Ok so I've been working from home for two weeks now but today was Leslie's first day…our first day together working all day from the house.

It's so weird.

Our house is wired to the max. Over the last week we've had two business lines installed. We have Roadrunner and a linksysis 4 port switch with wireless access point that I use for work and our home computers. Leslie's department set her up with DSL so we've got a DSL modem and a second, identical Linksys router for her use. We both have swanky business phones.

Leslie decided she wanted a TV for her office but then we ended up playing musical TV's and got a new TV for the bedroom that's almost as big as our family room TV and the old bedroom TV became her office TV (well as soon as I split the line, possibly amp it, and run cable for it.) So now she can take a break and watch Dr. Phil or whatever freaking baby/wedding type show is on TLC. She's got her ipod dock with FM tuner up and running.

My office has all of that plus my old Aiwa 5.1 Home theater system wired up so I can take a lunch break and watch Lord of Rings in digital surround sound if I want. Only a few feet from my office is my bench, squat rack, and all my weights so when I say "Honey, I'm going to the gym after work" it means I'm getting off my chair and walking about seven feet to the gym. Which reminds me, I got a sweet office chair off of Craigslist for 20 bucks. The guy lived right down the road and the chair is like brand new.

So far, so good. We can totally do this. Other than the six minute trip to the sitter's house, we don't need to leave the house very much. Target, Meijer, and Kroger are all within five minutes of us. There is a pizza place, gas station, and a pub about two minutes down the road. Anything else is only a short drive away.

I'm thinking about signing up for Netflix. Leslie is out right now renting a movie and I'm thinking if we just did Netflix we wouldn't even have to do that.

This is going to be a huge adjustment for both of us but so far I'm liking it.

Wow, you guys truly don't ever have to leave the house - all you need to do is sign up for grocery delivery and you'll be set!!!

Leslie signed up for the Grocery Game…it deserves its own entry so I'll write about it later! But I recommend checking it out…should be available everywhere I think

I saw that grocery game on 10TV…I want to hear your and Leslie's take on it.

OMG…you are headed down to hermit lane!

Here come the long beards, the plaid shirts and never leaving the house.  Kids in the neighborhood will make up stories of how you were in Nam and injured by a bomb.

Just do everyone a favor and shower once in a while..okay?

LOL

I'm resisting the urge the start stockpiling cans of Spam and ammunition for the apocalypse. I do manage to shower every day but I cancelled my last haircut. Slippers and gym shorts are my office attire. Some days I put on a shirt, others I dont.

As far as the Grocery Game…

I was very skeptical about it but it was one buck to sign up for six weeks so we gave it a shot and after the first few trips to the grocery store she made me a believer.

It's a little complex and Leslie knows way more about it than I do. But basically its a grocery buying system. The Grocery Game does all the work and research for you based on where you shop (you can pick a single store or up to five or six I think.)

Every week you get an email with all of the stores sale prices including unpublished sales. It will also tell you if there is a coupon available for the item either from a sunday paper, a weekly ad, or on the internet from a number of sites.

Then it breaks it down by items that are must buys and items that are free. Yes, you can get a lot of stuff free by combining sales, store coupons, and manufacturer coupons.

It organizes everything for you. You do have to change your whole way of shopping and it takes a few weeks to get into it. You will have to buy stuff you don't need (like soap, toothpaste, and household items) because the price is at its lowest point, or free. And you will have to pass on things you might normally want even though they are on sale because the Grocery Game research says the price will go even lower in the near future.

I wish I would have save some receipts so I could actually show you. But our first time trying it out Leslie went and bought a load of groceries from Meijer that came to 130.00 before any savings. The total discount by combining sales with coupons was 57.00. So the total she paid was 73.00. That's 56 percent of retail. I think there was one time it was even around 40 percent.

The savings will get even better over time because eventually you will have all of your non perishable items stockpiled.

It takes some work and some discipline but the savings can easily be over 500 bucks a month depending on how much you normally buy.

And 500 bucks, my friends, is a boat payment. :)

I'll be over shortly to set up my home office. Please prepare to the ipod docking station. I'd like my mini-fridge to be stocked with coke, low fat yogurt and fresh fruit. ;)