Here’s a blog I discovered a few months ago that’s pretty cool: Copy Cat Chic. Blogger Reichel shows you where to score look-a-like designer decorations for much cheaper. Stylish and affordable – that’s how we like to roll.
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Survey time!
21 AprLet’s talk about cell phones.
My 2-year contract with Verizon ends in May. Right now I pay $40 for 450 minutes and another $5 for texting. Add in fees, etc. and an employer discount and I’m paying around $47 per month.
$47 isn’t bad, but I don’t talk that much on my phone. I mostly only use it for texting, which is why I’ve been thinking about trying a pay-as-you-go plan.
My questions to you:
- How much do you spend per month for your cell plan?
- Have you used a pay-as-you-go or pre-paid phone?
When less is more
20 Mar
Sadly, my dishwasher did not come with adorable kittens.
One of the things that I really like about my new apartment is that it has a dishwasher. A real working dishwasher! It’s been a few years since I’ve had one, and it’s pretty nice to just turn the dial and let it do its thing. There’s no more letting dishes sit in the sink for way too long – like waaaayyyy too long.
Like you run out of plates and find yourself using a brownie pan to eat dinner out of because it’s easier than washing dishes.
And when that’s not available, you go for a cutting board.
And when that’s dirty, pretty much anything with a flat surface.
Yes, I am that lazy. The nice and not-so-nice sides of living alone are that you have less mess to clean up, but it’s easier to not bother cleaning up when you’re not subjecting anyone else to the mess.
(In my defense, my last apartment had issues with hot water. It literally took 5 minutes from the time that I turned on the kitchen faucet until the water was hot enough to properly clean dishes. That’s a lot of water being wasted, so I tried to not wash dishes as often. That’s a good excuse, right?)
But enough slob confessions and back to the dishwasher: I came across this New York Times article, For the Dishwasher’s Sake, Go Easy on the Detergent (via Apartment Therapy) that affirms both my lazy side and my frugal side. According to experts, you can use less detergent (and save money!) and not pre-wash dishes (saves time and energy!). And the same goes for washers and dryers.
So carry on, cheap lazy people. Carry on.
(Photo courtesy of lizzk with creative commons permission.)
Gluten-free tips
6 MarNo, I’m not going gluten-free, but I know a few people who are, so in honor of them (I am inspired by their efforts and self-control), here are a few budget-minded links from Wisebread:
Moving & Miscellaneous
12 FebI’m moving to a new apartment this weekend, so I apologize in advance for the lack of posts around here and in the near future. I decided to hire a local moving company, which was a hard decision because it goes against my frugal ways. But I think it will be really nice to have other people do the lifting. And I won’t have to rent a truck, drive that truck, park that truck, and return that truck, not to mention putting everything inside and outside of that truck.
The company I hired is supposed to be really good and they had the best pricing compared to other recommend companies around here, and I like the idea of supporting local (good) companies. And since I’m moving on Sunday, I decided not moving my furniture myself was my Valentine’s Day gift … to myself (in the least depressing sense). That sounds a little Liz Lemon-ish, but that’s how I roll. Speaking of Liz Lemon ….
In the last night’s “30 Rock,” she scheduled a root canal on Valentine’s Day so that she would be passed out for the most of the day. I’m a little bit ashamed and a little bit proud to say I’ve done the same thing – twice. Well, almost the same thing. Twice in the past few years I’ve scheduled a dentist’s appointment on Valentine’s Day; I figured since the day was miserable* anyway, why not throw a dentist’s appointment in there? That way, I wouldn’t ruin an otherwise good day with the bad feelings associated with the dentist.
* OK, sort of miserable – it’s not like anyone yelled at me for being single. And I’m happy for people who are in relationships and I know that V Day can be fun even if you’re single, but still….
Anyway, if you have any good last-minute moving tips, throw ‘em my way.
Oh, and this is what I plan to do when I’m done moving:
Hmm… actually, I have the same response to moving and to Valentine’s Day.
Vinegar: more than just that stuff you use for Easter eggs
1 FebCheck out 15 Uses for Incredibly Inexpensive White Vinegar.
Some of these sound a little suspect – like vinegar on a sunburn? – but it’s worth reading.
Interesting reading
24 JanToday I started reading “Cheap (The High Cost of Discount Culture)” by Ellen Ruppel Shell. I’ve had this on reserve from the library for a long time, and it finally came in (along with 3 other books I’ve had reserved for a long time – why do they always come at the same time?)
I’m not very far along, so I don’t have thoughts to share yet, but I’m hopeful that it will give me some insight into what it means to be a responsible consumer. Not to mention its relevance to this blog.
Has anyone else read this?
Adult content
24 JanThere are moments in life when I really feel like an adult:
- Paying bills
- Grocery shopping, which I kind of enjoy
- Setting up my own doctor and dentist appointments
- Doing taxes (it took me hours and hours and hours the first time)
- Donating blood
- Making the decision to turn off the TV at an appropriate time and go to bed (this is a relatively new thing to me)
- Enrolling in benefits at work.
I’m not a benefits specialist, but I have worked in the area for a few years. I worked for a Long-Term Care (LTC) Insurance broker for a couple years, and I also worked in a benefits communication consulting group for a couple years. I’m no expert, but I feel fairly competent in discussing benefits on a casual level.
I’m going to skip talking about LTC insurance for the moment and instead focus on a benefit that many companies offer: a Flexible Spending Account (FSA).
If your company offers an FSA, I implore you to use it. With an FSA, you are allowed to contribute money to a personal account pre-tax (meaning the money is deducted from your pay before your total pay amount is taxed). The personal account is for paying for items and services that are health-related. I don’t want to get into a long explanation of FSAs, but if you really aren’t familiar with them, here’s a good place to start.
The reason I’m bringing this up is because of an article I found about using up what’s left of your FSA by the end of the year. One annoying part about having an FSA is that at the beginning of the calendar year, you decide how much per month you want to set aside for health-related expenses. Sometimes you may not set enough aside and you wind up paying for expenses with post-tax money, and sometimes you overestimate how much you’ll need and you wind up with money in your account at the end of the year. FSA rules do not allow you to rollover leftover money from the previous year, which means that you need to spend what’s left in your account before it goes away.
If you do need to spend FSA money, this article mentions 10 things that are considered FSA-eligible that the average person might not know. I found the article last month and I meant to post it here but didn’t. I mention the date because many FSA plans run January-December, but not all. My company’s enrollment year runs September-August, and that’s not unusual. That is my defense for posting this in January. 
If you do not participate in an FSA and your company has it, please do it. You don’t have to contribute a lot. Even if you consider yourself a healthy person, you can still find things to purchase with FSA money – like eyeglasses and contacts, for example. That stuff isn’t cheap! I’ve set aside extra this year so that I can finally buy new glasses – for the first time in 7 years. I think I’m due for a new pair.
Also, for those of us who aren’t good at saving, an FSA allows you to set aside money before you even have a chance to get your grubby hands on the cash, and then it forces you to only spend that money on health-related things – instead of, say, cute shoes and cupcakes.
Being an adult isn’t always fun, but it’s the right choice.
So this is the new year
3 Jan
Happy 2010!
It’s this time of year that we are always inundated with commercials and ads for exercise equipment and weight loss programs. While investing in one’s health is always good, sometimes those investments don’t quite pan out. The New Year’s resolution fades away after a few weeks, and the brand new exercise equipment begins to collect dust. (That is why if you are interested in buying exercise equipment, you should check out Craigslist for bargains on used stuff!)
I am a fan of doing things for free, and a couple years ago, I decided to try running – because it’s free. There’s no gym membership or expensive equipment needed. (Actually, I found that to be not quite true. I did eventually buy a good pair of running shoes, and I highly recommend that. Go to a store that specializes in running shoes so that you can get a pair that fits properly, and be prepared to spend around $100 – it’s worth it!)
I’ve never been a runner, and while I always envied runners, I never thought I would become one. I didn’t (and still don’t) find running enjoyable. But I was at a point where I had a lot of free time, not a lot of money, wanted to lose weight, and was in real need of a self-esteem boost. Enter Couch to 5K.
Couch to 5K is a running plan for people who don’t run. By the end of nine weeks, if you follow the plan, you’re able to go from couch living to running about the equivalent of a 5K race. Now I’d actually heard about Couch to 5K a few years before, but I knew there was no way I was going to try running while constantly checking a stopwatch. I just wasn’t that motivated.
But then I heard about the Couch to 5K podcast, and that is what changed everything. A dude in California used the Couch to 5K schedule to make podcasts – 3 days a week for 9 weeks. It’s basically like a mix CD (that you download for free from iTunes – 9 total), but he talks to you at various points telling you when to start running, when to stop running, when to take breaks, and offers a few words of encouragement throughout. That way you don’t have to even look at a clock. It’s pretty convenient. The downside though is that the music is … well …. awful. It’s basically techno music. While I’m a fan of running to music with a good beat, I really really don’t like techno. However, I found having my ears assaulted with this music was worth it – because of his guidance throughout the runs. Also, in some twisted way, because the running part was not fun, it almost made sense to do it while listening to terrible music.
While I found the running process to be difficult, it was not impossible. I was able to successfully complete every run, and I did it in about 7 weeks instead of 9. I’m not Miss Fitness USA either, so if I can do it, pretty much everyone can. I highly recommend this program. And even if you really can’t run, you can at least walk to the podcast instead.
For the price of new shoes and an iPod shuffle (I bought a used one on Ebay), I began an exercise program. While there are cheaper (and free) ways to work out, I’ve found that investment in running gear to be quite worth it. Though I never did bother to officially run a 5K race, I do still run, and there’s no way I would have done it without the Couch to 5K podcast!
(Photo credit: Flickr member msmail, using Creative Commons license)
Negotiate lower bills
17 DecCheck out this post from Get Rich Slowly: How I Cut my Comcast Cable Bill by 33% (Without Losing Any Service)
I’m not one for negotiating with customer service reps, but every 6 months I call Comcast and ask for a reduction in my bill.
I have Internet through Comcast, and because it makes my Internet bill cheaper, I have basic cable. Comcast offers 6-month deals, so whenever I get a statement with a higher amount than the previous month I know that my 6-month deal has ended. That’s when I call Comcast and tell them I want to cancel cable. Then the customer service rep tells me that they don’t want me to do that and then they come up with a better price. And if I don’t like that price, then I tell them that I don’t like that price and I still want to cancel cable.
That’s only happened once, but when it did, I got transferred to a different rep (I’m assuming the next level up), and I told him that I can get Internet cheaper elsewhere. That lead to a little argument between us but eventually he agreed to lower the price. Keep in mind that if you get transferred to someone like that and they won’t give you a lower price you’re not out of luck yet. If you tell them you want to cancel your account and they call your bluff and ask you to pick a date when you want service cancelled, tell them that you need to think about it and you’ll call back later. And then hopefully the next time you call you’ll get someone else who will negotiate with you.
The thing to remember with bills like cable, internet, and even credit cards is that it never hurts to ask. I’ve gotten credit card interest lowered just by calling and asking – it was very simple.
Don’t cry over spilled wine
10 DecFirst, I apologize again for neglecting Cute Cheap Stuff. My time has been consumed lately by a job search, and I’m happy to announce that the search is over! Hooray!
So now I’m back in blogging mode. Let’s go!
With all the holiday parties you might be attending or hosting, here’s a cheap way to clean up after a common party foul: use salt to clean up wine stains. A few months ago I was at a friend’s house and someone spilled wine, and I witnessed firsthand that salt really does absorb the wine. Forget expensive and toxic cleaners – all you need is salt (and love).
Who says you have to throw it out?
29 NovHere’s a handy article from Wisebread about ways to reuse old pantyhose. I never would have thought to use pantyhose for gift wrap storage or fishing or photo effects. Who knew?
Ethical meat?
10 Nov
(Photo credit: Flickr member cordery licensed for use under Creative Commons)
I don’t buy meat that often, but I’ve been thinking more about it lately. I found out that I have low iron (which was surprising because I’ve had high enough iron to donate blood for the past couple years). Now I’m taking an iron supplement, but I think it might be good to incorporate more iron-rich food into my diet, especially meat. (Yes, I’m aware that you can get iron from vegetables as well, but non-heme iron – which is what’s found in vegetables – is less available for absorption than heme iron – found in animal sources.) I’m not planning on going meat crazy, but just trying to eat a little more of it.
As I’m thinking about meat again, I came across this post about where to buy ethical meat. (Adam lives in NYC, so his references don’t really apply to a lot of us, but the comments have some interesting links.)
I’m feeling conflicted about what to buy as I balance what I believe to be humane treatment of animals vs. how much I want to spend and how much effort I want to put into finding ethical meat.
Do you buy ethical meat or other products? Why or why not? If you do, where do you buy it?
What’s your thermostat set to?
30 Oct
(Photo credit: Flickr member jonathan_moreau licensed for use under Creative Commons)
I recently came across this article about 28 ways to save cash by getting your home ready for winter. Most of the tips don’t apply to me since I’m an apartment dweller, but it did get me thinking about personal preferences when it comes to being warm.
The thermostat in my apartment right now is set to 62. I have a feeling that’s a little colder than average, but I’m not sure.
Let’s do a little informal survey. What’s your thermostat set to? And for those of you living with a significant other, do you disagree over the ideal temperature?Every time I fiddle with my thermostat, I think of my parents who are constantly adjusting the heat/AC, and despite 30 years of marriage, are still incompatible temperature-wise.
Making a difference
20 OctOne of the reasons that I promote being careful with money (call it frugality, if you will) is that I believe money is a gift. It’s something that we are given and it’s something that we are to give to others. My spiritual beliefs certainly have an influence on this, but you don’t need to believe in a higher power to see that there are people in need and that people who aren’t in need can do something about that. I’d like to think that’s just being a decent human being!
One of my goals with this blog was that in addition to highlighting deals, I also wanted to get more into the heart of why we save and ways in which we can be good stewards of money. My thought was that I would highlight organizations that are making a difference that perhaps you or someone you know may be interested in supporting.
Let’s get started! Today I’d like to talk about One Day’s Wages. ODW actually just launched today, and I know about it (disclosure) because it’s founded by my pastor.
According to ODW:
One Day’s Wages is an international grassroots movement dedicated to ending extreme global poverty. ODW promotes awareness, invites giving, and supports sustainable relief through partnerships, especially with smaller organizations in developing regions.
So, what does that mean and where’s the one day thing coming from?
Our vision is to inspire people around the world to simply donate one day’s wages and to renew that pledge weekly, monthly, or yearly on their birthdays to the cause of ending extreme global poverty.
Why should you care?
- 25,000 children under the age of 5 die each day due to poverty-related causes.
- Nearly 900 million people do not have access to clean water. Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all sickness and disease, and kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war.
- Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names.
- Nearly 11,500 people die every day from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
On the ODW web site, you can calculate your one day of wages (0.4% of your annual salary). You don’t have to give that amount – you can give what you’d like. The funds collected by ODW are distributed to organizations that are working to fight extreme poverty, and ODW seeks to partner long-term with those organizations. For more information, check out the FAQs.
ODW believes that we can eradicate extreme global poverty. If you’re interested in being a part of that, check out the web site.
The medicine cabinet or the cupboard?
16 Oct
(Photo credit: Flickr member DonnaGrayson licensed for use under Creative Commons)
Wisebread published an article today called “7 Cheap and Natural Ways to Fight the Cold and Flu.”
Call me a skeptic, but whenever I hear people talk about natural remedies, I tend to lose interest very quickly. I’ll admit I am kind of curious whether these things work, but I tend to assume they don’t. I appreciate medicine, and when I’m sick and feeling awful, I will reach for the Sudafed - not the apple cider vinegar.
My understanding is that any kind of medication or home remedy is not going to really cure your ailment; all it can do is help alleviate the effects. That’s why I’d rather take a medication that’s going to, for example, help with sinus pain, rather than eat garlic, which as far as I know, won’t make my face hurt any less.
Also, I’m confused about something in the article:
Basically, ginger raises your body temperature, forcing your body to perspire and sweat out the cold…nice…sweating without working out!
Can you actually sweat out a cold?
What do you think about these home remedies? Do you use them?
Small investments
7 OctA few weeks ago, I bought an apple corer/cutter for $4. It looks something like this:
I’d never used one, but I was at a friend’s house and noticed that this person ate a lot of apples and used one of those cutters. I have never been much of an apple fan. I don’t dislike them, but I never went out of my way to buy apples because I knew I wouldn’t eat them – because I am really lazy. It’s not that hard to cut an apple; I used to do it when I was a kid. But somewhere along the way I decided that was too much of an inconvenience.
After thinking about it, I decided that if I had an apple-cutting gadget, I would be motivated to eat apples. So I went ahead and bought it. And guess what? I eat apples now. Fabulous, right?
But here’s the thing: I keep thinking about that $4 I spent on a product I didn’t really need. Could I have used a knife to cut apples? Sure. But I wasn’t doing it. And I think that’s where my frugal mindset meets my lazy reality. I didn’t need the apple cutter, but without it, I know that I wouldn’t be eating apples. That $4 wasn’t necessary, but I’m looking at it as a small investment in my health.
I also recently bought clips that are supposed to keep my comforter from getting lost inside my duvet cover. I can’t tell you how many months I have thought about buying them (they’re $5.99) and how many nights I have struggled trying to get my bed in order. I’ll wake up in the middle of the night and the bedding is all bunchy and it irritates me. It was affecting my sleep, so I finally decided to buy it. I had a 25% off coupon at Bed, Bath & Beyond, so it wound up costing less than $5. It was another small investment in my health.
There’s a lot of good things to be said for not just running out and buying stuff without really thinking it through. But I find myself still thinking and doubting the value of buying relatively cheap things that are good for me, yet not ruminating as much on dropping $30 on a shirt that I don’t need.
Those are my screwed-up priorities. I’m trying to change that and to view spending in a different light. Taking care of myself is important and it’s not a crime to spend a little money on it … and to then spend a little less money on the things that I REALLY don’t need.
Oh, speaking of things that are good for you, I went ahead and got a flu shot yesterday. And to my surprise, my insurance covered half of it, so it only cost $13 – another small investment.
It ain’t easy being green
25 SepHere’s a good post from Wise Bread about how to save money when shopping green:
How to Save Green When You Shop Green
And because I can’t help myself:
And that makes me think of this:
Everything in life really does goes back to “Arrested Development.”
Recipe recommendations
13 JulLately I have been spending a lot of money on take-out food. I just haven’t felt like cooking, and what happens when you don’t have prepared meals at home? You get lazy and you go out to eat instead. Unfortunately that becomes expensive and often not healthy. It isn’t cheap or cute.
Today I decided that I really needed to ease back into cooking. I am not much of a cook so I tend to avoid doing it. But I do read a lot of recipe blogs and I have about 47 million recipes bookmarked, so I certainly have resources.
Anyway, on to what I made tonight. I have a little jar of Trader Joe’s pesto in my fridge that needed to be used up, and I came across a recipe for Tomato & Pesto Pizza. I don’t normally use recipes when I make pizza, but I gave this one a shot.
I didn’t use as much mozzarella as the recipe said, but it still turned out okay. Not the most exciting pizza, but I might make it again. On my second piece, I drizzled balsamic vinegar on it and that added a new flavor.
On to dessert – At QFC today, I bought a small container of strawberries for $1 (cheap!), and I just happened to have a recipe bookmarked for Strawberry Cobbler.
Let me tell you, it’s pretty good. I didn’t have almond extract, so I substituted vanilla extract and it was fine. The cobbler is really tasty when served with ice cream. (By the way, Culinary in the Country is my favorite recipe blog, and most of the recipes I’ve tried have been awesome – the cobbler was no exception.)
Made anything good lately? Do tell!
Organic food vs. frugality
27 May
My aim with this blog is more than just showcasing (sometimes cute) deals – I also want to talk about frugality and what it looks for each of us to manage money, especially as (relatively) young people. We have differing needs and wants, but one thing we all buy is food. Organic food has become more and more popular in the last few years, but sometimes it’s expensive. I have faced these questions, and I’m sure you have as well: Is the price of an organic label really worth it? Just how bad is my non-organic food anyway?
This post from Apartment Therapy: The Kitchen has some useful links to information about organic food, including:
- A handy dandy list of 47 fruits and vegetables in order of pesticide occurance and background info on their study (from the Environmental Working Group)
- An article from the New York Times: 5 Easy Ways to Go Organic
- Links about organic milk and meat
I have to admit, I really only buy organic food when it’s on sale and the same price as non-organic food. Which means that I hardly ever buy organic!
Are there foods that you only buy organic? Does buying organic matter to you? Are pesticides really that big of a deal? What are your thoughts?
Photo licensed under Creative Commons.
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