Every December I look forward to the one day a year where all is joyful and wishes do come true. What magical moment am I referring to? Not so fast people! The hallowed moment I speak of can only be the annual Costco Rewards check!

All my hard work and gratuitous spending is broken down into a 2 percent return. This year I received $79.95. Not as much as last year, but oh well. Free money is better than earned money and going to Costco with it is just, well, I’m like a kid in the candy store. That is until I look at my list of necessities and reality sets in. Looks like no Roomba for me again this year.

First thing I noticed when entering the Tacoma Costco is seeing the “let’s get organized” theme they were pushing. Containers galore. Every size and shape you can imagine, and don’t forget the chrome storage shelves. Organized people really frost me, but I still aspire to be one some day. Does anyone here want to take that bet?

My next discovery was of course all the wine with focus on bubbles. While I am on this subject, humor me for a moment. Please do not go to a grocery store or wine shop, get advice on the perfect wine, and then go buy it at Costco because it’s cheaper. Do you realize how shiddy that is?

Moving on, yummy seafood galore! Everyone likes to splurge on a good dinner for New Year’s, whether you go out or eat in. Previously frozen U15 sea scallops are $9.49 a pound. Love me some scallops! Those go in the basket, along with Penn Cove mussels at $1.99 per pound in the four to five pound bag. Who am I cooking for? Don’t care. It’s a good deal.

Not much of a red meat eater, but when you can hide the taste with marinade I sometimes can be convinced. Flank steak is about the only steak I will eat. It marinates well. Here at Costco they sell it for $4.99 a pound, which is pretty good, however in Wednesday’s TNT I did see that Tacoma Boys ALSO has it at that price. Impressive. …

Had to buy a five-pound box of seedless clementines for $6.99? Aren’t those required snacking for the holiday season? At least it’s healthy. Nothing else is, unless you count the lovely red and green artisan lettuce pack I discovered. Six petite heads for $3.49 and oh, they are tasty and pretty.

A few more interesting finds to mention are the fashionable looking 26.5-ounce jar of roasted red peppers for $6.79 and the Tribe hummus snack pack for $4.99. This container includes 16 snack-sized single servings of hummus in two-ounce cups. Grab one of those and a handful of baby carrots and you’re set.

Now, here come the necessities: 30-pound container of Litter Purrfect cat litter at $7.39 (works really well), the 42 count of Omeprazole for $18.99 and that is a really good deal for us acid reflux sufferers. Too much information? Sorry. My favorite green tea and I mean REAL Matcha green tea is only $12.69 for 100 bags. And the list goes on. …

Well, after everything was said and done, I only paid $78.67 for my day at Costco. It was tough to walk away and not spend more, but I had to dig deep, really deep and dream of next year when this special day comes again. I just hope I spend more this coming year so the rewards check is bigger!

Please be safe and have a very Happy New Year!