05.09.08

saving money tips for the kitchen

Posted in food, saving money at 7:24 am by admin

I noticed I throw a lot of bread away. The bread gets stale yet I always have to have fresh bread on hand in case someone wants a sandwich or toast or something. Throwing out food is a waste of money. Its that simple. Even though bread doesn’t cost that much, it adds up. So, I started thinking what can I do with this leftover bread? You can avoid the stale bread issue in the first place by putting the loaf of bread before it gets stale in the freezer. Make your sandwich with frozen bread for the next day’s lunch. Or if you have time, make some French toast with it. Stale bread is the key ingredient. Or cut up the bread in small squares, put it back in the bread bag, then smash it into bread crumbs. Use the crumbs or put the bag of crumbs in the freezer for later use. You can make stuffing out of the bread crumbs or use it as a topping for a casserole or use it in meatloaf in place of crackers or make bread pudding or another recipe. Another savings cause you don’t have to buy bread crumbs or stuffing mix for your recipes now.

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asheville weather this week

Posted in weather at 7:08 am by admin

The weather in Asheville NC has been beautiful this past week. However, it did rain a bit last night. The ground was wet this morning. I haven’t needed a sweater or a jacket to wear while I walk my granddaughter to the school bus stop. The temperature is not too hot in the evenings either. I’ve been keeping my windows open and my fans going to save on electricity. The house gets real hot inside even when the temperatures outside are mild. Its suppose to rain some tomorrow and Sunday. I sure hope not. Tomorrow Forest Lake is having their annual neighborhood yard sale. Many people living in Asheville look forward to this event for all the deals they can pick up.

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05.06.08

Obama won

Posted in events at 9:54 pm by admin

Barack Obama won the NC primaries today over Hillary Clinton. The polls ended at 7:30pm tonight. NC has a large African American population. Indiana will be close but the results are not in yet. Hillary Clinton is expected to take Indiana though. Will see real soon. These last two votes will decide who will be the candidate for the Democratic party. the poor economy is the biggest factor in this election and might be the factor that will put a Democrat in the Presidency this next term.

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Book Review of Unredeemed Captive

Posted in books at 9:41 pm by admin

I had to read this book for a Native American History class I took at UNCA here in Asheville NC this past semester so I thought I’d share some of my essays with my readers.

The Unredeemed Captive by John Demos was about Eunice Williams’ captivity and the ordeal her family went through to try and get her to return home. Eunice was captured together with her family and over 100 other town residents in the Deerfield raid of 1704. Demos accurately described the Deerfield raid, the captives’ trek to Canada and some individual’s captivity experience. He gave reasons for the raid and why it was successful. In addition, he described the Kahnawake Indian village where Eunice lived, their society, customs and so forth. Since very little is known about Eunice, Demos attempted to describe how he thought her life would have been like by relating life in the Kahnawake village. To read more, see Book Review

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05.05.08

Saving money eating out

Posted in food, saving money at 12:15 pm by admin

My parents are the world’s best on frugal living. Both of them grew up in the Depression and lived through the rationing of WWII. Anyway, when we go out to eat, my parents split a meal. At that, its still often too much for them both to eat. They always order water which at most restaurants is free. I’ve never been to a restaurant where I had to pay for water. They rarely order a mixed drink or a glass of wine. If they do, its a very special occasion. They will always ask what the specials are before ordering. They never order appetizers. However, they will ask for bread and ask if it comes with the meal. If it doesn’t, then we don’t have bread. They never order dessert. My parents will stop at the grocery store on the way home  to get a half gallon of ice cream if they dont have anything at home for dessert. My dad does the math in giving a tip. He never leaves more or less than 15 percent for the tip. When we were growing up, we very rarely went out to eat. When we did go out, none of us kids ever dared to order anything very expensive unless Mom said we could order anything we wanted. However, we always kept it down just cause we were trained that way. We never ate at fast food. I was envious of my friends who ate regularly at KFC and Mcdonalds. Today, when I go out to eat, I use the same tactics my parents do. However, I do go to fast food occasionally and order the dollar menu or use a coupon.

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