Sunday, March 5, 2017

Another Mini-Adventure Booked and Treasure Found

Anchors Inn Ucluelet

This week I made good use of our weekends away fund and booked 4 nights to the same cabin we went to last June in Ucluelet.  It is one of  the cheapest places in the area to stay and was absolutely perfect for hubby and I to take Buddy with us on a mini-vacation.  The Ucluelet/Tofino area of Vancouver Island is the most expensive area, much higher generally than even Victoria.  I feel so fortunate we found it last year and are able to go back this summer.  Cost for four nights ($170 a night plus tax) is $714 plus a $20 pet fee which they donate to their local SPCA.  It checks all the boxes - right on the ocean, can kayak right off the front of the cabin, allows our dog in a safe environment, has a mini-kitchenette and BBQ, has good internet (important as we still must check/answer emails for our business) and even cable in case it rains and rains which is always possible on the coast.  It just so happens my 48th birthday falls within those days so I get to celebrate it in a lovely spot (hubby's 55th we will be in Santorini, Greece in June).  


I already have $400.25 saved in our weekends away pot which is solely funded by return bottle deposits and items we purge and sell from our household using our local 24 hour Facebook bidding site (items I buy and resale are not included in this fund, that is separate).    This is added incentive to step up purging/cleaning out items we no longer use.  If we are still short I shall take the remainder out of our regular travel fund which we contribute $300-$500 monthly to.  We have decided to not eat out at all that trip and to carefully meal plan our 4 days knowing exactly what kitchen implements we have at our disposal (2 burners, toaster, microwave and a BBQ).  There is also no additional cost for National Parks which is about a $75 savings as I have received the free Canada Parks pass in the mail (still available if you haven't signed up yet, valid for everyone, not just Canadians, request yours here).  We hope to do a lot more exploring of beaches and hiking trails in Pacific Rim National and both Ucluelet and Tofino and only saw a small part on our last trip.  We work so hard the rest of the year and hubby finds it difficult to not work at home so these getaways maintain our sanity.

Saturnscope (Sterio viewer)  by James M. Davis $26
On the treasures found front - I have wanted a stereoscope for years but was simply too cheap to buy one.  They were made in the late 1800s to early 1900s and were used for creating a 2-D image.  I bought this one off the Facebook bidding site for $26 including 3 cards.  Value is usually between $50-$100 and the cards sell for $5 each and higher depending on content.  Very cool!!  I was on the fence about buying it as don't need more stuff - so right after I bought it purged another bunch of items to resell to justify it lol.

This week more chaos in the house as on Wednesday the dishwasher gets uninstalled, Friday we get our kitchen floor fixed from our early January roof leak and then the week after the dishwasher will be reinstalled.  It will be a relief to finally have it fixed as it has been so difficult to keep the kitchen clean with only partial flooring.

We ended up laying some plastic underlay over the rough edges to keep from tripping over pieces of floor until it is fixed.  Yes, plastic on your kitchen floor is not a decorator look to be sure.

And that is what's shaking in my world.  Have a great rest of your Sunday (and Monday for those in Europe) everyone!

24 comments:

  1. That stereoscope is really cool! I'm curious about how you do your Facebook selling. Do you have to meet up with the people after you sell the items or do you mail them? I have a bunch of things I want to get rid of but don't have enough for a yard sale.

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  2. Our group is strictly local, you have to pick up the item at a mutually agreeable spot (home/store etc) within 72 hours of winning the bid or you can be removed from the group, same as no shows. No packaging, no shipping. Everyone in the group must be within a certain boundary which is 3 towns here, there are over 3000 people in the group right now. I choose starting bid, and people have to bid in increments of .50 cents or more (you can go much higher to scare off other bidders if you wish. There are volunteer moderators who run the site, most of them retired. I find it excellent and only have run into one buyer who jerked me around. I think it was because they didn't read the rules. I love it! Great to both buy and sell

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    1. I feel safe giving people my home address for pickup but always make sure hubby is here at the same time which is easy since we both work from home. On low value items I even allow people to stick money under my mat as live in a very safe neighborhood with 2 cops on the street

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  3. Oh, I was given a stereoscope as a Christmas present in the '70s. I had a couple of dozen cards and I kept it all until our move to Spain in 2011. I would have been happy to send it to you!

    I had no idea your house was still in that state. So glad it's finally going to be back together for you.

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    1. Now I am on the hunt for more cards :) Yes, our house has been in this state for a month now - all the other damage is fixed on the roof and we fixed the holes in the garage and they've been painted. We had to wait for the flooring order to come in and to make sure 100% we had fixed the issue and completely dried everything out.

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  4. We plan to make good use of the family cabin for frugal weekends. Hubs had hundreds of hours of time invested, and why we do not want to own another cabin, trailer, rv etc. Your get away sounds ideal and well deserved.

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    1. I hear you - no more work/maintenance, the house is bad enough for that. I would rather pay for renting different cabins here or there. Tenting with the dog is out of the question as he likely would bark at everything in the middle of the night. He growls at the crows walking on our roof right now, it's so funny but he has very good hearing.

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  5. Adventures are THE.BEST.!
    We just booked a week in St. John USVI using VRBO.
    Have never used them before - hope it works out!! The place looks amazing, and MUCH cheaper than comparable places!

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    1. Exciting! I've never used Air BNB or VRBO, only tend to stay in hotels but found this little Inn on Trip advisor which also lists alternative accommodation to hotels now.

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  6. You should have some great travel memories this year. That is a great new treasure. I'm on the search for a dripolator coffee maker that is reasonable. My camp style percolator doesn't make the best coffee. I know if I look long enough, one will show up at the thrift store. - Margy

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    1. You definitely will find one if you hold out long enough

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  7. I am envious of your "found" money form purging and selling! What a great way to partially fund a trip. I hope it is wonderful!

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    1. It is added incentive for parting with "stuff"

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  8. One of my friends inherited her Granddad's stereoscope along with some killer slides, they're ace, aren't they?!
    Happy Birthday. xxx

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    1. My plan is to haunt antique shops on vacations for stereoscope cards, a neat souvenir

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  9. great travel plans! You made a great decision not to eat out. home made is often better....

    I am sure Buddy will enjoy this vacation as much as you do.

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    1. He really liked the cabin, all except when the eagle landed on the railing of the balcony when we were sleeping, the eagle was only 6 feet away from the bed and Buddy let out a little tiny woof all scared.

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  10. That will be great a great birthday present for sure. Congrats! Able to take Buddy along with you is even better. You enjoy girl!

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    1. Yeah, we hate leaving him alone in a cabin where he is not familiar plus eating out is so bloody expensive and usually not worth it.

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  11. Wow, your mini-vacation away to the cabin sounds lovely! :)

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  12. I love the rustic look of Anchors Inn. (like the pun too!) It seems like the ideal spot where you can also take Buddy. And being able to just open your door and be on the water is perfect!

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    1. It's not for everyone, definitely a mucho rustic 1 room cabin that is electronically wired for wifi and cable but perfect for us and Buddy. Also a fantastic deck to drink cider on while enjoying the view plus a bathtub (not hottub) on the deck. I am not a bath person but hubby took full advantage of it last time (in swimming trunks so as not to scare away other cabin goers :))

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  13. I *so* do the same thing you do ("I will justify this purchase by selling these plates...") ESPECIALLY with a local shop start-up because nearly every cent spent goes back into the business to grow it. I know I've said it before but I MUST look into and start using the Facebook bidding system I keep reading about, I have stuff to clear out to buy banners and such for our store ;) haha

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