http://www.cocomment.com/comments/allaboutappearances Copyright 2007 coComment.com 2009-11-23T12:12:08.639+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/images/logo4rss.gif http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1427155&comment_id=27169853 Meg from FruWiki I love turkey, but I can't say that I've been impressed by turkey prices recently. Maybe it's just the rising food costs in general, but the price per pound is nearly 3 times what I paid the day after Thanksgiving last year. Who knows what it'll cost this coming Thanksgiving, though. But what really surprised me is that, at least when my mom checked, chicken was much much cheaper than turkey. I would have thought otherwise. I'm going to check next time for sure. 2008-06-09T21:05:21.983+02:00 2008-06-09T21:05:21.983+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1413042&comment_id=26957955 Meg I'm at number 2. I don't try very hard at all to make money blogging at All About Appearances. I could. I know quite a few things I should change if that was my motivation, but I don't change them because that's not the point for me. However, I also don't mind having a few ads to at least help recoup hosting costs and even make a little extra. Fortunately, there have been many other benefits to blogging. And it may well lead to good-paying career that I love after all. 2008-05-31T05:41:22.200+02:00 2008-05-31T05:41:22.200+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1409626&comment_id=26863989 Meg LOL! I'm a fellow Diva. I got some reusable pads to try next month and hope they will turn out as great as the online reviews indicate. I'm not the hugest beauty product gal, but I really like Prescriptives' Vibrant-C undereye creme and their Instant Gratification face peel/scrub. The OXO Good Grips food containers are really great. We have a large collection of them on display in our kitchen/living room. I was really ecstatic to find them since most of the canister type things out there are crap, but these are really nice. But perhaps my favorite toy is my Helio Ocean "don't call it a phone" phone. Seriously, it rocks. The service is a bit pricey if you're a bare bones cell user, but the unlimited plan was actually cheaper than what I was paying Verizon for a lot less. I have unlimited internet, messaging, and of course talk. And the phone itself is a dual-slider with a full keyboard, a very decent video/still camera, a music player, and a lot of great apps including games, planning tools, Buddy Beacon, instant messaging, etc. etc. etc. And no, I don't work for Helio. 2008-05-28T18:46:16.517+02:00 2008-05-28T18:46:16.517+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1397886&comment_id=26724728 Meg My husband and I are doing the same, and we've been amazed at how simple the simple life is. My perspective has really changed over the past year. 2008-05-19T18:29:21.584+02:00 2008-05-19T18:29:21.584+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1395934&comment_id=26679629 Meg from FruWiki I hang my clothes inside on a pole above the dryer. It works just fine. On the most humid days, I have to run the air-conditioner a bit to dry out the air, but it's something I'd do anyways. Because I hang the clothes on hangers instead of using clothes pins, it's actually LESS effort for me to hang them than if I put them in the dryer and then had to hang them up afterwards. (Plus, I don't have to worry about leaving them to wrinkle in the dryer.) 2008-05-17T23:48:51.165+02:00 2008-05-17T23:48:51.165+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1392261&comment_id=26614247 Meg from FruWiki AWESOME!!!!!! I'm in my mid-20's and discovered The Complete Tightwad Gazette just this year. I checked it out of the library and then had to buy my own which is now full of all sorts of sticky notes -- and I'm not even done reading it because it's huge! It has really changed my life. My husband and I are not just saving money, we're soooo much happier than we've ever been. And after reading it for just a couple weeks, I was so inspired that I started FruWiki, The Frugal Wiki. There will never be a replacement for the TWG, though. So, Amy, if you read this... Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! 2008-05-15T04:05:54.059+02:00 2008-05-15T04:05:54.059+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1379842&comment_id=26371455 Meg My husband and I just had a yard sale and were amazed to make over $400 -- and we still have lots of stuff left that we're going to try to sell or donate! We didn't even bring out the pricier items because we're planning to sell many of those online (yard salers are cheap). We really can't believe how much stuff we've been selling because we didn't think we had that much stuff! We're not big shoppers these days, and we're big into decluttering but normally we donate items or Freecyle. But a month or so ago we started going around the house with the attitude of "would we rather have this, or they money/space?" and we found tons more stuff to sell. We even sold some unopened soap that my husband had bought in bulk years ago before deciding that he didn't care for the type. Check out http://www.fruwiki.com/index.php5?title=Yardsaling for lots of yardsaling tips. 2008-05-05T21:26:41.812+02:00 2008-05-05T21:26:41.812+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1366165&comment_id=25897995 Meg from FruWiki and All About Appearances Great point! People need to be questioning their habits. Living frugally is about more than just cutting coupons or buying items on sale. I've known too many people who would rather buy an inferior product that doesn't do what they need or want it to do just to save money (and feel deprived), rather than question whether they need something at all. It's like buying cheap, stinky perfume when it's better to skip it altogether. I for one say skip the lunch meat altogether and start thinking like a vegetarian. While I'm not a vegetarian, reducing my meat consumption has resulted in me eating healthy and cheap. 2008-04-29T04:21:38.093+02:00 2008-04-29T04:21:38.093+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1361089&comment_id=25527320 Meg from FruWiki and All About Appearances I can't remember the last time that my husband or I just sat and watched t.v. We're always doing something else while it's on, so I don't know if we'd be much more productive without it. In fact, I get some of my best decluttering done when the news is looping. For the most part, I wouldn't mind giving it up, but my husband has a few shows he still likes to watch. Ironically, I was the one who insisted we get cable in the first place after months of living with him without t.v. service. A lot of it has just been that I feel more comfortable with the sound of the t.v. on -- something that I'm slowly getting used to going without. 2008-04-24T18:06:05.141+02:00 2008-04-24T18:06:05.141+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1339095&comment_id=25267874 Meg from FruWiki and All About Appearances I'm going to have to agree with the other Meg -- definitely a bit creepy. I'm not totally against plastic surgery, but it does give me the heebie-jeebies. I had a breast reduction, mostly to alleviate chronic back pain, but I had to make sure while flipping channels to not come across one of those surgery shows because I really didn't want to think about the process. 2008-04-09T04:37:30.597+02:00 2008-04-09T04:37:30.597+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1282381&comment_id=24627496 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance Balsamic vinegar. I use it as a salad dressing, dip for bread, pasta seasoning... It makes a lot of things taste a lot fancier than they are. 2008-03-05T02:03:04.986+01:00 2008-03-05T02:03:04.986+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1274052&comment_id=24551055 Meg from All About Appearances I frequently shop in my closet. Lately, I've been trying to wear one item each day that I haven't worn either in a long time or ever. Sometimes I end up changing the outfit bit by bit so that I don't end up wearing the 'new' item, but I do end up wearing old stuff in a new way. I also have been doing that a bit with books. The interesting thing is that it really helps me declutter. Sometimes I think, "Would I still buy this?" If the answer is no, then it's probably best to give it to somebody else. Sometimes it's that I can't find a way to wear something, or in the case of books, I just realize that it's not that interesting after all if reading it feels more like work than fun. 2008-02-28T05:21:28.787+01:00 2008-02-28T05:21:28.787+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1256851&comment_id=24259501 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance We're definitely buying less stuff. And when we do buy stuff, it's no longer junk. The more my husband and I declutter and organize, the harder it is to bring new stuff into the house. And sure, it's not like we have lots of money to spend on stuff anyway, but it feels better to not get something because we don't have a good place for it than to have to tell ourselves that we're broke. It's also better to say now because it's not quite perfect. Not that we've ever been big into 'cheap plastic crap' and knick knacks, but everything that we buy has a purpose -- whether it's a brown skirt to fill a hole in my wardrobe, or a set of cheap but very nice glass votive holders that match our decor and let us light up our amethyst and quartz crystal collections. We did buy quite a few things this weekend, but they were things we had been looking for and we managed to find them at discount stores without sacrificing quality. And we still managed to spend less than we would have a few months ago. 2008-02-18T19:57:02.207+01:00 2008-02-18T19:57:02.207+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1253390&comment_id=24229229 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance Good point 1stopmom! Sometimes I take for granted that my husband and I are doing alright on pretty much his income alone. That's enabled me to get my bachelor's degree and take my time building a career that will be worthwhile for both of us in the long run. 2008-02-18T04:39:47.187+01:00 2008-02-18T04:39:47.187+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1255384&comment_id=24226070 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance Food used to be one of our largest expenditures. Since changing the way I buy food (see: http://www.allaboutappearances.info/my-new-grocery-shopping-strategy/), I can't believe how much my husband and I are saving -- without cutting coupons. We bought groceries for the week today and spent about $40 for the both of us -- including a few treats like about $8 on three bars of Dagoba chocolate. And really, a lot of the stuff we bought will last longer than a week (though it probably balances out considering that we are eating stuff we bought last month even). I have some containers of dry stuff that I can get really cheap like chickpeas, oatmeal, couscous, rice, flour, etc. Each week or so I just buy some fresh veggies and fruits to mix in, like bananas for my oatmeal, carrots for the couscous, and celery for the hummus I make. I also have a few bulk bags of nuts and a huge bag of frozen veggies from Sams, in addition to lots of seasonings to so that I can experiment to my heart's content. We even have some of the dry stuff 'on display', which is rather comforting. I know that even if we couldn't afford fresh stuff for a while, we have enough stuff to eat for months in those containers. (My husband buys bread, milk, and a few other things. He isn't much into veggies, so he's eating pb&j sandwiches, cereal, and pizza he got on sale.). And as far as non-food items, we're just buying less but more carefully. There have definitely been some treat items, but we make sure that they're really things we want and good quality. And we're set on toiletries thanks to Sams Club and Walmart.com freebies. Heck, I'm still working on a bar of soap I took home from a hotel. 2008-02-18T02:05:30.995+01:00 2008-02-18T02:05:30.995+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1253390&comment_id=24200325 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance We definitely have better quality of life right now -- even if we've had to spend less, and even though I hate not being able to just buy what I want when I want it (I hate to sound like a whiny tween, but don't we all?). Eating in with friends has been really fun. For less than the cost of my shopping 'hobby', I'm taking classes at the local community college where I sing and play music with lots of new friends. Of course, factor in the new (but actually used) sax I got last semester and maybe it's not so frugal -- but maybe I'll recoup that money later if I ever do play a professional gig some day. I need to go to the library more often, but I really enjoy myself when I'm there. I have to remind myself that the stuff is free to borrow because it still seems too good to be true (silly, huh?). Knowing what's available has also enabled me to give away a lot of my books that were weighing me down as clutter. Also, I'm looking forward to trying homemade cleaners when we finally finish with what we have. I'm trying to go greener, but it's not like flushing the old stuff would be very frugal or green. 2008-02-17T00:42:22.637+01:00 2008-02-17T00:42:22.637+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1233330&comment_id=23933482 Meg I love, love, love the photos! What a great page. I just have one reservation... Sorry if someone already mentioned it and I hope you don't mind me being nitpicky, but I think it's misleading to say that "the average American consumes around 3,800 Calories per day." From what I read on the page you linked to (and assuming it's true), it seems like that is just the average number per capita. Although the usage of the term "average" does vary, in this case the average *person* does imply something different than the average *number*. The former makes it appear that the typical person takes in that much, and is therefore likely to gain about a pound a week or so. As bad as things are, I just don't see that happening. Of course, the reality seems to be scarier, that some people are taking in much, much more than that. Here's what the page says, "In 1961 Americans consumed 2883 calories per person. By 2000 this had increased to 3817." I'd still like to see the exact study they used to get those numbers, but that's something they should have provided. 2008-02-07T06:14:07.749+01:00 2008-02-07T06:14:07.749+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1226145&comment_id=23779860 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance I couldn't believe how hard it was to get credit when I first started trying. I didn't want anyone to sign for me, not even my husband, and I couldn't get so much as a Walmart credit card (not the pre-paid kind, of course). When I investigated supposed ways to build credit without having a credit card, most turned out to not be useful -- they only would only report something if I did something wong. I wanted to establish credit, though, because we wanted to get a house and my lack of credit was making it harder for us to get both names on the mortgage without the interest rate going up. Finally, my husband put me on the car loan when he turned it from a lease to a buy. Then all of a sudden I was getting pre-approved offers. I haven't check the specific number recently, but supposedly my credit score is pretty fab. 2008-02-03T21:56:19.273+01:00 2008-02-03T21:56:19.273+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1186759&comment_id=23125178 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance I absolutely hate those tourist shops that sell the same crap as the next. I'm not big into souvenirs, but when I went to London I tried to find a few things to take home that had some meaning to them. For my husband, I ended up getting a CD from Westminster Abbey with music by Handel. For myself I got a reproduction in book form of the info they gave American soldiers visiting Britain in WWII since my father was one of them and I love history. Then I bought some tea for us and family. That was pretty much it. In general, though, I take lots of pictures. If I buy something, it better be something I can eat, wear, or really use because I don't need to store any more 'collections'. And I definitely don't make a habit of buying souvenirs for other people, unless I'm buying it for a special occasion anyway and it's something nice that will be meaningful to them. 2008-01-15T05:57:06.570+01:00 2008-01-15T05:57:06.570+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1184490&comment_id=23108127 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance Aviva's list is great. Thanks for sharing! I'm actually working on starting another blog myself, if I can find the time to write for four (the new one, plus two of my own, plus The Bargain Queens). And in the meantime, I've shifted focus on All About Appearances -- so I definitely know what you mean by a blog "discovering its voice". My motivation is definitely a good mix of all the four you listed. Mostly, though, I really like being a part of conversations. I'm unapologetically opinionated ; ) 2008-01-14T03:25:27.957+01:00 2008-01-14T03:25:27.957+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1168713&comment_id=22938847 Meg from The Bargain Queens & All About Appearance At it's simplest, it goes over the line if: 1. it hurts others (like not tipping) 2. it hurts yourself (like eating food from dumpsters) Granted, it's not exactly that simple. I recently posted on getting money back on price drops and someone commented that it was "a vile practice". I guess they were thinking that this hurts the company and the people that work for it. I'm fine with it, though, since the companies allow it. 2008-01-03T20:26:45.957+01:00 2008-01-03T20:26:45.957+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1148228&comment_id=22565399 Meg from The Bargain Queen & All About Appearances I'm a big fan of small gifts. You can read why at http://fashion.thebargainqueen.com/2007/12/my-gift-shopping-strategy-or-why-small-gifts-rock/. With that in mind, I've been posting a series of gift guides at thebargainqueen.com, "Cheap gift ideas under $20". Many are under $10 -- and they're not all fashion and beauty items, or even just for the gals. 2007-12-15T21:41:59.609+01:00 2007-12-15T21:41:59.609+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1102947&comment_id=22562602 Meg from All About Appearances test 2007-12-14T20:53:06.420+01:00 2007-12-14T20:53:06.420+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1128861&comment_id=22396682 Meg from All About Appearances and The Bargain Que Thanks so much for the link! I'm quite honored to have made your blogroll. Today I've managed to make your blogroll and find a lovely pair of purple patent leather shoes --- if only everyday was this fabulous! 2007-11-30T05:10:32.032+01:00 2007-11-30T05:10:32.032+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1098236&comment_id=22051127 Meg the Florida Bargain Queen I'm afraid I have to say nay as well. For starters, I just don't like the look of them. And am I the only one to have problems wearing mules with jeans? I always end up with my jeans caught between my heels and the shoes. 2007-11-04T19:10:05.397+01:00 2007-11-04T19:10:05.397+01:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1076278&comment_id=21188021 Meg Unfortunately, my connection is pretty stable. It would be nice to get more stuff down around the house. When my connection is down, I usually read or play music (on an instrument, that is). If I knew that it was going to be down for a while, I'd probably go shopping (or "researching" as I call it). 2007-10-19T04:18:32.241+02:00 2007-10-19T04:18:32.241+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1039981&comment_id=20580211 Meg Hope you feel better! Have you tried sniffing peppermint oil for the nausea? It works wonders for me. 2007-10-15T07:44:00.836+02:00 2007-10-15T07:44:00.836+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1039980&comment_id=20580210 Meg I'm definitely interested in finding out more. I think you might already have my email. If not, you can use the contact form on my site (www.allaboutappearances.info/ask-meg/). I don't want to display my email address here since I don't want to get spammed if bots find it. (By the way, guys, you're actually safer using the @ symbol than spelling it out because search engines like Google don't allow searches of the symbol, though they do allow searches of the word "at") 2007-10-15T07:42:53.558+02:00 2007-10-15T07:42:53.558+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=1009754&comment_id=18912595 Meg At a friend's wedding, one of the guests - I believe the best man - was actually wearing jeans and a wife-beater. The bridesmaids were wearing flip flops. The marriage didn't last long enough for a proper honeymoon. Need I say any more? 2007-09-21T00:08:55.529+02:00 2007-09-21T00:08:55.529+02:00 http://www.cocomment.com/sidebar?object=people&context=explore&mode=detail&id=allaboutappearances&conv=799082&comment_id=15545142 Meg Aloe is great. If you need a good, cheap source for aloe, check your local fish store. They often sell large bottles of pure aloe as a fish de-stresser. 2007-06-13T19:09:14.906+02:00 2007-06-13T19:09:14.906+02:00