Frugal Fridays - The Internet!

The internet has got some great web sites that offer really good discounts on restaurants, attractions, services, and even vacation packages.  For the past year or so, Ken and I have rarely eaten at a restaurant without a coupon.  We still eat at some of our favorite places, and for quite a savings!  Most of the coupons are $10 for $20 or $20 for $40 ... pretty significant to us.

The sites Groupon and LivingSocial seem to be the most popular sites that I'm familiar with.  To take advantage of their discounts you just need to go to their site, set up an account, and then make your purchase.  Sometimes, you may have to wait a day or two until the minimum amount of people make the purchase before printing the coupon (you'll get an email), and sometimes you can print the coupon right away.   Also, it seems that most of the time when a coupon can be printed right away, it's not valid until the next day.  Other sites that I get coupons from are BargainBee and DoubleTakeDeals.  I believe that these are also national, allowing you to choose the city that you live in.

We've saved quite a bit of money with these sites, and we've also been able to do some things that we would not have ordinarily done.  For instance, we bought a 4-pack at the New Orleans Zoo for the price of two .. allowing us to treat our daughter and her boyfriend soon.  We've also purchased the same kind of deal for the local wildlife center.  We haven't taken advantage of the vacation packages, but some of them at LivingSocial look pretty great!

Now, if you're thinking that you've never been one to take the time to clip coupons ... this is so much easier!  What makes this easy is that you just have the site e-mail you their current deal.  If you're not interested, just delete it.  If you are, just make the purchase and the site will keep track of your purchases until you're ready to print them or use them.  Lose a coupon?  No problem .. just reprint it from your account on the site.

It really is so easy and worthwhile to set up these accounts because ...  A penny saved is a penny earned!

Missed the first post in this new series?  Here it is:  Frugal Fridays - The Rest Stop!

Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!

Pearl's Back!

If you've been following our blog for a while, you know what this video means.   If you haven't been following, well ... let's just say that Pearl's presence is not a good thing!  That's all I'll say since this is not supposed to be a blog that brings you down, and if I get started I may not stop!   I only mention this because I gotta post the bad with the good, and once we're finally cruising hopefully our followers with the same dream will think, "If they were able to cruise with all those setbacks, then so can we".

While I love this video and suggest you watch it, it's starting to hit home a little too often!

I understand why Pearl's an alcoholic ... lol!  I've been losing sleep and my stomach is in knots, but I'm determined to keep a smile on my face and not let anything (or anyone .. like a tenant) hold me back from my dream.  This is yet another obstacle, but I won't be stopped!  =)

 Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!

Survival on a Boat?!

This past Sunday morning, Ken was working (poor guy .. he needs a break) and I found myself watching a documentary about Nostradamus.  Among many horror stories that he predicted, was massive flooding.  The documentary went on to say that with global warming, melting icebergs, and polar shifts the oceans would rise three feet and cause widespread flooding.  The Southern and Western USA would be under water! 

After the documentary was over, I surfed the web a little bit just to see what I could find about this prediction.  Not only did I find a bunch of web sites about Nostradamus, but I also found a bunch of sites about "How to Survive 2012".  Yep, more doom and gloom!

Anyway, both the sites about Nostradamus and the end of the world in 2012 mentioned the flooding.  What did I get from all of this?  Well, since Ken and I live in Southern Louisiana ... run for the hills!  At least that's what these sights encouraged.  They said that the mountains of the USA should be a safe place.  Well, Ken and I don't have a mountain home and I don't think we could find the quick cash to buy one.  But, there's hope! 

According to these sights, among having extra food, water and plenty of guns and ammunition, an "unsinkable boat" was listed on the list of "survival goods".  Well, I don't know that there's such a thing as an "unsinkable" boat.  However, we do have a boat!  Hallelujah .. we may survive! 

I'm having fun with all of this, but seriously ... it is nice to know that we have a boat in case all of Southern Louisiana disappears.  You never know.  If the USA goes down, (could be from the economy or politics too) then we may no longer be considered crazy, but smart!   The show went on to say that with widespread flooding would come violence, due to the lack of food and resources.

The idea of living a pretty self-sufficient life on our sailboat, with solar and wind power and the ability to catch food (easier said then done, I know) and be mobile sounds pretty good.  You never know  ...

Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!

Frugal Fridays - The Rest Stop!

Since it is January, we're not doing much sailing lately, and I've completed my NKOTB series, I thought I'd start another Friday series .. "Frugal Fridays"!  I believe that most cruisers are like us ... not rich and having to sacrifice and plan to reach the dream of cruising on a sailboat.   For us, making this dream into a reality means living a frugal lifestyle.  A frugal lifestyle requires patience, hard work, discipline, and not wasting a penny.  It means delayed gratification instead of instant gratification.  We're keeping our eye on the prize!

Ken and I have always lived a frugal lifestyle, so it's nothing new for us.  We've become pretty good at stretching a dollar.  So, I thought "Frugal Fridays" would be a great way to share a little tip with our followers.  Sometimes we'll just being sharing a little motivational quote or video, cause the frugal lifestyle ain't always easy!  Whether you have the dream of saving for cruising, buying a home, going on vacation, etc. we hope these posts will help you get that much closer to your goal!

So, today's "Frugal Friday" tip is about rest areas.  Yes, I'm talking about those pit stops along the interstate.  There's much more to a rest area than dog walkers and creepy guys!  Did you know that most rest areas have all sorts of coupons for nearby attractions? 

This past Sunday Ken and I were craving the seafood buffet at one of the Mississippi casinos.  The casino has a great Sunday champagne and jazz brunch, but it costs about $24 per person .. ouch!  We don't gamble enough to get their coupons, and we were wondering how we could get our hands on one of their "buy one, get one free" coupons that we've seen others with.  Then, it occurred to us that the Mississippi rest area was nearby (we live in Louisiana) and maybe they'd have some coupons.  We drove to the rest area and were greeted by a very friendly lady.  She gave us free juice and asked if she could be of any help.  When I told that we were locals and looking for casino coupons, she grabbed some brochures from several casinos (including the casino we wanted to go to) ... all with "buy one, get one" buffet coupons!  I love getting a deal, so I walked away with a big smile on my face, excited like a little kid.  We were going to the casino for brunch ... woo hoo!  We just saved $24 bucks, plus had more coupons for the future! 

Ken and I headed to the casino, and had a great brunch consisting of eggs benedict, boiled shrimp, king crab legs, roast beef, dessert, etc. while enjoying live jazz music.   This wouldn't have been possible without the coupon, because we would not have gone to the casino. 

I know some rest areas are closed, and some are better than others.  However, why not check out your local rest area and any other rest area that you happen to be near?  You never know what you may find.  In fact, we also picked up a great little seafood cookbook!

We'd love to hear of any tips or experiences that you may have regarding a frugal lifestyle.

A penny saved is a penny earned!

Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!

Roll Me Away!

Not much exciting happening lately.  Unfortunately, football season is over here in New Orleans and we haven't spent any time on the water.  I've been working with Ken the past several days painting the inside of a client's house.  I don't mind painting, as long as I don't have to paint trim or cut in ... just roll!  After several days of "rolling" while dreaming of the day we become cruisers, the song "Roll Me Away" by Bob Seger kept running through my mind.  After all, this song is about hope and choices!  Plus, before Ken and I bought a sailboat we spent a lot of time on our motorcyles.  They've been neglected for quite a while now .. time to clean them and go for a spin soon!

Here are a few of the words to this song ...

Stood alone on a mountain top, starin' out at the Great Divide
I could go east, I could go west, it was all up to me to decide
Just then I saw a young hawk flyin' and my soul began to rise
And pretty soon My heart was singin'!

Whether on two wheels or on the waves of the water ... just "ROLL ME AWAY"!

Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!