Blow That Dough! - 2019

[pb4uski]

.... We did economize in 2 places: used the subway/bus in and out of the city instead of Uber (she LOVED the subway) and had a "picnic" in the room for dinner the second night, with her leftover pizza from the previous night and a sandwich I got from the gift shop.

If you keep writing stuff like this ^^^^ we will need to throw you out of this thread.... in case you forgot, this is the Blow That Dough! - 2019 thread.... what were you thinking?

 

[pb4uski]

We decided to splurge and buy two new cellphones... his and hers... same model so I can more easily help DW when she gets stuck on something... even though my phone was working perfectly fine (he had issues and needed to be replaced).

So we stopped at BestBuy whille shopping for phones and saw one that was $200.... so we planned to spend $400 for two phones.

When we stopped at a different Best Buy in a no sales tax state the next day to buy them they were on sale for $140 each... so only $280 for two phones... saving $120!... so I'm not sure that splurge now qualifies.

But it is the thought that counts, right?

 

[FreeBear]

Going to Greece next near, maybe should save this for the 2020 thread, but too excited. Over 3 grand for 2 in cattle class. Will stay at least 3 weeks. Will be out on a island. Rental car from the airport, eating in outdoor cafe, sleep with ocean view, kayaking on the ocean, more eating, sleeping, repeat! Will probably basecamp in one village for a week and drive on day trips or go with a local guide for kayaking and other fun. Then check out a few other waterfront villages for several day each. All on one big island. In retirement we’ve been several days per stop; tired of all the running around we did when w*rking.

 

[pacergal]

I have a daughter getting married in 2 weeks, all of my $$ have been spoken for !

Congratulations to you and your daughter. Hope you have a lovely wedding!

 

[Christine]

I'm visiting my mum and we talked about when she was 16 years old and worked in the kitchen of a hotel. She said it would be nice to visit that place again.


So I booked us a weekend there and to prove she's no kitchen help any more I booked us a mini suite each. It was a wonderful weekend. We traveled by car and went sightseeing for a few hours but the rest of the time just enjoyed the hotel, the nice balconies of the suites and almost everything else on offer.


So worth it!

 

[GravitySucks]

Good for you!

Besides it's much cheaper to send the east coast fish to wherever you are than to send yourself to the East Coast.

Yes, but those lobsters pulled from the Maine waters the day you eat them is worth the trip.

 

[RobbieB]

As a fisherman, I agree! Swimming in the morning, supper in the evening - Yup, the best!

 

[MBAustin]

MB, what shop did you order the crabs from? I may order some for my BDay in a week or so.

CrabPlace They are in Crisfield, MD, right in the middle of crab country. I've been quite happy with the larger sizes, not so much with the smaller.

FYI, the best crab cakes are from G&M Restaurant. I generally don't order them online because I make a trip to MD once a year and I get a box of several (uncooked) packed to travel as my second checked bag on Southwest (they're very close to BWI).

 

[aja8888]

CrabPlace They are in Crisfield, MD, right in the middle of crab country. I've been quite happy with the larger sizes, not so much with the smaller.

FYI, the best crab cakes are from G&M Restaurant. I generally don't order them online because I make a trip to MD once a year and I get a box of several (uncooked) packed to travel as my second checked bag on Southwest.

Thanks for the links!

 

[explanade]

Thinking of splurging for new Apple Watch Series 5.

But the current one I have, I don't wear all the time and I mainly use it to control the volume or skip ahead on podcasts.

It's also too slow to run many third-party apps. so maybe if I spend $400 or more, I would use it more.

It would be pure splurge.

 

[GravitySucks]

DW and I accidently ate at G&M once. It became our regular crab cake stop anytime we drove within 50 miles of there. I don't make it down that way anymore, Glad to hear it's still good.

CrabPlace They are in Crisfield, MD, right in the middle of crab country. I've been quite happy with the larger sizes, not so much with the smaller.

FYI, the best crab cakes are from G&M Restaurant. I generally don't order them online because I make a trip to MD once a year and I get a box of several (uncooked) packed to travel as my second checked bag on Southwest (they're very close to BWI).

 

[MarieIG]

Going to Greece next near, maybe should save this for the 2020 thread, but too excited. Over 3 grand for 2 in cattle class. Will stay at least 3 weeks. Will be out on a island. Rental car from the airport, eating in outdoor cafe, sleep with ocean view, kayaking on the ocean, more eating, sleeping, repeat! Will probably basecamp in one village for a week and drive on day trips or go with a local guide for kayaking and other fun. Then check out a few other waterfront villages for several day each. All on one big island. In retirement we’ve been several days per stop; tired of all the running around we did when w*rking.

Which big Island are you visiting? Crete, Rhodes, Corfu, or another? (My son is currently in Greece.) We are thinking of doing something similar in 2020; but due to family needs, it may be postponed to 2021.

 

[jcretire77]

Finally replacing twenty year old living room furniture for two Ekornes Stressless love seats and two recliners with ottomans. Trip to Phoenix in a month for DW 55 and over National tennis event followed by four days of golf at Wigwam which is near and was where we had our honeymoon. Being lazy and bought the unlimited play. Previous visit played 18 holes twice a day for five days. We were younger then

 

[pb4uski]

DW and I accidently ate at G&M once. It became our regular crab cake stop anytime we drove within 50 miles of there. I don't make it down that way anymore, Glad to hear it's still good.

DW and I had a cancelled flight out of BWI.... so we got a nearby hotel room for the night. Needed to eat so we googled and G&M popped up so we went there.... loved it.

 

[FreeBear]

Which big Island are you visiting? Crete, Rhodes, Corfu, or another? (My son is currently in Greece.) We are thinking of doing something similar in 2020; but due to family needs, it may be postponed to 2021.

Cephelonia or Milos, shoulder season. Was looking at Santorini, but the cost and crowds turned me away. I hate dealing with the logistics, so we’ll pick single island and camp out for a few weeks, maybe with 1-2 moves at most. Don’t need to see anything famous either, so probably minimal time in Athens. Just want to sit in cafes, and kayak and drive around as much as we want.

Which islands do you enjoy??

 

[Ronstar]

Ordered a beverage center this morning. On my way to pick it up.

 

[Freedom56]

Flew to Toronto with my wife over the weekend first class (Air Canada 787 Dreamliner from LAX) to pick up my wife's Obgyn prescriptions from a Costco pharmacy in Toronto. The savings(one year supply) more than covered the entire trip. Even better was our prescription from last November still had refills and was valid so we didn't have to renew the prescription with a doctor in Canada this time. We don't mind stimulating the Canadian economy at the expense of greedy pharmaceutical companies and CVS Caremark. It costs $394 per month to fill the prescription here versus $15.85 per month in Canada using the brand name drug in both cases. The generic version would cost $244 per month here. The drug is pretty common and has been around for decades. We also enjoyed some fine dinners in Toronto.

 

[Kwirk]

...and drive around as much as we want.

I have fond memories of driving in Greece. Now that was an adventure!

 

[explanade]

Flew to Toronto with my wife over the weekend first class (Air Canada 787 Dreamliner from LAX) to pick up my wife's Obgyn prescriptions from a Costco pharmacy in Toronto. The savings(one year supply) more than covered the entire trip. Even better was our prescription from last November still had refills and was valid so we didn't have to renew the prescription with a doctor in Canada this time. We don't mind stimulating the Canadian economy at the expense of greedy pharmaceutical companies and CVS Caremark. It costs $394 per month to fill the prescription here versus $15.85 per month in Canada using the brand name drug in both cases. The generic version would cost $244 per month here. The drug is pretty common and has been around for decades. We also enjoyed some fine dinners in Toronto.

Will they fill prescriptions from US doctors?

 

[Freedom56]

Will they fill prescriptions from US doctors?

No. Last year we took the US doctor prescription to a walk in clinic and had the doctor write up the US doctor prescription with double dose. That cost us $50 cash (CDN). Costco allows you to fill 6 months up in Canada and which gave us one year supply with refills this year. Last year we filled it in November. This year we filled it at the end of September. Both times we were at the Costco in North York, there were many people from the US doing exactly the same thing we were doing. For Costco it's an easy cash business without having to process insurance claims. It's 100% legal in Canada. We are under the $800 US customs limit so no issue there either. Plus US Customs are allowing people to cross the border to fill there prescription. They are fully aware of the issue with pharma drug pricing.

 

[tmm99]

No. Last year we took the US doctor prescription to a walk in clinic and had the doctor write up the US doctor prescription with double dose. That cost us $50 cash (CDN). Costco allows you to fill 6 months up in Canada and which gave us one year supply with refills this year. Last year we filled it in November. This year we filled it at the end of September. Both times we were at the Costco in North York, there were many people from the US doing exactly the same thing we were doing. For Costco it's an easy cash business without having to process insurance claims. It's 100% legal in Canada. We are under the $800 US customs limit so no issue there either. Plus US Customs are allowing people to cross the border to fill there prescription. They are fully aware of the issue with pharma drug pricing.

What did you say to the Canadian doc to make that happen? "I'm trying to save money because the drugs are so expensive in the US?"

 

[TromboneAl]

I'm gearing myself up to buy a Tesla.

 

[REWahoo]

I'm gearing myself up to buy a Tesla.

You plan on paying cash or charging it?

 

[NW-Bound]

I have fond memories of driving in Greece. Now that was an adventure!

Did you drive like dis?

 

[Kwirk]

Did you drive like dis?

I didn’t have quite that much fun. But I can say for certain that 2 cars side by side in a 2 lane road with an oncoming truck wouldn’t have been seen as a problem: everybody adjusts a bit and goes on their way. Shoulders are (or were) de facto lanes in Greece.