We’ve had a tree from Costco since we lived in Calgary twenty years ago. Buying at Costco is dangerous b/c trees that look “normal” sized in their giant warehouse are GIGANTIC when you get them into your house. So we’ve always enjoyed our tree but also always found it quite big. Last year, we bought a smaller pre-lit tree at Canadian Tire and set it up in our upstairs room while we had the big tree (and presents) downstairs so it was less tempting to our dog.
This year, we sold our big tree on Marketplace (to a young couple who’d just bought their first house and were kitting out their new digs which is kinda cool!) so we’re going to try presents under the smaller tree and see how it goes.
I may be heading back to Marketplace to look for a giant baby gate or some sort of indoor fence!
One of the coolest things about being in England during the height of the mid-90s Britpop era was being exposed to so much great music. Obviously Oasis was one of the biggest bands of that era and paid homage to the Beatles in various ways – mostly looks, lyrics and musical references.
Like pretty much everyone these days, Shea and I are noticing that everything seems more expensive – gas, groceries, dining out, etc. etc. etc.
If we’re feeling this way while being in a fairly good financial position with good professional jobs, good incomes and a lot of financial luck over the years in various ways (talked to someone who took a $50,000 loss on a condo recently while we’ve always had great luck/timing when buying real estate), I can’t imagine being someone starting out.
Anyhow, that’s all preamble to say that in reviewing ways to cut our spending a bit, I thought that cutting one of our many streaming TV subscriptions would save a few pennies. And the first one Shea and I thought of was Disney+ since we rarely watch it.
Well…we mentioned it to both sets of kids – our 12 year old daughter and our 18 year old son – and it was like we’d said we weren’t going to buy groceries anymore.
Our daughter leapt into action – making protest signs and threatening to withhold her labour until this issue was resolved…
And it worked! Management (eg. mom) relented within 24 hours (“I really don’t feel like emptying the dishwasher and need her to do it tomorrow” was the bargaining concession.)
Although its set in Texas and obviously a lot more dramatic (Guns! Drug Dealers! Powerful Oil Millionaires!), we’re enjoying a show about a world that feels very familiar since Shea’s and my family have been connected to the oil industry in a variety of ways – providing direct and indirect employment to family members on both sides, both receiving surface and drilling rights income, oil royalties, etc.
