Day 23 – March 23rd

Today I may be the most tired I've ever been in my whole life. I think perhaps being a domestic goddess has taken quite a lot out of me! As a result I started my day with a good strong coffee - €2.75. That didn't work so I followed it up with a cup of tea – €1.70. As you may have deduced, Flaskie has taken a trip to Thermos Heaven. It seems Thermoses (could that really be the plural of Thermos?) born in the 70s were not designed for the rigours of dishwasher cleaning. As a result, I'm €4.45 down to the Insomnia moguls that specialise in keeping weary students awake on a Monday morning. Today they have just about succeeded with me.

I've also made an executive decision not to go to "Spring Break" when they delight fans of the 80s in Tripod in a couple of weeks. Even though gigs are no longer against the rules, I may finally be learning to be a little more conscientious with my money or lack thereof (except of course where coffee is concerned). Although my finances have been in better shape, I know I could probably afford to go but there are a few things coming up that are going to set me back a few Euro so I think it best to step away from the blue eyeliner and leggings and leave the backcombing for another day.

I've just taken a walk to the library to pick up my next Book Club book. I'm so tired I nearly threw up on my way there. This is not good! After all that, the flippin book wasn't shelved where it was supposed to be. Is it any wonder? The catalogue directed me to the English Poetry section and I'm 100% sure we are reading a Booker Prize winning novel this month. My search will continue. Failing that I know my mum has it somewhere, she may just have to retrieve it from a friend, but definitely no need to actually buy it. I still have about a third of "Marley and Me" to read so can wait a few days. I just love that unruly dog. He reminds me so much of my dearly departed Sooty.

Have finally finished "Not Buying It". I get the distinct impression that by the end of the year Judith's friends were treating her and her partner much like charity cases, sending them care packages of DVDs etc. But fair play to her, she did it, with only a few minor lapses. My favourite new word today is 'spavers', a term coined to describe those who spend in order to save. These folks are the type who take advantage of special offers such as two for the price of one, though in the end they may be lumbered with two of a product they may never use instead of just not spending the money in the first place.

It's 7pm now and I'm climbing into bed with a cup of tea and a plan to spend the next three hours listening to "Off the Ball" on Newstalk to savour some more good sporting news. Tomorrow the world may be back to normal and the news filled with talk of more strikes, recessions and murders. The past few days have been a welcome relief.

Total spent today - €4.45