The blog is NOT dead. I just needed a little break. And we have some announcements and some decisions

1- I’m engaged, kids! (Woo! My beautiful Lani proposed to little ol’ me on Christmas night. We’s getting hitched! (More on that later, and how we’re going to have an amazing engagement and do it independently)

she liked it. so she put a ring on it.

2- We are keeping the blog! We’re still going to be tracking all our expenses, adjusting things here and there, and are moving our goal to $30/day. This is still pretty amazing for 2 people to live off of, but for Lani and I it will feel like we can breathe a little bit while still saving money every month.

Please be patient with me over the next few weeks as I start my new job and enjoy being engaged (!) for a while. I’ll update more like 4-5x a week, so if you don’t want to check everyday, subscribe! It will be emailed to you!

As the year comes to it’s close, I invite you all to look at how you’re spending your money and really explore where you can adjust your spending to be living abundantly and keep some money in yo piggy bank. I feel like I can breathe easier now, though, guys- I can open my online banking without cringing. It’s a really beautiful new feeling. Woo! Happy New Year, one and all– xoxoxo.

NOW, let me tell you about how to get a haircut in SoHo for $25.

My lovelies. My little darling dears. Do yourself a favor and go to www.salonapprentice.com. There you will find talented young salon students with stars in their eyes just begging you to come in and get your hair did. Mind you, it will take longer than a traditional haircut (my bob took 2 1/2 hours today, but I also had a very nervous student who needed extra direction from his teachers). My advice to you– do not go in on posts asking specifically for bobs/pixie cuts, or long layers, or something. Go in for the posts where you can ask them to cut your hair however you want. If they’re asking for something specific, it means they haven’t gotten that salon merit badge (or whatever their certification is). That’s what happened with me today- yes, my little duckies, Miss Abigail learned the hard way. My hairdresser was LOVELY. He took his time, but I could feel his nervousness, and found out fairly quickly that he asked me to come in to do a bob b/c he botched the last girl’s hair he did it on.

DISCLAIMER: If they botch your hair, the master stylist will fix it.  As far as my understanding goes, you will not leave with shitty hair. They assured me of this. Make sure you discuss it before you go in though- as I don’t know if that’s a universal policy.

So, anyway, if you go in on the posts where they say they can do whatever you ask, it means they’ve passed all their certifications and now just need hours in the chair. So for $25 (or sometimes for less, or free), you can get a kick-ass haircut like mine. Woo!

That’s right, kids.

Your faithful Momma Duck of unemployment bliss has had a beautiful 13 days of job searching, homemaking, and being an all around domestic diva. And the homemaking will not end.

But the unemployment will, bitches! Momma’s got a job! And it’s a good one, whoopie!

Here’s the thing, though. Lani and I (with the exception of one or two Christmas gifts) are still going to stick with our $20/day through the end of December, but we’re unsure how to continue come the New Year. This blog has become pretty popular, and I absolutely love keepin’ y’all so entertained while you pretend to work. So here’s the question of the day-

How should we continue the blog? Should we up our $$$-per-day average to, say, $30? Should we set spending goals? Lemme know whatcha think!!!

Dog Habitat Rescue of Brooklyn just rescued *200 SHITZUS, MALTESES, CAVALIERS after drug bust/back yard breeder. They were kept outdoors and were freezing to death. NEED TO FIND HOMES ASAP to save their lives. ANYONE LOOKING FOR A DOG? Pure breed, all ages, FREE. Please contact Dog Habitat Rescue 718.710.0707 They have 2 days to get the dogs out.
Please go to www.doghabitat.org to find out more information about this awesome shelter, or please just give them a call and get me – uhm- I mean you, a puppy. An adorable shih-tzu puppy that’s sweet and cuddly. Pleez? Puppy forz me?

I found free stuff. It’s EVERYWHERE.

Look at these websites. I’m officially obsessed.

First, please go to www.brokelyn.com. I know if you haven’t already had a sip of the ol’ BK Kool-Aid, you are being tempted. Well, kiddies, here’s the ultimate reason to get your tushies here. Free shit is EVERYWHERE. And if it’s not free, it’s cheap. From free STD testing, Spaying/Neutering of pets, to where the cheapest dry cleaners is… Brokelyn gets it done. I’m surfing their sweet page every day. And I hope you do too, now.

Secondly. I just found this incredible site and am FREAKING out over it. www.clubfreetime.com. Holy moly. I could be busy ALL DAY LONG with free happenings in the city. (Do I hear a challenge? Stay tuned…) They have free rehearsals for orchestras and ballets, free movie screenings and book talks, free guided tours… It’s amazing. NOTE: YES, it costs $2.95/month. But holy hell, it is a $3 well spent.

It’s the holidays, y’all. Find something fun to do today, and do it on the cheap.

Question- What’s your favorite holiday event?

It is so good, and so, so, affordable. Check this OUT, my budgeting munchkins.

2 onions- $1

4 peppers- $3

8 cloves garlic- $.75

2 cans refried beans- $2.18

2 cans black beans- $2.18

2 cans kidney beans- $2.18

64 oz tomatos- $5

1 tablespoon chili powder- $.50

Total: $16.75 for 4 meals for L and I. So, per meal for 2, that’s just over $4. That, my friends, is what I like to call IMPRESSIVE. And bless you, Rachel Ray, for helping me make a kick-ass meal for me and my ladylove.

Here’s our expenses for the past couple of days:

11/12/2010    Hardware Store    $2    Screws
11/12/2010    Grocery Store    $2    Chili Powder
11/13/2010    Corner Store    $7.58    Red Pepper, Green Pepper, Tomatoes

This brings our dollars-per-day average to $19.72. Right. On Track.

So this week, I’m really excited because I LOVE Holiday music and I found a bunch of places right near me in Brooklyn where I can hear beautiful music for free! Check this out:

Tuesday, December 14th at 7:30PM- Holiday Music with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir- www.brooklyntabernacle.org

Saturday, December 18th at 7PM- Jingle Bell Jamboree with the Old First Reformed Church of Park Slope (729 Carroll St)

Sunday, December 19th at 5:30PM- Christmas in the City at St Paul’s Lutheran Church 334 5th St, Williamsburg Brooklyn

And you know what? I bet there are a ton more, and there are probably a ton right in your area. So if you need a little holiday cheer but don’t want to fork over the big bucks for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular (I know, those commercials are SO tempting though, right?)- check out your local churches lessons and carols services. Free music! And you get to sing along without the rest of the audience leering at you.

1 container of cottage cheese

1 container of mini-pearl tomatoes

1 bag of corn chips

2 jugs of liquid egg whites

1 jug of vegetable broth

1 box of instant chocolate pudding

1 tub of earth balance butter

1 bag of basmati brown rice

2 bags of organic broccoli

1 jar of peanut butter

2 cans of kidney beans

2 lbs of organic ground beef

1 bag of roasted cashew pieces

1 block of extra sharp cheddar cheese

1 package of shredded mexican blend cheese

1 brick of light cream cheese

9 fuji apples

5 bananas

2 potatoes

2 red onions

2 yellow peppers

frozen salmon

1 half gallon of skim milk

2 cans of refried black beans

1 box of Puffins cereal

1 container of parsley

garlic (full pieces)

1 can of diced tomatos

1 bag of yellow onions

2 bags of spinach

nutmeg

7 clif bars

For a grand total of $97.32

And once we find chili power and pumpkin (both of which were out of stock at Trader Joe’s), we’ll have all we need for me to make chili and a creamy pumpkin soup for us to eat all week long.

Even with this big ol’ purchase, our dollars-per-day average is still only at $22.82. By being careful with our money all week long, we weren’t afraid to throw down the big bucks and not skimp on quality or quantity. I’ve got to say, we’ve been at this for just over a week, and I’m really proud of how we’ve done. And my lovelies, my dearest dears who are reading this and thinking ‘yeah, right, I could never do what they’re doing.’ If you take 10 minutes each morning to plan your meals, and 20 minutes before you go to the grocery store, you can do exactly this, and save an incredible amount of money. It’s really been a blessing to see that we can truly handle whatever comes our way and can handle it with grace and style.

As Miss L and I were looking at our spending, we saw that even with our $20/day budget, we’ve managed to give $15 in donations. While this doesn’t look like a whole lot, this is something I never thought we would be able to do. When we embarked on this little adventure, our big sticking point was ‘only spend what you need.’ And I really didn’t know if this was something we could do- it was a challenge, after all. But we’re practically at our $20/day goal right now (we will be back at $20 by the end of the day today), and if we hadn’t spent the $15 we did (one was a $10 donation towards a friend’s birthday, the other was $5 to a charity called PeaceFirst, which asked for donations during a holiday party we attended), our current dollars-per-day average would be only $19. By giving just a little bit, we’re still taking care of ourselves, but we’re not cutting ourselves off from the rest of the world. This challenge, while it is enabling our homebody tendencies, is not meant to make us social recluses. I’m really glad that we can still be involved in the world and watch our pennies.

So, while it’s the holiday season, even with the economy making you want to cry, I’m happy to say that giving a little bit here and there is not so hard after all.

Question for today- What’s your charity / non-profit of choice?

“The girls, described as two 22-year-olds, don’t have the cash for Jimmy Choos or trips to the Met. As the titled suggests, the ladies are flat broke, but make do living in one of the most expensive cities in the world.”

“Two Broke Girls”? Come on, Michael. We all knooowwww you read the blog. Own it.

11/9/2010    Holiday Party    $5    Donation to PeaceFirst
11/10/2010    2 Way Laundromat    $4    Laundry

So… our dollars-per-day average is….

$13.50!!!!!!

Yeah, you read that right. Ms L and I are kickin major tush in the money department. So this afternoon, because we have absolutely nothing to eat in the house, and because we deserve it, we’re off to Trader Joe’s.

Now, a word about grocery shopping. Here’s what I’ve found is a really good strategy to curb excess/mindless spending at the grocery store:

1- Plan your meals ahead. If you know what you’re going to eat each day, just buy those things. Clearly, buy enough of it, and get yo’self some snacks (the worst thing EVER is when you come home from the grocery store, unpack it all, and realize that there’s nothing to eat unless you cook for an hour), but stick to the plan, Stan.

2- Make a list, and actually stick to it. Sure, you can plan your meals all you want, but if you don’t write it down on a list and follow it, you’ll go home and have half the things you need and will end up eating the Velveeta straight from the package (I mean, I’ve never done that….)

3- Don’t buy it just because it’s on sale. I have gotten myself in trouble with this SO. MANY. TIMES. Just because an item is on sale does NOT mean it needs to go in your cart. Sale doesn’t = free. and if it’s not on your list, you don’t need it! Stocking up on something that you don’t use all the time, or think ‘well, it’s cheaper now, and since it’ll be at my house, I’ll definitely eat it’… oh no no no no. You clearly never opened the pantry at my childhood home. It was actually filled. to the brim. All the time.  “With what?”. you all ask with wonder.  Well, kids. I’ll tell you. Random shit that no one ever ate. Don’t let your pantry become what our pantry became. Be wise. Buy what you will eat.

There it is, kids. I’ve laid out the plan. Once we’re home, I will give you the full run-down of what we bought, what the plan for meals is, and how we’re going to have another kick-ass week. Go Team!

Question of the day: What’s your grocery store strategy?