Five Frugal Things -- Free Chipotle & Popeye's Chicken
1) I curb picked a stack of these organizer grid square thingies a few years ago and it's amazing how often they've come in handy. There aren't enough of the corner-connector-pieces to match the number of grids, but they assemble just fine with zip ties.
I also appreciate how they pretty much take up zero space until they're needed. Like sleeper agent organizer supplies!
My husband recently bought a bag of microfiber cloths to wash the car, so I pulled out five squares and created a bin to contain them. Voilà, it's like boring Legos for grown ups!
They now live in my slightly less messy garage and are now at the ready for his next car washing session.
2) I was craving a little snacky snack after dinner, so I whipped up a batch of popcorn using my thrifted air popper. The popcorn itself is from Winco's bulk bins, so I'd estimate that I spent maybe 35¢ to scratch this itch. That's including the butter and salt.
3) My Red Cross "thank you for donating platelets" $15 gift card voucher finally showed up in my inbox. There were hundreds of corporate businesses to choose from and I ended up picking Chipotle, as I can stretch it out to almost three meals by choosing their $5.49 kids' meals.
There's a Chipotle not far from my house, so it wouldn't even involve driving too far. That looks like plenty of food, especially as it also includes a drink.
4) I took my mother out to run errands yesterday, which included buying her a coke. This required driving through Popeye's Chicken. (You may notice that we also got biscuits, because . . . yum!) A Popeye's receipt is an infinite food hack, as the back contains a link to fill out a survey, which subsequently earns you a free two-piece chicken and biscuit meal with the purchase of a large drink. Of course getting that free meal will generate an another receipt.
You know I filled out that survey!
This took me back to 1988, when my husband and I were broke college students living in London and The Sainbury's near our flat in Chiswick sold Ocean Spray cranberry juice; whose label contained . . . a coupon for a free bottle of juice! We paid for a single bottle of juice, which unlocked endless free juice until we returned to the states.
Was it the healthiest thing to drink such a tremendous amount of juice? Unlikely, but need I to remind you that we were broke? Ahh . . . those were the days!
5) My friend Lise took my ripped fitted sheet and cut it into rectangles for a sun printing class she was teaching. She shared that she even saved the elastic for a future project!
Remember how bad my sheet was?
Get yourself a friend like Lise!
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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Took the paperwork for my "avoiding distracted driving" course to the municipal court today. They processed it immediately while I waited and the fine was waived (I can think of a lot of things to do with the $264.00 that I didn't have to pay, and the course only cost $30.00).
Just took my blood sugar for the first time in a long time, it was 85 which is on target for right before lunch.
Katy, please please! please! do a follow-up on the results of the sun printing..... this sounds right up my alley!
I can picture those squares put together as a couch throw. Or a shower curtain.
My blackberries are slowly ripening, I want some pulpy jelly/jam from them this year....thinking on hot biscuits.
JC
Fabulous post, as always. I love those sleeping-agent bins. I'd be tempted to turn it on its side so your husband can just grab a cloth without having to pull out the entire bin!
Bet your popcorn was amazing ... nothing beats butter and salt!
Firstly, Katy, we need photos of the end result of that very cool writing project! NEATO!
Your infinite juice hack reminds me of a time my local grocery store was selling some close-to-expiry granola bars (they were even the organic-mostly-good for you kind!) for $1.
Each box had a coupon on the back for $1 off.
I wasn't as organized as I would be today (kids still at home, so ... life!) but I did make a bit of an effort to cut coupons off and get more boxes for 'free' - maybe for a total of $10 saved (but considering the bars usually sold for $3.50 or more, the savings were considerable.
Never ending Popeyes. Yes!
Cancel vacation because husband was sick. I got sick this week and we would’ve been on vacation. Save thousands of dollars.
Picked up free postcards at library with camping theme for there summer reading program. Sent them to my two grandkids in Maryland.
My New Jersey granddaughter and I read Harry Potter and the sorcerer Stone at the same time sending text back-and-forth and pictures of where we were in the book. she increased her reading speed from five pages a day to 30 pages a day. So much fun.
Made a huge enchilada casserole with homemade enchilada sauce. It fed us for 2 meals.
Bought the largest head of cabbage I could find at Trader Joe’s thinking of you, Kathy while I did it. Used half the cabbage to make deconstructed, cabbage rolls, and chopped up the other half to use for sautéed cabbage, coleslaw, and Thai peanut slaw.
Didn’t have rosemary to cut and bring inside, but had lots of mint. Large bunch in my bathroom smelling very good.
FFT, Herbs and Hacks Edition:
(1) I continue both to harvest herbs from my gardens and to process dried herbs from the attic. The basket I bought last Saturday for $1 and have made the designated "herb carrier" is getting a workout. And while I envy Katy her flourishing rosemary shrub (rosemary does not overwinter well here in Central NY), it's fortunately one of the few herbs that does well in pots long-term. I've got three that are very happy in my dining room bay window.
(2) And I continue to make sun tea. As noted earlier, I prefer a mug of cold sun tea to coffee on hot mornings, and this is saving me $$ on coffee (the price of which seems to have just passed Mars).
(3) It's day 11 without rain here, so I've been saving water from my AC condenser (which drains into my basement sink) and lugging it up to my watering cans. Good exercise for me, and maybe a few cents off my water bill. (Rain is predicted for tomorrow, and if it doesn't arrive, I will be one PO'd elderly lady gardener.)
(4) I'm off to the Regional Market tomorrow morning to buy more cucumbers for refrigerator pickles--concentrating this time on smaller pickles for pint jars. My aging "customer base" is calling for more pints than quarts this year.
(5) And I topped off the gas tank this morning before the price goes up for the weekend and before prices go up generally, thanks to You Know Who's continuing inability to realize he started a war he can't finish.