Thrifty Shopping

Many have heard of online coupons, such as from sites like www.smartcanucks.ca but at least for me, I didn't actually put these in mind or in use until recently. It's actually really good! For instance, I recently bought some stuff on Forever 21 online and decided to search for coupon codes to hopefully save a bit and discovered a free shipping code. In the end, I was able to get a belt shipped for free and it only cost me $3! So of course, I just had to buy more...

And then I got this Payless Shoe gift card back in Christmas from my student for $20. I don't usually shop at this store and was not planning to spend a whole lot of my own money there either. But I gave it a chance and took a look inside the store. I did find a pair of wedged sandals that were comfortable and looked good. However, it was for $40 and both P and I thought it was too expensive even with the gift card. I could wait for it to go on sale but I decided to search for online coupons instead. It was a success! I found a 20% off coupon for the store (in fact, I discovered it was actually only $20 plus 15% off in the US but it was too much of a hassle) plus I could possibly use my VIP SPC card for another 10% off.

All happy, I went to a nearby Payless and discovered they were on sale! All the better. In the end, I got the sandals for $30 -20% discount -10% discount (because I found the tiniest of a scratch on it and they didn't have another pair...they didn't let me use the SPC 10% on top of all this however...which is reasonable) - $20 gift card. Bottom line: I paid $5 for a great pair of sandals. So proud to be thrifty!

Oh, welcome back!

Yes, it's the wonderful back to school day from Spring Break. And to thoughtfully welcome me was my messed up room with patches of white undone wall. As I dragged myself out of bed and into school with my recovering body and fatigued soul, I noticed my room's walls were unusually bright this morning. And then I noticed familiar items stored away on shelves laid out on my desks and tables. Alas! The district has finally gotten around to removing my walled carpet after a 1 1/2 year request! Yes, you read correctly, I had carpeted wall that I even tried to vacuum in hopes of making my room bearable. To add a cherry to the icing, they killed my phone jack, so the phone no longer works in the room, plus they unplugged all the wires along the wall, so I had to get down in the dusty room to hook up all the filthy wires again.

Great that they removed the carpet but would've been so simple for both them and me to just give me a little heads up so that I don't have to return to a room, where things are all misplaced or stacked on the floor with dust and filth covered furniture?!? All I had to do was remove them before the break! But no, they like surprises. And, better yet, they decided to divide this simple job into 2 trips. So maybe I'll have to wait another year or so before they would feel like making another surprise visit to PAINT the bare wall. Is it even safe to teach in there? Til they mess up my room again, all I can do is teach in the blotchy-walled room.

Dumplings

P and I (well...mostly me) love eating dumplings. If made well, I can just eat dumplings daily for meals. We often buy them in frozen packages from T&T but there's only one brand there we like and it's a tad expensive for the number of dumplings you get. We also eat them fresh at the Crystal Mall food court as well as at Long's on Main and 33rd or so. Those are always yummy. Then, there are good old Mom and Aunt; they know we (I) love them, so they make dumplings for us to freeze every once in a while.

Well, well. It has finally come to the day when P and I got off the lazy boat and bought our own ingredients to make them! I know, the world is changing. I must admit, it was quite an enjoyable and quick process: marinate the minced meat, wash and mince the bok choy, mix them together with an egg, add minced ginger (personal prefernce), wrap away with the wonton wrappings with some water for sealing, and voila. Of course, we instantly cooked some for tasting. The following was P's honest comment, "they're ok...the ones we ate at Crystal Mall yesterday were so much better."

Ha...we shall not be discouraged! Instead of paying $5.50 for a mere 10 dumplings, we're going to perfect our babies til we get 4x that much for the same cost! We've concluded that if we had done the following, it would've turned out even better:

1. Buy the fatty minced pork instead of the healthy lean ones


2. Chop the minced pork so pieces are even smaller


3. Add even more vegetables than before (they seem to disintegrate once cooked?!?)


4. Add 2 eggs instead of 1

We'll see how it goes next time.

Spring...Break?!?

I had every intention to post about the many exciting Olympic moments that occurred just 2 weeks ago during my wonderful Spring Break. However, I can't really say it's a break anymore since my body has finally broken down. I guess it's suppose to be fortunate of me to not be sick during work but c'mon...sick during the holidays? Not fun. So as much as I want to be enthusiastic and talk about those BELIEVE moments...this is all that's in my head right now:

Ode to the Sick...

can't breathe.
open mouth.
sigh.
left nostril stuffed.
ears plugged.
eyes heavy.
eyes puffed.
clogged throat.
voice changed.
lips dry.
need water.
head dizzy.
head hurts.
look in mirror.
green.
yikes.
where's the tissue?

Avatar...3 months later.

I'm sure many watched the wonderful 3D movie Avatar. I did too...today. I realize it's 3 months a little late...but hey...we didn't want to line up. Plus, to our surprise, the theatre was still almost full today! After watching the 2+ hour movie, I can see why the big audience.

Isn't it wonderful that James Cameron gave us the idea of a fantasy world (or perhaps not so fantasy?!?) where big giant blue living forms can live. I mean we can live in the shell of something else beyond...us. Science does make anything possible. Yet, there is also the cruel reality that us humans put profit at priority in many instances and nature often had to sacrifice in face of scientific advancement. Their sacrifice of the tribe's home equates to our sacrifice of deforestation in order for development and other profit-making plans of varying sorts. And who can ignore the clear message of 'outsiders' taking over indigenous land? There is and was no fair trade, ever. We have nothing better to offer them and that is why we just want to take over what they have. If only there was no we vs. them but just us, the people, then perhaps there would be no war?

Anyway, it was a fantastic movie. Should be worthwhile to even buy it on dvd.