Sunday, August 14th, 2011

I had a few more things that I needed today, so I headed over to the Raposos to borrow some tools, picture hanging supplies and a couple things I left behind.  Then, Lurline, Talia and I headed to Canadian Tire and Wal-Mart.  Talia and I bought some shoes for work - we both needed closed-toe shoes.  Then we all did some grocery shopping.  Afterwards, Talia came to see my apartment.  She read her Cosmo magazine while I puttered around doing some odd jobs.  Then, she tried on some of my dresses and shoes - she's looking for stuff she could wear to the bar when she goes out.  I told her she could borrow whatever she wanted until she got some of her own dresses.  Every girl should have at least ONE little black dress, right?

Lurline and Dave came to pick her up a little later.  Afterwards, I did some laundry and a little more cleaning and organizing.  It's kind of a challenge that I don't have internet or TV, so I've been doing a lot more reading.  I couldn't update my blog, so I've been writing everything and just saving it on my hard drive for when I get connected again.

This is how bare my apartment looks.  It echoes.  I got some nice stuff, though.  The sofa was $40, the solid oak table with four chairs and glass table top was $100, the chair with foot stool was $12, the lamp was $10, and the 2 white end tables were essentially free.  I even got the clock on the wall from Value Village for a couple of dollars.  I'm thrifty.

Monday, August 1st, 2011

Last day of unemployment.  I was back on Kijiji in the morning looking for another good buy.  I got very lucky again.  A guy posted an ad for a black, leather sofa for $40.  I called it within 1 minute of the posting.  I told him I'd come to look at in right away.  It's a good thing I did... Dave and I arrived and two other people were there who wanted it.  One of them was very rude and pushy ... I think he might've been a used furniture dealer or something because he arrived with a cube van ready to go.  Anyway, the guy was great, and said it was spoken for, and he helped Dave carry and load it into the Toureg.  He was a very nice guy... I think Dave wanted to be his new best friend - also because he was a chef.  Anyway, long story short, I got this amazing full size, black leather sofa for a mere $40.  It's in great shape, too!  I bought a few more smaller items today - got a mirror and a wall picture from Goodwill, too.  I will have to post a photo of my new place if and when I ever find one.  That way you can see all my newish items in their new home.

This evening, Lurline and Dave went to see the final Harry Potter, so I went to wash my car of all the dead insects and dirt, then took a drive into the Mission district where I'll be working.  I thought I'd see if I could once again find an apartment I could look at.  Unfortunately, I didn't come up with anything.  Regardless, I did drive up this road that led me to this great view of the city... very near to where I'd like to live actually.

Saturday, July 30th, 2011

Garage sales today.  Lurline and I left Dave at home to work on the yard, while she and I headed out to scour some garage sales for some good deals on furniture, dishes, appliances, or whatever else I could find.  I got VERY lucky with some of my deals.  I got a rocking chair and ottoman for $12, two Ikea end tables and a brand new Epson printer for $60, a fantastic floor lamp and red kettle for $11, and an array of kitchen items from some discount stores.  We even took a break in the midst of all the buying to have a Vietnamese lunch at Bagolac - one of my favorite restaurants in Calgary.  When we got home, Dave had made some great progress on the yard.  I perused through the Kijiji listings for some other great deals and came across an ad for a solid wood table with four chairs for $100.  When I called, he said I could go to see it tonight, so Lurline, Dave and I took his SUV and off we went.  I couldn't believe how beautiful the table was ... it has a leaf, and a glass top to protect the solid wood on the top.  It was in immaculate condition and weighed a ton.  We managed to load everything except the glass top into Dave's Toureg, surprisingly.  I was ecstatic for getting such an amazing deal!  Not sure if you can see some of the items in this picture... but it's all starting to pile up now!