Start Living Frugal

A Frugal August Retrospect, Thanks to Twitter

Besides keeping up with other PF bloggers I also like to keep track of the occasional frugal thing I have done over the past month, call it twitter-ugality if you will. This post is just a look back on my August and the things I have done, learned and any links that may be of interest. Enjoy!

????

You know about my grand dumpster find, the cedar chest - I tried calling the town’s commerce department and they had never heard of the company. Getting any history on this chest is on hold for now as the last known info on it, online, is 1920’s advertising. Any other ideas on finding some background to it and getting a new latch?

The company I work for had cut back on feeding us for special occasions, so when they do decide to feed us, it is a special event. This last time they over ordered on pizza and quite a few people went home with enough pizza for the next couple of meals. Always nice to not have to take a lunch.

I finally finished up getting my teeth crowned, yet I don’t feel much like royalty. However I have found a much cheaper answer to Percocet that is already in my medicine cabinet - call it the poor man’s codeine - two acetaminophen and an aspirin and I’m set for the day.

Recently had the wonderful enjoyment of paying off my car and picking up the title at the bank. Paying off a debt that you know won’t be showing up again is such a great feeling and nothing beats looking at your car and knowing that you own it, in good times and bad. Now I look forward to seeing the impact on my credit score.

On that note, I also bought a new freezer. I had tried chest freezers but they aren’t good for my partner who has a very bad back. Now it is time to fill it. So far she has made spaghetti sauce with meat and with chicken. We will be filling it up with frozen milk as well for the future rise of grocery costs.

Not too exciting for most people, but I’m happy. I recently had a dumpster find of puppy training pads for my Maltese, Hope. She is 8 years old, has no teeth and has a bladder problem; these will come in handy in the winter when she is too cold to go out.

You know the refrigerator is too cold when the eggs freeze up! (Problem fixed now)

I am an habitual checker of vending machine coin slots and I have noticed that in the last 6-9 months the amount of change I have found has dropped noticeable. On one had is it good to see that people are keeping their change in this economy and on the other hand it greatly reduces the jingle in my pocket.

I know there are many people who use search site to gather points and gain free gifts and gift cards. Two of note are swagbucks and mypoints. I have used Mypoints for a couple of years and have been very happy with them. I then heard of Swagbucks and decided to try them out, not so happy with them. It took me twice as long to get a $5 GC from Swagbucks as it does to gain enough points from Mypoints for a $10 or $25 GC.  I canceled my membership with Swagbucks and will stay with Mypoints for now on.

My much beloved library bookmobile has been cut do to budget cuts. If I had the money I would pay to bring it back and save the gas to drive to the nearest one.

FRUGAL TIPS LEARNED
? Before washing/drying clothes, unbutton all your clothing so rips and tears don’t occur along with lost buttons
? Did you know you can flash freeze pancakes? Make to many pancakes, freeze ‘em and then pull them out for the next morning.

LINKS OF NOTE
•  Archived post: Can’t get to the state fair for funnel cake-make it at home!  
• Social Security turned 74 years old this year (a handy little government program) See the Consumer Checklist of MUST -DOs
• If the dish ran away with the spoon, I’m thinking the pot-pie had an accomplice as well. (Not frugal related, just funny)

 

Tags: 8 Years, Acetaminophen, Cedar Chest, Chest Freezers, Codeine, Commerce Department, Credit Score, Dumpster, Freezer, Frozen Milk, Grocery Costs, Latch, Medicine Cabinet, Percocet, Poor Man, Puppy Training, Retrospect, S Commerce, Spaghetti Sauce, Special Occasions

Weekly Roundup: Sink Or Swim Edition

Our kids are in the process of learning to swim. It is something we probably put off too long, but that we’ve become more dedicated to both as a survival skill and a form of summertime entertainment. Teaching kids to swim takes a lot of patience, a virtue I was not born with, but one I’ve tried to cultivate over time.

Things like having kids young, coaching youth soccer, and settling down to write all help develop patience, and it’s a good thing because patience is a key factor in financial success. The most serious screw-ups I’ve committed with money were made when I moved too fast.  When not teaching the doggy-paddle, or how to float on your back, to the kids in my spare time, I managed to run across a few excellent posts this past week.

The Fab Five

Can You Survive As a One Income Family? Yes, we’ve been doing it for over ten years now. But living on one income is not easy, and it requires a tremendous sacrifice. (@ The Wisdom Journal)

Retired at 31: An Early Retirement Story. I read these stories and wish I could go back to 20 years-old and have a mulligan. If I only knew then what I know now. Still, I find these posts to be extremely inspiring for those in their early twenties because it is a decade of so much opportunity!(@ Million Dollar Journey)

Junky Car Club. Cool idea here. Register your “junky” car here and agree to use at least some of what you used to pay for a car payment for charity. (@Stiletto Money Online)

15 Ways To Get Started On Snowflaking. The idea of “snowflaking” is one of the best ways to get out of debt. I’ve used it to pay off thousands of dollars of debt in small increments of micro-payments from various side hustles. Believe me; they add up over time! (@The Simple Dollar)

Poor Man Wins Lottery – Will it Help or Hurt Him? After any sizable lottery winnings the media instantly reports all those who have been cursed by the winnings. I still believe the idea that it is the love of money that is the root of all evil.  Money alone is simply a tool. (@Money Help For Christians)

Best of the Rest

• SEP IRA: Self-Employed Retirement Plans
• Four Simple Ways To Make The Most Of Your Day
• Keep Your Kids Busy Without Breaking the Bank This Summer
• How To Win a Race in Last Place
• Three Quick Tips For Getting Ahead In Life
• How To Be A Millionaire: Start Thinking Like One
• Is the 401(k) Broken? I’m Not So Sure
• The Four(ty) Hour Workweek
• Where Is Gold Heading To?
  
• Shopping List For A Newborn Baby

Post from: Frugal Dad

Tags: Car Club, Car Payment, Coaching Youth Soccer, Early Retirement, Fab Five, Financial Success, Increments, Lottery Winnings, Micro Payments, Mulligan, Poor Man, Screw Ups, Spare Time, Stiletto, Summertime Entertainment, Survival Skill, Thousands Of Dollars, Ups, Virtue, Ways To Get Out Of Debt