There’s a front page story on one of today’s newspapers saying seniors are facing financial hardship. Well now, ain’t that the truth. Oddly, the story doesn’t appear on the paper’s web site, but the sub-head said three out of five seniors are having to change their life styles to avoid “destitution”. I guess the other two must have had a very frugal life before.

I’ve balanced (counter-balanced?) the eighty dollars increase in rent by eliminating visits to the seedy Gold Gate Lounge (alas) and more significantly by rolling my smokes almost all the time instead of just in the last week of the month. It’s crazy to pay 20-25 cents for a cigarette when with a few seconds effort I can have one for five cents.

One of my (many) uncles taught me to roll when I was about eight years old but then I got lots of practice awhile later rolling more interesting greenery than tobacco. “Is that marijuana?” the Landlady asked when she saw me rolling. “I wish,” I said. Then last night I dreamed I was starting a dealership, realized I just had to buy a calculator so I could instantly determine how much profit I’d make from buying a pound. A POUND??? Talk about wish-fulfillment dreams …

The biggest adjustment I’m having to make is in providing my own food. Ye gods, food has gotten expensive. I have to admit that now and then some small things manage to fly into my pockets. Helen R gently scolded me yesterday, saying “that’s not a good idea”.

But sheesh, things that used to be staples of a poor man’s diet (like Velveeta, for example) have morphed onto at least a slightly well-off person’s shopping list.

Not that I should be eating that stuff instead of real cheese, which I love, but have you noticed the price of REAL cheese lately?

“Don’t drink,” the Landlady said, as I was leaving the house.

“Don’t drink? On the Fourth of July?! That would be un-American!”. So I went forth to do my patriotic duty. I did it a little too well because when I finally wobbled home I was carrying two large bags of fireworks which I really couldn’t afford to have bought.

Never mind, the boys and I had good fun setting them off and a young friend of theirs from down the street heard the noise and rushed up to join us. (The adult persons in the house were not too amused by it all, but …. oh well.)