My Tireless Retirement - Week 95

 

What a difference a week makes!  We went from single digits and loads of snow back up to low 40s and rain.  All of that snow I had to shovel is pretty much gone now and we’ve had some lovely foggy mornings to start off our days.  I just love a good fog.

 

My week was busy!  And it went by super fast.  I ended up working every day last week and enjoyed it tremendously.  I’m helping out on a big project at the senior center as well as my regular duties.  I love to be busy, especially this time of year.

 

I rode the bus to work every day but Monday because it was raining and I was grateful to have that option and ability to choose, but I missed it and my opportunity to walk downtown.  I am finding I prefer the bus and my walks to and from the downtown bus station.  I had forgotten how much I enjoyed walking downtown.  I used to work downtown for several years when I was at the accounting firm and I’d walk all over the place on my breaks and during my lunch hours.  Couldn’t get enough of it!  I love the architecture down there and the old Victorian buildings and houses just fascinate me.  They are so pretty with their colorful paint schemes and gorgeous trims.

 

Things I Used Up: 

When I retired nearly two years ago I discovered I had four open containers of Comet cleanser in my house.  Why?  Who knows, but somehow that had happened.  They were the large ones and were nearly full too.  I was determined to make sure they all got used up before another one was opened and I accomplished just that last week after cleaning my upstairs bathroom.  I was also able to use up a can of Barkeeper’s Friend that had been hanging out underneath my kitchen sink for quite awhile.  I actually had two open cans of that stuff and both are now gone.

 

I used up the tail end of two tubes of chapstick by digging out the remnants at the bottom of the tube with a toothpick which gave me an extra month of use.  Similarly I squeezed out every last bit of toothpaste from the tube before I tossed it giving me about a week of use.  I’m always amazed at how much product there is that is sometimes a little more difficult to get out of the container but would otherwise get tossed out if I didn’t try.

 

I used up some pancake mix and a partial bag of frozen blueberries that had been hanging around for a while by making up a big batch of waffles and putting them into the freezer to enjoy as homemade toaster waffles.  I also chopped up a head of cabbage and used the majority of it to make an eggroll in a bowl freezer meal kit.  I was able to pretty much clear out my crisper drawer in the fridge before anything had a chance to go bad.

 

Eggroll In A Bowl meal kit for the freezer

Ways I Saved $$: 

I rode the bus four of the five days I worked.  As I mentioned before it doesn’t cost me anything to ride the bus because I am a city employee and it saves me a lot of money on fuel, not to mention wear and tear on my vehicle.  I’ve actually been kicking myself for not doing this sooner.  I do like to drive my truck at least once a week so she knows I still love her.

 

Good as new!

I mended my favorite pair of winter gloves.  They had a worn spot on the right thumb and palm so I darned both of those spots.  I should be able to make it through the remainder of the winter while I seek out my next pair of favorite gloves.

 

Meals I Prepared: 

I had a super easy week as far as meals went.  I pulled out loads of leftovers I had squirreled away in the freezer earlier in the month to reheat and eat.  I had two servings of Korean Beef as well as stir fried vegetables to go with, two servings of cream of broccoli soup with two cornbread muffins, a serving of Italian sausage in tomatoes with a bit of penne pasta on the side and half of a sausage and vegetable quiche.  Needless to say, I didn’t do any cooking, but I did do a lot of microwaving and because none of these items had been in the freezer more than a couple of weeks they were all delicious and fresh tasting.

 

The last of the grocery store free offer freezer waffles were eaten up too as part of a weekend brunch and served with a fried egg on the side.  The convenience of those waffles had me thinking I should make up a large batch of homemade waffles to keep in the freezer as part of my regular meal plan.  So I did!

 

I do so hope you were able to have an enjoyable week.  Let me know what you’ve been up to.  In the meantime take care. 

 

FYI - My retirement week runs from Friday through Thursday.