Cheap Things That Make You Happy

[Metalcat]

My new professional license that I got today costs less than a tenth of my other license. It turns out it's a lot cheaper to be a professional if there's no blood involved.

[Adventine]

We got a study desk for free from my husband's boss! He's redecorating his house and needed to declutter some items. He even delivered it to our apartment because it's so close to the office. Score!

[jeninco]

@jeninco --sounds amazing :)


Today's cheap thing that I appreciated was a good hike in the rain with an upbeat friend. We got soaked but still jumped in a lake at the end when the rain slowed down and sun peeked out. The forest was dripping, which is a nice change following a very dry summer.

That genuinely sounds wonderful -- especially the jump into the lake! I'm always glad I did it when I do (and generally sorry when I flake out...)

[Just Joe]

Rode my bike at lunch today. Ride out was nice, overcast. The ride back was even nicer - in a light rain. Probably not alot of light rains left this year that will be as nice.

[WorkingToUnwind]

Bought a tub of vanilla ice cream to go with an apple crisp I made today. Both the kids and DH are pretty excited for dessert tonight 😁 I love fall.

[Sandi_k]

Tart/sweet lemon curd, spread on a crunchy/soft toasted English muffin. With a cup of dark roast coffee and frothed milk.

[zolotiyeruki]

A giant, orange Harvest Moon tonight, as seen from the top of the sledding hill in a park near us.

[mspym]

Giant moon rising over a hill while we walk our dog in the park, marvelling at the Milky Way

[Freedomin5]

We are a hour outside the city staying at a homestay in a Chinese farming village. The local food here is farm fresh and delicious. Some of the villagers have opened a restaurant on their farm, and most everything they serve is grown on their farm.

[jeninco]

Tart/sweet lemon curd, spread on a crunchy/soft toasted English muffin. With a cup of dark roast coffee and frothed milk.

You know, I have a lemon tree (in a pot: it gets COLD here in the winters) and it currently holds about a dozen ripe lemons. Although I'm the only one in the house who really likes lemon curd, I really like lemon curd.  I see a little project for this evening..  Thanks!

[mspym]

Fresh crisp sheets on the bed.

[Sandi_k]

Tart/sweet lemon curd, spread on a crunchy/soft toasted English muffin. With a cup of dark roast coffee and frothed milk.

You know, I have a lemon tree (in a pot: it gets COLD here in the winters) and it currently holds about a dozen ripe lemons. Although I'm the only one in the house who really likes lemon curd, I really like lemon curd.  I see a little project for this evening..  Thanks!

I really like it, too. I have a lemon tart recipe that I drag out for Thanksgiving every few years. Happily, DH does as well. ;)

[Freedomin5]

Bike ride by a river, on a village road, through a grove of trees.

[Just Joe]

The southwest living folks might not get this but - watching the grass clippings fly out of my ~52 year old electric lawn tractor discharge chute.

Don't want to rehash the "Kill Your Lawn" thread. If I don't cut the grass, the forest takes over. We don't put chemicals on the grass ever. We just live in the country. Things grow here w/o help.

Still, satisfying to watch the old machine do it's job yet another season. The hum of the cutter motors, the whine of the old transmission. So much nicer than a gas machine with all those noises and vibrations.

Also fun to get up early and see the deer that overnight in our yard.

[Dicey]

I taught my granddaughter how to turn a marshmallow into "taffy". Kept her fully engaged for at least twenty minutes. Best of all, the marshmallows were leftover from last year's Moab Meetup.

[Josiecat22222]

reading library books with my husband.  We take turns reading 2-3 chapters each out loud to each other and then switch.  We drink tea and coffee and discuss the book as we go along and it is one of my favorite parts of our marriage.

[WorkingToUnwind]

Pumpkin spice lattes from dunks. One or two a season hits the spot.

[Adventine]

Got an interesting book from the Little Free Library down the street!

[jinga nation]

Peanut butter. Smooth or crunchy. With or without sugar. Have it on toast, in stir fry, in oatmeal, or just a spoonful when you want something sweet but not too sweet. Just hits the spot.
None of those fancy brands please, store brands are perfect.

And audiobooks for free on Hoopla and Libby. Let your imagination draw worlds to to the spoken words.

[FrugalShrew]

This forum. :)

[Adventine]

I made myself a big pot of congee, which is my favorite comfort food for cold weather. Only takes 15 minutes or so in our Instant Pot. 2 cups of white rice, 6 cups of water, 4 eggs, then ginger powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. It'll be enough for 6-8 meals, depending on how hungry I am. And I can easily add greens like bok choy or spinach. Cheap, easy, fulfilling.

[namasteyall]

Such happy, pleasant events. Always make me smile. Thank you.

[Trifle]

A few years ago I bought a short, lightweight set of metal camping utensils -- fork, spoon, and knife.  I carry them everywhere with me in my purse and I've used them so many times.  Every time I do it makes me happy to think of the single use plastic I'm not using.     

[HipGnosis]

A few years ago I bought a short, lightweight set of metal camping utensils -- fork, spoon, and knife.  I carry them everywhere with me in my purse and I've used them so many times.  Every time I do it makes me happy to think of the single use plastic I'm not using.   

I have nylon camping utensils -- 2 ea fork and knife, 4 spoons.  They are my daily cooking and eating utensils.  The knives are serrated and actually cut.   They don't damage my corelle plates, bowls or cookware.
I like that they have a softer 'mouth-feel', esp when eating soft foods.
The spoons are tablespoons.  I've looked for nylon teaspoons many times - I'm thinking of 3D printing some.

[mspym]

One of the nice things about the small rural town we moved to is people put out baskets of surplus produce. We’ve been feasting on free grapefruit and pumpkin the last few weeks. This morning while I was walking the dog, I came across rainbow chard for the taking so breakfast is rice, eggs and sautéed chard. I can’t wait till my garden gets established and I can join in.

[Serendip]

One of the nice things about the small rural town we moved to is people put out baskets of surplus produce. We’ve been feasting on free grapefruit and pumpkin the last few weeks. This morning while I was walking the dog, I came across rainbow chard for the taking so breakfast is rice, eggs and sautéed chard. I can’t wait till my garden gets established and I can join in.

How wonderful that people share the bounty!

[Serendip]

Rainy, cozy day inside reading after a drizzly hike with a newly adopted dog. Very satisfying.

[Freedomin5]

Sunshine streaming in through the window.

[Siebrie]

BBC's Horrible Histories (on Youtube) and Six the musical (the Broadway version; on Youtube).

Hikes (on Youtube), where people just walk through nature or a city with their camera. Some even hike through places I've hiked myself, and it's wonderful to reminisce.

[zolotiyeruki]

Returning home after dropping a kid off at school, I got to witness an absolutely glorious pre-sunrise, with all shades of pink, orange, and yellow reflecting off the scattered clouds on the horizon.

[Dicey]

Realized I need to bring an appetizer tomorrow night. Also wanted to make pizza for dinner tonight, because it's cooling off after a heat wave. Solution: pizza tonight and pizza wheels for the appetizer tomorrow. I have all the ingredients on hand, yippee! First batch of dough is proofing and the next batch is just waiting for me to get on it.

[Malossi792]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

[Metalcat]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

At first I was like "wow, that's amazing, most homeless shelters don't allow dogs" and then I realized you meant dog shelter.

[Catbert]

Realized I need to bring an appetizer tomorrow night. Also wanted to make pizza for dinner tonight, because it's cooling off after a heat wave. Solution: pizza tonight and pizza wheels for the appetizer tomorrow. I have all the ingredients on hand, yippee! First batch of dough is proofing and the next batch is just waiting for me to get on it.

Although I make pizza frequently I've never made pizza wheels.  I'll think of this two-fer when I need an appetizer from my book group.  Pizza is a great clean out the refrigerator meal.

[GuitarStv]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

Sadly, you're not allowed to do a regular visit to the animals in our local city run animal shelters here in Toronto any more.  You have to log in online, look at pictures or read text about animals, then book a 15 minute appointment, then go down to the shelter to interact with one AND ONLY ONE dog and leave.

I think it's a super fucked up covid restriction that somehow never went away but it feels very bizarre.

[Linea_Norway]

Today we wanted to make a walk in the new town we moved to. We choose a trip goal in a free app where all the goals are visible, followed by another goal. We had a nice walking trip and got to know the area a bit better.

[HipGnosis]

Today we wanted to make a walk in the new town we moved to. We choose a trip goal in a free app where all the goals are visible, followed by another goal. We had a nice walking trip and got to know the area a bit better.

What app?!?!?

[Dicey]

Realized I need to bring an appetizer tomorrow night. Also wanted to make pizza for dinner tonight, because it's cooling off after a heat wave. Solution: pizza tonight and pizza wheels for the appetizer tomorrow. I have all the ingredients on hand, yippee! First batch of dough is proofing and the next batch is just waiting for me to get on it.

Although I make pizza frequently I've never made pizza wheels.  I'll think of this two-fer when I need an appetizer from my book group.  Pizza is a great clean out the refrigerator meal.

It took two tries, but the end result was a success.

[fuzzy math]

DD (teen) asked to go for a bike ride yesterday. Those moments are rare (currently, but hopefully changing) and special.

I baked GF muffins today. I rarely have baked goods, they're not even that great but dangit I ate something warm and squishy straight out of the oven.

[Malossi792]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

Sadly, you're not allowed to do a regular visit to the animals in our local city run animal shelters here in Toronto any more.  You have to log in online, look at pictures or read text about animals, then book a 15 minute appointment, then go down to the shelter to interact with one AND ONLY ONE dog and leave.

I think it's a super fucked up covid restriction that somehow never went away but it feels very bizarre.

That's just crazy. Do they want to keep them all for themselves?
Anyway, I volunteered a couple hours of a weekend this month with this org. Don't know what their rules for 'normal' people or regular visits are :) but they were excited to see my dog (and myself). Just lovely people.

[GuitarStv]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

Sadly, you're not allowed to do a regular visit to the animals in our local city run animal shelters here in Toronto any more.  You have to log in online, look at pictures or read text about animals, then book a 15 minute appointment, then go down to the shelter to interact with one AND ONLY ONE dog and leave.

I think it's a super fucked up covid restriction that somehow never went away but it feels very bizarre.

That's just crazy. Do they want to keep them all for themselves?
Anyway, I volunteered a couple hours of a weekend this month with this org. Don't know what their rules for 'normal' people or regular visits are :) but they were excited to see my dog (and myself). Just lovely people.

Agreed!  When I was at their door and they were explaining it to me through the locked door intercom I could barely believe what I was hearing.

[Serendip]

Visiting the local shelter.
Lovely people, even more lovely dogs. Lots of tail wagging and tummy rubbing, also socialization for my own lil furball of love (desperately needs it, street rescue..). Also napping, cuddling said furball after. What a glorious day.

Sadly, you're not allowed to do a regular visit to the animals in our local city run animal shelters here in Toronto any more.  You have to log in online, look at pictures or read text about animals, then book a 15 minute appointment, then go down to the shelter to interact with one AND ONLY ONE dog and leave.

I think it's a super fucked up covid restriction that somehow never went away but it feels very bizarre.

That's just crazy. Do they want to keep them all for themselves?
Anyway, I volunteered a couple hours of a weekend this month with this org. Don't know what their rules for 'normal' people or regular visits are :) but they were excited to see my dog (and myself). Just lovely people.

Agreed!  When I was at their door and they were explaining it to me through the locked door intercom I could barely believe what I was hearing.

We just adopted a rescue dog a week ago and what a joy she already is in our lives. She will take as many tummy rubs as we will offer--dog smiles all around!
 
Our (very small) shelter limits the people coming in because so many of their dogs are fearful so it can be overwhelming for them. They have volunteers who can walk the dogs often and it's easy to become one, but they find managing too many random humans can take away from their ability to care well for the animals.

To communicate with them, we had to practice patience as they are in constant crisis management with all sorts of people calling about animals left, right and centre..and they don't have much space. It made me empathize with how overworked the staff are (and under-resourced).

They also are always looking for emergency fosters, sometimes even just for a night. And drives to vets, etc. So many young people who can't necessarily adopt can foster pets.

[FIREin2018]

Reach waxed floss, $1 at Amazon.
My local supermarket had a sale for their store brand waxed floss for the exact same length (50yds) for $0.50.
It was horrible. it would slip from my fingers as i floss so i had a hard time getting it in-between my teeth.
Ordered from Amazon immediately after that experience and got it next day. (I'm a prime member.)

threw that floss in the garbage

[FIREin2018]

A few years ago I bought a short, lightweight set of metal camping utensils -- fork, spoon, and knife.  I carry them everywhere with me in my purse and I've used them so many times.  Every time I do it makes me happy to think of the single use plastic I'm not using.   

Decades ago i thought of buying a foldable titanium spork from eBay that has a butter knife edge on one side of the spoon portion.
So basically a 3-in-1.
but being a guy, i had no easy way to carry it. I'd thought it'd be uncomfortable in my back pocket and would fear it falling out everytime i pull out my keys or phone from my  front pockets.
(that's why i only carry 1 item in each pocket)

[Metalcat]

A few years ago I bought a short, lightweight set of metal camping utensils -- fork, spoon, and knife.  I carry them everywhere with me in my purse and I've used them so many times.  Every time I do it makes me happy to think of the single use plastic I'm not using.   

Decades ago i thought of buying a foldable titanium spork from eBay that has a butter knife edge on one side of the spoon portion.
So basically a 3-in-1.
but being a guy, i had no easy way to carry it. I'd thought it'd be uncomfortable in my back pocket and would fear it falling out everytime i pull out my keys or phone from my  front pockets.
(that's why i only carry 1 item in each pocket)

Pretty much every dude in my life eventually gets converted to carrying one of these instead of trying to stuff all of their essentials into their pants, which always seems inefficient to me.

https://www.swissgear.ca/en/travel-accessories/small-bags/travel-bags/swissgear-swt0361r-mini-sling-bag-black

[Josiecat22222]

+1 @Metalcat.  My husband lovingly calls his "his manpurse".  And states he has no idea why we haven't normalized men carrying bags.  He's a convert!

[Metalcat]

+1 @Metalcat.  My husband lovingly calls his "his manpurse".  And states he has no idea why we haven't normalized men carrying bags.  He's a convert!

Lol, yeah, that's why I specifically recommend Swiss Army bags. The branding helps me sneak past them that I'm telling them to carry a purse.

It's seriously life changing for some dudes to suddenly be able to carry so many more essentials and never forget or lose anything. One guy friend is diabetic and literally only wore cargo pants for his entire 20s and 30s because he needed to carry his insulin.

Wife is extremely happy that I finally converted him to Swiss Army bag. He also no longer constantly loses his wallet and keys. She likes me a lot. Lol.

[zolotiyeruki]

I just wear cargo pants. Duluth trading company's firehose pants have amazing pockets. My pants typically weigh about 4.5 pounds with my EDC!

I'd probably forget a bag along with all its contents...

[Metalcat]

I just wear cargo pants. Duluth trading company's firehose pants have amazing pockets. My pants typically weigh about 4.5 pounds with my EDC!

I'd probably forget a bag along with all its contents...

Hey, if it works for you and your spouse doesn't hate cargo pants, then that's great.

The guy I'm talking about is a soft, urban, government office worker who really shouldn't be living in cargo pants in a professional context and wouldn't know what a Robertson screwdriver is. It drove his wife insane that he always wore cargo pants even out to expensive restaurants.

[sonofsven]

+1 @Metalcat.  My husband lovingly calls his "his manpurse".  And states he has no idea why we haven't normalized men carrying bags.  He's a convert!

Lol, yeah, that's why I specifically recommend Swiss Army bags. The branding helps me sneak past them that I'm telling them to carry a purse.

It's seriously life changing for some dudes to suddenly be able to carry so many more essentials and never forget or lose anything. One guy friend is diabetic and literally only wore cargo pants for his entire 20s and 30s because he needed to carry his insulin.

Wife is extremely happy that I finally converted him to Swiss Army bag. He also no longer constantly loses his wallet and keys. She likes me a lot. Lol.

Most guys that I know with a "murse" have a CCW permit and use it to carry their handgun.
My purse is actually my pickup truck that I work out of. I have everything in there: extra clothes, emergency gear, food, water, medical kit, toothbrush, blankets. No handguns though.