Five Frugal Things -- Day Two in Vancouver B.C.
1) My husband and I started our day with our hotel's breakfast buffet, which was amazing as ever. I've learned that the cost of our hotel's breakfast buffet would cost $39, were we to walk in off the street. My husband booked enough nights to get it included for free, as well as free parking.
Remember how we paid $75/day to park at our Seattle hotel a few months ago?! That was before we tipped the valets! Gives me appreciation for any free parking!
I just checked, and it's normally $47/night to park at the hotel, but our package also includes this perk.
Today I added a small bowl of oatmeal with all the fixings. Am I . . . "fibermaxxing?"
2) My recently foraged scrunchy had a split seam, so I asked for a free sewing kit from the hotel front desk. I'll be adding this to my travel bag.
There, that's better!
3) My husband and I splurged on admission to the University of British Columbia Anthropology Museum. Although we spent $26 apiece for entry, it was well worth the price!
Spending our money on experiences, not things.
This museum is absolutely HUGE and although we hit every exhibit, there was no way to properly spend the amount of time appreciating everything in a single visit.
I'm including just a few items amongst the thousands of things they had from cultures across the world. This Peruvian knit figure was maybe two-and-a-half inches tall and a couple thousand years old!
Is it condescending to say that it's adorable?
I was completely and utterly enamored by these miniature woven baskets, circa 1900. That's my finger for scale.
Apparently I'm drawn to the smallest exhibit items.
These wooden masks also drew my eye.
We walked around the outdoor area afterwards, you can see by the length of our shadows that many hours passed while we wandered through the museum.
I may also have also helped myself to a wild blackberry souvenir. Not available in the gift shop!
4) We were pretty hungry after the museum, so we headed across town to Kamei on Broadway, as we'd seen online that their prices were worth the extra driving.
We somehow ordered way too much sushi, and I will be answering no questions on whether we finished all of it! We've been subsisting on two meals a day, yet somehow also overeating.
They were offering "Throwback 90's prices" that truly boggle the mind. All of that sushi cost just $24.90 Canadian, which calculates down to $17.87 American!
5) I found my first dropped coin -- a King Charles III nickel! Say it with me:
"I recently came into some money!"
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."
Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.
At first, I thought those might be Pikachu baskets, which would be another form of cute!
I always travel with a fun 1970s era sewing kit. It looks like a change purse, and has vinyl covering with a faux quilt print in 70s colors. It’s not a 2000 year old Peruvian basket, but I enjoy it. I’ve already used it once on this trip.
We ran into weather on this trip and spent too much time at Chicago O’Hare, and I’m pleased to be able to say that we spent $0 on the horrible, overpriced airport food. We were carrying a selection of Winco bulk items.
I am SOOOO glad you got to the Museum of Anthropology. and I agree, it has more than you could possibly see in a day.
That tiny knitted figure is so cute! What a wonderful museum and your meals look great.
The company that repaired our HVAC ductwork today gave us a $100 discount for paying in cash. They are totally legit and have done several repairs for us over the years.
I spent the morning babysitting our excitable dogs in the kitchen and used the time to make a pot of soup, two pans of breakfast muffins, a bowl of chocolate pudding, and to sort through the herbs and spices in the cupboards. Some had to go and I saved all the tiny glass jars and lids to reuse. Also scrounged up the pieces to replace two flip-top jar lids that had broken.
We had a tub of Land o Lakes whipped butter -- just butter and air -- that was too stiff to spread on toast -- it just chipped off in chunks. Was not about to waste it, so I melted the butter, measured out a half cup and made cookies with it. They did not spread as much as usual, but the taste and crispness were great.
I make my own soft butter: 1 stick of soften butter whipped with 1/4 cup olive (or other oil some use canola, avocado or corn oil) and a dash of salt (optional). I usually use my hand mixer and beat 3 sticks of butter, salt and 3/4 cup oil, pour back in the washed butter container. If it is too much for the container, I add a little cinnamon and maple syrup or honey to the remaining whipped butter.
I used to do that but had problems with the mixture getting what looked like mold spots. My family prefers the yogurt-based Brummel & Brown spread, but the store was out of it and I tried the Land o Lakes. Not doing that again.
I get tubs of the butter and olive oil, or butter and canola oil, from Aldi. It always spreads well when taken right out of the refrigerator, tastes good, and I've never had a problem with it.
PS--The brand of butter is Countryside Creamery. It may be an Aldi store brand, as I've never seen it anywhere else.
I have to say I'm really enjoying this vicarious vacation!
Even though temperatures are allegedly in the seventies, it's so humid that it's very uncomfortable. I've stayed home all day, turning the air on intermittently, mostly in order to dry out.
I baked strawberry bread pudding this morning, and there's plenty left for a couple more breakfasts. For lunch, I'm still eating my way through spinach quiche. Supper will probably be yogurt.
I'm still watching Ted Lasso and really enjoying it.
My son who is job-hunting let me know that he has reached another stage in the interview process, with a four-hour interview coming up next week. This is a company that would be a good fit with his experience and offers the possibility of remote work. I would be over the moon if he got this job.
My new haircut is very short, but I think it will grow out to something I like better. Meanwhile, the shortness means I won't need to pay for another haircut soon.
I requested refills on my prescriptions through my medical network's new and improved website. It is much better than the old way, when I had to message my PCP's office. I hope to be able to pick them up tomorrow.
I get tubs of the butter and olive oil, or butter and canola oil, from Aldi. It always spreads well when taken right out of the refrigerator, tastes good, and I've never had a problem with it.
Beth W.,
Saying a prayer your DS gets the job!!!!!!
You stole the sushi. Amazing prices!
That museum is a minimum two day study, used to get a three day pass for $30. That was a few decades ago.
I picked up a wadded up discarded receipt to throw away and it had a $5. I never find money. Cool coin with King Charles on it.
Going to a free summer concert tonight. Pulled together enough lawn chairs for our fire refugees to go as well.
That breakfast looks like no free hotel breakfast I have ever had. I'm hungry looking at it.
1. I went to the Salvation Army Store trying to find a glass pitcher but walked out empty handed.
2. I went to a free concert at the library tonight. Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan music. I met a couple of friends there. Excellent performance by the singer who also played guitar.
3. It rained overnight so no need to water my tomato plant and two pots of flowers.
4. While cleaning up the flowers I planted in May at the family plot in the cemetery, I gathered the seed pods from the marigolds that had gone by to use for next year's planting. I'm sad someone stole a decorative pot of flowers off my father's grave. I can't imagine stealing from a grave but it happens.
5. I took a fan apart and cleaned it since it was starting to look dusty and dirty.
1. Husband used his free oil change, tire rotation and car wash benefits at the dealership where he bought his used truck several months ago.
2. Sampled a piece of dark chocolate that was being promoted at Trader Joe's. Didn't buy (and honestly, had no intention).
3. Met a friend for lunch and brought leftovers home in my trusty containers.
4. Went to a wedding and wore a dress that I bought at Target six years ago.
5. Regifted buckets of asphalt crack filler and sealer on Buy Nothing. Neighbor recommended the company that did her driveway so we're using a professional for a reasonable price instead. Relieved to not do that messy job ourselves. And by "ourselves" I mean my husband!
Well, the family thrift shopping expedition was a bust. Cousin Bs youngest daughter had a full on crying/screaming meltdown before we left because we weren't doing what she wanted to do & she didn't want to go. That set off her older sister, who started screaming that she was going to go stay with her dad if the brat got her way. Cousins A & K and their daughters quietly left to go do something else and all I can say is that I wish I'd gone with them, because the mood never recovered after that.
Added some diced ham & a package of gnocchi to the last of the broccoli soup for dinner. It was delicious. Also finished the lemon pie. Not my favorite, but it was free!
I forgot to mention the large plastic barrel I got from my late uncle's hoard. My little house has damp issues, so I have a dehumidifier going constantly. Now I can save that water and use it for my plants and occasional loo flushing if the barrel gets too full.
The foraged nickel & dime collection added up to $6.45. The coin machine at my grocery waives the service charge if you take an e-gift certificate, so I'm going to cash that & the pennies in for one for a future grocery purchase.
Still haven't found my baking pans. Was going to buy a disposable one so I could make an enchilada casserole & realized I could just ask to borrow one from my aunt. No money spent, no single use item going to the trash. The casserole makes 6 servings, so my aunt gets 2 as a thank you and the rest (after dinner) will go into the freezer for later.
I loath having to pay for parking in a hotel I am already paying for. Good deal that your hotel package covered parking. (IMHO hotels have joined the airlines w/ tacking on a cost for every possible thing. Parking fee, resort fee, and who knows what else.)
The tiny woven doll is cute. Maybe the owner had a cat on site so a mouse was not able to chew up the doll.
It would definitely appealed to cats!
Some of those masks have faces that remind me of my former bosses!
1. I recently came into some money too. I found a quarter in the grocery store. I returned $9.65 in bottles. I found 40 count galloon Ziplock's on the clearance rack for $2.74. I got 3 16 oz. blocks of sharp cheddar as managers special for $2.24 each. The free grocery item this week was a bag of potato chips. Every little bit helps keep our grocery costs down.
2. Went to the doctor first thing on Wednesday. I am down 48 pounds for the year. I went for a walk right after. There is a nice park near by. I found several blackberry bushes so I came home with a bag of them. I always keep a few bags in my car for this reason.
3. My friend's mom , the lady I took care of, passed away over the weekend. I was invited back to their house between the wake services for dinner. They had been given lots of food. My husband and I were also invited to lunch after the funeral. I brought home my leftovers.
4. The garden is doing great so I am picking vegetables almost every day. We picked our first fig. It has been raining almost every night so I haven't had to water.
5. After the funeral my neighbors said to get changed and come over. We had appetizers for dinner with them. Hubby brought a bottle of homemade wine. They got me a card and rose for my loss. I am so lucky to have them. I have 2 leads already on new clients.
I'm sorry for your loss, Marybeth. Caring for elders is a lesson in letting go, isn't it? Caring for children, we are seeing an expanding life in front of them. Kind of the opposite with those at the other end of their time her. I'm glad the family included you in the 'family' time after the funeral.
Thank you. I have watched kids over the years too. My husband has been friend's with the family over 40 years. We spend Christmas Eve together every year.
I live in B.C. and was in Vancouver recently. Just curious, if you found all the construction chaos on Broadway a pain when going out for your dinner?