Today's the last day of my week long frugal fast.

OK, I spent some money:

1. Filled up the gas tank, a necessity for my census work.

2. Yesterday, I got some cat food at Wal-Mart. I was near by after finishing up Census work so it wouldn't have made sense to make a separate trip next week. Wal-Mart has the cheapest Fancy Feast even at its regular price of .48 a can; they've had a "rollback" for a while now and it's just .30 a can.

The frugal fast still served a purpose in making me more conscious of my spending. I feel good that during a week's time I only spent on cat food and gas.

Today, my new friend Frank is stopping by with his chain saw to cut up a fallen crabapple tree. I'll stack the wood with the other wood already collected from the tree in my driveway and try to trade it as firewood on Craig's List for something else (plants?) Too bad I didn't have a fireplace. Otherwise, I can give it to my dad next time I see him.

After Frank finishes up here this a.m., I'll head out to do more Census work today. It will probably take less than an hour to go through my assigned addresses. After that, I think I'll pick up a few groceries, mainly fruit, at Xpect Discounts. And if I can find my other Fancy Feast coupons, I'll go back to Wal-Mart for more cat food.

That's the dangerous thing about me and coupons. I always collect them, but seem to lose them easily so I can't find them when I want to use them. I often keep them in my glove compartment box in the car, or on the dining room table, but sometimes they end up in stray places.

While out, I"ll also return a book I finished reading (Eckhart Tolle) which I really didn't get a lot out of. Way over my head. I ordered 3 books at the library through their statewide loan system; i would have thought I'd have gotten one of them by now. I really want to read The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches and also, How to Retire Happy, Wild and Free. Sounds like my kind of book!

Forgot to tell you about the investment seminar I attended this past week with my friend. Mainly for the free dinner. (smile) I won't be investing with David Lerner. They engaged us in small talk and once I told them I was out of work, they pretty much left us alone for the rest of the night. (smile) They were pushing two types of investments: tax-free muni bonds and their own REIT. The dinner was ok, but not as good as the Teva Neuroscience dinners I've attended.