Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Cheaper Than K-Mart!


It may not be my favorite time of year here in Arizona as far as the weather goes, but there's one big advantage to suffering through this hellacious summer heat! The sales down here in the oven are unbelievable! You know how they say Cheaper than K-Mart in Mexico -- well down here I think summer clothes really are cheaper than K-Mart this time of year. I'm not a shopping kind of gal, but every August/September I seize the opportunity to replenish the summer wardrobe (which we wear about 9 months of the year)!

A few weeks ago before the cough interrupted, I had a couple of good coupons from Kohl's that were too hard to resist. I knew it was time to strike while the blue light was blinking, so I headed out shopping. When I got there, most of their summer clothes were already marked down 55 to 80%!


In about fifteen minutes, I scored all of the above, three summer tops, a lightweight jacket (great on Isla!), and a pair of black crop pants, for -- ta daaaaaa -- $23.97! Can't beat that with a stick! Cheaper than K-Mart! To top it off, I went back today to look at the leftovers and scored two more summer tops for $4 apiece. Another Blue Light Special!

I think I'm starting to channel my Grandpa Bowman! He could pinch a penny tighter than anyone I've ever known. When he went to the grocery store, he carried one of those little clickers. He'd total each item as he threw it in the basket, and he always searched the dented can markdown area. If the total at the checkout didn't match exactly with the number on his clicker, every item had to be rechecked to find the mistake. He was an accountant by trade, so he came by it naturally. The local supermarket clerks hated to see him coming! That was back in the days of cheap gas, so he would drive the 20 miles to Parsons, Kansas once a week to save money on groceries. And he bought the day old bread at the bakery. I'm sure struggling through the Depression left a lasting impression on him, but it must have also been one of those genetic traits that skips a generation. : ) Here's a photo of my grandparents with all the grandchildren in the early 1960's. (I'm the girl.)

I don't know if you'll pick up on the resemblance, but I'm a dead ringer for my grandmother. It's kind of freaky looking at myself with white hair! The birthday cake is for my cousin Jon and I. Jon was born on my 4th birthday. In that photo, he's 4 and I'm 8. There's one fact I can tell you about that photo -- Grandpa Bowman sure didn't buy that bakery birthday cake!



7 comments:

Nancy said...

I sure do see the resemblance! You look just like her. Also, thank you for my first laugh of the day..."I'm the girl." LOL!

Oh, and congrats on all the good buys!

Vee said...

Beck, you savvy shopper! I really like the white top with black stitching - cute. And yes, you DO look like your grandmother. Wow!

Isla Deb said...

Dontcha just love it when you find bargains like that?? I have gotten some pretty good deals at Kohl's myself.

You do look like your grandmother...except for the hair, of course. My sons have told me that if I ever get an "old lady hairdo," they're going to dis-own me. lol

Chrissy y Keith said...

Kohls has some awesome deals. I shopped there with my teenage grandkids for all their back to school clothes. As they are used to Alaska prices for everything, they went crazy. I gave them budgets of $150.00 each, which in Juneau would get you 1 pair of sneakers 3 tops and a pair of pants. Here, they got a closet full.

Moongrl722 said...

I can see the resemblance and you could've done a lot worse! She's a pretty lady. Hey...give me that red top - I just bought a cute black and white jacket!

Life's a Beach! said...

Nancy, you're welcome! I'm glad someone gets my humor! It's a little dry, so a lot of people miss it.

Vee, I have photos of my grandmother at various ages and it's eerie. She started having strokes in her 50's. That's one reason my B.P.'s such a concern.

Deb, almost free!!! Literally, I need to go check one more time.

Chrissy, the deals down here are so much better than they were in Washington State. I bet the grandkids were thrilled!

Jana, I thought about heading back by there just to check to see if they had another red tank. Maybe I will! And when I look at those photos now, my grandmother was pretty. You don't notice things like that as a kid.

Bennie said...

Your Grandpa Bowman sounds like my Grandpa Campbell. He would squeeze a penny till it screamed. He lived though the Great Depression. I'm glad I haven't had to walk a mile in his shoes.