Life on the Road

I fired Chase as my credit card company a while back, but never told you the story. Since it now has a sequel, it seems like it must be time…

I participate in MyPoints, and I keep us in Cracker Barrel Gift Cards by earning points for reading emails even if I don’t actually SHOP through them. (They have tons of other Gift Cards as rewards – if you haven’t cheked it out, you ought to!).

Anyhow, I was delighted when they offered me the opportunity to earn points all the time with a “MyPoints Visa.” I applied, got one, and began using it (and paying off the balance immediately, of course!).

Sadly, though, the card was administered by Washington Mutual.

When Chase bought them out, they cancelled the MyPoints program. All the existing accounts were tranferred over to their “rewards card” program… Whatever.

I kept the card for a while, figuring it was still doing my credit score good. Plus, when we went through six months of unemployment this summer, we did actually carry a balance.

But I kept not getting statements… I’d say from the time Chase took over I received an average of one statement every two or three months. When I called, they’d verify my address, tell the the date it was sent out, and suggest I contact the Post Office!

As though the Post Office has anything to say on the matter – not like they were sent with Delivery Confirmation or something! Since I got all my other mail just fine, it seems unlikely to be a Post Office problem.

Naturally (until recently, as I understand the law), the due date shifted, and minimum payment changed with the random new fee they assessed… So payments were occasionally late, and occasionally considered late when I guessed and made a $40 payment when they’d upped in minimum to $42. And, of course, they were totally unsympathetic when I called.

The card has been paid off and closed, and I will certainly never do business with them again.

And now, the thrilling sequel!

The WaMu/Chase branch near us ran a great promotion last year – $50 free for opening a checking account (which also has no fees, etc.).

After the qualifying period ended, we withdrew most of the money back to our interst-bearing credit union account. We kept it open with about $10 in there, figuring that it might be nice to have an account at a nationwide bank if/when we finally get the heck out of Dodge, er, Florida. All the paperwork, debit cards, checks, whatever we had was stuffed in a file folder and forgotten.

Until this week, when I received a notice of overdrafts!

Two charges of $10 each had been processed, along with two, get this, $34 overdraft charges!

So the account balance is currently -$78.43.

Needless to say, I called as soon as the office opened at 7 am the next day to try and get things straightened out.

After a lengthy identification process, and a struggle over the fact that I didn’t have the card number(s), the representative told me that I could not file the dispute. The card used was issued to the joint account holder (Wolf), and he would have to call in.

I was frustrated because Wolf is, of course, at work. While he can take a call if need be, he doesn’t exactly have time to sit there and wade through their voice-response system.

The representative said she could call him on a conference call, and he could then authorize me to complete the transaction. Although the odds were against him picking up, we gave it a try.

Wolf did answer, and the Chase rep didn’t jump in. So I greeted him, and explained the situation.

The representative then asked him if he authorized me to file the dispute on him behalf.

He said yes. She thanked him, and told him he could hang up… And we went ahead with filing the dispute.

Wait a minute! We went through all that about identifying me, and my inability to file a dispute on my own account because his card was used…

And she didn’t identify him AT ALL!!

Heck, if I had known that I could have called ANYONE! So much for security being enforced…

I’ve been assured that all the credits will post within two days, at which point I will go into my local branch and close this account. Because

We’ve had our Klean Kanteens for a long time, and we all use them.

I’ve discussed my issues with the Sport Tops.

Interestingly, their website now proclaims that the “flat and loop tops are leak-proof!”, having been forced to admit that the Sport Top is not.

Our latest issue is with the Kanteens themselves.

As I’ve probably told you, we each have one… A 12 oz. rust for R.T., an 18 oz. pink for Jewel, 27 oz. in green for me and stainless for Wolf, and a 40 ouncer in black for Nick.

Over the last couple of years, we’ve put them to the test. Lots of use, lots of washing, lots of rolling around in the car… and yes, lots of dropping.

When dropped, naturally, there’s a chance you’ll scuff or nick the paint on your colored bottle. We have, some, but actually I’ve been incredibly impressed at how well the colored exterior have held up.

Amazingly, my complaint is actually about the steel portion!

Nick has the big ol’ 40 oz. size, so that he can have more cold water on hand for marching band practices.

While the smaller bottles are the same diameter as the “basic” 27 oz., only shorter… This one is the same height as the basic, and wider.

Turns out, this is a fatal flaw.

The ratio of the size of the circle to the strength of the steel works out very well in the three smaller sizes, which seem nearly indestructible.

Not so with Mr. Big.

Although the 40 oz. Kanteen is wider than the other sizes, the steel construction is the same thickness.

One day, Nick’s water bottle was sitting on the front passenger floorboard, and rolled out when he opened the door. The bottle was empty (no extra weight), fell about a foot, and landed on dirt.

The bottom edge (the “corner” where it presumably hit) was caved in pretty seriously. There was also some deformation to the rest of the bottle bottom, which is now convex and no longer stands up (really REALLY a problem, with those leaky Sport Tops!).

I know it could be argued that it was Nick’s fault for dropping it. And I haven’t said a peep about the minor damage sustained by the other vessels in the course of our daily abuse (quite the contrary, as I said). This was just such a disproportionately large amount of damage – to a stainless steel bottle! – from such a minor event… That’s hardly real world useful.

The three smaller sizes of Klean Kanteen are wonderful, for all the reasons I’ve mentioned, and all the ones they advertise…

But the seemingly-handy larger size is a flop.

Quick!

Head over to our other blog, As For My House. Check out the review, and enter to win a copy of Near Mama’s Heart – a beautiful book about breastfeeding, for children.

Good luck!

Is a bedroom make-over from the TwitterMoms and Vision Bedding Contest!

So, ummm… Did I mention that we’re going to be living in our RV again?

No exciting travel this time – it’s a Park and Play sort of thing.

But my bedroom?

About 18″ wider than our Queen-sized bed. And 18″ longer.

Seriously.

All our clothes in the tiny strage above the bed, and the tiny hanging closet bar (open) that Wolf installed for our last go-round of RV life. Oh, and storage under the bed.

With that kind of cramped quarters, a little decor would go a long way towards making it feel a little more like a home!

Look at this pretty sage and brown pattern! It would look lovely with my sage paint (yes, we’re planning to paint inside the RV with the leftovers from the paint we chose when we moved into the Berry Farm house)…

My paint is Behr Promenade, which apparently was “Seen on HGTV $250,000 Challenge”, but which looks nothing like this dull, gray swatch looks on my monitor:

You can have your chosen design put on bedding, wall murals, or whatever. Very cool idea!

So some nice sticker art borders to put over the cheesy-with-extra-cheese borders that are in the RV now? Maybe a Duvet cover to transform into a hanging “closet” to cover up the exposed clothes? An of course a comforter and throw pillows to make the bed inviting…

If you don’t sew, what do you do to control the cost of clothes for your little ones?

One thing that’s a biggie here is that we do not “do” brand names. In the 0 -5 age range, especially, the kids don’t know or care – so why spend the money?

But you simply *must* have it, you say? Well for goodness’ sake, don’t just walk into the mall and pay retail for it. Shop smart!

For instance…

Like The Gap? Try this little savings dance:

First – Shop at The Gap Outlet over that mall store, for better deals.

Second – shop RIGHT NOW, during their Semi-Annual Baby Sale, for deals of up to 40% off those prices. September 11 – 24, on all clothes for babies – five year olds.

Third – Visit the Gap Outlet – Trittermoms.com exclusive site, and print out a 10% off coupon. You can use this on top of the sale prices! (They have a link there for finding your local store, too).

Fourth (and finally) – If you blog, you can join the TwitterMoms Gap Outlet Blogging Program. The first 50 bloggers to post about the sale, and include the Gap Outlet Widget (below) willreceive a 20 Gift Card. (Yeah, it’ll come to late for this sale – but it’s Semi-Annual!)

So, if you just have to have it… Go forth, and get it for less!

Only with a little help from an angel, right?

Angel Food is a Christian-run but open to all discount grocery program. Anyone can purchase Angel Food – it’s for those who want to save on their grocery budget, as well as those in need. There is no application or qualification.

From their website:

By buying food from first rate suppliers at substantial volume discounts, Angel Food Ministries is able to provide families with approximately $65 worth of quality nutritious food for $30. Angel Food Ministries does not use out-of-date food or inferior products.

ABOUT THE FOOD
Each month’s menu is different and consists of fresh, frozen and packaged food. Angel Food is purchased from the nation’s top food suppliers. Providing quality, nutritious food at significant discounts on a regular basis is one practical way to give people a “hand up” during difficult times. The cost for a box of Angel Food is $30. There is no purchase limit for boxes of Angel Food. There are no applications or qualifications necessary to purchase.

ABOUT THE VALUE
Comparison shopping nationwide in various grocery stores has revealed that the average retail value for the same food items would be approximately $65. Generally, one box of Angel Food assists in feeding a family of four for about one week or a single senior citizen for almost a month.

Angel Food even accepts Food Stamps!

We ordered an Angel Food “Signature Box” as well as a supplemental meat box in June, curious what it would be like.

The food is, truly, first-quality, good stuff. All the meat is vacuum-sealed individually and frozen for safe transport and storage.

They also just made some changes in the menu, which now includes even more meat – for the same price. Here’s what’s on the menu for August:

• 1.5 lb. Ribeye Steaks (4 x 6 oz.)
• 3 lb. IQF Split Chicken Breast
• 1 lb. Boneless Center Cut Pork Chops
• 2 lb. Mac & Beef Dinner Entrée
• 1.5 lb. Breaded All White Meat Chicken Nuggets
• 1 lb. 80/20 Lean Ground Beef
• 1 lb. Bake or Fry Fish Sticks (32 sticks)
• 1 lb. Frozen Corn
• 1 lb. Frozen Baby Lima Beans
• 1 ct. Cello-Wrapped Iceberg Lettuce
• 2 lb. Sweet Potatoes
• 15 oz. Pork & Beans
• 1 lb. Rice
• 32 oz. 2% Shelf Stable Milk
• Dozen Eggs
• Dessert

So, with minimal extras, you could feed a family of four – at least lunch and dinner – for a week with one of these “Signature Boxes.”

I think most people use it more strategically, though. If you buy a Signature Box, plus perhaps one or more of the available Bonus Boxes, you can spread them out over the course of the month to supplement your regular thrifty shopping.

There are plenty of great sites out there that allow you to plug in an ingredient and find tasty recipes to try. I’ve heard people mention menuplanningcentral, recipezaar, and others.

In addition, Hillbilly Housewife puts together a thrifty month’s worth of menus based on each month’s Angel Food box!

So, you’re probably not REALLY going to buy 4 boxes and feed your family for $30 a week… But it’s sure a great deal!

Clear out the freezer, and go to the Angel Food website to find a location near you, and order.

They even have a referrral program!

So please tell them I sent you (enter tiffany(at)tiffanyblitz.com in the space on the order form that asks), then refer all your friends to get your freebies…

I was thrilled to find preview copies of the three new Homestead Blessings DVDs in my mailbox recently. These were like a fun new “season”.

The first three DVDs took place in a cozy indoor kitchen / workspace.

These are all set outdoors. You might expect Gardening to be in the garden, of course, but even Canning is set in a lovely outdoor “summer kitchen”.

Perhaps even more than the original trio of DVDs, these are very general topic overviews.

They would be great for someone to watch who thought, “Wow, canning? I think I might like to try it, but I wouldn’t even know where to begin…”

You get an overview of the equipment and processes involved, some fun tips and anecdotes, and a bonus “music video” of a song by the lovely West Ladies (a different one on each DVD). It’s really not enough of the nitty-gritty to go out and do the activity, in most cases.

The Art of Canning

One thing I wished, after watching, was that the recipe for the pickled eggs that they made in the video had been included in the .pdf recipe files.

I know you’ll probably want to go get a canning book to really get into it, but why not put a whole bunch of recipes on here?

Having already read Canning & Preserving for Dummies when I watched this, having received a gracious Freecycle gift of a water bath canner and supplies, and finding myself blessed with a surplus of eggs in the fridge, I decided that Nick and I would jump right in and try pickled eggs.

I popped the DVD into the computer to get the recipe… And ended up popping it back in the DVD player and having Nick watch that segment again and transcribe the recipe.

But aside from that…

I was nice to watch them actually go through the process with a couple of water bath canning projects (jam, as well as the pickled eggs), a pressure canner project (green beans), and then do a few other goodies, like sauerkraut.

Their simple, open style reinforced that canning is normal, and simple to do. It was very encouraging!

The Art of Gardening

Gardening was, perhaps, the weakest link in this chain.

The ladies showed off some of their garden, and talked a little about some topics like tools and container gardening. There was even a segment on composting, which was perhaps the highlight of the DVD.

They planted some green beans and some potatoes, and had some great specific techniques for each of those (potatoes that aren’t dirty?!).

Truly, it would be hard to make a DVD about gardening that was really “comprehensive” – there are an awful lot of variables for each person’s situation (climate, soil, space, etc., etc.). But while this had a few tidbits of really interesting information, overall it left me feeling (still) that gardening was a huge undertaking and I had no idea where to start, what to plant, etc.

On a side note, my very favorite tidbit of information from this DVD was Hannah’s dress. It looks like she took a pair of baggy overalls, split the legs apart, and sewed a triangle panel into the front and back to make a long, adorable overall dress. It is SO hard for me to find long enough skirts, but clearly I could find long enough overalls on the men’s rack… and this sounds more in line with my sewing skills than trying to make something like that from scratch!

The Art of Herbs

The “Herbs” DVD had the advantage of having no preconceived notions – I had no idea what about herbs they were going to talk about.

Vicki did a fairly comprehensive overview of herb gardening.

She walks us through her garden, showing the different herbs, and explaining what type of light and food each plant prefers. She also touches on the herb’s harvesting and uses.

They had several interesting herb uses and projects, as well – vinegar tonics, herb butter, herb teas (with some interesting twists!), and drying your herbs for later use.

* * * * * * * * * *

Whether or not you’ve watched the first three installments of Homestead Blessings, if you’re interested in learning these homekeeping arts, you should check these out!

Until August 10th (Monday), there’s a pre-order discount directly from Franklin Springs. After that, best bet is likely to be Amazon.com with Free Super Saver Shipping.

I got a nasty letter in the mail from the Disney DVD Club recently.

It seems they’re upset at how many times I have failed to respond to the Featured Selection, then returned it when it arrived in my mailbox.

You know what? I’m just not willing to take all the blame for that.

I belong to the Columbia House DVD Club, too. How many times has that happened with them?

Zero.

The Children’s Book of the Month Club?

Zero.

Now… How long do you suppose each of those entities has been in business as a subscription club?

Book of the Month Club was certainly around when I was a child. And as a teen I had amembership with Columbia House for music CDs.

Disney?

I don’t know, but it certainly wasn’t something that existed, to the best of my knowledge, back when I was buying Disney movies on VHS for Nick (from 15 to 8 or so years ago).

Disney has been around a long time, and they’re great at a lot of things. So I’m thinking that perhaps they just naturally figured they were experts at the “club” thing, and didn’t need to do research on existing successful clubs.

But they should have.

I’ll admit that it is something I could probably avoid. they do send the catalog and the response form each month. Usually, I’m even the one to get the mail, open the envelope, and put the response form on my computer to deal with “later” (I should know better!).

Again, though, the same thing happens with my CBOMC and Columbia House mailers.

And you know what? About a week later I get an email from those guys, saying, “Respond to Your Featured Selection Inside!” and if I don’t, Columbia House sends out yet another email right before the due date, saying, “Last chance – Respond to Your Featured Selection by July 8th!”

So, as I sit here, with the response forms stolen by children for coloring projects, or buried under bills, I just click through and respond to Columbia House and CBOMC… And the Disney Main Selection ends up unwanted in my mail box.

You know, my wholesale club store has good prices on Disney movies, too… Why should I put up with them??

I’ve missed my Mountain Dew a lot lately.

As I mentioned in my post on High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), we are boycotting Pespi products doubly.

Well, the morality boycott goes on, but I was out and about with a migraine coming on, and I had to have caffeine. I decided to at least salvage the health issue, and I grabbed a Mountain Dew Throwback. It’s sweetened with…

(*gasp*)

sugar.

And it is… simply delightful!

Wolf says it tastes like the Mountain Dew he remembers from his childhood. (Never much of a soda drinker, I don’t have that association).

It is unquestionably better tasting than the mainstream sodas today sweetened with “glop” (our nickname for HFCS)!

Why are we – societally – tolerating something that tastes second-rate, whether or not you agree with the health concerns?

We’re content, as a rule, with our Winn-Dixie Naturals and Whole Food sodas (all sugar sweetened)… But there’s just nothing else to compare with the flavor and caffeine jolt of a Mountain Dew.

We took full advantage when we were offered the opportunity, as Zoo members, to get a Summer Pass for only $9.95 each that allows unlimited visits to the Miami SeaQuarium and Wannado City (separate review to follow).

Although it was really too hot and humid for human life to exist outdoors, we bravely set off for the SeaQuarium. (Seriously! We found out afterwards there was a weather advisory issued because of the heat!)

Nick always enjoyed Sea World when we lived in California, but none of us had been to an aquarium park in quite a while.

As we entered the park, we were corralled by the ubiquitous souvenir photographer (in this case with a critter-handling cohort). They snapped a group photo. Yeah, we’re all wearing red shirts on purpose – if it’s a good idea for all the little summer camp-ers, it’s a good idea for us!

Wolf then asked if he could take a picture of the kids with the bird. They whipped the kids into an arrangement, while instructing Wolf to “take it at the same time we do.”

WHOOSH! They had clicked off the shot and whisked the bird away almost before Wolf even got the camera up.

While these photos are not bad, under the circumstances, their behavior got me thinking. I may get back and review the SeaQuarium in general in another post, but this is something that’s really gotten under my skin.

Later in the day, we went and watched the sea lion show. Sea lions are typically very entertaining, and this show was no exception.

Afterwards, they led one of the stars out to a photo area on one side of the stage, where the souvenir photographer was ready to capture the moment for anyone who was interested.

We waited in line, and Papa sat in the hot seat with the littles (Nick wasn’t interested). There was a bit of unscripted horse-play, er, seal-play – the sea lion pushed Jewel off the rock every time she sat down! He must have liked her; this hadn’t happened to any of the other kids.

Having thought a lot about the scene at the entrance, I was prepared behind the lens. I got the camera set up, and focused while the family ahead of us was being photographed. I ignored the assistant giving me the canned speech about taking the picture at the same time they did, and staying behind the yellow line.

In spite of their rushing to get their picture taken and get them out, I got four shots, including this cute one:

Telling was the fact that when we went to view our photos at the sales booth at the end of the day, they had only one, very poor shot from this scene.

Obviously, they would rather take the pictures and sell them to you. That’s the whole point of the photographers being there. But it seems clear that at some point they decided they couldn’t – from a practical or customer service perspective – make people stop taking pictures.

So instead they devised a strategy where they fully “cooperate” with you taking your shot simultaneously. But they are actually hustling the whole thing through so fast that, in reality, you’re not going to get the shot… so, dog gone it, you’ll have to buy theirs after all.

Except that they shot themselves in the foot. They were in such a hurry to try and keep me from getting a picture, that they didn’t wait until everyone was seated with their eyes open, and they took a stupid picture that nobody would want to buy, even if they hadn’t taken their own!

So I got the last laugh.

Here’s a couple more cute pictures *I* took of the adventure.

Jewel measuring herself against a whale tail:

Ho, the mighty shark hunter is victorious!