I just realized that I had noticed one of my biggest unwanted unnecessary expense was eating out so this was a way to address that. GWIMW :)
Overall Rating: votes
-
Posted 3 months ago #
-
Not sure if this is applicable in all countries, but here, if i want to buy chicken, i.e. chicken breast it is considerably cheaper (per kilo price) to buy it on the bone and de-bone and de-skin it myself. Yes, i know, time is money, but it doesn't take that much time (for me) to do it.
Same thing with other cuts of meat. My MIL grinds her own meat and says it has saved her quite a bit in the past 5 decades.Posted 3 months ago # -
It is true in Houston, Texas. Same with whole vs. cut-up lettuce and whole chunks vs. shredded cheese. We make yogurt and use a Misto to spray olive oil as well.
Posted 3 months ago # -
you made me laugh, i remembered a running gag from former student days. we could not afford anything but when needed something, let s say a table. we were looking at 1000 euro tables in magazines and started sighing... when we finally found a 20 euro table at ikea, dh started to dance and making funny sounds, singing, shalala, we will book flights to hawaii, we saved 980 euros and we will spend this savings NOW!
needless to say, we have not been on holidays for a long time these days....Posted 3 months ago # -
Thanks, all -- you did help me clarify. The reason I haven't been able to quantify savings is because it is not terribly important to me :) DH & I already live slightly below our means, have no debt & will enjoy a secure retirement -- so, the amount saved on a case-by-case basis is usually irrelevant to US in that it makes no difference to our standard of living. Might be a totally different situation for someone else.
Posted 3 months ago # -
I get that. It was our situation until two years ago, too. Over the past two plus years we have taken our frugally stashed savings out to support our poor daughter's divorce attorney. Now in our retirement we are scrimping instead of traveling except to see her and driving a wreck instead of a newer vehicle. It is our choice, though, for the sake of our grndkids and daughter. Meanwhile, I am so glad we are frugal by nature and have tons of practice. It is not as hard as it might seem.
Posted 3 months ago # -
The importance of my experience (above entry) is the unexpected value of having been simple and frugal over all those years.
Posted 3 months ago # -
Saving money FAIL - I have brought breakfast and lunch every day this week, knowing I had a group lunch to go out to today. Spent $17 and didn't even like the food. Grrrrrrr.
Posted 3 months ago # -
Ha, Chacha, that is SO FRUSTRATING! Breakfast especially, because it's hardly ever better than what you have at home and always ridiculously expensive. Last Saturday I didn't have time for breakfast before my morning meeting, and bought a bagel at the coffeeshop where the meeting is, and it was the exact same bagels we had at home, only one cost as much as a whole bag of them from the grocery store.
Posted 3 months ago # -
@ Rosa, one reason DH and I don't eat out as often anymore is 'cause we got so cheap about the WINE! It's one thing to pay a certain amount for a fine steak, but to pay $7 for a glass of wine when I know perfectly well I can get the whole bottle for $11 just tips me over the edge. LOL
Posted 3 months ago # -
chacha - the cost of eating out kills me too. i get that i'm paying for service, atmosphere, etc. but i can cook and clean up for myself just fine and i like my house. when we want to have a "fancy" meal we buy good steaks and a bottle of wine and have it at home. saves well over half the cost of a restaurant bill and no one has to be the designated driver. when we've ate and drank our fill we can just wander a few feet to bed. but this naturally goes with my introverted personality.
Posted 3 months ago # -
Refrained from lunch but stopped at a chinese restaurant for funn noodles and they were delicious and cheap - but no savings today unless i decide to count lunch but wouldn't have done this particular lunch out anyway so i guess i won't count it.
Posted 3 months ago # -
$55 to the savings jar - am inching closer to signing up for COSTCO but didn't so into the jar goes the membership fee (and should I add $100 more for what I easily could have spent there on the bargains I would have picked up ... OK, why not, $155 to the jar :D
Posted 2 months ago # -
NTCH, I have a Costco membership that I'm going to let lapse, and not renew until such time that I really, reeeeeeally want something that only they sell. About the only "must-have" things for me right now are the vanilla extract (just bought one) heavy-duty garbage bags (about to pick up a case or two), and occasional vitamins. Everything else they sell comes in too-large packages, and the idea of paying to go shopping there does irk me.
On the money-saving front, I seem to have lost my taste for the half-Litre diet colas in the machine at work. Rather than throwing $2.00 at the drink machine and having leftover drink go flat in the fridge overnight, I can spend $3.00 and pick up a 12-pack of a quite tolerable store brand.
I'm also drinking more water, cooling tap water in a bottle overnight so that it's ready when I get to work in the morning. Cost for the bottle was about $4.00, and it's easy to fill or clean.
Posted 2 months ago # -
We gave up our Costco membership several years ago, for much the same reasons. Plus the closest one is over 40 miles away! We do have a knock-off/wannabe store that carries many of the Kirkland brands I use - toilet tissue, laundry soap, paper towels - and regular groceries as well. Not too much of the non-food things Costco has, but I have friends with memberships if I reaallly want something. :)
Posted 2 months ago # -
Astreja: I did that before and then when I resigned they "made" me pay for the time that lapsed. I asked about that this time around and they said they would not be charging for the years and years of lapsed membership. So you may want to find out about that before you decide what to do.
Now that I am eating a lot of apples, the savings at costco for them may alone pay for the membership fee as well as give me timely access to yummy ones. I can go with friends but then if the apples are out at the branch they go to and available at another then I'm out of luck so a membership would give me the convenience that way but then it's always fun to shop with friends. If it were just the occasional jaunt for non-perishables going with friends works out fine, but when it's apples and sirloin ... Anyway, stilling thinking on it. I let it lapse earlier because it was too much stuff, but now that I'm liking apples so much it may be worth it for that. When I smoked it was worth it for the savings in cigarettes alone.
Posted 2 months ago # -
The reduced price of contacts/glasses/eye exams at Costco is more than worth the membership fee for our family.
I DO spend too much when I go there, so I try not to do it very often.
With only 2 kids still at home, I have to store the excess for quite awhile. I have more than enough room to
store it, but prefer not to these days.Posted 2 months ago # -
@NTCH: Ah, no problem! If they even think of making me pay for membership months I decided not to use, I walk out and I never go back.
I'm not even sure I want to go back there at all, to be honest -- It seems like the parking lot is always full of manic, aggressive people, and their hours don't usually fit with when I want to shop.
Posted 2 months ago # -
I am terrified of Costco. They built one about 25 miles from me last Christmas, and I have yet to go in. The parking lot is ALWAYS full, and that's just too many people in one place.
Posted 2 months ago # -
Not far from where I live is a Costco with a gas station. For us, our Costco membership pays for itself in the savings from about 10 fill-ups.
Posted 2 months ago #
Reply »
You must log in to post. If you do not already have an account, you can register here.
