So here's me in August: blahblahblahwindows
September: blahblahblahwindows
October: blahblahblahwindowsandroofinsulation
November: blahblahblahroofinsulation
December: blahblahinsulationONEHUNDREDTHIRTYONEDOLLARS?!?

Didn't any one notice at the natural gas utility that I spent a five-digit figure on windows and a coupla hundred dollars on insulation so I could SAVE MONEY?!? I wash in cold! I keep the temperature at 68F at home, and 58F at night. I clean the filters every five-six weeks.

Budget categories we should cut down to be at national average for our income, according to Mvelopes:

Water/Sewer/Recycling
Groceries
Allowances
Auto Maintenance
Home Maintenance

Budget categories we should raise to be at national average for our income:
Donations
House furniture
Clothing

Where we rule:
Savings
Electricity

I was pleased to see that the nation was spending 22% of its net income on mortgage/rent... ours came to 21.1% but we have a twenty-year mortgage. So we're "just right" with our three bedroom house with yard in the city.

I don't know what to do about the water. We don't have a dishwasher, and we have aerators and low-flow toilets. I looked into tankless water heaters but was convinced that they would cost us more money rather than save. I do crave my hot baths once a month, and even more frequently in the winter... Could it be that my area charges more for water/sewer/yard waste/recycling than others? And my area is dirt cheap (third lowest in the nation) for electricity?

Ready to try it yourself? Here's the

to become a person whose intrinsic worth is RECOGNIZED AND APPRECIATED more than the money she is able to give to/earn for other people. I'd like to be valued for my me-ness, rather than sought out near all the time as a potential client.

"I don't want to hang out with you, but I want you to come to my Pampered Chef parties. I don't want to hang out with you but I want you to come to my party so you can give me a gift that I won't bother sending a thank-you card for, and make other people think I am really popular. I don't want to put my real age or my real interests other than my photo studio on MySpace.com, but I am Requesting you Add me as a Friend because you have a kid and live in the area. You don't mean anything more to me than a measure of my marketing success. I'll claim on public forums that despite your 25% or 28% tax bracket and that 80% of your income is outgo that you are a big drain on the American economy but I'm not going to lead you to what I think you need to learn or be so you can be 'as educated about US and world history as' the American citizen claiming all immigrants are a drain on the economy. You need to learn about and study our Constitution so that when you become a citizen your nominal vote can go to a party determined to dismantle it; otherwise you are a drain on the US economy."

Doy... dur... my only value is commoditized and as a potential customer... I feels oh-so-validated in dis reel gud consumer culture...