Do something useful.

I had a busy weekend, I was running around and doing errands cleaning tasks.

You know what, it felt good to look back on Saturday and see how much I got done, so we relaxed and just lazed around the house on Sunday.

Kids got grumpy, house got messy, and when I went to bed I noticed I didn't get "anything" done.

Tuning out and watching TV or goofing off isn't a good way to spend time.

I don't enjoy it, and it pushes me further from where I want to be.

Why do that, when I can do something useful that makes me feel better?

You have too much stuff

I've accumulated a lot of stuff.

I find that the exciting trip is seeing new boxes, bins and storage items to put it in.
I have to take the minivan and load up, the amount of storage material simply won't fit in my car.

I find I have to spend time looking for things that I know I have, but can't find them "right now", if ever.

I simply have too much stuff.
Throw it out.

If it has more than a trivial value,  post it on craigslist or kijiji and if it doesn't move, donate it.
If you know it won't sell just donate it.

When I donate, I like to put in large clear plastic bags so I know what I'm gathering up.

Corn Starch

Well i was cooking a beef stir fry and found the meat always sticks a bit.

I tried rolling it in a bit of corn starch first, doesn't stick while frying.

Second advantage of a bit of corn starch is it thickens up my stir fry sauce a bit, nice and gooey instead of near water consistency.


When you make a stir fry, find a nice brewed soy sauce, not that overly salty stuff you find at many grocery stores. It might stink a bit, but it cooks up nicer.

2 Blankets

I love my wife, but she's always cold, and I'm not.
We solved this a while ago, we just have our own blankets.

Queen bed with single bed blankets, both of us with the exact warmth we want.

We just thrown a queen comforter to hide the different blankets during the day. So nobody knows our secret.

SSHHHHH

Add flavour

Want to eat healthier, find good ways to add flavour.

I have 5 different hot sauces, and a few jars of ground/chopped stuff like horseradish, garlic and ginger.

When I cook, I try to use one of those to add flavour, they're not too bad in sodium, fat or calories, unlike most other stuff.

Today I had a grilled chicken breast with avocado and horseradish. Lots of flavour, no added salt, fat or sugar.

My favourite hot sauce is Sirrachi Sauce (aka rooster sauce). The chili-garlic mix is great flavour.

If you've got hints on healthier ways to season food, lemme know.

Shop Once

I try to shop at one grocery store.
Right now I go to Freshco which sits mid market, maybe biased to the discount side, but still good.
They're not the cheapest, but they have a decent selection of good quality produce and they offer price matching (actually they beat by $0.01).

I save a lot of time by only making 1 major shopping trip to a single store once a week. I know the store well, I tend to go off times and can typically do all my shopping in <45 minutes, including the drive.

I do do a second mid week "fresh" run for perishables, but unless I want to go without, there is no way around that.

Automated soap dispenser

Lysol sells a small battery powered soap dispenser. They're $15 or so, but I find they go on clearance for about $7.
I have 2, I like them, so does my young son. The thing is the refills are expensive.

Fortunately you can just pop off the top and fill with normal liquid soap. Saves a lot of money, and  you don't have to use their scented soaps, some of them are quite strong.