I'm late to the game, but wanted to share an idea we're doing this year. We're starting some local, neighborhood-run produce markets. They're technically grey-market - someone will turn a garage or shed into a produce stand. Anyone can drop produce by, and they list inventory on a whiteboard. Payments are handled through Venmo, so shoppers pay growers directly through a mobile app. It's a grassroots thing meant for neighborhoods, but I think if you had a handful of these going in town, a professional growers could drop off a steady supply of produce to each one. The folks who host it get to keep any produce unsold after a couple of days, so there are definite benefits for them. We wrote down the business model, if anyone wants to steal it :) http://www.hackyourhometown.com/the-grassroots-produce-stand-that-runs-itself/

Sears 30% off sale is a great time to purchase. I remember the days when sears was overpriced probably 30% so when they had a sale it really wasn't all that great, but times have changed and I find their prices to be more competitive now. Take 30% off which is VERY substantial and have a pretty good bargain. I bought my bosch dw at an independant retailer during a sears 30% off energy star appliance sale and the independent matched the price. I got what I think is an outstanding deal. The retailer I bought from claimed it was like 3 bucks above cost or something like that. The only disadvantage is sears tends not to carry the really high end (miele, sub zero etc) I am not sure if they have the sales around the same time every year but I will check to see when I bought mine. The months that seem to ring a bell in my head are april, may, august.

No No, IX is still here with an ever so limited presence before... The Big X! Quick plllog get that umbrella/canopy/awning/furniture cover out. Dark at 2? They're training for Vancouver 2010 on the sunny slopes of Whistler right now. Oh and back to Whole Foods again? There's just too many good things in there for easy indulging. Like the Bakery section. -YUM- And the Spirulina Smoothies. But what about my little Amy? Promise I didn't say anything to her. BUT... I'm starting to wonder if she expected "The "Rock" for X-Mas. I did offer her one of the good Guadalajaras but maybe that didn't dazzle her enough. It is handmade and beautiful and exotic after all. And those blood diamonds, I mean shiny pebbles, are so over priced anyways. Or maybe it was the new $19.99 cell phone and she was expecting me to have the snazzy iPhone. But it should be important enough that I actually call her, even if the phone is El Cheapo. AMY: Where ever you are, you should always know that I LOVE you:r Tamales. Aha we've got Plllog the Curious Cat in the Dark Damp Pacific Coastline wondering how will them Northerners get them corners straightened out? Well, it goes like this. Carpenter arrives in morning. Carpenter hears about Perfect L corner idea. Carpenter about to say I'm crazy. Carpenter listens to reasoning. Carpenter's eyes start twitching. Carpenter looks at both elevations. Carpenter agrees to idea. Man asks Carpenter how. Carpenter says no problem, been there and done that with US Kitchen Installs. So, when I told him about the mock up display by shuffling cabinets today, he basically said why bother because it's such a no brainer in looks. The good news. The existing IKEA angled corner will be notched out like the American L Corner, including shelves, and we'll buy the accordion hinges and presto, next Saturday it goes up on the wall. No new cabinet purchase, no cabinet wasted, just 2 new 12 inch doors required! Maybe a $75 change in extra costs. Even he said the room looks larger. You can actually prep food now on that corner; without The Devil being in your face. It will work like this. Window elevation-currently has 15 inch cabinet and the "creepy" corner to the left of the window. With the Plllog Accordian L a.k.a PAL, there will be one additional 12 inch door to the left of the 15 inch creating the corner. And attached to it, another 12 inch door as you turn the corner. So the Mural Elevation will now have three 12 inch doors in row to the right of the Mural. No filler spaces, like IKEA showrooms do, since they butt doors and cabinets to create silly L's. One IKEA display even stopped the cabinets at the L Corner, so that there was no awkward reaching to the back of the corner and conceded the entire corner area. Thhhe That's all folks! Senorita Plllog, you have truly opened up a can of worms---I mean a corner for cans :)

To carry on from the above (typed on my new phone that constantly wants to change my words to words never intended, but now I am home): Retail - yes, I still shop "in person". Many things are buy-able on line and I HAVE to buy most of my clothing on line since no one carries extra long slacks / jeans, or sleeves it seems. So it is kind of fun to go buy short sleeved tops retail, because I CAN! Plus you really can't see fabric quality from a photo. Home decor, if colors are important for matching/complementing - this has to be in person, too. Computer monitor colors are never accurate, no matter how one fiddles with settings. Chairs and anything I sit upon has to be tested in person for comfort. Until I retired, I'd do most of my shopping Saturday mornings when places first open - no crowds, and I'm up early anyhow. With retirement, a new world of shopping times have opened up to me. Currently, I'm setting up a new home, so stores (none at the mall) that I've been in within the past month or so: Home Depot, Lowes, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Staples, Home Goods, Kohls. A lighting store, because I had questions in person. Not counting supermarkets and the farmer's market. Ordering things online from Amazon, SwitchHits, Long Tall Sally, Bed Bath & Beyond (some of their stuff is not in stock other than the demo items), Home Depot (ditto), and a few garden nurseries.