Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?  (Read 8021004 times)

PMG

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5900 on: March 24, 2016, 05:44:34 AM »
Re: lemon juice.

I quit soda a few months ago but recently I've been wanting something flavorful to sip. I spent a week or two wishing there were a more natural version of mio flavored water.  Then I noticed the bottle of lemon juice in my fridge. Sometimes I can't believe my own silliness.

As for saving money, I did a big stock up grocery trip to Aldi last week and I got two huge cheap bottles of lemon juice and have since talked myself out of stopping for gelato with the promise of lemonade when I get home.

slappy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5901 on: March 24, 2016, 05:54:51 AM »
Re: lemon juice.

I quit soda a few months ago but recently I've been wanting something flavorful to sip. I spent a week or two wishing there were a more natural version of mio flavored water.  Then I noticed the bottle of lemon juice in my fridge. Sometimes I can't believe my own silliness.

As for saving money, I did a big stock up grocery trip to Aldi last week and I got two huge cheap bottles of lemon juice and have since talked myself out of stopping for gelato with the promise of lemonade when I get home.

I just realized this recently too! My work has the bottle of lemon juice next to the water machine in the cafeteria.  So it comes with the added benefits of extra steps on the fitbit every time I have to walk down and get lemon water instead of plain water from the break room.  :)

Luckyvik

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5902 on: March 24, 2016, 06:41:19 AM »
Bought a few groceries for dinner $30 for food for tonight + tomorrow night) instead of $50 on dinner out.

Also did product tasting and got a bag of groceries + egift card.

Ate Apple brought from home + leftover Apple from lunch & learn yesterday as snacks, did buy lunch though


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Willbrewer

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5903 on: March 24, 2016, 09:56:30 AM »
It's been mentioned before, but I always web-search using Bing, and convert the points into Amazon gift cards. So far, in the last year or so I've earned $30 bucks worth of free Amazon product.

RamonaQ

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5904 on: March 24, 2016, 11:00:10 AM »
I cut open my tube of toothpaste to use the last little bits.

I realize this is something that probably everyone else has been doing for ages, but I figured I was getting it all out by squishing the tube along the counter.  Not so!  I'm now on day 2 and counting of an "empty" tube.

dandypandys

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5905 on: March 24, 2016, 11:14:16 AM »
haha yes, indeed a cut open toothpaste household here!
i just got a kick out of hacking the wet jet sifter! :
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-remove-the-cap-on-a-Swiffer-Wet-Jet-cleaner/
filled it with a vinegar water soap mix. YAAAASSSSS

Inaya

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5906 on: March 24, 2016, 11:51:42 AM »
haha yes, indeed a cut open toothpaste household here!
i just got a kick out of hacking the wet jet sifter! :
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-remove-the-cap-on-a-Swiffer-Wet-Jet-cleaner/
filled it with a vinegar water soap mix. YAAAASSSSS

Thanks for this! My idiot cat tries to poison herself by licking the floor after I clean (for some reason, bleach and other cleaning supplies affect her like catnip does a normal cat), so I can't use the included solution.

I haven't made it to the store this week, so I didn't have anything to bring to work for lunch. Luckily, I was able to scavenge some pizza from a conference room instead of buying lunch.

PMG

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5907 on: March 24, 2016, 01:05:00 PM »
Home early today puttering around the house.  I was cleaning up the kitchen when I realized that I could mix my own seasoned salt. Of course!  I mix spices for everything else. A Google search found several Lawrys brand copy cat recipes and now my little jar is full and I can take it off my shopping list.


Maya

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5908 on: March 24, 2016, 05:56:24 PM »
Lucked out when a friend gave me some disposable diapers recently. Was enough to get me to the weekend without opening the box of diapers I'd bought from Costco. Potty trained my dd and was able to return them. Yeah! Hate disposable but daycare required them.

RetiredAt63

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5909 on: March 25, 2016, 07:59:23 AM »
Wow, how old are you?  I am 65, and my vision and hearing haven't changed much since 50.  I probably did the worst damage to my hearing back in my late teens and early 20's, all those super noisy dances and concerts.  Eat healthy (lots of healthy fatty acids, low carbs) to keep the inflammation down, and you should be in a holding pattern for years.

(here's a tip, don't age...).

RetiredAt63

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5910 on: March 26, 2016, 07:05:42 AM »
Work induced damage, right.  I suppose there is no hearing protection that is going to fully protect you from that.
Wow, how old are you?  I am 65, and my vision and hearing haven't changed much since 50. 
I'm only 41, but 22 years of being a jet engine mech is hell on the hearing. Eyes are hereditary.


Elliot

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5911 on: March 26, 2016, 08:15:16 AM »
haha yes, indeed a cut open toothpaste household here!
i just got a kick out of hacking the wet jet sifter! :
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-remove-the-cap-on-a-Swiffer-Wet-Jet-cleaner/
filled it with a vinegar water soap mix. YAAAASSSSS

Thanks for this! My idiot cat tries to poison herself by licking the floor after I clean (for some reason, bleach and other cleaning supplies affect her like catnip does a normal cat), so I can't use the included solution.

I haven't made it to the store this week, so I didn't have anything to bring to work for lunch. Luckily, I was able to scavenge some pizza from a conference room instead of buying lunch.

We use a Shark mop. Cleans with steam alone.

Tyson

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5912 on: March 26, 2016, 11:06:30 AM »
Family wanted to go to Dunkin Donuts as a treat, I convinced everyone to try out the peanut butter oatmeal with chocolate chips from the Oatmeal thread here on MMM.  Saved at least $10.

Vanguards and Lentils

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5913 on: March 26, 2016, 11:12:45 AM »
Last night a friend asked if I wanted to eat out for dinner. Instead of just saying "No, I'm over budget for food this month," I invited him over and cooked for us: yellow rice and beans, and cheese and onion omelettes. I need to suggest this alternative more often!

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5914 on: March 26, 2016, 11:21:27 AM »
Had bought back up wireless head phones on black friday when DH thought his were dying. A software update fixed the problems, so they've been languishing ever since- we never got around to returning them to Amazon. Last week, BIL needed new headphones. He paid us the $20 we paid. Win win- we get our $ back, he gets $115 headphones for $20 even though he missed the black friday sale.

Got a free baby gate on Buy Nothing Group. Still works, just a little grubby. This way we can open up both doors in the summer and not have the dog escape.

DH traded engineering support for a family member's business for whiskey. Again. Since it was the family member stupidly breaking the last thing DH helped with, he demanded a nicer whiskey this time. Heh. Looking forward to our bulleit rye this evening. (Don't worry guys, we're not being mean. DH priced it out- he gave over $1300 in services to the family member this week, and that's if he was charging his lowest rate).

Tom Bri

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5915 on: March 26, 2016, 05:24:19 PM »
Daughter suggested we build a raised garden. I didn't want to spend any $ on the project (duh!) and cast about for ways to get wood. I recalled my dad's old barn. He retired from farming about 15 years ago and the barn has not been used for anything but storage since (tractors, mainly). All of the old animal pens are still there. I recall 'helping' to build them back in 1968. Plenty of still-sturdy 1X12s and 2X4s there. I got dad's permission and went to town. Got home and started building. I have one wall done, two feet high, and have one more to build (it's on a hill, so the slope counts as the other two sides). Cost was my time doing something I enjoy, and 8 miles worth of gas in the clown-car. Even the nails were basically free, since they were remainders left over from other projects. Call it $1.50.

halftimer

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5916 on: March 26, 2016, 06:45:12 PM »
This week there was catered fruit and veg and sandwich trays at work for an event. So I didn't have to pack work lunches for 2 days with those leftovers.  Then I took a handful of veg - it didn't even make a dent on the tray - and made 2 meals at home with them.  I left early at the end of the week so I hope everyone else took a big share home with them and I don't find wasted, wilted food in the fridge on Tuesday when I return.  I just couldn't take any more home with me the last day since I was going direct to the passport office and would not be near a fridge or cooler

Willbrewer

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5917 on: March 26, 2016, 07:01:54 PM »
Yesterday I went grocery shopping, and asparagus (on sale for $1.89) was on my list.  Couldn't find it, asked the produce manager and he said that it didn't come in on the truck. Soooo, I nicely asked if he would price-match the sale price for a bunch of organic asparagus ($4.99 per pound). The guy was so nice, he initialed the tag on the asparagus and told me to tell the cashier that it was a freebie! What a score! Kinda made me feel guilty, but it didn't stop me from accepting it.

I should mention the store to ease my aching conscience LOL. It was City Market in Moab, Utah. And they do have a really great produce department. Very fresh veggies.

Astatine

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5918 on: March 26, 2016, 07:38:47 PM »
1) We buy UHT skim milk from Aldi as our milk.  I don't mind the taste and it's convenient and cheap. No wastage because we can always get through 1 litre well before it goes off, and we always have some in the pantry so we never run out of milk.

2) Aldi has recently changed its packaging of UHT milk. Now it comes in convenient 6-pack boxes. Which I realised if you cut the lid off and one side, they fit perfectly on the bottom shelf of our pantry. A bit of work with some scissors yesterday and we got some free storage containers for our spare supplies/things bought because they were on special. So there is now a box for pasta, one for rice (low GI brown rice and basmati), one for assorted bags of dried legumes, one for tea and one for muesli/rolled oats. Free and minimises waste/resources! Edit: plus it's now much easier to see what we already have in stock, which will also minimise waste of buying more than we need or alternatively, unexpectedly running out of something.
« Last Edit: March 26, 2016, 07:43:20 PM by Astatine »

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5919 on: March 26, 2016, 07:54:33 PM »
Needed to put the lights for my veggie seedlings on a timer.  I had a light strip with a built-in timer, but it wasn't working, so went to Fred Meyer today and picked up another one ($19.99) because the cheaper timers were only built for 2-prongs.  Spied some 3-prong timers on an end cap for $7.99, so grabbed one of those instead.  Just now I went to set it up and re-examined the power strip, and figured out how to get it working again.  Will return the $7.99 one next time I'm at the store.

Was thinking at the beginning of my 11.5 mile run today that my shoes were a bit too small and I should probably go to the running store and find a new pair.  After a few miles they seemed to fit better and I finished the run without problems.  I have another pair exactly like them waiting for my next few hundred miles, so I really didn't want to admit that they don't fit. 

A couple months ago I put up new curtains in the bedroom, and they don't block as much light as expected, so DH has very elegantly hung three of his shirts up strategically on the curtain rod to block light.  I love that our room looks like a thrift shop with old clothes hanging about randomly.  So I was going to buy another set of curtains this weekend.  However, the fitted sheet of one of our sheet sets tore a hole that is not fixable, so I am going to hang the flat sheet underneath the new curtains tomorrow in lieu of buying a new curtain.  I'm also saving the pillow cases to use for potato and onion bags, or wherever else they might come in handy.

Got a $50 Amazon gift card from my Amex rewards and used it for a dog hammock for the back seat of my car

mrsnamemustache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5920 on: March 26, 2016, 08:08:02 PM »
Wanted to buy a $3 iced coffee from a coffee shop. Settled for putting ice in coffee made at home. It completely satisfied me.

Astatine

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5921 on: March 26, 2016, 08:31:40 PM »
Another one that I just remembered: finally started keeping a price book* for price per kg for kitty litter. Turns out Target's normal price is a lot cheaper than anywhere else (even when it's on special elsewhere). Every place sells different size packets so it was hard to remember the price per kg. Most other things we can remember what prices things should be but we both had a mental blank with kitty litter.


*in Notes on DH's phone. Not actual book. Or even spreadsheet.

Dollar Slice

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5922 on: March 26, 2016, 08:53:31 PM »
A couple months ago I put up new curtains in the bedroom, and they don't block as much light as expected, so DH has very elegantly hung three of his shirts up strategically on the curtain rod to block light. 

A kindred spirit! :-) I am in a rental that came with cellular blinds installed - they work pretty well for blocking heat/cold through the windows but they are not really dark enough in the bedroom when the sun is directly hitting that side of the building. I hung some pajamas over the headboard to block the light shining on my face while I'm sleeping. (The headboard is metalwork and doesn't block light on its own... although it does make it look sort of like my teddy bear is in jail, so there's that.)

11ducks

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5923 on: March 26, 2016, 09:02:49 PM »
- I've not grocery shopped for myself for nearly two weeks in an effort to eat down the freezer and cupboard. As I cook separately for me (vegetarian, dairy-free) and DS/DH (meat/carb kings), I've still had to shop for the boys, but have saved 20% on groceries. I'm glad to finally be near the end of my stockpile of beans/lentils, though creativity (and digging through the back of the cupboard) has meant i've rediscovered some old favourite meals (cabbage noodle salad, fresh rice paper salad rolls).

- While undertaking bunny duties last night (Aus) - I realised that i'd definitely overshopped a little, and had too many smaller solid eggs. Rather than overstuff baskets and have DH/DS gorge, I put about 1/2pound of smaller solid eggs  into the baking basket to chop up and use as choc chips in cookies and muffins  later.

- Proactively came up with a list of holiday activities for the family, including using our yearly passes for free days out, and using a gift voucher we got for Christmas at an event park. If I don't have ideas, DH will innately choose really expensive things to do, and I hate being the naysayer. This way, we have a great cheap list of activities.


Astatine

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5924 on: March 26, 2016, 10:32:31 PM »
I decided that I was sick of the clutter on the little table next to where I always sit on the lounge (DH and I are creatures of habit in terms of where we sit at home). It's clutter that is used daily (or several times per day) - box of insulin pen needles, spare test strips for my blood glucose meter (I refill my kit every few days), 7-day box of my morning tablets, box of other tablets, work phone and a few other little bits and pieces. So it wasn't clutter that could be put away because it would annoy me far too much to get it out each day.

Then I realised that the box that the batteries for my blood glucose meter got sent in* would be about the right size. So I cut off the flappy bits (technical term). I then found some nice thin cardboard in our drawer of wrapping paper (NFI why we had it) and covered the box in it so it no longer looked like a packing box with labels and whatnot all over it. :D Table now looks much less cluttered and the bonus is when we have guests with small children it will be quick and easy to move it all to another room.


*it's the same business model as razors and printers - I got my meters for free (I have 4 now) and the company sends me free batteries when I need them. But the consumables, aka test strips, are expensive. Luckily they are heavily subsidised here.

Kitsune

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5925 on: March 27, 2016, 10:01:25 AM »
Had people over for Easter brunch yesterday, and made quiches. While I was at it, I spent an extra 3$ on ingredients (buying in bulk means I got almost twice as much, since buying less is more per lb), and made 3 extras. One is heating up for lunch today (1$ quiche plus spinach salad will feed the family), and the other two are in the freezer for really cheap, tasty lunches sometime in the next few weeks.

CindyBS

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5926 on: March 28, 2016, 08:26:40 PM »
We needed a new system for the kids' coats, boots, backpacks, hats/gloves, etc.  We had a shelf/locker thing we built when the kids were young, but now their coats are too big for it.

So, I put in a new system into our closet.  Hooks for coats/backpacks, shelves mounted on the wall with L brackets, a shoe rack, and plastic shelves for umbrellas and the like. 

I found everything for the project in the house and did it with scrap lumber, hooks, paint, etc.  I'm pretty proud b/c my carpentry skills are not that good and it turned out great.

Estimated I saved about $50-$100 over buying some new closet insert/system. 

Old shelf, which was also made from scrap wood, will be sold on CL.

ElGrillo

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5927 on: March 28, 2016, 09:56:00 PM »
A few days ago I saw a pair of jeans on a popular clothing store's website that were $49 plus $5 shipping. I went to amazon and searched for the exact same pants and got them for $26, with free shipping to boot!

OmahaSteph

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5928 on: March 29, 2016, 09:46:49 AM »
On Day 2 of Easter leftovers: Ham sandwich with leftover cheesy potatoes, plus deviled eggs (that I made with eggs on sale for 79 cents/dozen and homemade mayo because we were out of store-bought).

Squirrel away

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5929 on: March 29, 2016, 11:27:29 AM »
I realised I had extra interest in a cash savings account and I realised my 0% credit card account was less than I thought. Easy way to realise I have £300 more than I had yesterday.:)

Also, I called up to see what our mortgage balance was and it was £2,000 less than what I thought. Happy times. I've been really distracted lately with personal stuff and not been updating net worth properly.:0

Kwill

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5930 on: March 29, 2016, 11:59:16 AM »
Today I wrote to customer service again about an online subscription. I'd tried to switch from monthly to annual to save money, and customer service disabled my recurring billing to allow that. But now I still can't seem to sign up for the annual membership, and getting back to the monthly membership would be more expensive now than when I joined initially. Sigh. Maybe they will try to win back my customer loyalty somehow?

Yesterday I tried to buy jeans (probably somewhere around £35) but gave up after two stores. Instead I bought a sewing kit (£3) and closed up the holes in the jeans I had. I also mended three other things. I still need new jeans, but this temporarily saves me £32 while I find some I actually like.

dandypandys

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5931 on: March 29, 2016, 01:39:49 PM »
Was on the phone for an 1 hr with liberty mutual insurance as I was sure I was going to switch to Geico, they wouldn't let an 11 yr customer go, and we negotiated. So monthly bill for car and condo insurance savings after that call is 60$ yes!

Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5932 on: March 29, 2016, 01:46:11 PM »
My AmEx for Costco is closing this summer (they're switching to Chase Visa). They offered me a pre-approval for a blue cash (the everyday one), with a $100 statement credit for spending $1000 in the first 3 months. This should keep my age of account, too, which is good since the AmEx is one of my oldest cards. While the everyday doesn't have as good a % on groceries at the preferred (3% instead of 6%), it also has no annual fee. Since I'm on DH's blue preferred account, we won't use this card much anyway... just going to get the initial bonus and use it to keep my account age going. Also, it ups available credit without another hard pull, so that's always nice for the credit score. Hope this will all save us money on our mortgage in a couple years when we get one =)

Noticed that Trader Joe's sells cashew bits and pieces for less than than their whole cashews. Since I just put them in curries, we don't mind the smaller pieces at all. That'll be ~$0.50 less per lb now.

Luckyvik

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5933 on: March 29, 2016, 02:27:10 PM »
I was kicking myself for forgetting my umbrella, and went to buy a $9.99 one from the supermarket but it rang up as $12.99. I pointed out the mistake and they gave it to my for free as there's a rule in Australia if an item rings up over the price it's free. So score!


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danielu

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5934 on: March 29, 2016, 02:47:02 PM »
I sold a gadget on blocket (sort of Swedens Craiglist) $80, bought index funds $50 and a pair of shoes $30 for my son. Cooked three lunch boxes with nice ecological ingredients. Explained to my kids that lunch at a restaurant was/is a bad option, especially after having bought shoes. Cooked lunch at home.

Yesterday I called the electricity company and got them to cancel the fixed monthly fee $10 for the next 12 months.

Willbrewer

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5935 on: March 29, 2016, 03:58:23 PM »
I was kicking myself for forgetting my umbrella, and went to buy a $9.99 one from the supermarket but it rang up as $12.99. I pointed out the mistake and they gave it to my for free as there's a rule in Australia if an item rings up over the price it's free. So score!


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Nice score! Since you already have one, sell the new one and make money on the deal.

Primm

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5936 on: March 29, 2016, 05:05:07 PM »
I was kicking myself for forgetting my umbrella, and went to buy a $9.99 one from the supermarket but it rang up as $12.99. I pointed out the mistake and they gave it to my for free as there's a rule in Australia if an item rings up over the price it's free. So score!


Not strictly true. If the item rings up at over the price they have to sell it to you at the correct price according to the ACCC. However SOME retailers have this policy, but it's entirely optional. Still, if they advertise it they have to honour it.

frooglepoodle

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5937 on: March 29, 2016, 08:01:22 PM »
Renewed my passport by mail to save the $25 processing fee.

Packed ham sandwiches (Easter leftovers) for us to eat after the passport appointments for DH and the little man.

Started sewing some headbands as baby gifts using scrap fabric and 1/4 inch elastic that I had on hand. They only take about 10 minutes to make and seem to be pretty popular for little girls. 

K-ice

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5938 on: March 30, 2016, 03:36:27 AM »
Not me but I was a dinner guest and the host admitted that the corn was buttered with the little samples they had been saving from their occasional visits to Tim Horton's. I had seen them pocket them the other day.

Butter rations and this person didn't live through WWII or anything :)

It's cute because they are obviously very frugal but also very generous. I was also flattered that they would confess that to me and know I would't be all ewww gross or judge. 

Kitsune

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5939 on: March 30, 2016, 11:37:49 AM »
I figured out why our internet bill was 100$ over last month (!!!!!!! my husband had forgotten to remove a few torrents and the uploads killed it, and also FU caps on rural internet use) early enough to stop it repeating the same thing this month.

I'm upset over the extra 100$, but thankful that at least it's not 3+ months of it before we noticed.

Argh. Rural internet SUCKS.

Kwill

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5940 on: March 30, 2016, 12:13:32 PM »
I renewed my Crunchyroll subscription at the annual rate, finally! They billed me in pounds this time, but it worked out to $57.61 instead of $83.40, which would be the monthly rate for 12 months.

Also, last night I realized I'd left my dance shoes behind at a dance Friday, and I was able to retrieve them from the lost and found closet there. They're pretty basic, but it'd probably be at least $30 to replace them. Now I just need to figure out where I lost my water bottle.

jengod

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5941 on: March 30, 2016, 10:35:45 PM »
The curb shopping gods have been smiling on me. In separate FREE piles on the side of the road, I've found two things I've wanted: a butter dish with lid and an Ikea high chair for the new baby. Also found a set of four nice-looking Fire King coffee mugs that I listed for resale.
« Last Edit: March 30, 2016, 10:40:55 PM by jengod »

Gerard

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5942 on: March 31, 2016, 05:56:38 AM »
Noticed that Trader Joe's sells cashew bits and pieces for less than than their whole cashews. Since I just put them in curries, we don't mind the smaller pieces at all. That'll be ~$0.50 less per lb now.

Score! The one thing I notice with nut pieces is that they don't seem to keep as well as whole nuts, so you wanna be sure to store them in the fridge or freezer (if you aren't already).

PMG

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5943 on: March 31, 2016, 06:12:25 AM »
I'm drinking tap water lukewarm black tea. I had planned on the hotel having a microwave. No dice. Shop next door has hot tea for $2. But that's $2 x 4 days plus all the other food I'll have to be buying.

Picked a quarter up off the floor.

Yesterday I ate packed food for breakfast and lunch and the bought Chinese food by the pound at the local deli. I'm going there in a minute to get some milk to have with my packed granola and maybe a yogurt to take along for lunch.  I'm in Manhattan, surrounded by good food but the thought of overindulging then walking several miles is just not appealing. Besides, if I pack a lunch that will leave more time for museums and less standing in line.


Bracken_Joy

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5944 on: March 31, 2016, 06:13:10 AM »
Noticed that Trader Joe's sells cashew bits and pieces for less than than their whole cashews. Since I just put them in curries, we don't mind the smaller pieces at all. That'll be ~$0.50 less per lb now.

Score! The one thing I notice with nut pieces is that they don't seem to keep as well as whole nuts, so you wanna be sure to store them in the fridge or freezer (if you aren't already).

Oh! Good call. I am NOT storing them in the fridge, great tip! Thank you!

Inaya

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5945 on: March 31, 2016, 07:16:35 AM »
Was sorely tempted to take the bus home from the train station yesterday because it was POURING and I wasn't wearing rain-appropriate clothing (I don't own an umbrella because I've lost every one I've ever owned). While waiting for the bus, I decided to suck it up and walk because I could just change clothes at home. It was a good call; the rain slackened within a block or two and was mostly gone by the time I was halfway home.

sistastache

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5946 on: March 31, 2016, 08:14:43 PM »
I'm drinking tap water lukewarm black tea. I had planned on the hotel having a microwave. No dice. Shop next door has hot tea for $2. But that's $2 x 4 days plus all the other food I'll have to be buying.
Make hot water using the in room coffee maker... just without the coffee?

PMG

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5947 on: March 31, 2016, 08:28:16 PM »
I'm drinking tap water lukewarm black tea. I had planned on the hotel having a microwave. No dice. Shop next door has hot tea for $2. But that's $2 x 4 days plus all the other food I'll have to be buying.
Make hot water using the in room coffee maker... just without the coffee?

No coffee maker.  They kind of laughed at me when I asked about a microwave. Small old hotel in Manhattan. "Go next door to the deli.  They'll help you."

Maya

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5948 on: March 31, 2016, 09:14:13 PM »
My turn to bring in donuts to work. Made baked goods instead. Saved $12 or so.

Lunch was a mishmash of leftovers and dinner was soup made from the left over veggies I didn't want to eat. Yeah. Kids loved it too.

Sold a few more things online. Up $21 for today and $1100 since I started selling in prep for our move.

horsepoor

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Re: What small things did you do TODAY to save money?
« Reply #5949 on: March 31, 2016, 10:32:13 PM »
Used $25 worth of coupons at the feed store today for stuff I would have bought anyway.

Went to Fred Meyer tonight and found 10# bags of rice on clearance for half price, so bought two bags.  Also stocked up on cheese while it's on sale, and filled my gas tank since it's the last day for 5% cash back on gas on my Discover card.