Saving Money is Expensive

I continue to practice (emphasis on practice as I have not achieved any level of proficiency) my retirement business rules, including decreasing spending. One way I hoped to accomplish long-term savings was by cutting the cable cord. The initial (albeit monthly) savings of approximately $70 has been offset by the airlines’ refusal to establish a no-fly zone over our home. Every time a plane flies overhead our small outdoor digital antenna’s reception is disrupted and we lose our signal. It is only a momentary loss; however, when that loss coincides with the revelation of the murderer on the latest mystery series we’re watching, we immediately start looking for a streaming channel which will provide answers and satisfy our need to know. Most recently this has been accomplished by the addition of “CBS All Access” to our Roku line-up. Granted, it’s just $7 a month (a mere 10% of the savings achieved by cutting the cable cord) but it’s not the only channel with a monthly fee that has been added to our list of streaming options. We’re still ahead on this one. I wish I could say the same thing about growing our own vegetables, and putting up donated fruit.

My plum jelly making required the purchase of jars, sugar, and pectin. I used hours and hours of electricity cooking the unjelly, as it refused to gel. Each little jar averaged about $10 worth of resources. My zucchini plant, which to date has produced hundreds of zucchinis and is still covered with zucchini-producing blossoms, required a special planter, special soil, high-quality compost and a river of municipally-supplied water (even when supplemented with the rain water harvested from our four rain barrels, which were pretty pricey when purchased off of the great retailer in the sky: THE INTERNET, and then carried in buckets to the various plants in the yard). Since the plant has produced more zucchini than one family can possibly consume, gasoline is used delivering these wonderfully nutritious vegetables (that’s what I tell everyone) to unsuspecting friends and family members. I’m expecting to start seeing signs with a picture of a giant zucchini with a red circle around it, bisected by a red line, in front of these people’s homes.

I remember long ago Oprah saying that you can’t save money by spending money. It was back in the day when she had her talk show and the subject of that particular show was… saving money. It was before smart TVs with streaming capabilities. I wonder why she never did a show highlighting the nutritional value of zucchini, and its versatility and many yummy recipes available which include zucchini as an ingredient. I wonder if there is an Oprah streaming channel? I wonder what I’m going to do with the bushels of pears that I picked from a tree at a friend’s house? Retirement is filled with questions, and fruits and vegetables. I think I will start making my own herbal remedies (to save money). I’m going to have to buy a lot of supplies.