Every road trip within 200 miles I bring The Complete Tightwad Gazette and mark in my notebook selected strategies. I wrote down about thirty, including books to send away for or trawl for (I LOVE the used bookstores in my area! We have so many readers!). It's a good month if I can save the cost of the book in that month.

I air-dried one laundry load.
I tried the 20-minute pasta cook strategy: boil water on the stove, put in pasta, bring to another boil, stir, then cover, and turn off heat. Stir once or twice during the 20 minutes.

Both of these worked well.

Some investments I made this week: more canning lids, Kerr's Blue Book of Canning, and wooden clothespins. I didn't think they were available anymore, but was surprised to see them in several areas. Shows you how little I frequent hardware stores.

I am hoping the karma bump will visit me in my jobhunt efforts fairly quickly. A company about 25 miles away, that also employs a long-term friend, is looking for someone with my skills, so I asked him about referral bonuses.

I did get a karma bump when I found most of the recipe for apple pie my mother made. You know how it seems most moms, especially the American ones, are revered for their apple pie skills? I have made apple pie but once, before my son was born, but he has salivated over my apple crisp since he was eight months old. I wonder what new levels of devotion he'll be taken to once I make the apple pie.