a strange addiction

tonight I finally did it--i accomplished the (nearly) impossible. i have this little competition with myself on a weekly basis: see how many groceries I can get for the least amount of $$$. i shop at the Publix right around the corner from our house. now, admittedly, Publix is not the cheapest store in town (I simply refuse to go to that giant superstore that shall not be named)--but if you shop their sales pretty carefully, I firmly believe that you can spend just as little at Publix (maybe less) than if you had driven the 6 additional miles to the aforementioned yet unnamed retail giant. Publix makes the savings game especially fun in these ways:

• double coupons (i try to save my coupons for when the item is on a buy-one-get-one sale to really rack up; occasionally i have actually saved more than the item cost)
• you don't have to buy 2 to get the "buy one get one deal"
• every Sunday the News has a mystery penny item coupon (take into the store on sunday or monday and get something for $0.01--this week it was a gallon of bleach)
• most recently they have even started taking competitor's coupons (tonight i saved $5 with a coupon from Bruno's)

The way I know if I am winning my little competition is based on the % of savings compared to the total amount spent. If my total savings is ever less than 1/3 of my total bill, I lose. If my savings is about 1/2 of what I spent (i.e. spent $50, saved $25) then I had a really good trip. Tonight, however, was the grand prize (of what, I'm not exactly sure): my savings was more than my total. I got 6 bags of groceries for $22 (i even bought three things that weren't on sale, nor did I have a coupon for--i know, rather extravagant living). For the skeptics among you, I've included proof: