I calculated my expenditures while babysitting wrong. For some reason I saw $17 on the Subway receipt instead of $7. I didn't realize it until DIL reimbursed me correctly. So, anyway, I have wiped out those expenditures from my spreadsheet and my variables are now 88%.

I was planning on grocery shopping yesterday, but the air quality was too unhealthy to go out. Then I was planning on today, but there hasn't been much change. Now I'm so close to the end of the month, I may just skip it altogether. I have what I really need. Well, the creamer may not hold out, but I do have milk and sugar!

Using up things -- I made carrot soup yesterday. It took so long for the carrots to get soft that I ate something else instead and the soup is in the fridge waiting to be heated up for today's lunch. I also used up an apple by making apple pancake batter. I had apple pancakes yesterday and today and there's still more for tomorrow.

I'm getting stir crazy, and I'm glad I have a lot of books on hand for entertainment. With any luck, we will have rain today and that might drive away the smoke.

Oh, almost forgot! I have to pay $90 for my share of a legal fee to get our property valuation lowered. This will lower our taxes in the future, but I'm not sure if it will really make a difference to me, since I have a senior freeze exemption. I guess I'll find out soon. The funny thing is that I looked at this email in the middle of the night and my bleary eyes saw $9000 instead of $90.00. I was quite relieved this morning to verify what I knew must be true!