The Money Mustache Community
General Discussion => Share Your Badassity => Topic started by: thedayisbrave on September 01, 2014, 03:11:37 PM
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I often forget that most are not like me. Especially those my age (early twenties). Sometimes it can be lead to funny experiences or enlightening moments..
For example, once my then BF & I were making dinner. I was cleaning the green beans & dropped one in the trash by accident. I went in after it (it fell on top of some papers so it's not like it was dirty!) but he refused to let me rescue it :(
I wash and re-use plastic sandwich baggies.
To me that's pretty tame but most people's reactions when they find out about my ways are not so tame!
Let's hear it :)
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I'm a baggie washer also! As far as I'm concerned, they're probably cleaner after I've washed them with hot water and soap than they are fresh from the (who knows how clean) factory. Of course, there are probably many people out there convinced that they'll contract cholera from a re-used baggie.
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Too many to list lol. Probably travelling to another country twice a month to buy fuel, groceries, and pretty much everything but our veggies. Saves lots but its nuts when you think about it.
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Too many to list lol. Probably travelling to another country twice a month to buy fuel, groceries, and pretty much everything but our veggies. Saves lots but its nuts when you think about it.
Interesting. Do you live semi close to this other country?
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In 1992 at age 18, I took my first trip to Europe with several friends from high school. While in France, I stopped at a little shop and purchased a diet coke. The merchant told me if I wanted to sit on his outdoor patio and drink it, it would be an extra quarter.
F-that. I took my coke and went across the street to sit on the step of some French statue. My best friend got video (from her spot outside w/everyone else who paid the fee). In her narration she's panning around w/the camera, "Here we are at such-and-such cafe...there's the Eiffel Tower...there's the Louvre...oh and there's my friend, Fartface, across the street. She refused to pay a quarter to sit here with us on the patio..."
And there's me, sitting on the step, enjoying my refreshing diet coke, getting shit on by pigeons. I showed him.
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Only half an hour from the states, but it is crazy crossing an international border to buy stuff cheaper.
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If a letter arrived and the stamp wasn't canceled, I would steam off the stamp and use it again. I would also go to the utility company to pay my bill in person rather than use up a stamp. At the time, I was living on very little and every penny counted. Not fun-crazy, just hyper frugal.
30 years later, I'm glad that it's no longer worth my time to go down to the utility company and stand in line to save 30 cents (or whatever it was back then).
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I clipped coupons like crazy and used them as currency to "buy" non-perishable products when they were free. I did it consistently for about 6 years and built a pretty nice stockpile which we're still using. I retired my scissors a few months before DH FIREd.
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Every time I drive to work, I turn off my engine at least a half mile down the street from the parking lot. The perks of no power steering.
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Oh, I'm a baggie washer too. I've told part of this story elsewhere on the forum, but there's a new chapter. Last Thanksgiving, my brother was in my kitchen. He grabbed all my re-used baggies and threw them away, in front of 2 other sibs, all of them laughing...
Fast forward eight months. He is about to close on a new home and the lender asked for a bunch of bullshit on the morning of the closing day. The seller's moving van was packed to go and they had already given my bro the keys. So I got a phone call. "Hey Sis, can you by any chance wire me 230k so I can make this loan close today?
Felt pretty damn great to say yes. Don't worry, he paid me back within the week. But he'll never touch my recycled plastic bags again! He sent a card afterwards, thanking me for being the most "fiscally responsible" sibling.
No facepunches for having that much cash on hand. We had just sold a house and were in the midst of preparing armies of green soldiers for re-deployment, but he didn't know that.
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I don't understand why washing and reusing ziplock bags is widely considered such a "crazy frugal" thing to do. It pays me more than my full-time job!
Freezer bags at my local grocery store cost $4 for a 20-pack - that's $0.20 each. It takes me about 10 seconds per bag to wash, rinse, and put it away.
So washing freezer bags makes me $72/hour. Sandwich bags are cheaper, so I probably only earn about $25/hour or so for those.
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
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Not exactly in the name of frugality but necessity, I carried a new computer (tower) home which is a 30 minute walk. Although being frugal is why I don't have a car. The woman asked if I'd be ok walking it to the car and I said actually I was walking it home she looked like I'd grown a second head.
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
ingenious. when at college my uncle used to ring us from pay phones without putting coins in. this meant the phone rang but we couldn't hear anything so would do redial to ring back and he'd get a free call.
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
I have never understood the "you're pregnant, take it easy" mindset. For goodness sake, you're in training for a marathon! Stay fit and strong so you're ready for the hardest job of your life.
I had my two the old-fashioned way. Certified Nurse Midwife, at home, no drugs. The first labor clocked in at 18 hours. The second at 19.5. Best two days of my life, birthing those two, but it was hard work and I'm glad I trained for it!
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
I don't think theft-of-services is in the spirit of frugality.
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It's not crazy, per se, but I water house plants using 1/2 full, leftover glasses of water (filtered through the fridge, NEVER store bought water) instead of pouring them down the drain.
Also, years ago, I started keeping the master bedroom and closet lights off during my pre-office morning preening. Figure at least 30 minutes x 5 days a week = 2.5 hours a week....
I rinse dishes, stack them next to the sink, turn off the water and THEN load the dishwasher.
Insurance deductibles have been increased, our mortgage interest rate was reduced by half earlier this year, energy vampires are unplugged, I do (color) my own hair, and work out at home instead of belonging to a gym.
Pulled the land line and internet (DH pays for satellite-if it were up to me, we'd pull that, too). I'm a couponer, including my booze, and I no longer by CDs/DVDs (though DH still buys the latter, I just smile politely, knowing my retirement fund is happier because I don't).
Instead of going out, we invite friends over to BBQ.
Total annual savings, prior to the home refinance was over $11,500.
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F-that. I took my coke and went across the street to sit on the step of some French statue. My best friend got video (from her spot outside w/everyone else who paid the fee). In her narration she's panning around w/the camera, "Here we are at such-and-such cafe...there's the Eiffel Tower...there's the Louvre...oh and there's my friend, Fartface, across the street. She refused to pay a quarter to sit here with us on the patio..."
I've been to Paris twice and this just reminded me of how, the second time, I promised myself I could pay for the elevator on the Eiffel Tower instead of taking the stairs. Couldn't make myself do it.
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when at college my uncle used to ring us from pay phones without putting coins in. this meant the phone rang but we couldn't hear anything so would do redial to ring back and he'd get a free call.
I used to know of international students who could not afford to make the call back to the home country to let their parents/family know that they had arrived.
So, they would place a collect call to the family member called "Reached Safely" (in their language, not english)
The other end would get the message and refuse the collect call.
This was before the internet era, so I am sure that this does not happen any more. You can get around this with skype, email etc.
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walked 13 miles to save a $30 cab fare from the airport to my hotel. in july.... in Omaha....
;)
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It comes so natural I don't even notice crazy anymore! Ask my wife, she can probably tell you...
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Slept on a door on milk crates for one year at college rather than pay for a bed plus the delivery cost. Didn't have a truck or other means of transport at the time. A door with camping mattress and bits of carpet underneath.
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I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
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Carved scrap wood blocks for closet doorknobs when we bought our home 20+ years ago. Still using them. Collected recyclables and scrap metal to buy first car. Line dry laundry year round for 26 years.
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
I have never understood the "you're pregnant, take it easy" mindset. For goodness sake, you're in training for a marathon! Stay fit and strong so you're ready for the hardest job of your life.
I had my two the old-fashioned way. Certified Nurse Midwife, at home, no drugs. The first labor clocked in at 18 hours. The second at 19.5. Best two days of my life, birthing those two, but it was hard work and I'm glad I trained for it!
I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At work, I get a lot of, "I can't believe you're still biking!" and one "That looks like torture." To which I reply, "I can't believe you pay $3.50+ for gas!" Smile and move on...
I'm having this one in the hospital with a CNM. Home birth was my first choice, but would have been $4K, all out of pocket, which is a bit much for my tiny bit of stubble. But my midwives are awesome, and the hospital is also where I work, and has a great reputation for being non-intervention-y, so I'm feeling really good about it.
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Only half an hour from the states, but it is crazy crossing an international border to buy stuff cheaper.
I guess it's only considered crazy on the other side of the Atlantic:-) In Luxembourg, where I currently live, it's what everybody does - ppl live in Belgium, France or Germany but drive/take a train to work in Luxembourg each day. People from Lux go grocery shopping in Germany and everybody else comes to Lux to buy gas, alcohol and cigarettes which are much cheaper:) And it's not even about the fact that we don't need a passport anymore to cross these borders. In my hometown in Poland (40 km from the border with Belarus) 30% of the cars in supermarket parking lots have belarussian license plates:)
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
I have never understood the "you're pregnant, take it easy" mindset. For goodness sake, you're in training for a marathon! Stay fit and strong so you're ready for the hardest job of your life.
I had my two the old-fashioned way. Certified Nurse Midwife, at home, no drugs. The first labor clocked in at 18 hours. The second at 19.5. Best two days of my life, birthing those two, but it was hard work and I'm glad I trained for it!
I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At work, I get a lot of, "I can't believe you're still biking!" and one "That looks like torture." To which I reply, "I can't believe you pay $3.50+ for gas!" Smile and move on...
I'm having this one in the hospital with a CNM. Home birth was my first choice, but would have been $4K, all out of pocket, which is a bit much for my tiny bit of stubble. But my midwives are awesome, and the hospital is also where I work, and has a great reputation for being non-intervention-y, so I'm feeling really good about it.
That's awesome! Birth is just about the most personal thing we do and everyone has to do it in a way that feels right to them. Good luck!
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In Switzerland you must pay for refuse collection. Prices vary, but it's about 5 CHF for something the size of a US garbage bag. So, when we'd grocery shop, we'd open stuff and throw away as much packaging as we could at the store (before loading into the charming saddle baskets on the bikes).
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Wow! I wish my 21 week pregnant wife would bicycle, I can't get her to do anything :( she just lays around the house.
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An experiment in frugality was only eating once a day, but going to a buffet. I would eat as much as I could for 5-7 dollars depending on the buffet. No time used to cook and clean. No time spent shopping for groceries. Turned out that i was very unhealthy and I didnt feel so great most of the time after. Too keep it cheap I went to lunch buffets and a lot of Inidan ones.
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DoMustachesGrowInHouston, how do you keep your house dry with out the ac in the summer? The humidity is brutal and if I keep it above 79, everything is damp. (Sorry - haven't figured out how to quote yet.)
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Wow! I wish my 21 week pregnant wife would bicycle, I can't get her to do anything :( she just lays around the house.
eek. wouldn't let her hear you saying that!! pregnancy affects different women different and even the same woman can react differently to a second/third etc pregnancy.
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I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
I live here also... Add me to the list who think you're crazy. (Atleast on the biking part)
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
I have never understood the "you're pregnant, take it easy" mindset. For goodness sake, you're in training for a marathon! Stay fit and strong so you're ready for the hardest job of your life.
I had my two the old-fashioned way. Certified Nurse Midwife, at home, no drugs. The first labor clocked in at 18 hours. The second at 19.5. Best two days of my life, birthing those two, but it was hard work and I'm glad I trained for it!
I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At work, I get a lot of, "I can't believe you're still biking!" and one "That looks like torture." To which I reply, "I can't believe you pay $3.50+ for gas!" Smile and move on...
I'm having this one in the hospital with a CNM. Home birth was my first choice, but would have been $4K, all out of pocket, which is a bit much for my tiny bit of stubble. But my midwives are awesome, and the hospital is also where I work, and has a great reputation for being non-intervention-y, so I'm feeling really good about it.
Keep biking! I biked well into my 7th month, until it got icy and dangerous here, with my doc's blessing. The only problem I had was that my bike has me leaning forward, so I couldn't breathe as well and ended up pushing up the palms of my hands to get a bit more space.
After I couldn't bike anymore, I still walked a lot, including my commute to/from work. It was 1/2 an hour, and up a steep hill on the way there. I did that even up to my last day of work, 3 days before my due date. It's healthy for both you and baby so don't let the naysayers talk you out of it.
I really just wanted to let you know that you're not crazy, and you're not doing anything that's going to hurt you or the baby. You'll know if it gets unsafe.
Congrats on the baby!
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About 10 years ago I was working on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago, my first job out of college. My company was closing it's doors and I asked if I could take an old brown leather computer chair home with me. At one point, it was probably the crème de la crème of chairs, but by now it was probably 20+ years old and had a few tears in the seat so it was just going to get thrown away. Luckily, the answer was yes, but it had to be gone that same day. That didn't leave me enough time to arrange a ride, so if I wanted it, I needed to lug it home with me. I thought I could wheel it down the sidewalk, but it was winter and the plastic wheels were not happy with the cold and salt and I didn't want them to be ruined. So I hoisted that thing up on my head (and it's heavy because it's old) and carried it 6 blocks to the EL train, and then another mile from my stop to my apartment. My neck and head were pretty sore by the time I made it home, but it's a great chair. Still have it to this day. I can still remember some of the looks I got from people when they saw a guy in a tie walking down the Mag Mile carrying a chair on his head. I wasn't even that Mustacian back then, I just knew I wanted that chair!
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Sometimes I don't feel like biking but I don't want to pay $2 for the bus either, so I'll walk to work. It takes an hour plus the Bart commute plus the walk to the Bart station. If I leave at 5:40am I can get to work at 8am. I don't mind the walk and can listen to audiobooks or podcasts, whatever. But everyone is always surprised that I'd choose to walk that long as well as on the way home.
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DoMustachesGrowInHouston, how do you keep your house dry with out the ac in the summer? The humidity is brutal and if I keep it above 79, everything is damp. (Sorry - haven't figured out how to quote yet.)
Oddly enough, we didn't even mean to quit using it. We just said, "we'll leave it off until we get uncomfortable". We acclimated. Usually the only days it does get overly uncomfortable, it's not the heat but the humidity. We'll shut up the windows and run the AC for a cycle - 15 minutes or so - makes an immediate and substantial improvement. My Nest tells me we used it about 5 hours total in August (we tend to run it an hour or so when Mom comes by, who is not acclimated, otherwise it'd be about 2 hours for August). I guess saying we quit using it isn't accurate, better to say we've severely restricted our usage.
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I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
I live here also... Add me to the list who think you're crazy. (Atleast on the biking part)
I avoid the main thoroughfares as much as possible and go on blind faith. And I remember a guy around here who always used to ride his bike right on a main throroughfare, with a broomstick through the handles, with bags of cans tied to the broomstick. He never seemed to get hit. Although, come to think of it, I haven't seen him in a while now...
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Wow! I wish my 21 week pregnant wife would bicycle, I can't get her to do anything :( she just lays around the house.
Different women weather pregnancy differently. I have 6 and every one was different and with some I had MUCH more energy than with others. With a couple I was ill for much of the early 1/2 of the pg...so if I was you I would certainly cut the lady some slack. Unless you are just a troll?
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An experiment in frugality was only eating once a day, but going to a buffet. I would eat as much as I could for 5-7 dollars depending on the buffet. No time used to cook and clean. No time spent shopping for groceries. Turned out that i was very unhealthy and I didnt feel so great most of the time after. Too keep it cheap I went to lunch buffets and a lot of Inidan ones.
Awesome.
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I walk to the airport. For some reason that comes off as crazy to people! It's only a mile away.
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I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At work, I get a lot of, "I can't believe you're still biking!" and one "That looks like torture." To which I reply, "I can't believe you pay $3.50+ for gas!" Smile and move on...
FWIW, my CNM recommended against biking after around 20 weeks because of balance issues with a changing center of gravity. It sounds like the objections you were hearing were more about the idea of doing anything more strenuous than lifting the ice cream scoop, which is obviously ridiculous, but there might be a nugget of truth in there somewhere.
A little nugget, maybe, but I think it depends on the woman. My CNM is cool with it, and I don't feel any difference, balance-wise. I did a lot of biking before pregnancy, so I'm quite used to it. The way I see it is, my center of gravity doesn't change overnight, and I've adapted to the change gradually, as I've been biking the whole time. Anyway, I don't have a driver's license, so there aren't a lot of alternatives. ;)
SisterX has a point with the breathing thing, though. I definitely get out of breath more easily, and leaning forward on the bike is uncomfortable sometimes. But I've slowed down, I try to sit a little more upright, etc., and it's not more than a little annoying. I'm sure my first ride post-baby will feel amazing, though, just from not having all the extra weight, and finally having room to breathe.
FWIW, co-workers thought I was crazy for biking well before pregnancy. This just adds another layer to it. But I feel great, I'm not having any difficulties, so I'm going to keep it up!
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DoMustachesGrowInHouston, how do you keep your house dry with out the ac in the summer? The humidity is brutal and if I keep it above 79, everything is damp. (Sorry - haven't figured out how to quote yet.)
I live in Houston too...omg without air!! It's like, get ready in the morning for work and all is good and then open the front door and you are wet....AARGH!! I try to justify with wearing short in Dec, that's cool.
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There are two things that stick out the most...
To save on my prescription for Advair since I don't have insurance, I ordered a generic online (yes, I had a prescription) and it cost me $108 for a 3 month supply vs $1050 at the local pharmacy.
Second, I ordered eyeglasses online (US company) and they were 20.60 for a complete pair, single vision with antireflective coating. Liked them so much I ordered another pair and also some sunglasses (prescription) $30 for both (saved shipping).
I am a waitress and I want to be FI.
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I walk to the airport. For some reason that comes off as crazy to people! It's only a mile away.
You blew my mind with the first sentence. I mean I guess since it's only a mile away that's not so astonishing.
But I guess on a more practical matter - you can actually walk to the airport? All the airports I've been to (aside from the dinky little airport with literally only 1 security checkpoint and 6 gates at my undergrad university's town) you can't actually walk to. As in, there's literally no sidewalk you can use to walk to the airport. There are only highways and public transport to them.
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My family seems to think that washing my hair with baking soda is the craziest thing. My mother was so moved by my reluctance to spend $15-$20 on natural shampoo and conditioner (thus the baking soda) that she sent me $500 toward our recent moving expenses. Which I appreciate, and I wrote a very nice note, but I'm still using baking soda :-).
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I walk to the airport. For some reason that comes off as crazy to people! It's only a mile away.
You blew my mind with the first sentence. I mean I guess since it's only a mile away that's not so astonishing.
But I guess on a more practical matter - you can actually walk to the airport? All the airports I've been to (aside from the dinky little airport with literally only 1 security checkpoint and 6 gates at my undergrad university's town) you can't actually walk to. As in, there's literally no sidewalk you can use to walk to the airport. There are only highways and public transport to them.
Yeah, there's no "obvious" way to do it - I just darted across a few lanes of traffic and through a parking garage and was able to manage. They actually want you to take this free shuttle bus to get in, but it only runs once every hour and is inconvenient. Much faster to just walk.
I've walked to both domestic and international flights from my apartment. I just have a backpack and rolling luggage. I'm a fast walker, and I honestly prefer walking.
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
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When I was in college I would spend the last day of each semester going from dorm to dorm collecting all the paper, pens, binders etc. that all the student had thrown out. I found computers / cables that I could sell or give away, microwaves, fridges and other whatnot. To this day I haven't had to buy any computer office type supplies and my first apartment was furnished with the furniture I got on those trash days. :-D
I love dumpster diving! Even now a decade since I graduated, and with an annual salary >100k, I still grab stuff from the curb if it looks good. :-P My parents think it is great but quite a few of my friends think it is weird.
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We don't have a car either. I was reading on another forum where lots of people were saying that it was bizarre that some adults lived without a car. Some people seemed to think men who didn't drive was less manly or something. So silly!
When I was in college I would spend the last day of each semester going from dorm to dorm collecting all the paper, pens, binders etc. that all the student had thrown out. I found computers / cables that I could sell or give away, microwaves, fridges and other whatnot. To this day I haven't had to buy any computer office type supplies and my first apartment was furnished with the furniture I got on those trash days. :-D
I love dumpster diving! Even now a decade since I graduated, and with an annual salary >100k, I still grab stuff from the curb if it looks good. :-P My parents think it is great but quite a few of my friends think it is weird.
That's brilliant and you are also saving stuff from going into landfill.
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I walk to the airport. For some reason that comes off as crazy to people! It's only a mile away.
Hey!
I've done that too. Just to prove it could be done. Probably two miles in my town tho.
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
I don't think theft-of-services is in the spirit of frugality.
+1
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
I don't think theft-of-services is in the spirit of frugality.
+1
This is an example of how I distinguish being frugal and being cheap.
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I dunno, he steals from the post office, who steals from social security, but then every government program steals from social security, so is it really wrong?
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I dunno, he steals from the post office, who steals from social security, but then every government program steals from social security, so is it really wrong?
Regardless of whether the post office steals from social security or not, you can't justify stealing form one entity just because they steal from another. It's still wrong to steal from the post office.
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I dunno, he steals from the post office, who steals from social security, but then every government program steals from social security, so is it really wrong?
Regardless of whether the post office steals from social security or not, you can't justify stealing form one entity just because they steal from another. It's still wrong to steal from the post office.
Point taken. Nonetheless, lets agree that if you should happen to visit me, you just pretend not to notice my rather impressive collection of Skilcraft pens.
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This is a good one.
Did it take you the entire 6 weeks?
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I'm a baggie washer also! As far as I'm concerned, they're probably cleaner after I've washed them with hot water and soap than they are fresh from the (who knows how clean) factory. Of course, there are probably many people out there convinced that they'll contract cholera from a re-used baggie.
I never quite got the "washing baggies" thing, even though I first read about it something like 25 years ago. With the time, water, soap and such - it just seems like the net benefit is quite small.
I do re-use clean baggies. For example, I get a bag of fruit at the grocery store. I then use it to take food to work (probably some of the fruit, some cheese, some veg) then it ends up in the freezer for collecting bones for stock. After that, I just throw it away.
I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At work, I get a lot of, "I can't believe you're still biking!" and one "That looks like torture." To which I reply, "I can't believe you pay $3.50+ for gas!" Smile and move on...
FWIW, my CNM recommended against biking after around 20 weeks because of balance issues with a changing center of gravity. It sounds like the objections you were hearing were more about the idea of doing anything more strenuous than lifting the ice cream scoop, which is obviously ridiculous, but there might be a nugget of truth in there somewhere.
I'm having trouble seeing the "changing center of gravity" being a big deal for biking. Typically pregnancy isn't going to make you lopsided left/right - you have the seat holding you up and the wheels keeping you from falling forward or back.
My wife did martial arts up past 32 weeks, and successfully belt tested just before stopping. She did stop (light) contact sparring at something like 20 weeks.
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The Fort Worth Zoo was having a "Shots for Tots" day. You got free admission plus an ice cream cone for getting their no cost immunizations at a tent outside the front gate. I took my 6 year old and 12 year old, and we had a great time(well, after they had their shots). The funniest thing is that I was actually married to a family practice doctor at the time...that's frugal!
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Impressive!
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We don't have a car either. I was reading on another forum where lots of people were saying that it was bizarre that some adults lived without a car. Some people seemed to think men who didn't drive was less manly or something. So silly!
When I was in college I would spend the last day of each semester going from dorm to dorm collecting all the paper, pens, binders etc. that all the student had thrown out. I found computers / cables that I could sell or give away, microwaves, fridges and other whatnot. To this day I haven't had to buy any computer office type supplies and my first apartment was furnished with the furniture I got on those trash days. :-D
I love dumpster diving! Even now a decade since I graduated, and with an annual salary >100k, I still grab stuff from the curb if it looks good. :-P My parents think it is great but quite a few of my friends think it is weird.
That's brilliant and you are also saving stuff from going into landfill.
Indeed! I can't believe how much stuff people throw out that are in perfectly good condition! In NYC it is especially bad! Too bad people can't put in just a little effort to donate it. They could even use it as a tax write off!
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
160. period
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I used to live in an apt that was 1 block from a commuter rail station. The big party area was 1 stop heading east. I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....usually got a ride home from a friend.
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
160. period
Inflation adjusting $160 from 1983, that's $390. You managed to live on just $9.28 a day for the whole trip? I find this a bit hard to believe, considering you need to eat and find lodging.
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In my late teens, I've hitch-hiked hundred of miles to go meet people I only knew from online communitiesm carrying nothing but a laptop and some change to buy the generous souls taking me on their drive a coffee or two.
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I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....
Afraid I'm playing the Internet-Police again, but I still don't see lying & stealing as a "crazy frugal" activity.
It's important to me that the forum try to promote above-the-board frugality.
Anyhow, so I'm not a complete downer, here's some crazy-ish things I've done ...
* Ride my bike a hundred miles overnight and over a mountain pass to pick up my car after repairs, rather than pay for bus fare.
* 15 years of using the same $20 electric clippers for self-haircuts means I'm down to about 4-cents per haircut.
* Unexpectedly stranded in a foreign city in the late evening, deciding to walk around and see the city through the six-ish hours until dawn, rather than get a hotel.
* Removed the passenger-seat and back-seat and cut a hole through into the truck of my 2-door Chevy Cavalier. Built a sleeping platform that had my head where the passenger seat used to be, and my feet in the trunk. Could sleep in there *with* my bike also in the car. Was a great weekend-escape car. Could head out to mountains or deserts or wherever else, ride my bike in the day, and sleep in the car at night.
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I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....
Afraid I'm playing the Internet-Police again, but I still don't see lying & stealing as a "crazy frugal" activity.
It's important to me that the forum try to promote above-the-board frugality.
I agree. Lying and stealing are not frugal. They are lying and stealing.
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I don't get it, either. I had a neighbor ask me, "Is that still working okay?" referring to my bike + belly. Well... yeah, I mean, I don't pedal with my uterus, and I'm not housing a fetus in my calves, so I don't see what one has to do with the other.
At some point, the belly does get so big that your knees start hitting it. Then riding gets uncomfortable (and probably looks comical to observers). I suppose if you have quite an upright bike, you could keep riding comfortably for longer.
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
That is a fantastic adventure
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
No one said the trip on the bike was six weeks. I said the gap between jobs was six weeks. I biked from Cape Cod to Palm Beach. Singer Island to be precise, in 16 days. I stayed in a tent, on a field of grass or at a college every night and paid nothing. I had camping equipment and lived on raisins, bananas, pasta, bread and peanut butter for the entire trip. I hitchhiked across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Free. The only let down on the entire trip was getting to the Florida state line and being in a euphoric state just to be let down by having to pedal an entire 3 days more!
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I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....
Afraid I'm playing the Internet-Police again, but I still don't see lying & stealing as a "crazy frugal" activity.
It's important to me that the forum try to promote above-the-board frugality.
Anyhow, so I'm not a complete downer, here's some crazy-ish things I've done ...
* Ride my bike a hundred miles overnight and over a mountain pass to pick up my car after repairs, rather than pay for bus fare.
* 15 years of using the same $20 electric clippers for self-haircuts means I'm down to about 4-cents per haircut.
* Unexpectedly stranded in a foreign city in the late evening, deciding to walk around and see the city through the six-ish hours until dawn, rather than get a hotel.
* Removed the passenger-seat and back-seat and cut a hole through into the truck of my 2-door Chevy Cavalier. Built a sleeping platform that had my head where the passenger seat used to be, and my feet in the trunk. Could sleep in there *with* my bike also in the car. Was a great weekend-escape car. Could head out to mountains or deserts or wherever else, ride my bike in the day, and sleep in the car at night.
I'm no angel. What can I tell ya?
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
No one said the trip on the bike was six weeks. I said the gap between jobs was six weeks. I biked from Cape Cod to Palm Beach. Singer Island to be precise, in 16 days. I stayed in a tent, on a field of grass or at a college every night and paid nothing. I had camping equipment and lived on raisins, bananas, pasta, bread and peanut butter for the entire trip. I hitchhiked across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Free. The only let down on the entire trip was getting to the Florida state line and being in a euphoric state just to be let down by having to pedal an entire 3 days more!
Now that makes more sense. Thanks for the clarification.
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I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....
Afraid I'm playing the Internet-Police again, but I still don't see lying & stealing as a "crazy frugal" activity.
It's important to me that the forum try to promote above-the-board frugality.
I agree. Lying and stealing are not frugal. They are lying and stealing.
I guess you were just a paragon of virtue when you were 22 years old.
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I didn't have a car one summer at my job on Cape Cod. I needed to get to Palm beach for my winter job. There was a six week gap....I rode my bicycle. It only cost me $160.00 [1983]
Well, I don't think it quite cost only $160. By deciding to bike over 6 weeks instead of driving or flying there, you had to eat along the trip. Unless you only ate food from grocery stores along the whole trip, you incurred more eating out food costs than if you drove or flew. And over 6 weeks that can really add up.
But if you managed to only eat food from groceries, congrats!
No problem on the clarification. I had never embarked on anything like this before. Once I started pedaling.....I just pedaled until I couldn't anymore. I did not stop to smell the roses. I just pedaled and learned as I went along. It was a great life lesson. I learned that if you put yourself to a point of no return on an improbable task, you can accomplish anything because you have no choice but to do so. My next trip, several years later was better funded and thought out. And comfortable.
No one said the trip on the bike was six weeks. I said the gap between jobs was six weeks. I biked from Cape Cod to Palm Beach. Singer Island to be precise, in 16 days. I stayed in a tent, on a field of grass or at a college every night and paid nothing. I had camping equipment and lived on raisins, bananas, pasta, bread and peanut butter for the entire trip. I hitchhiked across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Free. The only let down on the entire trip was getting to the Florida state line and being in a euphoric state just to be let down by having to pedal an entire 3 days more!
Now that makes more sense. Thanks for the clarification.
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Johnny -----this is what I meant to respond....I pushed the wrong key!
No problem on the clarification. I had never embarked on anything like this before. Once I started pedaling.....I just pedaled until I couldn't anymore. I did not stop to smell the roses. I just pedaled and learned as I went along. It was a great life lesson. I learned that if you put yourself to a point of no return on an improbable task, you can accomplish anything because you have no choice but to do so. My next trip, several years later was better funded and thought out. And comfortable.
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I'd get on heading east and ask the conductor for a ticket to a station that was to the west. He'd say, "you're heading in the wrong direction. Get off at the next station and head west." So, I'd get off and party....
Afraid I'm playing the Internet-Police again, but I still don't see lying & stealing as a "crazy frugal" activity.
It's important to me that the forum try to promote above-the-board frugality.
I agree. Lying and stealing are not frugal. They are lying and stealing.
I guess you were just a paragon of virtue when you were 22 years old.
We led different lives. When I was 22 I had a DW and two kids and worked 12 hour days to support us. Definitely couldn't afford to party. Lying and stealing were not accepted by my parents, so that is what I learned and followed.
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I learned the same things from my parents. But don't worry, I have grown up since then. I was a party animal at that age....good, bad or indifferent. Please don't hold it against me. Besides growing up in Texas and growing up in New York City in the 70s and 80s are 2 different animals.
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No one said the trip on the bike was six weeks. I said the gap between jobs was six weeks. I biked from Cape Cod to Palm Beach. Singer Island to be precise, in 16 days. I stayed in a tent, on a field of grass or at a college every night and paid nothing. I had camping equipment and lived on raisins, bananas, pasta, bread and peanut butter for the entire trip. I hitchhiked across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Free. The only let down on the entire trip was getting to the Florida state line and being in a euphoric state just to be let down by having to pedal an entire 3 days more!
Man that's just nuts.
Thread over, folks.
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Please don't hold it against me.
Wouldn't hold it against you at all. You'd probably be fun to know in real life. :^)
... but I just wouldn't want theft to be among the "crazy frugal" thing that people on this board like to do. Frugality is pretty core to the forum here, and I think we should be careful about when frugality can cross into illegality (or immrality, etc.).
If we had a thread about "cheap and illegal things I did to save money, kids don't try this at home", then great. I might even have a contribution there. ;^)
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Please don't hold it against me. Besides growing up in Texas and growing up in New York City in the 70s and 80s are 2 different animals.
Definitely don't hold it against you. I grew up in Colorado and retired to Texas. New York City and SE Colorado are wildly different. Yes, I've been to NYC and lived in DC for 8+ years. No comparison with SE CO. Loved the DC area with all the things to do and see. Yes, kids were gone by then so we went to some of the "fun" places to drink and watch football games. Traveled by Metro at all hours and for commuting. Still have fond memories of DC. Definitely didn't follow mustachian ways while there...:)
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Ok...peace!
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Navy misplaced my futon in a move. While I was waiting for my stuff I slept for 3 months on blankets on the floor. Finally everything showed up.
I had the greatest relocation package ever from a company who was moving me from DC to Denver. Up to $30,000 total and tax re-upped (so if they give me $30k in benefits that would go on my salary and get taxed so they'd give me an additional ~20% to cover taxes) and I could bring stuff from 2 different houses. I happened to be getting married about the same time so we used that to get furniture moved from her parents' place in Tennessee.
One thing that the package included was "per-diem". This means they paid us $220/day for food until our stuff arrived and another $200/day for a hotel while house hunting. Our movers wouldn't start packing and transporting until we had a place picked out to move into. So we took 2 weeks finding a nice apartment (and waiting until the end of the month so we didn't have to pay for a partial month). Then it took the movers 3 weeks to get everything across the country.
So for the house hunting weeks, we stayed in a cheap $70/night hotel that had a mini-fridge and microwave and bought a hotplate and then once we got the keys on the apartment, we bought an air mattress, new pillows, one pot and some camping dishes. Pocketed $350/day for 2 weeks and another $220/day for another 3 weeks.
$10k simply for not going out to eat. I guess its not crazy, just common sense.
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I gave myself stitches to save on an ER visit. I also saved several hours of time that would have been spent in the waiting room but were put to better use by sleeping. Granted, it was a small clean cut, I pretty much knew what I was doing, and had acceptable thread available. Several months later, the scar is much smaller than one I have from a professional job. Some of that is probably due to the location though.
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I don't think it is that crazy but others might. I never drink soda, alcohol, or coffee mostly because I don't want to spend the money. But I do love me some Ceres 100% fruit juice, however I try to stretch it out as long as possible. I started by putting about 1/3 water in 2/3rds of juice and have slowly worked my way up. Now I put 1/3 juice in 2/3 water and it tastes great to me. I tried just drinking it straight the other day and it didn't even taste good anymore.
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It comes so natural I don't even notice crazy anymore! Ask my wife, she can probably tell you...
Asked my wife and she said, "Taken individually, nothing you do is crazy. What is crazy is that you do it ALL!"
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I gave myself stitches to save on an ER visit. I also saved several hours of time that would have been spent in the waiting room but were put to better use by sleeping. Granted, it was a small clean cut, I pretty much knew what I was doing, and had acceptable thread available. Several months later, the scar is much smaller than one I have from a professional job. Some of that is probably due to the location though.
My brother did that once.
I've never needed stitches, but I did take out my own IUD a couple of years ago. :) I couldn't see any reason to pay someone at least $100 to tug on a string for a few seconds.
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When I was in college I would spend the last day of each semester going from dorm to dorm collecting all the paper, pens, binders etc. that all the student had thrown out. I found computers / cables that I could sell or give away, microwaves, fridges and other whatnot. To this day I haven't had to buy any computer office type supplies and my first apartment was furnished with the furniture I got on those trash days. :-D
I love dumpster diving! Even now a decade since I graduated, and with an annual salary >100k, I still grab stuff from the curb if it looks good. :-P My parents think it is great but quite a few of my friends think it is weird.
Me too! I grab stuffs from curb. So good to hear I am not the only person who still does this, even now with a great job, and own two rentals. Last year we bought a cheap fixer-upper rental house, and one of the lid for the toilet tank was broken. I happened to drive home one night in a rain, and saw someone throw away an entire toilet in a curb. Did a u-turn, stopped, and grab the lid thinking that if I got lucky, it will fit and look fine for the rental house. I did get lucky! The color matches too lol
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Brought a cabinet sewing machine home on my bike.
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Is it distressing that I can relate to multiple "crazy" things on this thread?
I walk to the airport (6 km) about half the time here (YYT). It's a nice walk. Only other city I've done it in is San Diego, again about 6 km from the airport to the HI hostel in Point Loma. Started a thread here somewhere about walking or taking transit to the airport, and a bunch of people were nice enough to offer suggestions.
When I was young, I hitch-hiked across the US (NY-FL-CA) and slept under a 6-mil plastic sheet. Spend $175 for the month, so johnny847's budget sounds about right.
And Frugal_Red, are you me? Curb shopping, especially at universities, is very productive.
Never did stitches, but I dislocated my shoulder a couple of years back and popped it back in myself.
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Is it distressing that I can relate to multiple "crazy" things on this thread?
I walk to the airport (6 km) about half the time here (YYT). It's a nice walk. Only other city I've done it in is San Diego, again about 6 km from the airport to the HI hostel in Point Loma. Started a thread here somewhere about walking or taking transit to the airport, and a bunch of people were nice enough to offer suggestions.
When I was young, I hitch-hiked across the US (NY-FL-CA) and slept under a 6-mil plastic sheet. Spend $175 for the month, so johnny847's budget sounds about right.
And Frugal_Red, are you me? Curb shopping, especially at universities, is very productive.
Never did stitches, but I dislocated my shoulder a couple of years back and popped it back in myself.
It wasn't my budget actually, it was viper155's ($160 in 1983 over 16 days).
Popping in your shoulder yourself is pretty badass! Did anybody with some kind of medical experience help you/give you advice or anything?
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I'm new in the frugality department , so only i can add here is doing my own haircuts with a hair clipper for the last 10 years.
More to come as my Frugalitymuscle is growing.. :)
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I'm new in the frugality department , so only i can add here is doing my own haircuts with a hair clipper for the last 10 years.
More to come as my Frugalitymuscle is growing.. :)
Are you a man or a woman? I've been contemplating doing my hair myself, but my mom told me it's hard for guys to cut their own hair...
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Are you a man or a woman? I've been contemplating doing my hair myself, but my mom told me it's hard for guys to cut their own hair...
I'm a man who has been cutting his own hair for 15+ years.
As I'm sure would be the same for a woman, the difficulty depends on the complexity of the haircut and your own skill. I realized I have little skill, so I just use a #1 guard all around. Done in ~5 minutes, every 10 days or so.
Bonus: I use the same #1 guard for my beard. Haven't shaved with a razor in the same 15+ years. Though I do work in tech where neckbeards (including close-cropped ones such as mine) are common.
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I'm new in the frugality department , so only i can add here is doing my own haircuts with a hair clipper for the last 10 years.
More to come as my Frugalitymuscle is growing.. :)
Are you a man or a woman? I've been contemplating doing my hair myself, but my mom told me it's hard for guys to cut their own hair...
I am a man , and I use a range of 5 diffrent sizes of clip ons on my machine. Starting with the longest on top, and gradually go smaller.
When I say I do it myself my friends and coworkers are amazed. They all believe I go to the hairdresser.
It takes a bit of practice , but I do it in 10-15 mins , the hard part is in the back , but just get a good second mirror.. ;)
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I'm new in the frugality department , so only i can add here is doing my own haircuts with a hair clipper for the last 10 years.
More to come as my Frugalitymuscle is growing.. :)
Are you a man or a woman? I've been contemplating doing my hair myself, but my mom told me it's hard for guys to cut their own hair...
I am a man , and I use a range of 5 diffrent sizes of clip ons on my machine. Starting with the longest on top, and gradually go smaller.
When I say I do it myself my friends and coworkers are amazed. They all believe I go to the hairdresser.
It takes a bit of practice , but I do it in 10-15 mins , the hard part is in the back , but just get a good second mirror.. ;)
After talking with my mom, I was discouraged...but I think I'll give it a shot. It might come out terribly considering it'll be my first time...but hey I live and learn.
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I'm new in the frugality department , so only i can add here is doing my own haircuts with a hair clipper for the last 10 years.
More to come as my Frugalitymuscle is growing.. :)
Are you a man or a woman? I've been contemplating doing my hair myself, but my mom told me it's hard for guys to cut their own hair...
I am a man , and I use a range of 5 diffrent sizes of clip ons on my machine. Starting with the longest on top, and gradually go smaller.
When I say I do it myself my friends and coworkers are amazed. They all believe I go to the hairdresser.
It takes a bit of practice , but I do it in 10-15 mins , the hard part is in the back , but just get a good second mirror.. ;)
After talking with my mom, I was discouraged...but I think I'll give it a shot. It might come out terribly considering it'll be my first time...but hey I live and learn.
Just what I was thinking when I first started doing it.
Well it is a mustachian thing to do though. Using the new app from Kio http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/index.php?topic=23657.0 (http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/index.php?topic=23657.0) , if we calculate that a hair cut is $15 every month , I have gained $2611 in 10 years , that is a sizable amount of workers for cutting your own hair.. :)
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It wasn't my budget actually, it was viper155's ($160 in 1983 over 16 days).
Oops, got lost in the sub-quotes!
Popping in your shoulder yourself is pretty badass! Did anybody with some kind of medical experience help you/give you advice or anything?
Not at the time. I was miles from help and realized what had happened and what it made sense to do. Looked online later in the day and was reassured that things had gone right.
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I gave myself stitches to save on an ER visit. I also saved several hours of time that would have been spent in the waiting room but were put to better use by sleeping. Granted, it was a small clean cut, I pretty much knew what I was doing, and had acceptable thread available. Several months later, the scar is much smaller than one I have from a professional job. Some of that is probably due to the location though.
My brother did that once.
I've never needed stitches, but I did take out my own IUD a couple of years ago. :) I couldn't see any reason to pay someone at least $100 to tug on a string for a few seconds.
Impressive on both counts. I've heard stitching it up too tight is what makes the scar really bad.
IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
Nothing at all to top some of these, but add my name to the list of airport walkers, tasty drink diluters, and periodic under plastic sheet sleepers (no idea how many mils think the sheet was, but it functioned just fine in light rain.)
I dig the sleeping conversion modifications to the car.
The weirdest one I've heard is that I have a friend who doesn't shower at home and infrequently uses the toilet at his house to save on his utilities bills. He showers at work and tries to hold it until he's going somewhere and can use a public toilet. Totally serious on this one.
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
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The weirdest one I've heard is that I have a friend who doesn't shower at home and infrequently uses the toilet at his house to save on his utilities bills. He showers at work and tries to hold it until he's going somewhere and can use a public toilet. Totally serious on this one.
Has your friend actually measured the money savings? Also, I'm guessing your friend still showers at home on weekends...right?
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I asked my favorite hairdresser if she considers cutting my hair "on the side" for less money (normal pay is $65) and she refused
Instead i found a saloon where I get a $10 Haircut
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Sold my car in a place where not having a car is akin to Transportative Torture.
Use public transport and the power of muscles to get to and back from work.
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The weirdest one I've heard is that I have a friend who doesn't shower at home and infrequently uses the toilet at his house to save on his utilities bills. He showers at work and tries to hold it until he's going somewhere and can use a public toilet. Totally serious on this one.
Has your friend actually measured the money savings? Also, I'm guessing your friend still showers at home on weekends...right?
He's a constant optimizer on utilities, so I'm sure he has some grip on how much he is saving. Based upon my water bill I'd guess $20-30 per month on water/sewer, but he also saves on gas or electric from not having to heat the water. He also told me he eventually got the gas bill down to 0 (except for some service fees) by finding and turning off two pilot lights. The funniest part of this whole thing is that he's really into his yard, which is very posh, so he waters that, but there is a separate meter for that so he doesn't have to pay sewer on the water he uses.
No idea if he showers on the weekends. You realize that showering every single day is an American thing, right? He seems very fastidious about personal hygiene but was not born in the US, so who knows?
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I asked my favorite hairdresser if she considers cutting my hair "on the side" for less money (normal pay is $65) and she refused
Instead i found a saloon where I get a $10 Haircut
Wow, where'd you find a bar that gives cheap haircuts, too?
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walked 13 miles to save a $30 cab fare from the airport to my hotel. in july.... in Omaha....
;)
WOW - BADASS - Had to "BumP" that one!
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
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I asked my favorite hairdresser if she considers cutting my hair "on the side" for less money (normal pay is $65) and she refused
Instead i found a saloon where I get a $10 Haircut
Wow, where'd you find a bar that gives cheap haircuts, too?
Can't let this one get by without a +1. Good one, merula!
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
Thanks. :)
I actually know a couple of other women who have done the same thing.
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I love dumpster diving! Even now a decade since I graduated, and with an annual salary >100k, I still grab stuff from the curb if it looks good. :-P My parents think it is great but quite a few of my friends think it is weird.
Me too! I grab stuffs from curb. So good to hear I am not the only person who still does this, even now with a great job, and own two rentals. Last year we bought a cheap fixer-upper rental house, and one of the lid for the toilet tank was broken. I happened to drive home one night in a rain, and saw someone throw away an entire toilet in a curb. Did a u-turn, stopped, and grab the lid thinking that if I got lucky, it will fit and look fine for the rental house. I did get lucky! The color matches too lol
Awesome find! :-D Congrats on the fixer-upper! I am just starting to look at the real estate side of things. My folks joke that without buying a single piece of furniture I'd be able to furnish any place in under a month! Keep up the dumpster-diving / trash-picking! :-D
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I asked my favorite hairdresser if she considers cutting my hair "on the side" for less money (normal pay is $65) and she refused
Instead i found a saloon where I get a $10 Haircut
Nice savings! If you want to take it even more extreme, learn to cut your hair yourself. With just a mirror, scissors, comb & buzzer you can do a pretty neat job. I've been cutting my own hair since I was seventeen and my partner's for the past four! Of course now-a-days I don't have that much hair which makes things a mite easier. :-P
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
How is that gross? The doc is just going to pull it out too. Is it the DIY aspect?
IUDs typically have spring-loaded arms which are bent down (in a sleeve) for insertion, and bend up for removal.
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I have taken the subway into Manhattan, run a quick errand, and then taken a bus back home for the free transfer. This practice is not something the MTA encourages, by the way, since free transfers are really for getting from point A to point B, not for round trips. Saves $2.50, but it's also a MUCH longer ride home!
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
39 weeks tomorrow and I haven't been on the bike in a week and a half. I could, but I'm so slow and uncomfortable, it's not worth it anymore. I was hoping to keep biking up to the very end, but I think 37 weeks is respectable, so I'm happy with it.
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Wow! I wish my 21 week pregnant wife would bicycle, I can't get her to do anything :( she just lays around the house.
eek. wouldn't let her hear you saying that!! pregnancy affects different women different and even the same woman can react differently to a second/third etc pregnancy.
+1 I admire women who carry on being physically awesome while pregnant, but there's a reason why they get funny looks - they're outliers :) Very blessed, usually highly committed and determined, and still outliers.
At 25 weeks, I'm puffing like a steam train just hauling my gigantic self up our stairs at home, bursting into hormonal tears over every damn thing and plain *exhausted*. I'm also an outlier, in the other direction I think, but the physical effects of pregnancy are many and highly varied.
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My previous house had a spout outside that deposited the condensation from the air conditioner outside onto the ground. I stuck a watering can underneath the spout and used the free water on all of my plants.
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Actually, if you had house plants like orchids that want really soft water, that would have been perfect! I collect rain in summer and melt snow in winter for my orchids. I don't think it is crazy, because my well water is very hard and the orchids do not like it much, and they like the house water (softened) even less.
My previous house had a spout outside that deposited the condensation from the air conditioner outside onto the ground. I stuck a watering can underneath the spout and used the free water on all of my plants.
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melting snow! I hadn't thought of that one. We just got our first snowfall that isn't going away too, so this was good timing. I have a bunch of indoor plants that I will try this out on.
Actually, if you had house plants like orchids that want really soft water, that would have been perfect! I collect rain in summer and melt snow in winter for my orchids. I don't think it is crazy, because my well water is very hard and the orchids do not like it much, and they like the house water (softened) even less.
My previous house had a spout outside that deposited the condensation from the air conditioner outside onto the ground. I stuck a watering can underneath the spout and used the free water on all of my plants.
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I leave my thermostat at 55F through nearly the entire winter. I might bump it up to 60 if the daily high temps have been below freezing for days on end, or if we've had enough heavy rain that the place feels damp. But at 55, it's perfectly comfortable for me. I hang heavy curtains over doorways to keep heat in specific rooms, keep windows covered with insulating curtains (unless I actually want/need daylight), wear socks and sweaters, and pile on the blankets and cats at night.
My house has hot-water radiant heat (part of the reason why I bought this particular house), and the warmest room is the living room. It's also the coolest (non-basement) room in the summer. So I use the living room as my bedroom and primary hanging-out spot. I almost never have guests over, but when I do we sit around the dining room table, and nobody has a problem with that.
While the hot-water heating system is great, getting hot water for showers doesn't work so well. It takes forever to get hot water upstairs. One day, I'll get the problem fixed, but for now I capture cold water in buckets to use for flushing the toilet and watering plants. But still, It's a waste. I'll take cold showers in the summer, but as the weather cools down I take fewer showers, period--maybe one a week. I'm not sweaty; I rarely get truly dirty; a "bucket bath" with soap and a washcloth, and washing my hair in the sink (with baking soda!) every other day does just fine, with minimal water usage and heating costs.
Down in the basement, the boiler dumps out plenty of excess heat, and I'm always finding new uses for that. I dry laundry, sprout seeds, make yogurt, dry papier-mache sculptures, and brew mead, either in the boiler closet itself or by hanging blankets up to trap heat and create a warm space. I've rigged poles to hang laundry in the stairwell leading upstairs, using the rising heat to dry my clothes.
Summers here are usually glorious, but we do get some unpleasantly hot weather for days at a time. I have no AC, other than a window unit for the living room that gets used sparingly. My house is a square box built to hold heat and it does that really well, so it can get intolerably hot upstairs and stay that way. Closing upstairs windows during the day, then opening them late in the evenings, helps a lot. But what has made all the difference is covering any windows that get direct sun exposure from the outside. If sunlight can't make it through the glass, it can't heat the room. I have a huge, glassed-in porch that used to turn into an oven every summer, but once I started hanging exterior roller blinds over the windows it ceased to be a problem. So the last few summers I've spent tinkering with low-tech, low-energy means to keep the house comfortable really paid off during the heat wave this past summer.
But despite my successes I still get odd reactions from some of my neighbors because apparently running multiple window AC or fan units all summer is what I'm supposed to be doing. Just as, in the winter, I'm supposed to crank the heat because wearing a sweater and socks indoors is a form of suffering. :/
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I used to consider an apartment optional for 6 months/year. I lived in Michigan and the other six would get too cold. I would live in my car to save money. I paid my own way through college and couldn't really afford both tuition and rent. Taking showers every day at the gym helped keep me in shape too since I didn't want to go in just for the shower. One time when I was "homeless", one of my friends started talking about homeless people in a bad manner. I got indignant (jokingly) but he said I wasn't really homeless because it was a choice. I lived in his backyard for about two months one year but then his dad wouldn't let me stay there anymore. I tell my wife we could retire now if we did this but she won't go for it :).
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I hang heavy curtains over doorways to keep heat in specific rooms, keep windows covered with insulating curtains (unless I actually want/need daylight), wear socks and sweaters, and pile on the blankets and cats at night.
Ha, ha - put those kitties to work! (Wish I could pitch this idea to my bf, but he has a strict "no kitties in bedroom" rule :( )
I have roommates and they always whine about the cold in the winter (not so much the hot in the summer, we're all from the south), but they're too lazy to get up and turn on the heat. Also, they know that I'm right and it's not worth the dough (the electric company cranks up prices in both summer and winter in our area).
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I cancelled our garbage/recycling/yard debris service. We now have a compost pile and 6 large recycling bins to sort everything (even plastic films and styrofoam). Do a run to the recycling station every 8 weeks or so which is free. Even with a 4 year old and a baby we only produce two 5 gallon bags of non-recyclables every month! These go to the dumpster at work. Savings = $300/year.
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Sometimes I don't feel like biking but I don't want to pay $2 for the bus either, so I'll walk to work. It takes an hour plus the Bart commute plus the walk to the Bart station. If I leave at 5:40am I can get to work at 8am. I don't mind the walk and can listen to audiobooks or podcasts, whatever. But everyone is always surprised that I'd choose to walk that long as well as on the way home.
I would absolutely love to do this if I could teleport my dog to and from work to walk each way with me, without having to actually bring him to work. I feel guilty going for long walks without him.
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I lived in his backyard for about two months one year but then his dad wouldn't let me stay there anymore. I tell my wife we could retire now if we did this but she won't go for it :).
ha ha Love it!
Some of my students, friends, and colleagues think I'm crazy because I cycle everywhere and don't have a car. "How do you get groceries?" is the question I'm asked most frequently. That I use a backpack and the rack on the back of my bike perplexes them. They also see me out with my old lady bundle buggy getting groceries from places where I can walk.
Many friends also think it's nuts to cycle 20 km to go to some social function. Apparently it's okay for teenagers to do that, but is not befitting a 46 year old woman. I bring a change of clothes and freshen up when I get there.
Mostly they think it's nuts that I cycle up the Niagara Escarpment. I just say that it's a fun ride down.
Also crazy to them is that I will shop at three different stores to get different deals or price match when possible. That isn't very dignified either.
One recently posted that she'd decorated two of her Christmas trees and only had one more to do. That is weird to me. Decorating one Christmas tree is fun to me. Three is a chore. Another friend tells me how frugal she is because she buys tuna by the case when it's on sale, but she eats in restaurants at least once a day. The joke is that she doesn't need a full kitchen because she never cooks.
They never invite me to their Pampered Chef, make up, jewelry and other sorts of parties. :-D
A retired supply teacher tried to give me the hard sell on a book she's written. I read the preview on kindle and wasn't interested, but now she has print copies for us to buy. Only $20 and it has cost her something like $5k to have them printed so really I'd be getting a great deal. Um. No.
So, call us crazy, but really I think the rest of the world is crazy.
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Mostly they think it's nuts that I cycle up the Niagara Escarpment. I just say that it's a fun ride down.
[...]
So, call us crazy, but really I think the rest of the world is crazy.
I like your attitude!
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Wow! I wish my 21 week pregnant wife would bicycle, I can't get her to do anything :( she just lays around the house.
eek. wouldn't let her hear you saying that!! pregnancy affects different women different and even the same woman can react differently to a second/third etc pregnancy.
Exactly! I had hyperemesis gravidarum during my pregnancy and for the first half could barely move without throwing up. Second half I suffered from malnutrition and was bed bound from exhaustion. Pregnancy was awful and I'm no wimp, I had root canal without anaesthetic and am a workaholic but whilst pregnant I couldn't even shower or brush my teeth.
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I don't think this is that big a deal, but my friends tease me because I won't buy any paper kitchen products -- no napkins, paper towels, also no garbage bags (I reuse the plastic ones I get from the grocery store).
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also no garbage bags (I reuse the plastic ones I get from the grocery store).
Just a sidenote - in the county my parents live in, this wouldn't work. The county assesses a 5 cent tax on every bag used at a store.
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We also pay 5 cents a bag -and the bags are so thin they are useless. We all bring our own bags. Downside is no "free" bags for garbage, poop patrol, etc.
also no garbage bags (I reuse the plastic ones I get from the grocery store).
Just a sidenote - in the county my parents live in, this wouldn't work. The county assesses a 5 cent tax on every bag used at a store.
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We also pay 5 cents a bag -and the bags are so thin they are useless. We all bring our own bags. Downside is no "free" bags for garbage, poop patrol, etc.
also no garbage bags (I reuse the plastic ones I get from the grocery store).
Just a sidenote - in the county my parents live in, this wouldn't work. The county assesses a 5 cent tax on every bag used at a store.
I know we aren't supposed to buy things, but those plastic bags are so cheap it might be a smart move to buy some. Here is a link we used for buying bags for our part time business.
http://www.storesupply.com/pc-13204-623-plastic-thank-you-bags-white-90109.aspx?gclid=CM6ur-fexsICFegRMwodSgkAyQ (http://www.storesupply.com/pc-13204-623-plastic-thank-you-bags-white-90109.aspx?gclid=CM6ur-fexsICFegRMwodSgkAyQ)
These work out to about 2¢ per bag for 1,000 including shipping. I suspect they can be found cheaper somewhere.
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I think they are going to start charging for bags that you get in the store here too. I do try to bring my reusable bag with me most of the time, but I don't always have one with me.
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I walked home from work a few times. Hubby used to drop me off and I'd catch the train home, but with not buying lunches and all there were a few times I forgot my transit pass and my purse. I had the option of catching a cab home and paying when I got there but chose not to.
15km (about 9 miles) and hilly. :)
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I've slept on some steps in a train station and caught the first train out rather than pay for a hotel while traveling.
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If a letter arrived and the stamp wasn't canceled, I would steam off the stamp and use it again. I would also go to the utility company to pay my bill in person rather than use up a stamp. At the time, I was living on very little and every penny counted. Not fun-crazy, just hyper frugal.
30 years later, I'm glad that it's no longer worth my time to go down to the utility company and stand in line to save 30 cents (or whatever it was back then).
OMG I did the same thing in college. I used to send letters every 2-3 days for my GF (now she is my wife). This was time before internet and emails. She would send back my stamps that were not cancelled, and I would do the same for her. She was in different country. I did feel bad about cheating the system, but we were poor.
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I am a middle-aged broad with a weak bladder. We were spending a fortune on toilet paper. My mother gave me a set of dark flannel sheets, which my husband hated because they were too hot. So I cut them up into loads of handkerchief-sized squares and turned them into "pee cloths." (I just use them for "number ones"..."number twos" are dealt with using regular old TP.)
I toss the used cloths into a small, stainless steel pedal bin next to the toilet, so there's no smell. I wash them separately in hot water. It's "my" bathroom, so no one but my husband is aware of my, er, practice.
Our TP bill has decreased to a ridiculously small number annually. To save water, I use the old California water-saving maxim, "If it's yellow, let it mellow--if it's brown, flush it down." Saves water, good for the environment, and very easy.
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I grew up fairly poor and my parents were depression kids, so it'd take me a while to figure out the 'craziest'.
But;
I've recently started a new one: re-using the ziplock packaging that some food comes in.
I only use the foil ones for throwing away used cooking oil and food that's gone bad in the fridge.
I use the clear ones for freezer bags. Trader Joe's dried fruit comes in really thick ones, and big enough for 4-5 chicken thighs.
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Changed my diet instead of fixing the oven. Let's hope the toilet doesn't go.
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Cut my own hair by following a semi-outdated YouTube tutorial to save $25 on a haircut. Refused to give in to the taunting (my spouse called me "Ferrah Fawcett" for a month) and kept my hair in a ponytail while it grew out of the bad 80s cut instead of paying to have a hairdresser fix the mistake.
Still planning to try it again in another 8-10 weeks...
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Cut my own hair by following a semi-outdated YouTube tutorial to save $25 on a haircut. Refused to give in to the taunting (my spouse called me "Ferrah Fawcett" for a month) and kept my hair in a ponytail while it grew out of the bad 80s cut instead of paying to have a hairdresser fix the mistake.
Still planning to try it again in another 8-10 weeks...
If there is a hair-cutting school/training place around, you can ask if they need volunteer to donate time for a hair cut. You get free haircut by the students, and the students get to practice on you. Win-win! My wife and I been doing this for years. The instructor keep a watchful eyes when the students work on us, making sure it will look good. She will fix it if the student did something wrong at the end.
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If there is a hair-cutting school/training place around, you can ask if they need volunteer to donate time for a hair cut. You get free haircut by the students, and the students get to practice on you. Win-win! My wife and I been doing this for years. The instructor keep a watchful eyes when the students work on us, making sure it will look good. She will fix it if the student did something wrong at the end.
^^ This is a great idea.
Not sure this counts as "crazy" but...
Someone kept sending us HOA voting proxies and wanted us to mail them back. Each time, he included a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
When I want to use one, I black out his address & then put an address label over it. He sent at least 6 like this.
I hope this doesn't fall into the category of "unethical". They aren't used stamps. We didn't *ask* him to send us stamped envelopes.
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I don't think it's crazy but I often get crazy looks and comments like "where's your baby?" when I walk to the market pushing an empty stroller (our youngest is 18 years old). It's a great way to carry groceries back home from the grocery store, especially if I'm buying a gallon of milk that fits perfectly in the seat (I can even buckle it in if I want to do some 4 wheeling through some dirt paths on my walk home)! Bags easily hang on each handle hook, plus ours has a mesh basket underneath for extra storage. I've even brought it on vacation a few times when we've stayed in a small town and it was ideal to transport groceries - especially early in the morning before the heat of the day if we were going somewhere warm and sunny and I always looked forward to the walk.
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I don't think it's crazy but I often get crazy looks and comments like "where's your baby?" when I walk to the market pushing an empty stroller (our youngest is 18 years old). It's a great way to carry groceries back home from the grocery store, especially if I'm buying a gallon of milk that fits perfectly in the seat (I can even buckle it in if I want to do some 4 wheeling through some dirt paths on my walk home)! Bags easily hang on each handle hook, plus ours has a mesh basket underneath for extra storage. I've even brought it on vacation a few times when we've stayed in a small town and it was ideal to transport groceries - especially early in the morning before the heat of the day if we were going somewhere warm and sunny and I always looked forward to the walk.
If it's worth $16 to you to avoid the weird looks, you might consider one of these: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90330505/. (I've also seen similar carts at Goodwill.)
Or, you know, not. You do you.
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Thanks Merula - I've seen kids rolling backpacks similar to that! Our stroller is actually much better suited for groceries but I appreciate knowing about this other option & I'm sure readers will too, esp if they don't have strollers. I love being able to push the stroller (rather than pull on one side) and I can jog w/it in front of me too if desired (though it's not a 'jogger stroller', nor is it the single sack umbrella stroller, but does fold up like one but is much sturdier). Ours was a baby shower gift and is so dialed in, it even has shocks, snap lock/unlock wheels, a snap on sturdy rain hood w/a clear window at the top so you can see your baby - or your groceries : )! and can hold a lot of groceries, especially if you click the back down until it's flat (it's even narrow enough to roll down an airplane aisle so not a big clunky style). My husband marveled at all of it's features when we got it and called it a sports car of strollers (it even has two foot pads for a toddler to stand on behind baby seating/grocery area & in front of person pushing the handles). I've gotten so much use out of it well after babyhood and I'm sure it will continue to be useful for years to come, even if people still say, "Hey, you forgot your baby!".
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I didn't use shampoo, conditioner, or body soap for a year. (I did wash my hands with soap though) Actually wasn't that crazy or unpleasant for me because hot water does a lot of the work of the cleaning, and your hair and skin adjusts to the new conditions. I didn't pick up any weird skin disease... I didn't get sick more often... I guess I was surprised at how inessential those products were.
That's really interesting immattdamon! I've heard it recommended many, many times to skip all shampoo, soap, powders and lotions for newborns/babies (unless a Dr prescribes something for a rash or other issue of course) at least their first year because the skin is the biggest organ of our body and it is a giant sponge & can be hard on and unnecessary for especially little bodies to be soaking up fragrances, fillers, dyes etc through their skin - even the 'baby' or 'natural' marketed brands of such products. We just used warm water and a washcloth for at least the first year as new parents and never had a problem. I didn't even wear perfume (on my skin) or nail polish/remover (or drink any alcohol or have anything but occasional very low caffeine intake while pregnant) for the same reason, and I may have continued into the breastfeeding phase, but I'm not positive. I'd never thought of doing that as an adult but you offer a great testimonial!
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If there is a hair-cutting school/training place around, you can ask if they need volunteer to donate time for a hair cut. You get free haircut by the students, and the students get to practice on you. Win-win! My wife and I been doing this for years. The instructor keep a watchful eyes when the students work on us, making sure it will look good. She will fix it if the student did something wrong at the end.
Great suggestion, although I feel like at this point, I'm just stubbornly convinced that I can figure out how to devise a respectable haircut from trimming a ponytail. The girl doing the tutorials on YouTube pulled it off; I should be able to also! :-P
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Oh, I've got a few good ones.
Last fall, I nearly let my GF and I miss a flight for a business trip that constituted half of her yearly income, in order to save about fifty bucks. Returning a rental car at the airport was $75 more than returning it 5 minutes away from the airport, so we planned on doing that and Ubering to the airport, because what fool wouldn't?.
It was a solid plan until a connection with someone else we were taking along was delayed. Road construction had a detour sign pointing the wrong way in a rural area. I sat at the rendezvous point sweating for almost two hours. Then when they finally made it, we sped back to my house and picked up my GF. Five minutes down the road and we realized we forgot something very necessary for the trip. Turned around, ran back into the house, grabbed what we needed, sped to the Enterprise near the airport, returned the car, called our Uber, got in, got to the airport, the three of us checked our bags, ran through security and the cancer machines, I got held behind because my laptop clearly makes me a terrorist, we sprinted across O'hare to the gate, and still had time for a 30 second bathroom break for each of us before the flight finished boarding and American Airlines closed the doors. I honestly thought we were going to miss it.
Back in the 80s, my dad flew standby to his own wedding. I know there was more to the story than that, but that's the most amusing way to put it.
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I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
Houstonian here too. My commute is wayyy to long to bike unfortunately but we do pretty well on the low AC usage. Didn't realize how acclimated we had gotten until my parents came to visit for a week and we realized that our house temp gets up to 78 some evenings. Been loving the cooler weather of the last few days and opening the windows to let the free AC in :)
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Every Kleenex tissue gets used at LEAST twice; sometimes 4 or 5 times. Just let it dry for an hour and flip it end for end.
I reuse floss until it starts to disintegrate.
I rewear my work clothes multiple times before washing (I wash socks, undershirts and underwear after each use). Just hang to air out. (This is to save on wear, not water: running them through the laundry is like taking a baseball bat to them).
My lunch ziplock baggies get reused until they break a hole or they no longer lock.
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Every Kleenex tissue gets used at LEAST twice; sometimes 4 or 5 times. Just let it dry for an hour and flip it end for end.
Tissues for sure get used more than once. But I never buy them so it is only those I pick up. Need to be frugal with other peoples tissues. I also figured out last year that I recovered from colds much quicker if, when i first started getting a running nose, i just went to the bathroom and blew the daylights out of my sinuses into the sink. Kept me much less congested. I reuse floss until it starts to disintegrate.
Same but for me that's only one use...I rewear my work clothes multiple times before washing (I wash socks, undershirts and underwear after each use). Just hang to air out. (This is to save on wear, not water: running them through the laundry is like taking a baseball bat to them).
I built a frame from PVC and wood so that I can hang out all my cloths and use them multiple times. And damn strait washing them wears them out. Every time I wash my jeans I cringe a little. I've read you should only soak them flat, and not machine wash if you want them to last. I just haven't worked up to that. My lunch ziplock baggies get reused until they break a hole or they no longer lock.
This is actually a reason to buy decent ziplocks. off brands break for me in one use. The lock just rips through the plastic. better brands get 2-3 uses but only cost marginally more. Better yet are reusable pyrex dishes.
If there is a hair-cutting school/training place around, you can ask if they need volunteer to donate time for a hair cut. You get free haircut by the students, and the students get to practice on you. Win-win! My wife and I been doing this for years. The instructor keep a watchful eyes when the students work on us, making sure it will look good. She will fix it if the student did something wrong at the end.
Great suggestion, although I feel like at this point, I'm just stubbornly convinced that I can figure out how to devise a respectable haircut from trimming a ponytail. The girl doing the tutorials on YouTube pulled it off; I should be able to also! :-P
About 1.5 years ago I just gave up on paying somebody to cut my hair. Mirror, scissors and a buzzer, and now I'm home free. $19 for the buzzard vs $10 per put, PLUS TIP! First time was hilariously complicated. Getting your wrist to turn this way and that. But afterwards I got a lot of compliments on my haircut, without me mentioning where i got it. Every time since then has been simple. the mind-muscle connections are formed and it takes less than 10 minutes.
Some of my own contributions to this thread...
-I took out all the lights in my vanity but one. (cost savings $1.13/year, i'm really proud of this one even though it's inconsequential)
-I sweet talked my mother into buying me a big mirror for Christmas 2 years ago. I placed it strategically near a window, so now I don't need as much electric light in my home. (Cost savings, debatable, some during weekends when i'm home at daytime, and some nights when I can delay turning on the lights until the sun is totally gone. My electric bill is so low it doesn't really matter)
-In winter I plug the drain in the tub while taking showers in order to retain all the hot water. Then I let it warm the home a little...
-Don't run heat in the winter (or AC in the summer). NC is fairly mild, but got a few days in a row with highs below freezing. That last year I ran it for like 2 days. The year before I had sweatpants, a coat, hood, mat, and gloves one. and I was just freezing in my place. That was an experience. (Cost savings are around 30-40 bucks/month)
-When I boot my computer, I don't turn on the monitor until I've estimated the computer is done loading the OS. Usually I get a drink etc while I wait. I'm good with the timing now. Usually withing 2 seconds. which is fine (cost savings is probably too low to report)
-learn to sew. Saved a few pairs of pants this way.
-I wear cloths until they absolutely die. I got one overshirt I've worn the last two weeks, sporting holes along the hem on one side about a foot long, and another one mid back 6 inches. Undershirts are usually worse. But who's going to see them?
-I use the back of junk mail envelopes to write on. I can cram a lot in writing small and using both sides.
-When driving my car and making a turn, if there are two turn lanes, I try to take the outside one. The larger turning radius will put less wear and tear on the tires and springs. My tired are 6 years old, and the thread is about to go, but they are also just dry rotting from age so I've balanced well.
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For the men who cut their own hair, here is a tip from a professional to keep it looking more professional and less DIY, DON'T forget to trim the ear hair and the nose hair and if your eyebrows are bushy, put the comb through them and trim what sticks out of the comb. You will improve what you already do.
I of course cut my families hair, and my own most of the time, I pay for a professional haircut about once every year or two.
I reuse plastic baggies but try more to never use them in the first place
I have a roll of aluminum foil that was given to me 10 years ago and it still has most of it in the roll
We use cloth toilet paper and have for 9+ years
We use over the air TV and netflix and hulu instead of cable, I know you guys don't think that is weird but lots of others do
We are quite creative to not waste leftovers
we bring food home from anywhere someone wants to give it to us, their home after a big party, a ball game where their are a ton of leftovers etc..
We buy our kids 2 small gifts for xmas and only 1 for birthdays
We drive older vehicles for a long time (no public transport out in the country)
My husband rode his bike to work for 9+mo out of the year for 3 years while we only had 1 car
I fixed our sink to collect grey water in a bucket and we used it to flush the toilets with
I took apart our sinks when they have a clog and fix them myself
I replaced my own in air cabin filter in our van for a savings of $30
I make our own lotion bars and body butter
We aren't afraid to trash pick
hang clothes to dry
I'm sure I could go on and I still feel very face punch worthy, I still have a ton to learn.
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This topic is fantastic!
My craziest frugal thing to date:
I Picked up 160kg of bricks for free to use for a project. I picked them up alone, with a metal shopping cart. The walk home took 45 minutes. I received some funny looks on the way back.
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This topic is fantastic!
My craziest frugal thing to date:
I Picked up 160kg of bricks for free to use for a project. I picked them up alone, with a metal shopping cart. The walk home took 45 minutes. I received some funny looks on the way back.
Dang. Any hills on the way back?
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For lunch leftovers here at the office, I use plastic Pampered Chef (purchased during my credit card days) plates and plastic utensils. I then wash them for reuse in the bathroom sink. I might look strange doing so in my business attire, but oh well. ;)
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Maybe not the craziest, but the most recent that springs to mind. I was working at a checkpoint on an ultramarathon. The runners coming through had just completed a boggy section of the course and many of those who had support crews (permitted but not compulsory) changed their footwear. While I was tidying up I came upon a pair of filthy mud-encrusted socks that someone had discarded.
They're still going strong. After being worn and washed a few times you'd never guess the state they were in when I picked them up off the floor.
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This topic is fantastic!
My craziest frugal thing to date:
I Picked up 160kg of bricks for free to use for a project. I picked them up alone, with a metal shopping cart. The walk home took 45 minutes. I received some funny looks on the way back.
Dang. Any hills on the way back?
Haha. Fortunately for me there we no hills :)
Having any significant hill would be dangerous with that much weight and no brakes.
This experience did teach me that a perfectly horizontal sidewalk doesn't exist. Everything is a little slanted, probably for drainage.
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On Tuesday I biked to and from a mammogram appointment in a hailstorm/crazy downpour. 10 km each way, on some very bike-unfriendly roads. I felt so badass once I got home.
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I rode a longboard about 13 miles each way to the airport to save $, but I paid to take the longboard on the flight, so I'm not sure how much $ I saved.
While on a trip to Ireland with an ex I had a finite amount of cash budgeted. We both contributed to the cash but I paid for most of the trip transportation expenses. Towards the end of the trip the cash was running low and we stayed in a really crappy hostel with smelly, drunk, middle aged men hanging around. I didn't want to have to put any expenses on my credit card. We moved to a different hostel across the street for about 10 euros more per night per person the next night but I think that might have been the beginning of the end of that relationship.
I spent the night on a bench in the LA train station to not pay for a hotel room. Many times I have slept in my car on a trip. I hate paying for hotels when I'm not going to be spending any awake time there.
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I spent the night on a bench in the LA train station to not pay for a hotel room. Many times I have slept in my car on a trip. I hate paying for hotels when I'm not going to be spending any awake time there.
Never spent the night on a bench in train station, but many times in airports around the world. I am too cheap to pay for hotels for one day visit. My favorite is Changi airport in Singapore. They used to have these long recliner type - very comfy.
Wife and I also have spent the night in the SUV before we have the kid. With the second and third rows left behind at home, we have a good flat area to stretch and sleep comfortably.
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Never spent the night on a bench in train station, but many times in airports around the world. I am too cheap to pay for hotels for one day visit. My favorite is Changi airport in Singapore. They used to have these long recliner type - very comfy.
This times 1,000. I regularly have to fly through Dubai to get from South Asia back to the US or elsewhere. Decent hotels in that city are at least $120 a night, and the cheap hotels are so mildewy/smokey that I won't set foot in them again. So I choose to sleep in the airport where they have hundreds of the long reclined seats. I even got Emirates to match my frequent flier status, so now I can sleep and eat for free in their lounge on those long layovers (bonus: I can get a year's worth of free toothbrushes and toothpaste in the kits from their lounge bathrooms!).
For me the key to airport sleeping is an eye mask, earplugs (or noise-cancelling headphones with a white noise app), and occasionally melatonin or Ambien.
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I gave myself stitches to save on an ER visit. I also saved several hours of time that would have been spent in the waiting room but were put to better use by sleeping. Granted, it was a small clean cut, I pretty much knew what I was doing, and had acceptable thread available. Several months later, the scar is much smaller than one I have from a professional job. Some of that is probably due to the location though.
My brother did that once.
I've never needed stitches, but I did take out my own IUD a couple of years ago. :) I couldn't see any reason to pay someone at least $100 to tug on a string for a few seconds.
Two things. One, this is (I would assume?) a service that is free for many women, depending on their insurance. It certainly was for my wife anyway, so check on that first. Second, while it may be relatively easy to do this in most cases (I have no idea but am guessing from this comment), after my wife's experience, where she required a minor surgical procedure to remove her IUD because it had become embedded in the uterine wall, I would personally suggest you think twice in the future when considering whether to DYI.
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Ditto on the "gave myself stitches" situation.
When I was a kid, we were well well below the poverty line and also living what would be considered a mustachian lifestyle. My dad butterfly taped my knee after a bad bicycle accident that I most certainly needed stitches for.... and apparently that mindset kicked in as an adult too. I'm a soap-maker (side job) and got myself pretty good with my soap knife a few years back. I glued it up with surgical glue a nurse friend had given me (I'd kept it in my first aid kit at home) and then stitched it relatively loosely (they say that helps with scarring..?). It was awful actually, felt the flush of "I'm going to pass out" a few times....but I'd probably do it again.
Also a trash monster- I've only paid for one piece of furniture in my life (a $40 craigslist sofa), the rest are from freebies or trash piles.
Barter. I only barter down to an exchange rate of $15 an hour (unless I really really want to learn the skill, etc). This has worked out great and I got my hair professionally done for a few years for cleaning a salon once a week (and I got the cleaning time down to about 30 minutes eventually). Now I cut my own hair with 3 dollar store mirrors and clippers, thinning scissors, and regular scissors. and I look cute, not gross.
I don't find this terrifically out of the ordinary, but I do get "looks"....I most definitely take any/all leftovers from things I am invited to and offered leftovers at, or office events, and freeze to reuse.
Additionally, it's small... BUT, I play roller derby and instead of the expensive $60 reversible scrimmage jerseys (which I admittedly really want) I have always purchased the basic lacrosse ones ($3-$5), bid on really beat up jerseys with double my number on Ebay (My number is 8, so I find jerseys with 88 on both sides) and torn those numbers off with a seam ripper and re-stitch them onto my $3 pinnie. A used jersey with 88 on both sides gives me enough numbers for TWO scrimmage pinnies. :) Ha.
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Awesome stories, guys!
Some of mine:
- I moved apartments in Japan using the local bus. I did it in six-ish trips. I'm a tall Norwegian guy, so needless to say everybody was looking at the weird guy with the office chair and pot plant on the bus.
- Speaking of Japan - I have hitch-hiked back and forth between Osaka and Tokyo several times, and once I hitch-hiked from Tokyo down to the very South of Japan, took the boat to South-Korea and hitch-hiked from the harbour all the way to Seoul. One heck of a ride - completely free, except the ferry ticket. And I met SO many cool people :)
- I practice drums in an abandoned building. I don't know who owns the place, but I've been doing it for over a year without anybody noticing.
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Awesome stories, guys!
Some of mine:
- I moved apartments in Japan using the local bus. I did it in six-ish trips. I'm a tall Norwegian guy, so needless to say everybody was looking at the weird guy with the office chair and pot plant on the bus.
- Speaking of Japan - I have hitch-hiked back and forth between Osaka and Tokyo several times, and once I hitch-hiked from Tokyo down to the very South of Japan, took the boat to South-Korea and hitch-hiked from the harbour all the way to Seoul. One heck of a ride - completely free, except the ferry ticket. And I met SO many cool people :)
- I practice drums in an abandoned building. I don't know who owns the place, but I've been doing it for over a year without anybody noticing.
Hmmm, where I live, that might get you noticed and arrested, lol!
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Haha!! :D cue Snoop Dogg *smoke weed everyday*
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Awesome stories, guys!
Some of mine:
- I moved apartments in Japan using the local bus. I did it in six-ish trips. I'm a tall Norwegian guy, so needless to say everybody was looking at the weird guy with the office chair and pot plant on the bus.
The word picture made me laugh out loud.
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We use cloth toilet paper and have for 9+ years
According to our google overlords, the average person uses 25 rolls/year of TP. According to our Amazon overlords, you can buy that many fancy name brand rolls for about $10 in bulk (~48/rolls at a time). About $12 for "eco friendly" varieties.
You'd rather wash your own nightsoil than spend about $10/person/year? An entire lifetime of scrubbing soiled cloths to save $600-1000?
And, when you consider you'll probably spend a good portion of that much in towels, soap, energy and water to do all the washing it makes very little sense.
Personally, I'd rather have a bidet like civilized cultures anyway ;)
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I eat out of dumpsters. I also eat all the leftovers from work lunches that no one else seems to want.
I also use these remnant toilet paper rolls from work. We are the building managers and we control all the janitorial for the campus, so my day time janitor would bring me all the leftover rolls when she went through each day to put on fresh ones. I still have quite a stock pile and should not have to buy TP for several months.
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At Royal Canadian Superstore, their gas stations do(or used to? don't live near one anymore) give you 3.5 cents per liter in store credit on your receipt(7cents if you're a PC Cardholder)... Anyways... One day I noticed a receipt with this part not torn off at the top of the garbage bin. So every time I went there I would sift(not dig) through the top layer of garbage, and would usually end up with a receipt with a $1-$2 in credit.
I come from a fairly mustachian family... And my Mom, despite my parents having way more money than they will ever need, still washes and re-uses tin foil when cooking.
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Not super crazy but kinda funny. Stuffed a mattress and boxspring in my hatchback to avoid renting a truck. Have also done something similar with attaching a queen size mattress to the roof of an SUV.
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I asked my boyfriend and he said:
"The time I wanted to buy frozen potatoes at Costco and you wouldn't let me because we could buy them in bulk and chop them ourselves."
Probably made a dollar for an hour of work, but I probably wouldn't have done anything productive during that hour anyways, so...
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
*edited because my shruggy guy's arm fell off*
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Turning off the lights while brushing teeth and turning it on when ready to spit it out. Bathrooms in my apartment have no windows.
I stopped doing this later though :)
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Turning off the lights while brushing teeth and turning it on when ready to spit it out. Bathrooms in my apartment have no windows.
I stopped doing this later though :)
I've found showering in the dark to be quite therapeutic. Shortly afterwards I found out how to replace the light bulb in my bathroom (no window in my bathroom either). I still do it sometimes.
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Found a pair of flip-flops on the beach, after a good cleaning i'm still using them two years later.
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I think the operative phrase in this thread is 'in the NAME of frugality.' Dishonesty and false economy aren't what I consider frugality.
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When I saw this thread, I thought about taking a picture of a dish rag used in our kitchen.
But when I got around to it, I couldn't find it. I ask my wife and she thought I did something with it, I do the laundry and more likely to discard an item before she is. Anyway she found it, I think she had started the removal from service plan.
I think this qualifies as crazy in the name of frugality.
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I don't consider it super crazy, but:
- Stayed at an airport for 24+ hours instead of getting accommodation for a night. It was a good airport to be stuck in, though, wouldn't have done this if it was an uncomfortable, boring one.
- During 4+ months of travel, hand-washed our clothes in the sink, then hung them on the clothesline in the yard of our guesthouse if that was available (often this wasn't available, so I'd hang the clothes in our room, very close to fans or AC for quicker drying), so that we wouldn't have to pay for laundry service. We paid to use a coin-operated washing machine and dryer only a couple of times during the entire trip, and went the free route the rest of the time. I see all that hand-washing as good exercise for my arms. ;)
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Found a pair of flip-flops on the beach, after a good cleaning i'm still using them two years later.
Something similar: I found a pair of sunglasses during a volunteer clean up day several years ago. I still use them to this day. :)
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I recently got some sand for free from a neighborhood fb post, planning to use it for my kids' sandbox. The post said that the sand had some rocks in it. No problem, I'm thinking, I can pick out a couple of rocks and add them to the rock garden we started.
When I got the buckets home, what I found was that it was 50/50 sand and pea gravel. My husband and I ended up sifting four 5-gallon buckets of sand through an old piece of screen, which took several hours. Several hours spent bent over a bucket, in order to get maybe $15 worth of sand/rocks for free.
I've probably done crazier things, but this is the craziest one recently.
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My grandparents were farmers, so nothing ever got thrown away. Any fence they've ever had to take down has been dismantled for parts and the parts kept in the paddock next to the house. This collection got added to when their tenant went bust, leaving behind a wide range of steel frames.
When I moved into my new house, we needed a fence to keep the chickens in their run down the back. We also had a fence across the front yard that I considered unnecessary. Grandma and Grandad showed up with the truck and a length of chain to haul out the posts, and we reassembled the fence further down the backyard.
I've taken lawn clippings from the local park after council mowing day; the neighbours down the road brought out their wheelie bin and took woodchips from the same park after the council pruned the park trees. I've shovelled horse manure from my grandparents' tenants' horses. Seriously, if you're a gardener - the amount of organic matter this society throws away is mindblowing. Get out there and scavenge. You'll never buy mulch again.
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My wife saves the stickers on fruit to use to clean lint off the carpet.
I save peach pits, throw them in the garden and occasionally get a new peach tree. I have given away dozens of peach trees over the last few years. Along the same lines, I spit grape seeds into pots and grow grape vines.
Save shower and dish-washing water to flush toilets.
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When I moved to this city after college I had less than $200 to my name. I showed up to my apartment that I'd be splitting with 4 others with just a suitcase. There was a sad looking mattress in the room I was assigned to so I threw my sheets on it and used it for two years. I've actually still never bought a mattress (but did inherit a nicer one from a friend).
I think this is pretty gross but I'm not actually sure?
I've also done some of the hand washing while abroad and airport sleeping stuff.
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My wife saves the stickers on fruit to use to clean lint off the carpet.
I save peach pits, throw them in the garden and occasionally get a new peach tree. I have given away dozens of peach trees over the last few years. Along the same lines, I spit grape seeds into pots and grow grape vines.
Save shower and dish-washing water to flush toilets.
My wife saves the tape that is wrapped around bananas.
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I went out eat with family just to catch up since it had been a while since seeing my brother. I only ordered a free water and told them I'm over budget for the month. The budget for dining out is zero! They couldn't believe it and thought it was ridiculous I didn't order anything.
They racked up a nice bill from food and alcohol and I eacaped with a $0 bill. That is what I call a successful night!
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We have clear plastic shower curtains. When they get yucky, I run them through the washing machine with a few junky towels and some detergent. They come out not-quite-good-as-new but much cleaner/nicer.
They are cheap so it's only partly to save money. Mostly it's to keep them out of the landfill.
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I save and reuse the elastics on broccoli and green onions.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
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I save and reuse the elastics on broccoli and green onions.
I thought that was a given! :-)
Sometimes the broccoli comes with a velcro strap, I use those to wrap my pant leg,
so it doesn't get caught in my bike chain.
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This does not feel that crazy to me, but people IRL keep telling me it is, lol.
I'm 8ish months pregnant, and instead of mailing thank you cards to the people in the neighborhood who gave us gifts for our recent baby shower, I rode my bike around and hand delivered them instead. I saved us like $8 in stamps and got some nice and easy exercise. Walking is hard for me at this point, but biking still feels pretty dang good.
Plus, I got to enjoy a nice 40 minutes of leisurely pedaling through our neighborhood, which has a lot of older houses with lots of character. I love walking/biking through our neighborhood, and I felt awesome after I did it! Even though I was tired and tempted to just mail them out of the sheer convenience, I'm glad I didn't. The idea of mailing a letter to people that live literally across the street is so stupid to me, lol.
EDIT: I also rode my bike to and from work when I went in a few weeks ago. It's about 6 miles each way, but mostly downhill/flat on the way there. People were very surprised, lol. I did end up strategically taking public transit part way home so I could very easily just basically coast all the way back (didn't want to overdo it), but I still felt pretty proud. I love biking to work, and telling myself I could bike in was actually the way that I bribed myself to actually go to the office instead of working at home, lol.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
We only have ~225K on our Land Cruiser, your truck make it like ours is brand new lol
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
Love this [not] stupid truck story!
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Haha!! :D cue Snoop Dogg *smoke weed everyday*
Nate Dogg says "smoke weed everyday" at the end of "The Next Episode", not Snoop Dogg.
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I've found showering in the dark to be quite therapeutic. Shortly afterwards I found out how to replace the light bulb in my bathroom (no window in my bathroom either). I still do it sometimes.
This reminds me of a product idea I had many years ago.
Big rubber or elastic bands (or adhesive labels) with big 3D symbols on them - diff symbols on diff bands. You'd put one on each bottle of your shampoo, conditioner, body wash etc. and then be able tell them apart by 'reading' the diff symbols with your finger tips.
I even came up with a name for them - 'Tipsees', because you 'see' them with the 'tips' of your fingers.
Basically braille. The target customer are people that (like me) that need glasses to read.
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I've found showering in the dark to be quite therapeutic. Shortly afterwards I found out how to replace the light bulb in my bathroom (no window in my bathroom either). I still do it sometimes.
This reminds me of a product idea I had many years ago.
Big rubber or elastic bands (or adhesive labels) with big 3D symbols on them - diff symbols on diff bands. You'd put one on each bottle of your shampoo, conditioner, body wash etc. and then be able tell them apart by 'reading' the diff symbols with your finger tips.
I even came up with a name for them - 'Tipsees', because you 'see' them with the 'tips' of your fingers.
Basically braille. The target customer are people that (like me) that need glasses to read.
My main problem was actually related to this, but Tipsees wouldn't have solved it unfortunately. I had to navigate through the bottles, but the issue was that my GF's sister was living with us at the time, and she had about 400 shampoo bottles in our shower.
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I've found showering in the dark to be quite therapeutic. Shortly afterwards I found out how to replace the light bulb in my bathroom (no window in my bathroom either). I still do it sometimes.
This reminds me of a product idea I had many years ago.
Big rubber or elastic bands (or adhesive labels) with big 3D symbols on them - diff symbols on diff bands. You'd put one on each bottle of your shampoo, conditioner, body wash etc. and then be able tell them apart by 'reading' the diff symbols with your finger tips.
I even came up with a name for them - 'Tipsees', because you 'see' them with the 'tips' of your fingers.
Basically braille. The target customer are people that (like me) that need glasses to read.
My main problem was actually related to this, but Tipsees wouldn't have solved it unfortunately. I had to navigate through the bottles, but the issue was that my GF's sister was living with us at the time, and she had about 400 shampoo bottles in our shower.
They would have solved it - you'd just put the tipsees on your bottles.
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I eat out of dumpsters.
Dumpster diving FTW!! Did it for six months after watching "Just Eat It" on Amazon Prime. So much free organic produce we had to give it away and compost it just to use it all. But sadly we had to stop whit kids to look after instead of late night scrounging trips.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
Everything about this rocks. Glad you got your truck back - twice.
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Combo meter in my Prius was fritzing (I'd turn on the car but the dash display would stay completely black-no speedometer, odometer, fuel level etc.) Was a recall issue and could have been fixed free but the owners before me never took it in. Took it to the shop an was told it would be about two weeks and $22-2400.
Found a guy on eBay who repairs combo meters for $100 including return shipping, and found a YouTube tutorial on how to dismantle the entire dashboard of my car. Took about 3 hours to get everything off to get to the circuit board. Paid to ship it to the repair man. Three day wait and another 3 hours or so to put it all back together.
That was my first time doing a car repair myself, and when I pushed that "Start" button after getting it all together and everything was working, I felt SO AWESOME!!!
I see Priui listed for sale with that problem, and I've thought about reaching out to the sellers to fix the problem for say, $500 or $600? They'd be able to sell it for more with that fixed....maybe a little side gig?
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Combo meter in my Prius was fritzing (I'd turn on the car but the dash display would stay completely black-no speedometer, odometer, fuel level etc.) Was a recall issue and could have been fixed free but the owners before me never took it in. Took it to the shop an was told it would be about two weeks and $22-2400.
If it is a recall, Toyota should fix it for free even if you are the second/third owner of the vehicle.
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It was good for a specific amount of time. The previous owners could have fixed it. I checked with two different Toyota dealerships. I guess the free repair offers expire apparently.
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We have clear plastic shower curtains. When they get yucky, I run them through the washing machine with a few junky towels and some detergent. They come out not-quite-good-as-new but much cleaner/nicer.
They are cheap so it's only partly to save money. Mostly it's to keep them out of the landfill.
Wait - shower curtains can go in the washer? Really?
Never spent the night on a bench in train station, but many times in airports around the world. I am too cheap to pay for hotels for one day visit. My favorite is Changi airport in Singapore. They used to have these long recliner type - very comfy.
Changi airport is amazingly awesome. I have also slept in their darkened sleeping area - aside from the recliners, they have a carpeted platform. We bring lightweight blankets and curl up around our carry ons and get a blissful nap on a flat surface!
One trip, we flew budget to Changi and couldn't get into the main terminal for hours in the middle of the night (until we were allowed to check in for our morning flight). I laid on the floor on a cardboard box (that people left in one waiting area for that purpose) and found it surprisingly comfy.
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We have clear plastic shower curtains. When they get yucky, I run them through the washing machine with a few junky towels and some detergent. They come out not-quite-good-as-new but much cleaner/nicer.
They are cheap so it's only partly to save money. Mostly it's to keep them out of the landfill.
Wait - shower curtains can go in the washer? Really?
I've had my curtain and liner for years. Add a dash of bleach w/ detergent to the wash and it comes out like new.
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We have clear plastic shower curtains. When they get yucky, I run them through the washing machine with a few junky towels and some detergent. They come out not-quite-good-as-new but much cleaner/nicer.
They are cheap so it's only partly to save money. Mostly it's to keep them out of the landfill.
Wait - shower curtains can go in the washer? Really?
I've done it a bunch. Just throw it in with detergent & some old towels. You'll be amazed.
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We have clear plastic shower curtains. When they get yucky, I run them through the washing machine with a few junky towels and some detergent. They come out not-quite-good-as-new but much cleaner/nicer.
They are cheap so it's only partly to save money. Mostly it's to keep them out of the landfill.
Wait - shower curtains can go in the washer? Really?
I've done it a bunch. Just throw it in with detergent & some old towels. You'll be amazed.
Yes we have done it a bunch of time too :) We have one of those that does not feel like plastic - not sure what they are made of, but it is nicer that plastic. We do not like how the plastic shower curtain feels.
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Yes we have done it a bunch of time too :) We have one of those that does not feel like plastic - not sure what they are made of, but it is nicer that plastic. We do not like how the plastic shower curtain feels.
You take your shower curtain to toga parties too?
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Yes we have done it a bunch of time too :) We have one of those that does not feel like plastic - not sure what they are made of, but it is nicer that plastic. We do not like how the plastic shower curtain feels.
You take your shower curtain to toga parties too?
LOL - you almost cost me a new keyboard because I almost spray my coffee all over it!
Now back to the topic at hand :)
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Turning off the lights while brushing teeth and turning it on when ready to spit it out. Bathrooms in my apartment have no windows.
I stopped doing this later though :)
I've found showering in the dark to be quite therapeutic. Shortly afterwards I found out how to replace the light bulb in my bathroom (no window in my bathroom either). I still do it sometimes.
When I was a kid, I would often walk into the bathroom, flick on the lights, and find that my mom had been sitting on the toilet in the dark. I always thought, "seriously!"
Now, I figure there's plenty of ambient light from the window or cracked doorway. Not like I have to see much to do my business.
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Come to think of it, I do a lot of wandering around my house with the lights off. The windows work fine for daytime. And I know my way around all the furniture. The worst thing might be stepping on a kid toy.
I do use lamps for reading.
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I once had my hand luggage searched at Zurich Airport on my way home at the end of a hiking holiday in the Swiss Alps because the x-ray machine picked up suspicious packages. The customs officer didn't crack a smile as he pulled out nearly-full bags of Migros own brand white flour, sugar, rice and pasta and a jar of paprika. Well, y'know, food's expensive in Switzerland, I hate food waste at the best of time, and my bag was well under the weight limit.
To add to the sitcom effect, someone of my acquaintance from home was coming through at the same time and got a new perspective of the sort of person I am.
(See also: Being stopped at security at Berlin because of suspicious oblong packages in my hand luggage. I am that person who thought there might not be an Aldi on every street corner in Berlin, and carried a dozen cheap flapjacks from home.)
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
This is so awesome. I had the 1995 Toyota Paseo I bought used in high school for 16 years. After 16 years with me and 275K miles, the rocker panels were rusted beyond repair (stupid winter!).
I miss that car. We kept the license plate and put in on our wall.
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There's so much here that I'm like, "Wait, that's not normal?" ;)
Here's my short list:
-Lived in an apartment with basically no heat in Boston. For 7 years.
-Drove a car gifted to us by some friends for more than a year, while the interior was falling off in big chunks.
-Reusing baggies and foil, naturally!
-Renting a room in our home to a long-time babysitter for $$ and free babysitting
-Still have free furniture from my husband's parents, that is probably 40 years old
-Get almost all kids stuff second hand
-Don't buy shampoo or conditioner anymore--use the hotel samples from business travel / Mother-in-law's casino stays
And I still have some seriously face-punch worthy habits! So much room for improvement!
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I once had my hand luggage searched at Zurich Airport on my way home at the end of a hiking holiday in the Swiss Alps because the x-ray machine picked up suspicious packages. The customs officer didn't crack a smile as he pulled out nearly-full bags of Migros own brand white flour, sugar, rice and pasta and a jar of paprika. Well, y'know, food's expensive in Switzerland, I hate food waste at the best of time, and my bag was well under the weight limit.
To add to the sitcom effect, someone of my acquaintance from home was coming through at the same time and got a new perspective of the sort of person I am.
(See also: Being stopped at security at Berlin because of suspicious oblong packages in my hand luggage. I am that person who thought there might not be an Aldi on every street corner in Berlin, and carried a dozen cheap flapjacks from home.)
This reminds me of traveling many years ago, pre 9-11, extra security measures and airline being very strict on weight of suitcase. I travel light, but always have two huge suitcases plus a carry-on for my trips to SE Asia. On the way back, I would pack them with food - noodles, crackers pretty much anything that I can think of, up to the max weight. The look on the custom officers who inspect the suitcases are priceless hahaha
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Company I work for is about to return a leased work van to the dealership, but before I return it I'm going to siphon out most of the fuel. Should get enough to fill up our smaller ranger work truck.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
That's impressive! Are you willing to share more details? Make? Year? Miles?
Edited to add: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess Honda.
93 Toyota Pick Up with 550K miles. I sold it to my mechanic once and it made me so sad that my GF bought it back from him for my surprise birthday present. It was also stolen last year and I just recovered it after police arrested some guy on gun related charges. I'm super stoked....love that stupid truck
This is so awesome. I had the 1995 Toyota Paseo I bought used in high school for 16 years. After 16 years with me and 275K miles, the rocker panels were rusted beyond repair (stupid winter!).
I miss that car. We kept the license plate and put in on our wall.
I've still got the '95 Tercel I got in high school in 2002, lol. Unbelievably, basically no rust, but the clear coat is peeling pretty bad now. 330k and still runs like new.
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Yesterday, in a far away refrigerator at work, I found an unopened portion pack of quark with my name on it. I was from september 2015. I opened it, sniffed it, tasted it and nothing seemed to be wrong with it. I was hungry and ate the whole portion. Didn't feel anything weird in the stomach region. I figured that yoghurt-like bacteria are quite safe to eat over the date, as long as nothing green or blue or hairy starts growing in it.
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Yesterday, in a far away refrigerator at work, I found an unopened portion pack of quark with my name on it. I was from september 2015. I opened it, sniffed it, tasted it and nothing seemed to be wrong with it. I was hungry and ate the whole portion. Didn't feel anything weird in the stomach region. I figured that yoghurt-like bacteria are quite safe to eat over the date, as long as nothing green or blue or hairy starts growing in it.
This is probably my craziest thing. I definitely eat things that other people wouldn't because I don't want to waste. Found a caterpillar in a bell pepper. Set the caterpillar outside, washed the bell pepper, good as new. I usually just don't tell my boyfriend when I do these things, because he wouldn't eat it if he knew, but he can't actually tell once it's cooked. Same with mold or whatever, just take out the part you don't want and it's fine.
I may even have fished things out of the trash that he tossed, though I usually only keep that for myself.
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Did build our house on my own. It is not finished yet, but I can't wait once it will be done. Saving me a lot of $$$ too. Not all works tho, like roof, but I would, next time, as the prices are rocketing to da moon. Hard work, sure, double hard when I am somewhere and forget some tool, need to walk twice. of when there is no one who would help hold some heavy object.. But funny, with some tricks I did lift 355 pound linter without much effort.. A lot of fun and memories during this hobby of mine.
Other than that, a lot of crazy things, like buying ¬96 cans of tuna for good price, but mainly it was for preps :D After 4 or 5 years, I am still eating these. Taste the same..
Or - i travel abroad with six 20L fuel canisters in the trunk. (6x5.28gal) as I save 10c on each liter. (170liter was the max i took) its like 10% saving on fuel. Since I travel 14miles and 14 miles back, I need to take not only 1 full tank, but rather 3, to have real savings on those extra two (6 canisters). looks funny, I could post some pics for some laugh... Also, people laugh and ask about MPG, since its hothatch of some kind..
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Or - i travel abroad with six 20L fuel canisters in the trunk. (6x5.28gal) as I save 10c on each liter. (170liter was the max i took) its like 10% saving on fuel. Since I travel 14miles and 14 miles back, I need to take not only 1 full tank, but rather 3, to have real savings on those extra two (6 canisters). looks funny, I could post some pics for some laugh... Also, people laugh and ask about MPG, since its hothatch of some kind..
Oh hey! We do something similar too. Kroger gives double points if you buy things on certain days. From points, you can get discounts on gas. We usually get 10c-60c/gallon. You can only use it in one transaction, and only buy maximum 35 gallons. So we would drive both cars, top them off, and bring our two cans so we can buy the max amount.
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
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I am amazed by the dentist's market.. It's like a dream job* , 6 fig paycheck easily.. Why there aren't more dentist's ? i am wondering myself, why I did not chose to be dentist.
*except you have to smell patients breath.
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I am amazed by the dentist's market.. It's like a dream job* , 6 fig paycheck easily.. Why there aren't more dentist's ? i am wondering myself, why I did not chose to be dentist.
*except you have to smell patients breath.
Maybe THAT is why they use a mouth cap that also covers their nose...
I personally wouldn't consider it a dream job. I cannot stand the sound of a dentist drill...
I also think it requires a large investment buying the equipment in a dentist office.
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
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My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
You should search around at the grocery store / newspaper racks for those little coupon books where offices advertise a flat discounted fee for new clients...
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My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
You should search around at the grocery store / newspaper racks for those little coupon books where offices advertise a flat discounted fee for new clients...
What about a dentist school? They must need patients to practice on.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
You should search around at the grocery store / newspaper racks for those little coupon books where offices advertise a flat discounted fee for new clients...
What about a dentist school? They must need patients to practice on.
Y'all must live in a city. I don't. No such things out here.
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Took cold showers, and lived without AC for two years, in Florida. I could've lived in definitely with it, but I got pets, and my furniture wasn't faring well and I constantly had to stay on top of humidity issues. I still keep it at 80° in the summer though.
Also when two of my coworkers said they were looking for a place to rent, I impulsively offered up my own house. Four years later and I'm on my second set of renters.
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Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
If you skip the x-rays, how do you catch cavities between teeth where the dentist can't see? Most of my cavities have been that type. If I didn't have the x-rays done I'd have a mouth full of crowns since I wouldn't know about the cavities until the tooth hurts and then it's too late.
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^ I guess that's what makes it "crazy" LOL
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Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
If you skip the x-rays, how do you catch cavities between teeth where the dentist can't see? Most of my cavities have been that type. If I didn't have the x-rays done I'd have a mouth full of crowns since I wouldn't know about the cavities until the tooth hurts and then it's too late.
I went to a dentist like 10 years ago. She said i needed my wisdom teeth out and they were impacted and i might have cavities and need a root canal and all this crap. My teeth felt perfectly fine, so I just got the cleaning, and ignored the rest.
10 years later my teeth are still fine. They're white, they don't hurt. I do brush and floss (even though a study came out saying there is no evidence flossing actually helps https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html (https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html)). I really think dentists are full of garbage.
It's like the health experts and doctors who said eat a lot of carbs and low fat (oh, and eggs are going to give you high cholesterol and you'll die from eating them!!!). Just saying stuff cause they were taught it instead of doing studies. Or using insulin to treat type 2 diabetes... all garbage.
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Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
If you skip the x-rays, how do you catch cavities between teeth where the dentist can't see? Most of my cavities have been that type. If I didn't have the x-rays done I'd have a mouth full of crowns since I wouldn't know about the cavities until the tooth hurts and then it's too late.
I went to a dentist like 10 years ago. She said i needed my wisdom teeth out and they were impacted and i might have cavities and need a root canal and all this crap. My teeth felt perfectly fine, so I just got the cleaning, and ignored the rest.
10 years later my teeth are still fine. They're white, they don't hurt. I do brush and floss (even though a study came out saying there is no evidence flossing actually helps https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html (https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html)). I really think dentists are full of garbage.
It's like the health experts and doctors who said eat a lot of carbs and low fat (oh, and eggs are going to give you high cholesterol and you'll die from eating them!!!). Just saying stuff cause they were taught it instead of doing studies. Or using insulin to treat type 2 diabetes... all garbage.
I guess maybe it depends on your teeth? Some years back I had an x-ray show what was likely a cavity and I held off for a good year since my tooth didn't hurt. That decision was the reason for my first crown, because the cavity got so large that the tooth didn't have enough integrity left for a regular filling. Every subsequent x-ray that has indicated a likely cavity has turned out to be exactly that. I now schedule any fillings ASAP if an x-ray yields a "week spot".
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Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
If you skip the x-rays, how do you catch cavities between teeth where the dentist can't see? Most of my cavities have been that type. If I didn't have the x-rays done I'd have a mouth full of crowns since I wouldn't know about the cavities until the tooth hurts and then it's too late.
I went to a dentist like 10 years ago. She said i needed my wisdom teeth out and they were impacted and i might have cavities and need a root canal and all this crap. My teeth felt perfectly fine, so I just got the cleaning, and ignored the rest.
10 years later my teeth are still fine. They're white, they don't hurt. I do brush and floss (even though a study came out saying there is no evidence flossing actually helps https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html (https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/health/flossing-teeth-cavities.html)). I really think dentists are full of garbage.
It's like the health experts and doctors who said eat a lot of carbs and low fat (oh, and eggs are going to give you high cholesterol and you'll die from eating them!!!). Just saying stuff cause they were taught it instead of doing studies. Or using insulin to treat type 2 diabetes... all garbage.
Sounds like you just had a bad dentist. I had a similar thing happen to me, a dentist quoted $2000+ worth of work including a root canal, crown, and getting some fillings redone. I got a second opinion and just did a filling for $200 without the root canal, crown, or any other fillings.
That flossing article just says that there isn't enough evidence yet. So basically it says nothing. All I have is anecdotal evidence, but if I don't floss I get cavities each year between my teeth. There's really no reason not to.
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I am amazed by the dentist's market.. It's like a dream job* , 6 fig paycheck easily.. Why there aren't more dentist's ? i am wondering myself, why I did not chose to be dentist.
*except you have to smell patients breath.
It is only a slight exaggeration to say that there is a dentist on nearly every street corner in the Boise area. When my daughter was considering it a little bit, I urged her to go for the extra schooling and choose a dental specialty like orthodontics or periodontics; those markets seem much less saturated, around here at least.
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secondcor521, That's true.
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^ I guess that's what makes it "crazy" LOL
It's a false economy to skip going to the dentist.
I waited to go to the dentist (due to being super-busy at work, not to save money). As a result, I wound up needing a root canal & crown (costing $1600 IIRC) and then ultimately cracked the same tooth and had to have it extracted (cost I don't recall) and replaced with a fake (cost ~$5000).
My cleanings have been a lot less unpleasant since I started flossing regularly. YMMY.
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Not the craziest, but kinda funny. My idea of going out is just to get out and see stuff, not to buy or eat. Wanted to take my family out for a fun morning and have breakfast out. By breakfast out I told my wife id boil some eggs and bring them and almonds and eat it in the car on the way so we could just buy her a meal and let the 1 and 4 year old kids snack off her plate. She begged me to just enjoy a meal w us and be normal, so I did. I was definitely thinking about what else that $10 could have been used for lol.
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Not the craziest, but kinda funny. My idea of going out is just to get out and see stuff, not to buy or eat. Wanted to take my family out for a fun morning and have breakfast out. By breakfast out I told my wife id boil some eggs and bring them and almonds and eat it in the car on the way so we could just buy her a meal and let the 1 and 4 year old kids snack off her plate. She begged me to just enjoy a meal w us and be normal, so I did. I was definitely thinking about what else that $10 could have been used for lol.
My kids got free subway meals as a part of some kids summer physical activity program by the local hospital. I can't stand subway so I ate right before we went out, but DH bought a sandwich there so we wouldn't be total cheapasses spending $0 there. I tried to convince him to get the discounted sub of the day, but it was meatball and he said no :eyeroll:
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Not the craziest, but kinda funny. My idea of going out is just to get out and see stuff, not to buy or eat. Wanted to take my family out for a fun morning and have breakfast out. By breakfast out I told my wife id boil some eggs and bring them and almonds and eat it in the car on the way so we could just buy her a meal and let the 1 and 4 year old kids snack off her plate. She begged me to just enjoy a meal w us and be normal, so I did. I was definitely thinking about what else that $10 could have been used for lol.
My kids got free subway meals as a part of some kids summer physical activity program by the local hospital. I can't stand subway so I ate right before we went out, but DH bought a sandwich there so we wouldn't be total cheapasses spending $0 there. I tried to convince him to get the discounted sub of the day, but it was meatball and he said no :eyeroll:
Yea I'd pass on the meat ball sub too. Gross.
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
Do you fly? Because a dental X-ray exposes you to about 0.01mSv of radiation, which is the same as about 3.5 hours of flying. Every banana you eat exposes you to about 1 microSv of radiation, or 10mSv. So a dental X-ray is as dangerous as eating 10 bananas...
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About 10 years ago I was working on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago, my first job out of college. My company was closing it's doors and I asked if I could take an old brown leather computer chair home with me. At one point, it was probably the crème de la crème of chairs, but by now it was probably 20+ years old and had a few tears in the seat so it was just going to get thrown away. Luckily, the answer was yes, but it had to be gone that same day. That didn't leave me enough time to arrange a ride, so if I wanted it, I needed to lug it home with me. I thought I could wheel it down the sidewalk, but it was winter and the plastic wheels were not happy with the cold and salt and I didn't want them to be ruined. So I hoisted that thing up on my head (and it's heavy because it's old) and carried it 6 blocks to the EL train, and then another mile from my stop to my apartment. My neck and head were pretty sore by the time I made it home, but it's a great chair. Still have it to this day. I can still remember some of the looks I got from people when they saw a guy in a tie walking down the Mag Mile carrying a chair on his head. I wasn't even that Mustacian back then, I just knew I wanted that chair!
(https://daicynotdaisy.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/chair.jpg)
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As someone who used to live a block off the Mag Mile, I would have loved to have witnessed you and said chair! :D
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
Do you fly? Because a dental X-ray exposes you to about 0.01mSv of radiation, which is the same as about 3.5 hours of flying. Every banana you eat exposes you to about 1 microSv of radiation, or 10mSv. So a dental X-ray is as dangerous as eating 10 bananas...
I would be interested in seeing the research behind that. Could you post a link of the studies?
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When I was a kid, my grandma (who came from an extremely wealthy family and lived in a very wealthy neighborhood) would take very long evening walk every day and sometimes "dumpster dive" in the neighbor's trash on garbage night. When I was visiting her it really freaked me out, but one time she found an awesome sewing basket for me. The worst was when she pulled a bag of unshucked corn on the cob out of someone's trash can and took it home and cooked it up and served it for dinner. She couldn't force me to eat it. Gross that was not sanitary! This was about 45 years ago, she was the original dumpster diver LOL
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I used to address letters to myself, then clearly put the intended recipient's address in the "from" area. I would drop them in the mail in Houston with no stamp. The US Postal Service would stamp them "insufficient postage" and dutifully "return" them to, say, my sister in California.
LOL. With a mind like that you should work on Wall st.
Been re washing and using plastic baggies as long as they have been around, not from a frugal mind set but an environmental one.
Dumpster diving at Natural food store, but only in nice cold winter was pretty standard for us.
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Today was Community Service Day. The high school had a huge campus clean-up going on and they were one of the projects I was monitoring. Apparently they'd gone to Panera Bread for a "dough" nation. At the end of the event, they had a lot left over and didn't know what to do with it. I had them put the bread in my car. I then contacted my friend from the Food Bank, and she gave me the name of a shelter she thought could use it. She warned me not to go alone, so late this afternoon, after all the projects were done, DH and I made the 18-mile trek to deliver the bread. We also contributed the leftover snacks from other projects.
As I was driving around with a giant bag of assorted bagels and an even bigger bag of assorted loaves of bread, the smell was amazing! A loaf or two may have become separated from the herd and may become French Toast for breakfast in the morning and French Onion Soup for dinner. I feel a little guilty about that, but had I not spoken up, I have a sneaking suspicion it all would have ended up in a dumpster.
There was no way in hell I was going to let all that perfectly good bread go to waste. Frugal? Check. Crazy? Double check.
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A few years ago our washing machine broke. We washed our clothes in the bathtub - one of my olders would help me stomp them, then we would rinse and wring by hand and hang outside to dry. Gave us time to find a good deal on a washing machine before buying which took 1-2 months to find what we wanted at the price we wanted (we are very hard on washing machines so needed a good one). We had 7 kids at the time -so were washing for 9 people.
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A few years ago our washing machine broke. We washed our clothes in the bathtub - one of my olders would help me stomp them, then we would rinse and wring by hand and hang outside to dry. Gave us time to find a good deal on a washing machine before buying which took 1-2 months to find what we wanted at the price we wanted (we are very hard on washing machines so needed a good one). We had 7 kids at the time -so were washing for 9 people.
Wow. Baddest of all badasses right there^.
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I think BAM and spouse win the prize for most mustachian.
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I was attending my dental hygienist for my bi-annual check up. She went ahead and started a scale and polish procedure, and I was not ready for it. I put my hand up and asked her to stop, made my excuses and left. I went home and ordered a home dental kit online - scraper, descaler, mirror thing, etc. Now I am doing the task myself, without damage or pain. Its a bit fiddley, but I am getting better with practice. One time investment of $11, versus $80 every dentist visit. Thats another job insourced.
My dentist passed away a couple months ago and, of course, I broke a tooth about a month ago. I called the business to get an appointment with the other dentist to fix the tooth. This dentist runs a welfare office, not a dentist office. Even though he had all my records from his partner he REQUIRED that I first have a full mouth x-ray, a cleaning, and an exam by him before he would schedule me to have my tooth fixed. I explained that I only have six natural teeth in my mouth and a cleaning wasn't needed; I don't want the extra x-rays for personal reasons. As for an exam, if he can't find the broken front tooth, he is in the wrong business. I have no dental insurance, so I am living with the broken tooth. I won't pay welfare or blackmail just to have a tooth repaired. Still looking for another dentist.
Wow... We have refused the yearly/extra x-ray with our regular dentist. Just personal preference, that we do not want to have x-ray beamed into our heads no matter how safe it is supposed to be. Our dentist is fine with that, never put any pressure. Like you, we would have leave if it is required. Same with my son's dentist as well. Hope you find another dentist.
Do you fly? Because a dental X-ray exposes you to about 0.01mSv of radiation, which is the same as about 3.5 hours of flying. Every banana you eat exposes you to about 1 microSv of radiation, or 10mSv. So a dental X-ray is as dangerous as eating 10 bananas...
I would be interested in seeing the research behind that. Could you post a link of the studies?
I don't have access to the figures at home, but when I get to work (in a radiology clinic) I can pull out the manual for our CT machines if you like.
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I bike all year long, even in the snow. (Love biking, so not so bad for me)
Re-wash baggies for environmental and cost measures.
Sew my clothing back together. Sports gear is too expensive to just toss, when a rip occurs.
Live in a very modest home. We can afford way more, but choose to save the excess and keep debt down.
Bring lunch all the time. It's rare to need to buy something out.
We buy clothing at second hand stores.
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A few years ago our washing machine broke. We washed our clothes in the bathtub - one of my olders would help me stomp them, then we would rinse and wring by hand and hang outside to dry. Gave us time to find a good deal on a washing machine before buying which took 1-2 months to find what we wanted at the price we wanted (we are very hard on washing machines so needed a good one). We had 7 kids at the time -so were washing for 9 people.
Wow. Baddest of all badasses right there^.
Yep. I wasn't think so badass, until I hit the 'for 9 people' part.
For a single person, I found that putting the clothes on and rubbing the soap all over as you wear them works best...did that while backpacking.
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I kept my home at 45 to 55 °F in winter, wearing wool underclothes, sweaters and a hat for warmth, and using a dehumidifier to reduce the risk of mold. As my fingers got really cold when typing for longer periods, I got an small electric pad to put under the keyboard. I live alone, so didn't have to get anyone else's agreement for this experiment.
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I work for a large corporation at an office of ~1000 employees. Often times people will bring bagels/donuts/snacks to share. Additionally, whenever any of the higher-ups have a meeting they'll have a catered lunch with normally plenty of extras. So I'll walk the halls of my office every few hours in search free snacks or lunch. I just hate to see free food go to waster.
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I work at MegaCorp. A long time ago (20 years) they use to provide free donuts at break time in the morning.
The chime would go off and folks would take break and have some donuts and coffee.
The thing was, there were a few managers who would raid the donuts before break-time and take what they wanted.
Whenever the "working class" had break time it was obvious that there were donuts missing.
I often spied the managers doing this. Part of their sense of entitlement, I guess.
Anyway, I thought it was pretty obnoxious but ....
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I kept my home at 45 to 55 °F in winter, wearing wool underclothes, sweaters and a hat for warmth, and using a dehumidifier to reduce the risk of mold. As my fingers got really cold when typing for longer periods, I got an small electric pad to put under the keyboard. I live alone, so didn't have to get anyone else's agreement for this experiment.
I did the same thing one time. Wife and kid went and stayed with her family for a few weeks, I thought I run experiment how low my heating bill can be if I keep the house at 55F. I do not remember exactly, but the saving was pretty substantial. On the day that I felt really cold, I worked from local library - they probably kept it there ~70F :)
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I work for a large corporation at an office of ~1000 employees. Often times people will bring bagels/donuts/snacks to share. Additionally, whenever any of the higher-ups have a meeting they'll have a catered lunch with normally plenty of extras. So I'll walk the halls of my office every few hours in search free snacks or lunch. I just hate to see free food go to waster.
This used to be me. My professor used to often bring bagels or donuts for lab meetings in the morning and at some point I started asking him to send me an email so I didn't have to eat breakfast. He also sometimes asked for people's preference and I was always the only one replying - which ensured me of bagels every Tuesday morning :D
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^ I guess that's what makes it "crazy" LOL
It's a false economy to skip going to the dentist.
I waited to go to the dentist (due to being super-busy at work, not to save money). As a result, I wound up needing a root canal & crown (costing $1600 IIRC) and then ultimately cracked the same tooth and had to have it extracted (cost I don't recall) and replaced with a fake (cost ~$5000).
My cleanings have been a lot less unpleasant since I started flossing regularly. YMMY.
I wanted to second this. I didn't go to the dentist for about two and a half years -- figured eh it was hard to find a dentist and I'd have to pay and ehhhh I brush my teeth twice a day and I floss! -- and then when my gums swelled and started bleeding, I finally went in. Turned out I needed a deep cleaning (4 visits, all with novocaine) and then a gum graft, to the tune of well over $1500. Definite financial loss and physically unpleasant.
I'm happy to skimp on a lot of things -- washing plastic baggies and sleeping in airports and on roadsides is a pretty familiar tune to me -- but I've learned the hard way not to skimp on checkups and other things for health. Gotta keep that body fit and going so that my medical costs are lower in retirement, after all. ;)
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^ I guess that's what makes it "crazy" LOL
It's a false economy to skip going to the dentist.
I waited to go to the dentist (due to being super-busy at work, not to save money). As a result, I wound up needing a root canal & crown (costing $1600 IIRC) and then ultimately cracked the same tooth and had to have it extracted (cost I don't recall) and replaced with a fake (cost ~$5000).
My cleanings have been a lot less unpleasant since I started flossing regularly. YMMY.
I wanted to second this. I didn't go to the dentist for about two and a half years -- figured eh it was hard to find a dentist and I'd have to pay and ehhhh I brush my teeth twice a day and I floss! -- and then when my gums swelled and started bleeding, I finally went in. Turned out I needed a deep cleaning (4 visits, all with novocaine) and then a gum graft, to the tune of well over $1500. Definite financial loss and physically unpleasant.
I'm happy to skimp on a lot of things -- washing plastic baggies and sleeping in airports and on roadsides is a pretty familiar tune to me -- but I've learned the hard way not to skimp on checkups and other things for health. Gotta keep that body fit and going so that my medical costs are lower in retirement, after all. ;)
i
When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always. And I hate flossing. But once the dentist gave me a pack of small gum brushes and they totally do the trick. After brushing, I clean between my teeth and my gums and there is usually something coming out that wasn't removed in the initial brush. I no longer have bleeding gums and almost no tooth stone at the dentist.
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When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always.
Interesting. I bet the word you're looking for is calculus. From the Latin for small pebble, it can either mean the buildup on the teeth, or a kind of math we study in high school and college that torments a lot of people.
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When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always.
Interesting. I bet the word you're looking for is calculus. From the Latin for small pebble, it can either mean the buildup on the teeth, or a kind of math we study in high school and college that torments a lot of people.
I think it means plaque.
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I put 100 ft of drainage tile in my Chevy Sonic yesterday at the home depot, saving about $20 over 1x10ft drainage tiles. Couldn't fit it in my trunk at all, nor in my back seat. Ended up wrapping it through my back two windshields, over the car, and back and over, 4 times. Then driving 10 miles home in the winter with my windows down.
When we got home my wife asked how many people in the parking lot saw me. 'Lots' was my response.
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I also stopped going to the dentist. I set a reminder to my work account to brush, floss, and Listerine in the afternoon. I water pick once per week, and of course do the morning and evening brush. I can't imagine that ever not being enough. Savings: $200-$400 per year.
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I biked home from the hardware store with a 66-lb bag of parging cement strapped to my back bike rack. Got some "this middle-aged woman is crazy" looks from the warehouse guys.
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When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always.
Interesting. I bet the word you're looking for is calculus. From the Latin for small pebble, it can either mean the buildup on the teeth, or a kind of math we study in high school and college that torments a lot of people.
I think it means plaque.
According to google translate it is called "tartar".
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When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always.
Interesting. I bet the word you're looking for is calculus. From the Latin for small pebble, it can either mean the buildup on the teeth, or a kind of math we study in high school and college that torments a lot of people.
I think it means plaque.
According to google translate it is called "tartar".
Actually both, one leads to the other
According to webMd
If plaque stays on your teeth it hardens into tartar.
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^ I guess that's what makes it "crazy" LOL
It's a false economy to skip going to the dentist.
I waited to go to the dentist (due to being super-busy at work, not to save money). As a result, I wound up needing a root canal & crown (costing $1600 IIRC) and then ultimately cracked the same tooth and had to have it extracted (cost I don't recall) and replaced with a fake (cost ~$5000).
My cleanings have been a lot less unpleasant since I started flossing regularly. YMMY.
I wanted to second this. I didn't go to the dentist for about two and a half years -- figured eh it was hard to find a dentist and I'd have to pay and ehhhh I brush my teeth twice a day and I floss! -- and then when my gums swelled and started bleeding, I finally went in. Turned out I needed a deep cleaning (4 visits, all with novocaine) and then a gum graft, to the tune of well over $1500. Definite financial loss and physically unpleasant.
I'm happy to skimp on a lot of things -- washing plastic baggies and sleeping in airports and on roadsides is a pretty familiar tune to me -- but I've learned the hard way not to skimp on checkups and other things for health. Gotta keep that body fit and going so that my medical costs are lower in retirement, after all. ;)
i
When it comes to the dentist, I have had tooth stone (I don't know the English word) removal with bleeding gums always. And I hate flossing. But once the dentist gave me a pack of small gum brushes and they totally do the trick. After brushing, I clean between my teeth and my gums and there is usually something coming out that wasn't removed in the initial brush. I no longer have bleeding gums and almost no tooth stone at the dentist.
My dentist gave me those too! I have really quick plaque/tartar buildup, and using the little scraper where the teeth and gums meet is ridiculously helpful. Still need very regular cleanings, but my dentist is now proud of me instead of worried, so that's great. ;)
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Packed a Razor scooter to get around on a trip to Irvine, CA to get around... 7 weeks post-op from an ACL replacement, wearing an ACL brace.
I did it because I'd already bought my plane ticket (free on airline points but booked 6 months in advance) and didn't want to pay the fee to get the airline points back, my hotel was free due to points, and I was too cheap to rent a car.
So picture this: me gimping around with one working leg, schlepping this scooter around in carry-on luggage, and Razor-ing around on various hills with no real experience with the damn scooter and not quite sure how to stop it. I faceplanted once crossing a pedestrian crosswalk that was also a freeway exit, and again at the bottom of a large hill. I could still have blown out the graft very easily.
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I also stopped going to the dentist. I set a reminder to my work account to brush, floss, and Listerine in the afternoon. I water pick once per week, and of course do the morning and evening brush. I can't imagine that ever not being enough. Savings: $200-$400 per year.
Speaking as one closely related to a dentist, a word of warning about Listerine and alocohol-based mouthwashes in general: Listerine is more than 25% alcohol (54 proof), which ends out contributing to gum disease and cavities. Listerine Zero is fine. https://www.napervilledentistry.com/blog/does-alcohol-in-mouthwash-prevent-gum-disease (https://www.napervilledentistry.com/blog/does-alcohol-in-mouthwash-prevent-gum-disease)/ [not the dentist I'm related to]
And a set of X-rays every few years and seeing the hygienist would certainly be to your advantage. I've got exemplary dental hygiene myself, and still have tartar which builds up in a couple of areas.
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Free bagels from the local place were available in the break room. I stole one for a snack to eat at home. No doubt it will be slightly stale, by the time I eat it tomorrow.
What is happening to me? ;)
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I didn't know about until it was done but I'm married to the guy so by default it was me too:
The first time we painted our living room/ dining room, it looked like the last gal of paint wasn't going to do all the room that was left, so it got mixed with another half gallon of water. We were young and in love
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Please if u find shoes on the beach don't take them! I grew up in a beach town and we always kick off our shoes first thing when we get to the sand since I was a kid. Never had a problem until a few years ago somebody took my sandals!
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Free bagels from the local place were available in the break room. I stole one for a snack to eat at home. No doubt it will be slightly stale, by the time I eat it tomorrow.
What is happening to me? ;)
Welcome to the dark frugal side.
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Free bagels from the local place were available in the break room. I stole one for a snack to eat at home. No doubt it will be slightly stale, by the time I eat it tomorrow.
What is happening to me? ;)
Welcome to the dark frugal side.
Curious use of the word "stealing". Were they intended for someone else? "Available in the breakroom" sounds like a general offering.
If I was worried about freshness, I'd just freeze it, if your break room has a fridge.
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Free bagels from the local place were available in the break room. I stole one for a snack to eat at home. No doubt it will be slightly stale, by the time I eat it tomorrow.
What is happening to me? ;)
Welcome to the dark frugal side.
It wasn't stealing really. They were sitting on the table for everyone.
I have a hard time taking the free food off the everyone table at work. We are in such better shape financially than most of our peers. Heck, we are doing better financially than people with higher educations and better jobs than ourselves. I'm a secretary. OK, well, Office manager, but it feels like secretarial work. My other job is a bike shop, which is more for fun and discount benefits. It seems that other people should take them. It was late in the day, someone announced them, and there were few takers. Figured they would get tossed anyway. There is a lot of food wasted there. Usually, I avoid it. Like, ew...people have no doubt pawed those.
Curious use of the word "stealing". Were they intended for someone else? "Available in the breakroom" sounds like a general offering.
If I was worried about freshness, I'd just freeze it, if your break room has a fridge.
I hate this forums quote feature. I'm not smart enough to figure it out.
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Free bagels from the local place were available in the break room. I stole one for a snack to eat at home. No doubt it will be slightly stale, by the time I eat it tomorrow.
What is happening to me? ;)
You are getting smarter. Use free food when you can get it legally.
I often take home leftover fruit from our office. If therecis a pile of apples and pears left on friday afternoon and I leave late, I take it home. Other colleagues think it is good that at doesn`t go to waste.
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
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For two years I have been doing extensive remodeling on an older home we downsized to. Have done a lot of drywall, new floors etc..a lot of gutting and I haven't ordered one dumpster. With all the building going on around our house I pull up and ask people If I can toss a few Items into there dumpster and have never been rejected. Not the Craziest but I don't go out of my way, I keep the Van in the back loaded and when I see an opportunity I get rid of stuff.
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For two years I have been doing extensive remodeling on an older home we downsized to. Have done a lot of drywall, new floors etc..a lot of gutting and I haven't ordered one dumpster. With all the building going on around our house I pull up and ask people If I can toss a few Items into there dumpster and have never been rejected. Not the Craziest but I don't go out of my way, I keep the Van in the back loaded and when I see an opportunity I get rid of stuff.
+1
We just remodeled our bathroom. I kept all the waste in the garage and got rid of it, one trashcan a week, over 3 months!!
(also put some items on free cycle, like mirror etc. since I hated throwing away stuff that could be re-used)
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My daughter's snowsuit from when she was about 8 is still in use as a pot-warmer (she is 20 now). We make yogurt every week, and you have to keep the pan warm for several hours. Wrap it in old snowsuit and good.
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
... what are "full size sheets"? Are they what we would call king size? Larger than queen?
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
... what are "full size sheets"? Are they what we would call king size? Larger than queen?
Full is the next size down from queen. King, queen, full, single aka twin.
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Someone gave me a couple of onions that were growing. The onions were bad, but they had nice green tops. I chopped off the green tops and those will be part of dinner tonight. I am making a pad thai. We also had some leftover cilantro. This works out perfectly.
Not quite dumpster diving, but making something from someone's garbage.
You guys are turning me into a weirdo. ;)
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I love this thread!
I get a lot of crap from people for taking free stuff from the trash on the street. My mom did it growing up so it got passed on to me. She would give us Christmas gifts that she found in the trash - like a whole package of socks brand new. She's good at finding excellent things. It's especially awesome when you are moving into a new place and need furnishings. If I can't find it in the street I'll go to the thrift store. I love how creative it makes you!
I have had many periods in my life where I didnt have a car. I moved house several times by walking. Once I bungeed stuff on to my rolling vacuum cleaner to help transport it all about a mile. I used the hose part as a pulling handle. I think someone even took a photo of me hahaha!And I've used grocery shopping carts to move a few times. They are awesome. Here you have to deposit €1 to use the cart at the store. One time I wanted my €1 back but I was busy moving so I couldn't take the cart back immediately to get the refund. So I locked the cart to a pole with a bike lock overnight and took it back the next day hahaha. I didnt want someone to steal it and get my euro. My friends thought I was bonkers.
Sometimes I think I am quite a weirdo, it is good to find you other weirdos. :D
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I just remembered something.
Back in college, I usually took the train to and from the airport because that was a lot cheaper than a taxi or even imposing on a friend for a lift.
One time, the cheapest flight home left early enough in the morning that there was not an early enough train to get there.
The obvious solution, which I used, was to take the last train the previous night to the airport, and sleep in the airport lobby for a few fitful hours. I had no alarm clock, so I had to sort of be aware of what time it was so I didn't miss my flight. Also I had to kind of sleep on my backpack so my fellow homeless people travelers didn't steal my stuff.
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
... what are "full size sheets"? Are they what we would call king size? Larger than queen?
Full is the next size down from queen. King, queen, full, single aka twin.
Ah. So double then.
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I once had my hand luggage searched at Zurich Airport on my way home at the end of a hiking holiday in the Swiss Alps because the x-ray machine picked up suspicious packages. The customs officer didn't crack a smile as he pulled out nearly-full bags of Migros own brand white flour, sugar, rice and pasta and a jar of paprika. Well, y'know, food's expensive in Switzerland, I hate food waste at the best of time, and my bag was well under the weight limit.
To add to the sitcom effect, someone of my acquaintance from home was coming through at the same time and got a new perspective of the sort of person I am.
(See also: Being stopped at security at Berlin because of suspicious oblong packages in my hand luggage. I am that person who thought there might not be an Aldi on every street corner in Berlin, and carried a dozen cheap flapjacks from home.)
This reminds me of traveling many years ago, pre 9-11, extra security measures and airline being very strict on weight of suitcase. I travel light, but always have two huge suitcases plus a carry-on for my trips to SE Asia. On the way back, I would pack them with food - noodles, crackers pretty much anything that I can think of, up to the max weight. The look on the custom officers who inspect the suitcases are priceless hahaha
Love this thread. Makes me feel less crazy about the things I do to save a buck, which most of my friends consider abnormal. I've done a lot of the "crazy" things posted in this thread, but the travel shopping definitely hits home given my current situation.
I'm currently living in Norway, where food, clothing, services and basic personal hygiene products are ungodly expensive. For reference, a pack of dental floss costs about $6 here. No, I did not miss a decimal... $6. A basic pair of jeans costs well over $100. And dry cleaning costs about $20 for a basic wool sweater.
I travel to SE Asia (Vietnam) about twice a year to see my girlfriend, who is back there finishing school, and I get 30kg of checked baggage for free on Qatar. I go there with a carry-on backpack filled with the few wool items that I like to dry clean and an empty suitcase. While visiting, I buy enough personal hygiene products to last me about six months, have all of my items dry cleaned for about $2 an item, buy a piece of clothing or two to replace anything that is beyond repair (I refuse to buy clothing in Norway) and fill the rest of the allotted 30kg with non-perishable food items (rice noodles, spices, coffee, etc.). The saving from purchasing all of these products/services there vs in Norway almost pays for my round-trip plane ticket of around $500.
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I rinse and reuse coffee filters for my aeropress 3-5 times before composting them. Those things are pricey!
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For two years I have been doing extensive remodeling on an older home we downsized to. Have done a lot of drywall, new floors etc..a lot of gutting and I haven't ordered one dumpster. With all the building going on around our house I pull up and ask people If I can toss a few Items into there dumpster and have never been rejected. Not the Craziest but I don't go out of my way, I keep the Van in the back loaded and when I see an opportunity I get rid of stuff.
+1
We just remodeled our bathroom. I kept all the waste in the garage and got rid of it, one trashcan a week, over 3 months!!
(also put some items on free cycle, like mirror etc. since I hated throwing away stuff that could be re-used)
+1. I have very nice neighbor, and we helped each other. So I asked him the day before trash pick-up if his trash can has some room so I can throw away some of my trash in his trash can as well. I did put his trash can on the curb - it is heavy after I added my trash.
I did this a few weeks in a row :)
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I had a friend during my college years who was from an old money family but down on his luck. He somehow maintained all his private club memberships (despite being unable to pay the monthly bills). He ran into his neighbor at a typically drunken lunch one day at the club and heard she was off to NYC for a week at the Waldorf. Having stayed there many times himself, he begged her to bring him some of their fabulous soaps.
A couple weeks later he was mowing the grass in his front yard on say a Tuesday morning (since he had no job). Keep in mind this was on the toniest old money lane in town where lawn crews maintained all the greenery year round and he was "caretaking" a mansion for a friend for five years. She wafted by in her Rolls Royce and he waved at her, all sweaty and filthy and she shouted "I have your soap!".
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We bring three boxes of coffee filters back from France each time we go. 1 Euro / box at Carrefour, CAD$6 + tax / box in Canada. And a few packs of San Marco coffee as well, especially when it's on sale at Lidl.
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The other day DW bought this brand new huge pot to steam food. Pro: it is $2 (yay!). Con - two big dent on the lid, and the pot itself has a dent and not perfectly round (no wonder it is $2). Its like something very heavy fall on top of it.
She asked if I can fix it, or she will return in to the store.
Me: oh... just so happened that I have a dead blow on order, and been wondering what I am going to "test" it when it arrives :)
So yesterday I spent some time slowly trying to get this pot back in shape. It is much better now. The lid now fit into the pot and the pot is only slightly less round. There is still one dent that I need to straighten, will do so over weekend.
This pot is definitely a keeper!
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I bought house brand cheese last night.
If it totally sucks, I am going back to premium. I am giving this a try to see if I can handle a budget reduction on cheese.
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
... what are "full size sheets"? Are they what we would call king size? Larger than queen?
Full is the next size down from queen. King, queen, full, single aka twin.
Ah. So double then.
Exactly, ah!
In Australia we have king, queen, double, king single, single.
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I've got one
While in Panama City, Panama we went to a bar to watch a football game. The taxi ride there was $3. So at midnight, when we were going back to the hostel, the taxi wanted $5. We said no, we'll pay $3. He left, next one, same thing... Third one, I told him where we wanted to go, and gave him $3 saying "OK?" And he said yes. So we piled in and off we went. Except he didn't know where our hostel was. He drove around and called a dispatch and no one knew where it was. So I told him to go down this road further and it had to be there. He went a bit, and then he said it wasn't down here, and he wouldn't go any further, it was dangerous. So we got out.
Standing in the side of the road, no idea where we were, lucky an other taxi pulls up. He knows where the place is, and tells us it is 7 blocks back the other way. We say we'll walk, he says no, get in, it's not safe and only $2... As we are getting in, a their runs up and rips my mom's purse off. I chase after the guy and he pulls out a gun. I duck and run back to the cab.
So in summary, we tried to save $2, and ended up spending it anyway, and my mother's passport was stolen (plus Kindle, lucky her purse was basically empty) we came out -$175 and a lot of hassle on that one.
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Not too crazy, but I just realized how ridiculous this would sound to anyone outside of this forum...
I'm using full-size bed sheets on my queen bed. Before I resorted to the full sheets, I was using a set of queen sheets that I got for free which ended up ripping after a few months.
... what are "full size sheets"? Are they what we would call king size? Larger than queen?
Full is the next size down from queen. King, queen, full, single aka twin.
Ah. So double then.
Exactly, ah!
In Australia we have king, queen, double, king single, single.
US is the same except single is also called twin, double is also called full and king single is "twin extra long".
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
Thanks. :)
I actually know a couple of other women who have done the same thing.
Last time I got one installed my ob/gyn told me you can remove it yourself, but I definitely don't have the guts. Good on you.
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I've got one
While in Panama City, Panama we went to a bar to watch a football game. The taxi ride there was $3. So at midnight, when we were going back to the hostel, the taxi wanted $5. We said no, we'll pay $3. He left, next one, same thing... Third one, I told him where we wanted to go, and gave him $3 saying "OK?" And he said yes. So we piled in and off we went. Except he didn't know where our hostel was. He drove around and called a dispatch and no one knew where it was. So I told him to go down this road further and it had to be there. He went a bit, and then he said it wasn't down here, and he wouldn't go any further, it was dangerous. So we got out.
Standing in the side of the road, no idea where we were, lucky an other taxi pulls up. He knows where the place is, and tells us it is 7 blocks back the other way. We say we'll walk, he says no, get in, it's not safe and only $2... As we are getting in, a their runs up and rips my mom's purse off. I chase after the guy and he pulls out a gun. I duck and run back to the cab.
So in summary, we tried to save $2, and ended up spending it anyway, and my mother's passport was stolen (plus Kindle, lucky her purse was basically empty) we came out -$175 and a lot of hassle on that one.
From all of the stories, I think you win. I started reading your story and thinking omg this is not going to end well. Glad you and your mom are ok, just remember things can be replaced.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
I have done that for years.
Another tip in this category is: turn off the shower while you are soaping in your hair. Relevant for people with long hair who like to massage their head.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
I have done that for years.
Another tip in this category is: turn off the shower while you are soaping in your hair. Relevant for people with long hair who like to massage their head.
I consider those rather as normal things than 'crazy things you'd do to be frugal'. Why would you ever feel the need to leave the water on while brushing teeth? It's just a waste, regardless the monetary savings.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
It might seem like a crazy way to save money, but it's better for the environment not to waste water. This practice is normal everywhere water is scarce, therefore it does not qualify as "crazy".
.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
But you brush your teeth at least once every day. That's $7.30/yr, or about 61 cents/month. Using MMM's calculations* that monthly waste could translate into $105 in your investment account after a decade. IMO it's crazy to waste water without even considering the financial implications.
*https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/04/15/getting-started-3-eliminate-short-termitis-the-bankruptcy-disease/
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I moved cross country using a bike trailer and USPS general delivery. I did wimp out and hire a truck on the other end since I had to pick it all up before the 30 day general delivery window was up.
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Oh, and ask me about my bigger-than-my-mortgage sized debt after 11 years of university, or what would happen to me financially if I were to ever get injured or ill, or what I spend annually on physiotherapy to lessen the damage that this job does to my body.
If it’s not too personal, I’m really curious about the nature of the physiotherapy and what about your job causes the need for it.
As an attorney I feel like I can also commiserate with you on a lot of these points. We are here to help people be proactive and no one uses us that way, it’s always reactive, and our “best result” (at least for me in defense) is that the client pays a bunch of money to feel exactly like they did when they walked in, not realizing the magnitude of suck they just avoided. And very rare gratitude because the only thing they notice is the lighter wallet. Not to mention the addiction, suicide rates, stress, and physical deterioration we fight daily.
I’m off my soapbox now but just wanted to say that I feel your pain.
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I hang out with a bunch of young dentists regularly. They talk shop *all the time*. It's a huge part of their identity.
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Oh, and ask me about my bigger-than-my-mortgage sized debt after 11 years of university, or what would happen to me financially if I were to ever get injured or ill, or what I spend annually on physiotherapy to lessen the damage that this job does to my body.
If it’s not too personal, I’m really curious about the nature of the physiotherapy and what about your job causes the need for it.
As an attorney I feel like I can also commiserate with you on a lot of these points. We are here to help people be proactive and no one uses us that way, it’s always reactive, and our “best result” (at least for me in defense) is that the client pays a bunch of money to feel exactly like they did when they walked in, not realizing the magnitude of suck they just avoided. And very rare gratitude because the only thing they notice is the lighter wallet. Not to mention the addiction, suicide rates, stress, and physical deterioration we fight daily.
I’m off my soapbox now but just wanted to say that I feel your pain.
+1 I'm an insurance agent. While not the same magnitude as a dentist, I understand having professional suggestions being ignored, charging folks money (which prices we cannot control), to hopefully bring them back to where they were before the "incident", and the being a certain type of crazy to have chosen this profession.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
It might seem like a crazy way to save money, but it's better for the environment not to waste water. This practice is normal everywhere water is scarce, therefore it does not qualify as "crazy".
.
One can also keep a bucket near the shower to collect water while it's heating up before showers. Use that for plant watering or other things.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
It might seem like a crazy way to save money, but it's better for the environment not to waste water. This practice is normal everywhere water is scarce, therefore it does not qualify as "crazy".
.
One can also keep a bucket near the shower to collect water while it's heating up before showers. Use that for plant watering or other things.
Definitely do save water when you can. We are spoiled living in a place where you can just turn on the faucet and here comes clean drinkable water 24x7.
Many years ago we had a guest visiting from Asia. In his area, water is only available at night. And these are water that have to boiled for drinking purpose. Once seeing that you can turn on the faucet and we got water with pretty good pressure, this person proceed to filled up our bathtub to the top. I asked why, he was like, you got water now, you should save them incase it does not come back on. Got to explain that we have water anytime we want here in the US. Also in his home, apparently he has a tub built-in to store water in the bathroom, so that is why he filled up our bathtub.
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Turning off the water while brushing my teeth just to save on the water bill. Assuming 5 gallons for a typical brushing period of time if the water ran, at $3.05 for 1000 gallons, I save $.02. I've now gifted each of you that $.02 here! ;-)
It might seem like a crazy way to save money, but it's better for the environment not to waste water. This practice is normal everywhere water is scarce, therefore it does not qualify as "crazy".
.
One can also keep a bucket near the shower to collect water while it's heating up before showers. Use that for plant watering or other things.
And that's not crazy either.
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Oh I finally have one to add! It happened last year but I forgot about it. I was travelling home for the holidays, and went to check into my flight, and my carry on luggage was 2kg over the limit. I decided to save the $50(!!!) I layered up on the unseasonably warm Canadian December day. Finally got my carry on under the limit. Once I went through security I re-organized my life and put everything back in my bag....but I was foiled! The same check in attendent was now the boarding agent, and she told me, my luggage had to be the same weight as at check in or I would have to pay a $75 (!!!!) door check fee. So I had to unload all my stuff AGAIN and boarded the plane with my 18 layers on. I was so smug when I walked on to that plane past the check in attendant.
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This was all for a less than 1 hr local flight. They were pretty strict at that tiny airport!
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Public transportation isn't a huge thing in Texas in a lot of places so I get a lot of weird reactions when I say I ride the train to the airport. Why don't you just Uber?!? Why don't you park there?! Well, Uber is like $32 one way and parking is like $10 a day. The train is $2 for a 2-hour pass with student ID (one way).
I don't think it's weird at all...?
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Oh I finally have one to add! It happened last year but I forgot about it. I was travelling home for the holidays, and went to check into my flight, and my carry on luggage was 2kg over the limit. I decided to save the $50(!!!) I layered up on the unseasonably warm Canadian December day. Finally got my carry on under the limit. Once I went through security I re-organized my life and put everything back in my bag....but I was foiled! The same check in attendent was now the boarding agent, and she told me, my luggage had to be the same weight as at check in or I would have to pay a $75 (!!!!) door check fee. So I had to unload all my stuff AGAIN and boarded the plane with my 18 layers on. I was so smug when I walked on to that plane past the check in attendant.
That's such a pain for you, but it makes a hilarious story. Taking all the stuff on and off twice :')
I would be so tempted, as walking onto that plane, asking that check in attendant if my luggage has to be the same weight as I am coming off the plane.
Good for you!
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Oh I finally have one to add! It happened last year but I forgot about it. I was travelling home for the holidays, and went to check into my flight, and my carry on luggage was 2kg over the limit. I decided to save the $50(!!!) I layered up on the unseasonably warm Canadian December day. Finally got my carry on under the limit. Once I went through security I re-organized my life and put everything back in my bag....but I was foiled! The same check in attendent was now the boarding agent, and she told me, my luggage had to be the same weight as at check in or I would have to pay a $75 (!!!!) door check fee. So I had to unload all my stuff AGAIN and boarded the plane with my 18 layers on. I was so smug when I walked on to that plane past the check in attendant.
I think that agent was messing with you. Think about all the crap they sell in airport gift stores, after you pass through security.
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Guess how people react when I tell them I BIKE to the airport at 6 AM (in Boston, so not as bad as Texas, public transportation was totally acceptable there :p)
Our airport has no legal way to access the main terminal by bike. We did actually look into it for my boyfriends last business trip. The only legal way is to go to the smaller farther terminal and take the light rail, at which point you might as well just take the light rail all the way IMO.
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Spent 4 hours sawing through a piece of metal in a tiny tiny cramped cabinet partly upside down I was trying to do some plumbing work that I had no experience for/tools for. Saved me 100 bucks tho so w/e ;P .
Also... put on a new shingle roof... that was an epic 3-4 days.
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Not crazy, but different for anyone who eats at my house:
I don't use papertowels.
I purchased napkins for cheap or reuse old hand towels to clean counters/house. Saves me from killing the environment and purchasing papertowels.
I walked 4.5 miles home from clinicals one rotation. I was fortunate to have a site so close for my School. But I did not own a bike. Atthe time I still had my SUV, but I couldn't fathom driving 4.5 miles to a hospital and pay $5-6/day for garage parking for the day. Or sitting in traffic in the morning. So I walked to and from. I guess you could call it "Run-Commuting." If it rained, my BF dropped me off and I ran home in the rain.
-Nash
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I'm 29 weeks pregnant and still biking to work (4.25 miles each way, flat) every day. I don't think it's crazy, but my coworkers do. I think they're crazy for paying $3.50/gallon for gas (or more, I don't actually know what gas costs lately).
Yep 23 weeks here, and still biking occasionally, we have a bit more winter then you do in NC...
Hopefully I can keep at it So I can up the days when the weather gets a bit better in 6 weeks or so.
Yep coworkers think I am crazy, but even crazier when they realize when I don’t bike I walk. (2 miles each way)
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The no air conditioning in the Houston summer amazes me. I live in Austin and in August it can get close to 100 in my condo, with only a limited breeze from my windows. I've sat shirtless in shorts at my desk and still been dripping with sweat.
I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
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This week, the craziest thing I did was bike to Walmart. Which is fine, but then halfway through I forgot we had biked and told Big Brother he could get a pinata for his birthday party.
I was able to wedge it into my Wald basket and cover it with extra grocery bags to protect the streamers. Picture me with an overstuffed pannier on one side, the pinata in the basket on the other, my almost-seven-year-old on his 20 in bike riding ahead of me, and my five-year-old cruising on the Piccolo trail-a-bike. Well, we made it, and I successfully conveyed crazy frugality to my spawn!
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Like many of my fellow Mustachians, I could eat at the finest restaurant in town, but I choose not to. Today is my birthday and a paid day off from work. So, I left my mortgage free home this morning, then drove to a local Denny's Restaurant, in my long ago paid off car. (I live in the boonies and it is not safe to bike to town). I ordered and enjoyed Denny's "Free Birthday Grand Slam". I did purchase a cup of coffee and gave the wonderful waitress a nice tip! It's the little things in life that make me happy!
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Like many of my fellow Mustachians, I could eat at the finest restaurant in town, but I choose not to. Today is my birthday and a paid day off from work. So, I left my mortgage free home this morning, then drove to a local Denny's Restaurant, in my long ago paid off car. (I live in the boonies and it is not safe to bike to town). I ordered and enjoyed Denny's "Free Birthday Grand Slam". I did purchase a cup of coffee and gave the wonderful waitress a nice tip! It's the little things in life that make me happy!
I love this! Happy Belated Birthday!
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My father was a Mustachian long before it was cool. As a kid, his frugality drove me nuts - he reused construction materials. First, he made us remove the nails from studs and joists and flooring during our home renovation and expansion - then, straighten the bent nails and reuse them. Then, part of our house was brick, so we chiseled out the brick wall, brick by brick, to add an addition. We sat for hours chiseling the old mortar off, and then reused the bricks in the retaining walls of our driveway and foundation of the addition.
Finally, one summer he decided to widen the driveway 2 feet by using an unusual recycling technique - he had found a county park where contractors had illegally dumped broken chunks of curbing that measured 18 inches by 9 inches thick by 3 feet long. Those suckers where HEAVY! Maybe 200-300 pounds. We would go after he came home from work and "steal" the pieces of curb, hoist them into our Ford van with a chain hoist on a steel scaffold he scrounged, and muscle them into place on the (excavated) side of the driveway, then hand mix cement to fill in around the irregular edges to make a "paving" of sorts. Took all summer, and looked like hell, but was used by him for over twenty years, until the rest of the asphalt driveway disintegrated, leaving only the massive slabs of concrete left. The police even stopped us one night in the park - thinking we were dumping. The cop could hardly believe us that we were taking them away, but he finally let us go, since we were really cleaning up the park. Environmentally aware, too, my Dad was.
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Finally, one summer he decided to widen the driveway 2 feet by using an unusual recycling technique - he had found a county park where contractors had illegally dumped broken chunks of curbing that measured 18 inches by 9 inches thick by 3 feet long. Those suckers where HEAVY! Maybe 200-300 pounds. We would go after he came home from work and "steal" the pieces of curb, hoist them into our Ford van with a chain hoist on a steel scaffold he scrounged, and muscle them into place on the (excavated) side of the driveway, then hand mix cement to fill in around the irregular edges to make a "paving" of sorts. Took all summer, and looked like hell, but was used by him for over twenty years, until the rest of the asphalt driveway disintegrated, leaving only the massive slabs of concrete left. The police even stopped us one night in the park - thinking we were dumping. The cop could hardly believe us that we were taking them away, but he finally let us go, since we were really cleaning up the park. Environmentally aware, too, my Dad was.
This reminded me of one. We had about a 4x12 concrete slab in the back yard of our first house that we decided to get rid of. We had someone come in and break it into pieces, but then we had to dispose of the concrete chunks.
We could have taken them all to the dump in a pickup truck in one fell swoop, but that would have cost like $10.
Somehow we (I?) decided that since the trash guys came once a week, we'd just throw out a chunk or two every week until it was all gone.
Unfortunately, the trash guys had a rule that they didn't have to empty any trash cans that were over about 50 pounds. So every week I'd balance trying to get rid of as much concrete as I could and not putting too much in there that they would skip it and leave an orange note on my trash can explaining why they didn't empty it.
I think after a while I took the bathroom scale out to the back alleyway and weighed the trash cans to try to get it right. And then my blood pressure went up a little when my trash cans were technically under the weight limit but the trash guys said it was too heavy.
We lived in that house for over a year and I still think there was concrete left when we moved out.
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Lots of great tips in this thread, here is my 2cents:
- I wash/reuse baggies a few times, same with foil and parchment paper.
- I save almost all of my veggie scraps and bones in baggies in the freezer and make stock. I use a pressure canner to keep about 8 qts on hand.
- One time I took the Bolt Bus from Seattle to Portland mid-day for $13, $9 for the way back at 5am the next day for a concert. I didn't book a hotel for the few hours after the show, so I hung around the city all night with a homeless man I met and drew pictures with him. Not the best idea for a 21 year old female, but it was an adventure.
- I walk to the grocery store, there's one that's 0.4 mile away and another that's 1 mile away. I bring my granny cart with me and amuse myself.
- Installed a bidet in our toilet and made "family towels" to pat dry from extra fabric. We buy a pack of toilet paper maybe once every 4 months, if we have guests over it cuts that time down a bit.
- Similarly, I almost never use paper towels except for cat puke/greasy stuff.
- I have only ever bought one bag of trash bags in my life, which was for moving out of my apartment to bag my clothes and bedding. I pick up single-use plastic bags and have the "bag of bags" I sewed from extra fabric. It looks like a hot dog and is fun to whack my husband with when he's not looking. We use very small trash cans for this to happen and since it's only use two and the cats we don't generate much garbage.
- I bought a $125 purple wedding dress from Amazon that was absolutely beautiful.
- Walking or biking to work to my part-time job that was 1.25 miles away absolutely blew my coworkers' minds.
- I was born and raised in So-Cal, which means conserving water. I shower a little longer these days in WA, but I still turn the water all the way off for soaping/shampooing and then again for conditioning/shaving, which confuses my husband to hear the water turn back on again after it was off for 10 minutes while I shaved. Our hot water would run out if the tap were on the whole time, and turning off the tap for a little bit helps the scalding hot water steam escape through the vent a little bit so it's not a complete sauna when I'm done.
I'm sure there's many more, but these are the main points I can think of off the top of my head.
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@ElizaStache, I love your list. I'm a champion plastic bag and foil washer, but I did not think you could wash parchment paper. Good to know.
Also, the bag holder story made me lol.
Hey, FWIW, I find if I buy good quality freezer weight plastic bags, those suckers last forever.
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I ate cheese I found on a wall.
I was in the suburbs of south London visiting a friend.
And on a garden wall there was some low-fat cheddar cheese with its packaging slightly open, and a sign saying 'please take'.
Its 'best before' date was that day.
So I took it home and used it in cooking that week.
No ill effects.
Also recently after a difficult phone exchange with my boss who wanted to know why I wasn't working on a Saturday...
I turned and found a green apple on a wall next to me.
So I ate it to cheer myself up.
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@ElizaStache, I love your list. I'm a champion plastic bag and foil washer, but I did not think you could wash parchment paper. Good to know.
Also, the bag holder story made me lol.
Hey, FWIW, I find if I buy good quality freezer weight plastic bags, those suckers last forever.
Thanks! The way I reuse parchment paper is mostly only for blind-baking pie shells, so I have my little container of beans and paper cuts outs ready to go. I wipe off any crumbs or butter and put the paper back in the bin. The key is to not leave too much hanging off the ends for the oven to ruin. I think I'm on my second or third roll of parchment paper in 6 years, I use Silpats for almost everything.
I also only buy the good name-brand freezer and sandwich bags since I'm only buying one or two boxes per year at most. Some things are not worth being cheap about.
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- I bought a $125 purple wedding dress from Amazon that was absolutely beautiful.
Picture please!
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- I bought a $125 purple wedding dress from Amazon that was absolutely beautiful.
Picture please!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017QSL7X2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1&psc=1
Please find the two attached pictures, one of me tipsily pinching the photographer's head, and the second of the back of the dress, showing the messed up tan I had from working my side gig as a landscaper! I had to shorten the dress a little bit, nothing the handy sewing machine couldn't handle.
My parents hosted a beautiful party for us in my childhood home in San Diego (no venue to pay for), with a grand total of 30 people, we had a lunch from my neighbor the caterer who did wedding pie instead of cake, rented some chairs and tables, my mom's childhood friend as the photographer, and my dad's former coworker was the officient. My cousin did my make up, SIL did my hair. We drove down from WA and made the drive back along the coast our honeymoon. Everything including rings was under $6k I believe. Best party ever!
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Please find the two attached pictures, one of me tipsily pinching the photographer's head, and the second of the back of the dress, showing the messed up tan I had from working my side gig as a landscaper! I had to shorten the dress a little bit, nothing the handy sewing machine couldn't handle.
Beautiful!
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I ate cheese I found on a wall.
I was in the suburbs of south London visiting a friend.
And on a garden wall there was some low-fat cheddar cheese with its packaging slightly open, and a sign saying 'please take'.
Its 'best before' date was that day.
So I took it home and used it in cooking that week.
No ill effects.
Also recently after a difficult phone exchange with my boss who wanted to know why I wasn't working on a Saturday...
I turned and found a green apple on a wall next to me.
So I ate it to cheer myself up.
I don't know why but this pleases me greatly. You seem to have a knack for finding edibles on walls.
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I live in houston, so its a tossup between biking to work (most bike unfriendly city ive been in, my wife thinks im crazy) and leaving the air conditioner off during the summer (my friends think im crazy).
Both those are hard core in Houston. Commutes would be similar although often delayed by thunder in Tampa. Hat off to you.
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I don’t watch TV so I have a small one and don’t care. Family member bought me a 4K TV because it’s inconceivable to him that I don’t care about TV. I’m too cheap to buy a 4K box. Difference between old TV (which was really only used when guests come over) and new fancy tv? Nothing.
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I find hair bands (like for ponytails) on the sidewalk and in parking lots all the time.
I just pick them up and dust them off and throw them in my bag and then use them without a second thought.
I guess I could get lice or something, but I do it anyway.
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OMG those hair bands
They're everywhere on the ground in London too!
I pick them up too.
I sometimes even wash them.
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I have been known to pick them up in the driveway of my apartment building when I'm almost certain they're elastics of mine that have fallen out of my bag while grabbing keys or whatever.
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
Thanks. :)
I actually know a couple of other women who have done the same thing.
Last time I got one installed my ob/gyn told me you can remove it yourself, but I definitely don't have the guts. Good on you.
After my wife self-serviced her IUD, I started using trash bags as condoms.
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IUD: You just pulled . . . and it came out?
I got comfy in front of a mirror, and used tweezers (which I cleaned with alcohol first). It took a few tries to get a good grip, but once I did, yup, it just slid out. Easy peasy.
Gawd - that is really fucking gross - but I can't help admire you for it on some bizarre level..
Thanks. :)
I actually know a couple of other women who have done the same thing.
Last time I got one installed my ob/gyn told me you can remove it yourself, but I definitely don't have the guts. Good on you.
After my wife self-serviced her IUD, I started using trash bags as condoms.
(https://media1.tenor.com/images/bb50255b76d35c6808e1c6426198f6bc/tenor.gif)
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Omg I would not pull out my own IUD. I had one partially fall out once and I went back to the doctor to get it removed. Luckily it was still in the "warranty" period so they replaced it for free.
My crazy frugal stuff probably isn't that crazy on here, but my friends think it is. I bike over an hour each way to avoid paying for bus fare (I don't own a car either) and actually preferred biking since I got some exercise too. One time I carried a queen bed frame home from Ikea on the bus and metro to avoid paying for delivery (my partner helped). I try to trade instead of buying new for whatever I can, I figure I've already saved hundreds doing that. I have never paid bank fees or credit card interest in my life, I always research how to get free accounts and stick within the required limits of transactions/balance minimums. I couchsurf instead of paying for accommodations, and got a couchsurfer to stay at my place and take care of my cat while I was on vacation. That one really scared my mom, but he was super nice and didn't steal anything. I've slept in an airport overnight instead of paying for a hotel for 10 hours. I also wash ziplocs and try to use cloth instead of paper towel, except for really gross stuff.
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Omg I would not pull out my own IUD. I had one partially fall out once and I went back to the doctor to get it removed. Luckily it was still in the "warranty" period so they replaced it for free.
My crazy frugal stuff probably isn't that crazy on here, but my friends think it is. I bike over an hour each way to avoid paying for bus fare (I don't own a car either) and actually preferred biking since I got some exercise too. One time I carried a queen bed frame home from Ikea on the bus and metro to avoid paying for delivery (my partner helped). I try to trade instead of buying new for whatever I can, I figure I've already saved hundreds doing that. I have never paid bank fees or credit card interest in my life, I always research how to get free accounts and stick within the required limits of transactions/balance minimums. I couchsurf instead of paying for accommodations, and got a couchsurfer to stay at my place and take care of my cat while I was on vacation. That one really scared my mom, but he was super nice and didn't steal anything. I've slept in an airport overnight instead of paying for a hotel for 10 hours. I also wash ziplocs and try to use cloth instead of paper towel, except for really gross stuff.
That's bad ass. I really like www.sleepinginairports.net when planning an overnight airport stay. When I was dating, I would give girls seeds instead of flowers.
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Omg I would not pull out my own IUD. I had one partially fall out once and I went back to the doctor to get it removed. Luckily it was still in the "warranty" period so they replaced it for free.
My crazy frugal stuff probably isn't that crazy on here, but my friends think it is. I bike over an hour each way to avoid paying for bus fare (I don't own a car either) and actually preferred biking since I got some exercise too. One time I carried a queen bed frame home from Ikea on the bus and metro to avoid paying for delivery (my partner helped). I try to trade instead of buying new for whatever I can, I figure I've already saved hundreds doing that. I have never paid bank fees or credit card interest in my life, I always research how to get free accounts and stick within the required limits of transactions/balance minimums. I couchsurf instead of paying for accommodations, and got a couchsurfer to stay at my place and take care of my cat while I was on vacation. That one really scared my mom, but he was super nice and didn't steal anything. I've slept in an airport overnight instead of paying for a hotel for 10 hours. I also wash ziplocs and try to use cloth instead of paper towel, except for really gross stuff.
That's bad ass. I really like www.sleepinginairports.net when planning an overnight airport stay. When I was dating, I would give girls seeds instead of flowers.
That site is pretty cool, wish I had known about it back then. If I need another layover like that, I know where to look.
I would actually really like getting seeds. I grow lots of plants so I prefer potted plants to cut flowers. I'm always trying to sprout food from scraps like lettuce, avocados and celery.
Reading more of this thread just reminded me of some other crazy frugal stuff I've done. Transported large furniture several kilometers on the back of my bike. Got some weird looks for that. Picked up furniture/books/paintings/large animal skulls off the sidewalk. Sometimes picked up stuff, then traded it for stuff I needed, even better. Rolled 60 bucks worth of nasty grease covered change a previous tenant left behind.
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I would also drive backwards through the McDonald's drive-through so they would have to pay.
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I would also drive backwards through the McDonald's drive-through so they would have to pay.
:)
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I've done a few, but two that stand out
-driving through the USA & Mexico (from Canada): never getting a hotel, just shift driving and sometimes sleeping in the back of a truck (there were a few of us so the driver slept up front, I--a young female, slept in the back with bags, and my friend, a young dude, slept UNDER the truck). We are so lucky nothing happened, we definitely got scoped out, I probably didn't sleep so well. This was about 15 years ago.
-I moved to a very HCOL area, had student loads debts to pay so I took a position cleaning in exchange for rent (in a dysfunctional house). But the room they offered wasn't really a room--it was the broiler room in the basement. I tried to be optimistic about it but after some animal was scurrying around down there with me, a friend (who had witnessed several of my extreme money saving tactics and applauded only some of them) reminded me that even though I *could* do something, didn't mean that I had to.
I moved out and paid the debt off more slowly but with mental health in a better place.
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@ElizaStache, I love your list. I'm a champion plastic bag and foil washer, but I did not think you could wash parchment paper. Good to know.
Also, the bag holder story made me lol.
Hey, FWIW, I find if I buy good quality freezer weight plastic bags, those suckers last forever.
I bought silicone baking pads which I use instead of parchment paper. You can scrub them and reuse them after.
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Many years ago, I didn't have enough money to afford insurance on my car but needed it for my summer job. So I used Public storage's $1/m deal and shifted my car once a month in the off hours when no one was on the road. Four months later, my job started and I could afford to put the insurance back on.
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@ElizaStache, I love your list. I'm a champion plastic bag and foil washer, but I did not think you could wash parchment paper. Good to know.
Also, the bag holder story made me lol.
Hey, FWIW, I find if I buy good quality freezer weight plastic bags, those suckers last forever.
I bought silicone baking pads which I use instead of parchment paper. You can scrub them and reuse them after.
Thanks for the tip. I bought some at Costco last month, right before they went on sale. I know Costco will do an adjustment, I just have to remember to do it.
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This isn't the craziest but never the less a great deal. I went to buy two shovels today at Home Depot and with Tax they came to exactly $50.01. well if you took two minutes to get a charge card that I will just tear up it was 50$ off so I owe a penny. So that one was worth opening, at least two me.
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This isn't the craziest but never the less a great deal. I went to buy two shovels today at Home Depot and with Tax they came to exactly $50.01. well if you took two minutes to get a charge card that I will just tear up it was 50$ off so I owe a penny. So that one was worth opening, at least two me.
If you want to open CC accounts for money, I would start with the Chase Sapphire Preferred. The signup bonus cashes out to $500. Admittedly you do need to come up with $4k in spend - we originally did that with (most of) the annual property tax payment.
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I spent over an hour in the cold and dark breaking up pallets for our wood burner, it was mainly helping a friend out who wanted them cleared away but can’t complain about free fuel.
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Drive the same vehicle I bought in college. I'm almost 50 now.
I did the same, but kept it until age 51, then sold to our mechanic. Was a Jeep Cherokee with over 300K miles. We have other jeeps with over 200K on them now.