Five Frugal Things -- Time to Try Some Chipotle Hacks
1) My friend Lise and I drove over to a wealthy Portland neighborhood that had just completed their neighborhood garage sale weekend. Aka -- garage sale after parties!
Unfortunately Portland rained off and on over the weekend and there were significantly fewer residents participating than in years past.
I did score a pastry brush than can go in the dishwasher, which is an improvement over the one I currently use, (also from a free box) which has an unfortunate wooden handle. C'mon people, it's the little things!
I also got a half dozen or so books for my little free library.
This free box had some wooden "Montasory" toys, which isn't exactly a rousing endorsement for the quality of this person's "Montessori" education.
I enjoy a big basket for storage, but this one crossed a line.
I didn't take anything from this shelf, although my friend took the mug to use for her volunteer events.
Here's everything that came home with me. Books for my library, a new looking insulated travel mug and the pastry brush. Nothing brag worthy, but it was still fun to hang out with my friend. Doing free stuff to get free stuff.
2) I picked up a two-pound package of Safeway strawberries for just $2.99 and have been working my way through them. Here they are being very aesthetic over my morning oatmeal.
Who says being frugal is without delicious joys?
3) Somebody put this puzzle in my little free library, which was kind of annoying as it obviously takes up a lot more space than a book. (Plus the box opened and the pieces went everywhere!) I have no interest in confirming that it contains all 300 pieces, but I found someone to take it through my Buy Nothing group.
Needless to say, I disclosed that I wasn't sure if it was complete.
4) My $15 Red Cross gift card hit my inbox this morning and it'll be fun to browse the gift card options. I chose an Ikea one from Fetch recently, so I might pick Chipotle and then use it to buy a few of their kid's meals which actually contain a fair amount of food for just $5.60. Might even test out one of the viral ordering hacks and report back.
You know . . . for blog research.
5) I started reading a library copy of City of Night Birds, by Juhea Kim. This novel about a Russian prima ballerina had me turning page after page until 1:00 A.M., and I'll likelydive back in as soon as I'm done writing this blog post.
Beautifully written, engaging main character and fantastic pacing. No wonder it's a Reese's Book Club pick! I've already put her other book on hold at the library.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
My adult daughter always orders the kids' quesadilla meal with an extra tortilla and turns it into lunch for the next day too.
1. We are in the upper 90’s with heat index supposed to reach around 107 to 110 degrees. My air is off bc I just came home from work. I cannot guarantee the air will stay off but I have it off currently with fans going and windows raised.
2. I had cooked the last of the pink eyed peas with the last of the potatoes. It will be the main ingredient consumed during supper for a few days. I am still working my way through one of the most delicious watermelons I have ever eaten. I ate a peanut butter and honey sandwich for lunch. I had an egg with tomatoes bagel this morning for breakfast.
3. Gas in the more expensive rural counties, where I was working today, is $3.39 a gallon.
4. I am doing my own court filings at the moment to save money.
5. Later this evening, I will be watering my roses in my front yard, and enjoying my own house that I pay taxes on, enjoying the sunset views that I pay for also. I also am avoiding the news, and social media like the plague bc I have decided it is not good for my mental health. I can do what I can do and that is it.
That's a great price on gas. It has started to inch down here in Massachusetts too. The cheapest I've seen is $3.85 but at least it's going in the right direction.
Your #5...a hearty agreement to it all. Heading out to my deck to do the same...combining the enjoyment of my backyard and avoiding the perpetual bad news (well, at least for the last 2 1/2 years and the late 20teens) often seen on tv.
Don't hold your breath. Gas prices are going to be unstable for the near future.
I would like to hear how the Chipotle ordering goes!
1. I picked 5 lbs of kale this morning, tied up my cucumbers and winter squash with free cotton yarn that can be composted at the end of the season, and watered my whole yard with rainwater. A very satisfying free morning.
2. I rode my bike to library to pick up holds.
3. My friend texted that she was going to pick up more free wood chips and did I want some. Yes please. I set my 5 buckets on my driveway. She will pick them up, fill them, and return them. I'm still without a car. She will receive some kale as a thank you! Free mulch is a savings, and the free mulch helps prevent water loss by evaporation from the soil, so I save money on water too.
4. I sold some canning jars (given to me for free) on fb marketplace. Received a brand new Costco box of Oxiclean on Buy Nothing.
5. Tied up my grapevines, I have some lovely bunches of grapes coming along. I love that I can grow a lot of food on my very small urban lot. My grapevines are along the driveway, along with 3 tomato plants and a pomegranate tree. My small backyard has a rhubarb patch, kale patch, loofah, dry beans, tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, and winter squash as well as 2 pluot trees, an apple tree, a lemon tree (with it's first lemon!), 2 fig trees and some more grapevines over the wooden swing. We bought the fruit trees, but the grapevines, rhubarb and all the seeds to start the veggies were free.
4.
Kara,
Your yard sounds amazing.... and delicious!
Your garden sounds super fulfilling and delicious, Kara!
What are you going to do with your ginormous kale harvest? Asking for a friend....
I try it all sorts of ways, many different salads, or simply sauteed. I'm giving a bundle to a friend who's been picking up free mulch while I've been without a car. I will probably dehydrate some and grind it to powder for putting in soups and casseroles.
I'd also love to hear people's kale recipes!
I cut it into bite sized pieces and place it along with a few onions, some garlic and broth. I cook it until it is tender then place it in small mason jars and freeze it. It is delicious and can be served as a vegetable at dinner or added to soup or pasta dishes. Delicious.
Kale! Kale! The gang's all here!
Superfood Soup
(A friend gave me this recipe. It's healthy and uses kale.)
1 lb Italian turkey sausage (hot or sweet)
1/2 small onion, diced
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 (28 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
2 cans (15.5 oz.) beans, drained and rinsed
(black beans, garbanzo beans, cannelli beans, or any combination thereof...I just made it tonight and used 1 can of black beans and 1 can of cannelli beans)
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth. (I used 1 of each because that's what I had.)
Kale
(I used smoked turkey sausage since I couldn't get Italian, so I just had to dice it. If using raw turkey sausage, you need to cook it first.)
Into a dutch oven or stock pot, put (cooked) turkey sausage, onion, and garlic. Cook until onion is soft.
Add sweet potato and saute 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes, beans, and broth. Simmer until sweet potatoes are soft.
Add 2 large handfuls of kale and simmer 20 minutes.
Season with salt/pepper to taste, if desired.
African Kale and Yam soup. The recipe I use is from Happyherbivore.com. I don’t always have miso paste so I skip it. I like to serve it with a tablespoon of peanut butter stirred in.
13 or so years ago, Pizza Hut was one of the country's largest purchasers of kale. They used the decorative kind as leaves around dishes on their salad bars.
I've been putting wooden things into the dishwasher FOR YEARS. Cutting boards, wooden handled knives, EVERYTHING. Do they last as long as delicately hand washing? Nah. But they last A VERY LONG TIME. What am I? A Crawley living at Downton Abbey? Nah. No servants so into the dishwasher they go. After all, I can always thrift some more.
Hear hear! I no longer buy items that aren't dishwasher safe. If it's a yard sale or free item, I chuck it in and tell it vaya con dios. If the item doesn't have what it takes to survive in this fast-paced environment, it goes straight in the trash.
Those strawberries look so delish!
Showed my adult son that bed pillows can be laundered and fluffed back up. His were in a dire shape before getting a trip through the washer with some bleach.
Rather than firing up the iron in a heat wave to press out the wrinkled hems on some skirts, I dampened them with a wet washcloth, smoothed them by hand and hung them up to dry. Easy peasy.
Our local grocery store has unadvertised flash sales on some items Friday through Sunday, a time when I usually avoid shopping, but I started making an effort to walk through, list in hand, and look for the plain white signs taped to the shelves. Got toilet paper for a $2 discount doing that.
Am reading my way through the to-be-read books in my Barnes & Noble Nook account. All were purchased at a discount through using the wishlist feature of BookBub, which sends an alert when a book I am interested in has gone on sale.
It took several hours of driving around visiting three Boost Mobile stores, but I finally found a customer service person who told me the most economical way to replace my dying phone and keep our rock-bottom service plan. This resulted in a couple hundred bucks not spent needlessly.
Ruby,
You can also make your own wrinkle reducer spray quite easily. One teaspoon of conditioner and two cups of warm water in a spray bottle. Shake vigorously to mix. I have been making this since last year and have found that it works just as well as what I had previously been buying at the store. After you spray your clothes pull on them a little and leave overnight to dry.
I bought 2 used books off Ebay for a series I can't get at the library. I made sure to use the credit card that was giving 10% back at Ebay. I also was surprised to get 2,500 points through Fetch automatically for my eBay purchases.
Remembered to use my $5 reward at Lowe's before it expired. We have been buying a few bags of lava rocks at a time for replacement in our landscaping.
My husband has to have so many hours of live CE and he's managed to find some free ones, as well as one that's just $99 and will give him 12 hours of live credit while he enhances his medical Spanish.
Yesterday I made a point of using up some elderly foods: sweet potatoes into an African sweet potato stew served with quinoa from the freezer, bell peppers cut and frozen to put in future chili, chickpeas (that are so old I have to cook them twice as long as normal in the instant pot) into a chickpea salad.
I gave away a tote box full of plastic ware and storage containers.
I took a laundry tub full of jeans and pants to the Community Closet.
I gave away my ancient Cuisinart that still is a workhorse, to my nephew. He is an excellent cook.
I sold a small rototiller. Junk out, yeah!
I don't know why but I read rototiller as rottweiler and thought oh wait huh? 🙂
Love the Cuisinarts that just keep on going! I just used mine to make a knockoff vegan kfc cole slaw that my husband loves.
We did a curbside pick up of cherry tomato plants for DH's oldest sister. She's doing the garden at the assisted living facility where she lives and is happily digging in the dirt. Anyway, when the guy brought the plants to our car, DH says, "We're getting these for my SISTER-IN-LAW, and..." I said, "Wait! She's YOUR sister and MY sister-in-law!"
DH is so used to doing things for MY sister, that he said "SIL" out of habit. It's the new family joke!
Ha ha ha! Me give away a Rottie? No way! My back door neighbor has a rottie named moose and he has a bed on the back porch.
Coleslaw is my favorite food.
Yesterday was our block and pool party for the whole neighborhood. It's half a block down my street so I walked.
Not only did I get a free BBQ brisket meal, and Dr Pepper soft drinks, but I got to go swimming in their pool and visit with friends and neighbors. Met some new friends, too, including 2 young reporters and their editor. Also ran in to our Democrat candidate running for the state legislature; I promptly volunteered my back fence, which overlooks a main thoroughfare, for her campaign sign! A big one, please.
I wore my T-shirt with the Thomas Jefferson quote about the greatest threat to democracy being a president who doesn't follow the constitution. I got one dirty look and dozens of good comments and/or thumbs ups. So I was in a blue oasis in this red state, and it felt great!
That was the only new thing I wore; my swimsuit probably dates back to the Clinton administration! My shorts and flip flops and beach towel were thrifted.
Stayed the whole time, thankful for the stout breeze and shade trees, and also the pool.
Came home and put some brisket scraps on Snuggles' dry dogfood. He ate it all in record time!
Sounds like a lovely day! Can't imagine why you would get even one dirty look in response to your T-shirt. But it does show he knows darn well who doesn't follow the Constitution.
It was an older woman known to be active in the Republican party.
I love seeing Goldie Fawn looking over the books you show us.
1. DH and I went to the grocery store today to pick up food we'll each need while he hikes the Appalachian Trail for 6 days. He's section hiking it. I bought some eggplant to make a casserole dish of eggplant parmesan...my favorite...to eat while he's away. Also, a pepper to fry with onions, cheese and a bag of frozen vegetarian Asian dumplings. With what I already have here, I'll be all set for the 6 days.
2. I popped into the library to pick up 3 books. I picked them according to the bingo board the library supplies to anyone who wants to participate in their summer reading bingo program. For each square covered, the reader receives a ticket to enter to win one of several prizes at the end of the summer.
3. I hung two loads of laundry outside this morning.
4. DH rigged (I hate to use that word ever since a certain artificial orange person chose to use it regarding elections he didn't win) the hose onto the piece of plastic that fits into the window on our standing air conditioner with electrical tape. We've ordered the part we need but we aren't expecting it to arrive until the end of this week. Since it's supposed to be as hot as the surface of the sun later this week, we needed the A/C to stop us from melting like the Wicked Witch of the West.
5. We bought an 8 inch apple pie from Market Basket for $2.50. I'd be hard pressed to make one that inexpensively. I may go back and get a couple more to freeze.
If fat melts in extreme heat, why am I not thin?
1) I went to that WNBA game with my sister who got tickets free from her friend. It was a lot of fun and all it cost me was train fare (which was far cheaper than parking at the stadium would have been). I didn’t buy any food or drink there, one of the many benefits of eating whole food plant based is that food options are pretty limited when at events so even if I wanted to buy food, there’s usually not much that I can eat. I ate a late dinner at home, broiled some sliced baguette from the freezer, spread with the last of some hummus and topped with cooked Swiss chard, sliced tomato and balsamic glaze.
2) My daughter is high energy and likes to be busy, my son and husband are more of the lounge at home types so I figured she may go a little stir crazy at home with them while I went to the basketball game. We live a half mile from the beach so I walked while she rode her to bike to the beach, then she had about an hour of beach playtime before we rode home. A fun, free outing and then she was ready for a relaxing evening at home.
3) Trying out a new recipe tonight for a plant based ragu. It has red lentils in it (which usually melt/dissolve into sauces) and diced mushrooms to give it a chunkier texture. The kids will use Parmesan on it though, which generally makes them agreeable to eating any type of pasta.
4) Looking forward to a low key vacation next week. We rented a little cabin by a lake, and there is also a swimming pool, so looking forward to using a little raft in the lake and playing in the sand and also swimming in the pool. We’ll bring all our own food since there is a full kitchen, luckily I enjoy cooking so I don’t mind doing it on vacation too, although I will plan for easier meals.
5) I love Spindrift sparkling water but it’s also more expensive than most sparkling water so I limit how often I drink it and only buy it when it’s on sale at Costco. It’s on sale now so I bought a box yesterday.
Day One of the blistering Midwest heat wave. I had to venture out to mail an eBay package, so I decided to make the most of it and also went to Dollar Tree, Goodwill, the library, Sam's gas station, the car wash, and Walgreens. All before noon when I turned over my car to my grandson.
At Goodwill I spent $8 for: A bag of marbles. A bag of tiny jam jars. A fashion doll that I bought for the dress, which I'll put on the Monster High doll I want to sell. (I'll donate the doll whose clothes I'm swiping after I clean her up a bit.) Two new pairs of socks with wintery themes (but I'll wear year-round). A large gift bag for any occasion. A new package of tissue paper. A British collectible tin mimicking a bus.
At Dollar Tree I bought cookies (so glad I learned about them here!)
Sam's offered gas for $3.83, which is really good around here.
The car wash was $5 for the basic wash.
Walgreens was a bust. I was looking for clear packing tape. Dollar Tree didn't have it either. The tape I'm using is old and brittle and comes off the roll in little pieces. I've had enough. I want a roll that works. Not sure where I'll get it as all the office supply stores have closed. May have to go to Walmart after the heat wave passes.
I buy packing tape at the Post Office.
Actually, I tried that, too. They had packing supplies but no tape. It was a small branch, though. I'll bet the main post office has it!
I’ve bought packing tape at Ace Hardware, Home Depot and the UPS store.
Thanks, hadn't thought of those places!
Or the truck rental places that sell moving boxes, like U-Haul.
A good tape dispenser is worth the investment!
I agree, a tape dispenser is a wonder, particularly after years of the roll-only method!!! I ended up with one when my company closed - it is well loved, for sure, and borrowed (with dire warnings that it better be returned) by my kids when they are moving.
Both of my "kids" (19 & 20) enjoy the Chipotle kids meals & they come with a ton of food.
1) Hosted a college student in our spare bedroom & fed him today, while he is between places for a few nights. Similarly, fed another one of DS19's friends dinner while he is in town for a new job. The bay area is extremely pricey, and we are happy to help. It's fun to have another person at the table, who appreciates a home cooked meal.
2) Got back to work today after a glorious vacation. I felt pretty heroic getting up & getting things done. I'm in the home stretch at work (giving notice soon), and found it really hard to return to work, as everyone does after time off. But, money earned & all of that.
3) Despite the jet lag yesterday, cleaned the house, did laundry, unpacked & got back into the swing of life. Also prepped meals & a menu for the week ahead. Which is good, as this week of re-entry will be a struggle.
4) Took care of some book keeping for my special need's aunt, and got all of her bills paid on time & negotiated a few small tweaks to her insurance coverage.
5) Gave out ideas for free walkable activities for the college student staying with us. They included sitting by the pool in the shade with a book, and walking to the nature preserve near us.
I look forward to hearing more about Chipotle. I went there recently for the first time in over a decade and thought the food was delicious and a good value. A bowl with plant-based sofritas and all sorts of other yummy ingredients came to $9.20 and fed me three meals.
1. We clean off our griddle with napkins saved from restaurant and takeout meals. I have a whole stack that come in handy for this and other greasy cleanups. Then they go in the compost bin. It's been decades since we've bought paper towels.
2. Used a rolling pin to crush a sleeve of stale saltine crackers. Added them to melted butter and used them as a topping in place of breadcrumbs. I also enjoyed a spoonful or three for taste-testing purposes.
3. Received three acrylic drawer organizers from my friend's mom's estate. They still had the original price stickers on - $20 each! They fit our bathroom vanity drawer perfectly.
4. Went out to lunch with the friend mentioned above. I paid since she drove me to errands, brought me several restaurant and homemade meals during my recuperation, and gave me many things from her mom's estate. It felt good to be the giver this time as I've been the recipient of so much goodness from so many people over the last two+ months.
5. Received a Sudoku book and spiral notebooks from Buy Nothing. The Sudoku book has 1,000 puzzles. I normally do one per day so this just may last my lifetime.
Learned a lesson the hard way.
Wanted a raised flower/garden bed. Couldn't find one cheap/free. Bought 1 at Ollie's for a reasonable price. Got it home and went assemble it according to the directions (which were all in pictures). The one part wasn't shown in any pictures, something to do with the legs. Got it together as best as I could, filled with dirt and planted bell peppers.
The legs broke off....Grrrrrr. At least the box was in tact. We have some cinder blocks laying around and my husband made 2 stacks of 3 cinder blocks, and we set the box on that. Works great. From now on, I am going to look for storage totes (don't need a lid) and aren't super deep, drill drainage holes in the bottom and set them on cinder blocks for more raised beds. Trying our hand at gardening.
First tomato plant I bought was a dud. Bought a second plant and have it in one of those grow bags where it grows hanging upside down. The second plant took off and tonight I see I have 4 little tomatoes on the plant! We'll see how this progresses. I'd like to have a BLT with my own "T".
Thanks for the book recommendation! Also, fun to be a fly on the wall for your after-party haul!
Hubby and I get the kids meals from Chipotle when we have gift cards. I get a milk with mine and throw it in the freezer. I pull it out when we have company over and need regular milk for coffees.
1.My neighbors took me out to dinner last night since Hubby is still away for work. I offered to leave the tip but they wouldn't let me. I did drive us since they are older.
2. I took home my leftovers and my neighbor offered me her fries so they came home too. The fries went into the freezer. I took my leftovers as my lunch today.
3. I picked a ton of lettuce today since it is getting very hot and most of it is going to bolt if I don't. I always leave 1 plant to go to seed. I have baby lettuce started already. I picked a bunch of peas too.
4. I drink water all day. I bring it with me in a reusable bottle wherever I go. Good thing I like it because soda is so expensive.
Everybody that has the heat dome approaching, be careful. It's getting really hot. I know we all talk about being frugal but turn your AC on or go somewhere with it. It's not worth getting sick over. Stay hydrated too.