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Some Things You Don’t Skimp On

Posted on May 24, 2010 by auburnchick

It’s been three weeks since I touched my coupons.

What can I say?  Life has kept me busy.

We’ve made really small trips for deli sandwiches and such, but no major excursions.

However, today was the first in a while that I did not have to sub. I planned on taking advantage of my day off.

I dragged out the coupons…

Yeah, it’s as messy in real life as in those pictures.  Hence, my reluctance to dive back in.

However, Rooster had started getting ornery, pretty much demanding that I get my act in gear.  He’s almost 16 and eats a lot.  In his words, “I’ve eaten everything that’s edible.”

Not very subtle, eh?

So, I got my list together and headed out.

I spent more than usual, but only because my store will not accept the $5/$20 Rite Aid coupons any more.

Still, I saved 60%.  Sorry, but I did not take any pictures.

I heard ooohhh’s and ahhhh’s as the kids and the Mr. discovered the cookies and chips I had come home with.  You’d have thought they’ve never seen those items before!

A bit later, Chicky emerged from the restroom with a, “Whoa, what kind of toilet paper did you buy?”

Uh oh.

I guess the Scott’s wasn’t going over very well…

I thought I was getting a great deal.  I used a $1 coupon to drop the price I paid to $2.99.  I had compared the yardage and saw I was getting more for my money.

Plus, I thought Chicky liked rough toilet paper.  She used to tell me to buy “gas station toilet paper” because she did not like the soft stuff.

I guess her preferences have changed…matured, if you will.

I would have done well to check the number of plys per sheet.

It is one-ply.

“Suck it up,” I said.  I’ll get some better stuff next time, making no mention of the $10 stuff I buy for the Mr.’s bathroom (which I’ve blogged about before).

Still thinking it was no big deal, I headed over to the kids’ bathroom for a tinkle.

One spin of the roll, and I was hollering, “Whoa!”

Rooster heard me and said, “Told you so.”

That he did.

I learned my lesson.  There are just some things you don’t skimp on.

Filed under: Saving Money | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

What Would Dr. Phil Say?

Posted on July 23, 2009 by auburnchick

God must really shake His head at some of the stupid things we humans argue about.

Take, for instance, the Mr.’s and my latest disagreement.

This is actually an ongoing thing, stemming from the earliest days of our marriage.

Do we argue over money?

Not very often.

Did he blow a top when I spent $200 on airline phone charges years ago before I knew that you got charged even if the person never picked up the phone?

Nope.

What about the time when I had the bathroom faucet taken apart and couldn’t put it back together with the mammoth wrench I had purchased.

Nope.

What drives the Mr. insane and will cause him to shake the walls with his yelling is…

and hold onto your hats…or rather your pants…

When he finds an roll of toilet paper on the hanger…one square left…and a new roll of toilet paper on the back of the potty.

Yes folks, this is what drives the man nuts (well…it’s one of quite a few things, but let’s not go there).

Truth be told, though, the situation is not as simple as it seems.

You see, I play a small role in the evolution of his anger (in this matter only, of course).

For a woman who will not hesitate to fix an oven, risk her life changing out the doorbell, or climb ladders to trim trees, one of the tasks I loathe the most is changing out the toilet paper roll.

I will, in fact, avoid it at all costs.

I have no explanation for why I feel so strongly about it.

I mean, it’s not a nasty job…certainly not near as bad as scrubbing the outside garbage can, which I did for the first time ever in my entire life yesterday evening.

There is just something I cannot stand about pulling off the empty roll and replacing it with a new one.

Now, you must understand that in the AuburnChick home, we go through a LOT of toilet paper.  The Mr. has Crohn’s Disease.  It’s a debilitating disease of the small intestine that pretty much keeps a person in close proximity to a restroom.

We buy the most expensive toilet paper — Charmin Aloe — and place it in the master bathroom only.  In fact, he’s known to travel with a few rolls of it, keeping it in his suitcase so the maids don’t inadvertently change it out.

The kids get what I like to nickname Gas Station Toilet Paper.  When you use it, it feels like you’re rubbing a Brillo pad across your rump.  Chicky actually used to ask for it.  She hates toilet paper that falls apart while you’re using it.  Rooster likes the good stuff but only gets to use it if the kids’ bathroom is occupied, and he has to go to the other one.

What was my point?  Oh yeah…we go through a lot of toilet paper, so replacing the empty rolls is almost a daily thing here.

I’ve tried my best to try to figure out a way to make it so he doesn’t know the new roll on the back of the potty hasn’t been used.  Thus far, I’ve been unsuccessful.

Have you ever noticed how you kind of have to pull on that first piece to dislodge it from the roll?  It’s a grand feeling…kind of like opening up a treat.

Weird, I know, but hey, whatever rocks your boat.

I’ve tried gently mashing down the end where I’ve pulled from…to re-stick it to the roll.

That doesn’t work.

Licking the edge of that end piece and sticking it down doesn’t work either.

Ewwww…gross…I can hear you now.

I’ve actually never done this, but it HAS crossed my mind…that’s how desperate I am.

Instead, I face the wrath.

Yesterday, I braced myself as he rushed straight for the Reading Room after getting home from work.

I can’t help but wonder if the Mr. didn’t go in, guns blazing.  You see, he knows my MO by now.  Of course, I didn’t disappoint.  I’m so predictable.  He let it be known, quite loudly at that, that he knew my game.

I would have taken cover except that I was stuck on the couch, sore from a day of working outside in the yard.

Some couples need therapy to learn how to handle money issues.

Not us.  We like to be different…stand out from the crowd.

Hmmm…I wonder if Dr. Phil has ever dealt with toilet paper issues in relationships.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

How Hard Can It Be

Posted on March 5, 2009 by auburnchick

…to find a toilet paper holder-thingy?

My family has lived in this home for almost five years.  Recently the thingy that holds the toilet paper has been falling off of the other little thingies it hangs from.

Not a problem.  I drove over to Home Depot and bought a new one.

It sort-of worked for a little while.  And then it started falling off of the little thingies it hung from.

Being the techie that I am, I gave it a good look-over and discovered that the problem seems to be the spring inside.  In fact, there’s no more “spring” in the spring.  It just sits there.

So, back to the store I went in search of a toilet paper thingy with a bouncy spring.

I bought what I thought would work but the stupid thing is too short!  I tried stretching it out and laying the prongs inside of the outside thingies.

The stupid thingy kept falling off of the other thingies.

Ugh.

The toilet paper has been sitting on the back of the potty, forcing me to perform a half turn before, well, you know.

Frustrated, I went to Walmart today in search of a new toilet paper thingy and found that I had a choice of three.

Yippee!

I bought the silver-colored one and headed home, anticipating the look of my toilet paper roll hanging properly.

All seemed okay until the Mr. came home and headed straight for the Reading Room.

He exited a time later with the declaration that the roll fell off again.

Now I ask you.  How hard should it be to replace such a thingy?  I mean, it’s a spring inside of a tube.

We’re starting to think that the builder put the stupid other thingies too far apart.  But, if that was the case, why did our first toilet paper thingy stay on for so long?

I’m going to head back to Home Depot, toilet paper thingy in hand, and look for a longer spring for it.

Do you think I’ll be able to find it?

I might have to enlist an employee’s help.

This should be fun…

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: | 1 Comment »

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