I gotta clean up my act a bit.

Since retirement I have dressed strictly for comfort with no real regard to my personal appearance. 

While I do shower and shave almost daily I dress like a ragamuffin and should probably dress a little nicer.

===================================

Update.

I just threw out a pair of comfortable jeans because they have a little paint on them and replaced them with a couple of pairs of Levi 501s that just seemed to jump into my life. I found a couple of pairs at a garage sale that were brand new with the tags still on them (NWT) for $10/pair, total $20.

On top of that at the same sale I snagged a NWT still in the box pair of Timberlanders for $10. Not a bad haul when you think about it.

While things like this don't happen on a daily basis, it is truly astonishing what shows up for sale in affluent neighborhoods.

Years ago when I was a wanderer I was randomly picked by some roving reporter that was doing a piece on the homeless. He said he almost passed me by because I didn't look beat up enough.

I remember explaining to him that I was able to travel around unemployed doing odd jobs simply because because I was able to do damned well by living off of the leavings and castoffs of an affluent society.

It's true, especially in affluent neighborhoods. People throw away and awful lot of perfectly good stuff. It's amazing.

I paid my mortgage off in ten years on a 30 year note. Admittedly a small inheritance made the last payment but only really accelerated things by about a year. But the fact remains is that it sure would not have happened as quickly had I gotten a new vehicle every few years and dressed in the latest style. 

The habits have stayed with me. My current ride just turned 17 this year and spins like a top so I see no need to replace it in the near future. If/when I do I will pay cash. I may even buy used from a state like Arizona or maybe Florida. Cars don't rust out there.

I generally buy high quality items and take care of them because it's generally the most inexpensive way to do things. Buy once, cry once.

Much of my furniture I made with my hands because it was fun and satisfying. What's another thing is I managed to get the mahogany needed for many projects simply for a carton of cigarettes in a trade with a specialty lumber sawmill.

Incidentally it's not all garage sales that give good deals. Retailers sometimes spin things off. My favorite deal came right after the fire when I needed a new lawn mower. Lowe's had a Honda on the curb listed for $25 with a tag that said 'won't start'. I examined it and put the tag in my shirt pocket so as to establish dibs on the machine. 

Then I simply opened the fuel shut-off, waited a minute and gave the cord a yank and the machine lit right up. A few weeks later the  insurance company delivered a replacement for the one that burned up so I put the one I got from Lowe's on Craigslist and got $400 for it. 

Anyway, back to cleaning up my act. It didn't take a whole lot and now I won't be mistaken for being homeless.

There are two side to this because occasionally it's fun being mistaken for being homeless.

To find out why the blog is pink just cut and paste this: http://piccoloshash.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-feminine-side-blog-stays-pink.html NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE WRITING OF TODAY'S ESSAY