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I sold my thrifted $3.59 chair for $40 through Facebook Marketplace. Mine was a cheap knockoff of the classic Eames design, but I’ve learned time and again that Portlanders love faux midcentury furniture. It took a week to sell, but it’s okay to wait for the right buyer.
The real deal:
My knockoff:
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We had our daughter over for dinner last night and munched on rice and bean tostadas while watching the second season of Picard through my niece’s Paramount Plus subscription. (A perfect meal to complement my free avocado and tomatoes!) I’d stashed up a box of gluten-free Oreos a couple weeks ago, which became a nice treat for her.
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My husband and I are planning on buying an used Prius for our daughter and visited a used car lot that specializes in them. It would be easy to get drawn into an impulsive purchase, so we refused the offer of a test drive as I didn’t want to bond with any specific vehicle. I compared it to “Going to the humane society to ‘just look’ at kittens.”
Plus the dealership’s prices were much higher than buying from a private seller and there’s no reason to rush the process.
Dealer price, $7,500 for a 2007 Prius:
Marketplace prices:
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I went to H Mart to pick up gluten-free soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, coconut milk and spring roll wrappers. I came home with . . . gluten-free soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, coconut milk and spring roll wrappers. Avoiding impulse purchases is a huge money saver and especially difficult in store like H Mart that feature endless fun snacks, drinks and sweet treats. It helped that I had neither of my kids (nor husband) with me.
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I’m not so disliked that people would refuse to meet with me.
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Boy, howdy, but that dealership must think 2007 Priuses are extra-special at that price.
We are a one-car family this week, as DS’s car is in the shop and he’s driving his dad’s. So I am spending a lot of time at home doing very frugal things like tending to all my transplanted herbs and repotted ornamental plants, cleaning the house, rack drying laundry on the patio, and enjoying a music CD from Goodwill. The CD did not scan because the label was wrinkled, so the casher said, “I’m giving you a discount” and scanned a tag that was 25 cents less. Sweet!
I also found a dime in the washer, so I came into money. 😀
$7500 for an 18 year old car??? YEESH. I am a hardcore Toyota loyalist (I think they are much better than Hondas), but I’m actually shocked by that. I am thinking of maybe getting rid of my workhorse Camry in favor of a 4Runner in the next year or so For various reasons (including being able to drive to secret beaches without paved road access, but also pets and ease in taking trash to the dump) a 4×4 SUV would be a reasonable purchase. New, they seem to be about $5oK, which is a lot and I would get used, but they’re not 18 years old!
I miss shopping at H Mart. It’s so fun but way too far away.
I, too, am a die-hard Toyota fan. I currently, however, have a few too many ponies in my stable. The piss-off-95-year-old-mom saga that had her (by choice) giving up her license and therefor car, but somehow that ended up making my dear daughter the ‘bad guy’ and mom becoming unreasonably and unusually resentful (there is more to this but you get the picture)… essentially meant that my Daughter now owns my mom’s Toyota Corolla (with AIR CONDITIONING!) and she returned my Toyota Echo to me. I already have a Toyota Matrix, which is my town car. And a Toyota Truck, which is my farm and long trip vehicle. The echo is excess to needs, has very little sales value but is a sturdy little vehicle that has had only two owners and regular maintenance. So what to do? I’m asking #1 son if they want me to keep it insured for the summer as that family is down to one car. And #2 son is driving a matrix that has 400,000K on it and is starting to lose oil, so maybe he is going to want to do some car switching. I’m not quite sure what to do, but that is partially because I have a feeling that little Echo is going to be needed by someone in my family/friends community sooner rather than later.
Huh. People wanna be up in my house ALL THE TIME!
1) The chilly, rainy spring weather returned! So back to reading while listening to the rain for me!
2) Will be doing more cleaning and decluttering- am getting ready to redo my closet, and there are things in there that need to go! In addition, I have wanted better shelving in there for YEARS now, and since I have this new remote position for a couple of months, I now have the time back from commuting!
3) Found my sprout seeds and salad/herb seeds- so will be planting this weekend.
4) Am still exercising with walking to get my physical strength back after pneumonia.
5) Finally, will put a pot of Hungarian Mushroom Soup using mushrooms at the back of the fridge! Remember, we have food at home!
Aside from a trip to the gym (free membership) I have been working at home. I spent a couple of pleasant days setting out my Easter decorations. After Easter I will put away the bunnies, chicks, and colored eggs. My spring arrangements can stay out until Memorial Day when I will set for summer with a patriotic theme. As I’ve mentioned before, I love to recognize the change of seasons with a new look in my decor. Right now I have blooming branches, fresh daffodils, and a few tulips to enjoy, along with my Easter baskets, bunnies and chicks. Staying out of stores, using decor I already have, and adding things from my own garden saves time and money. It is also entertaining and so satisfying.
Make sure and find out the ages of the batteries. Replacements are expensive. My son’s leaf got terrible range when new and worse when it needed a new battery. The price of the battery was more than the car was worth. He ended up selling to car max in Beaverton for $1000. And felt it was the best pride he could get. They will put in a new battery. They will have too as the range was down to about 32 miles per charge. New it only got about a hundred if he didn’t run air, heat or the radio.
In a couple years, my husband expects to trade in his truck for another used one. Readers here or over on The Frugal Girl recently got me thinking about having just one car, so I have gently brought up that concept to my husband as he needs a lot of time to think about changes. He will be retired by then and will no longer need a truck for his work. My trusty Subaru (may it live forever) will be enough for our needs. Besides, the money for purchasing a second vehicle, upkeep, insurance, plates/tabs, etc. is shocking. Saving money appeals to my husband so I’ve got my fingers crossed.
If you are in a community large enough to have taxis, uber, mass transit, seniors buses, even good car rentals, whatever, you might point those out if you see them now. Paying a few dollars a month for one of those when you need two vehicles is quite different from having the total costs of a second vehicle. (or good friends and relatives to give you rides or share with).
My husband just likes the idea of having a truck. That is hard for him to overcome.
Husbands do just like trucks, right? Haha. We use ours for hauling furniture and camping. But I remind him that we fit the chest freezer in my Subaru Crosstrek, and I’ve seen Katy and Kristen do impressive hauls with minivans!
So funny about the men and their trucks! Growing up in TX, I know this to be true, and my husband (a native Californian) also went through a “I want a truck period”. He had one but determined it was a gas guzzler and unnecessary and now drives an electric Kia! (This took many years of “pebble dropping”).
Something we noticed during our trip to England and Scotland last week was the lack of trucks. Yes, there are lorries (delivery trucks), but we never saw one pickup truck. We determined that the Brits are much more energy efficient in general, and perhaps this is a reason why trucks are outliers. Also, everything is so much smaller, so the giant truck phenomenon would seem to go against that.
Lindsey: the reason for lack of pickups is gas/diesel prices. In my travels I have noted that the cheaper the gas/diesel, the bigger the cars/trucks. There are big expensive Land/Range Rovers in the UK, but they’re status symbols. In Syria (which admittedly I visited a while ago) rich Bedouins are crazy about American pickups.
I lived in London in 1978-1979 and the culture shock of HUGE Americans cars when we returned is still a strong memory.
F the trucks – give me a late 60s/very early 70s big block V-8 muscle car. None of them were recalled because cosmetic “parts” flew off.
The amount of huge stuff I have hauled in my Sienna minivan is impressive….like, kayaks! A full size sofa!
During a previous rendition of my Toyota ownership journey I also had a beloved Sienna minivan – the seat removal options in vans make them so flexible. I sold it to a friend in a funny 3 way vehicle exchange – she wanted a Sienna van, I bought a new truck but realized I needed a car to teach the kids so she sold me HER Toyota echo (5 speed standard). Excellent choices all the way around.
Yes, my husband prefers driving a truck vs. a car. And prefers a black truck over my orange Crosstrek! Although he admits that it’s very easy to find in a parking lot. In our initial discussion, I mentioned my flexible schedule and the availability of other options for a ride as positives.
MB that’s so funny about your orange Crosstrek. When I bought mine in 2018, the only colour available on the lot at the time was the orange colour.I couldn’t see myself in that, so I ordered the “cool grey kaki” which is not kaki at all, but a light blue. I did have to wait a few months, and now I find when I park in a lot, I’m often heading towards someone else’s as the colour of mine seems to be very popular and I see them everywhere.
I started looking at the Toyota 4Runner site. I amused my son by mentioning the TRD Off-Road i-FORCE MAX. “I bet women aren’t even allowed to drive that car! Too much power for a lady!” Heh. Then again, I chose one trimline because it came in the nice Evergreen color, so I guess I am a chick after all.
I always had black cars, but just for the hell of it bought my Camry in read. I think I’m shedding the desire for plain black cars.
Our used Ford Maverick is a blue-green-gray called “Area 51”. Someone was having fun when they named that.
First a non-frugal related note: my friend returned from England yesterday and said she saw a number of young people wearing red baseball caps that said, “Make America Go Away.” I am again glad my parents, who barely survived WWII and saw the U.S. as a beacon of light, are dead so not horrified by what has happened to us.
1. Found a gift card to a gas station, lying on the ground at the grocery store. Cleaned it up and found it had 9 cents left on it. I used it up with my next gas fill up. Younger me from years ago would have decided it was too small an mount to bother with.
2. Bought a bag of lemons home, only to find two of them rotten. Called the store and when they suggested I return them, I explained that the time and gas involved would cost more than the bag of lemons. Her boss told her it was okay for me to take down their names and bring in the receipt for another bag of lemons.
3. Sumos have been running $6.99 a pound so I have been eating fewer of them. This week the sale price is $2.67 and I went hog wild and bought $30 worth. Frugal was holding out for the sale price.
4. Started using another reader’s brilliant suggestion to use a huge bottle of awful smelling shampoo as a toilet bowl cleaner and it works really well!
5. Library, library, library.
I would love ideas for uses for hair conditioner with a scent so potent that it triggers a migraine. Any thoughts?!?
I have no idea but would love to hear from someone who does. The awful quart of shampoo has a quart of equally foul-smelling conditioner that is languishing in the shower waiting to be used. I don’t want to just discard it.
The only use aside from hygiene I have ever heard for conditioner is to restore shrunken wool sweaters by relaxing the fiber. You may have to just offer that whiffy conditioner up to the neighborhood and see what happens.
Sounds like it’s impossible for you to use that conditioner in any way. I’d consider contacting customer service to see if they can give you a refund in the case of such a serious response (medical reaction) or donating to resale places or a shelter.
conditioner can be used instead of soap to lather your legs before you shave (or to lather anything else you shave…) but this probably doesn’t help as you would still have the smell of it on your body…
Use it in the washer to replace the softener.
Lindsey,
Thanks for posting about Sumos before. I would have walked right past them and baulked at the price. I bit the bullet (after your comment) and tried them.
My family is hooked! and I’m sad to see the “Sumo” season coming to an end.
(I pack lunch & snacks for 5 each day so needless to say the bag doesn’t last long!) And I can only find them at Wegman’s and Target in my area, but they both have had $1 digital coupons, so that helps. I’m starting to boycott Target but ours has excellent produce and one’s got to eat. Thanks again for mentioning them!
I swear, I am not employed by the Sumo folks, despite how often I mention them. I think it is not just the taste but the fact that so very few fruit make it to northern Alaska still tasting fresh, but Sumos do.
Katy – the MCM popularity keeps going! I had no real knowledge of the Eames mid-century designs until I met and became friends with their granddaughter via our local arts center. I was lucky enough to visit her property here in Northern California, which displays many, many Eames pieces. It was like visiting a museum – but one where regular people live! She is a great human, and because of her, I’ve learned a great deal about the Eames’ and their work.
My favorite of theirs is the house bird. I’m an Arts & Crafts/Nouveau nerd but I think I can appreciate really good design from every period.
(Why is it that so few people can make a name plural these days? Eames is their name; Eamses is them as a couple.)
So you’re saying the spelling changes when it’s plural?
You said Eames is the name, singular. But then you move the S to before the E and add an “es”. That doesn’t seem right.
I’d spell the plural “Eameses,” myself.
Wow, that’s so cool!
1) My year of 1.00 a week NY Times subscription was up and converted to almost 25.00 a week! I canceled but as soon as it did, they offered another year at the 1.00 rate. Totally worth it to me. It is my main source of news plus the puzzles are my evening wind down. I was charged the 25.00 rate since I didn’t cancel in time but when I called they agreed to use it to pay the 1st half year. 2) I gathered enought wool sweaters at the thrift store to unravel and make another blanket. It takes awhile to find enough garments that match but I’m always on the lookout. I sell then in my shop snd people gravitate to the recycle feature. 3) I canceled 3 subscriptions. I used them but definitely didn’t need them. 4) It may seem counterintuitive but I save money ordering groceries. I don’t have a car (1st of many frugal saves when I moved to a city!) and I find ordering twice a month means I may not find all the deals but overall spend less on impulse buys and use everything in the house. Of course it’s only possible because my kids are all grown and out of the house. So when I run out of something I just do without until the next shop. Makes me eat healthier too.
Bsrbara, I’ve done the NYT subscription trick in your #1 once already and intend to keep doing it as long as it works. Pass the word. 🙂
And please pardon the typo in your name!
I too am a discount NYT person, I don’t actually use it a lot but the discount makes it worth while. Our big Canadian paper wasn’t offering a deal so I currently dont’ get it (but I think I saw something on Instagram so might look it up). I’m a news junky and particularly now. I do spend quite a few bucks supporting The Guardian, however some of that is due to my commitment to supporting journalism that isn’t owned by Right wing corporations. I also spend a small bit of my retirement funds on some tiny local online papers that have great LOCAL journalism (not stories, real deep reporting)
Ecoteri, you’re quite right about The Guardian, and I’ll send it a donation soon.
I would love to see your blankets!
1. Finished reading “Too Much And Not Enough” by Dr. Mary Trump, a book which I obtained at either a thrift store or Little Free Library. The biography and psychological/family history explains a great many things about you-know-who…and is even more unsettling than reading the news about him….and I hope it wins the Pulitzer Prize. Even though I’m frugal, I wish I’d paid full price for the book so Dr. Mary could earn back, via royalties, the zillions of dollars her grandpa, (in)famous uncle and the rest of the Trump family scammed her and her brother out of. Unbelievable!
2. Called a roofer to give me an estimate due to the recent strong winds blowing shingles off my 15+ year old asphalt roof. I am NOT looking forward to this at all, but know that it’s probably necessary. This guy was recommended by the dog rescue lady, he’s her relative, and sounds very nice and well-educated. Not a fly- by-night type, he even offered to come patch the roof if I had a leak from today’s rain.
3. Cancelled my doctor’s appointment when they changed their mind and said they won’t accept my Medicare bc it’s not 365 days since the last annual, even though they earlier said it’s OK due to my switching Medicare Advantage providers. I am so tired of their BS. Another hospital system is my MA provider this time and I can get care from them.
4. Before calling a repairman, I went out to see why the garage door failed to close this morning. Turns out a bit of water hose was in front of the infrared sensor and that made it go back up. It’s fixed now!
5. Did not try to buy Greenland when it’s not for sale.
What a coincidence, I also didn’t buy Greenland!
The folks in Greenland and Denmark — and Panama — must think Americans are the absolute worst and can’t take “no” for an answer. I’m so embarrassed!
I really loved Mary Trump’s book. It does explain much. The acorn didn’t fall far from the tree for sure.
1. My husband lost a bid on a trailer. He’s looking for a trailer for work, but decided on a price as the highest he’d go and he was outbid. Hoping for a better deal.
2. We have guests, but haven’t cooked all their meals at home (except going for ice-cream for dessert one night).
3. For a free fun activity with our guests, we took a picnic to a pretty park.
4. For more free fun, we played some games.
I’m excited for picnic weather!
Back to the saga of the hoodie in the park…. After washing it, I returned it to the spot where I found it. This morning it was still there, still folded up the way I left it. But wet again, because it stormed early this morning. I don’t think the owner will be reclaiming it. I took it back and will wash it again, but this time I will give it to Goodwill. Or, if it fits, I will wear it, but I don’t think it will fit.
Other frugalities:
1. Ran out of creamer, so I had my coffee black this morning. Not grocery shopping until April 1.
2. Skipped my morning shower due to time constraints, but ye olde sponge bath worked just fine.
3. Scouted out (on my phone) the cheapest place to buy photo boxes — Hobby Lobby. However, I might go with Michael’s, which is almost as cheap, and closer. (I don’t have a car.)
4. Dropped my jar of leave-in conditioner, and lost some product, but successfully rescued most of it!
5. I didn’t find a dog sled race, hoping to steal the whole country.
Oh well, you did the right thing! Too bad it doesn’t fit.
My friend used to work at Hobby Lobby. They treat their employees like crap. She no longer works there and tells me to pleeeeeze shop at Michael’s. Oh, and Mardel’s (supposedly Christian) store is also owned by the Hobby Lobby folks.
1. My son brought home a container of garlic cheese dip from his pizza place job, and I made a batch of fresh breadsticks to go with it.
2. Walked up to Dairy Queen to redeem a coupon for one free Dilly Bar. I am always taken aback by how expensive it is there, but there’s always a line of people.
3. My health insurance offered free access to the Hinge app. I signed up because they offered a free Theragun, but I love the daily guided stretching exercises.
4. I bought a set of Pyrex nested bowls from a yard sale for $20 to resell, but didn’t want to ship them. Sold them on Marketplace yesterday for $100 with pickup.
5. Did some tax work on the side for a client and just submitted a bill for $750.
Playing catch-up on a Saturday. It’s been raining all week so I haven’t been out spending money nor even inside shopping digitally.
1. We always enjoy the opening night of baseball season with a baseball dinner: hotdogs, nachos, beer and soda, ice cream bars, popcorn, and peanuts. We had all of these things except the ice cream bars, and I just picked them up on sale. It’s a lot cheaper than going to the ball game and it is a family tradition: even though it was just Mr. husband and myself, all of our daughters texted us photos of themselves in Oakland A’s jerseys.
2. We got delivered this cheesy little smart shopper guide for local businesses and I almost put it right in the recycling bin. But it occurred to me. There might be some coupons inside and what a treasure trove! 10% or five dollars off at virtually every restaurant in town, as well as the nurseries, our Dry Cleaner, And Even, our Ben Franklin craft store. I have a pile of coupons to use locally and will be happy to do so.
3. We’ve been having rain alternating with sunny days, so I’m using the solar heat on my laundry when I can.
4. We took advantage of the free AARP tax preparation locally, got an appointment and I got all our papers together. We went in for our appointment, but it turned out. We had one document (schedule K) that made us in eligible. So we still have to find someone to help, but I might try Doing it myself. I’m a little stuck on this one.
4. I finally bought one of those Costco chickens after hearing about them for years. I was surprised how large it was for less than five dollars. I only bought ingredients and condiments except for the taco tray which I misread the price on. I thought it was five dollars, but it was five dollars a pound. My bad.
5. I continue to play the New York Times games for free. I had a subscription when I was undergoing chemo but since it ran out, I just play the free games.
Bonus: Nobody hates me so much that they are setting fire to my possessions and holding rallies in front of my house. I count that as a win.
I’ve almost fallen prey to that taco tray as well. The packaging must be confusing.
FMFT, Post-Jury-Duty Edition:
(1) As noted in an earlier comment, I managed to talk my way out of jury duty on Thursday. I respectfully acknowledge those who have noted that jury duty is a responsibility for all citizens. But (a) the case before us was a medical malpractice suit in which, IMHO, the elderly African American plaintiff had gone to an ambulance-chasing lawyer as her last hope; (b) I would probably have been a completely obnoxious juror, since I know a little too much about both law and medicine; and (c) I do NOT want to be cooped up in a courtroom for the first two weeks of April (estimated time) as my rib heals and spring comes on. I regret nothing.
(2) I took a lunch to the courthouse in hopes that I could eat it, and it turned out that the courthouse is OK with bringing food in a bag; you just can’t eat it in there. So I took my lunch out into the courthouse square and enjoyed my PBJ, apple, and Gatorade under a brilliantly blue (if somewhat chilly) sky. Most of my fellow prospective jurors went out in search of food in cafes near the courthouse, and most of them came back grumbling about lack of either availability or quality.
(3) And speaking of spring coming on, I’m planning to get out and do a little gentle raking as soon as the current rain lets up. Also, I’ve contacted my eventual executor to see whether his #2 son (who’s on spring break this coming week) might be interested in giving me a hand. His #1 son did an excellent job a few weeks ago.
(4) I was very glad to be able to chow down for dinner Thursday on the remaining chicken in a chicken, spinach, and mushroom dish I put together on Tuesday. And there was still a lot of delicious goop left, so I sauteed some boneless pork rib chunks and an onion, and added those to the goop. Nom nom nom.
(5) Finally, I’m about to start some herb seeds under lights. Hope springs eternal for those of us who are gardeners.
It sounds to me that you didn’t shirk your jury duty whatsoever, as you actually went to the courthouse. Many don’t. You were very smart to pack a lunch!
You are such loving parents. Hope a well priced Pruis is found.
Aww, thank you!
Hang onto the ECHO. I have a feeling that after April 2nd (tariffs) it’s value will start increasing.
I’ve been on a getting rid of stuff kick lately and I feel renewed. Recycled two old computers along with a printer, monitor and the desk and chair they were on. The room feels new. Posted some lawn equipment on CL and had some hits.
Freeze dried some ginger for a friend at work and she gave me two quarts of yogurt. No terms were discussed just did it. Started 300 onion sets with my 8yo without him complaining about Minecraft withdrawal, priceless.
Love getting rid of unnecessary stuff, it’s so cathartic!
Wow! 300 onion sets! Sounds fabulous!