Economy Stimulation: YarnEnvy style

Whoa.  We've been doing some economy stimulatin' around here, and boy has it been exciting, and there's more to come.

Knitting first.  Because of a generous passing-along of a free shipping code by Janet, I finally invested in a good tote bag for my knitting, with a zipper, too.

Inside this bag is the knitting I've been working on but can't share due to its gift status.  I've been working on this stuff for a long time.  Don't know if I'll get done in time.

But look:  it's puppy-proof!  Worth any amount of money, shipping or no.

  (Details: medium tote from Land's End, with zipper.  I'm very happy with it as it is sturdy and well-made and stands up on its own.  I have informed my knitty friends that in the event of my death my knitting is to be buried with me in this bag.  Please include a snack, too.  Thanks.)

Speaking of puppies, Sadie isn't so much of a puppy anymore.  She's 11 months old, and over 8 pounds.  She's nearly full-grown.  She made some new friends on Thanksgiving, Argus and Finney, and this is what she did on Black Friday:

One of her favorite places to crash is the back of this chair.

Ok.  On to more Wonton Consumerism.

My mother offered her discount at Apple on Black Friday, and I got an Airport Express wireless thingy.  Now I can print more easily, and so far, it's working much more reliably than the old router, the difficulty in getting my cable modem to behave appropriately notwithstanding.

Another discount led to the next, though less successful, bit of spending.  Long-time readers will know of my long battle with preparing coffee (that meets my standards) in my home.  Long story short, the Mukka Pot of Faithfulness became the Mukka Pot of Danger when I really looked at how corroded and nasty it is.  It's hard to clean, and easy to neglect.  The rule in my house is that if you buy something cheap and wear it out or break it, you get to buy a better replacement.  A lot of research and a 25% discount led me to order this:

 You don't get a real life picture, however, because it arrived yesterday and now its guts are open all over my counter because the pump doesn't work.  Nice.  I'm not as excited about it as I was yesterday before I opened the box.  Hopefully they'll just send me a new one and I won't have to pay a lot for return shipping.

And one last bit of spending I'm not as excited about:  it turns out I can deny it no longer.  Unless I can figure out how to live without using my lower back, I need to buy a new bed.  It seems they don't last forever.  Who knew?  I've been sleeping on my sleeper sofa, which has helped, but that can't go on forever.  My apartment looks like a disaster.  I'm not excited about that buying experience, so I'm willing to entertain some advice.  Thankfully, the local Mattress Hut is offering two years/no interest.  Free money, it's a good thing.

As you can see, I'm doing my part.  Some intentional, some otherwise.  Some good, some bad.  I'm lucky enough to have a good, secure job with good benefits (no insurance premium increase this year!) and it's the least I could do.  You're welcome.