SharylMB, you were right. When I started the fire the other night there was some popping, but I thought it was some pine scraps that I was using for kindling, never thought it was the dryer lint. I started a fire last night, heard the popping and made a note of it. But when I added a couple of pieces of pine once things had quieted down, nothing happened. So it must be the dryer lint. Hmmmm... might have to google that one to see the science behind it. I'm puzzled and curious. Dont think its a safey hazard though.

Today has been busy in a very productive, relatively inexpensive day.

I had a chiropractic appt this morning. What a difference that made. I still feel a little shaky and wobbly from being ill, but at least the major aches and pains from my spine being out of alignment have been alleviated. Lying in bed sleeping for marathon sessions put my back out and my hips were killing me. The heaviness I was feeling in my chest from the cold is also gone and I can breathe soooo much easier. The co-pay was budgeted for - $35.00.

Yesterday afternoon my order from Zappos arrived!! This is just a little over 24 hours after placing the order. I am impressed. They upgraded my shipping for free. I am so thrilled with their customer service. I tried on my shoes, had to get a size up in the Tevas. Ordered those yesterday to take advantage of the sale price and express shipping. I sent back four pairs, and am debating whether or not to keep the pair I really, really love. They are a bit snug, so hopefully they will stretch...may have to go to a cobbler...but they were among the cheapest pairs ordered at $55...and they are very comfortable. I'll make my final decision when the sandals arrive. So far I'm paying $75 for two pairs of shoes which will be standard pieces in the daily work and leisure wardrobe.

So, I dropped the returns off at the UPS store, free of charge. Ran into the coop which is right next door. Spent $13.79 on butter and cider vinegar. Way pricey, but organic. The chiro recommended soaking in an apple cider vinegar bath to take out the achiness I am feeling from being sick. Worth a try and better than taking drugs.

From there DH and I went to Kiva Juice. Two smoothies for $4 with a B1G1Free coupon from the flyers that come in the mail. And he got his buy "10 get one free" card punched once. Nearly there; only two or three left to go. We will fill the card in a couple more weeks.

Next, we went to get firewood. One quarter cord (sp?) of juniper for $71.95 including tax. This is more of a luxery item as we do not heat with wood. And at that price, I wouldnt think we'd save much. I like to light a fire and read in front of it or sometimes even go to sleep. This amount will last us well into March when its too hot for a fire. I've been looking for someone locally who may have had a better price, but havent found anyone yet. But, hey, we live in a desert. There arent that many trees around. The people we purchased from go into the mountains to cut their wood. A lot of petroleum goes into this wood - to cut and transport it, so I would like to find something that has less impact on the environment. I just realized that a smoking chimney has a significant impact on the environment.

After unloading the wood, we went to the public library. I got a stack of books on money and travel. I'm looking for things to motivate me here. I want to save money to travel rather than have stuff. If I come across anything good, I will let you know.

Next, a trip to the used book store. Had more things to drop off; part of the eternal deluttering/owning less stuff movement at our house. My in store credit was over $200. I finally found the childrens books in enspanol and cleaned them out. They only had a couple dozen. These are going to either an orphange or a school in Mexcio. I am so pleased to be able to do this. Since I have such a large credit, it makes me wonder about other organizations that might like books. I'd like to stick to children's organizations that will really use them. I'm going to put that out there. I am sure I will find something. But the best part of this is that I got $44.75 worth of merchandise for $2.40, the sales tax!!! Some of them were even educational workbooks.

For dinner, we are doing Quizno's - B1G1Free strikes again. I have sweet potato fries in the oven. I cut them up about a week ago so it was very convenient. Just add some more oil, salt and the spices; shake and pour onto a cookie sheet. They will finish up cooking while DH goes for the subs. We'll also have some Waldorf salad that's in the fridge. After all this running around, I'm not in the mood to cook. I just sent DH out to get the subs with my request written on the back of an already used on one side half sheet of scratch paper. Use it up completely before tossing it out...in line with the theme of less garbage here at our house for the new year.
He originallly suggested we get dinner from our favorite Italian place. I was tempted, but dinner for $8 sounded much more reasonable than dinner for $30+. He agreed.

I do realize that getting food to go does create more garbage from the packaging. But its a trade off and subs dont create a large volume of trash, just the paper. We usually find another use for the plastic bag. If I start cross examining all my actions like this, I will have to live in a cave and weave my own shirts to stop from going insane!!!

Overall, this has been a very productive day by my standards. We've succumbed to a wave of procrastination around here with the holidays so nothing much got done during the weekend. Trying to squeeze it in during the week during lunch and after work is just crazy making. And today my energy levels held up pretty well considering that I am recovering from a cold that knocked me off my feet.

After dinner, I am lighting the fire with my popping dryer lint. Might actually do that before we eat and have dinner in front of the fire place... After that I'm going to read for a while and then watch British Comedy on PBS. We dont have cable and I LOVE the way the Brits use the English language. They are usually all re-runs from about ten years ago, but nice brain candy for entertainment, free entertainment that is. Besides, its the only channel that comes in. With the fire and three cats curled up, the effect is most relaxing.