Five More Frugal Things
by Katy on March 21, 2025 · 75 comments
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We hosted another family dinner, which culminated in a rousing game of Scrabble. (Thrifted of course!) The frozen enchiladas from last week anchored the meal and we assembled a big green salad to round things out. I’m really trying to spend as little money as possible this month, which makes me a slightly unfun hostess, but this is the third time that I’ve hosted out of town guests this year and it gets pricey.
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I took a four day break from my daughter’s driving lessons, due to the aforementioned flat tire and hostess duties. However, we put it back on the schedule for today, but I was worried that my daughter might’ve taken a step backwards during the hiatus, she actually drove better than ever! She’s gone from zero driving experience to driving on busy streets in just two weeks. I’m incredibly proud of her, plus proud of myself for serving as her driving teacher. It apparently costs between $50 and $200 per hour for one-on-one instruction in the Portland area!
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I donated a big load of books to Goodwill, a few of which were from my recently reorganized shelves, but were mostly from our little free library. This may sound mercenary on my part, but there’s someone in my neighborhood who must work (have worked?) for a defunct small publisher, because she crams every single library full of the rejects from her company. This means that we’re not able to put books into our own library. Her books sit stagnant, so Goodwill it was!
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My fridge is crammed full at the moment, which puts us at risk for food waste as things get forgotten or pushed to the back. However, I’m happy to report that today I ate the last serving of lentil soup, the remaining bits of some cottage cheese and then used up a jar of homemade salad dressing. Plus I got both kids to take big servings of leftover enchiladas home with them. I call all of this a win!
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My kids love me and don’t give interviews where they refer to me as a “Pathetic man-child.”
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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I am so impressed that you are teaching your daughter to drive and that the two of you have not come to blows. Although I took Driver’s Ed in school, they wanted us kids to practice and my dad was my out-of-school driving instructor. It did not go well. Still, I made it through Driver’s Ed at my school without incident. My friend Susie, also in Driver’s Ed, ran over a skunk; it wasn’t all her fault, per se, as they put her in a sedan so big she could barely see over the steering wheel or dashboard. (She was “vertically challenged,” the politically correct term for being real, real short.) Everyone in her Driver’s Ed car got the afternoon off that day! Later, it took her numerous tries at the Dept. of Public Safety to pass her driving test with the officer, but she finally did. And she drove a compact car from then on.
1. Thrifted two flimsy oscillating sprinklers for $1 each to replace the plastic ring sprinkler that sprung a hole. They’re made in China so they probably won’t last the whole season; that’s why I bought two, so when one breaks I’ll have one to fall back on. Even at that, this is a temporary solution: My strategy is to make do until all the yard stuff goes on sale late next fall, and then I’ll get a sturdier made-in-USA sprinkler. Boy, do I miss the ring sprinklers Mom and Grandma had. They were made of brass and lasted for decades. (Yes, it’s already getting dry here in Texas, so much so that burn bans [no outdoor burning due to wildfire risk] have been issued, and we have to water the lawn, plants and trees.)
2. Shopped at my darling little community grocery store, the one that was started by a Christian mission. Want to support it. But I got home and it was on the news that this store is having to close at the end of this month. Per one news story, it can’t compete with home food delivery services now offered by the very corporations we want to boycott. The news also interviewed people in the store’s (low-income) neighborhood, who said they’re up a creek without being able to walk to this store and buy their food.
3. Booked more substitute teacher dates: I am working almost every day in April.
4. Using my fallen live oak leaves to half-fill the large outdoor planters. I will fill the rest with potting soil and transplant the aloe vera and spider plants. Also pulled a couple of very nice thrifted wrought iron hanging baskets out of the garage for the latter planting.
5. Went to Goodwill and got some doggie supplies: a large mixing bowl for my new dog’s water dish, giant floor pillows for his bedding. (I gave away these items when my other dog died.) Used my 20% off coupon. I’m adapting “people” items for dog equipment. They used to have new dog beds and leashes for sale, but not anymore. I will use my old dog’s leashes, food dishes, toys, and other stuff I didn’t give away, as well. The rescue lady will give me some of his items including his crate. I went to a hardware place to buy a collar and other supplies, but walked out when I saw pro-Trump items for sale. Scratch that store off my list!
I use a very calm voice when teaching my kids to drive — it’s one they’ll never hear outside of this specific situation. Not that I’m a screamer in my regular life, but I do speak at a normal tone with lots of modulation.
I have an ancient oscillating sprinkler that we use maybe once every three years, now I know to hold onto it!
Really,, the old Sunbeam sprinklers, the ones that had two arms that revolved, are the absolute best. They were made in the USA and the bases are heavy metal. But they spray a mist, which is considered a water-wasting thing. So they’re not made anymore. People love those sprinklers so much that they’ll steal ’em out of your yard if your not careful. Mine are ancient and don’t work very well any more, but I hope to some day get some newer ones. I’ve bought ’em off ebay for a not-very-frugal amount of money. And the ones I bought didn’t work very well. The other ones were inherited from Mom and Granny.
My mother taught me to drive, because she couldn’t wait to get out of chauffeuring me everywhere. (Youngest of 4 children here — she’d had enough of … well… just about everything.) She even let me drive her cool little gold Cougar to school!
My dad taught me to drive the summer I was 16, which didn’t go well, as he was blind drunk the whole time. I am still not a very confident driver, and I barely passed parallel parking on my TN driver’s test and probably couldn’t do it today. My advice would be to farm out the driving instruction unless all family members involved are on good terms, as Katy’s apparently are.
Wow, that’s a trial by fire! Luckily Oregon doesn’t have parallel parking on the practical driving test, although I’ll still teach it.
You’d love the learner driver rules here in Australia! You need to have 200 hours of supervised driving instruction (can be a family member who will fill in your log book) then you do a practical driving test (which includes parallel parking) to get your red provisional permit. After 12 months you then go on to your green P license for another 2 years until you get your full license. It’s potentially a very expensive exercise! I was lucky that it was only 50 hours when I got mine and I had an excellent instructor who signed me off after 12 hours of paid lessons.
I honestly don’t remember being taught how to drive, however I do remember being resistant to it. I had been a cyclist (well, lots of riding my bike to school and home and elsewhere) for 10+ years by that point, and I knew that I daydreamed when biking. I was concerned that I would daydream when driving and that it would cause me to hit something.
As I am sure you ALL know, daydreaming while driving is as common as breathing while driving.
My mom was my first instructor, I learned to drive in a Volkswagen camper van – and I still prefer a higher-up vehicle. We only needed an. learners license for 6 weeks, if I remember correctly. And there were far fewer cars on the road 48 years ago!
I taught my younger two to drive but paid for one-on-one lessons before they got their N (New driver) licenses – and those three sessions each were gold, as the instructor was absolutely fabulous. My Daughter was her last client and drove for her N on the first day she could get her license – her brother realized she was going to get hers first if he didn’t hustle, so that was how I managed to get him to finally take action and the test.
It is a huge joy to me, now, to drive with any of my kids- they do the driving if I am lucky, and being a passenger after years of steering the boat is one of my greatest pleasures. The things you can see and keep looking at are legion!
Happy to hear your daughter didn’t miss a beat with her driving progress. And that’s quite a savings on the driving lessons.
1. I found a nickel and a penny on the ground.
2. DH is observing Lent so no meat on Fridays. We’ll have peanut butter sandwiches for lunch and grilled cheese on sourdough bread bought on sale for supper. No meat=savings and I don’t eat much meat anyway so I won’t miss it.
3. Still observing No Spend March and avoiding buying anything besides food (although we’re eating down the freezer and cabinets so I haven’t shopped since late February except for milk and bread) and our medications.
4. One thing Covid taught me was to enjoy my own company. This lead to an increased enjoyment of my own home. Saving gas for the car is not only good for my wallet but good for the environment. It’s a win/win.
5. Although people torching Teslas should be brought to justice and answer for their crimes and sentenced according to our LAWS, unlike Pam Bondi, our country’s attorney general, I did not call for their execution.
RE #5 WHAT?!
I like my home, spend a lot of money to own and have put countless hours into maintaining and decorating it. No reason to feel bad for hunkering down.
Thanks. That’s a good way of looking at being a homebody. Money spent on our homes is even more reason to enjoy them.
I’m getting to the point that after being a politics junkie since I was ten years old*, I just can’t stand the news any more. I feel like I should be in the know, but it’s simply too depressing.
*My teacher had a closet with books kids could borrow. For some reason there was a copy of All the President’s Men in there, so the teacher suggested I borrow it for my parents. Well! I said, “Oh, I’ll read it and I did.” Later I met Bob Woodward and told him this story which he found amusing.
Same fascination with politics since I was a kid too. But like you, I find the news hitting me every morning more like something out of a horror movie. Just when I think I’ve heard it all, something else comes along done by one of the Three Stooges (Trump, Vance and Musk).
#5 – the destruction of property, including defecation, as well as injury and deaths during January 6th were treason and should have been tried (and sentenced as such).
Free speech is free speech – some of you may remember the website of the providers of reproductive services misnamed Nuremberg Files. Listing the names and addresses of doctors was “okay” yet listing the owners of “Teslers” is not.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/website-mapped-tesla-owners-personal-231309829.html
I did get a good chuckle when Peon the genius could not figure out how a mere average person could track planes.
Resist, survive, thrive.
That is a well-stocked fridge!
A friend took me to lunch yesterday, and while it was great to have his company, and nice to be out among people, it also reminded me that most meals out aren’t any better, and often not as good, as what I can easily make myself. Which reinforced my normal contentment with eating at home.
Still not spending on anything but food, and not too much of that. My pantry and freezer seem endless right now.
This is exactly why I only want restaurant meals that I don’t make at home. Like fish and chips (no deep fat fryer) or foreign cuisines.
You can fry in deep fat at home, in a saucepan. You just need lotsa fat. That said, you should get a funnel strainer, so you can strain the oil back into the bottle once it’s cool.
I even know how to make good fish batter even though I hate fish. (I use it for onion rings.)
But it’s all a pain and it’s nice to go out then and again.
We avoid deep frying at home also. I do miss french fries (at home) and deep frying the small potatoes fresh from the garden. However slices of potatoes cooked in a skillet with bacon wrapped chicken is a close second. As are Yukon Gold boiled then “smashed” and baked with olive oil in the oven.
If the day comes and doctor says you can’t eat potatoes (or red meat) else you’ll die, I’ll be saying “it’s been nice knowing you”.
1. A friend asked if I wanted to go to a Thai restaurant for lunch. DH and I had at home lunch plans so I met up with my friend in the afternoon for a chat.
2. I found a pen in the parking lot of a NJTP service area parking lot. Rather than allow it to be run over I brought it home. It works. We simply used the restroom at the service area and then ate our packed lunches in the car.
3. I bought a rotisserie chicken for the first time in years. It made for some meals this week and then I boiled the carcass and made GF chicken noodle soup with the broth and chicken from the bones. I threw in the last of a bag of red lentils to add protein and thicken the soup.
4. We have been cleaning up the yard this week. Free exercise.
5. Our offspring is happy to live in our neighborhood.
I love that you still were able to get together with your friend without paying for a restaurant meal.
I often have had a well-stocked refrigerator, too, but not lately. I have been doing less grocery shopping by trying to rely on my ample pantry and freezer. It’ s working! I am gradually using down the contents in two freezers and also making good use of my pantry.
Yesterday I made a pot of navy beans flavored with bacon. I also add diced carrot, potato, celery, and garlic. Last night I had it over a bowl of salad greens, so good. This morning, I spread it on toast for breakfast for an inexpensive vegetable protein.
Speaking of beans, I had a head of iceberg lettuce to use up and it made a large bowl full of chopped salad. I added tomatoes, chopped onion, sliced black olives, shredded cheese, salsa, and crushed tortilla chips to make a base for Taco Salad. I had leftover chili to top it off and finished with an Italian dressing. I stored the salad mix without the chili or dressing in the refrigerator and was able to enjoy two meals, plus my daughter stopped by after work and after a good visit I asked if she would like to have some leftover Taco Salad with me. She said “Sure” and we both had a large bowl of the salad topped with the last of the chili, dressing, and fresh crushed tortilla chips for crunch. We both agreed that it was delicious, even without any avocado which we would normally enjoy with our Taco Salad.
Went to my monthly book club meeting. I noticed that several of the members had purchased their books from online book sellers. I was able to check the book out at our library. I usually make it a point to look through the list of books to be read each year and then check to make sure that our library has it either in print, digital, or audio before I spend money to buy a copy.
I continue to shop my closet and revisit pieces that haven’t been worn for a while or find a new way of using them. It saves time and money, not to mentions gasoline. It is fun to discover a new outfit that I hadn’t thought about before. Seperates are good blenders, so are solid colors that can act as a backdrop. Try it and see what you come up with.
That salad sounds amazing! I think I need to cook up some black beans for a “taco salad!”
I had to work my way through college as a dorm proctor. One year I got assigned to a dorm where a lot of wealthy girls lived. One gal had her wardrobe fixed by a professional. The dorm had a walk-in closet and she paid extra to not have a roommate. Her closet was a work of art: she had every color of slacks anyone could think of and they were arranged in the order of the rainbow’s hues, one pair of pants per hanger. Then, all her skirts, the same way. Ditto, jackets. Finally, all her silk blouses were similarly stored according to the hue. It was incredible, and you could tell all her garments were from high dollar dept. stores. But the thing I mostly noticed was that, as rich as her parents were, (except for a few dresses and formals) she had only separates which she could then mix and match with other items. To make new combinations and new-to-her outfits. I shop thrift stores and consignment stores, but I’ve had good luck arranging my closet in a similar way to facilitate the mixing and matching of outfits. Lots of times people compliment me on my “new” outfit and it’s really two or more old pieces worn with something different.
I often wonder how aforementioned gal did as an adult on her own. Mommy/daddy/grandparent did her a disservice in my way of thinking.
Maybe she paid for the closet herself. Had a very practical system and wardrobe that probably lasted a long time.
1. Night in was great. Ate pizza and buffalo chicken dip from the freezer and watched the season finale of Severance (anyone else still reeling??). Pizza was leftover from a mistake by the restaurant where they sent us an all-cheese instead of a half-chicken pizza. They had apologized and sent over another whole pizza, exceeding even our pizza-loving stomachs and giving us a nice night in.
2. It’s cold out again – heat stays off, sweatshirts go on
3. Killed another book off Libby last night – Carrie Soto is Back. The first half drags and then I couldn’t put down the second half.
4. Getting every last whiff of fragrance out of a candle with a crap wick with my candle warmer
5. Continuing to stay off Amazon and Target – the quest to debt-free continues and avoiding the major retailers is a big help in reducing my overall consumption
Staying off Amazon and Target appears to have been a nice money saver for so many Americans!
Have you noticed those 2 stores are advertising incredible discounts and sales on the internet lately? Methinks the boycott may be working!!!
Re: the boycotts: Here’s hoping.
1. Maximized fresh ingredients and those going bad ( bananas)
2. Walked back home after dropping my car off- will walk back to pick it up. Getting two walks in and serving purpose.
3. Purged a few more articles of my clothing to donate.
4. About to make brownies for a gathering with ingredients already in hand.
5. Didn’t sell my soul and skipped buying a Tesla
Bananas — forever going from bright green to brown in the blink of an eye!
Eddie Izzard, British comedian:
“Pears can just fuck off too. ‘Cause they’re gorgeous little beasts, but they’re ripe for half an hour, and you’re never there. They’re like a rock or they’re mush. In the supermarket, people banging in nails. “I’ll just put these shelves up, mate, then you can have the pear.” … So you think, “I’ll take them home and they’ll ripen up.” But you put them in the bowl at home, and they sit there, going, “No! No! Don’t ripen yet, don’t ripen yet. Wait til he goes out the room! Ripen! Now now now!”
I love Eddie Izzard and was delighted to get to see him live a few years ago.
I got to see him in a tiny theater a bunch of years ago. Minetta Lane? Cannot remember. Anyway there were about 10 rows of seats in total, plus a bar area in back. My ex doesn’t drink, but I do, so I had bar drinks and he had soda while we shot the shit with Nathan Lane, also a big fan. I think I’ve seen him (now her) three times live? hilarious.
I’ve been slicing my bananas and freezing them for smoothies when they are too ripe to enjoy fresh.
Until a banana has brown spots, I won’t eat it. Truth be told, the browner the better – green makes me gag. Suffice it to say there was never banana waste in our household. I’ve frozen the occasional brown-is-best for future banana bread/muffins.
Katy: what do you mean when you say you are no Rockefeller? I see not one but TWO dozen eggs in your fridge!!
I guess I’m one of those people who they discover was secretly a multi-millionaire upon my demise.
I’m pretty sure I saw two stacks of two dozen eggs. Two cartons on the top shelf, and two cartons on the third shelf. 4 dozen!
Yeah, I’m pretty fancy!
I trash picked 2 black metal barstools with high backs. My husband cut the legs off 3″ to make them counter height. I touched up the scuffs w/ a black sharpie. I will recover the seats with a bright fabric. I better get to JoAnnes before they close forever. Voila! Almost free barstools. I will have to buy some fabric.
I also got 2 pendants lights from Next door Neighbor. They are matte black with frosted glass shades. They are t00 long. but hubby can take some of the pole off to make it the correct length. I only need to supply the light bulbs.
1. I need to do some cooking this weekend to use that vegetables. I’m tired of soup, but I was thinking I could make some kind of casserole. We have a lot in the refrigerator, but I’m grateful to have it.
2. My found change tally is up to $.39.
3. We’re having a girls weekend, three friends and I from high school, at one friend’s house but sleeping here. This saves us the cost of a hotel. We are cooking together. And I have half of a delicious fruit cake from the holidays in my freezer that I’m going to take for our teatime. It’s more like dried currants and almonds, not typical fruit cake.
4. I continue to gather materials for my future chicken coop. This weekend I’m going to pick up some secondhand corrugated tin roofing. $20 a sheet versus 45 at the hardware store.
5. I joined a Facebook group for Barter and trade in my County, and I’m going to teach a woman about me keeping in exchange for her, teaching me how to spin fiber on my spinning wheel. No money spent!
6. I haven’t lit any Teslas on fire, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t want to.
Beekeeping! Not me-keeping. Ha.
I do the same book shuffling with our little library. If I notice the library is very full with stagnant books, donating is a nice way to keep the inventory moving.
Recently, my 14 yo son discovered a free pile with many boxes of brand new books. He was so excited that he ran home to get me and we walked back to choose some for our library. I was delighted that he chose many childhood favorites for the little kids of our neighborhood.
Love the book sharer!
1. Went to the school play last night. We both got in free, as we’re both staff. I was really pleased with the production, even more so since the star was a freshman. We’ll have several more years of his talents.
2. We’re having friends over tonight for a game night. I’m making taco salad again: beans, purple barley that needs eating, mixed potatoes and sweet potatoes, lettuce, sour cream, salsa, mozzarella shreds, chips. It seems pretty boring to me since I seem to make it every time someone comes over for game night, but as it’s weeks in between, they don’t seem tired of it.
3. Brought home freezer burned meat from the food bank for the dogs’ kibble topper. I cut down on their kibble just a little, which I figure saves me money while it’s also reducing food waste.
4. Made dinner before the school play, using leftovers that didn’t get taken at the food bank. Tomato soup with stale bread for thickener (it’s an Italian recipe, it tastes a lot better than it sounds, but the name just doesn’t translate well), and croissants stuffed with brie.
5. Not frugal for me, but helpful for others. When I’m at the food bank, I’ll describe how I’d use up an ingredient. Make grilled cheese sandwiches with Brie and cranberry sauce. Roast butternut squash, and blend it with apples and broth for soup. I find that a lot of people don’t really know what to do with certain ingredients, and they take more of the weird stuff if they have ideas of what to do with it. (We get a bunch of donations, in addition to the commodity bags, so there’s often a couple of out-of-season cans of cranberry sauce or a jar of capers that linger, not doing anyone any good.) I wish there were a way to do this in a more widespread manner, but it’s hard if you don’t know what’s available, and they clients can’t really afford to go get specialty ingredients.
Ways to use up the weird food pantry items would make a killer ‘zine topic. That’s really cool that you do that for people utilizing the FP. Back when I lived in KY, I used to volunteer for Food not Bombs and ended up taking home a lot of the weird produce at the end of the day (stuff people wouldn’t take). I would use it in novel ways, so it didn’t go to waste. I wish I had just simply thought to share creative ways to use it.
I think we have the same fridge, Katy. The design of the door bins looks just like mine, which is a sturdy, plain Jane beast of a fridge.
This week I altered a pair of pajamas to fit better, bought some store-brand heat patches on sale to treat my aching lower back, cooked once and ate various leftovers all week, found a quarter on the porch floor, and went to a free book club event at the library.
The plainest, Janest one from Costco. They put a couple scratches on it when it was delivered and Costco gave me $100 back as a result!
You are reminding me that my new induction stove (cheapest at the store, then a sale, then free delivery and takeaway of the old stove) came dented out of the shipping containers. the shipping guys (delightful folk who were appreciative of the baking I pressed on them) were SOOOOO annoyed when they unpacked it in my driveway. We had a grand discussion and they offered to get me a new one, or take a (IIRC) $300 refund. I took the refund. the dent is on the non- counter side of my stove so I walk by it many times daily. I don’t think I have looked at it or noticed it since it was pointed out to me. Great refund and I don’t care about the (invisible to me) dent!
Smart to take the money and move on with life!
The Intel VPro popup ad with the TINY x to make go away is super annoying and popped up 4 times while I was trying to read your post. I do enjoy reading your articles, but may look for something else to read if full-page popups persist.
Interesting- that doesn’t happen for me. All I get is a 2” x 4” popup in the lower right corner that is easily ignored (and I do – I couldn’t tell you what ads are circulating within it),
Ugh, I’m so sorry about that. It is completely out of my control. Again, sorry!
1. Found 25 pennies and a Lego brick at the car wash. We went there to use the vacuum which is cheap an̈d does a better job than dragging the house vacuum outside.
2. Replaced our 3 knife blocks with 1 gigantic one thrifted for $4.
3. Hung a large blanket on the fence after washing and saved a dryer load.
4. Shopped at Aldi to tide us over until we go to a bigger grocery.
5. Made a small cobbler with blueberries that were withering and some ancient cherries from the freezer. Put some sad carrots outside for deer that visit the yard
Plus you got a free workout from bending over 25 times!
I haven’t been posting much here lately because of a major house crisis with my other next-door neighbor (not my familiar NDN, but the one on the other side, hereafter referred to as NDN2). Please see my Thankful Thursday comment yesterday on The Frugal Girl for details. I frankly don’t have the energy right now to put them up here.
But two of NDN2’s grown grandchildren are now on the scene and will be helping out for the next several days. And I’m planning to throw whatever influence I may have into persuading her to return to Texas with them. Her house will not be habitable for many months, and, to be honest, living with her family in Texas will be the best solution for her. I’m acting against my own interests, since I will be bereft to lose her, and since I am dreading whatever may happen to her property next. But life often sucks, and this is no exception.
It is really sweet and kind to put your neighbor’s best interest above your own. I’m sorry you might be loosing your ndn2.
Sounds like a sound plan, even if it loses you a wonderful neighbor.
A. Marie, I’m so sorry to hear about your neighbors flooding issue. What a terrible thing to happen to someone, let alone an elderly lady. It makes me think of my mom and the distress it would cause. I’m so glad she had you there to help and that her family is so supportive. Not everyone has that.
Found a penny while fueling up at a corporate Midwestern gas chain (famous for pizza, iykyk.) Would’ve rather stopped at a mom and pop place but I needed space (pulling a trailer) and a debit card reader (I was in a hurry).
Crockpotted dinner. Stopped in an old timey small town grocery store for tortillas and soy sauce. Nice and nostalgic with very good selection for a town with 2500 people. Resisted buying more seed potatoes, lol! I did linger near the onion sets 🙂
Loaned/gave a book to a friend. I don’t care if I get it back or not. Bettyville, George Hogeman (I think). It’s a memoir of his life and caring for his aging mother in Paris, MO. It is hilarious. I highly recommend it.
I plan to dumpster dive an oakleaf hydrangea from work. I have no idea what caused that goof to tear it out. I plan to propagate it for coworker who are interested.
My son is being recognized for good behavior at school today. I am unable to attend because of work. However, dh and my mom will be there. We have a coupon for the local burger joint and they will celebrate afterwards 🙂
Oh, I hope you can rescue the hydrangea. I pruned mine after Katy reminded us, and took the likely clippings and shoved them all into a pot of dirt – They propagate reasonably well at this time of year, if kept moist. Such great plants to have and cherish
1. Went to the local hardware store to get my ‘ordered and paid’ for screws (from my last week adventure). There had been a serious mixup and the screws weren’t ordered (and they only get orders once a week). I was, understandably, annoyed.
However, I sure was impressed with the customer service I received, both with the person who took over when I was told there was no order to be found (as there wasn’t) and with all the other staff.
I got a refund, and he placed a proper order for me, but they won’t be here until next week and the greenhouse re-assembly is the last weekend of the month so we are cutting it close. I was tempted to go to one of the big-box stores but the service I was getting makes me very willing to just wait. (the saga continues…)
2. After that great service, I went to a big box stationary store to pick up my ordered printer cartridge (the one I got for 85% off).
Boy howdy was the service there abysmal. I even ended up phoning the store from the parking lot to ask for the manager to register a complaint, and I don’t usually do that. However, I got my cartridge and all the backlogged print documents dutifully came out.
3. The last thing I had printed was a recipe called Not So Dal, offered by an Australian on Instagram who was shutting down her 10-year storefront “thestaplestore”. Apparently she sold a LOT of premixed items, and this one is the one that essentially paid her rent. The recipe is being offered on her instagram – you get to write it out yourself, and I took the time to do so. So, with my new recipe, I measured out the red lentils and spices and filled 3 jars with future goodness – they will just need a jar of chopped tomatoes and some water, and a bit of time. Dump meal in a jar.
4. Meanwhile, the frozen smoked turkey wing was cooked, the broth saved and the meat pulled off the bone. I measured out 3 cups of green split peas and rinsed them really well. Chopped up 5 carrots, a big onion, and about a cup and a half of celery, sautéed them in the Instant pot, added some pepper and smoked paprika and 4 bay leaves. After a few minutes I added the saved broth (probably ? 9 cups or so) and the peas, put the lid on and pressure cooked for 25 min (the peas are old).
#2 son came home STARVING so I quickly scooped out some of the extra (maybe?) liquid on top, then stick blended until lumpy smooth. Oops, It appears I forgot to take out the bay leaves first! The blender caught one, but there are likely a few bits.
I added some of the liquid I had pulled off, and impatiently hungry #2 son gladly carried some off. Oops, I didn’t give him any of the smoked turkey meat. He won’t care. I just ate a huge bowlful and feel very pleased with myself
5. I had received a new credit card that has a point offer worth $25 if I spend at least $25 within the first month or so. (I took the card for the offer, and cancelled my Amazon CC that very day, felt virtuous)
I had one of those days when I was fully up for a long wander through a grocery store, so went in with a few things on my list and time to explore. I picked up a lot of staples that were discounted, got a free “lunchables” because I have their points program (yuck but my Daughter loves them), found some Chicken at 30% off and some fake crab meat also at 30% off – both were already on sale so the cost per 100 grams was pretty good.
I also spent a lot of time in the rice aisle (this chain has a very impressive Indian food section, as we have a large population of folk originally from East India), and had a lot of fun talking to folk who were coming through, doing price comparisons and chatting about what they were making or looking for. I picked up a different kind of Thai rice (sweet Thai rice) as #2 son spent a wonderful month in Thailand and we are looking for how to make rice as he had it there. Came away having blown the no-spend March, yet having purchased a number of things for the pantry – and essentially I will get $25 worth of what I spent back.
6. #2 son has finished eating the “peculiar yet tasty casserole” I had made, bless him. My food waste has reduced significantly since January, partly due to me packing up leftovers in glass containers and in lunch or dinner sized portions, so he can grab and go. He is swamped with a big tight deadline for a paper that he is publishing (!! proud mom here) and I am doing what I can to support him by feeding him well.
Oh, I forgot to say that I grabbed a bag out of my car and waded into a bit of scrub brush to pick up 3 beer cans near my mail boxes. You folk are inspiring!
We all need someone in the family who’ll eat just about anything!
When you are ravenous “peculiar food” tastes good. I often worked my hospital job w/ no break of any kind due to being so busy. Sometimes there was a lunch tray left over if a patient was discharged. That tray of food was divine after 10 hours of no food.
A.Marie,
You’re not alone: Nobody can parallel park! (Except guys with commercial licenses.) It is really tough.
Have you noticed the car commercials: the fancier models have automatic parallel parking these days!
Guys, parallel parking is not hard. Pull up so your car is parallel with the car in front. Reverse. When the front of your car is parallel with the bar of the other car, turn the wheel and back into the space. If needed, pull up a little to straighten out.
I have severe left/right issues (sigh) and I can manage after practicing enough and winning my “Parking Good” award.
1. We had homemade pizza for dinner and our daughter came over for it.
2. Got 4 eggs from the chickens we are pet-sitting.
3. Slogged through our financial spreadsheet to figure out where the discrepancy we had found had happened. Thankfully we found it. Not only is it cheaper to manage our own finances, but I am definitely more aware of all of the details than if I paid someone to manage it.
4. Received a replacement pair of slippers from LLBean. Apparently if the item was purchased before their guarantee changed to 1 year (2018), they still honor the old lifetime guarantee. They had record of my purchase, I sent in the slippers that had come unstitched, and they sent a replacement pair. Yippee!
5. My free tomato seeds germinated. I planted more kale grown from seed. I have 6 tree collard cuttings that have rooted. This is my year to grow a lot of food!
Hooray for replacement slippers!
1. Paying it forward/avoiding food waste: There were two nets of lemons in my latest Too Good To Go box from Aldi which I will give to a friend to use for her daily vegetable and lemon smoothies. No takers here in this house!
2. The above Too Good To Go box also had bananas that were turning brown – made banana bread for the teens.
3. Recent favourite library read: The sight of you (Holly Miller)
4. Due to maintenance works we won’t have power next Monday. While this is inconvenient it is also frugal – because we will use no electricity! It also gives us a forced opportunity to use up everything in the freezer (we are nearly there, thankfully they gave us 2 weeks notice) and to defrost the freezer which was badly needed but kept being put off.
5. Found two cute mugs in our local charity shop (1 Euro each), one with polka dots and one with a floral pattern. I quite like polka dots lately, not sure what that means, I might be turning into my mother 🙂 — Tiny associated frugal fail: Bought another mug in a different local charity shop and only realised at home that it has a chip so it had to go into the bin. At a cost of only 50 cent I just consider it a donation to the local charity 🙂 I used to use chipped mugs and bowls to plant indoor plants but because of a lack of drainage this just does not work well so I gave up on that.
I use a non-draining but cute container as the ‘outer’ sleeve for an inner (ugly) pot. You can pull your potted plant out to ensure that no extra water is pooling, and the whole thing is tidier than pots on rings or flats, IMHO
1. Friend from school invited me to dinner. His treat the serving size was humongous. They actually plated everything in to go containers. The food was really good. I brought the rest home with me easily able to get three meals out of that rice and beans and pork so I was able to eat dinner. My son was able to eat dinner and he said that he ate lunch today and they’re still a little bit left win-win for everyone.
2. So far on my change count I have found $1.03 a mixture of pennies, nickels and dimes.
3. on my local freebie app I was able to score some free beauty stuff which was 39 nail polishes seven barely used Bath and body Works hand sanitizer and a brand new face primer and brand new lipgloss. A mom was cleaning out her daughter’s room after she moved out.
4. was able to cut my car insurance literally in half a friend of mine gave me a tip that Costco actually has car insurance. He didn’t know if it was Costco or BJ’s but definitely Costco, which I was able to get a free Costco membership last year when I was Uber so I called for a quote and I was shocked in the price which was only 335 for six months and Allstate was charging me double that so I canceled my policy and they still have to prorate me a check for $37 so technically six months of car insurance for 300 bucks no-brainer .
5. I’ve been reviewing my electric for the last 30 days because of that electric bill that I received so last month I use 1646 kW this month 494 kw just so you know I was unplugging everything a friend challenged me to get my electric bill under $100 so I’m just waiting for it to come in the mail because it said my meter should have been red on or about March 20.
A friend who challenges you to decrease your electricity usage? I love this!!!