Five Frugal Things -- Red Cross Snacks & Cheap Eggs
1. I donated blood at the American Red Cross, which not only met my daily recommended intake of Nutter Butters, but also earned me a $20 Amazon gift card. Ya'll know that Schmeff Schmezos is forever on my shit list, but I can use it to make a couple purchases I've been putting off.
America is currently horrific, but donating blood can help me feel like I'm contributing something worthwhile.
2. I saw an ad showing eggs to be 99¢/dozen at Grocery Outlet, which happened to be on my way home from donating blood. I used to shop there with regularity as the store is near my kids' high school, but dropped them from my routine as I found it led to goofy impulse purchases.
Bubble gum flavored pickles for only 17¢?! I'd be a fool to not stock up!
However, eggs are far from an impulse purchase, and yes -- I bought the limit. I also grabbed four 33¢ Chobani flip yogurts while I was there. See? Impulse purchases!
3. I found both a penny and a dime outside the store, which technically paid for a third of one yogurt.
4. The battery on our minivan mysteriously crapped out, so my husband took it to Les Schwab, (please feel free to pronounce it like it's a French term) and was told that the issue was due to a "phantom current draw." Big bummer, as that would require a mechanic to diagnose the issue. However, they later determined that it was actually just a bad battery, which they're replacing for free.
Oui!
5. I thrifted a vintage Wagner Ware aluminum pan to rehab for resale, but wanted some disposable gloves so I don't ruin my hands with what I can guess is going to be hours of scrubbing. Luckily I was able to receive a couple pairs from the Red Cross employee who did my intake.
This is my goal, which I believe to be achievable with Barkeeper's Friend and a triple dose of elbow grease.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."
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Eggs for .99...I haven't seen that in years. Great score and I would've bought the max too.
It's been too cold and snowy here in Massachusetts to leave the house. I haven't been out since Saturday afternoon but that's been frugal in itself so I'm not complaining.
1. I put out my 5 Valentine decorations...two dressed up teddy bears and two snow globes which were all gifted to me and a decoration with angels and hearts on my front door which I bought at least 15 years ago and still use every year.
2. I made a Swedish Almond Cake for a friend's birthday present. I love to give and receive edibles.
3. DH did all the shoveling but ended up with a backache. Acetaminophen and a heating pad to the rescue. I wish I could help him as I did in the past but I I have a medical issue which prevents me from heavy lifting.
4. Wearing sweatshirts and slippers with warm socks around the house so I can keep the heat at 64.
5. Reading fiction to keep my mind off thinking about the abysmal acts perpetrated by the government on its own citizens.
1. I sold a set of woodland ornaments, which I have zero dollars in.
2. Staying focused on using things up instead of buying new or more. I have emptied 2 bottles of lotion, and have at least 5 more to go before I need to buy more. Feels good using things up and having less.
3. It's horribly cold where I live with no end in sight. This is forcing me to gather our eggs multiple times a day so they don't freeze, if I am at work I gently remind my husband to do it. Waste not want not.
4. My work is delayed today because of the weather. If anyone on the second shift calls off I will volunteer to stay over. Less pay lost and also I want the be the co-worker I want others to be.
5. Still filling my Thredup box as the processing fee is half off if sent by 1-31-2026. My husband will be by a UPS store Friday so he can send with my having to make a special trip.
1. Before I left my parents' house (where I got lots of exercise over the weekend between a hike with my mom, helping my dad chop wood in preparation for the storm, and digging them out after the storm!) to come home on Monday, my mom gave me some 13 bean & ham soup she had made. It was really thick, so I added some broth when I got home. It will be enough for lunches for the week.
2. I'm using up all of the sample toothpaste tubes. The hygienist at the dentist used to load me up with samples because she knew I traveled a lot for work. But as I don't travel any longer, they were just sitting there. I'd run out of my normal toothpaste a month ago and decided to use up all but one of the samples before buying new.
3. Made spaghetti and meatballs last night from what we had in our pantry & freezer. it made enough for dinner tonight as well.
4. Today is the first I have driven my car since Friday, yay for saving on gas.
5. My slacks and sweater are both thrifted. My boots are 4 years old and still going strong (I clean and waterproof them every year).
As someone whose (terminally ill) daddy's life was saved (extended) numerous times by blood transfusions, I want to thank you for donating blood and being a regular donor. The saddest part of having had cancer is that I'm no longer eligible, although they said at Year 5 they may certify me to donate again if I'm still cancer-free. (I hope there isn't an upper age limit, as I'll be in my mid-70s by then.) But thank you, Katy. Sending you a virtual hug, a case of virtual Nutter Butters and a virtual bouquet of roses!
1. Icy air is seeping through my bedroom window. Kicking myself for having washed -- and ruined -- the thermal drapes; the new ones aren't insulating as good. So, last night I single-handedly re-arranged my bedroom furniture; my headboard is now against an interior wall. I put the chest in front of the window, and the TV and indoor antenna is atop the chest. I put the antenna in the window, behind the curtain and blinds and voila! I'm picking up 2 new OTA stations, and all the channels are coming in a whole lot clearer than before. Doing a happy dance on that one!!!
1. a. Bonus: I put a pole lamp, the kind with 3 lights, between my bed/headboard and the door and I can turn on that light when I first enter the room. The light switch for the overhead light's wall switch doesn't work anymore since Goofy Guy put in the ceiling fan wrong; subsequent handymen can't figure out what he messed up and it's never been fixed. (Cannot afford a real electrician. Therefore, I have to leave the wall switch on and control the fan and its light by the chains.) So the new arrangement solves 2 problems!
2. My DIY soup, in which I dumped a lot of canned and frozen goods and leftovers in the pot, didn't taste so good. After suffering a few bowls full when I first made it, I put the rest in the freezer and thawed it out to eat during this ice storm. Still not very tasty. So I mixed in some sour cream. Made it creamier and more flavorful. Finished the soup, so I didn't waste any food. (BTW, sour cream lasts longer when you store it upside down -- old Tightwad Gazette trick. It works!)
3. Got a bucket of melting snow from the yard, let it warm to room temp, and watered the house plants with it. Extra nitrogen, no chlorine.
4. Tested those emergency LED lights (NEBO Blackout Backup Emergency LED Bulbs) I bought by putting them in the portable sockets and trying them sans electric outlets. They work great!
GIad I didn't need them, but happy to have them on hand.
5. Uncluttering: collected old magazines for public library -- they sell them for 25 cents each in their front lobby, benefiting the Friends of the Library organization.