June 27, 2003

• Being Cheap

  
  The class today at Oasis was about being cheap. Really! Seniors need to know how to live cheaply in this modern world, particularly with all of the scams going around.
  
  Ms. Sally Gary was our instructor for the class. She has written a book about the best deals and steals in San Diego. Her eighth version came from the printers on Monday and we were the first to receive copies.
  
  Sally is a recovering (that means retired) teacher. Having nothing better to do one day, she wandered into a book store where she found a book on how to get things cheap or free in and around the Bay Area. A few days later, in another book store, she found a similar book that covered goodies available in Los Angeles. It immediately occurred to her that she could produce a similar work for the San Diego area.
  
  But why do all of that tedious research for yourself when other people will do it for you and pay you in the process? Sally went to the administrators of the local community college and asked if they would like her to give a series of seminars on finding local bargains, with the students expected to contribute heavily to a list of bargain sources to be published later.
  
  The list grew to book proportions, so Sally took a class on how to get a book published, a subject she now teaches in seminars. The first slim volume attracted a questionaire, which she filled out and returned and which resulted in a newspaper article being written about her.
  
  Then, early one morning when she was still in bed, the phone rang. Would she consent to a telephone interview? She tried to refuse, but they insisted, so she said, "Just a moment," and went to get her calendar. When she got back to the phone, she heard someone say, "Go ahead, you're on the air now". That interview went so well she soon had the local television station asking if they could film one of her seminars. She had a seminar the following day and it was televised.
  
  The publicity didn't hurt sales of the book a bit. The book has grown a bit over the years despite removal of volatile sections like the personals. Singles are still mentioned but they get about half a page ... and another book. Other sections may soon become independent documents in their own right for similar reasons, such as the section on travel bargains, which can be expanded as it becomes something resembling a magazine.
  
  At least one man credits this book with saving his marriage. His wife was going to leave him because he was boring and never wanted to go anywhere. He started through the section on "101+ Free & Bargain Things To Do" (chapter 3) and the one on "Cultural Events For Less" (chapter 4), showed his wife a good time without breaking their budget and mended their relationship.
  
  I got off to a bad start this morning. First, both of my big toes are swollen and sore because the podiatrist cut them up a bit Tuesday morning when he worked on my feet. I don't have much sensation in my feet anyway, but with my feet hurting I walk funny. As a matter of fact, because my balance is shot to hell I stagger like a drunk.
  
  Then when I went to shave I didn't notice a pimple on my chin until the razor passed over it and it started gushing dark blood. I thought I had controlled the bleeding. Delia and Cathy had both left by the time I came upstairs and I never looked in the mirror until I got back from class. When I did see my reflection, I discovered a big black scab, nearly a centimeter wide and more than a centimeter high, in the middle of my chin and, worse than that, a thin line of pale amber stuff leading from the big scab all the way down to my neck. I guess it wasn't my imagination that people were avoiding me today.

  • 00:23
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