Reduce - Drive and Shop Smart, and Enjoy With Your Spouse

Have a smart shopping plan is essential to REDUCE repetitive driving and wasteful shopping. On our "Shopping Saturday," we aim to be gas-efficient and time-saving, to shop smart and to enjoy a nice Saturday out.

We follow a route, in order, almost without detour:

- First we visit the post office or the bank if needed.

- We head on to Borders or Barnes & Noble to relax among books and magazines. My particular favorite is The Economist magazine.

- We may opt to enjoy a cozy lunch at a local venue. Exploring lesser-known, ethnic and economical restaurants and eateries is a part of our worldly joy and as our simple reward.

- We visit Staples, Best Buy, Walmart, etc. to get any needed items.

- We run through the grocery stores in one stretch: Giant, Safeway, Trader Joe's, Mom's My Organic Market, Shoppers Food Warehouse.

- In Giant or Shoppers we will get our favorite latest releases from Red Box dvd rental. We have enjoyed great movies such as "No Country for Old Men" and "Kite Runner" for a measly $1 per night on Saturday evenings.

- We return home to enjoy a nice dinner made with fresh ingredients, and then our chosen DVD of the week :)

- As we shop together, we are just so much more efficient and selective about the items we are buying. It really adds to the saving, not to mention the nice time we are spending together.

All the chores and shopping are done in less than a full day, and our weekdays are simply left open to just work and relax in the evening.

Another way we enjoy our Saturdays is to explore different local neighborhoods on different weekends, with slight modifications given what is available, whether a local festival or farmers' market might take place. We will always make an effort to incorporate all into a smart, efficient, productive multi-purpose plan, to enjoy on a nice Saturday.

I LOOK FOWARD TO THAT DAY WHEN I DO NOT HAVE TO OWN A CAR AT ALL.