At least I think it is. A Comcast technician is coming this afternoon to verify. We had a brief power outage -- I think it was a surge, really, because everything flickered several times -- and the TV picture did not recover. The box is permanently on -- I can't turn it off -- but it does nothing. I went through all the hoops, by myself, and once again with the person at customer service. Finally, an appointment was set up, and I expect I will get a new box this afternoon.

I spent my evening reading, which was nice. This morning it felt weird to not be able to turn on the news, but I'm coping.

My kids got home safely from Florida last night.

I got a haircut yesterday afternoon. I had a $4 coupon, so it was $16, with tip. Variables are now 28%.

Today I'm going to the gym, and afterwards I'm going to stop at Food4Less to pick up a few groceries. I'm going to try to really keep down the grocery costs this month, but I will replace staples I run out of.

In lieu of TV, I read my AARP magazine this morning. Did you know radio host Delilah is a frugalista? Her grandma saved and reused aluminum wrap, and she does, too! Also, I learned a few tips. One good one was to use Priceline or Hotwire to find discounted hotel rates at an approximate location, and then use Better Bidding or BiddingForTravel to find what past customers posted about hotel names and winning bids in that area. Worth a try, though I don't know when I'll travel again.