...We Have Knitting!

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Progress! I added two panels to the Shawlette. I am about half way done with it, so as long as I keep to my "one panel a day" it'll be done in plenty of time for the holidays.
I've added several rows on the Pelegrine. Although I don't know if it'll be done by Inauguration Day, I'm planning on it!Ray has his own Inauguration Day Challenge! Check it out!Does this bother you? I agree with Rabbitch and the commenters on this one!

It's just a point of view: “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” Albert Einstein

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Keep the "We" in "Yes, We Can!

President Elect Obama's First Radio Address. Again the economy is spiraling down. How can you save money?

1. Go to the library instead of the bookstore. (I know, no coffee there, but hey, that's saving money!) Use the library's catalog to look for specific books, and then reserve them so you can just go pick them up when they are available. Many libraries are on line and you can do it all from home... except the picking up part! If you have to visit the bookstore, take a notebook and write down the titles that you want, then go to the library! Libraries have books on CD and downloadable MP3 format books, videos, magazines, newspapers. All for FREE.
2. Clipping coupons are great...but only if it's for items you already use. And for staples. Prepackaged foods are not that nutritious for the most part. Learn to cook from scratch. It's no harder than following a knitting pattern. Lots of recipe sites on-line: CD Kitchen, and Allrecipes.com are two of my favorites. Coupons are good for non-perishables: soap, shampoo, soaps, diapers, TP and PT.
   
3. Check out the discount stores, i.e., 99 cent Stores, Dollar Stores, Big Lots, etc. The brand name items there are not of less quality. Often times they end up in these stores because the manufacturer has changed labels, or size of cans or some other such reason. National Brand _________ is National Brand ________, no matter what you pay for it.
   
4. Using your bank's on-line bill pay feature will save stamps and envelopes. And it's good for the environment.
5. Pick one day a week to do your errand running when at all possible.
   
6. Make your own cleaners (see yesterday's post).
7. While at the library, check the newspaper for free events, or find the newspaper on-line and look for them there. No, you'll not get to see Rod Stewart in concert for free, but there are lots of great places to go and people to see that won't cost you anything except your time and transportation.
8. Turn off lights that are not being used. Replace burned out bulbs with energy efficient ones. Rinse your clothes in cold water. Wash dishes once a day. Make sure your refrigerator is turned to the proper setting and the freezer is full, even if you fill it with jugs of frozen water.
9. Knit from your stash! There's been a big discussion about this in one of the groups I frequent. The statement was made that commercially dyed sock yarns sales is going down. Did this mean the sock knitting craze was slowing? Most knitters said, "Not so." My thought is more sock knitters are knitting from stash.
   

Every penny saved is a penny saved. Although they might not look like much one or two at a time, with persistence and in the long run, it does make a difference. Especially if many people save a few pennies a day. This is gonna be a rough time in our lives. We are gonna have to cut back on our spending. Or go deeper and deeper in debt, which will do no one any good. It'll be much easier if we do it together and encourage and congratulate our small but important steps. Please take the time to do your part in keeping the "We" in "Yes, We Can."