Keep The Change

by Katy on November 12, 2009 · 29 comments

Coins

While watching TV this evening, (I am a complete and unapologetic So You Think You Can Dance addict) an interesting commercial came on that showed a man swiping his debit card as a way of adding money to his savings account.

Huh — Buying stuff adds to your savings?

It turns out that the ad was for a program through Bank of America called, Keep The Change. Participants in this program have all debit card purchases rounded up to the nearest dollar amount and that bit of change is then automatically transferred into their savings account.

Interesting.

Normally, I am a proponent of a conscious and deliberate life, but the unconscious manner of this program actually appeals to me. 37¢ here and 52¢ there can add up faster than you can say:

“Gee Willikers Coin-Girl, where did I all this money come from?”

But the best part of the program is that Bank of America will:

Match your Keep the Change savings for the first 3 months, to the penny. After that, we’ll continue matching 5% a year. The maximum total match is $250 per year.

Sadly, I bank at a credit union that doesn’t put together fancy programs or even have commercials for that matter.  (Although I am otherwise very happy with them.)

I started a personal savings program this last June where I put any extra money into specific ING Direct savings accounts. I didn’t work any overtime, and no money from my paychecks was to be diverted to savings. (So as not  to derail any progress on debt reduction.) The money has come from a garage sale, unexpected windfalls, odd jobs and even found change. I have over $1800 so far, which is split into three different saving accounts.

This has really shown me the power of 37¢ here and 52¢ there.

I won’t be able to participate in Keep the Change, but kind of wish that I could. Are any of you Bank of America customers, and if so are you participating in this program? For those of us who bank elsewhere, what do you think of this program? Would you want your bank to siphon money into a savings account, or would you rather be in full control of your finances? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

P.S. It goes without saying that I am in no way affiliated with Bank of America and have received no compensation for this column.

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fifty dollar bill

I am a big fan of saving money pretty much whenever possible. At the movie theater, (second run only) for my family’s wardrobe, (Goodwill) and especially at the grocery store. I shop primarily at Safeway, as I can almost always stock up on staples when they’re on sale, and my Safeway has easy parking and bizarrely friendly staff.

Which is why, when contacted by the P.R. for corporate Safeway about whether I’d be interested in receiving two $50 gift cards to send out to readers in conjunction with their Everyday Low Prices program I was happy to agree. They also sent a gift card for me “to shop at your local Safeway to experience the thousands of new everyday low prices for yourself.”

Here’s their description of the Everyday Low Prices program:

Safeway is proud to announce that they are expanding their long-term commitment to great quality and value by offering customers thousands of new everyday low prices on items across the stores to help customers save money and time every day. The new pricing program just launched throughout all 117 Safeway stores in Oregon and Southwest Washington, giving your readers a new more affordable shopping experience where they can find everything they need at the right prices to fit their budgets.

Want to win a $5o Safeway gift card for yourself? Just write your favorite grocery money saver tip in the comments section below to enter to win one of two $50 gift cards. Don’t forget, Safeway has a huge assortment of gift cards available for purchase, so your prize could be used for holiday gift shopping like Barnes and Noble or iTunes! (I looked, and sadly — they didn’t have Goodwill.)

And for those who don’t have a Safeway in their area, the gifts cards also good for Vons, Carrs, Genuardi’s, Pavilions, Dominick’s, Randalls, Tom Thumb and Pak n’ Save.

The winner will be chosen by a random number generator at midnight, November 14th Pacific time zone. Only one entry per person please, all are allowed to enter.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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Christmas Lights — Get The LED Out

by Katy on November 10, 2009 · 8 comments

 

ugly-christmas-lights

The following is a reprint of a previously published column. Enjoy!

As the Non-Consumer Advocate, I usually recommend for people to buy used or not buy at all. (I follow The Compact, a buy nothing new movement.) But I am going to break from my normal stance and suggest a new purchase:

LED Christmas lights.

LED lights use a fraction of the electricity of the old style larger bulbs. Enough, so that it is actually worth investing in these energy saving lights. (I consider this to be in the same can’t-buy-it-used category as CFL lightbulbs.)

Also, I want everyone to consider whether it’s worth the extra energy to electrically decorate the outside of your house to the point that gamblers show up in search of slot machines.

I’m not saying to you shouldn’t put up Christmas lights, but perhaps it’s just as pretty to have just a few. Usually, less is more.

For my house, I hung some Goodwill purchased, (99 cents for a whole box!) blue and silver glass ornament balls from a window box on the front of the house. It’s very pretty and uses no electricity.

Go ahead and switch to LED bulbs. You won’t see a spike in this year’s December electric bill, and you won’t have to deal with hoards of drunken gamblers.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

 

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Buy Nothing Day

by Katy on November 8, 2009 · 26 comments

buy nothing dayIt may seem a little early to start talking about Buy Nothing Day, but the heft of today’s ad-laden Sunday newspaper says otherwise.

For those not in the know, Buy Nothing Day is a 20-year-old program put on by AdBusters, asking that participants buy nothing the day after Thanksgiving, (the traditional start of the Christmas shopping season.)

The AdBusters website describes this year’s shopping protest as such:

This year we’re calling for a wildcat general strike. On November 27/28 we’re asking tens of millions of people around the world to bring the capitalist consumption machine to a grinding – if only momentary – halt. We want you to shut off your lights, your televisions and other nonessential appliances. We want you to park your car, turn off your phones and log off your computer for the day. We’re calling for a Ramadan-like fast. From sunrise to sunset, we abstain en masse. Not only from shopping but from all the temptations of our five-planet lifestyles.

Instead we’ll feed our spirits and minds with a feast of subversive activities: pranks, shenanigans, credit card cut-ups, bicycle swarms, mall invasions and all manner of culture jams and creative détournements … and some of us will take things even further with sit-ins, demonstrations, passive resistance and acts of nonviolent defiance, anarchy and civil disobedience. If we can create a big enough ruckus on November 27/28, then we may be able to catalyze what the Situationists tried to set in motion half a century ago: a chain reaction of refusal against consumer capitalism … a sudden, unexpected moment of truth … the first ever global revolution.

Okay . . . that seems to be taking things beyond the extreme. I’m a strong believer in catching more flies with honey than vinegar — and that sure sounds like a big ol’ vinegar smoothie.

The people who work in retail are not our mortal enemy. These are people lucky to have a job in an economy that is seeing a national 10.2% unemployment rate. (Much higher in some areas.)

I cannot support acts of “anarchy and civil disobedience” in the name of non-consumerism. As I explain to my children, if you act in a totally inappropriate manner, no one will listen to your side of things. Even if you’re in the right.

Instead, I suggest a less extreme route and:

Simply choose to not shop.

Or, choose to shop in a manner that’s consistent with your values. Support your locally owned businesses, buy from a craftsperson, find that perfect gift in a non-profit thrift store.

I will not be participating in any AdBuster activities, and I can most likely be found the day after Thanksgiving up on Mount Hood with my kids. Enjoying home cooked meals with my family and going on some snowy hikes.

Will you be participating in Buy Nothing Day? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

 

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Goodbye Summer

by Katy on November 8, 2009 · 23 comments

Heart oregon

I am a native Oregonian, which means that I’m not supposed to be bothered by torrents of rain that run rivers down our city streets from October through June.

I guess I’m a disgrace to my home state.

Today saw rain, rain and more rain that stranded me in my house. Both my sons had soccer games, and mother-of-the-year that I am, I chose to stay home, since my husband is already the coach and I really hate standing in the rain watching kids be miserable.

It was too rainy to comfortably walk anywhere, and I had nowhere to go. So instead I went a little stir crazy. I did some baking, some cleaning and a lot of looking out the windows. Even though the furnace was chugging along, the only time I felt warm enough was while doing dishes.

The rainy season is really truly here now, and I suppose I need to buck up and continue to live a productive life, even if the sky is falling. I do see people biking and walking in the pouring rain, but I have a sneaking suspicion that they’re not native Oregonians and are trying to prove their macho imperviousness.

It’s just that I really miss summer. I miss dining al fresco, I miss my outdoors clothesline, I miss being able to walk my errands without having to don a rubberized jumpsuit and I miss sunlight that actually penetrates through my windows. (Because yes, at noon today we had all the overhead lights turned on in order to not trip over one another.)

I do see that the seven day forecast shows just one possible day without rain, which I consider to be terrible, horrible, no good, very bad.

I think I might move to Australia.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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My Non-Consumer Mini-Day

by Katy on November 7, 2009 · 15 comments

goldmedalflour

Despite having worked today, I feel like I put in a full day of Non-Consumer activity. This is because soon after getting home, I commandeered one of my kids and went out to run a couple of errands.

First on the agenda was a quick stop into the Belmont branch library, where I picked up a number of books and a DVD of Rachel Getting Married. Coin-Girl gleaned a bright shiny nickel in the parking lot, which when added to the dime I found on Thursday and the stray pennies from the bottom of my purse paid off my 25¢ library fine.

Sweeeet!

We then motored over to our nearby Safeway store to take advantage of the conglomeration of store coupons, sale items, manufacturer’s coupons and the $10 off $50 coupon. There was also a $10 Kohl’s gift certificate if you spent $50. (My friend’s daughter works there, so I planned to give it to her.)

My son and I filled the cart and made our way over to the check out. When everything had been a rung up, I asked the clerk about the Kohl’s gift certificates. He told me that he would have to re-ring everything to get my total over $50. I told him to not bother, (I would hate to be the person behind me in line) to which he asked me if I would simply like an extra $10 back.

“Uh. . .  sure!”

I did have to buy one extra $1.50 five pound bag of flour to bring my total up, for which I was rewarded with $8.50 in cash.

Double sweeeet!

It may sound like I am becoming one of those crazy coupon ladies, but my coupons were for butter, Raisin Bran, toothpaste, dental floss and chocolate chips. Stuff I would be buying anyway.

Altogether I paid $35.80. Here’s what I bought:

  • 5 five pound bags of flour
  • 1 bag of pretzels
  • 1 16 ounce bag of black beans
  • 1 bag of Nestle chocolate chips
  • 4 boxes of Kellog’s Raisin Bran
  • 1 box of Mini Wheats
  • 4 cans of tuna
  • 2 candy canes, (remember, I had a kid with me, and that I am putty in his filthy little hands.)
  • 1 package of tortillas
  • 2 cans of orange juice concentrate
  • 1 package of ready-to-bake Halloween theme chocolate chip cookies, (don’t judge me — they were 30¢.)
  • 3 pounds of butter
  • 1 tube of toothpaste
  • 1 large container of dental tape
  • 1 package of English muffins
  • 2 loaves of bread
  • 1 bag of whole wheat hamburger buns, (for black bean burgers)
  • 1-1/2 pounds of green beans
  • 2 onions
  • 3-1/2 pounds of apples
  • 1 rotisserie cooked chicken
  • 1/4 pound of jo-jo’s. (Remember? I am putty in my son’s skilled hands.)

Unlike others, I don’t usually buy food for specific meals. Instead, I keep a full pantry from which I can create a multitude of different meals. I did buy one of those $6 precooked chickens tonight though, as it was already 6:30 P.M. by the time we got home.

We also rented a family movie for $1 and my son found 11¢ in and around the Coinstar machine.

I may not have spent an entire day on Non-Consumer activities, but I think I did pretty damned well. I think I may actually have turned into one of the crazy coupon ladies.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

P.S. Safeway has a new “Everyday Low Prices” promotion where a very large number of items have been lowered in price. This is not a sale, but a long term price decrease and the store is rife with bright yellow signage to prove it.

Corporate Safeway is sending me a couple of $50 gift cards which I will be giving away on the blog in the near future. I do almost all my grocery shopping at Safeway, and have very happy with their quality and customer service. They always take back disappointing fruit and offer to help me load the groceries into the car. This was hugely helpful when my kids were little and I truly did need an extra set (or two) of hands.

The only downside to the Everyday Low Prices program is that the employees have to wear extremely bright yellow T-shirts as additional signage. My favorite Safeway clerk is an extremely fashionable woman and seeing her in this shirt was sadly jarring.

I guess I can live with that.

 

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I will also be talking at the Vancouver library on Saturday, November 21st at 12:00 P.M. on, “Reduce, Reuse, Rejoice: Sustainable Holidays.”

Click here for all the details.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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glencoe

Enjoy The Non-Consumer Advocate, but wish you could come see me live, in person?

Well then, today’s your lucky day!

I will be speaking on “Choosing a Non-Consumer Life for You and Your Family” on Wednesday, November 18th from 6:30 – 8:00 P.M. at Glencoe Elementary school in Portland, Oregon.

Click here to get all the specifics.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

P.S. I am currently brushing up on my motivational speaker skills by watching a particular British episode of The Office.

P.P.S. I will also be speaking at the main Vancouver, Washington library on November 21st, which I don’t have all the details about yet.


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My Not So Simple Life

by Katy on November 5, 2009 · 14 comments

The following is a reprint of a previously published column. Enjoy!

romaine1

I’ve noticed that there is a definite simple living paradox.

The simple living choices are often . . . well,  kind of a pain in the tuchus.

A good example is how I buy lettuce for salads. The simplest solution would be to throw a bag-o-salad in the cart. Then I could enjoy lettuce instantly prepped and available.

No fuss, no muss and I’m sure to have a healthy salad to serve my family.

But is this really the simplest choice?

The 5 oz. bag of salad greens cost $1.98, which is enough for just one small salad. (My picky eating 14-year-old oddly is a salad eating machine.)

The huge head of romaine lettuce is $1.69. Because it’s sold by the unit, rather than the pound, I always make sure to select the biggest one. It’s usually enough for four salads.

Once home, I chop the lettuce into bite-size pieces and double wash it in myhandy-dandy salad spinner. I then store it in said salad spinner, which sits in the refrigerator, ready for a salad at a moment’s notice. (The inner basket makes it so when the fluid drains off, it’s away from the lettuce. This is an effective slime-preventer.)

But here’s the thing. But I actually kind of hate this task. No, let me rephrase that. I really hate this task! I have to put my hands in the cold water to swish the lettuce around, which is so icy it hurts. My house is already set at 60 degrees, so stuff like this can push me over the edge. And I’m not too proud to admit that I’ve been known to scream a little bit.

So, should I just buy that bag of salad?

No.

I get about four times the amount of lettuce when I buy it by the head. And I can be sure that it’s been washed properly and is free of questionable preservatives. I can also put it in a reusable bag, keeping one more plastic bag from the landfill.

When I spend less money, I don’t have to earn as much money. I don’t have to commute as much, and I’m  a much happier person. This simple living choice is more complicated in the short term, but much, much less so in the long term.

This simple living paradox will shift with warm weather, as I grow my own lettuce from seed in an old wheelbarrow in the side yard. (My backyard is a bastion of deep shade, so I have to get tricky.)

Have you noticed that your simple living choices complicate your life in the short term, while simplifying the long term? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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Non-Consumer Mish-Mash

by Katy on November 4, 2009 · 32 comments

It’s time again for Non-Consumer Mish-Mash, where I write a little bit about this and a little bit about that.

The_Crying_Tree

My older son has that dreaded flu at the moment, which means that I’m kind of housebound. I did pop out to Safeway this afternoon to return a $1 DVD and pick up another for Mr. Sicky. I knew that the $10 off $50 coupon started tomorrow, so all I bought was a ten pound bag of potatoes for only 99¢.

My plan had been to make chicken soup for dinner, but I fell asleep while watching the movie and ended up serving Trader Joe’s potstickers with rice and a green salad instead. I like to have an emergency meal in the freezer for these very occasions. It would have been very easy to order takeout Thai food for dinner, but this backup plan saved me around thirty bucks.

Gotta have a backup plan.

 

I have been really tired lately, and have self-diagnosed myself with anemia. We rarely eat red meat, and I suppose I’m not very good at working those dark leafy greens into my diet. I do cook in cast iron pans, but It’s definitely time to supplement. I’m looking forward to having energy again.

How is this a non-consumer issue? Well . . . if I have no extra energy, then I can’t do all the extra stuff like take the laundry off the line and do all that writing that I promised to every Tom, Dick and blogger.

Yawn . . . .

 

I’ve read some really engrossing books lately, the first of which was The Crying Tree by Naseem Rahka. This was an emotionally wrenching book, but wonderful nonetheless. Having dehydrated myself with this book I was craving diversion, which led me to Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella. I have a soft spot in my heart for British chick lit, and this book totally hit the spot.

I just love reading. Fiction, non-fiction, printed, audio book. Yum, yum, books! The librarians all know me and it’s all I can do to get out of the library in a timely manner.

What are you reading these days? Fiction, non-fiction, both? Please share any suggestions in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

 

 

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