Author Archives: Kevin

Arcade – Monitor Replacement

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My arcade cabinet has been ready for an upgrade for some time. You can see some of the work I did in the early on in this post and this post. It doesn't get a lot of use but it's good entertainment at any party.

First let me say, this isn't a how to. I only partially planned this out before I started. I knew I'd have to see the inside in order to figure out how to finish up. I'm going to use stuff I have lying around and I wouldn't expect anyone to try and follow my directions. Probably couldn't if you wanted to. Hopefully you will see what I've done and get an idea for your own project. Let me know! maybe you can teach me something new too.

I've had an extra LCD screen (ACER AL1917A) for a little while and I never found a good use for it. I decided to replace the CRT I installed at the beginning of the project. It wasn't a very good fit to begin with but it served me well. The LCD is a higher resolution (1280 x 1024), much lighter, and just plain looks prettier. I'm going to install it regular width way but I'm going to think about installing it on it's side.
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The first thing I had to do was remove the entire front of the cabinet to get to the screen. Yes, had to.
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To get the monitor to stay in I used screws, blocks and Gorilla Glue
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This was a terrible solution, but it worked.
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I really had to butcher the case in order to get it to fit. Apparently I didn't attach the CRT back to the case when I installed it. Whoops.
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To get the LCD to stay I found some metal braces lying against the wall. I don't remember where they came from but I'm glad I still have them. They are perfect. No wait, I do remember. Maybe I shouldn't have cut it up… Nah, I'm sure it'll be fine.
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I measured the width of the cabinet and cut the brace to size. Which happens to be 23.5 inches, if I ever need it again.
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These blocks were already installed, possibly to help hold the original CRT.
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Here is the LCD mocked up to see how it would sit. More or less perfect.
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Now, the right way, probably, to hold the LCD up top would be to install another brace the width of the cabinet. Unfortunately there wasn't anything already in place for me to mount a brace to and it's sleeting here so I'm not running out to Lowe's to get what I need. I was about to give up and leave this mess all over the room but I decided to go poke around in the garage for a while. I found a used bicycle inner tube and a solution was formed. I cut it 5 inches longer than the width of the cabinet and screwed it down using the existing holes. I was prepared to trim it if I needed to but this seems perfect.
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The bezel covers up to inner tube and you can't even tell. I didn't do anything specific to keep the LCD from sliding around. The rubber should keep it in place for anything up to an earthquake. When putting it back together I almost ended up with an extra screw. but then I remembered that there were extras from taking out the CRT monitor. Now all that's left is to play some Galaga.
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ELBC, Part 22

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I saw this coin the moment I walked into the bank. Unfortunately it was at the feet of someone waiting with a teller. The only benefit of my wait being foreeeever was that I was still standing there when that lane cleared up and I was able to grab it.

2013-01-23
1 cent
Total: $0.01

2013 Cumulative
$0.79

Overall Cumulative:
$2.22 Loose Change
3200 MS points
$55 Amazon Gift cards

Grand Total:
$97.32

Couponing

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I have my theories about grocery shopping and coupons, but those posts are for another time. Kevin asked me to write a little about couponing in the theme of “Every Little Bit Counts.” Let me preface this by saying that I am not even close to being an extreme couponer. My philosophy is that saving money is only worthwhile if you don't have to spend the better part of your life on prep time. I spend about 20-30 minutes a week cutting and organizing my coupons. This organization allows me to spend about 10 minutes a week selecting which coupons I will use on that particular shopping trip. I also take my coupon box with me to the store just in case I notice something extra that I need or see that there is a sale that wasn't advertised. You never know but that you'll have a coupon for that item, and a rotten reality is realizing that you left that coupon at home.

I save anywhere from $2 to $20 using coupons in an average week. I generally use about 5 coupons per trip to the store. Coupons are great because some places have store coupons in addition to manufacturer coupons which can double your savings. But again, that is coupon training, and I'm just here to post about today's savings. Coupon 101 is for another day.

I generally do my weekly grocery shopping at Harris Teeter, a very nice grocery store that is locally owned and operated. Remind me to write a post about HT someday because they're fabulous. I also make a quick trip to Food Lion every now and then, and I like to shop at Target for some random items every few weeks. In fact, I plan to run by Target and Costco later today to grab a few items from each place.

I shop at Harris Teeter on Friday mornings because that is the best time for me to get the items I need. But that's another rabbit trail. This week is a great week for coupons because it is “Super Doubles” week at HT. HT regularly doubles any coupon you use that has a value of up to 99 cents. So if I am buying Windex, and I have a 75 cents off coupon for Windex, HT will double that $0.75, and I will save $1.50 on my Windex. Pretty spectacular program, if you ask me. “Super Doubles” is a special week where the store will double any coupon up to $2 in value. This is a great time to get select items for minimal cost, and most people take full advantage of Super Doubles week. It can be insane if you go at the wrong time because the extreme couponers are vicious broads & dudes.

Today was not a heavy shopping trip. I cooked a huge New Year's Day meal, and we have oodles of leftovers, so I was mostly stocking my pantry and picking up necessities. Here's what I bought and what I paid for each item:

Reynolds Parchment Paper: 3.99- coupon for $1 which doubled= $1.99
Gerber Baby Food: 2 @ .89 each- .14 off each store promotion=final cost for 2, $1.50
Rose Lime Juice: $3.79
Organic Baby Food: .99- .24 off store promotion= $0.75
Santitas Tortilla Chips:$2
Palmolive Dish Soap: 3.49- 1.49 off store promotion= $2
Pampers size 4 Diapers, 31 ct.: 11.39- 1.90 off store promotion-$2 coupon that doubled= $5.49
Domino Brown Sugar: $1.39
HT Cooking Spray: 2.89- .64 off store promotion= $2.25
HT All Purpose Cleaner with Bleach: 2.49- .62 off store promotion= $1.87
HT Pure Drinking Water, gallon: .99- .12 off store promotion= $0.87
Gillette Men's Clinical Deoderant: 8.99- $2 off store promotion= $6.99
Listerine Mouthwash, 1 Liter: 5.99- $2 off store promotion- $2 coupon that doubled= FREE
HT Latex Cleaning Gloves: $1.69
Crabcakes: $5 for 2 (on store special)
Bananas, 2.35 lbs.: $1.53
Strawberries, 1 lb.: 4.99- BOGO(buy one get one free, which at HT means you can buy 1 and get it for half-price)= $2.49
Sweet Onions, 1.52 lbs.: 2.26- store promotion= $1.96
Digiorno Pepperoni Pizza: 6.75- 1.75 store promotion- $2 coupon that doubled= $1
Frush Yogurt: 2 @ 1.50 each- .50 on 2 store promotion- $1 on 2 coupon that doubled= $0.50 for 2
International Delight Iced Mocha Mixed Coffee: 3.99- $1 coupon that doubled= $1.99

I had coupons for 2 items I was hoping to get that were out of stock (The crazy people got there at the butt-crack of dawn on Wednesday morning to use their 75 coupons each. This sometimes happens with popular items that are nearly or almost free.), so I missed out on 2 good deals there. They also had a buy-2-get-3-free (B2G3) deal on 12 pack cans of Pepsi products, but we did not need 60 cans of Pepsi this week, even though it's a great deal.

After taxes, the total on my bill, before coupons and discounts was $81.64. VIC (the HT store promotion card) discounts subtracted $15.29 from that, leaving $66.35. My coupons took $17.99 off that, so my final bill was $48.36. Not bad for less than an hour of coupon prep and less than an hour of grocery shopping.

Every Little Bit Counts, Part 20

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Randall Munroe is a very funny, smart, thorough guy who make clear sense of difficult ideas. In his recent article on the Cost of Pennies he discuses some of the benefits (and drawbacks) to picking up loose change. I could add a calorie counter here each week. Could, but won't because there is probably already too much information on these pages.

2013-01-21
1 cent
Total: $0.01

2013 Cumulative
$0.73

Overall Cumulative:
$2.16 Loose Change
3200 MS points
$55 Amazon Gift cards
~6.4 minutes added
~15.74 calories burned

Grand Total:
$97.26

CVS

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Today we're talking about paper products. I know, it's a fascinating subject, isn't it?? My point today is to show you that you should NEVER pay full price for toilet paper, paper towels, or facial tissue again (and if you use napkins or disposable diapers, those too).
I grew up in a frugal household. We were not Scrooges, we were just frugal out of necessity. If you don't have much, you have to learn how to get the necessities while sticking to your budget. My mama taught me to use coupons because even $0.25 off is $0.25 more for something else. Now I don't have to be so frugal because I'm not struggling to buy groceries anymore, but I still use that strategy because saving a little, here and there, can add up to a lot over time. But there's more to it than just using coupons.
I have learned through experience to never buy paper products when you need them. Buy them when they go on sale and you have a coupon, that way your savings are multiplied, then you will have that item when you need it. I don't mean to save up 48 rolls of paper towels at a time, just think ahead. If you only have 3 rolls left, and you see a good sale, snatch it up. If you have the space to store more, buy a lot when there is a really great sale. I don't personally have a ton of storage space, but I always keep ahead on paper products. Plus, the sales are cyclical. If you buy when it's cheap, you probably will not run out before you can get that sale again in a couple of months. Once you get the hang of the cycles, you will always be able to purchase when there is a sale, and you will never pay full price again.
I sometimes shop at CVS. Their regular prices are not great, so I don't shop there weekly, but they have a fabulous sales program that they run periodically which will save you a bundle. Today I bought:

  • 18 rolls Scott Extra Soft toilet paper
  • 18 rolls Cottonelle Ultra toilet paper
  • 12 rolls Scott Choose-a-Size paper towels
  • 3 boxes 184-count Kleenex

This stock of supplies should last me for several months (I already have a decent Kleenex supply, otherwise 3 boxes would not get me through winter months).
Since Walmart is always touting their low prices, I wanted to compare their prices to what I paid. Some of the items do not come in the same quantities, so I had to do the math to figure out what my quantity would cost based on their prices (don't worry, I'm excellent at math):

  • Scott tp Walmart price: $8.23, w/ my coupon, $7.23 (40 cents per roll)
  • Cottonelle tp Walmart price: $10.48, w/ my coupon, $9.98 (55 1/2 cents per roll)
  • Scott towels Walmart price: $11.83, w/ my coupon, $10.83 (90 cents per roll)
  • 3 boxes Kleenex Walmart price: $4.47 (1.49 per box), w/ my coupon, $3.97 ($1.32 per box)

These are actually pretty decent per-roll/box prices, but I did better at CVS. You see, CVS has store coupons ($1.50 off that printed for me today) that you can combine with your manufacturer's coupons. Plus, their special promotion today was buy $30 of select paper products, and receive a $10 gift card for CVS. Again, I'm doing a good bit of math here, but it all checks out. Here's what I paid at CVS today:

  • Scott TP: regular 10.99, marked down to 7.49- $1 manu. coupon – $0.50 store coupon – $2.49 (portion of free $10 gift card I received) = $3.50 (19 1/2 cents per roll)
  • Cottonelle TP: regular 12.99, marked down to 9.99 – $0.50 manu. coupon- $0.50 store coupon- $3.33 (portion of gift card )= $5.66 (31 1/2 cents per roll)
  • Scott towels: regular 14.99, marked down to 9.99 – $1 manu coupon- $0.50 store coupon- $3.33 (portion of gift card )= $5.16 (43 cents per roll)
  • Kleenex: regular $6.66 on 3, marked down to $4.50 on 3 – $0.50 manu. coupon- $0.85 (portion of gift card) = $3.15 ($1.05 per box)

Total w/ taxes: $29.68
Therefore, I got a better price on each item from going to CVS, I'm stocked up for awhile, and I parked in the spot right next to the door, something you never get to do at Walmart!
Now, keep in mind, you don't have to do this kind of serious math just to figure out if you're going to save money. My basic tenant is, am I spending less than $0.50 per roll on toilet paper, am I spending less than $0.90 per roll on paper towels, am I spending less than $1.50 per box of Kleenex (of course, that is for a 184-count box, not a 64-count box or something else tiny). The less I can spend, the better. As you get used to doing this kind of thing, you can easily calculate it in your head. For instance, I saw that 18 rolls of Scott Extra Soft TP was marked down to 7.49. I knew from experience that this amount was already decent, plus I had a manu. coupon and a promotion deal to sweeten the pot. On top of that, the coupon that printed at the CVS kiosk made it even less. Don't worry, it's not hard to get the hang of! If you want someone to help you do the math, visit a site like southernsavers.com.
I should add one little note. I am a toilet paper snob. I know you can get cheap, 1-ply tp inexpensively, but you end up using at least twice as much than the nicer stuff. After trying the options, I found that my wallet and my butt thanked me for consistently buying the extra soft or ultra brands when they go on sale. And don't forget to pair your sale items with coupons!
I hope this helps you save in the future. Please, if I was unclear on anything, ask me for clarification!