Five Frugal Things -- The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a $3 Billion Dollar Endowment, Why are They Fundraising?
1) My husband and I wanted to go out for dinner and chose The Heist food carts. (Located in a former bank that was once robbed, hence the name.) It's a fun choice for when you want a food cart meal, but would prefer to eat indoors.
Because, yeah . . . Portland hit a record high of 91 degrees Fahrenheit yesterday!
We corralled the bill by sharing a tray, similar to the above photo, although we chose brisket and ribs; with mac n' cheese and cole slaw as our sides.
When I eat in a restaurant, I prefer to choose something we don't cook at home and this certainly checks that box!
2) I went to Trader Joe's for lettuce and bananas and walked out with . . . $3.49 romaine hearts and 23¢ bananas! This is always an accomplishment in a store 90% stocked with impulse purchases.
Please, hold your applause.
3) I also got two free lollipops from the cashier.
4) My youngest is out of town, so my husband and I are enjoying a visit from Mama's Little Meatball. It doesn't save us any money, but it saves them from hiring a pet sitter.
You know my "love language" (ick, gag) is helping other people figure out how to spend less money. Especially when it's one of my own kids!
5) Like Mayor Mamdani, I chose to skip the Met Gala this year. Some might chalk this up to joining those protesting it being sponsored by Jeff and Lauren Bezos.
The gala is an annual fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute. I need to point out that the museum's endowment is currently estimated to be three Billion (Billion!) dollars, and as such does not require a fundraiser!
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
Not a frugal thing, but this Facebook post made me snort-laugh while drinking coffee this morning -- "Can't we just put all this aside for ONCE and get lost in the beauty of the mind-blowing fact that a BASEBALL TEAM continues to put on such an iconic fashion forward event year after year? GO METS!"
You know, that may explain the Mets' performance so far this year. Too much fashion, too little focus on baseball.
My bestie and i went dumpster shopping at a major university this weekend! There were so many rolloff dumpsters that we were able to get into and get some good stuff. We were super bummed that Goodwill had tractor trailers in every parking lot, selfishly, though I know they'll save so much from the landfill. We were really hoping to come across bags of discarded clothes but they mustve all been donated. I got a shoe rack for my son, a nice area rug, full length mirror, and snacks still in date. My friend did better than me because she was really willing to get deep into the dumpster. We are already looking forward to next year.
Also, there is an independent thrift a mile from me. They throw away a LOT of good stuff because they dont have room for it all and I have been going on Sunday nights and pulling out lots of good stuff from their dumpsters. We had a massive yard sale in March and did phenominally well, and I plan on doing it again in Oct. I live off a busy road and we get a great turnout.
1. Thank you for pointing out the needless fundraising by Jeff Bozo (not a typo) and his fake looking wife. Since I have despised Amazon ever since the movie and book, I gleefully take this opportunity to say I don’t patronize Amazon unless it is almost a life or death emergency. That is frugal in itself.
2. I am walking an hour in my neighborhood later this evening.
3. I repaired my kitchen chair with duct tape. Not pretty but it worked, at least for now.
4. I took my breakfast and my lunch (which consisted of a pbj sandwich and an apple) to work. I am eating my homemade gnocchi soup for supper which has lots of spinach, mushrooms, and green onions.
5. My air and heat are off (high of 80 here today) and my windows are up so it is very pleasant.
Google USA today and covid era relitax refunds that may allow
millions of Americans get an extra refund this year if you are or middle income. I read the article just now but can't seem to copy it here. There were scant details but it may be worth checking with a tax expert. The deadline is July 10,2026.
If only the Met just asked the celebrity guests to donate the cost of their attire in return for taking that night off. But that makes too much sense.
Your grandcat is such a lovely girl. I have a longhaired dilute tortie kitty who is my darling.
My husband is volunteering tomorrow as a poll worker, so I went to the grocery store to get him a few gluten-free goodies for his lunch bag. I had already cooked hosin pork and veggies with a GF sauce and a GF apple crisp, which used up an open bag of frozen veggies and most of a bag of apples.
Also used the last register rewards coupon for cat food, which knocked 75 cents off. These rewards routinely appear when the canned food is on sale, so double win.
I love a good business pun!
1. My mom spent the night with us on Saturday night and I sent her home Sunday with a mega sized shampoo and conditioner set that I have had in the cabinet for quite a while and won't use up.
2. Our discounted order of Old Navy shirts arrived and fit perfectly! The colors are better than I was hoping as well. It's the little wins in life.
3. One of the kiddos had an accident the floor prompting a quick change of clothes and starting a load of laundry. I had been putting off starting a load of bedding due to a headache so that got my priorities straight right away.
4. I finished "A Single Thread" by Marie Bostwick, she also wrote "The Book Club for Troublesome Women", and it made me very sad but also enjoyable! Thankfully, I finally got my copy of the second book in the Thursday Murder Club series so that'll cheer me up!
5. My husband is picking up an order from Fred Meyer (Kroger) on the way home tonight which will save us a trip to town and another 60 miles of gas.
1) I bought an eggplant at Trader Joe’s last week (biggest one they had since it’s priced per item not weight!) so yesterday I made ratatouille in the Instant Pot. I also made a cauliflower millet mash to serve it over since it’s quite liquidy. Really good, and it made 6 servings so I froze a few for later lunches.
2) Rather than buy hummus, I’ve been making a variety of different bean spreads since I have a lot of dried beans on hand. So far they’ve all been very good and taste great spread on toast with veggies piled on top and a drizzle of balsamic glaze.
3) I finished another audio book from the library, called We Solve Murders, by the same author as The Thursday Murder Club series, I really enjoyed it! I also had a physical copy of a book come in that I’ve had on hold for a very long time, This Is Vegan Propaganda. I’m already eating almost 100% plant based but I still like to know as much as I can and this book is highly rated.
4) Going to walk the kids to school on Wednesday, I don’t do it very frequently, because it’s about a mile away and I then need to walk home and then go to work so it adds about 40 minutes to the morning drop-off routine but they enjoy it and it saves a small amount of gas and gets us all a bit of exercise.
5) My son lost a beloved water bottle. I found a new one on eBay, that cost less than buying directly from the company. I was surprised at the number of used ones (that were dinged up/chewed on) that were priced at the same or higher than buying new directly from the company. Not sure how that pricing strategy works out for sellers!
I had a doctor's appointment today at 12:15. Knowing that the office is positioned among a number of tempting restaurants, I was sure to eat lunch beforehand at home.
I took the free-to-me train to the appointment, so I wouldn't have to use gas.
The doctor ordered a lab test for me, and I made an appointment at the hospital for Wednesday. The hospital is also on the train line. And my PT appointment on Thursday is at a facility that is easy walking distance from the downtown train station.
I will, however, have to drive to Aldi tomorrow because it's time to get a few things, and Aldi is nowhere near the train.