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Thread: January Frugals

  1. #11
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    thanks all! appreciate the good thoughts. Siouz, good luck on the job hunt. How are your wrists doing? Being a home-owner isn't always cheap, lol. We've always lived in rural areas so I feel your pain re: gas for the cars.

  2. #12
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    I'm thinking you will most definitely hear back about retail jobs, as they are in demand. Not easy jobs, but they are out there. Good luck!!!
    To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." Mahatma Gandhi
    Be nice whenever possible. It's always possible. HH Dalai Lama
    In a world where you can be anything - be kind. Unknown

  3. #13
    Senior Member rosarugosa's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tybee View Post
    We decided to move to a cash only for all food starting today, Jan 1. We each must fund our half of the amount and keep our own envelopes and all groceries, eating out, etc. must come out of the envelopes, and no cheating, and that means you, DH.
    That is too funny, Tybee!
    We need to hold ourselves more accountable for those extra little runs to the store. DH seems to always need milk, and has never in his life come out of the store with just milk; there are always Little Debbie cakes and ice cream and such to keep the milk company. I've been pushing him to buy more milk at the grocery store. I don't touch the stuff, but if you are going to drink 3 or 4 half gallons of milk a week, don't just buy a half gallon and then act surprised when you run out. And I am not blameless. I like my bananas green around the edges and they don't stay like that all week, so I just need to find a banana alternative for later in the week so as not to generate a banana run to the store midweek. I don't even especially love bananas, but they are cheap and easy.

  4. #14
    Senior Member SiouzQ.'s Avatar
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    For whoever asked, I'm not doing that good physically right now. No sooner did I have the one last little hand surgery to take care of a bone spur on the outside of my right hand, for the last 10 days I've had a very badly pinched nerve in my neck that is affecting my left shoulder blade and left forearm. It's been excruciating and damn near impossible to drive this past week. I'm supposed to be getting a neck MRI, but of course the timing of it all during the holidays and with surging Covid it's probably going to be a bit before I get it. Meanwhile, my arm is going numb at times. I would actually be unable to work right now even if I was offered a position, but I still need to show I am actively searching for a job. Though with all my various physical issues I am not sure what kind of job I could even get.

  5. #15
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    I am so sorry, SiouzQ. If you lived in Maine or NH you could apply for remote sales at LL Bean, but maybe there is something similar out west? Retail, but from home.
    I thought about it here.

  6. #16
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    Rosa, Your description of DH's shopping and picking up things to "keep the milk company" made me laugh. We put bananas in the refrigerator when they are close to ripe and it helps them last a bit longer and not get mealy and RIPE! The peel darkens, but the inside stays edible. I buy a gallon of milk every 10 days. It lasts over a week beyond the pull date.

  7. #17
    Yppej
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    I feel like the hot water heater was set higher than need be and I turned it down to medium.

  8. #18
    Yppej
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    I "had to" (not really, I could have gone through withdrawal) get coffee this week, but I am going to try to skip going for groceries next week. I have a decent amount of leftovers and I can usually concoct some way to eat them. For instance, last night I cooked some oatmeal with water, then cooked some more with cheese on top.

  9. #19
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    Sounds like you all are doing great! I would be a lot more food-frugal if I were the only one living here lol. But that would NOT be my preference. So food is not a good place to try to cut MORE from, as beans and rice are very carb-y and get very little play. But our health, since eschewing carbs, is better - we've all lost weight, blood sugars and cholesterol counts are better, DD's blood pressure is better regulated, DH's digestions issues are gone. SO, spending a bit more for our groceries has been a frugal wash - more spent on food, less spent on medications. That's a win-win for me! Struggling with ways to cut the budget more. DH has one netflix sub for less than $10 per month, which he uses heavily (he has a lot of days where he's mostly upstairs, alone, in bed). We have two online newspapers and a PBS subscription for $25 monthly for the three. Later this month I'm dropping the more expensive paper (NYT). Keeping the Post. Now if I get another super-cheap offer, I'll perhaps add the Times back. I dropped two magazine subs this month and both came back with rock-bottom counters, so I ended up renewing. I enjoy these things, but have to ask myself - do I enjoy them for X? 2X? HOW much do I enjoy? And that's where the axe falls. While we are on a smallish fixed income, meeting our obligations is not a problem - food, shelter, utilities, reliable transport are all covered. I'm trying to GROW our emergency fund, though, so discretionary spending and lowering utility billing is where we're bleeding some money. A sort-of frugal - I bought a plant light for the basement and am going to try growing herbs - culinary only- year round. We use a LOT of basil, and dried just is not the same.

  10. #20
    Senior Member rosarugosa's Avatar
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    Early: would you mind telling us more about your efforts in curbing carbs? I don't have much trouble saying no to sweets, but I do have a bit too much fondness for good Italian bread, pasta and rice.

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