Yesterday was a no-spend day. Having a hard time remembering what the heck i did yesterday...i know i forced myself to take a 25-minute walk though i wasn't really into it. Despite it being over 40 degrees here.

I did go through some old utility bills from 2008 and 2009 and shredded the ones from 2008. The 2009 bills will be stored in my attic trunk of paperwork just in case i need them for something.

I also finally got around to updating my beneficiaries on my tax-deferred investment accounts to include the Audubon Society, which i'd somehow inadvertently left off. I was feeling guilty cus they're the ones who are sending me a complimentary beautiful engagement calendar every year. Anyway, got that done so i can finally take that paperwork off the right-hand corner of my desk, where it's resided for about 2 years.

A survey company i've registered with but have done very little work for called me yesterday and after a few qualifying questions, I'm now ready to drive down there later this week, about 35 minutes, to do a market survey. I'll get $25 out of it.

This morning, I swept the garage floor; amazing how much grit and dirt gets picked up by my tires and deposited there. I also did 2 loads of laundry and am hang drying it indoors; the air's so dry, it should work ok, and i should really do that ALL the time instead of using the energy-hog dryer.

The other energy-saving thing i've been doing, first time this winter, is making a point not to enter/exit my house through the front door, which opens directly into my dining room and living room. I've always wanted a foyer/mud room. Without that, all that cold winter air flushes into the house each time that door is opened, causing the furnace to kick on, so all winter long I've been coming and going through the basement and into the garage from there. I think it must be making a difference on my heating oil consumption.

I'd been meaning to call my dad last night to see how things are going with his macular degeneration, which recently worsened. I didn't call him then, but he called me this a.m. just to chat so i was able to talk to him about it. He saw the doc once, has to go again tomorrow. Last I'd heard from him, once the disease progresses from the "dry" stage to the "wet" stage, there's a brand new drug they can use to halt progression of the disease. I asked him about that again and he wasn't sure. I guess I have to trust the doctor knows what he's doing. My dad's 76 and it would have to be devastating to lose your sight. He hasn't noticed any real change in vision at this point except that he needs a very bright light to read by and he can't read digital displays, like on a cell phone, that well. He brings a flashlight with him when they go to eat out at restaurants.

I wrote 2 press releases (freelance) this past week, 1 for a client I haven't worked for in 5 years. I'm especially happy about that work becus even if i do more work for them this year, it won't add up to $600, which is the threshold at which they're required to report the income paid me to the IRS; if it's under $600, i don't have to report it and it's tax-free for me!

I still have $152 left on my cell phone and all the minutes that represents (608 minutes, or 10 hours!!) will expire by March 26. It's a prepaid cell phone i don't use much at all. The reception isn't great at my house, so when i called my dad back after getting his message that he called, i was standing out in the driveway, freezing my butt off.

So I can renew that plan, but if I don't want new minutes to expire in less than a year, than i have to pay for $100 worth of minutes at a time. So that works out to a little over $8 a month for the cost of the cell phone. It's worth it to me for safety reasons on the road, but i have certainly thought repeatedly about either cutting the cell phone, or my AAA coverage for my 10-year-old car, as a cost-saving measure. (I've decided that i won't.) And in February, after getting 3 weeks free, I'll probably start paying $35/ month for a fitness club. I really need to get back in shape, and while i can't control being out of work right now, i can control my weight.

So, since i'm headed to to the market research survey place Wednesday, I'll do a dump run then, since it's in the same direction. I'll also return the animal scale to the SPCA (also in same direction) and pick up some odds and ends at Stop and Shop on way back (also same direction).