Five Frugal Things -- Hooters & Free Pizza!
1) I woke up to this lil' eBay Goodwill Gift Card Challenge sale. I listed itall the way back in January and set it aside. I bought it at the bins because it was A) lightweight; and B) funny.
The profit after eBay fees was $11.50, which isn't too bad considering how little it weighs. I spent maybe 25¢ on it.
2) I ordered a half price gluten-free Domino's pizza for my daughter, but it must've taken too long to be delivered as I got an apology email offering me a free medium size pizza as compensation. It has to be redeemed in the next week, but I'll for sure be taking them up on that offer!
Free food is my love language.
3) I stopped at Trader Joe's for bananas and a basil plant and happily accepted a blueberry scone and strawberry sample plate. I wish every errand came with a delicious snack.
Perhaps pigs in a blanket at the post office or miniature sandwiches at the library? DMV ravioli? Attorney office sliders?
4) I sold the "Measure" wall hanging through Marketplace for $20. Sold in slightly more than 24 hours, which is always extra satisfying. I don't know what the wood was, but it was very lightweight.
5) I transplanted the $4.49 basil plant into my garage sale freebie flowerpot from last month. Hopefully I'll be able to nurture this plant into a full summer of fresh basil.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
1. I packed lunches for my husband.
2. I took lunch to my daughter one day...and realized I was putting my senior's lunch in the same lunch bag I put her first grade lunches in!
3. I went on a walk with the dog for free exercise and picked a bouquet of wildflowers.
4.i got a dozen free eggs.
5. I purchased multiple sale items
Longer version and pictures here:
https://practicalwalk.com/2026/05/08/frugal-five-packing-lunches/
1. I found another penny. Into the found change jar it went.
2. DH and I were invited to a friend's house for homemade pizza and Almond cookies last night. Nice to have a cooking-free night. We'll have this couple over some night in June. We switch off monthly.
3. We walked some wooded trails near our house for exercise yesterday. It was windy enough to keep the Mayflies at bay.
4. I'm disgusted at the gas prices but one small satisfaction is knowing the people who voted the Orange Man (?) in are paying the same price. Hope they see it.
5. Using yesterday's water from the teakettle to water plants, washing in cold water and hanging laundry outside, reading my library book, eating at home, all the usual.
Not frugal edition
1. My parents did not save anything from my childhood and so I've been careful to both save and give my children their childhood things. I had 3 English piggybanks-a double decker bus, a telephone box and a post box. I sent a picture of the 3 items to my 3 kids and 2 of them wanted the telephone box. So I got on eBay and found a second telephone box. I'm keeping the post box and selling the double decker bus.
2. Got my hair cut, which isn't cheap, but makes me happy and is the only 'beauty' thing I pay for.
3. Bought new glasses as my prescription had changed significantly. Made it slightly frugal by getting lenses replaced in existing frames and by using Warby Parker for the entirely new pair (one clear pair and one pair sunglasses).
3. Gas is the extortionate price of $5.79/gallon and I drove to visit my grandchildren 4 hours away (each way).
I do balance that by barely driving anywhere when I'm at home.
4. Bought a few organizing items after carefully assessing what I truly needed, and shopping my garage first to make sure I didn't have anything that would work. Our house is 1000 sq ft and at times we have 4 guests plus the 2 of us, so every space has to function optimally.
Frugal #5. Our daughter's work sent food to her and she didn't want the pork loin or cabbage with Brie. That made 2 meals for dh.
If you want that basil plant to continue just keep cutting off slips, letting them root in water and replanting once the roots have gotten thick. right now I have 8 new "slip" basils that I potted last week under my grow lights. These babies are the 4th generation of cuttings from my last summer basil plant. Under the grow lights, I wait until the plants in pots are bent over then vigorously trim them taking the best trimmings to root in water (the rest become herbs in oil or basil salt, 2026 xmas gifts). I have given away so many basil plants because I ran out of space. lol.
I used Trader Joe’s basil plant and it works well all summer and into the fall.
$.70 off a gallon of too expensive gas
Walking with my kids for free exercise and working out at the gym. Good health is frugal.
Going to Cincinnati Reds game today, but taking my own food and snacks
Wearing one of my son’s Cincinnati red shirts.Team spirit and no extra cost.
Using beans more as protein
Using my thrifty clothes and new ways to make new outfit combinations
1) Met friends for dinner ahead of a sip & stroll event down town. I enjoyed the music & the fun vibe, but definitely didn't drink enough champagne to justify the ticket price. Lesson for next time. I did eat off of the happy hour menu, which was more than enough food for a reasonable price.
2) Listed a couple of things on eBay from a free pile.
3) Meeting a friend for a workout, which is sort of free entertainment. (I've paid for the classes already, but the meeting a friend part is a nice way to meet up without costing anything extra).
4) Put together a menu plan.
5) Came up with a list of how DS19 can earn some extra money (selling my road bike for part of the profit is number one on the list, as he will first repair it and clean it up). He needs the money before his actual summer job starts!
Bonus: I bought Home Depot gift cards at the grocery store, taking advantage of a points multiplier type thing. When DH went to use them, they had a zero balance & the scratch part had been fully removed. They were in the sleeves & sealed when he attempted to use them, so it was clearly fraud. We documented & photographed everything & weeks later, finally received new gift cards from Home Depot. Also, scammer suck.
1. Cousin who sold his island home that we used to frequently visit, and his sister, came to stay and we visited my 90 year old Dad. We went for lunch afterwards, (my dad is too frail to come with us), and Dad insisted that he pay for lunch, which was lovely. He says this is all he can do now for his kids, and he is happy to do so.
2. Same cousin took DH and I out for dinner, and cousin and I split a two peice fish and chips, which was plenty of food.
3. I harvested some of my rhubarb and made a rhubarb sticky toffee pudding. Was a hit with the guests, but DH doesn't like rhubarb. All the more for me, I love it.
4. Our mortgage is up for renewal this November, so we can renew anytime now. The interest rate will be a little lower, and every bit counts.
5. Received a two night booking for my cottage on Homeexchange.com. The points I earn from this will go towards being able to book accommodation for our 2027 Germany trip.
Basil is the only thing I can reliably grow from seeds in a pot outside, and the local furry animals leave it alone. Something from the non-vertebrate world--slugs?-- munches on it later in the summer.
My kitchen has overtones of an opium den. We have tiny ants, first time ever. A few big ones always visit in the spring, but they eventually quit coming, partly because we pour a line of baby powder across the back door sill, which they don't like to cross. Wiping the counters with peppermint essential oil to mess up their trails didn't stop the tiny ones after several days. So to kill them without buying or using poison, I am trying a mix of powdered sugar and borax, to attract and dehydrate them, I think. They now stay off other parts of the counters, just hanging out seemingly without moving in the little dishes of powder. I hope they die happy.
Got a lamb's ears plant at a neighbor's yard sale. Suspect it came from another neighbor's patch, which I had some of that only lasted a few years.
Read another of those "how to cut your grocery budget by x amount a month articles" and just about threw it across the room. No, we do not now, nor have we ever thrown out $56 A WEEK of food, (EPA study for average American family of four). That's horrible. I am not sure of their methodology; it seems they included grocery store and restaurant waste and divided it by some consumption number, which is one of the reasons the food waste numbers vary across studies. Certainly the article mis-used the statistics.
Sort of like statistics about average credit card debt. Some research puts in the disclaimer that it is the average "among those card holders who carry a balance", which isn't the same as all card holders.
Your best bet to get rid of the small ants is to try to figure out how they are getting into your kitchen. I know it's easier said than done. We had a problem when we first moved into our house years ago because our back steps were falling apart and the ants were living in between the bricks. Once we had the steps redone we did not have ants again for many years. The last time we had them they were crawling on the walls and on the counters. I caulked around all the windows in the kitchen and we have not had any ants since. Also, I know someone who planted lavender bushes outside their house and said that that kept the ants away but I cannot verify that that is true.
Heidi Louise, there is an old newsroom saying: "You can prove anything with statistics. Except the truth!"
Meaning, you have to accurately interpret the data else you'll commit a ginormous error.
Re: ants: I had great success with 20 Mule Team Borax when I had an invasion of flying ants last June. Didn't think to add sugar and don't believe I would have added it if I had. I don't care if they die happy or not, as long as they die. 😛
Towards the end of the season let your basil go to seed and plant some in the spring. With your climate you should have success. I have done this for years. Free is good!
Good tip, thank you!
Yay for free samples!!!
1. I have someone coming to pick up an item I sold on Marketplace. Crap out, money in.
2. I mowed my own lawn and the paths in my back forty.
3. I sold an item on Ebay.
4. I had free samples at Costco for lunch yesterday.
5. My free clematis (from my mom's neighbor) survived the winter and my mom gave me a trellis for it.
That basil plant looks huge! Its shiny green leaves could've come from the florist. Very nice!
-- Installed Apache Open Office freeware on my computer. IMO, its word processing is every bit as good as the stuff you pay for. At least for my purposes, it is.
--My cell phone has Duo Lingo's app and you can learn the game of chess on it. Free! So I took a chess lesson last night. I have always wanted to learn how to play chess but never knew anyone who knew how to play or could teach me.
-- My cleaning lady friend came over, the first time since she's moved from the projects to her senior citizen apartment. She accepted items for her new place, including new curtains (my bedroom curtains were packaged with 2 print curtains and 4 solid curtains and I only wanted the print ones), 2 curtain rods, 2 patio chairs, 2 patio tables, and some pots and pans and other kitchen items I never use, in lieu of half her usual fee for cleaning (Trust me, even at the cheapest garage sale pricing, she took away far more in value than what the money would've bought. We had quite a time trying to fit it all into her car.) Sadly, when we plugged in and turned on the curb picked free TV, there were cracks in the screen that did not show on the outer screen; never look a gift horse in the mouth, right? So that got thrown away. But she was very, very happy with everything else and I was very, very happy to get rid of some clutter. I also "tipped" her with a 20% off coupon for Goodwill; she told me her new place was near the Eastside Goodwill store and she'd gone in there and was amazed and pleased at what all they had.
--This morning, while drinking my coffee on the patio, I saw two tiny sparrows gathering grass and twigs and stuff for their nest. So sweet! I immediately ran to the indoor trash can and got some of Snuggles' shedded fur that I'd earlier swept up. I scattered his soft puppy dog fur around the yard, so that hopefully the baby birds will have a nice soft "bed" in their nest once they hatch.
FFT, Basil, Vicarious Thrills, and Saturday Shopping Edition:
(1) Basil is actually very easy to start from seed, as long as you either do this outdoors (if you live in a mild climate) or have a source of supplemental light to do it indoors. I start the mini basils I grow for drying under fluorescent light and transplant them outside when the weather here in Central NY is right, which it definitely isn't yet. Ms. Bestest Neighbor does my large-leaf basil for me, in return for unlimited access to my thriving clumps of echinacea and monarda (aka coneflower and beebalm).
(2) JASNA BFF is getting into the frugal act: She's sent me a photo of what she recently bought at her CVS in Manhattan, which included a giant box of multigrain Cheerios, a box of Kleenex, a box of wipes, and some sort of chocolate goodie. She reported: "After coupons, discounts and the monthly ten dollars off I paid 32 cents. " And I'm glad I'm having a good influence. 😀
(3) I went to the Regional Market this morning and bought local radishes, local asparagus, local eggs, and two fragrant and sturdy thyme plants to replace the two thymes that I lost to winterkill. None of these were the cheapest of their kind, but local asparagus in particular is a fleeting treat that I try not to miss.
(4) I then stopped at the little Greek grocery outlet that's between the RM and my home, and stocked up on a few things (including grated Parmesan that's half the price of what's at Wegmans). I also participated in the usual banter among the staff: One guy started singing, and another guy said, "Don't give up your day job." I added, "Don't call us, we'll call you." I like shopping at a place where we can trade jokes.
(5) Last stop was Price Chopper, where I found (among other things) a marked-down day-old rosemary and olive oil boule in the bakery, and a half-price 12-pack of a locally brewed IPA. (Past its best-buy date, I suppose--but, hey, is beer gonna go bad??)
The same unusual snow/freeze that beat up my rosemary bush killed the basil that had been nicely overwintering against a sunny brick wall. The rosemary survived, though she looks scruffy. I replaced the basil and it's been throughly chewed on by something. Gardening is the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.
DH and I went out to lunch today to celebrate our anniversary, lunchtime being less expensive and quieter. I made gluten-free cupcakes for our dessert. Shampooed, brushed out, and trimmed up both dogs' coats yesterday, which saves a bunch of money and they are happier at home. Spiffed up my summer wardrobe by ironing all the cotton blouses yesterday.
I miss free samples. Usually they have dairy in them so I have to decline.
1. My children convinced me to take them to the park down the street. I pushed the stroller and set a timer for 20 minutes so we wouldn't get too fried in the heat. I got very sweaty outside because apparently the park thinks it needs to rival the surface of the sun. Thankfully we left before it was a noticable problem to anyone else.
2. I was notified that a few of my requests at the library arrived today, however, it's in the opposite direction of the park and I don't want to melt into a puddle. There's nothing that can't wait until after the weekend so I'll finish the things I currently have checked out.
3. I'm almost halfway through "All of us villains" and it's very good! Almost like Hunger Games but with a magical twist.
4. I was planning on baking chicken for dinner and brownies this afternoon for a birthday, but since it's so damn hot and I don't want to use the oven twice I'm going to throw them in together and save the electricity.
5. I'm line drying two pairs of jeans today. I finally have two that fit! It's my third attempt to get the right size after ordering them online and I am determined to keep them as black and nice as possible!
1. Attended a wedding today -- great food -- no gifts wanted! I am staying with a friend for this out-of-state event, and I wore an outfit I already had. I took many pictures for the couple. There will be no need to eat supper tonight.
2. Before the wedding I went to Goodwill and bought a pair of new socks, a cutting board, three Rubbermaid containers, a Charleston souvenir (I'll be going there later in the month) and a DVD remote which is not worth much, but I forgot to check the value before checking out. I'll sell it, but won't get much, if it sells at all.
3. Forgot to pack deodorant for this overnight trip, so I picked some up at Aldi. I also forgot dairy pills -- had to go to Target for those.
4. I bought donuts on the trip down for my hostess, but she wants me to take them home because of dietary concerns. She is also giving me half a bag of whole wheat egg noodles.
5. I'm returning home first thing in the morning for Mother's Day. My son is fixing a brunch.
1. My friend and I went to the library together the other night for a few games of Left, Center, Right. My friend won 2 rounds and got some Starbucks gift cards. She asked me earlier in the day if I wanted to grab something to eat. I told her I had leftovers I wanted to eat. We are going away tomorrow. We will grab something when I come back. I gave her lots of newspapers and boxes that I got from my other friend that has an amazon addiction. I dropped off all of my returns at the library. I took a free 2000 piece puzzle for a girls trip I'm going on during the summer.
2. My friend gave me some dark chocolate peanut butter cups that she was gifted from Trader Joes. She is not a big peanut butter fan. Hubby loves them and is happy to eat them.
3. I went to Minute to Win it at the library. It was lots of little games that we played in teams. My team won and we each got a $10 Amazon gift card. I most likely will regift it. They had free cookies and coffee too.
4. My 2 local kids came over to celebrate Mother's Day today. My daughter took our dog home with her. She is watching her while we are gone. My daughter treated us to dinner. My son brought donuts. I sent them home with the leftovers.
5. My neighbor called and asked if I wanted a a few things they aren't going to use. I happily took them. I gave her a college sweat shirt for her friend. I found out that her daughter is a Freshman at the college my oldest went to. I never wear the sweat shirt.
6. I ran to Stop & Shop. This weeks freebie is hummus so I grabbed it. I also got the free soy chocolate milk from the rain check my friend gave me. My friend said she will grab the hummus for me since she doesn't eat hummus. I love free food.
I forgot to say my daughter gave me a manicure and pedicure with stuff she already owned. My son is going to clean out my car. It was pouring so he will do it another day. These are some of my favorite gifts. I really don't need more stuff.
Those are great gifts from your kids!
I’m hoping to hit the Goodwill bins on Monday. It’s what I wanted to do for Mother's Day this year. They aren’t open Sundays so I’ll go Monday.
1. Took our daughter out for dinner for her birthday. DH ordered a French dip sandwich but didn’t care for the meat. I took it home and turned it into beef vegetable soup with things I had on hand. I got 4 big bowls of soup out of it! No waste!
2. Chickens are happy and giving us lots of eggs!
3. Avoiding extra driving because, you know, gas prices
4. Was given a big bag of fresh corn husks and silk. Guinea pigs love the silk and I dried the husks to supplement their food in the winter.
5. Stopped at Family Dollar today. There was a spend $30 get $10 off coupon in the app for today. I was able to pick up a few things we needed to get to the $20 and then the extra $10 was 2 door mats we were in desperate need of.
Question. Has anyone ever rented space at an “antique” mall? What was your experience? I have a lot of collectibles I’d like to sell and it’s way too much to list on eBay or marketplace and yard sales just aren’t what they used to be. Plus I think it might be fun to set up a small “store” that I don’t actually have to run.
I've done it! I didn't make any money. I pretty much broke even. It's hard to make the monthly rent unless you sell some pricey items, and most of mine weren't pricey. But if you have some things that are fairly valuable -- perhaps a lot of them -- it's fun and a good way to declutter.
I'm adding a number 5: did not unveil an obnoxious gold statue of myself.
IYKYK.
If not, here is a link to an amazing essay about the Orange Ogre that I want to send to my evangelic friends who think he is great:
It's titled, "It’s not just the gold statue, it’s what it represents."
By Rev. Benjamin R. Cremer
https://benjaminrcremer.substack.com/p/its-not-just-the-gold-statue-its
A few months ago, I ALMOST purchased an Hooters golf club cover (for resale) that was signed by the servers. It was a little too niche, written with things like “xoxo, Brandy,” and “Hugs from Tasha” all over it in Sharpie. My friend and I got a really good laugh from it, though!