Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money? (Read 8361256 times)

SEAK · « **Reply #6600 on:** July 19, 2016, 10:37:32 AM »

Really wanted a creamsicle on my bike ride home but I kept pedaling past the convenience store. Opted for a big cold glass of water when I got home.

Kitsune · « **Reply #6601 on:** July 19, 2016, 10:45:27 AM »

Rescheduled my hair cut for late September - it's too hot to have hair that can't be put in a bun and will stick to the back of my neck!

Bonus: my hairdresser charges 22$ for a haircut, and is fine with cutting my hair twice a year. He does a great job, and the cut always grows out super well.

infogoon · « **Reply #6602 on:** July 19, 2016, 11:11:49 AM »

I'm taking my son to a baseball game tonight -- the local team has a promotion on Tuesdays where you can get tickets BOGO with a receipt from a local fast food restaurant. So I went to the restaurant and got the cheapest thing on the menu (a small order of fries) just to get the receipt.

I also checked the garbage cans out front first, but there were no receipts.

Inaya · « **Reply #6603 on:** July 19, 2016, 02:08:04 PM »

Somebody brought an obscene amount of donuts. Been grazing on them all day instead of eating my packed lunch. Will probably eat that for dinner so I don't have to heat up the apartment by cooking. Not great for my health, but good for the wallet!

Crusader · « **Reply #6604 on:** July 19, 2016, 02:57:00 PM »

Quote from: Inaya on July 19, 2016, 02:08:04 PM

Somebody brought an obscene amount of donuts. Been grazing on them all day instead of eating my packed lunch. Will probably eat that for dinner so I don't have to heat up the apartment by cooking. Not great for my health, but good for the wallet!

Bagel day is for me tomorrow. It allows me to be well fed all work day as all I have to do is eat half a bagel every 1.5 to 2 hours to be well fed. I usually just get away with 2 bagels through the day and maybe eat the lunch I brought. I can save that lunch for tomorrow or a meal before I bike.

The small thing I do almost every work day is bike part way to work. I work in DC and come from Potomac. I take a no traffic local way to Clara Barton and then park 4 miles out from DC then bike in to the office. Saves me $14 on parking, gets me 8 miles of biking everyday, saves gas and wear on the car, and makes me healthier. I barely see anyone else taking roughly the same route do this to get exercise and save themselves money. I do not save much time, but I do save my health and a whole lot of frustration doing this.

Rubic · « **Reply #6605 on:** July 19, 2016, 03:23:48 PM »

Quote from: Inaya on July 19, 2016, 02:08:04 PM

Somebody brought an obscene amount of donuts. Been grazing on them all day instead of eating my packed lunch. Will probably eat that for dinner so I don't have to heat up the apartment by cooking. Not great for my health, but good for the wallet!

These are days I'm glad I switched to low-carb. Back when I ate donuts, I could never stop at one.

Inaya · « **Reply #6606 on:** July 19, 2016, 03:39:49 PM »

Quote from: rubic on July 19, 2016, 03:23:48 PM

Quote from: Inaya on July 19, 2016, 02:08:04 PM
Somebody brought an obscene amount of donuts. Been grazing on them all day instead of eating my packed lunch. Will probably eat that for dinner so I don't have to heat up the apartment by cooking. Not great for my health, but good for the wallet!

These are days I'm glad I switched to low-carb. Back when I ate donuts, I could never stop at one.

Yeah I find that sugar begets sugar cravings for me hardcore. Most days I can stop at one (and a couple of holes if I'm feeling cheeky), but today I'm under some deadline and internal politics pressure, so I've been stress donuting.

choppingwood · « **Reply #6607 on:** July 19, 2016, 07:03:06 PM »

Quote from: SEAK on July 19, 2016, 10:37:32 AM

Really wanted a creamsicle on my bike ride home but I kept pedaling past the convenience store. Opted for a big cold glass of water when I got home.

I really like a cold glass of water, but it is not the same thing at all. I really admire you for doing this.

It's not to say you'll never have a creamsicle again....

choppingwood · « **Reply #6608 on:** July 19, 2016, 07:16:42 PM »

I have had two different senior dogs who were happy being tied out in the backyard to do their business and get some fresh air. (They got their exercise with long walks).

The newish neighbour next door has a very protective miniature dachshund that attacks dogs going by or living in the next yard. When the last dog died in October, I decided not to get another dog until I had a fence built, which is scheduled for 2017. This morning, trucks and people showed up and started building a fence for the dachshund, so she doesn't get run over by a car. This will save about a quarter of the cost of fencing my yard when I do that. The fence is exactly what I wanted.

Bracken_Joy · « **Reply #6609 on:** July 19, 2016, 07:20:19 PM »

Used half a lb of old (very old... 6 years?) frozen sausage in chili, and the other 1/2lb mixed with eggs and cheese for dinner. Paired with artichokes. Made for a tasty and filling dinner.

Inaya · « **Reply #6610 on:** July 20, 2016, 07:10:35 AM »

No salad dressing. Was going to buy a packet at the snack bar at work, but I had a little extra time this morning so I just made some.

BTDretire · « **Reply #6611 on:** July 20, 2016, 12:52:47 PM »

Wife called me and said the house was 81* and the thermostat was set at 78*.
I checked outside and the compressor and fan were running so I went inside
I removed and cleaned all the filters just because they needed it, also cleaned
everything I could reach in the A coil area.
I went outside and happened to be next to the condensor unit when the compressor
kicked on, but I noticed the fan on top did not. I grabbed a stick and give it a push, it slowly
came up to speed. I went in and watched as the house temperature dropped.
I pulled the cover that has the schematic and noted the fan motor has a capacitor in
series with one winding. I found the same value capacitor on a squirrel cage fan I have,
and substituted it in place. The fan started without flaw. The new capacitor was $17.15 with
free shpping from Amazon.
That's probably a big thing in that it probably saved me at least $200 for a service call.

SoccerLounge · « **Reply #6612 on:** July 20, 2016, 03:01:05 PM »

I picked up some kitchen things this week to replace things that were lost/broken in the last move, the last being today. I sourced them in very cheap ways:

Two glass demitasse (small coffee) cups for espresso, 50c each, Goodwill.
Pancake turner (big spatula), unused and new, a buck, Goodwill.
Honing steel, a buck, Goodwill.
Silicone mixing spatula, $2.30, Tuesday Morning.
Kitchen scraps bowl and a couple cutting boards for meat, two bucks, the dollar store.

Grand total for all this stuff: $8.30.

Grand total if I'd picked it all up at Bed, Bath and Beyond (I went in just to see their prices!) - about $45, minimum.

I'll take that 80% savings :)

PMG · « **Reply #6613 on:** July 20, 2016, 03:29:55 PM »

Week 7 in Europe and I'm getting way to comfortable buying treats and snacks. To combat that tonight I am cold brewing some tea in yesterday's coke bottle. Tomorrow I'll have my caffeine for (almost) free. Why didn't I think of this weeks ago?

StiffUpperLip · « **Reply #6614 on:** July 20, 2016, 03:56:50 PM »

I commute from a small unmanned local train station so need to buy my ticket on the train. About half of the commuters on the train down this.

No conductor to be found today so no ticket... No opportunity to buy one at the other end either as it's also unmanned...

Saved £5 but it wasn't really my doing, does it still count?

Moonwaves · « **Reply #6615 on:** July 20, 2016, 03:57:11 PM »

Yesterday rather than today: I faked a migraine so that I could ask an unwanted guest to leave (not as good as just being assertive and asking her to go but better than some of the other passive agressive stuff I might have done in times past), saving myself not only stress and three more days of feeling invaded and my space violated but also at least two dinners out and at least one bottle of wine.

1967mama · « **Reply #6616 on:** July 20, 2016, 04:35:04 PM »

*Frugal dinner tonite will be: devilled eggs, chicken salad on homemade buns (leftover chicken from whole chickens), pudding (from a mix) and fruit (ETA: also made a quick quinoa salad .. the whole dinner was a hit on this rather warm night!)

*Drying laundry outside

*No a/c

*Homemade iced tea this afternoon

*Stayed home

SoccerLounge · « **Reply #6617 on:** July 20, 2016, 06:43:07 PM »

I made madeleines. The local cost of these things is approximately $lolwtf, if they're even in at the bakeries in the rough area, and so once more I have saved a bundle by just mixing together some eggs, flour, butter and sugar and throwing it into the oven!

jengod · « **Reply #6618 on:** July 20, 2016, 08:15:32 PM »

* Picked up a thrifted Cuisinart ice cream maker a few weeks back; first batch of homemade vanilla is churning right now.

* Found a huge 20"x14" anodized roasting pan at Goodwill for about 80% off retail. I am ready for Thanksgiving turkey time!

* Found a couple of small appliances I should be able to clean/refurbish and sell for profit.

dignam · « **Reply #6619 on:** July 20, 2016, 08:40:23 PM »

I had a no spend day yesterday. Made a quick, easy breakfast at home, work paid for lunch, and made dinner at home. Didn't whip out the credit card once all day :)

cerat0n1a · « **Reply #6620 on:** July 21, 2016, 02:46:40 AM »

Quote from: StiffUpperLip on July 20, 2016, 03:56:50 PM

I commute from a small unmanned local train station so need to buy my ticket on the train. About half of the commuters on the train down this.

No conductor to be found today so no ticket... No opportunity to buy one at the other end either as it's also unmanned...

Saved £5 but it wasn't really my doing, does it still count?

Can you save money by getting a season ticket? When my wife commuted to London, the weekly ticket worked out cheaper provided she was there for 3 or more days and (away from weeks off/holidays) a monthly ticket was even cheaper.

mustachepungoeshere · « **Reply #6621 on:** July 21, 2016, 02:49:55 AM »

Had two very cheap days at home due to illness. No transport costs, very little in the way of food costs, just a lot of laying about moaning to myself (and a sympathetic forum buddy).

frooglepoodle · « **Reply #6622 on:** July 21, 2016, 06:00:08 AM »

Made $15 selling some yarn I had lying around leftover from making baby blankets (back before I had a kid and discovered that babies receive approximately 10 million blankets and there is no need to add another to the pile).

Cancelled Netflix ($8.99/mo savings).

Changed the data on our cell phone plan to save $8.50/mo.

Made cold brew coffee, banana oat chocolate chip cookies from overripe bananas, and improvised a red curry with salmon for dinner since I was getting bored with the grilled meat/fish + veggies combination we default to in summer.

I'm a red panda · « **Reply #6623 on:** July 21, 2016, 10:37:52 AM »

Spending my lunch break stripping hinges from cabinets at work. After bringing home some of the cabinets from the demo, my husband said that the hinges are like $8 each and he uses them frequently. So now I'm getting him a stash from the ones no one wants.

engineermom21 · « **Reply #6624 on:** July 21, 2016, 02:48:22 PM »

* Shipped my sister's birthday present as part of a mystery shop at USPS, so free shipping for me (after reimbursement)

* Leftovers for lunch, including eating up some snacks my sister left in the fridge last time she was at my house

* Had our pediatrician switch my son's prescription from CVS to Publix, where they fill common antibiotics for free

* Upgraded our wireless data plan from 4GB to 6GB, as this turns out to be $2 cheaper per month because of extra discounts with the 6GB plan

Moonwaves · « **Reply #6625 on:** July 21, 2016, 04:06:40 PM »

Didn't do it on purpose but since I ended up singing really badly in my audition for a new choir this evening I've saved myself 25 euro for the summer party at the weekend and a cool 300 for a rehearsal weekend in September. Now to go looking for a more suitable choir (even before my audition it was pretty clear to me that that choir wasn't a good fit for me).

Lazyretirementgirl · « **Reply #6626 on:** July 21, 2016, 06:32:18 PM »

Quote from: Inaya on July 18, 2016, 11:47:40 AM

Realized the cable payment hadn't showed up on my credit card yet. Oops, look like auto-pay didn't auto pay, and there's a $6 late fee. Called RCN and they (supposedly) took it off. Ugh missing payments due to technical difficulties really makes me angry because I've otherwise NEVER missed a payment for anything in my life. This is why I don't trust auto-pay (but RCN charges a credit card fee if you make a one-time payment each month).

If you have online banking, you may be able to set up your own auto pay to push the payment out every month. I do that with most recurring bills and have never had a problem in 9 or 10 years of doing it.

1967mama · « **Reply #6627 on:** July 21, 2016, 08:40:12 PM »

*Didn't use the a/c today, even thought it was 26.5 in the house (I know, I'm a wimp) ~ trying to adapt to the heat rather than use the a/c and not be complainypants about it. Using fans instead.

*Leftovers for lunch

*Made 2 icy smoothies at different points today to fill my tummy and keep cool at the same time

*Easy crustless quiche for dinner

*Didn't drive anywhere today

alsoknownasDean · « **Reply #6628 on:** July 22, 2016, 01:57:35 AM »

I'm heading to my parents' place on the train, and had to change trains. I was a bit peckish, but instead of spending $2+ on something from the convenience store at the station, I walked across the street to the fruit shop and bought a banana and a mandarin for the grand price of $0.35.

Healthier too.

Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk

Tamster · « **Reply #6629 on:** July 22, 2016, 01:20:44 PM »

<peeking back in from busy week> thank you for the links to easy hamburg roll recipes, I will definitely be trying them. Today was a home day, exercised, balanced check book, wondered why my homeowners insurance went up $80, DS1 did laundry today (his shift), went for a walk before the humidity landed. Read some, now watching Little House on the Prairie and having some box wine. Big doings for a Friday. We have a cookout tomorrow, already made a bean salad - so easy, it was my first time making one. Kids have a sleepover tomorrow night, so I may go see the new Star Trek movie. Not a money savings, but....Star Trek!

horsepoor · « **Reply #6630 on:** July 24, 2016, 12:31:47 PM »

Redeemed $78 worth of CC rewards for statement credits.

Skipped breakfast and now having a lunch of homegrown veggies with CostCo bacon and a duck egg (the duck egg is actually cheaper because I only eat one.

Spent much of this weekend putting up food - canned peaches and peach compote, dried oregano and marjoram, fermented veggie pickles, rhubarb and kombucha, freezing blueberries and probably more of the peaches since I have about 30# of them left to put to use.

This afternoon I'll give my dog a bath and a clip out at the stable and trim horses' hooves, which would be about $150 altogether if I was in the habit of paying others for these services.

frooglepoodle · « **Reply #6631 on:** July 24, 2016, 01:04:44 PM »

Washed, waxed, vacuumed, and cleaned the windows of both our cars.

Meal planned for the week with an eye towards using food we already have and minimizing the number of things we'll need to buy, focusing on crockpot meals to keep from heating the house.

Moved the furniture and watched a bunch of YouTube two-step and salsa lessons for our at home date night. I went out dancing all the time when I was single, and DH wants to learn.

Bracken_Joy · « **Reply #6632 on:** July 24, 2016, 01:05:07 PM »

Cheap Sunday entertainment: went to our local Greek Deli/Coffee Shop/Tienda that has a Pokestop and a gym. For $3.50, my husband, our friend who stayed the night, and I spent a lovely 30 min catching pokemon and chatting over coffee on a nice outdoor patio. This is much better than our old normal when this friend would stay, which usually involved going out for breakfast, then walking around with expensive fancy coffees.

Verdandi · « **Reply #6633 on:** July 24, 2016, 01:21:21 PM »

Quote from: Bracken_Joy on July 24, 2016, 01:05:07 PM

Cheap Sunday entertainment: went to our local Greek Deli/Coffee Shop/Tienda that has a Pokestop and a gym. For $3.50, my husband, our friend who stayed the night, and I spent a lovely 30 min catching pokemon and chatting over coffee on a nice outdoor patio. This is much better than our old normal when this friend would stay, which usually involved going out for breakfast, then walking around with expenses fancy coffees.

That sounds really relaxing and fun!

mustachepungoeshere · « **Reply #6634 on:** July 24, 2016, 01:45:44 PM »

We had a lovely but spendy relative stay last night.

He wanted to go to a movie then out for dinner. We ended up listening to music and having drinks at home then walking to a local pop-up burger place (his shout).

I also waited till he'd had a few beers then had a chat about super and tax. He was very receptive.

Loretta · « **Reply #6635 on:** July 24, 2016, 02:33:25 PM »

All told this rambling may be a wash, but,... Yesterday I donated all my old prescription glasses to a Lions Club box at the library and today I ordered a pair of backups and a pair of transitions type glasses from Zenni. (I am going to have to take a class with a large outdoor element and these glasses will come in handy.) Then I sold an item off a Facebook page for $20 and went out to lunch. I didn't think it was bad in anyway but the restaurant brought me out a second replica and said "This is what it was supposed to look like", so that will be a meal tonight or tomorrow. Also, the workplace has installed a groovy new ice water fountain so I am hydrating like crazy vice drinking my usual soda pops.

jengod · « **Reply #6636 on:** July 24, 2016, 02:57:03 PM »

* Canceled insurance on my 3yo smartphone, which should save $11 a month.

* Picked up two huge rolling coolers and a 5-gal Igloo drink dispenser from a Freecycler; useful for kid events, parties and storing our earthquake kits.

* Nobody liked the brand of orange juice I bought for weekend breakfast, so turned it into juice popsicles instead.

* Cut some branches of lemon verbena to dry for herbal tea

BTDretire · « **Reply #6637 on:** July 24, 2016, 03:31:55 PM »

Quote from: 1967mama on July 18, 2016, 04:23:36 PM

*Making hummus from scratch for good healthy snacks this week

I must admit, I read that as making humans from scratch, which is great, have fun,
but for good healthy snacks? I don't think so!

mustachepungoeshere · « **Reply #6638 on:** July 24, 2016, 03:38:38 PM »

Sold our dishwasher, as the place we are moving into already has one.

Made $325.

SoccerLounge · « **Reply #6639 on:** July 24, 2016, 05:09:22 PM »

Spent $15 on sunshades for my car. Why did this save money? It will keep the interior temperature down when parked in the sun at work, thereby extending the life of my hybrid battery.

Rural · « **Reply #6640 on:** July 24, 2016, 06:01:01 PM »

Nobody left the property today, but I can't say, as I sometimes do, that we didn't go down off the mountain. We both went down to the foot of the mountain to work on the gate he's installing on our access road.

Made broth from the carcass of a chicken bought for 0.99 a pound yesterday, and we had our second meal from it in the form of leftover roast chicken and veggies. There will be two more meals (chicken first and then Mexican dip). The dogs had their first meal of what we've lovingly dubbed "chicken goo" tonight and they have enough for tomorrow.

HappierAtHome · « **Reply #6641 on:** July 24, 2016, 06:42:29 PM »

Made a plan for how best to incorporate some of the dried beans and chickpeas from the pantry into the meal plan for the next few weeks. I'm trying to eat up some of what we have stocked before I put in my next order with the bulk shop - which means making sure we eat lots of the legumes before I stock up again, and finding alternatives to our nut-based recipes because we're just about out of almonds and completely out of cashews, and I don't want to pay supermarket prices!

As always, brought my lunch and snacks from home.

I think I've come up with a way to gamify staying away from the chocolate box at work and rewarding myself for that and for walking home / getting extra exercise. I think every day I don't buy candy at work is worth $2, and every day that I walk home instead of taking the bus is worth another $2. This money is put into a garden fund for me to buy plants and gardening equipment, which is something I love spending money on AND is far more mustachian in the long run. I think this could work!

swick · « **Reply #6642 on:** July 24, 2016, 08:01:31 PM »

Quote from: HappierAtHome on July 24, 2016, 06:42:29 PM

I think I've come up with a way to gamify staying away from the chocolate box at work and rewarding myself for that and for walking home / getting extra exercise. I think every day I don't buy candy at work is worth $2, and every day that I walk home instead of taking the bus is worth another $2. This money is put into a garden fund for me to buy plants and gardening equipment, which is something I love spending money on AND is far more mustachian in the long run. I think this could work!

Nice job on finding a way to gamify it!

We made some jerky ahead of our vacation next week.

Also made pizza tonight from stuff in the fridge - despite being hugely hot in the house and not wanting to cook.

Didn't turn on the AC despite the temps inside being in the 30's C.

Started freezing coffee to make ice cubes for our trip, they'll keep food cold and as they slowly melt we'll have cold iced coffee in the morning instead of being tempted to buy some at festival prices.

10dollarsatatime · « **Reply #6643 on:** July 24, 2016, 09:53:15 PM »

Baked 4 spaghetti squash left from last season. Will freeze a bunch in single servings.

Roasted all the seeds. Ended up with 2 cups.

Made a cucumber salad with 2 of this year's cukes.

Spend nothing day.

Tom Bri · « **Reply #6644 on:** July 25, 2016, 12:43:27 AM »

I made a small, outdoor table today from recycled wood. I painted it blue, from a can of paint left over from ten years ago when I painted the deck blue (a big mistake!). It's a pretty color, and I am working on using that last 1/2 gallon up.

mustachepungoeshere · « **Reply #6645 on:** July 25, 2016, 02:57:04 AM »

Closed a superfluous bank account to save on fees and streamline my banking.

In the same vein, I made a phone call to alter our payment frequency for professional membership fees. Mine were being deducted fortnightly, my husband's were coming out weekly. They are both now monthly, and we will drop his completely as soon as he receives a new FT contract.

Squirrel away · « **Reply #6646 on:** July 25, 2016, 03:30:07 AM »

I'm going on a diet so that will mean I will eat less food (obviously) and have to meal plan so hopefully no wasted food.:)

A huge vet bill today will definitely not be money saving.

misshathaway · « **Reply #6647 on:** July 25, 2016, 06:49:03 AM »

Sunday walked to the local farm instead of driving to pick up a few ears of their own sweet corn for lunch. Never would have "wasted" the time to walk there during working years. Had a great time walking around sampling tastes they put out and listening to cooking demos.

Got a tip from the sweet corn cook who said to cook it as little as possible to get it soft. He recommended 2 minutes in boiling water for their small ears. For years I've been putting one ear, husk on, into the microwave for 7 minutes. Sure enough, the corn I bought that day was much sweeter and still done at only 5 minutes.

Round trip ended up being 1 1/2 hours. Corn $2.50. Well worth it. Plus I wasn't tempted to buy anything else knowing I would have to haul it home.

Bracken_Joy · « **Reply #6648 on:** July 25, 2016, 06:50:47 AM »

Mint stopped working for me a month ago. After many back and forths with their techs, they still can't get it working. Our main bank won't sync at all, and we lost all our data (over a year, boo). Before buying YNAB (especially because I know I'll struggle to make myself use it) I decided to try out personal capital- and it works! I had tried PC last year and it *didn't* work for 3 different accounts, but it looks like they cleaned stuff up on that front really well.

Anyway, two-fold money savings: they type the comes with an awareness of your spending (nebulous but vital), and the direct, did not pay for YNAB savings.

oysters · « **Reply #6649 on:** July 25, 2016, 07:39:03 AM »

Quote from: Bracken_Joy on July 25, 2016, 06:50:47 AM

Mint stopped working for me a month ago. After many back and forths with their techs, they still can't get it working. Our main bank won't sync at all, and we lost all our data (over a year, boo). Before buying YNAB (especially because I know I'll struggle to make myself use it) I decided to try out personal capital- and it works! I had tried PC last year and it *didn't* work for 3 different accounts, but it looks like they cleaned stuff up on that front really well.

Anyway, two-fold money savings: they type the comes with an awareness of your spending (nebulous but vital), and the direct, did not pay for YNAB savings.

Interesting! I'm on a similar train at the moment. In the last ~week:

1. Did my taxes.
2. Spent the time to do a careful Excel budget spreadsheet.
3. Got rid of Pocketbook which wasn't syncing good enough to my bank for me. It gives notifications every day, but as all the transactions are days behind it was meaningless to me. Put my new envelope style budget into Goodbudget and set that up. Works perfectly. I enter EVERY. SINGLE. TRANSACTION. But that is actually a good thing for me I'm finding, as i'm in total control of my spending and aware of it, and how my budget is going every time! :-)

Littler things:
4. Careful bulk shopping from Costco, Aldi, Rite Price (a store that sells mostly out of date stuff in Aus).
5. Spent an hour on Sunday cutting up a bunch of carrots, potatoes, pumpkin. Total cost about 70 cents (pumpkin free from Dad's garden). At least 8 roast veggie meals.
6. Finally got the courage to email Darn Tough to ask if they will warranty two pairs of socks. I didn't think they would. I was willing to post them to the US for it if they would (~$15 postage international, about 30% the cost of two new pairs). They told me the would warranty, just email photos! Two new pairs of awesome socks on the way. I have 8 pairs in total. I love them. If that company stays in business...I have a lifetime set of awesome socks...

News:

Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money? (Read 8361256 times)