Today I put so much Icy Hot on that it took my breath away. I smell like a Mento!

Why? I failed to take care of my feet.

As a reclusive writer, I wear athletic shoes everyday. I buy two pair and alternate them. I needed to replace my shoes last November, but decided to save the money for Christmas gifts. Dumb.

Saturday we went shopping for three hours in my sad, nine month old shoes. By the last store I felt like my right knee was being pushed out and I was limping. The support was gone from the shoes. I tend to walk on the outside of my feet and the shoes were worn down there.

Stupidly, I spent the next day lying around resting from my shopping trip and generally taking it easy. The muscles that were stretched then locked up. I woke up in the middle of the night with pain in my knee, calf, hip, thigh and back. I could not get comfortable.

I forgot the number one rule of frugality – prevent expenses. I am lucky that the pain is not so severe that I need to see a doctor. That could get expensive. I did get online and order two more pair of shoes. I made a note in my DayTimer to replace them in July.

That brings me to the second rule of frugality – plan for your expenses.