Yet Another New Level

I went book shopping today at both amazon.ca and at the local Chapters, seeking out books by Wiccan 'elders', picking up a copy of Starhawk's The Spiral Dance, Margot Adler's Drawing Down the Moon, and Isaac Bonewit's Essential Guide to Witchcraft and Wicca. I'm no longer focussed on what Wicca is to me, but, rather, what it is to others, as well as its true historical roots. In other words, I've now finally turned an academic eye to my Wiccan studies.

I am content with the way I live Wicca and the direction I am taking with my faith. But I find that my knowledge is too self-centred, too focused on what I feel inside. I have a hard time externalizing my beliefs. At first, I thought that was not necessary. But the broom closet becomes stuffier and stuffier and I think that I will eventually have no choice but come out of it to my family.

My extended family (especially my grand-mother) is devoutly Catholic while my immediate family (especially my mother) seems agnostic, maybe even atheist. I know that my grand-mother will understand, if she wants, my description of religious revelation, but my mother will want a much more academic, even 'lay' description of my beliefs. I need to be able to show that my beliefs didn't materialize out of thin air, that they have a history, that they are 'legitimate.'

This weekend, I attended a baptism for my nephew. He was baptized not because of his parents' personal beliefs, but, rather, because of family pressure. I'd like my beliefs to be known ahead of such events, so that my grand-mother won't faint should I ever be handfasted, or my mother be completely flummoxed by the death celebration ritual I have prepared.

Reading Being a Pagan, a collection of interviews with Pagans, I now have a greater sense of my own faith, seeing that while I do have an individual, even unique, take on it, my foundation is no different than that of those who follow a Druid, Astaru, or Faery path.

Most truthfully, though, I am getting lonely and am eager to reach out to the pagan community at a gathering of some sort and I'd like to be able to show up knowing that I'm not completely misguided in thinking of myself as 'Wiccan' and that others I meet will find me a kindred spirit.

The more I read the more I see that, a) I am most definitely Wiccan; b) I am most definitely following an uncommon path; and c) there is a definite (and desperate) need for Tameran Wicca literature.

New Levels

I seem to have reached yet another level of knowledge in my spiritual path.

Last weekend, I bought three books, one about Moses possibly being Akenaten, and the relationship between ancient Egyptian religion and Judaïsm; one about the current relevance of ancient Egyptian religion; and one about being a pagan.

The Moses and Akenaten volume hasn't impressed me, so I've only read a couple of chapters so far. Yet, it validates some of my own theories about the connection about Judeo-Christian faith and ancient Egyptian religion. Suddenly, my online searches took a different step. Even though I was using my 'usual' search words such as 'Egyptian pantheon', I was getting new search results... which brought me knowledge of new-to-me gods in this pantheon... gods which can be deemed a sort of 'cross-over' between ancient Egyptian religion and Judaïsm. Huh huh. Until this week, I was certain that Ba'al and Quetesh are early Semetic figures, with no relation to ancient Egypt. As it turns out, that's false. A little bit of research later, I realise that Ba'al has been jumping up and down in front of me waving his arms for quite a few weeks now. Okay, okay, I see you. Please stop playing with the weather!

The bigger lesson in all of this is that there is no set 'end' for a religion. Instead, they seem to ebb for a while then flow into something new which is ultimately so different as to be irreconcilable with what came before... and yet they started in the same place.

Bigger Doesn't Always Mean Better Value

At the grocery store this afternoon, I decided to treat myself to '2 bite brownies.' A 600g bag sold for 6$. I forget the price of the 300g bag, but I do remember the unit cost for each--the 600g bag's unit cost was 1$ while the 300g bag's unit cost was .83$! Whopping difference! As it happened, today the 300g bags were reduced to 2 for 5$.

I'll let you do the math and just say that I can't believe people were actually buying the 600g bags....

Shopping Lessons For This Week

Shopping Lesson #1: Know your favourite stores' price honouring policies
Bonus Shopping Lesson: Keep your receipts

A week ago, I bought 180$ worth of clothes at my favourite shop. I know better than to pay full price for anything at the shop, so everything I bought was discounted at least 20% and I got a lot for my 180$. Going by the shop yesterday, I saw that they were having a rare '50% off already reduced merchandise sale.' I shop there so often that I know that lower prices are honoured within a two week window. So, I went in with my receipt and asked if any of the items I'd bought the week before were eligible for this 50% off sale. Yes! I was given a refund of 37$! Since other items I wanted were on sale for 50% off, I used the refund to buy them. My total was five skirts, seven tops, and a pair of workout pants for 180$!

Shopping Lesson #2: You don't always have to go far from home to get the best deal

I'm taking a holiday soon and desperately needed luggage. I did some research and found the brand I wanted. It was very pricey, but the amount felt reasonable. So, I went to the nearby luggage shop, which everyone had told me not to go to since they're pricey, and which is where I buy most of my purses and bags. I asked if they could order me the luggage. Not only did they order my luggage, but they honoured two ongoing sales--a 25% off all luggage sale AND a 'buy two, get one free' sale. But here's the kicker. I'd ordered three pieces of luggage. They made me pay for the cheapest item, which I thought I'd be getting free, a 15$ 'gift.' Then, I was told I could pick out an item worth the value of the second item, 50$! So, I got a lovely brief/laptop case that I've been eyeing for ages and which was actually a 100$ value on sale for 50% off! My four pieces came to 150$, including taxes, when one of the pieces alone was 125$ at full price!

Wiccan hazards no one warned me about...

I think I was a little too enthusiastic in my prayers tonight since I set my Book of Shadows on fire. I had to pause in the middle of my invocation to Lord Osiris to beat my BoS on my altar to put out the flames!!!

I suppose that's one way to create a Beltane bonfire....

At any rate, neither my BoS nor my altar (nor me, for that matter) is any the worse for wear.

Speaking of my BoS, I've treated myself to a grimoire from Brahm's Bookworks. It should be arriving in about six weeks. Even though they offer an 'Egyptian' grimoire, I picked out the Witch's Grimoire (tm), finding the Egyptian one 'too busy.' Also, the WG seemed to better represent the whole of me--a Wiccan AND Witch. An Egyptian-themed BoS would only highlight a tiny part of my faith. I didn't order the 'grand tome' because I found the size too unwieldy for practical application. I figure that when I fill my first grimoire, I'll then order the 'Egyptian' one. At that point, I'll probably use the first grimoire for my Witchcrafty stuff and the Egyptian one for the Wiccan stuff. At least, if the pages are as easy to manipulate as the site claims. At any rate, I've wanted one of Brahm and Robyn's grimoires for ages now and I can't wait to hold it in my hands!

Beware of 'Buy X, get Y Free' offers

In my last post, I mentioned a 'buy beer, get free oranges' promotion at my local IGA. I arrived there and was given a bag of pathetic oranges, most of which were rotten. Needless to say, I didn't take the offer. The price of the beer wasn't worth the two or three decent oranges in the bag. Yet, I know some people who would have bought the beer anyway just to get that mouldy bunch of oranges, unable to resist something 'free' and not realising what it's actually worth.

Then, there are free offers that actually make sense.

I went to Payless yesterday to get summer footwear. I don't buy my everyday footwear there because their shoes don't hold up to the amount of walking I do, but I do like to get special occasion shoes that I'll only wear once or twice, as well as sandals. No matter what price I pay for sandals, I wear them through in one season, so I prefer to 'stock up' on a bunch of cheap sandals at places like Payless, Walmart, and Zellers and have some variety for the summer than to buy one really expensive pair. At any rate, this week there was a BOGO sale (buy one, get one free) and an additional promotion I was not aware of until I got to the cash.

I browsed the offerings and found two cute pairs for 5$ and 10$ each, reduced from 25$. They weren't worth 25$, but at 5$ and 10$, they were definitely worth it. I also picked out two pairs at a full price of 35$. I figured that with the BOGO offer I'd pay full price for the two most expensive pairs, then get the cheaper ones for 2.50$ and 5$. Nope! One of the 35$ pairs was given to me half price and also the 10$ pair! Then I was told that by buying four pairs of shoes, I was allowed a free pair of slippers. Skeptical, I gave the clerk my size and then she came out with two pairs of furry sequin-covered monstrosities, one in hot pink and one in black. I decided to take the black pair without examining it too closely since I needed slippers and figured that if they turned out to be a dud, I could toss them out. As it turns out, the slippers are extremely comfortable (heavenly comfortable!) and I love them!!! There was a price tag on them of 25$. There's no way I would have paid 25$ for these things, but I'm glad I have them! At any rate, I got 115$ worth of shoes I'll actually wear for 68$!!!

Finally, I replaced my wig this week and received a generous package of quality bath salts. I wouldn't recommend that anyone buy a 350$ wig in order to get free bath salts, but they were a good compromise for the fact that this year they weren't giving me 10% off my wig because of my medical condition. I use bath salts, hence why I'm satisfied. If they'd offered me, say, hair styling products for my wig, I would have said no thanks.

Interesting Promotion...

Here in Quebec we get a weekly 'Publi Sac' ('advertisement bag') filled with flyers from local merchants. I've never paid much attention to them, but resolved to make a change now that I've decided to do some conscientious grocery shopping.

Inside the bag, I found flyers for five grocery stores: IGA, Loblaws, Maxi, Super C, and Metro.

IGA has for a long time been my store of choice for price, quality, and selection. I also like that I can rack up Airmiles with each purchase. Loblaws/Provigo is okay for the odd grocery trip, but I tend to find it more expensive and the stores are just too big with too much miscellanea. Shopping there is always an expedition. Maxi and Super C have decent prices on what they have in stock, but you can't get everything there. I have no idea where the nearest Metro is, so no opinion on that store.

All that to say that I will continue to focus on IGA. It's still the most convenient for me and I'm most familiar with their prices.

As I went through the flyer, I noted on the back of an envelope the specials for products I used that seemed to be good bargains. The few that required coupons (to get extra Airmiles), I also cut out the coupon and put it in the envelope.

At the back of the flyer was the most interesting promotion I've ever seen at a grocery store: by a 12 pack of beer and get 4lbs of oranges free.... I'll definitely be taking them up on that one!

I did flip quickly through the Maxi flyer and found 398mL cans of Del Monte fruit for 1$ each, which is a real bargain. Since Maxi isn't a detour on the route home from IGA, I might stop off there when I'm done at IGA.

Monday, which signals the arrival of my fridge, so I can finally go grocery shopping, can't come quickly enough!!!

Purification

One of the very first things I did after taking possession of my new home was to complete a purification.

I began by inviting and welcoming my gods into my home and asked them to overlook the purification and bless my new abode.

Then, I adapted Scott Cunningham's four elements purification as described in his book The Magical Household. I will obviously not reproduce the spell here (get a copy of the book, it is excellent), but I will describe the slight modifications I made.

My new home has three stories, which include a hard to access basement. So, I did the purge on the two levels to start. With each pass, the 1st and 2nd stories felt brighter and more homey, while the basement began to feel sinister. When I was done purifying the two levels, I then used a bit of each of the elements to do one pass through the basement. I carefully shone a light into all the dark corners of that creepy place until it felt like my own private dungeon. When I was done, the whole house seemed new and clean and my own. I then tossed my used supplies out the back door to purify my outdoor space. I should point out here that the 'supplies' included some salt water, a bit of burnt candlewick, and some incence ashes, nothing that is too environmentally damaging.

I cannot over emphasize the importance of spiritually purifying your new home, and updating that purification whenever you feel that negative energy has settled into neglected corners.

Tomorrow, I will do a sort of reverse purification at my old home as I sweep it clean of all the residual energy from my old life to prepare the home for new owners.

H2O

Water is my beverage of choice.

One of the most common pieces of frugal advice that I encounter is 'don't pay for something that comes free out of your tap.' What if what comes out of my tap tastes bad?

Except for the very occasional purchase of beer and 100% fruit juice, I don't buy liquid calories. I'm happiest drinking water all the time, so I made the decision many, many years ago that the water in my house was going to taste good. Anyone who says that 'water is water' doesn't know water. Some water tastes like absolutely nothing, some has a slightly mineral taste, some tastes mouldy, some tastes like chlorine, some tastes like sewer pipes, some tastes earthy, some tastes peaty....

So, for years the answer has been Brita (TM) filters. At my last house, which was in the country, the tap water (from a spring-fed well) tasted great about nine months of the year, so I only used filters in the spring when the water wasn't so good. I've never calculated how much Brita filters cost me, but guesstimating here, one filter costs about 15$ and lasts about 3 months, so I'm looking at a 'habit' that costs me less than 100$ per year. Then I have to add in the bottles of water that I buy. I get a lot of comments for buying bottled water, sometimes at 2$ a pop. I made a decision a long time ago that a) I wasn't going to go thirsty and b) I wasn't going to drink something I wouldn't give to my cat. I don't drink bottled water because it's supposed to be healthier or whatever the manufacturers claim; I drink it because it doesn't have that nasty tap water chemical/sewage taste and aftertaste.

All that to say that I used to buy juice and milk, as well as my Brita filters. When I started to trim my budget, I started with juice, then milk got cut out naturally when I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome. To me, being frugal doesn't mean cutting out everything but making conscious spending choices. Having tasty water is important to me.

Organizing

My initial plan was to organize myself as I unpacked, basically to put everything away 'perfectly' as I unpacked. Working on the kitchen, I'm seeing how unrealistic that plan was.

Having lived in mild to total chaos for about seven years, I'm desperately craving a Martha Stewart-style house. I know that's not realistic, but believe that a compromise can be reached.

So, my revised plan is to put things where they should go, neatly, and to organize later. My yearly schedule includes reminders to 'organize/clean/declutter' three drawers/a closet/a shelf on a regular basis.

With that in mind, I've folded all my linens and put them away in the linen armoire, but in no order whatsoever. As for the kitchen, the tricky spot is the plastic containers (a classic problem, apparently). What I'm doing is matching containers to lids. Once I have a container with a lid, the lid goes into a basket and the container gets stacked with similar-shaped containers. Finding a lid won't always be easy, but I'll know for sure that there's a lid for whatever container I'm holding. (Personally, I believe that plastic container lids disappear to the same place as do lost socks....) This way, I can find everything in relatively short order and I'm not embarrassed to open the linen armoire or the kitchen cabinets.

Another thing I'm doing now that shops are so close by is to get my organizing items, like baskets, on an as needed basis, instead of listing them and buying everything at once. This means that a) the cost is spread out and b) I'm dealing with a trouble spot as it shows up. This might not sound frugal in that the items might not be on sale at the moment, but I think it's best to buy things you need than things you might need... Also, there is a huge scale of prices in organizing products. For example, I wanted a three drawer plastic tower to put in the upstairs hall closet to hold overflow bathroom products. I found a whole row of them, priced 19.99$ to 49.99$ until I found some simple, non 'design' ones for... 9.99$. Perhaps if the tower had been out in the open I would have been tempted to splurge on a 'nicer' one, but for the purposes of this exercise, the 9.99$ tower was perfect.

Another thing is to keep an open mind. On that same trip, I was looking for rectangular baskets into which I could store my dish towels, rags, and dish cloths. Normally, I would have these in a drawer in the kitchen, but drawer space is limited here. So, I thought of commandeering space in the pantry or out on an open shelf. I looked at baskets and couldn't believe the prices. The best bargains were for nested baskets, but I'm not crazy about those since I'm usually trying to get several baskets in the same size. Deciding that I wasn't ready to spend 20$ per basket, I resigned myself to getting a plastic bin, but I couldn't believe the prices for those, too! I wandered around the Canadian Tire some more and suddenly stumbled on two lone 'sea grass' baskets reduced to 6.49$ each from 13.99$ each! They weren't exactly the shape I'd wanted (rectangular with sloped sides rather than straight sides), but the size was suitable, they were much prettier than plastic bins, and they were a bargain! I snatched them up and haven't regretted it!

The Ikea unit I purchased in 'like new' used condition for 75$ instead of 125$ was also a great purchase. It fits in the other half of the upstairs closet and leaves me horizontal room for my laundry hamper, vertical room for my longer coats, and plenty of bin storage for hats, mitts, shoes, and all sorts of other odd bits.

Since I'm only renting this place, I'm trying to avoid buying things that will fit absolutely 'perfectly' into a specific place here but which will translate well to another home. So, I'm splurging on a lot of organizational products for the furniture I own and will be taking with me to Manitoba... something I should have done a long time ago!!!

Nesting

The last week and a half has been pure delight. My new home is so beautiful and clean and it's wonderful to set up house in it.

I've been working at it progessively since I don't have all my furniture and things yet (the hurricane lands on Monday). I've managed to set up most of the bedroom, bathroom, and bedroom, with some just a few things left to do for each of those rooms.

Moving is not a naturally frugal event for me, but I've managed to somewhat balance desires and thrift this time around. For example, I wanted a specific over-the-toilet cabinet, which was a full 60$ more expensive than the 'plain' version of the same cabinet. Still, I shopped around and found it for fully 30$ less at CDN Tire than at Zellers (!) so the difference between 'plain' and' fancy' was reduced by half.

I also need new bookcases (a real necessity in this case) and had my eye on specific Ikea bookcases that would have set me back 800$-1,000$. It's money I'll have in a few months, but not now, so I resigned myself to laminate. I thought I could go with 'Billy' bookcases, but at 75$ a pop, they, too, were more than I was ready to commit to at this time. Well, I lowered my standards of looking for brown 'Billy' bookcases and started to look at offers for other colours. Imagine that I found 3 for 75$ in black and 3 for FREE in white! Now, I have more than enough bookcases AND they're being Ikea means that I'll be able to recoup some, if not all, of the money I spent to buy them and lug them home when I'm ready to upgrade to the bookcases I want. Six 'Billy' bookcases for the price of one! Now, how's that for frugal?!

The End of a Long, Dark Night

There is nothing in the world like waking up to discover that your total debt load has been reduced by almost 30%!

One of my bigger loans, for which my father had co-signed, was paid off by a life insurance policy this morning.

I'll be paying off a smaller loan next week, once the unexpected money comes in. The combined payments for these two loans means that I'll be freeing up just about the cost of my rent at my new place. Add to that what I'm saving on gas and car maintenance, as well as home and auto insurance, and I'm definitely going to have a bit of extra money at the end of each month.

Left to pay off:

-overdrafts;
-credit card;
-line of credit;
-car (paying 0.9% interest, so not my first priority);
-student loan (gives me a decent tax credit, so also not a first priority);
-fridge and stove (did the 'no payments, no interest for a year' thing, still have six months to go before the bill is due, and I have most of the money saved up, so I'm not even thinking about this at this time).

Soon as my insurance payment comes in, I'm paying off my credit card and reducing the balance to the lowest limit possible, and removing my overdrafts from my accounts. The line of credit will be next, followed by the student loan, and then the car.

I need to set aside money for tuition and my surgery next fall and once that's done, I can think about taking a nice little holiday this summer. *makes a mental note to have her passport application processed*

Book Review Update

I've now read the first three Shopaholic book by Sophie Kinsella and my initial opinion still holds, and then some! That's high praise for me who tends to drop a series after a couple of books (Harry Potter is a notable exception.).

They are extremely funny (the laugh out loud in public and read bits to your cat kind of funny) and still very pertinent to those who want to take better control (or not, for that matter) of their finances.

Very, very enjoyable!

Faith

Whenever I think that I've fully grasped the concept of 'faith', I get faced with a trial that tests it... and I always fail. Take today, for example. Early this morning, I encountered a seemingly unsurmountable financial bump in my path. I was completely freaked out and panicked, even though I know from past experience that my gods always manage to find a way to pull me back from the brink, and, without resorting to such things as lottery winnings or an inheritance from a long-lost relative, find me just enough money to see me through the trouble.

I just couldn't imagine such a scenario happening for today. So, my gods came up with one that had only the slimmest chance of ever happening. Well, it did and I'm saved, again, and I am once again humbled by the love these deities have for a Witch who has yet to figure out what she's done right to merit this sort of attention.

Breakfast, and a Book Review

I have breakfast and fresh coffee at work every single morning. Sounds expensive, right? Well, it's not. I keep a supply of peanut butter, powdered milk, and sugar at my desk, a week's worth of bagels in the kitchen freezer, and every couple of days I grind some coffee beans at home to take to work. I know that making breakfast at work isn't an option for everyone, but it's okay here--there's a toaster in the kitchen and I'm allowed to keep a coffee maker at my desk. Since I get up extremely early and have a hideously long commute, I've been shaving off time from my morning routine by not eating straight away. Instead, I dress and go. By the time I get to work, an hour and a half or so later, I've had some exercise and am actually hungry. I eat around 7:30- 8AM and I usually 'last' until 11:30-12, when I have lunch. Before, I used to be famished by 9, so I'd go downstairs for a muffin or other treat. So, by making breakfast at work, I save both money and calories! I do occasionally go get coffee downstairs, but not as often as I once did. I'd rather have my coffee while I start work then to drink it at home or in the car (tried both options). Now that I'll be moving much closer to work, I'll probably start eating breakfast at home again, but this current routine has probably saved me hundreds of dollars and calories!

Now, on to the book review.

I'm reading the Shopoholic series by Sophie Kinsella. When a colleague passed me the first one, I wasn't too interested, thinking that they'd be completely frivolous. I've only read the first one so far, but what I can say about it is that it is only superficially frivolous. In fact, this book has several excellent messages about finding your passion, taking responsibility for you life, and spending consciously. It made me feel better about some of my consumer behaviour, while leaving me horrified about certain habits. They should be a must read for anyone in their eyeballs in debt or who never know where all their money went. They're also hysterically funny! Highly recommended.

Semi-Grocery

I didn't get a lot of groceries tonight since I'm moving on some indeterminate date next week. I wanted to get just a few fresh items to supplement what I've got left in the pantry and freezer for this week and upcoming weekend, and then do the 'day-to-day' thing for next week.

So, armed with a few coupons, a calculator, and my price book, I came to the conclusion that I did not get the 'rock bottom' price for cheese, but I did get a good deal. I must have been a lot of fun in the cheese aisle during 'rush hour' today, trying to figure out which sale cheese had the best per 100 g price. It turned out to be Lactantia (again), but the per 100g price was 1.15$, which is considerably higher than the .83$ per 100g I paid at Bloblaws a couple of weeks ago. I was okay with paying the 1.15$ price since the extra 2 Airmiles were compensation. I'm so proud of myself for taking the time to figure out what the best deal was out of all my choices AND for having a point of reference!

I also picked up some fresh basil for 1.99$ per bunch (cannot wait to have an herb garden again) with coupon, which included another extra 2 Airmiles, and some pitas, thinking that I could use some of my tomato soup to make mini-pizzas on the weekend. Then, as I was looking at the not-on-sale pizzas for dinner tonight, I had an embarrassing epiphany--why not have mini-pizzas tonight?

So, I did.

Mini pizzas are a whole pita, not split, with a tablespoon of tomato soup slathered over, and then sprinkled with herbs and cheese, then either nuked (tonight) or broiled (when the toaster oven is hooked up). With fresh basil they are absolutely amazing. Then again, just about anything is absolutely amazing with fresh basil.... I sprinkled some of the Lactantia mozzarella over the two I made, rolled one up for lunch tomorrow, and then remembered the (fresh) parmesan my mother gave me this weekend. So, the one I had tonight got two cheeses. I served the mini-pizza with a prepared salad (taxable, boohoo, so I spent 72 cent on taxes for my salads tonight) and more beer than I normally have on a weekday (bro gave me an oversize bottle for my birthday and it doesn't keep well when opened. *g*).

Yummy supper and pretty cheap, and took about 2 minutes to make, prep time included!

Contrary Coupon Position

I was just clipping coupons at iga.ca (really!) in preparation for a grocery trip today when I began to think about a common coupon 'tip'--to never buy with a coupon something you wouldn't have bought otherwise.

Why not?

Sometimes there are products I'd like to try, but I find the price a bit steep. Take, for example, the sun dried tomato and artichoke veggie sausages in the tofu case at my local supermarket. They seemed so good, but at a cost of 3.99$ for a package of 4, seemed outrageously priced. When I got a coupon for half off a package, I jumped on it. The sausages turned out to be yummy, but way too salty, so not worth 1$ each as they would have to supplement a meal, not be a meal. But at 50 cents each, I felt that they could be a nice treat. So now, whenever I see a coupon for them or they go on sale, I get a couple of packages and toss them in the freezer.

I also have a bunch of coupons from save.ca. It's a site with coupons organized by province. You select the ones you want and they are mailed to you. Fantastic site!

Frugal television?

On the way to pick up the newest-on-dvd season of a show I like, I found myself wondering if I wasn't being a bit impatient and unfrugal by not waiting for the price to go down. No, I decided.

There are currently only two shows I get on DVD. By the time a new season hits the shelf, it's been about two years since I saw the previous season. I've waited a long time to see how the cliffhanger ends!

'Instant gratification' in this case isn't buying the DVDs the week them come out, but paying the ridiculous price for cable or satellite tv.

I spend on DVD sets (purchases and rentals) in a year what some people spend on cable or satellite each month.

That amount will go down even further when I get high speed as I'll be able to download some of the shows I currently rent. At a dollar per episode for downloads (and some downloads being free as I wouldn't pay for something I could get through rabbit ears), it's still cheaper than renting.

Tuna Casserole

I know I should probably eat more tuna and I really don't mind the taste, but the chickeny texture bothers me somewhat. I've come up with a way to make tuna that will feed me for three meals (generous portions with seconds) or five meals (non-piggish portions).

I start by scoping out specials on tuna and 'Tuna Helper.' I'm sure there are more frugal ways to make tuna casserole, but I love the noodles and sauce in Tuna Helper and it's so much more convenient than making a (lumpy white sauce). So, to reiterate, I get the tuna and TH on special.

Once I have the tuna and TH, I wait until I'm in the mood for a hot, filling casserole. I prepare the TH as stated on the side of the box, for baking in the oven. I use 3.5 cups boiling water and no milk. I bake it for 30 minutes, to give time for the noodles to cook and some to crisp up. I then add a generous handful of frozen veggies (usually lima beans/carrots/peas/corn/green beans) and return the dish to the oven for a few more minutes. I then stir some grated cheese (usually yellow cheddar) into the casserole and top it with crushed soda crackers. After another few minutes in the oven, I broil the dish for a minute (watch it!) so that the crackers brown.

Voila! It's not too pretty, but it's sinfully delicious, and fairly cheap, too, if you got all the 'ingredients' on special.

A startling revelation

Stuck in traffic yesterevening, I finally said aloud something that until then only my subconsciousness had accepted: I believe in the 'Judeo-Christian-Islamic god' and not only that, I believe the Bible is his word (twisted somewhat by translation, granted).

It gets better than that, though.

I truly believe that the Christian-Christian-Islamic god is the Aten and, thus, he belongs to the pantheon I honour. However, because he has turned his back on the other gods, is a rebel so to speak, and, thus, I do not have to honour anything he says that is contrary to what the other gods say. But he can only get away from their legacy so much, and while he is a tyrant and a bully, he has inherited the wisdom of the Tamerans (that doesn't make him wise, though), and while he has twisted that wisdom, it is still apparent in parts of the Bible. And what he says that is contrary to what the Tamerans say just further asserts what the Tamerans say.

So, and this is my big revelation: the Bible is as much the word of of the gods for me as it is the word of God for Christians. I can use it to further my knowledge of my gods.

Am I Wiccan, then? I know that if I begin to treat the Bible as one of my many holy books, equal to my book of shadows, to the Book of Coming Forth by Day, to the teachings of past Wiccans, then I am holding a controversial position.

But it feels right to me, and I feel no less Wiccan.

What a contrary faith I have chosen.