Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?  (Read 8021019 times)

middo

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12500 on: February 20, 2019, 05:00:00 PM »
Free morning tea that morphs into lunch at work the last couple of days.  That meant my sandwiches were still in the fridge today.  Then free drinks and nibbles tomorrow after work.  I intend to make use of that too.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12501 on: February 20, 2019, 07:01:07 PM »
Went to costco for our rebate money. Also returned some "bully stick like" treats we bought last time, that promptly shattered and seem like a huge hazard to my dog. So that's $30 back for that huge package. The employee said a ton of people have been returning them. GOOD. Also used the chance to gas up the car. All in all, a successful trip.

Roadrunner53

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12502 on: February 21, 2019, 04:16:29 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go? Seems I waste a lot of ham and cheese when it gets too old to eat. If I were to make up sammies, wrapped them up and froze them I would avoid waste and have quickie sammies ready for lunch. This would save me money if I ever got my act together. I have never tried deli turkey or chicken frozen. I wonder how the meat would taste.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12503 on: February 21, 2019, 04:38:15 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go? Seems I waste a lot of ham and cheese when it gets too old to eat. If I were to make up sammies, wrapped them up and froze them I would avoid waste and have quickie sammies ready for lunch. This would save me money if I ever got my act together. I have never tried deli turkey or chicken frozen. I wonder how the meat would taste.

I have frozen parts of a large pack of sliced (Italian, good quality) ham. The frozen ham tasted normal after thawing it. I have no experience in freezing cheese.

I also don't like ham that has gone old. Often ham in one big chunk is cheaper than sliced ham. In that case, I have also sliced it up and frozen in sliced portions.
« Last Edit: February 21, 2019, 05:20:45 AM by Linda_Norway »

Dicey

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12504 on: February 21, 2019, 05:07:04 AM »
Sliced cheese freezes and defrosts just fine.  Block cheese once frozen/defrosted, tends to crumble when grated. If you want to freeze cheese that will eventually be used for shreds, shred first, then freeze. Shredded cheese defrosts faster, too. If you use ham with a high water content (typically the cheap stuff), it can result in doggy bread. Solution: use better ham or keep it frozen until right before consumption.

Related: I used to buy the Kirkland sliced turkey for DH's sammies, but it does the same watery thing upon defrosting. I bought the more expensive Columbo brand turkey when it was on sale, and absentmindedly froze the whole damn twin pack. To my surprise, it was fine when it defrosted. It costs a little bit more, but avoids waste. If DH has a few days off, I can toss the package in the freezer so it doesn't go bad. Totally random tip: if I'm not sure the meat is still good, I offer a tidbit to the cat. If she turns her nose up, I know it's too far gone. This is especially helpful since I'm a vegetarian. It is not cost effective to acquire a cat solely for this purpose, but if you happen to have one on hand...

Warning: Mayo does not freeze well. Butter or mustard are better choices for your frozen sammy experiment.

Rural

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12505 on: February 21, 2019, 10:46:46 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go? Seems I waste a lot of ham and cheese when it gets too old to eat. If I were to make up sammies, wrapped them up and froze them I would avoid waste and have quickie sammies ready for lunch. This would save me money if I ever got my act together. I have never tried deli turkey or chicken frozen. I wonder how the meat would taste.


I used to do this, make up a whole loaf at a time, and stick the wrapped sandwiches back in the bread bag to organize them and provide a little more protection from freezer burn. You can put mustard or hummus on ahead of time and freeze, but not mayo or veggies. Bonus if there's no refrigeration at work: the sandwich will keep and will be thawed just about right by lunch time. The bread fares better if you toast it.

Greyweld

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12506 on: February 21, 2019, 10:51:43 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go? Seems I waste a lot of ham and cheese when it gets too old to eat. If I were to make up sammies, wrapped them up and froze them I would avoid waste and have quickie sammies ready for lunch. This would save me money if I ever got my act together. I have never tried deli turkey or chicken frozen. I wonder how the meat would taste.

omg, this is such a good idea! I'm going to try it and see how it goes. Worst case scenario, it's sub-par but edible and the lunch meats don't get wasted.

Roadrunner53

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12507 on: February 21, 2019, 10:57:04 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go? Seems I waste a lot of ham and cheese when it gets too old to eat. If I were to make up sammies, wrapped them up and froze them I would avoid waste and have quickie sammies ready for lunch. This would save me money if I ever got my act together. I have never tried deli turkey or chicken frozen. I wonder how the meat would taste.


I used to do this, make up a whole loaf at a time, and stick the wrapped sandwiches back in the bread bag to organize them and provide a little more protection from freezer burn. You can put mustard or hummus on ahead of time and freeze, but not mayo or veggies. Bonus if there's no refrigeration at work: the sandwich will keep and will be thawed just about right by lunch time. The bread fares better if you toast it.

What other sammies might be good? I can imagine PB&J would be okay. I would put PB on each side of the bread and put a little Jelly in the middle so the bread didn't get sogged. Deli meat can be wet. I know sliced chicken breast meat or turkey meat would work. Put a little butter or hummus on the bread. Probably egg and Canadian bacon sammies. Anyone make refried beans sammie? If so, would you add anything to kick it up a notch. I buy the spicy ones but still not super exciting.

Gerard

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12508 on: February 22, 2019, 07:58:08 AM »
Does anybody make up ham and cheese sandwiches with a whole loaf of bread then freeze to have quick and handy lunches ready to go?

Extra use, maybe: chop up one or two, stir them into beaten egg and milk, and bake for a fast frittata/strata?

Tyson

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12509 on: February 22, 2019, 11:04:24 AM »
Refrigerator is acting up. Replaced the part making the noise myself already, which lessened but did not eliminate the problem.  So, rather than pay a repair man to come fix it, I found out the 2nd most likely cause is the control board is going bad.  It's a $200 part (ouch).  Shopped around, found a place in Canada that had it for $120 shipped.  I'll be doing the fixing myself.

Just to finish out this story - new control board for the refrigerator came and I googled a video on how to replace it.  It was super easy. Within half an hour I had the old part removed, the new board put in, everything screwed back together, fridge plugged in and.... it worked!  At least so far :) 

Before finding MMM, this is definitely something I would have called a repair person for.  I'm guessing it saved me at least $100, maybe even $200.

letsdoit

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12510 on: February 22, 2019, 01:45:34 PM »
called verizon to negotiate internet bill,

they have me in a monopoly but i got them down $10 month , or 120 for the year

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12511 on: February 22, 2019, 03:24:30 PM »
-Made lunch out of random fridge ingredients (eggs on toast with hummus)
-Called place where we went on vacation (booked lodging through ski resort, but didn't realize lodging wasn't operated by resort). Lodging was beyond gross, tons of problems with hotel service. Ski resort offered us two nights back. I also took the time to write a detailed email to the general manager, so they'd have constructive advice on what to fix, vs just complaining. Location was incredible (ski in/ski out), so certainly worth the hotel having the feedback to address the issues).
-Listed 3 items on eBay

jengod

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12512 on: February 22, 2019, 04:06:21 PM »
* Bought new-to-them clothes for the kids at Goodwill instead of hitting the mall
* Saved the cost of gasoline for two trips I took in our "solar car" (actually solar-charged e-bike) instead of the Honda

Loretta

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12513 on: February 23, 2019, 06:35:17 AM »
My inherited washer sounds like a 747 taking off and landing so I’ve scheduled a service call to see if it can be tuned up.  I’ve been at home sick all month and produced a mountain of dirty laundry so the washer has really been working overtime recently.  I’m not physically able to fix it myself but a servic call for $89 is a better investment than ignoring it til it croaks I think.  My condo neighbors will also be happy to not hear it if it can be tuned up. 

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12514 on: February 23, 2019, 09:08:17 PM »
Got a $7.95 refund for a calendar I bought yesterday that was supposed to be 50% off. 

Redeemed $5 off coupons/credits at two stores for sunscreen and snacks to take on my work trip this week.

Loretta

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12515 on: February 24, 2019, 06:48:06 AM »
My inherited washer sounds like a 747 taking off and landing so I’ve scheduled a service call to see if it can be tuned up.  I’ve been at home sick all month and produced a mountain of dirty laundry so the washer has really been working overtime recently.  I’m not physically able to fix it myself but a service call for $89 is a better investment than ignoring it til it croaks I think.  My condo neighbors will also be happy to not hear it if it can be tuned up. 

A repairman came and told that I my washer (a GE profile maybe 10 yrs old, no idea) has bearings loose and my spin control board is not spinning quickly enough.  The office will call me with a quote on Monday to replace the bearings and drum plus the spin control board.  Labor to disassemble and unstack to do the fixes will be the killer here.  So do I get this fixed for circa $700 or buy a new set that will stack into my closet and last until 2027 when I plan to retire elsewhere...  decisions, decisions.  If you guys have stackable condo size washer dryer combos, please tell me a good brand you like.  There doesn’t seem to be a lot of choice in this stackable narrow category. 

Roadrunner53

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12516 on: February 24, 2019, 07:12:05 AM »
I personally would not invest $700 into a 10 year old appliance. I spoke with our local appliance store owner and he says appliances are not what they used to be and 5-7 years is the typical life span of any appliance today. It irks me beyond belief because I used to have Frigidaire appliances and they lasted about 18-20 years. I am always afraid to invest good money into an old appliance and then have something else break down on it later on. Just my opinion. I am sure others will disagree. Maybe you could look for a used machine. I am a bit confused on what you have. I seem to think you have a washer dryer that is stacked on top of each other. So most likely you need to get a set so they fit correctly together. Put an ad on Craigslist or some other social media place and see if anyone is selling what you want.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12517 on: February 24, 2019, 08:58:45 AM »
I personally would not invest $700 into a 10 year old appliance. I spoke with our local appliance store owner and he says appliances are not what they used to be and 5-7 years is the typical life span of any appliance today. It irks me beyond belief because I used to have Frigidaire appliances and they lasted about 18-20 years. I am always afraid to invest good money into an old appliance and then have something else break down on it later on. Just my opinion. I am sure others will disagree. Maybe you could look for a used machine. I am a bit confused on what you have. I seem to think you have a washer dryer that is stacked on top of each other. So most likely you need to get a set so they fit correctly together. Put an ad on Craigslist or some other social media place and see if anyone is selling what you want.

I think they're talking units like this:
Super common in small apartments/condos.

But I agree, $700 into old machines is steep. You should be able to get a good used option for that if you're in a good sized town. Check FB marketplace- I find people are overwhelmingly selling on there, and mainly only businesses are advertising on CL anymore.

Re: brand, our apartment is a converted condo, 11 years old. They've got GE profile front load and dryer as a stack- they're a bit larger than the super skinny one I linked above (I've had that too, haha), but if you have the room I've been impressed with them. Talked to our maintenance guy, and he says almost the entire building is the original sets. They've just held up that damn well, even against renters! And with being HE, you'll get a lot less noise and vibration that the old top load units. Plus the water savings and energy savings.

This is the model we have:
« Last Edit: February 24, 2019, 09:00:17 AM by Bracken_Joy »

PMG

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12518 on: February 24, 2019, 09:27:45 AM »
Can you deal with the noise? Use it until it fully dies. Then replace.

SerenaDarrin

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12519 on: February 24, 2019, 09:28:21 PM »
Friday:  Finally made the call to shift my cell-phone plan.  Now saving $30 a month!  Whoot!

Today:  Leftover soup from a party became tonight's dinner, plus, the joys of re-steeping tea!
« Last Edit: February 24, 2019, 09:30:52 PM by SerenaDarrin »

Dicey

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12520 on: February 25, 2019, 01:42:43 AM »
Went to the thrift store and bought nothing. Yay!

But then I remembered I stopped at an Open House and bought two boxes of Girl Scout Cookies. Boo! The caveat here is that I used to be a Girl Scout, so I think of it as paying it forward. I feed them to my family, who love them. At least the calories consumed are not mine to deal with. And OMG, I am so old! When I sold them, the cookies were bigger, there were more in the box, and they cost fifty cents per box! Back then, five dollars was a huge order!

Just for grins, I fed that number into an inflation calculator. Damn, it only came up to $3.62! Highway robbery, lol!

HappierAtHome

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12521 on: February 25, 2019, 02:02:01 AM »
I really, really wanted chocolate and did not buy any.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12522 on: February 25, 2019, 02:44:13 AM »
We had to drive a long way home yesterday evening and the fuel tank was almost empty. Fuel was expensive everywhere. But somewhere halfway we stopped at a petrol station to swap driver and filled up petrol. The price was the cheapest on the whole route.

Loretta

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12523 on: February 25, 2019, 06:09:40 AM »

I have a stacked GE Profile HE model in a closet.  I’m happy to hear your building’s GEs are going strong and makes me lean on the side of repair depending on what the cost may be. 


I think they're talking units like this:
Super common in small apartments/condos.

But I agree, $700 into old machines is steep. You should be able to get a good used option for that if you're in a good sized town. Check FB marketplace- I find people are overwhelmingly selling on there, and mainly only businesses are advertising on CL anymore.

Re: brand, our apartment is a converted condo, 11 years old. They've got GE profile front load and dryer as a stack- they're a bit larger than the super skinny one I linked above (I've had that too, haha), but if you have the room I've been impressed with them. Talked to our maintenance guy, and he says almost the entire building is the original sets. They've just held up that damn well, even against renters! And with being HE, you'll get a lot less noise and vibration that the old top load units. Plus the water savings and energy savings.

This is the model we have:

[/quote]

Loretta

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12524 on: February 25, 2019, 08:09:50 AM »
Repair would cost $900, so that’s a no!  Ouch.

Cool Friend

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12525 on: February 25, 2019, 08:12:30 AM »
Finally found a decent, solid wood nightstand locally on Craigslist.  I figured it would be too heavy to carry to public transportation, so I assumed I'd be spending about $20 on a cab just to get it back home.  But it was actually lighter than I thought it would be, so I carried it to the subway and saved an Andrew Jackson (and burned some calories to boot).

Slow&Steady

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12526 on: February 25, 2019, 08:13:23 AM »
I scheduled the payment to payoff my student loan.  I only had a small balance left (~$1000) but it had an interest rate of 7.25%.  It would have been paid off naturally this fall but I saved myself some interest payments by paying it off now.

marcela

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12527 on: February 25, 2019, 08:38:35 AM »
- I "emergency" bought a blazer while on a business trip last week, only to have the meeting place be extremely warm and I was able to make do with the clothes I had brought. Luckily I waited to pull the tags until I got to the meeting and was able to take it in for a refund when I got home. Also resisted buying anything else while at the mall.
- Decided to try a new farmer's market for produce. Good prices and decent selection, but it's so far out of the way that I don't think it makes up for it. Got a fun outing with my husband out of it and I can now stop wondering.
- We are going out of town next week and our usual dog-sitters(my parents) aren't going to be available. We were able to get someone who will stay in the house with the pup for $25/day. Much cheaper than boarding and pup won't be a traumatized mess at the end of the week!

SerenaDarrin

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12528 on: February 25, 2019, 09:03:44 AM »
Yeah, being a former Girl Guide used to mean that the cookies were something I'd buy out of nostalgia and of a sense of 'paying it forward.'

Now I can't eat them, which is probably a good thing!  :D

And yes, the cookies have changed -- I remember more in the box as well!   And I think the boxes were 2 dollars in the 1990s? Maybe 2.50?  I had no idea they'd gone up to 5 dollars now.  :(

daffodil2001

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12529 on: February 25, 2019, 03:15:31 PM »
Yesterday I had a loaf of banana bread in the oven when a storm knocked the power out. I left it in the oven hoping that the residual heat would be enough to finish baking it, but it wasn't. My husband suggested throwing it out, but I put it in the fridge (fortunately we have a generator that runs some appliances including the fridge, but not the oven--not sure why) and finished baking it in the morning when the power came back.

The texture wasn't right, but it's perfectly edible, so we're going to eat it. Bonus--I used bananas that have been living in the freezer for a while. My husband went through a phase where he kept buying too many bananas because he overestimated how many smoothies he would make, so he'd toss all the overripe bananas in the freezer. I just recently started making banana bread, and it's now our go-to breakfast since it requires no work in the morning and reduces the banana stockpile.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12530 on: February 25, 2019, 03:25:03 PM »
-Drove the electric car for all of our errands this weekend
-Picked up my husband at the airport yesterday, saving $20-25 on Uber
-Worked out coverage details for a day that my husband & I both have to work & the kids have no school. Fingers crossed, assuming no meetings shift around

SerenaDarrin

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12531 on: February 25, 2019, 06:41:48 PM »
Well, I got three mugs of tea from one spoonful of loose-leaf tea (the joys of re-steeping tea!)

Plus, all the vegetable ends from dinner (the woody ends of asparagus, onion peels, etc) went into the freezer.  They'll be used to make vegetable stock as soon as the bag is full!

Also, the commercial-knit shirt that has a hole I can't mend (well, can't mend without it being obvious), has been relegated to the 'pyjamas' section of my wardrobe.  It's still comfy and warm, why not! :)

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12532 on: February 26, 2019, 01:18:44 AM »
Walked to work today and will walk back later. Saving fuel.

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12533 on: February 26, 2019, 08:28:17 AM »
On a walk a couple weeks ago, I came across a free box with several books in it. Including a still plastic wrapped book on beer hiking in the PNW. I grabbed it, figuring it'd make a good gift for someone at some point. Then lo and behold, a last minute bday dinner invite last night for my brother's birthday (I was planning to see him next week and didn't have a gift yet). Combined with a cheap but cute 'count the beers, not the years' card I picked up from trader joe's last year ($0.99), it made a good and well themed gift and was really well received. Total spent: $0.99

Plus we didn't have to pay for dinner. His in laws kinda of 'adopt' anyone they're around, so they just ordered a bunch of salad and pizza for the table and fed everyone. (They were the ones who planned the dinner).

jengod

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12534 on: February 26, 2019, 06:08:36 PM »
* 62 and sunny so put a load of laundry out to dry (Saves $0.25 in electricity)
* Started another jar of citrus-infused vinegar cleaner/dishwasher rinse (Saves buying $10 bottle of Finish/Jet-Dry)
* Made lemonade from scratch w homegrown lemons. (Saves $2.50 versus bottled minus sugar cost.)
* Coffee and breakfast at home! (Saves $5)
* Took the kids to school in the ELF a couple of times. (Saves ~$0.80 in gasoline.)

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12535 on: February 27, 2019, 04:54:01 AM »
DH sold our own tent, for a much higher price than we had expected.

Maybe it is because a new tent of the same kind has such a high price, that people are willing to pay so much for an older sun-damaged tent.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12536 on: February 27, 2019, 07:24:03 AM »
Mostly the standard stuff this week:
-Lunches for free at work
-Leftovers for dinner
-Driving the electric car for my work commute + charging for free at work

The biggest win was using a flight companion fare (a once/year benefit from having the airline's travel card) for a trip to Hawaii for my sister. It's hard to get max value out of the companion fare, as you pay full price for the first ticket, and then $99 for the second ticket. The vast majority of our personal flights are around $250-300, so it's not a big savings. Except for Hawaii. I saved about $750 on the second ticket. Mostly because our dates are fixed, & it's apparently an incredibly expensive time to fly to Hawaii. Super happy I was able to leverage the companion fare for such a big discount.

eco mom

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12537 on: February 27, 2019, 08:47:23 AM »
Bought two full bags of 5 year old size clothes for $50 from a neighbor. Combined trip with a drive to a volunteering meeting I needed to attend.

Also combined drive to a different volunteering gig with dropping off cookies and latest batch of outgrown baby clothes to my friend on maternity leave. It’s an awkward bus trip to get to either and only 7 blocks out of the way to visit the friend so efficient use of the car.

MountainGal

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12538 on: February 27, 2019, 10:07:01 AM »
@jengod, I apologize if you've addressed this before, but what are the ingredient ratios in your citrus-infused vinegar cleaner/dishwasher rinse?

~~~~~~~~
Instead of driving to the office this weekend to do taxes, I'm going to bring the receipts and other documents home and do them there.  It's supposed to snow, plus I'll save 20 minutes each way in fuel and vehicle wear and tear.

SerenaDarrin

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12539 on: February 27, 2019, 03:37:37 PM »
/tangent/ Thank you for this thread.  It's really helping with the small motivations and reminders that the little things add up./end tangent/

I had dinner before heading out to an event, so I won't need to buy dinner out tonight. Plus, after the event, we plan to go grocery shopping. (The store is very close to the event venue, so one less bus fare to pay!)

And dinner was mostly a leftover rice dish that I added more veggies and some leftover sauce to (yeay for leftovers!)


35andFI

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12540 on: February 27, 2019, 06:45:32 PM »
Biked to the grocery store (5 miles round trip) instead of driving.

Used a coupon at said grocery store.

jengod

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12541 on: February 27, 2019, 07:55:27 PM »
@jengod, I apologize if you've addressed this before, but what are the ingredient ratios in your citrus-infused vinegar cleaner/dishwasher rinse?

~~~~~~~~
Instead of driving to the office this weekend to do taxes, I'm going to bring the receipts and other documents home and do them there.  It's supposed to snow, plus I'll save 20 minutes each way in fuel and vehicle wear and tear.

@MountainGal -- it's dead easy.

1. Stuff any large-ish empty jar (often a thrifted 1.5L European-style canning jar) with as many citrus peels or squished citrus fruits as I have on hand.
2. Pour white vinegar over the peels until covered.
3. Leave it alone two or three weeks.
4. Empty the citrus-infused vinegar into a new clean bottle through sieve and a funnel.
5. I find it's good in the mop bucket in combination with Dawn and hot water, as well as being a great replacement for Jet-Dry/Finish.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12542 on: February 28, 2019, 12:27:13 AM »
DH sold our old tent, for a much higher price than we had expected.

Maybe it is because a new tent of the same kind has such a high price, that people are willing to pay so much for an older sun-damaged tent.

DH also sold another, even older tent, for a good price.

MountainGal

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12543 on: February 28, 2019, 10:49:32 AM »
@jengod, thank you!  I will try this and report back at a later time.

@SerenaDarrin, I second the use of leftovers!  They are a huge food cost saver.  I had breakfast this morning from Sunday's leftover brunch items.

Raenia

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12544 on: February 28, 2019, 11:04:25 AM »
Called the library.  I noticed that the books I returned to the library had not been checked in off my account yet, so I called to ask them to check on it.  They found they had been reshelved without being checked in first.  Avoided a potential fine!

Arbitrage

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12545 on: March 01, 2019, 09:32:29 AM »
- Got an email about using my ecobee4 to sign up for smart thermostat gas company rebates.  I'd previously received a rebate from the electric company, but not the gas company.  Supposed to be $75, and my application was accepted.

- Complained to an ebay seller about a shipping damage to a package containing special drinks that we regularly purchase for my son for medical reasons.  The complaint was legit, as two of the drinks had burst and soaked the entire shipment into a sticky mess.  The seller was very good and shipped a replacement, which arrived in good condition.  I took the time to clean the old shipment and managed to salvage most of it, which isn't trivial - these run about $40/shipment.  Saved about $35!

- Really an accumulation of effort over the last 3 months, but I've taken charge of the grocery shopping.  Got a solid couple of months of accounting for the differences, and the grocery bill has dropped from ~$900/month to $500-$600/month, including items like those expensive drinks above.  Very happy with the progress here.  $300 monthly savings, if maintained, trims almost $100k from our required stash!

mountain mustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12546 on: March 01, 2019, 09:32:13 PM »
walked to work, walked home. Walked to the insurance office to change my car insurance coverage, dropped comprehensive, which is saving me $100 every 6 months. Ate dinner my roommates cooked. It was all in all a very cheap day!

davisgang90

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12547 on: March 02, 2019, 10:15:44 AM »
Got a 7lb pork butt for $6.  Split it into two batches of carnitas.  One to freeze, one to make this week.  Sous Vide at 185 for 8-12 hours.  Yum!

Linea_Norway

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12548 on: March 02, 2019, 11:26:19 AM »
We went cross country skiing, but the normal free parking place was suddenly 10 dollars for a special occasion. We used our local knowledge to find a parking in the other end where it was for free.

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #12549 on: March 03, 2019, 08:45:56 AM »
Starting lots of veggie seeds today.  I grow a big garden, so it would cost a ton to buy all the seedlings.  Ultimately, it will turn into lots of cheap, delicious food.