kitten: October 2005 Archives

I was looking for the kitten. It took me awhile to find it. Can you? The kitten seems to think my wreath is its own personal cat lounger. It doesn't move and rarely wakes up when the door swings open and closed. This is exactly the thing that inspires artists to draw scarey cat pictures for Halloween. I don't think she cares for the camera flash at all. It was cool enough last night to build the first fire of the season. It was just a little one -more for mood than for warmth. Steven has a lot of trouble as a firestarter. I would really worry about him if he ever decided to go camping or suddenly there was no such thing as a heater and we had to live by fire alone. It usually takes an hour for him to coax a flame. When he gives up in defeat (and severe frustration) I start the fire. ******* Yesterday I went in search of mulch -by the truckload. I called the local 'green recycler' and got a quote for a truckload which included the delivery. 1 truckload = 40 cubic yards = $880 (Holy Hell that's a lot of money and made me cringe and get a very weak sensation in my stomach.)This is loose mulch. They back the dump truck up and dump a giant pile in your yard. Then I called Lowe's. Mulch at Lowe's comes in a bag stacked on a pallet and is priced at $2.97 for 2 cubic feet. Follow me here in a little math. 3 cubic feet (cf) = 1 cubic yard (cy) 1 cy from Lowes = $8.91 1 cy from the green recycler = $22 $880 for 40cy truck load or $297(100 bags) + $20.79(tax) + $85(delivery)= $402.79 for 67cy Less than half the price and 1/3 more mulch! Shouldn't it be cheaper to buy the mulch when it has just been processed and delivered rather than buying mulch that has been processed, bagged, shipped, stored, purchased by the consumer then delivered? I called another company who wanted $26/cy, could only deliver in 20cy truck and would charge $130 to deliver. I just don't get it. Sometimes I wonder how people think they can stay in business when they out price themselves. I don't know about you but I have to cost compare otherwise we would do without alot of things and my house and yard would look like vagrants lived in it. Owning a house is so expensive these days I completely understand why many people choose to rent. Do you shop around and make sure you are getting the absolute best buy for your money? The mulch is being delivered Thursday morning. I guess you can figure how we will spend Friday and the weekend.