Author Topic: Frugal February  (Read 8266 times)

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #50 on: February 08, 2020, 08:59:48 AM »
Feb 1: $38 (liquor & a cookie)
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $42 (groceries)
          $4.50 (a battery)
Feb 5: $0 (went XC skiing but I already have the pass and we are having leftovers for dinner :) )
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $25 (community fundraising event)
Feb 8: $2.50 (throat lozenges)
« Last Edit: February 08, 2020, 08:17:39 PM by Serendip »

PMG

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1609
  • Location: USA
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #51 on: February 08, 2020, 10:50:32 AM »
This past weeks goals:

I want to go on two walks this week. -  I went on one, then the weather turned awful. flooding. snow. etc. so... just one.

I want to pack my lunch at least three days this week. - success.  4 out of 5 days.  Kind of.  Work was closed 2 days because of flooding, we stayed home and at ate at home those days.

I want to cook a curry. - did this with spouse's help.

I want to bake or make some kind of treat for my spouse. - made zucchini bread. 


Goals for upcoming week are still developing. Whoever suggested that I should track is probably right, but I don't have that in me this month. But I'm still working on things.

I bought a big soup bowl with a handle and lid and a sponge for dishwashing, both to keep at work. My old office had an assortment of things in the kitchen, the new one is bare, and down a flight of stairs and not appealing to eat in, I tend to just use the microwave then eat in my office. I think the bowl will help, definitely easier to carry. With the move coming up my eating in might just be instant oats and canned soup, but that's still a win for now!




ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #52 on: February 08, 2020, 08:01:17 PM »
Feb 1:  $10 (pharmacy)
Feb 2:  $0
Feb 3:  $75 (grocery)
Feb 4:  $0
Feb 5:  $0
Feb 6:  $15 (grocery)
Feb 7:  $0
Feb 8:  $170 (grocery), $20 (gas)


DH may be in his mid 30s, but he still eats like a teenager, calorie wise. Especially now that he has decided his daily walk isn't enough and he has started adding sprints. He went with me today, so we are well stocked on all of his favorite snacks, carefully curated after finishing the elimination diet last summer. I doubt I will have to buy any of those again this month. This is good, I think he was starting to think I was trying to starve him, since he didn't know how to make meals out of any of the things left in the cupboard.

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #53 on: February 08, 2020, 10:56:04 PM »
@PMG: good for you for bringing your lunch from home! Looking forward to your next update. I find that posting here can sometimes help to bring indistinct goals into focus.

@ApacheStache: well done!


Update: haven't fallen TOO far off the wagon...

Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #54 on: February 09, 2020, 02:00:45 PM »
Feb 1:  $10 (pharmacy)
Feb 2:  $0
Feb 3:  $75 (grocery)
Feb 4:  $0
Feb 5:  $0
Feb 6:  $15 (grocery)
Feb 7:  $0
Feb 8:  $170 (grocery), $20 (gas)
Feb 9:  $0

It is a rainy, sullen day, so we are just hanging at home. Actually, DH seems to be working. I did some work this morning, but I don't have the information for my committee work and I am not feeling inspired to write for our blog. That's the nice thing about non monetized blogs!

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #55 on: February 09, 2020, 02:47:23 PM »
Feb 1: $38 (liquor & a cookie)
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $42 (groceries)
          $4.50 (a battery)
Feb 5: $0 (went XC skiing but I already have the pass and we are having leftovers for dinner :) )
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $25 (community fundraising event)
Feb 8: $2.50 (throat lozenges)
Feb 9: $7.50 (toilet handle, ours just snapped)
          $11 (lemons & ginger)

It's my turn to make dinner, so I found a recipe that we had most of the ingredients for (but needed a couple things)--the lemons were expensive as our grocery story doesn't sell organic ones individually so I had to buy a bag ( the peels will be zested raw so I prefer organic for that). But I'll make other things with them this week so still ahead (also didn't buy the coconut cream and will try cooking with home-made coco milk from desiccated coconut..hopefully satisfying enough with a bit of additional oil!)

Also just cooked up granola which prevents me from buying the pricey one I normally like :)

PMG

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1609
  • Location: USA
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #56 on: February 09, 2020, 03:15:33 PM »
This weeks goals:

1) Pack lunch 3/5 days.  I cooked up a big batch of taco spiced lentils yesterday, so I have a head start on having some food ready.

2) Make some returns at Walmart. 

3) Bake a zucchini bread to give to the neighbor as a thank you.

4) Pack enough food/snacks to reduce evening eating out.  We have commitments three evenings this week.  One includes our biweekly Chinese dinner date, and that's a-okay.  The other is a valentines/date/art activity.  Also ok to buy a treat at, but, the goal is to have enough packed food that we can keep it at a treat, not a full meal.

We're in the midst of packing up the house.  Got a pile of free boxes.  We will hire a truck and some help for moving day.  I expect that to be around $150.  Not sure if that will happen this coming Saturday or next. We'll expect some take out and frozen food those days as well.

We also turned down two invitations out today and I didn't buy a fire pit because it was sold out when I went back for it.. so... win?




SailingOnASmallSailboat

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
  • Location: Somewhere where the water is at least 5 feet deep.
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #57 on: February 09, 2020, 05:04:33 PM »
Feb 1: 94.56 boat parts and groceries, plus gas for the car
Feb 2: 95.56 boat parts
Feb 3:$0
Feb 4: $0
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $34.46 (groceries)
Feb 7: $0
Feb 8: $3.75 (boat parts)
Feb 9: $0

This week will be a little more challenging, as we're back home with access to better grocery stores, plus DD gets wisdom teeth out on Tuesday so I'll buy more goodies that a liquid-only mouth can handle (ice cream for milkshakes, that kind of stuff)

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #58 on: February 09, 2020, 08:27:04 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0

Running Total: $167

I spent the weekend at a friend’s house, so drove about 200 miles round trip. I’ll need another tank of gas tomorrow. And food out was a circumstance I could have planned around.

I’m struggling a little with my motivation for a Frugal February. I’m already a high saver, with fairly modest wants. A few years ago, I discovered my personal balance between deprivation and the MMM ideals. Does my floor, below which I feel deprived, really need to be reset?  Maybe, and maybe not. I guess I still have 2/3 of a month to figure it out.

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #59 on: February 09, 2020, 08:55:42 PM »
@Sailor Sam , I don't know if this will help you, but we are in a similar circumstance and I can tell you why I decided to pursue this.

1) GRATITUDE: The mindfulness involved in this process keeps me focused on being thankful for everything we have and all the choices we can make. Going out to eat is a choice. It is something we can afford. And it is something we enjoy once in awhile. If it gets out of hand, we start to take things for granted and don't appreciate them as much.

2) Future spending: We are both naturally frugal. With the exception of last year's boat refit, we normally save at least twice as much as we spend. We don't need to do any frugal exercises to make ends meet, or even to get to a respectable savings rate. The $100 or so I don't spend this month just won't make a difference in any of that. But it does remind us of what it is like to have to have that focus, which we will need for awhile when we transition to not saving. It helps us think about the future and how our wants might change in 20-30 years.

mspym

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 9750
  • Location: Aotearoa
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #60 on: February 10, 2020, 02:12:16 AM »
I've just checked my gnucash and so far this month I'm at
$8 social - 5 stars totally worth it
$40 trains - this is the cost of earning money
$85 books - this was me falling prey to whole lot of spending fallacies for a vegan bundle. 
$135 - my share of the groceries. We maybe could have got this down because there was some baking ingredients in there for day 6 of torrential rain + boys.

So far it's been the books that I regret. That was just me being a silly goose.

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #61 on: February 10, 2020, 07:54:37 AM »
@mspym , I do get books. Once upon a time, I needed a second bedroom just for my books. I like small spaces so much that the books and desk got the master, while I slept in the secondary bedroom. Six full sized bookshelves to down size when we decided to move to CA.

mspym

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 9750
  • Location: Aotearoa
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #62 on: February 10, 2020, 12:25:36 PM »
@ixtap I have been slowly downsizing my books, including deleting things from my ebook library. It's more that I feel a bit like a sucker - I could have got the information elsewhere*, I am not interested in anymore arguments for going vegan, and I prefer physical cookbooks to digital. On the other hand if the 3 books I was interested in turn out to be useful, I can delete everything else and still break even.

*there are a lot of vegans and recipes on the internet. Why did I forget this for one brief shining moment?

SailingOnASmallSailboat

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
  • Location: Somewhere where the water is at least 5 feet deep.
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #63 on: February 10, 2020, 02:13:52 PM »
Feb 10: $91.47 groceries  Not happy about this. Feels absurd for what I came home with.

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #64 on: February 10, 2020, 05:03:30 PM »


1) GRATITUDE: The mindfulness involved in this process keeps me focused on being thankful for everything we have and all the choices we can make. Going out to eat is a choice. It is something we can afford. And it is something we enjoy once in awhile. If it gets out of hand, we start to take things for granted and don't appreciate them as much.


This is exactly why this process is a positive one for me..I already have access to so much and paring down to the essentials reminds me of how little extra I need materially in order to be happy.
I often can be an emotional shopper so this type of challenge also highlights my urge to shop as a way of bypassing tough emotions. Even for groceries (and especially alcohol) it keeps things in check.

I long to be naturally frugal but am not. Celebrating another zero spend day. :)
Thanks for starting this challenge!

« Last Edit: February 10, 2020, 06:18:20 PM by Serendip »

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #65 on: February 10, 2020, 07:34:10 PM »
Feb 1:  $10 (pharmacy)
Feb 2:  $0
Feb 3:  $75 (grocery)
Feb 4:  $0
Feb 5:  $0
Feb 6:  $15 (grocery)
Feb 7:  $0
Feb 8:  $170 (grocery), $20 (gas)
Feb 9:  $0
Feb 10: $1 (coffee)

I just took a bunch of food home from the boat so that it got used and forgot that DH saw what I was doing and grabbed some more things. Now I am stuck at the yacht club with my own kitchen 50 yards away, but no food. The coffee took the edge off and this particular meeting always makes me want to run away as fast as possible after. It is the same group of people that I skipped out on last Wednesday.

I will be sure to pack food for tomorrow's meeting and the class that I am teaching on Thursday! All bets are off for Friday. We don't usually celebrate St. Valentine's, but we have been asked to perform during the band break and we will likely get our meal comped for that. We aren't entirely sure that is going to happen, since we haven't heard back from the organizers, but it is easy enough to blame this one on DH, who is exempt from the challenge. I imagine he will also want to get Sprouts sandwiches for Saturday sailing. Hmmm, perhaps I should check that the flour and yeast really are on the boat so that I can make naan Saturday morning...

ApacheStache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 119
  • Location: West By West West
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #66 on: February 10, 2020, 08:08:04 PM »
Feb 1: $0
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $0
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $0
Feb 8: $0
Feb 9: $0
Feb 10: $20. 1 year subscription of 100GB Google Drive storage. I was previously paying $2 a month, so this saves me $5/year.

I'm expecting a couple of larger expenses coming this week. One for a vet visit and another for the DMV. Luckily, I have non-emergency fund money earmarked for these yearly expenses, so my normal budget isn't going to take a hit.

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #67 on: February 10, 2020, 08:31:58 PM »
@Sailor Sam , I don't know if this will help you, but we are in a similar circumstance and I can tell you why I decided to pursue this.

1) GRATITUDE: The mindfulness involved in this process keeps me focused on being thankful for everything we have and all the choices we can make. Going out to eat is a choice. It is something we can afford. And it is something we enjoy once in awhile. If it gets out of hand, we start to take things for granted and don't appreciate them as much.

2) Future spending: We are both naturally frugal. With the exception of last year's boat refit, we normally save at least twice as much as we spend. We don't need to do any frugal exercises to make ends meet, or even to get to a respectable savings rate. The $100 or so I don't spend this month just won't make a difference in any of that. But it does remind us of what it is like to have to have that focus, which we will need for awhile when we transition to not saving. It helps us think about the future and how our wants might change in 20-30 years.

Those are both excellent points. Even as I was tying my original posts, I knew my malaise was partially just the “I don’t wanna’s” Fundamentally, I don’t want to rein myself in. I’ve convinced myself that my indulgences are all justified, but it’s not going to hurt me to challenge those once a year, or so.

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #68 on: February 10, 2020, 08:35:09 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0
10-Feb: $35 on gas;  $6 on post-dentist treat.

Running Total: $208

I have to be drugged with Xanax to get into, and stay in, the dentists chair. The treat felt pretty justified at the time, but as usual, the total creeps up.

SailingOnASmallSailboat

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
  • Location: Somewhere where the water is at least 5 feet deep.
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #69 on: February 11, 2020, 03:17:02 PM »

Feb 1:$94.56 (boat parts and groceries, plus gas for the car)
Feb 2:$95.56 (boat parts)
Feb 3:$0
Feb 4: $0
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $34.46 (groceries)
Feb 7: $0
Feb 8: $3.75 (boat parts)
Feb 9: $0
Feb 10: $213.99 (groceries, boat parts, boat insurance)
Feb 11: (YIKES) $2248.54 (wisdom tooth removal, associated drugs, therapy appointment - all medical, all known were coming)

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #70 on: February 11, 2020, 05:06:17 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0
10-Feb: $35 on gas; $6 on treat
11-Feb: $0

Running Total: $208
« Last Edit: February 11, 2020, 07:23:59 PM by Sailor Sam »

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #71 on: February 11, 2020, 07:20:13 PM »
Feb 1: $38 (liquor & a cookie)
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $42 (groceries)
          $4.50 (a battery)
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $25 (community fundraising event)
Feb 8: $2.50 (throat lozenges)
Feb 9: $7.50 (toilet handle, ours just snapped)
          $11 (lemons & ginger)
Feb 10:$0
Feb 11:$2 (gingersnap)

I didn't realize I was supposed to work today so was surprised to get a call enquiring where I was. Oops!
Rushed in and needed a snack to supplement my apple at lunch, so hence the little spend. 

We are getting ready for a trip and while most of my costs are covered, I'll need to be buying lunches and one night of hotel costs..plus any entertainment. Will try to keep it low but realistically am going to just go with the flow. Will make & pack some snacks for travel--airports are the worst.


ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #72 on: February 11, 2020, 09:44:01 PM »
Feb 1:  $10 (pharmacy)
Feb 2:  $0
Feb 3:  $75 (grocery)
Feb 4:  $0
Feb 5:  $0
Feb 6:  $15 (grocery)
Feb 7:  $0
Feb 8:  $170 (grocery), $20 (gas)
Feb 9:  $0
Feb 10: $1 (coffee)
Feb 11: $15 (sundry)

This was technically DHs spend, but I was the one who spent it so, here it is.

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #73 on: February 11, 2020, 10:27:29 PM »


My challenge for Feb: I'd like to see how many days I can go with zero spending. I know that I have to renew my gym membership on Feb 15, so I have planned for that and am omitting it from consideration. But other than that: my house is full of food, the gas tank is full, and I have no spendy social obligations for the next few weeks.

And when I do have to spend, I'll attempt to scrounge up some petty cash to cover it (e.g. a jar of coins, get bottle deposit refunds, etc.). [No side gig here.]

So here goes:




Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0
Feb 9. $0
Feb 10. $0
Feb 11. $25   school fee for daughter (field trip)
Running Total: $99.48

I've made it this far without grocery shopping! I've used up all the perishable fresh veggies, but I still have stalwarts like carrots, cabbage, onions and potatoes. Not to mention frozen beans, peas and spinach. I baked bread over the weekend and froze a quiche. But sooner or later I will cave and buy salad stuff (and I promise not to feel sad about it when I do!). I'm more than one-third of the way through the month and am still under $100. Huzzah!

Some spendier days coming up though: I've made plans for two social activities involving dinners out. Will try to steer them to good-value venues. Also might go to a see a play this week, but it is a student production so tickets will be a bargain!

Good luck, all; you are inspiring!


centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #74 on: February 11, 2020, 10:30:37 PM »

Feb 11: (YIKES) $2248.54 (wisdom tooth removal, associated drugs, therapy appointment - all medical, all known were coming)

SailingOnASmall one: yikes is right! But most of us are recording only discretionary spending and I don't think wisdom tooth removal qualifies! Definitely a necessary expense. OUch, take care of yourself, feel better soon.

SailingOnASmallSailboat

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
  • Location: Somewhere where the water is at least 5 feet deep.
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #75 on: February 12, 2020, 05:13:51 AM »
Thanks, @centwise ! They were our daughter's teeth - next month is our son's turn. You're right in that it's necessary, but then again so is grocery shopping. :)

This thread is helping me keep to my resolve of not buying things I'd like (but don't need) - like a new-to-me pair of jeans or the new food processor for the boat. I appreciate the inspiration!

ApacheStache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 119
  • Location: West By West West
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #76 on: February 12, 2020, 05:25:15 PM »
This thread is helping me keep to my resolve of not buying things I'd like (but don't need)

+1

Feb 01: $0
Feb 02: $0
Feb 03: $0
Feb 04: $0
Feb 05: $0
Feb 06: $0
Feb 07: $0
Feb 08: $0
Feb 09: $0
Feb 10: $20. 1 year subscription of 100GB Google Drive storage. I was previously paying $2 a month, so this saves me $5/year.
Feb 11: $0. almost bought a $15 board game that was on sale, but decided not to once I calculated tax and shipping
Feb 12: $33. gas
« Last Edit: February 14, 2020, 10:39:22 PM by ApacheStache »

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #77 on: February 12, 2020, 08:10:53 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0
10-Feb: $35 on gas; $6 on treat
11-Feb: $0
12-Feb: $0

Running Total: $208

First time I’ve managed two days with zero spend. Woot!

Dicey

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 22322
  • Age: 66
  • Location: NorCal
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #78 on: February 14, 2020, 05:49:59 AM »
Just chiming in to offer mid-month encouragement to everyone! I started doing No-Spend February about 15 years ago, when I was desperately seeking FIRE. I was inspired by Amy Dacyczyn, the famous Frugal Zealot. Financial blogs were not yet a thing. Her books were crazy inspirational, but not especially interactive. Every February, I would re-read her book(s) and shut off my spending completely. I had some amazing things happen as a result of my FF's. Now, seven years post-FIRE, I'm totally glad I did them, but they were excruciatingly lonely! I am so glad this community exists, and this thread in particular. To each and every one of you who is participating, I want to tell you that this effort has a huge payback and is worth every effort. Even if you fall off the wagon, it will be worth it. Climb back on and keep going.

Here's a tip that helped me. It seems that every year I bought something I intended to give as a gift and for whatever reason didn't or bought something for myself while holiday shopping that I didn't actually need, but was going to keep anyway. Around mid-Feb, when I was running low on fresh fruit and veggies, I'd look around for something unused that I could legitimately return. It helped that I'm a huge Costco fan and their return policy is so generous. Also, it's easy to be lazy about wrapping up those post-holiday chores, like returning unused gifts. Typically it would be under $50, but that buys a lot of fresh produce and milk. Even a small infusion of cash at this point in the month feels like a lottery win.

Caveat:  Work at Nordstrom for a decade and took scads of bullshit returns. You might say I'm somewhat returns adverse as a result. It's easy to stockpile unused gifts toward future gift-giving, but maybe you don't need to. I am not suggesting you do any bullshit returns, but that making the effort to wrap up any post-holiday details that will put a little bonus cash in your budget. It is worth the effort.

Which reminds me, I still have three Christmas gifts from Costco that didn't work out that I need to take care of. The formidable January out-the-door return lines have mostly abated, so I need to get off my duff and get it done....

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #79 on: February 14, 2020, 02:56:45 PM »
Thank you so much for the encouragement Dicey! I'm also an old fan of Amy Daczyczyn -- I checked out The Complete Tightwad Gazette from the library years ago. Shout out to Amy.

And now, to the update. I have good news! I'm half way though the month and still under $100 total with $0 grocery spending.


My challenge for Feb: I'd like to see how many days I can go with zero spending. I know that I have to renew my gym membership on Feb 15, so I have planned for that and am omitting it from consideration. But other than that: my house is full of food, the gas tank is full, and I have no spendy social obligations for the next few weeks.

And when I do have to spend, I'll attempt to scrounge up some petty cash to cover it (e.g. a jar of coins, get bottle deposit refunds, etc.). [No side gig here.]

So here goes:




Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0
Feb 9. $0
Feb 10. $0
Feb 11. $25   school fee for daughter (field trip)
Feb 12. $0
Feb 13. $0
Feb 14. $0
Running Total: $99.48


« Last Edit: February 14, 2020, 03:02:01 PM by centwise »

PMG

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1609
  • Location: USA
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #80 on: February 14, 2020, 03:46:50 PM »
This weeks goals:

1) Pack lunch 3/5 days. 5/5 though I stayed home one day which made that one easy.

2) Make some returns at Walmart.  Not yet, likely tomorrow.

3) Bake a zucchini bread to give to the neighbor as a thank you.  done!  And made a cake that I shared with coworkers.  I've been really needy during pregnancy.  Glad to finally give back.

4) Pack enough food/snacks to reduce evening eating out.  We have commitments three evenings this week.  One includes our biweekly Chinese dinner date, and that's a-okay.  The other is a valentines/date/art activity.  Also ok to buy a treat at, but, the goal is to have enough packed food that we can keep it at a treat, not a full meal.  success!  We shared a drink at our valentine's date and snacked on packed food.  We also shared a meal on Chinese dinner date. Partner did cancel one evening out, so that helped us. For Valentine's day dinner this evening it was my idea to pick up a frozen lasagna and garlic bread. More expensive than eating leftovers, or scratch cooking, but still a treat, and easy.  Can't get too ambitious or we just won't manage it.  I thought we'd just get a small lasagna, but the HUGE ones were on sale for less than the small ones, so we'll have leftovers for days.

I know I'm doing Frugal February Lite compared to most of you, but it has been working for me.  Setting my lunch goal at 3/5 tricks my brain into thinking it's doable, and then I can succeed!

I did slip up and ordered a cookie tray from the high school band fundraiser.  $15!! yikes. But... we've got a friend's daughter in the band, and both have gone through some hard times recently... so I guess... we're paying attention to them by buying expensive cookies?

This means I need to meet up with my friend to pick it up, so we plan to meet at the new local owned, hallelujah!we!finally!have!a! coffee shop in town tomorrow, and I'll spend a little money there, and get to pay a little more attention to her. 

AND! At our Valentine's date night P donated above the suggested donation.  It was just $15 for a local arts organization, but he gave $5 extra.  gasp. 

This is the first we've had any wiggle room in our budget for years and years and it does feel good to be able to give a little back to the community.  As we go forward we might need to make that an intentional budget line. 

Next week we close on the house.  I'm going to keep the same 3/5 lunch goal and expect dinner out one evening and see if we can manage to eat at home the rest of the time!
« Last Edit: February 14, 2020, 03:54:01 PM by PMG »

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #81 on: February 14, 2020, 05:33:52 PM »
I have lost track of my tracking, but we still haven't spent on anything except food, gas and medicine, so I guess we are doing hunky dory.

DH's excessive hours finally caught up with him and he is in misery today. He insists on going to the dinner dance, even though I offered to cancel this morning.
« Last Edit: February 14, 2020, 05:36:48 PM by ixtap »

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #82 on: February 14, 2020, 06:47:45 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0
10-Feb: $35 on gas; $6 on treat
11-Feb: $0
12-Feb: $0
13-Feb: $33
14-Feb: $0

Running Total: $240

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #83 on: February 16, 2020, 09:42:31 AM »


My challenge for Feb: I'd like to see how many days I can go with zero spending. I know that I have to renew my gym membership on Feb 15, so I have planned for that and am omitting it from consideration. But other than that: my house is full of food, the gas tank is full, and I have no spendy social obligations for the next few weeks.

And when I do have to spend, I'll attempt to scrounge up some petty cash to cover it (e.g. a jar of coins, get bottle deposit refunds, etc.). [No side gig here.]

So here goes:




Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0
Feb 9. $0
Feb 10. $0
Feb 11. $25   school fee for daughter (field trip)
Feb 12. $0
Feb 13. $0
Feb 14. $0
Feb 15. $45.25 on two theatre tickets and parking


Running Total: $145

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #84 on: February 18, 2020, 06:18:39 PM »
I bought a non consumable today. We needed a new car charger for our phones. I wanted a hardwired one because my phone has not always played well with plug and play ones. When I finally found a hardwired one, it was half the price as the cheapest alternative!

ApacheStache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 119
  • Location: West By West West
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #85 on: February 18, 2020, 07:59:06 PM »
Feb 01: $0
Feb 02: $0
Feb 03: $0
Feb 04: $0
Feb 05: $0
Feb 06: $0
Feb 07: $0
Feb 08: $0
Feb 09: $0
Feb 10: $20. 1 year subscription of 100GB Google Drive storage. I was previously paying $2 a month, so this saves me $5/year.
Feb 11: $0. almost bought a $15 board game that was on sale, but decided not to once I calculated tax and shipping
Feb 12: $33. gas
Feb 13: $0
Feb 14: $616. Vet Appointment. I have money earmarked for vet appoints and pet care, but this wiped out most of those funds. Time to replenish the pet fund!
Feb 15: $0
Feb 16: $6. Interior light bulb burned out in the car
Feb 17: $300. This is my one and only big splurge for the month. Purchased some gym equipment that was on sale for President's Day.
Feb 18: $0

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #86 on: February 18, 2020, 11:21:00 PM »


My challenge for Feb: I'd like to see how many days I can go with zero spending. I know that I have to renew my gym membership on Feb 15, so I have planned for that and am omitting it from consideration. But other than that: my house is full of food, the gas tank is full, and I have no spendy social obligations for the next few weeks.

And when I do have to spend, I'll attempt to scrounge up some petty cash to cover it (e.g. a jar of coins, get bottle deposit refunds, etc.). [No side gig here.]

So here goes:




Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0
Feb 9. $0
Feb 10. $0
Feb 11. $25   school fee for daughter (field trip)
Feb 12. $0
Feb 13. $0
Feb 14. $0
Feb 15. $45 on two theatre tickets and parking
Feb 16. $48 dinner out with daughter
Feb 17. $0
Feb 18. $0


Running Total: $193

The rest of the week doesn't look so great: Dinner out this Friday, I also have a charitable contribution to make, and will definitely go grocery shopping over the weekend (need salad!!!). And I have to renew my gym membership this weekend; I said I wouldn't include that here, but I probably should. On the bright side: I still have half a tank of gas! I hope to make it to the end of the month without filling up.

SailingOnASmallSailboat

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
  • Location: Somewhere where the water is at least 5 feet deep.
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #87 on: February 19, 2020, 10:58:05 AM »
Failed miserably this past weekend - driving 1500 miles between Friday and Sunday; Sunday we ate out both meals. Took youngest and friends to brunch to celebrate all being back together at college, then grabbed a quick BBQ dinner after stopping to see our son (also at college) for a fast hug.

And left our bag (with my kindle and hubby's Beat headphones) with daughter in her college dorm, 10 hours away from us. Not worth putting in the mail. So I resurrected a different kindle in the house, but it needs a cover, which I bought.

Oh well. The rest of the month has been gas, groceries, boat parts, and more boat parts. Oh, and medical expenses.

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #88 on: February 21, 2020, 01:59:16 AM »
Good thing DH doesn't count. He just ordered a new phone. Of course, it is a base model and compatible with Mint, which will allow it to pay for itself by the end of the year compared to his current plan. His old phone can't be upgraded enough to work with  Megacorp's security measures.

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #89 on: February 21, 2020, 02:42:02 PM »
Feb 1: $38 (liquor & a cookie)
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $42 (groceries)
          $4.50 (a battery)
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $25 (community fundraising event)
Feb 8: $2.50 (throat lozenges)
Feb 9: $7.50 (toilet handle, ours just snapped)
          $11 (lemons & ginger)
Feb 10:$0
Feb 11:$2 (gingersnap)

Feb 21: haven't been daily tracking as I am visiting Japan (!) Many costs were covered but have had to pay for one hotel and lunches/drinks..changed $300 CAD to yen and still have money left over with two days left (not the most frugal budget..but this is a bit of dream trip so I needed to be able to access all the ramen..) Thankfully the convenience store Onigiri (rice & seaweed triangles stuffed with a tasty filling) are also my favourite so when that is an option, I have lunch for $2) :) It's been great and could have easily spent a lot more since this place can be very pricey.

Sailor Sam

  • CMTO 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5731
  • Age: 43
  • Location: Steel Beach
  • Semper...something
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #90 on: February 21, 2020, 06:27:22 PM »
01-Feb: $0
02-Feb: $46 on groceries; $3 on tea
03-Feb: $0
04-Feb: $28 on witchdoctoring
05-Feb: $5 on a phone app
06-Feb: $31 on gas
07-Feb: $46 on wife
08-Feb: $8 on food out
09-Feb: $0
10-Feb: $35 on gas; $6 on treat
11-Feb: $0
12-Feb: $0
13-Feb: $33 on haircut
14-Feb: $0
15-Feb: $32 on coffee & lunch;  $38 on community
16-Feb: $20 on groceries;  $5 on coffee
17-Feb: $0
18-Feb: $0
19-Feb: $16 on groceries
20-Feb: $30 on gas
21-Feb: $30 on shipping

Running Total: $411

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #91 on: February 22, 2020, 04:53:07 PM »

My challenge for Feb: I'd like to see how many days I can go with zero spending. I know that I have to renew my gym membership on Feb 15, so I have planned for that and am omitting it from consideration. But other than that: my house is full of food, the gas tank is full, and I have no spendy social obligations for the next few weeks.

And when I do have to spend, I'll attempt to scrounge up some petty cash to cover it (e.g. a jar of coins, get bottle deposit refunds, etc.). [No side gig here.]

So here goes:




Feb 1. $0
Feb 2. $0
Feb 3. $0
Feb 4. $0
Feb 5. $71.48 (40 for daughter, 31 for baby gifts)
Feb 6. $0
Feb 7. $3  drink at intermission for daughter
Feb 8. $0
Feb 9. $0
Feb 10. $0
Feb 11. $25   school fee for daughter (field trip)
Feb 12. $0
Feb 13. $0
Feb 14. $0
Feb 15. $45 on two theatre tickets and parking
Feb 16. $48 dinner out with daughter
Feb 17. $0
Feb 18. $0
Feb 19. $105 charitable contribution (planned)
Feb 20. -$154 !! rolled coins! deposited coins in bank!
Feb 21. $38 dinner out with friends
Feb 22. $18 groceries/supplies and...
            $27 for more goddamn baby gifts!

Running Total: $381 -$154 =$227.

Ok this thing about baby-gifts is OUT OF CONTROL! Thanks to this thread, I have resolved to RETURN THEM by next weekend. I still haven't sent the gifts that I bought earlier this month.

I also renewed my gym membership, as planned, but I decided to count that as a regular bill and am not listing it here with my discretionary spending.

I will pat myself on the back for finally getting that yogurt container full of coins out of my drawer. I hardly use cash anymore so I don't expect to accumulate many coins in the future. And my grocery spending this month is lower than it has ever been (so far).

One week to go for this Frugal February challenge!
« Last Edit: February 22, 2020, 10:11:51 PM by centwise »

PMG

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1609
  • Location: USA
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #92 on: February 22, 2020, 07:34:02 PM »
I can’t figure out if I posted goals for last week or not, but I did manage to pack my lunch 3 out of 5 work days. This has been making a huge difference for me. Self control and achieving a goal or two spills over into other areas.

We ate out once and both stuck to soup.

We’re mostly moved. Paid a friend $100 to help. $50 for four hours of his time and another $50 for use of his truck. He thought we were being too generous and we feel like he gave us a gift. He was so helpful.

Ordered a pile of things for the house, but so have  stuck to necessary and not fallen for any new cute organizing bins etc. It’s still adding up to be an expensive month. We’ve got a list of wants but we really want to settle first and see how many are needs. I even walked through goodwill tonight after dropping some things off and didn’t buy a thing.

I did pick up a pizza for moving day, at the walkable shop that was more expensive than I expected, but c’est la vie.



ApacheStache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 119
  • Location: West By West West
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #93 on: February 23, 2020, 12:43:51 PM »
I can’t figure out if I posted goals for last week or not, but I did manage to pack my lunch 3 out of 5 work days. This has been making a huge difference for me. Self control and achieving a goal or two spills over into other areas.

Nice work. I've definitely noticed that this month I've managed to eat through the food that we have in the pantry and the freezer instead of rushing out to the grocery store to stock up on new food. I'll likely need to go grocery shopping next week, but I plan on using a $50 rebate gift card for that.

Feb 01: $0
Feb 02: $0
Feb 03: $0
Feb 04: $0
Feb 05: $0
Feb 06: $0
Feb 07: $0
Feb 08: $0
Feb 09: $0
Feb 10: $20. 1 year subscription of 100GB Google Drive storage. I was previously paying $2 a month, so this saves me $5/year.
Feb 11: $0. almost bought a $15 board game that was on sale, but decided not to once I calculated tax and shipping
Feb 12: $33. gas
Feb 13: $0
Feb 14: $616. Vet Appointment. I have money earmarked for vet appoints and pet care, but this wiped out most of those funds. Time to replenish the pet fund!
Feb 15: $0
Feb 16: $6. Interior light bulb burned out in the car
Feb 17: $300. This is my one and only big splurge for the month. Purchased some gym equipment that was on sale for President's Day.
Feb 18: $0
Feb 19: $0
Feb 20: $0
Feb 21: $0
Feb 22: $0

Running Total: $975

centwise

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 207
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #94 on: February 23, 2020, 04:23:12 PM »
Kudos ApacheStache! Virtually all of your spending is either planned or unavoidable (vet bills), and you are rocking it with all those daily zeroes.

Serendip

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2210
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #95 on: February 25, 2020, 01:32:12 PM »
Feb 1: $38 (liquor & a cookie)
Feb 2: $0
Feb 3: $0
Feb 4: $42 (groceries)
          $4.50 (a battery)
Feb 5: $0
Feb 6: $0
Feb 7: $25 (community fundraising event)
Feb 8: $2.50 (throat lozenges)
Feb 9: $7.50 (toilet handle, ours just snapped)
          $11 (lemons & ginger)
Feb 10:$0
Feb 11:$2 (gingersnap)

Feb 21: no daily tracking as I was overseas for almost 2 weeks

Feb 25: $71.00 (groceries)
            $25 (wine for bookclub)

Back home and needed a lot of veggies/frozen fruit. Should be good for food for the next two weeks, when my SO returns home. I'm happy to stick to a simple, healthy options (and yes, the wine is a bit much).

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #96 on: February 28, 2020, 03:26:59 PM »
Well, we all seem to have petered out a bit, but our non gas, non food spending for the month was limited to one phone charger and one phone, which can't use the new charger, and some cleaning supplies. However, with Corona virus not too far down the road, I am reversing the empty the cupboards thing, but pasta, beans, rice, tofu... nonperishables are pretty cheap compared to meats and fresh veg.

PMG

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1609
  • Location: USA
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #97 on: February 28, 2020, 03:54:39 PM »
I made my packed lunches goal this week. Kind of. Was home 3/5 days. Packed stuff the other two but it was not enough (pregnancy appetite finally picking up?) so I had to buy some to supplement, but definitely a win for the pocketbook and health to start with home food. Wednesday night I cooked a big stir fry using up all the sad looking veg left in the fridge, and packed ahead for work, that ended up being closed due to weather and illness. 

I am right now in the middle of prepping another meal out of nothing. BBQ lentils and some oven baked french fries. Using the last bag of lentils and peeling the green off some puny looking potatoes. I’m definitely coming out of my morning sickness phase and finally able to eat and be more active! Hallelujah!

We’re prepping our list for a rather big grocery shop, the cupboards are pretty bare. For the sake of this thread I should put it off until Sunday but it fits our schedule better for tomorrow. 

In conclusion, I haven’t been as frugal as many of you all this month but it has been just the encouragement I needed!  I will continue with my 3/5 lunch goal each week indefinitely.

ApacheStache

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 119
  • Location: West By West West
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #98 on: February 28, 2020, 07:49:25 PM »
Kudos ApacheStache! Virtually all of your spending is either planned or unavoidable (vet bills), and you are rocking it with all those daily zeroes.

Thanks centwise!

Feb 01: $0
Feb 02: $0
Feb 03: $0
Feb 04: $0
Feb 05: $0
Feb 06: $0
Feb 07: $0
Feb 08: $0
Feb 09: $0
Feb 10: $20. 1 year subscription of 100GB Google Drive storage. I was previously paying $2 a month, so this saves me $5/year.
Feb 11: $0. almost bought a $15 board game that was on sale, but decided not to once I calculated tax and shipping
Feb 12: $33. gas
Feb 13: $0
Feb 14: $616. Vet Appointment. I have money earmarked for vet appoints and pet care, but this wiped out most of those funds. Time to replenish the pet fund!
Feb 15: $0
Feb 16: $6. Interior light bulb burned out in the car
Feb 17: $300. This is my one and only big splurge for the month. Purchased some gym equipment that was on sale for President's Day.
Feb 18: $0
Feb 19: $0
Feb 20: $0
Feb 21: $0
Feb 22: $0
Feb 23: $0
Feb 24: $0
Feb 25: $51. Groceries
Feb 26: $0
Feb 27: $0
Feb 28: $0

Running Total: $1,026


cupcakery

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 154
Re: Frugal February
« Reply #99 on: March 02, 2020, 09:47:30 AM »
February went well.  I bought coffee out twice when I was dragging and was out of the coffee/tea that I had brought to work.  The only other thing you could say I splurged on was taking my kids to an art studio over school vacation week.  ($72)  Overall I came in under budget and put a lot into my sinking fund for some expenses that are going to hit over the next few months.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!