We gotta get out of this place...

I'm feeling a bit restless after two-plus dark and dreary days of rain. The darkness and rain remind me of England and going out bundled in a coat, something that was completely foreign to me growing up near the equator. The weather here, apart from bouts of rain, has been cool though the northern portion of our State did have warnings of snow flurries during Jonas and there has also been some tornado activity reported, all strange for the region and time of year.

Wet weather makes it hard for me to get or stay outdoors. Apart from slick pavement and mud, there is the detritus one inevitably runs over and risks tire punctures from as well as the mess tracked into the flat. It is also not fun to have to sit in a damp seat. Since I cannot push and handle an umbrella, the only recourse is a raincoat with a hood. Mine is black and people have jokingly told me I look like a rolling version of the Grim Reaper in the thing which isn't at all what I was going for when I bought it. Nothing against the image since we are all destined to depart eventually, but that is hardly a pleasant thought for someone who, in a period of two years, lost five friends and an extended family member, one of whom I found as a corpse. I'd much rather be Bat Lady or at the very least, Batty Cat Lady since I am owned by two felines, albeit somewhat grudgingly.

That said, the two cats have been behaving strangely, even for them. My overprotective male has spent the balance of the last two nights jumping from pillar to post to window sill, as though he senses something disturbing. I, however, find nothing amiss. His female counterpart, skittish at the best of times, has virtually glued herself to me beneath the duvet and spends non-sleeping hours secreted away in a closet.

I've read, cooked, done laundry, listened to music, played guitar badly, written blog posts and bungled Hebrew until I can do no more. The Beatles, "Here Comes The Sun," is the latest tune traipsing through my brain, though the Animals tune, "We gotta get out of this place," is a close second...

A friend suggested I try the Mall for a bit of a roll around. Despite my serious dislike of such places, the paved, dry surfaces and lack of water sound very appealing...

The Grim Reaper Rolls!

How do you deal with restlessness?

Striped Aubergine And More...

Those of you who have been reading here for a while may know that I've been struggling for the last couple of years to lower the weekly shopping bills, cope with transportation costs and issues and free my home of unneeded items. I've discovered that each of these is an ongoing process. I continue to make headway and have recently had the good fortune to see a reduction both food bills and waste, thanks to some simple changes.

Because I must pay transportation costs and face restrictions on the number of bags I'm permitted when using a shared wheelchair van, I arrange a wheelchair taxi and go out once weekly for groceries and any other necessary shopping. The driver, whom I know, accompanies me for shopping, which I pay for. As the costs of both transportation and food in this country continue to climb, it has been important for me to economize and try everything I can to eliminate what I refer to as "cash in the trash syndrome."

Beginning in the new year, I ditched the major grocery chain in my neighborhood in favor of the four mile trip to Aldi, which my readers in Europe will recognize. This has slashed my food budget nearly in half and while I still need to buy pet food and litter elsewhere, I've been able to stock up on those items and re-fill my pantry so that now I'm mostly just buy fresh vegetables, salad makings and fruit, along with basic cleaning and laundry supplies. Neither fast food or frozen meals figure prominently in my diet, nor does a lot of meat. I do keep a cache of frozen vegetables, some pasta and veggie burgers and fish on hand for quick suppers and lunches and have recently made the acquaintance of the local farm stand which is on the way to the Aldi at which I shop.

Last night, I paid ten dollars for aubergine, a bag of red potatoes, a large Meyer lemon, a bag of fresh broccoli, some candied papaya, bananas and a couple of other items at the farm stand. My Aldi bag consisted of bread, pasta, fresh green beans, cucumbers, a bag of baking potatoes, cottage cheese, one dozen eggs, some condiments and a few basic kitchen items for $25. My twenty pound bag of pine cat litter was $9 and I have more than enough to see me through the next week. I felt like I did well rather than simply settling for what was inexpensive and my savings is growing a bit, which is always a plus in my book.

Because I never know what fruits and vegetables I will find, I've had to get creative with meals, which means my grocery lists now consist of notations such as, "check fresh veg," rather than specific items. A week ago, I was surprised to find large, fresh blackberries available for half of what they cost at the larger grocery chains, so into the basket they went, with me smiling all the way to the register. Blackberries were never around when I was growing up. It was a late blogger friend from Canada who introduced me to them and now, when I find and enjoy them, I think of her.

The aubergine was small, cream colored and lightly striped in lavender rather than the deep purple to which I'm accustomed. It is the first of its kind I've ever seen and I've not yet found a photo of it on the Internet. I roasted it in the oven with some oil, basil and oregano for part of my dinner this evening and savored every morsel.

As far as cookery, I'm not sure my skills have improved, but I am having some fun finding ways to use up left overs and make sure all of the lovely fresh stuff I've been buying is eaten promptly to avoid waste. Life on a fixed income...

What money-saving strategies do you use, if any?