Quicken Earth September: Spending Disincentives

What with the Wall Street crisis, car repairs, and hacking my way through actual Quicken for 2007, the only thing I wanted to buy last month was gold ingots.

OOPS!
Wedding gift kerfuffle: HCB and I went halfsies on a New gift for our married friends. But since the wedding was last year (we're A-holes), I'm sort of pretending that it doesn't count.

NECESSITIES
I'm finally getting the hang of bulk buying at Rainbow. I've always preferred to buy my flour there (they have EVERY possible variety), but now I'm refilling jars of honey, bottles of olive oil, grains, nuts, dried beans...even pasta. It doesn't hurt that HCB came home with these cute vintage containers from the GoodWill.


I tell you, nothing makes a girl feel more self-satisfied than reducing household waste. Especially if it's done in style.

CREATIVE CONSUMPTION (i.e. USED ARTICLES)
There was this one little spurge...I was in my favorite store, Cookin', when I spotted this perfectly preserved, utterly adorable vintage Dru cast iron oven. It's just like the one my friend Amy has in PA.


Amy, I'm afraid this is merely Step One in my attempt to Single White Female you.

And then there was this tiny $5 windfall at a garage sale a few weekends ago:

I love tiny vases, HCB hates them. It's called Keeping Our Love Life Spicy.

UP FOR DISCUSSION
I hardly ever print. Really. But even the printing-averse occasionally have to buy ink. I'm inclined to think this can be considered a consumable, since it's similar to pens, dish soap, tissues, sponges, fire wood, etc.

OH and the car parts. That was really out of my hands, but since I don't technically NEED my car (no commute, easy public transport, bicycle), I still feel a little guilty about it. Or is that just residual anger?

ABSTENTIONS
I do wish the voice track would line up with Tina Fey's mouth when I watch Palin impersonations on old Carrie Bradshaw, but I'm getting the gist. And it sure is nice not to have $3K on my credit card right about now...