frugality and survial talk and tips 101

[elkhound]

to me survival is not when something happens in the future for the most part.but what you do each day to survive each day....like making a living..it is how each of lives our lives.for the most part i am a tightwad...but i do spend if it is something i really want be it frivilious or not.looking at it form the standpoint of did i move forward or did i got backwards to day.did i amke a profit or go int he red...just like a buisness does.

in the past i ahve been neglect sometimes of tune-ups on my autos.my geo tracker is getting old and i am trying to get all i can out of it in life and miles per gallon before i have to replace it.today i changed the spark plugs out and boy howdy...no wonder it was running a bit rough....lol..fired it up and i am going to see how much more MPG i get this week.gave my truck a nice tune-up also and it is running great now also. i am hopeing to get back in the high 30's in MPG.

lunches....do you pack? i knew i was going to be tighting down the belt more.so this past december my employer lets us pick a christmas gift.i picked a lunch box with a thermos combo.so far it has been a nice addition to the frugal side of me....plus no more wally world bags of lunch....roflmao....in the past few months i have noticed my weekly spending money is adding up in my wallet and more often than not my curent check all goes in savings as i already have more than enough left over for what ever little expense i might need or want...like a mtn dew....lol...but also i ahve been making mroe ice tea and drinking it instead of cola.i know it is better for me also.its good to see actions and decisions going hand in hand and the results are all good.

i also like weak tasteing gatorade..so i got a big can of instant powder and i will make what i want and how i want it as summer gets here.i need to find a few small bottles that will fit in my lunch box for this.

last sumer i ate most of my meals from the garden plus many of the winters too.are you putting in a garden?? even jsut a few squash plants and a few toamtoes in the flower bed will give high vields and it tastes much better than store boguht goods.



i live cheap now.....so i can retire early if possible.or at least take a better and easier job as i get older and let my investments work for me weather it is my homestead or stocks,bonds or mutual funds or what ever.


so what are you doing to cut costs and save now....plus for the future.

[SquashNut]

We have a garden, and raise our own plants. Buy which ever seeds we need in bulk, if they will last more than 1 year. Also raise enough extra plants to cover gardening expenses. Seeds, tools, water ect. We reclaim as much house hold water as we can for watering, as well as rain from our roofs.
We can as much of the garden as we can each year, and buy in bulk for the rest, but only when we find sales.
We burn scrap wood for heat and don't buy much in the way of paper products any more. Shop the thrift stores for our clothes and use the worn out cloth for paper towels ect.
Our dogs eat home made foods. Right now they get cooked potatoes, and bones from the butcher, as well as other veggies and left overs. They have potatoes at the resturant for $4.50 for 50 pounds.
I am buying extras of the potatoes and canning them for next winter.
Our dryer broke down, so we are hanging out our clothes.
Dh takes his lunch now and switched to my smaller pick=up to go back and forth to work.
We have rabbits and sell enough to cover some of what we eat.
Pinching pennies till they scream.

[bajiay]

I have quit buying processed foods, other than stuff for food storage. (Spices, canned veggies, grains...) We have really been working on eating better anyway. I also try not to waste anything. Always trying to find a way to use things or give to someone that can use it. (I hate all of the trash that we make on a daily basis.) We are growing plants for the garden right now, so I save the milk jugs and cut a part off the top, leaving the handle, and plant seeds in those. Working well actually. (Also use yogurt cups.) Really watch the sales ads at the grocery store. Our local store is outrageously priced normally, so I only buy the sale items I can stick in food storage and I'll buy several of the item depending on my budget. Try to make everything from scratch. I reuse plastic containers, like peanut butter jars and such to store beans or whatever in. We don't throw any food away whatsoever. Leftovers are always eaten for lunch the next day. My husband comes home for lunch everyday so that works out well. What's killing me is the gas prices. It's costing me $50 every three days to come to work. It's not going to be worth it much longer. I can't get a cheaper in gas vehicle because where I live, a SUV is a must. Haveing to go to Billings (2 hrs. away) once a week for Dr's. appts. doesn't help either. Could sell my vehicle and buy a horse, I guess.... (If I'm misspelling anything, sorry! I'm awake, my brain's asleep!!!)