25 September 2010, Saturday

Challenge Day One.

Rearranged the refrigerator when I got up—food that I wouldn't be allowed to see on one side, food that I'd be allowed to see on the other. Inadvertently licked the spoon of one of the invisible foods when I transferred it to a smaller bowl. Drat. Technical violation before I'd even started.

Breakfast
Toast
Peanut butter
Water (Drat. Forgot to buy tea yesterday.)

The toast dry. Tomorrow, I'll try a little more peanut butter.

Shopping Day Two. Fall weather—11 degrees Celsius when I went out after rain.

It took 1.5 hours to spend $7.06.

Dollar store
1.00    Green tea
1.00

Zellers
0.67    Tuna ($.02 less than budgeted)
0.67    Tuna ($.02 less than budgeted)
1.34

Sobeys

1.69           Cabbage ($.70 more than budgeted)

0.99    Celery hearts (a substitution—cauliflower was no longer priced at $.99

          a head)

2.68

I was almost angry at the cauliflower for ceasing to exist at $.99, not only because its non-existence required me to scramble, to rethink my Grand Plan, but also because the cauliflower—the very same heads of cauliflower—that had sold for $.99 had simply been moved to another bin and assigned a higher price.

A case of knowing that grocery specials change every week but thinking naively that $.99 heads of cauliflower would cost $.99 until the last one sold.

Sour grapes department. I don’t really like cauliflower without broccoli, and celery hearts will be more useful.

Shoppers

2.04    Eggs ($.05 more than budgeted; I bought a plastic bag as carton

          insurance, backpack protection)

2.04

I was also almost angry at bread at Shoppers. There they were—Friday’s $.99 loaves of bread, in the same place, priced $.80 higher on Saturday.

It took five hours yesterday and today to spend a grand total of $19.20. I have $.80 to spend at my discretion.

Fortunately, it didn’t rain.

Lunch

Toast

Onion

Cheese (grilled)

Cayenne pepper

Cabbage

Salad dressing

Cayenne pepper

Green tea

Dinner

Oil

Onion

Celery

Spaghetti sauce

Cayenne pepper

Oregano

Spaghetti

Cheese (grated)

Green tea

Dinner wasn’t a happy experience. Don’t think I could bear another sauce like that one. The fault of the celery and the thin, thin sauce. Couldn’t finish it. Might have to invest an hour walking and my remaining $.80 in another $.67 can of tuna tomorrow (its last day at that price). I’d wanted to spend it on fruit.