Some Rambly Non-Consumer Thoughts
I sat down to write a "Five Frugal Things" blog post and I couldn't come up with enough unique things to warrant your attention. Sure, yesterday was frugal, but frankly it would likely come across as boring, especially when viewed from the outside.
Yesterday:
- I did some weeding.
- I walked to a friend's house to return something she left in my car.
- I leafed through my Terence Conran library books.
- I took a couple photos from the books so I can remember certain images.
- I chatted with a neighbor while in the backyard.
- I ran a load of laundry as my youngest dropped off a pair of grubby jeans to be mended.
- I gave my husband's thrifted lunchbox a good scrub while he was off playing baseball. This goes along with my general edict to buy things used and then treat them well to make them last.
- My husband and I walked to a neighborhood pub to grab dinner and split an order of fish and chips. I ordered water, which is no sacrifice as that's what I actually prefer as a beverage.
- While waiting for our food we played a hand of gin rummy with my travel deck of cards.
- We watched the Doppelgandland episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer through my sister's Hulu account. Anthony Head (The actor who played the character Rupert Giles) recently died, which made me want to revisit a few of my favorite episodes.
I liked how this library book photo showed how these people were utilizing their Ikea "Sortera" bins, as I have an unused stack in the basement that I got for free from an after-garage sale free pile.
I did utilize one as a impromptu litter box when my daughter's cat came to the house in the middle of the night due to her apartment flooding.
I also enjoyed that this library book photo showed that I'm not the only person to reuse Bonne Maman jars as storage.
Mine are almost all from an old neighbor who'd set them (with lid!) in her open top recycling bin. Sadly she moved away. My jam is mostly homemade using the wild blackberries I pick for free.
Bonne Maman jars work perfectly for the bulk spices I buy from Winco.
I've been holding off on grocery shopping as we have a plethora of random food items at risk of going to waste.
- I broke up the last of some tostadas to dip into hummus. Also finished the hummus.
- I've been eating oatmeal as we're out of eggs and I want to avoid the grocery store.
- I roasted the last of some mushroom to accompany the other night's chicken.
Nothing all that exciting, nothing that'll go viral, just daily nonconsumerism.
Katy, most of the novels I post to your blog are not really '5 frugal things', more 'this is what I did today', LOL. The commentariat on this blog is so interesting, and I appreciate the varied and different things folk are doing to step lightly on the earth. Also, although you might think your list above isn't a buncha frugal things, I sure do!
1. My gardening buddy came by to catch up and help out. She had several trays of 'starts' and we set to work with enthusiasm. First, as it was supposed to rain, we chose 'outside' and planted many rows of beans and peas along the cattle panels. Put some pumpkins at the base of some, zucchini at the base of others. It was a big job and the rain held off so we felt very productive.
Then we went 'inside' to the greenhouse, where we pulled up MORE boltingArugula, prepped the beds, and then watered and watered and watered. The sections where we've planted now have nice moist soil, but anywhere that had contained only bolting arugula has been water-neglected, so we had some catchup to do.
She planted some tomatoes (she is a self-admitting OCD person, and I am NOT, however we both have big funny bones so there is a tonne of laughter about how particular she is when planting, and how un-particular I am.) I got some cucumbers and peppers thumped in. There's more to go in but that will have to wait a few days!
2. I really really wanted to run to the store for something sweet, particularly when my Daughter shared that she was having an ice cream float. However, I heroically restrained myself and made some boxed brownies (11 min from thought to oven). I've decided that they are almost as good as a float. Almost is close enough.
3. Harvested more arugula, kale, dill, nasturtium flowers, radishes and scallions. I even got everything washed and in the fridge. #2 son is now a huge arugula fan: he cadged the whole big bag of it from his loving mom, and I even threw in 1/3 of the washed kale – so heartwarming to see him enjoy food that I grow or cook.
The volunteer arugula harvests will be ending soon, as most of the greenhouse has been cleared – I do have lettuces transplanted to the outside raised beds, and have recently transplanted more, but we need a week or so of decent growing weather to get much more than a few stolen leaves from them. It has turned cool and rainy.
My kale is bolting, too, and the new crop hasn't yet taken off, so we are scraping the barrel to get greens from the garden. I refuse to purchase greens, though, now that we are in growing season. I just gotta up my plant-whisperer game!
4. My Mom has an MRI booked in a few days – this appointment is much faster than expected, as it was only requested last week! Of course, she independently decided that she could get herself there (!!) and is a bit sad that I refuse to let her try. I still shudder about the hospital losing her in February, and am unwilling to let her in there without me beside her. Her memory issues are becoming worse, and although she is mostly functional, she isn't so great in new environments or with following a series of directions.
I have had to duck out of a meeting that I had set up, but the other volunteers on the team are competent capable humans. I get to practice letting go of my control freak issues, and they get to practice stepping up without me around to direct the show. Wish us all luck!
5. I'm fighting a miserable cold, too – so no gym time, no grandson time, and I will be masked during the 'Mom errand' above. I will take a novel to read while waiting with and for her at the hospital. And she will be fast to pull out her credit card to pay for the parking.
I even put the heat on, as the temp went down to 14 Celsius and I was feeling chilled... However, the sun on my solar has increased the credit I've been racking up with the Hydro company, so the small expense of running my heat pump for a day doesn't really come out of my pocket.
Your gardening is straight up farming and very inspiring.
@Ecoteri, I agree! I come here to see what others are doing and get new tips and tricks too add to my Frugal tool belt!
I share your love of Bonne Maman jars but my husband is partial to their jam so I fish them out of my own recycling when he inevitably puts them in there! Funny note- I was a background extra on Buffy during that season and was in a few episodes. A couple friends
of mine wanted to be actors and I didn't want a "real" job so I was an extra alongside them. It was good for reading library books and magazines, not so much for making a living unfortunately!
Which episodes and which scenes?!
Well, I am somewhat moved into my new apartment. I have to make 1 more trip back to KY for the last bits & pieces of my stuff, but it's going to wait until next week.
Frugal wins:
1. I didn't need to buy replacements for the bath tissue or cleaning supplies that accidentally got left behind. My new landlords offered me the remainder of what they used to clean the place & my aunt has a garage full of supplies that my late uncle hoarded.
2. Went thrift shopping for bedroom & utility room curtains. Succeeded at the 3rd store we tried. Sucessfully talked myself out of the needlepoint topped bench I saw. (Similar to the one you found a little while back) It was beautifully done and I know how much work went into it, but I couldn't justify $50 for something that doesn't really go with the rest of my furniture.
3. Bought a few organizer baskets at the Dollar Tree instead of the pricey set my cousin found at T J Maxx.
4. Scored 3 large containers of fresh cut pineapple for $1.75 on the markdown rack at the grocery store. The produce clerk told me that they do meat & produce markdowns late Sunday afternoon, so I now know the best time to go!
5. My new home is next to the town community center. I didn't have anywhere to park when I came home Saturday night because there was an event on & they didn't realize I had moved in so all the street spots were full. The center manager came to apologize on Sunday and gave me the password for their secure WiFi to make up for it! This was worth having to park 3 streets over for a night because my cell provider has very weak service & access to a strong Wi-Fi connection means I don't have to pay $100+ for internet when all I use is a tablet & phone.
Not sure if this last thing counts as a frugal win yet...they hold a farmer's market in the park across the street every Monday. I'm going to wander over and see what they have.
I like the comfortable everyday-days.
We are eating a lot of kale, arugula and blackberries from the garden.
I've walked and biked to various errands.
I reached a 2 levels up supervisor at a financial institution that is dragging their feet about transferring our money out. It is not earning anything where it is and we ARE going to get the money out.
I'm in a bit of a funk so I'm not full of money saving goodness right now!
I don't eat out a lot, and being on a trip where every meal is from a restaurant reminds me how much waste there is! Not to mention just general calorie overage, which I don't need.
While it doesn't save me money (I'm not paying for the food), I certainly don't need the huge portions, so I now have a bunch of leftovers in the fridge that will likely see me through tomorrow afternoon. It also saves time, as I can use the ordering & sitting/waiting to do other things that are more enjoyable.
Katy, this is a legit, frugal, not-at-all-boring post! Thanks to you, I'm also reading Terence Conran books from my library and thoroughly enjoying them.
1. Received food from Buy Nothing that no one else wanted: whole milk, real mayo, honey mustard dressing, and chow mein noodles that we'll use, along with a can of Beefaroni that I'll donate to the food shelf.
2. Bought some annuals at the local nursery for our front pots. Tucked some deer netting around the base of the plants to keep the squirrels from burying nuts in the pots and pulling out flowers in the process.
3. Was going to say that we had free dinner at a neighbor's high school graduation party, but then I remembered our cash gift. Used a blank card to write our own sentiments. I do this for all occasions.
4. Friend brought over lunch - pasta salad, sourdough bread, fruit, and lemon blueberry coffeecake. I supplied homemade iced tea and scintillating conversation. 😉 She also gave me leftovers.
5. Read two books from the library and would recommend both: A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardern (memoir) and The American Queen by Vanessa Miller (a novel based on a true story).
Non-viral things are happening with me as well. I’m back in the country keeping an eye on the elderly relative, and this has slowed my pace of life for the time being.
1. I have a garden out here and things are growing! Today, it is raining, which is great for the vegetables!
2. I am furiously trying to use up preserved foods from last year before this year’s produce catches up.
3. I went to the Winco yesterday and found 6000 fetch points blowing around the parking lot in the form of receipts.
4. I also found a few redeemable beverage containers.
5. I’m entertaining myself with books and magazines I’ve checked out with my Libby app.
Lots of good fugal things in your post as always. Life is generally full of everyday things and they count.
1. A neighbor texted and asked if we wanted some of the cherries they picked yesterday. I've not been a cherry fan in the past but I said sure and they appeared on our porch early this morning. These are beautiful and just the right amount of sweetness.
2. We continue to be "masters" of cooking at home and using up leftovers so very little food waste here.
3. We reset our drip irrigation to match the water district's new recommendation which will hopefully prove cost effective. It certainly uses less water than hand watering.
4. I mended a seam in and washed my lined rain jacket so I could put it away and realized I bought it at least 15 years ago. Maintaining clothes if frugal.
5. We walked to the city's Maker's fair and enjoyed listening to music, watching kids have fun, and admiring the handiwork on display. Walked back empty handed.
5.
4.
I loved this post. Ordinary everyday frugality is what it's all about, in my opinion.
The first item of my sister's clothing has sold. A puffy jacket. I accepted a lower offer because I am anxious to get some movement going. I have to say I'm disappointed at how low the prices are that eBay recommends. Anyway, I'll pack it up and send it off tomorrow.
I listed five more today.
I cruised the student neighborhoods around the university this morning, but I didn't find much. A t-shirt -- which I'll donate -- two light bulbs in the box, a bag of switch plate covers, a hanging candle lantern -- but it turned out the hanger was broken, and it's a fake candle, so probably needs a battery. And a wooden drying rack, which needs some repair. This is the first day of move-out, but it's going to rain all week, so I don't know if the search will be worth it, if everything is going to get drenched.