear enjoying the warmth, while his last bit of habitat disappears- leaving him to drown or even worse to starve. all because we "possibly" like big cars and all the good things that come with them.

there was a time when people were shorter and lived near water. i think that was thousands of years ago.. or a couple of decades ago in nyc. well those times are still here. if the waters rise not only will the polar bears die, but i will see my own street in nyc be under a couple of feet of water. thats right . the pitt will be under water.

for those of you that live away from the beach, then you probably are not all that worried, but if you think about all the people who do live near the oceans and where they will go when the waters rise..

look to your own backyard.

i mean your very own back yard.

that is where they will be camping.

not a pretty thought is it?

now we are taller.

we still still live near water.

wrapping up
470.64 at the start
a buck37spent
the kitty stands at 2buck11

maximum spending tomorrow
3buck75

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 79-connecting my ipod again and again and again

the ipod, or i suppose it is better to say the mp3 player is probably one of the most useful device in my life. everywhere i go i bring with me over 200 records and i love it. i almost wish my commute was longer so i can listen to more music.

it seems that as i get older it gets harder and harder to find time to do all the music exploration i used to do.

while mp3s are not the highest in fidelity, i do enjoy the convenience of having so much at my finger tips. it's a trade up. i am ok with it. when i think about those twice monthly chores of reorganizing the mess i had made of my records and cd's i know it is worth it.

why the rca adapter you ask then?

to plug it into my stereo of course. i seem to have run out of rca to headphone jack adapters. i don't know where they all went. i used to have a bunch, but they have all disappeared. for a buck99 i am now back in business. i can come home, plug the ipod right into the stereo and not miss a beat of bfs radio.

i usually come home and wrap up my headphones and put the ipod down when i get home. i then turn on the computer and use that for music. with it's shitty speakers and a decent listening vantage point of my room the computer is no substitute for my stereo.

yet, i have been using it as such.

it's not going to happen anymore. this adapter is going to park it in my stereo...

always!

it will not be removed for anything. if it is disappointed in the lack of travel in it's new home then tough.

now i can finish that new beck record. the first part is damn good. i just have not gotten to the rest.

wrapping up.
472.63 at the start
a buck99 spent

the kitty stands at a buck84

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck83

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 78- cuttin' the cheese

for some reason i have never owned one of these cheese slicers. i always wish i had one when i am cutting the cheese into chunks for the eating, but until now i have not been able to slice up my sharp cheddar into those nice slim pieces that i like so much.

to think on this is actually pretty sad. they call it a swedish cheese slicer and as i am a swede it is just downright wrong.

while i don't often have a round of farmer's cheese in my fridge, this tool should have always been in my kitchen. this one does not have a bone handle, but it will do.

i was surprised to find this at the discount store and it actually feels sturdy. it might just do for a little while until i can find that bone handled cheese slicer that i have always wanted. i might even need to save up the kitty for a round of the farmer's cheese.

that would take some time, but i have plenty of that. i have not even gotten to day 100 yet.

wrapping up
473.92 at the start
a buck29 spent

the kitty stands at 2buck19

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck83

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 77-street fruit.

with new york city cracking down on the transfats, smoking and obesity there seem to be more and more fruit carts all over the city. there are something like 4100 street vendors in the city, and only about 10percent sell fresh produce.

when you think about it it is kind of a shame. i do like the availability of "no questions asked" street food, but it would be nice if i could do my produce shopping on the way home without having to go into the grocery store. thanks to bloomberg the city issued 500permits to street vendors. the trick is that you can only sell produce.

i have seen many of these fruit stands popping up and the price is right. these banana were three for a buck. i asked for four and i still only paid a buck. for the most part everything looks good on these carts and they do offer a bargain.

if it is less than or equal to the grocery store price i will buy from the vendor so i don't have to venture in to the grocery store and buy more stuff i probably don't need. with all our super supermarkets we as americans don't stop by the market everyday like most of the world. we buy in bulk and then throw out what goes bad.

in my mind fresh produce is cost effective, and healthy. those bananas are the perfect food. loaded with good stuff and easy to eat and carry.

support your neighborhood fruit stand so they will stick around. by giving them business you are probably going to come out ahead.

wrapping up
474.92 at the start
a buck spent
the kitty stands at buck84

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck48.

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 75- "no, no, no. only use fish sauce. then it is thai!"

imported from thailand- fish sauce! according to patsy, a thai woman in my employ, thai food is just not thai without fish sauce. she shook her finger at me and said, "no you cannot use soy sauce. it has to be fish sauce. to many places use other things besides fish sauce. this is not real thai food. that is something else!" she would not let in on what that something else was though...

my plan for dinner was to make some thai fried rice. i had never done it and since thai food involves a whole lot of ingredients i knew i would really be able to get some practice in with the knives that the lady got me for my birthday.

the recipe i was given was simple. cook the garlic in the oil then put in the chicken and all the stuff you are going to to cook. then the fish sauce and then the rice goes in. the rice should not be hot. mix it all up and then you are ready to eat.

thanks patsy. not quite the recipe i was hoping for, but it did help me to get the process down.

i made the rice with chicken, green beans, broccoli and pineapple. a couple of thai orange peppers for some creeping heat and of course the fish sauce. i made the jasmine rice and cooled it. i think it would have been quicker and easier to buy the rice from mei zhong wei (the chinese takeout downstairs), but still it was a decent success.

it was really quite simple, and if you are ever trying to get rid of extra vegetables this is the way to do it. with the exception of the rice it took about 20 minutes total time to cook and prepare. thats a good meal for someone who is busy.

add in the possibility of getting rid of those tidbits from the weekend groceries and you have a winner.

with oil prices dropping it seems we are headed closer and closer to recession. this means i am going to need some cheap and easy meals that will keep my refrigerator in check.

wait a minute... did i say oil prices dropping as a sign of recession?

why, yes i did.

it seems that although three weeks ago people were screaming recession as oil prices rose, when the price dropped due to a lack of demand they are saying the same thing.

as people have run out of their stimulus money they are now tightening up their belts for the long hard winter. this means we are using less energy since we are buying less.. doing less.

sometime i think the whole economy is projected by waving a stick over some water or something. while everything the economists say makes sense, it seems like that for every happenstance there is a reason. some reason. we just accept it as word.

and wait for a few months to see if the predictions were actually true.

if the news was good then we will be better for it, having saved and been careful.

if the news is bad, then we will be ok, having saved and been careful.

anyway we look at it, i think now is the time to just be careful. save a bit now for later and eat all our dividends from our plates.

in the end it will add up to something.

or not...

but don't worry some economist will tell us to what.

wrapping up

477.68 at the start

a buck69 spent

the kitty stands at 63 cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck27

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 74-the travel section... small products for those small moments

raise it up if you have dry skin. i know i do. i probably wash my hands about 100 times a day for my job around the food. this might not be the real reason why i have dry skin, but for my hands at least work does take it's toll.

the girls at work always seem to have lotion around, but the smells of cheap hand lotion bought at the dollar store just make me cringe when the odor wafts up to my nose. i prefer something a bit milder and more effective.

actually as a guy i think i really would prefer none at all, but i really do need it.

this little bottle of calming creme is just what the doctor ordered. it's noce and small and will keep my hands from getting all rough and scratchy. for a buck7 i guess an ounce is ok for a baragin, but i think i could probably get another 12 ounces for five or six more bucks.

i am, however out to spend a buck64aday. sure i try to make the most of it, but sometimes i just see what i need. i do like the small bottle. the office space is quite tiny and this wil not take up a whole lot of space, plus the moisturizing effects will last 24 hours...

unless of course i wash my hands or something, then all those effects are right down the tubes. this would make it one of those habitual things i will have to do keep my hands soft.. like a man who has never worked a hard day in his life. i don't think my hands will ever be like that, but it is nice to know that it will be around to help me when i need it.

wrapping up
478.75 at the start
a buck7 spent
the kitty stands at 68cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck32

i can spend that much

you can't stop me



wrapping up

day 73- nothing says capitalism more than a four dollar mountain dew

all points west was a bit of a let down. aside from radiohead and of course seeing my brother rock out on the geetar i was really not all that impressed. perhaps i have become to jaded in my elder years. i have seen a lot of bands in my time. i think perhaps i just become to choosy in what i watch and listen to on the live front.

at 90 bucks a ticket i definitely would not have gotten tickets to the show unless they were free. dave came through with some vip tickets for the lady and me and one appeared for k, so we all got to head out to jersey by way of the ferry for some rockin. my only question is.. where was the rock? festivals these days just seem to not have what i am looking for and while we did get a veritable smorgasbord of music to wander around to it just seemed to me like nothing was piquing my taste buds.

i had four dollars to spend and i was really hoping it would be a beer or some tasty food, but it seems that if you spend 90 bucks for a rock ticket (plus 30 for the round trip ticket on the ferry) you were destined to spend a bit just as much to keep yourself entertained with food or drink.

you were limited to 5 beers, so if you arrived early and were looking to get some boozing in the sun you were s.o.l. luckily we were able to sneak in a little extra liquid refreshment by way of my satchel.

not that you have to have booze to have fun, but if you are trapped for eight or nine hours in a big crowd then i does help.

still, it was hard to find a four dollar purchase. the best i could do was mountain dew, which for 4bucks was a tasty and cold refreshment on a hot summer's day, it was a bit of a let down. a bottle of pepsi product form a distributor costs about 60cent. kind of hurts to see that i was getting gouged 3buck40 for the good of rock and roll.

with these sort of events, no outside materials were allowed. this keeps the profits up.

profit was all they made. while we were in one of the beer pens we pondered how many people were locked up in the small area. i guessed about 500. k guessed a little over 100. on the way out the answer was 600 people. beers were at least 7 bucks... hmmm 4200 in beer just for this round? that's a pretty good game.

i don't want to really sound like a cheapskate, though i suppose anyone trying to spend a buck64aday would, but really it would be better if the concert promoting industry tried to ease the cost on the peoples. i know.. woodstock that place was not, but if things were cheaper i would have been more free to spend my money.

the one saving grace in the whole place, and it was one we did not see until it was just to late was wild bill's soda for 15 bucks you would get a decent sized metal cup and all the free soda refills you wanted. we saw this to late. the sun was setting and radiohead was on the horizon. we opted instead for the free beverages dave was able to get from his trailer.

nice.

radio head was by the way awesome. you ca watch the show without sound here in 4 minutes.

Radiohead All Points West Night 2 Timelapse from Jeff Carvalho on Vimeo.

i missed my chance to see radiohead years ago when they first played liberty state park. i had the tickets and opted for a new job start instead. looking back i still regret not going, but hey, not going did get me here in nyc eventually.

wrapping up
482.75 at the start
4bucks spent
the kitty stands at 11cent

maximum spending tomorrow

a buck75

i can spend that much

you can't stop me

day 72-saving up for all points west.

so my brother is playing all points west at liberty state park tomorrow. he got us free tickets so we can rock out to him while he plays guitar for nicole atkins and the sea.

while it might seem like a cop out to not spend abuck64 today i really wanted to buy something at all points west for the blog. i am thinking there will be nothing available for below 4 bucks.

one day of no spending gets me to that point.

4buck11 to be exact.

the ferry will cost us 30 bucks for the round trip ride through the harbor.

you are not allowed to bring in anything food or water.

i think i might be able to buy a bottle of water or something. i hope.

it will be fun. i get to see radiohead and dave rock out for a bunch of people.

we can pick up our tickets from the vip ticket booth.. or so i am told.

sweet.

for now i think it is time for a sleep night as tomorrow will be all about the sun and the rock and roll. the nicotine patch makes me a little sleepy at night as well. i think the nicotine jitters that i have all day wear me out.

wrapping up
482.75 at the start
nothing spent
the kitty stands at 2buck47

maximum spending tomorrow

4buck11

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 71-krating daeng... (that which came before red bull)

i wonder if the red bull rage will ever end. people are drinking it in record numbers and they keep on drinking it no matter what the price.



seeing a can of red bull for 5 bucks in a store is not unheard of. i can't help to wonder why people have not discovered krating daeng. the original red bull. this stuff has been around since the 70's and is an energy drink of high regard in asia. in the 80's some a westerner discovered it an decided to market it for europeans. this is the red bull you all know and maybe love.



the original is very sweet and kind of syrupy. i would not call it refreshing, but i would say that it does give you that red bull boost everyone loves. red bull is just a watered down version of krating daeng.



for me the question is, why would you pay five bucks for a boost drink that tastes... ehhhh, better with vodka, when you could spend a buck25 for the same thing? back when i worked at the deli we would buy krating daeng by the case from the asian grocer across the street. for 20 bucks we would get 24 cans and used them to boost our lives for the summer.



it was a good summer.



krating daeng in the morning and then before we went out to the bar. some of us would drink a can before running (these before running drinks could turn on us as it had the possibility of making our colon crazy), but we cleaned the grocery out in a couple of months.



that was when the red bull truck came into town and started bringing red bull to every bar and to ever convenience store in town. we thought.. "great now we can get it anywhere."



then we tried the slightly fizzy watered down version of our old energy drink.



disappointed.



everyone was drinking it though. we were all slightly proud of the fact that we had been on the bandwagon long before the rest of town.



i snuffed the new red bull and went back to get another case of the "good"stuff only to find that they no longer had the good stuff. it seemed that due to the mass production of red bull the original was very hard to find. the woman said something about the company not being able to make enough of it.



she suggested to us the golden tiger. "it's the same and cheaper".



it was kind of bitter, yellow and tasted like crap.



so ended my red bull days.



i think though they are back. for a buck25 a bottle i can do the wings thing.


wrapping up
484.04 at the start
a buck25 spent
the kitty stands at 83 cent

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck47

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 70- hey.. that's my pie.

day 70. i have been at this for over two months. in thirty days it will be a quarter of a year. that seems far away. hell two hundred and ninety five day seems far away.



so it's my birthday today. i am one year older, and this is just the sort of thing that could kill the end of the summer for most people.



not for me though. is it the end of another year or the beginning of one? i'll go for the beginning. that is more positive. positive is good.



having a birthday in the first week of august is not an ideal time. i really cannot blame my parents for getting busy any earlier or later than they did. they set the quilt to quiver around december 1st... i come out in the begining of august. the begining of august. in the north east this is vacation time. this means if your birthday is in the first couple of weeks of augaust, your birthday is either poorly attended due to the lack of people around... or not attended at all due to your learned apathy from the lack of people in attendance at the celebration of your birth in the past few years. ie. no party at all.


so here is my remedy for the summer birthday blues. have your birthday in september! it's back to school time. everyone is in town and that is the prime time to have a birthday party.



the only reason any of your friends know your birthday is through social networking websites and so you change the date of your birthday and plan your "party" around that fixed date.



trust me. it works! you too can have a fake birthday of your choosing. all you have to do is follow these rules.



1. choose your "new" birthday.

2. change all of your social networking profiles to have a date around above party.

3. have a good birthday dinnner with those who are in the know about your real birthday.

4. plan your party. pick a date and send an email to everyone you know. in said email-do not state the actual date of your birthday. just say something like "hey it's time to celebrate my birthday on such and such a date at such and such a place."

5. have a party.. enjoy yourself. it's your day. everyone is there just for you. when the party is really kicking and people are asking you when your birthday is (for conversational purposes..) tell them when it really was. like a month ago. explain the situation... tell them about the difficulties of the summer birthday. let them know that this is your take back. you are grabbing all the fun you can. before you get to old to pull this kind of stuff off.



no one is going to be mad when they find out. after all it's a party. everyone is having fun and as the fact that your birthday party is a sham gets out, people will just laugh and move on to having a good time.



i promise.



for my own birthday i am going to take this pie crust, which i purchased for a buck69 and use it to fill the unused my-t-fine chocolate pudding mix i bought way back in week one.



there will be a party. there will be fun.

just got to send that email.

wrapping up
485.73 at the start
a buck69 spent
the kitty stands at 48cent

maximum spending tomorrow
2buck12

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

it's my birthday...

no time to post really... i have dinner, drinks...hanging out with friends.

i got a pie shell though.. i'll tell you all about it in a bit...

everyday spending a buck64aday.. for three hundred and sixty five days.

thanks for being here.

rock on with your bad self.

day 69- i'll never be a girl drink drunk

4ounces of coco lopez cream of coconut

3ounces of pineapple juice

3ounces of rum.

a blender, a coconut and one of those fancy unbrellas.. or just a bendy straw and... bam! you have a party.

for a buck79 you can make "almost" 4 pina coladas. at 15 ounces a can they really are making you sure you "buy" that extra one.

i remember seeing commercials for this stuff when i was a kid and i thought, "hey, why not. after all i have the juice and the rum at home."

actually the juice is way, way old. not good at all. the rum is ready so i will have to wait a little longer for my "girldrinkdrunk". for the most part i enjoy my old man drinks, but every once in a while who doesn't want some candy.

that would be every once in a while.

the disappointment hit home though when i realized that there was no pineapple juice. i think i would have been fine except for the fact that i began my quest for the absence of nicotine in my system.

that's right i am now smoke free.. or at least i have been since i woke up. i am however not nicotine free. there is a patch. it's on my arm. it's kind of itchy and makes my arm feel kind of tingly. still it's there and i really have not had that much urge to get out there and smoke.

i have felt that there is something missing. like the time i would spend having a smoke while at work. that would be my "me time". that is gone. i was a little edgy today, and i think i might have been a bit hyper from the 21mg that are coursing through my system. i really can't wait till i "try" and get some sleep. those dreams will be interesting, lucid and crazy.

still this is about a buck64aday spent one day at a time. not about me trying to quit the coffin nails. i do appreciate all the kind word sent my way. very much appreciated. i am reminded of what my cousin catherine said. "if karin can quit, you can too." karin is my aunt. congrats aunt karin. i am working on it. i'm gonna get there, or die trying.

i feel like i have been neglecting the economic news these days. i am going to work on it. i have quite a few things i want to comment on, but with things swinging back and forth from good to bad and then back to even keel it makes it hard to pick the issues that really mean something.

plus i am all crazed from the patch.. this makes thing a little distracting.

add to that that it is my birthday tomorrow makes the buck64aday mission take a slight back seat.

ever so slight.

wrapping up

487.52 at the start

a buck79pent

the kitty stands at 53cent

maximum spending tomorow

2buck17

i can spend that much on my birthday.

you can't stop me

day 68- noodle bowls... what... you don't have one?

i really need to learn how to focus my camera. you can hardly tell what this is.

well i guess you really can.

the title says it all. noodle bowl. 2buck10 from the grocery store on ludlow st. it is one of the last small time, but attached somehow to a big time grocery store... it might be called shop smart. i can't remember. they do have a circular and they have the sales, but they offer up primarily asian products. this is fine by me. i am not one to discriminate on nation, creed or color. food is food and well i have to say that for the most part american "continental" food can be a bit boring. this store i think will be a place i shop more often. while there is very little in the way of produce or foods of the fresher variety, the boxes and cans are cheap cheap cheap.

so back to the noodle bowl. do you own one? i think every one should. it should be the right size to hold a decent size of ramen noodles and all the water you are supposed to add as per the directions on the package. it should not spill as you take the finished ramen product to the table to eat it.

this is a noodle bowl of correct size.

maybe you are not all that into the noodles, and to this i say "you probably have not had the right ones!". noodles are cheap, tasty and so simple to make.

in a hurry? make some noodles.

got no money? make some noodles.

while you can't live off them for a long period of time without getting that "broke college student pall" about you, they can be a nice food addition to someone who is single or for the more adventurous couples cook. you know, the kind of person who orders unsauced wings from the take out place, has them delivered and then makes his own sauce for said order. just add some peas and shrimp to your noodles while they are cooking... oooo it's magic.

this would be me. it could be you as well. you just have to get the right noodles. the five for a dollar will not cut it. not at all. try the three for a dollar. those are better.. much better. they also have a wider variety of flavors. like curry chicken... mmmmm good.

i wish i had a noodle bowl back when i was younger. though i did not eat the noodles all the time i did every once in a while partake in the brothy goodness.

i was a bit turned off by them though.

the problem? i did not have a bowl big enough to eat them with. i tended to eat them in the pot i cooked them in, which is quite useful and from a utilitarian standpoint much easier for the cleaning.

i just personally do not like eating from the pot.

when i moved out form the parental's i was given (as i am sure many of us were) a small dish set... you know a starter set. mine was pretty extensive though i must say. my aunt norma had given to my mother a set of dishes when she was changing over to a new set. the set was pretty much complete and so i got a full set of dishes which i still have for the most part all these years later. a couple of pieces have broken, but i very much enjoy the fact that this dish set would be remembered by my aunt and uncles.

only one problem with the set. no noodle bowl. i would make noodles and then spill a good amount of the contents onto the floor on the way to the table to eat them.

someone should make a rule. noodle bowls need to be a part of the "classical dish set". really the world is changing. food has become more cosmopolitan and really as a salute to our asian brothers and sisters across the sea, a set of 8 noodle bowls should be a part every dish set.

think of the noodle parties the newlyweds could have with their noodle bowls that come with the china. (errr the fancy wedding dishes) there will be less spillage and cheaper meals on the go.

how about it people? for those crazy kids who are about to get married.. a set of 8 noodle bowls. chopsticks included. now that is something interesting. something unique.

something to talk about.

wrapping up
489.62 at the start
2buck10 spent
the kitty stands at 68cent

maximum spending tomorrow
2buck32

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 67- microwavable personal cakes? what has the world come to?

from the time we were babes we have loved the cake. as one year olds, many of us were given our own cake. it was to be eaten by us only. we played in the cake, got it all over and many a flashbulb went off while we were doing it.

then came the easy bake oven. making cake becomes chic. if your a 7 year old girl you get a box with a light bulb in it and you get to make your own cake. just like your first birthday you will get to eat it yourself and many a flash bulb will go off in your face after your premiere cake.

the second and third cakes will get you a few cheers, but after the fourth tasty treat, the cake mix is running low and no one seems interested in your easy bake oven anymore.

three weeks later said oven is put aside for something a little more fun... lite-brite or some such.

if you were sad about the day you said good bye to your easy bake oven then don't you worry.

the good times are about to roll again. duncan hines has a wide variety of microwavable cakes for you to make. just add water to the mix in the microwave safe bowl (included) stir it up, place it into the box in the kitchen with the lightbulb and quicker than you can say culinary arts has been stabbed in the back...

there is a ding.. a beep... some flashing blue writing that says... "done"

mmm cake and you made it yourself. aren't you proud? look at what you have done with no thinking.. only a singular drive for something sweet and a few to eight minutes (depending on wattage) to kill.

if you buy this product... really you are killing yourself, the enviroment, and possibly your soul.

really i only got this to rant about it. i am cool with cake mixes. i think they are great, but this is not cake mix. this the devil come to take away our souls.

i will make this stuff soon and update you all, but please don't buy this stuff..

horrible

wrapping up

491.74 at the start

2buck12 wasted

the kitty stands at a buck14

maximum spending tomorrow

2buck78

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me

day 66- a bag of dough

who doesn't like pizza? as a child i thought getting pizza for dinner was the best thing in the world. all that cheese, the tangy sauce and the pepperoni all crisp on the top.

i would scrap away the cheese and eat the bread and crust first and then just enjoy the cheese for as long as i could stand to chew it...

that could be a while too.

pizza, unless you are pizza cook, is something best left to the professionals. i know i do. while i know all the basics of proper pizza cooking i do lack the time, counter space and of course the right size oven. you know... one that could cook a pizza.

making the dough is probably the hardest thing to do. they are quite a few recipes out there and even a change in the tap water can make your pizza come out different. new york pizza is the way it is from the bread flour, the way it is tossed and of course the tap water adds to the flavor. what we get is a crispy and thin crust. i did not like it before, but it is growing on me.

these bags of pizza dough you can buy in the store are choice. it takes the guess work out of making the dough so all you have to do is make your crust and then throw your toppings on top.

what a great idea.

i'll buy that for a buck80.

but i will probably make bread sticks instead. garlicky and buttery strips of dough baked all nice and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. it make more sense to me than making a pizza right now. my oven just will not cut it for a pizza. bread sticks on the other hand. sound damn good.

wrapping up
493.54 at the start
a buck80 spent
the kitty stands at a buck62

maximum spending tomorrow
3buck26cent

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 65- scraping out every last ounce... of everything

aside from making a cake, how much do you use your rubber spatulas? I know i don't use mine that much, but with me having to tighten up and all with the hard times ahead i figured this rubber silicone spatula might come in handy.

at 2buck14 this spatula will be scraping the bowls and jars of my kitchens for some time. if you are looking for a way to save money it is really best to think about what you spend most of your money on. i guess rent or a mortgage are up there, but really when you stop and think you will see that you probably spend a whole bunch of your hard earned dough on the eatin'.

i know i do.
every so often we here at the pitt do a little cleaning out of the fridge. it's not that often, but when we do we all gather to claim what is ours and what is trash...

or may have been trash a few weeks ago and is now something so terrible that we cannot even look at it.

there is no judging on this cleaning day. why would there be? we are all at fault for the terrible condition of the fridge and now is the time to just have some fun with it.

it can be a little depressing though when we do it. all that food. gone down the drain. food that was purchased with our hard earned money and then, either improperly stored or just plain forgotten, all goes into the trash. this trash bag needs to be something heavy duty. something leak proof. otherwise whomever gets the chore of carrying it down 6 stories to the gorund floor might end up scarred for life when the remnants of herring, month old orange juice and some thai curry mix together. i am not sure what it would do to my skin, but i know that if this was mixed together and then touched my skin i think i would scrub till i bled.

anyway, back to the food. after the fridge is clean it is time to ponder what i did wrong.

why is there a ten dollar piece of cheese in the trash? 6 avocados and a half gallon of milk? four sticks of butter(open-barely used)? two half empty containers of mayonnaise and three heads of rotten romaine in the not so crisper anymore ? (why is the mayo even in there?) two bags of hot dogs shriveled and dried? was someone planning a trip to the woods? are these things supposed to be dehyrdrated?

the list can go on and on. i am leaving out the delivery leftovers. that is just usually a mess. if you play "how long can we leave the leftovers from the three piece box of chicken in the fridge game" then you know the answer could be forever.

what i am talking about is wasted food. we, as american's waste a whole lot. in fact, as much food as we produce for ourselves and for the world we waste up to 50 billions tons of food every year. whether it be crops that go unharvested, restaurants that throw out food as waste or just the food we throw out per day around the house(well over a pound).

we throw out 14percent of what we buy in terms of food. that is cash that could have gone right back to our pockets. really, if we want to save our cash it should start in the kitchen.

it could start with something as small as a spatula. with a silicone spatula we could scrap out every last drop from a container, maximize our cake size and if you really don't want to go through the trouble then you can just use it to get the leftovers of the meatloaf that spilled into the back corner of your fridge into the trash. any way you look at these kitchen "supertools" they will help you out.

i prefer the silicone ones. they are good in heat up to 500 degrees and most foodstuffs don't stick to them.

i just spent 2buck14, but i am gonna save hundreds.

you could too. just shop sensibly and don't be lazy when you are in the kitchen. anything you can stretch in the kitchen is going to save you cash and cash is what we need. 14percent of your food is about 43billion dollars. that is a whole other stimulus package right there.

this time around i am going to be smart.

by scraping out every last ounce.

wrapping up
495.68 at the start
2buck14 spent
the kitty stands at a buck78

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck42

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.

day 64- hanging in there

so the word is out. the whole economic stimulus thing worked... a little. not as much as was originally hoped, but still we are not plummeting into recession as was originally feared.



no, we are just slipping slower. the underlying issues of out economic plight are still hanging over our heads. the housing and banking crisis are still hanging over our heads. we are still seeing high energy prices and with it higher a higher cost of goods. corporations are still posting losses...



the money was out there, but it just did not do the job that they had hoped for. i have read that a cash in hand stimulus package is a crap shoot. i thought this from the beginning and i think now we are seeing it. things are looking ok now though. it seems that at the very least the alarmist news stories about the economy have slowed. this i think will improve at least the average person's mind on the economy. or maybe not..

till then i got these hangers... since i have no closet i have to hang my clothes somewhere. that somewhere will be the back of my bedroom door. with the door open to the living area no one will see them. i will call this area my closet. after living here at the pitt for 5 years i though it was time. at a buck40 i should be able to hang more than a few shirts on these hangers, and with the quitting smoking coming up they won't smell like smoke directly after i wash them.

wrapping up
497.08 at the start
a buck40 spent
the kitty stands at 2.28

maximum spending tomorrow

3buck92

i can spend that much

you can't stop me.

day 63-cleaning the air, or ... hot damn i have spent over a hundred dollars.

ahh the stick up. cheap, refreshing and it won't clog up your electric outlets. we all use some sort of air freshener around the house. whether it is one of those squirt-mister things, a "plug in" or potpourri- somewhere around our house we are using something to block out the smell of... well whatever that smell is.

for my house, in the summer, things can get a bit stuffy. as i have said before we live on the sixth floor. just under the roof. the summer heat beats on us and con edison loves us for all we spend to keep ourselves cool and dehumidified.

this can also make the place kind of smelly. not rancid, just sort of smelly. as i smoke in the house that is not helping things one bit. i figured these two stick ups for a buck08 would help the situation out.

i tested out the odor, it's not half bad and if i put just one in the middle of the apartment i think it will keep the pitt penthouse smelling like fresh water all the time.

this is going to be good, though as you know whenever you have visitors an they smell the air freshener they are immediately wondering what smell you are covering up. they might even go look for it.

if you are ever here at the pitt, then just know it is to cover up the stale smell of cigarettes that have long since gone out and maybe some trash that has been cooking over there in the corner.

i do wish that the smell of the cigs was not in the house, and this is really my fault. i have been a smoker for quite some time. what can i say.. i like it. i never meant to get hooked, but somewhere down the road (even with a two year break) i got the monkey on my back. he's a mean monkey.. chattin me up in the morning, before i go to bed and all times in between.

when i lived in greensboro, north carolina smoking was just what people did. now i am here in nyc. i have been here for like six years and i have seen my smokes go from five dollars a pack to the current 9 dollars. ouch!

i can't smoke in bars anymore and for the most part i am the only one of my friends who smoke. it might be time to quit.
the new taxes on a pack of 20 (coffin)g nails are huge. to pay over 8 bucks for a pack is insane in my mind, but still cigarettes are on my mind.

someone told me once that i don't want to wake up one day and realize that i have been smoking for ten years. well dean, i think that day has come and gone. now, i have to really think about what i am doing.

here i am, talking about how i am spending my stimulus package; really poking fun at it. as you look back at what i have purchased and how far my buck64aday is going you see the crunch we are in. i am in. the mission.. it's going to be long and hard, though fun.

so financially cigarettes are a bad, bad idea. spending 50 bucks a week on cigarettes is just terrible. i know if i was back in the warm climes of nc, i would not think about quitting. here in nyc where the taxes on the smoke are outrageous i are thinking. thinking hard.

not to mention that my lung capacity sucks.

i have quit before with the aid of the patch. those things provide some pretty vivid dreams, and as i cannot sadly, afford to smoke i think the lucid dreams will have to make a comeback.

the first few days of the patch suck. this is the challenge. when do i start so i don't go crazy.

i have to figure that out. this blog could become really interesting without nicotine.

though a buck64aday would really help supplement my habit.

should have thought of that before. before i started all this....

also while your down here... today is a milestone. my stimulus package is finally down a hundredbucks. it took 63 days to get here. 63 days to spend 100bucks.

100bucks... that's a night out at the bars in nyc.

wrapping up
499.24 at the start
a buck8spent
the kitty stands at abuck48

maximum spending tomorrow
3buck12

i can spend that much tomorrow

you can't stop me.