You know how sometimes you make a purchase and you're just really excited about it and can't wait to get home and open the box, tossing the tissue paper aside with wanton abandon because your so desperate to 'play' with your new purchase? That's how I kinda feel right now.

Anyway, I learned today that I'd be going up to the Argyll mountains at the weekend to look at some Neolithic cairn and henge sites. Now it's pretty wild out there (especially in this weather) and you need 'sensible' footware and although my old boots could probably have done the job, I used the forthcoming trip as a rather flimsy excuse to buy myself a new pair of $200 Salomon hiking boots.

They look pretty much (although they're not exactly the same model) like these...



Obviously, I'm stamping around the flat with them on right now.

So what have you guys been wastefully squandering your money (or your bank's money) on?

bought some accessories for my rio karma recently -- car charger & 2-in-1 usb'n'charger -- but neither actually charged so that was a bummer. furthermore, contacting the people at buynshop.com is difficult so who knows if i'll see my $ back. :\

bought my wife a monster car transmitter for her ipod and the Lost dvds. i may go buy myself a kitchen knife today.

for her or you?

for her. i can't remember the last thing that i bought for myself that didn't have alcohol in it. i also bought her the book "son of the rough south" and "mr. galloway goes to washington" at her behest. i guess i'm about to buy plane tickets to RI for thanksgiving, and one of those will be for me,

oh, and i bought her dad an xm radio. i'll probably pop for a massive TV when i get my signing bonus.

Let's see, this was over the weekend:

A new bra and the sequel to the book Wicked called Son of a Witch.

Other then that coffee and groceries. I'm not a big spender these days.

New softball bat. Maybe now I can go yard.

you should get some hydraulics for that roomba you're so attractd to.

I'm buying myself a shitload of DVDs at the end of the week when I get paid and, if I'm lucky, speakers for my car.

I blew off work yesterday, went on a tour of the junk stores. Found a sweet little silver-faced Pioneer receiver and a pair of AR-4x speaks. I need more stereo eqpt like I need a toomah.

sweet.. what kind of knife? Ive been looking for some nice knives for a while, wanted carbon, but was dissuaded ..and now just dont know...

Sweaters and some unmentionables this week. Maybe shoes next week.

This is worthy of repeated quoting.

Nothing big lately, another set of headphones for the iPod; had Comcast come out and add a second box (for the bedroom) and upgrade the HDTV box for one with a DVR. So now I gotta figure that shit out.

I need to go to Ikea and buy some cheap Scandanavian crap for the house.

probably this guy:, the Shun 6" Santoku.

I've been really happy with my globals. I've got about 4 of them. They look like this.

I just bought a nice digital camera: the Pentax *ist DS

yeah i've got a global vegetable knife that i really like but i really, really just like the steel on these Shuns and i want to complete the set.

oh yeah, thats what Im talking about. I had that on my list for awhile (do you read Cook's Illustrated?). I want the whole set as well.

Are you a kitchen freak? Pots? I love my all-clads.

Anyhow, Im reading this interesting book 'On Food and Cooking' By Harold McGee which discusses food science, etc.. dont know if it is your thing, but thought I would mention it.

no, i'm not really a kitchen freak, i just have a wife who wants nice shit and i like silence. we've got some all-clads, i think, but nothing solid copper as i don't want to polish it, and no teflon coatings as i always fuck those up and they flake out. there's certainly more on the way. i used to read cooks but they've threatened to stop sending them, and as i can't tell why they started coming in the first place i can't see a reason to ask them to continue.

good answer.. you are smarter than you look.

it would be hard not to be.

Probably gonna pick myself up a nice ipod speakers set-up for my desk this weekend.

ooh, that's nice... my neighbor across the street tells me she can get me one for cheap through her Sur la Table discount.

Bought a new coffeemaker yesterday, but our old one was over 10 years old, so we needed it. Bought a book and a card for friend's birthday tomorrow. Will be spending boatloads next week in Maui, I'm sure.

Hey, I wonder if its any surprise that the average savings of disposable income for Americans' is between 0 and 1%.. yes, that is right... less than 1% of disposable income-

because it all goes to credit card bullshit.