I’m finally testing negative for Covid and am slowing regaining my normal level of energy. Not a lot, but enough to run a couple errands and look at something besides the four walls of my house. It’s not impressive, but it’s certainly frugal.
Here are my “tiny frugal things:”
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I got a free Doritos Locos Taco through the Taco Bell app on Tuesday and I even have some leftover hot sauce packets to use at a later date. There’s one last free Taco Tuesday deal next week and the promo code will be 04TACOTUESDAY.
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I ate my free taco while sitting in the Goodwill parking lot. I thrifted a new in package 2004 Ozzy Osbourne Halloween costume, (wig and glasses) for $2, as well as a dress and some earrings that I’m actually going to return later in the week. I’ve already listed the costume on eBay for $75, although who knows if it’ll find a buyer at that price. Can’t hurt to try!
Update: I sold the Ozzy Osbourne costume for the full asking price of $75 on eBay!
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I stopped by Trader Joes on my way home from Goodwill and picked up five 19¢ bananas and nothing else. No snacks, no dessert, no frozen meals, no booze. The store was on my route and required no extra driving. A total frugal win!
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• I sold a garbage picked box of World of Warcraft trading cards through Facebook Marketplace for $20.
• I polished the headlight covers on both of our cars with a microfiber cloth and some extraordinarily spicy toothpaste that no one in my family liked. The mildly abrasive quality of toothpaste does an A-Okay job on foggy headlights and the price is right.
• Someone on our flight back from NYC gave me his public transportation Metro Card as it still had $6+ on it. I’ll mail it to my sister. -
I didn’t pick up a 19¢ Lear Jet.
{ 69 comments… read them below or add one }
Are you willing to share the brand of toothpaste you used? The headlights on my car are in desperate need of replacement ($1400!) or resurfacing ($90). I know there are also DIY kits but have read they don’t do much.
I used Colgate, but it’s about the abrasive quality of toothpaste, not the brand.
The DIY kits do work! My fiance did my 2010 car a few years ago and they still look much newer.
Vinegar and water also work well. Don’t use on barcodes or auto paint.
I used WD-40 this week for our foggy headlights. I learned that trick from YouTube. My husband was just telling me today that he had heard you can use toothpaste, too–it’s kind of funny that I heard that from Katy on the same day (just online instead in person). I’ll use toothpaste next time to see if the results are the same as with the WD 40.
Peg, consider looking into buying new headlamp replacements online. I did this myself and set them. You dont have to set tail lamps just headlamps so the lights are focused for night time driving. They are just plug in and snap on most cars. I would never pay someone $1300 for that service even with parts.
Peg if you’re even remotely handy you might try looking at some youtube videos on your car and seeing if you ccould replace the headlamps yourself. We just ordered replacements for my 05 camry from Rock auto, and they’re only $80 each. My husband handles the car maintenance cuz he’s super handy, but even I could replace these myself. Your car may be a lot harder to work on though!
I need to try the toothpaste trick on the cover over our gas meter dials. It’s become so foggy from urban air that I don’t see how they read it.
Did a lot of small frugal things this week: Used some wood stain and varnish from another project to rehab our front porch rockers; used up a partial small can of oil enamel to paint the gate to our back yard; used the quartz landscaping gravel my husband dug up and stored, though it had to be washed clean by swirling it in a bucket of water like I was mining for gold; painted the gas pipes that run up the outside of our house with another partial small can of oil enamel; and painted the AC drip pipe the same color as the house.
Bonus: We some how wound up with a scary number of tins of acetone (our garage resembles a small paint store) and those with a small amount in them were used up to clean paint brushes.
This is very impressive!
Come back to let us know how it went.
I’m glad you feel well enough to venture forth for free tacos!
1. I just picked up 8 bottles of rice wine vinegar using a sale & Swagbucks. By using my 5% back credit card (for groceries), I made $3.00 by buying them. I will barter 2 bottles with my colleague for a jar of honey from her bees.
2. Just returned from a [non-frugal] vacation, but I did have some wins: a) I traveled with students and stayed in Europe, making my plane ticket free. b) I get paid some additional $$ since I am working 24 hours a day (when with students for a week). c) The flight home was CANCELLED. I got a voucher from the airline for hotel, dinner & breakfast. The “free” dinner was truly vial, but I ate it anyway and snacked on the FREE snacks that the airline had put out to keep all of us (who waited 4 hours to be rebooked) from getting hangry (yes, I hoarded a bunch). I was also able to change my return trip destination which saved me a train ticket, but I could not get a refund for a one-night hotel stay (which was a wash since the hotel gave me a free hotel night).
3. Upon returning home, our cat/house sitter left a lot of food and we are trying to use most of it – some of it we just had to throw out….
4. Signed up for a mystery lunch shop that came with an extra $10 bonus.
5. Making all other meals at home, coffee, etc. and using the last bits from our tiny, urban garden.
I need a sign that says “Will venture out for tacos!”
I should have mentioned – my mystery shop lunch is for…. tacos!
Haha!
Five Tiny Frugal Things
I didn’t get around to posting the other day:
1. I thanked a friend for the garden grown tomatoes and peppers he gave me last week then he offered to give me more. Yesterday I picked up four tomatoes and a pepper from him (at a location I was at anyway). The pepper will go in a stir fry with a zucchini I was gifted by someone else last week. I never have too many tomatoes (though I do share when I have a lot).
2. I have been walking errands if they are not more than a mile. In the past week I walked to the grocery store twice, the drug store, a friend’s house, a yoga class, a Pilates class, and a neighbor’s house that is a few blocks away.
3. I cut DH’s hair. It is very thin on top so he wears it short. The clippers do most of the work and a pair of scissors is used to trim around the ears. It’s fast and cheap.
4. I made a random dish using a sweet potatoes, aging baby carrots, butternut squash cubes from the freezer and an apple. I used my immersion blender to puree it and added some spices. It has been a good side dish.
5. We are still doing our own yard work.
I got out of the habit of walking errands when I started having foot issues a couple years ago, I need to start that back up again now that my foot is mostly better.
I’m glad to hear that your foot is mostly better. Foot pain is no fun.
Yay for feet feelin’ (mostly) fine! I’d been wondering how you were getting along. (No pun intended. Not consciously, anyway.)
1. I saved $20 and change at the grocery store by hitting up a great canned goods sale. I bought 6 large cans (28 0z.) of crushed tomatoes for .99 each, 6 large cans (14.2 oz.) 0f butternut squash soup for $1.49 and 1 canister of breadcrumbs for $1.99. It brought the original price down from $36 to $16.
2. I had day surgery yesterday and am still tired but had stocked up on easy food to make during the recovery period. The above-mentioned soup, a store brand frozen pizza and my DSIL made me stuffed shells and spaghetti sauce which I took out of the freezer ahead of time.
3. Still hanging clothes outside and will hopefully continue to through October.
4. DH found four golf balls on one of his walks by a golf course.
5. I cut DH’s hair.
My husband won’t let me cut his hair anymore.
Why?
My husband still lets me cut his hair, but I think it’s partly because he can’t see very well.
This is hilarious! It remind me of when my husband’s grandmother got cataract surgery and suddenly realized her hair had gone grey. Mind you, it had been grey for decades!
Oh my goodness! I laughed out loud!
I’m always impressed with your Five Frugal Things but the “only bananas” at Trader Joe’s? Beyond impressive. I could never do that – I’m always impulsive in that store!
It’s like I wear horse blinders when I shop there.
I make it a game, and think about a mental buzzer or “wah-wah” going off if I “miss” by yielding to temptation. Keeps me grinnin’, and lo-spendin’.
I also made a stop at Trader Joe’s for $.19 bananas. They are a staple in our house. Trader Joe’s also sells bottled water which is necessary purchase when making hurricane preparations for about half the price of other stores. It’s nice that they do not take aidvantage of the situation. Some of the little frugal things that I did this week include:
1. I scanned a stack of receipts to Fetch and Ibotta. It takes me a very long time to make much money using these apps because I don’t spend much. However, it only takes a moment or two to see if anything I bought that day at the grocery store is listed on the app. I have earned over $300 in the last four years or so.
2. I took a half of a roll of paper towels, some unused trash bags, an open bottle of dishwasher soap, and some hand soap from a friend who is moving out of state but did not want to pack these things.
3. I bought a 25-pound bag of jasmine rice at Costco. This lasts us 6 to 9 months and say saves us approximately $25 over the local grocery store price.
4. I found a magazine that I wanted to read in the library’s share bin while dropping off magazines that I had already read.
5. I found $.29 in the change return when I use self check out at the store.
I hope you stay safe and are not in the hurricane’s path. Keeping your safety in my thoughts.
Thank you, Christine. That is kind of you. I was fortunate. The storm went slightly north of its original track and we were spared any significant damage. It’s been windy, and there is a great deal of storm debris. . Some of my fellow Floridians have not been so fortunate. Please keep them in your thoughts in the challenging days ahead.
Bee, I’m glad to hear that you’ve come through Idalia safely.
I’m glad you are safe and I have been keeping you all in my thoughts today. Also my family in southern Georgia.
I always scan receipts to Fetch, but forget to try Ibotta as my purchases rarely align with their deals.
It is rare for my receipts to line up either. Today I scanned 5 receipts and none contained iBotta deals. However, I did receive $.25 just for scanning a grocery receipt. Reaching financial independence a quarter at a time. 😉
I’m happy to hear you are doing well and avoided damages from the hurricane.
1) One of our son’s favorite treats is donuts. We have a terrific local chain, but they’ve gone up to $1.50 per donut when there’s not a coupon. Son agreed that they’re not worth that much to him except on special occasions or when there’s a coupon and was perfectly happy with gas station donuts, which were on sale for $.50 per donut, 1/3 the price of the fancier, and while there isn’t much choice in flavors are pretty good. I’ll be picking up $.29 per pound bananas at the same gas station within the next week or so, but waiting until I thaw the freezer.
2) Chicken leg quarters were on sale for $.49 per pound. Bought 30 pounds, have cooked and frozen the first 20 pounds of meat, broth, and schmaltz (rendered chicken fat used in a similar manner to butter) and will process the last 10 pounds tonight.
3) My son and I went to a store with rummage bins that appear to mostly be store returns. The price decreases daily per item through the 5 days for that lot. We usually go on $3 day, but due to an appointment went on $1 day this week. Our finds included 100 sheets of large address labels, 2 knee braces (about $25 each when not on sale), a mystery puzzle in a bag (probably 1000 pieces) that my son and I thought was a good gamble for $1 (when we’re done with it it’ll go to our Buy Nothing Project, either with a photo of the completed puzzle or an accurate description and suggesting it for craft use–lots of crafters in the group), a curtain in a scenic print that I plan to use in filming, and a desk mounted cell phone holder (about $25 new) that I also plan to used in filming (I play ukulele and record periodically for friends and family too far away to play for in person)–super happy with the cell phone holder as it will hold my phone in it’s thick, chunky, protective case, I’ve had trouble finding one that fits. $6 our cost for all of the above.
4) Our only frugal fail from the rummage bins was a visor hat my son did not try on before buying and is too small for any of us (larger than average heads). It’s okay, it’ll go on Buy Nothing for someone else. We get so much good from our group.
5) I have 2 sets of Pyrex glass food containers that I bought over 10 years ago for only $10 per set and the containers are all still fine, but one size of lid cracked. Replacement lid sets are about $20! I picked up 3 lids that size in Buy Nothing for free.
Glad you scored free replacement lids! If ever you need more and BN doesn’t have what you need, we’ve found onesies-twosies for reasonable prices on ebay.
Our Pyrex food storage dishes must be 20 yrs. old or more. Paid for themselves many times over in food management in our perpetually too-small fridge.
Savings while on the Last Hurrah Tour driving from Alaska to NYC, then on to England and Germany, then back to NYC to pick up the truck and drive home.
1. Instead of eating pricy food on the ferry from Alaska to Washington, we did a grocery mystery shop the day before we left and ate from the cooler. In five days, spent only $1.95 a day for coffee for the husband. Some couples spend $30 a day on food!
2. Went to our first big Goodwill ever in Eugene. I needed a rain coat. We found a new Calloway long sleeved shirt for the husband, with original $65 tag, for one dollar! I found a raincoat from a name not known to me, Cole Haan. Still had a $295 price tag on it, marked to $115, and on sale at Goodwill for one dollar!!! We walked out spending only $2. No wonder people love to go to the big ones in the Lower 48
3. The first two weeks, each day as we drove across the U.S. we did one restaurant shop and one gas station mystery shop. In the morning we ate a hotel breakfast and if they have fruit we took an apple or orange for each of us for lunch. Dinner was free from the shop, as the meals are always large enough for the two of us to share. Then we realized we were not visiting the various fast food and casual restaurants we always see on ads but don’t have in the Fairbanks. This is our Last Hurrah Tour, for heaven’s sake. We have been saving for it for years so we could do it in a blow out fashion (casual restaurants are our pathetic idea for fancy blow out fashion). I now know what Chick-fil-A, Saxby’s, and Chipolte taste like.
4. We had been saving hotel points for many years and for the first 15 days of our trip after we got off the ferry, our hotels were free for points.
5. I have lost weight and my wedding ring was sliding right off my finger. It is an heirloom piece I was terrified of losing so we stopped by a jeweler. We offered cash instead of a credit card and he gave us 3% off the bill for cash.
6. Used a pass to a museum, courtesy of a friend who moved from Oregon before she could use it so when she heard about the Last Hurrah Tour, she mailed them to us to use.
7. Pound Hound is with us, despite friends telling us we were insane. He is so cute that we keep getting free dog biscuits from people at the hotels. Husband says being cute has not worked for him to get free cookies, so he is studying Pound Hound’s technique more closely.
So glad to have a report from the Last Hurrah Tour, Lindsey! And tell the husband I’m chuckling over your #7 in particular
I second everything A. Marie said! Safe and happy travels!
Study as he may, he’ll never master Pound Hound’s technique (but don’t tell him I said so). I have two dumped cats, best cats I’ve ever had in the past 60 years. The “unwanteds” are unique and it is a bit depressing to think another like either of my two dumps will be part of my family again. But sad to say, I’m sure at least one more dump will become a family member. And I always feed a cat who crosses my yard. Yep, one I fed had a home (found out later) but that’s okay.
Sounds like you are having a wonderful time!!! Will Pound Hound stay in NYC or is he able to travel with you overseas?
Even I had to admit taking him overseas would be a huge pain. When we lived in Scotland two different times, taking a dog made sense, but this is a relatively short time so my sister in Virginia is adding him to her crowd of hounds. He won’t want to come back to us after he has a taste of living with a pack and swimming in the pool; we live on a river but it is icy cold all year round so he seldom ventures into it. When we had Irish wolfhounds, you had to have special crates built for them because no standard commercial crate would allow them to stand up or turn around. It was a nightmare of finding someone who makes crates for transporting horses…at least Pound Hound only weighs 90 pounds so is relatively easy to take places.
I hope Pound Hound enjoys his stay at your sister’s. I’m sure he will miss you and DH even though he will make many new friends.
Your trip sounds lovely and so frugal. Great job on all the free hotel points. Enjoy your trip.
Cole Haan doe $1 is amazing. Good brand you will wear for a long time. Good scores
Phew!! Busy short week. I am taking two days of school to visit my son in Michigan for the world’s most expensive football. that is the debit side. the gain side:
1. I used a new teaching technique with teens in coop groups using talking sticks and actually listening and responding to each other. I started with popsicle sticks. I looked on etsy for real talking sticks and then released my inner craft demon. Sticks from a redwood, gold duck tape, gold yarn and beads from two 20 year old necklaces and I am set. I had some Avery oval labels thrifted. I printed out Talking Sticks and put it on a ball jar for the container. Done.
2. 45 days in my non UPF challenge and I don’t know how accessible the food I eat will be. I have made pbjs from homemade bread, divvied into snack bags dried strawberries, dates, and our own walnuts ( we farm.) the most critical item was the one creamer i can drink. I have poured it into 3 oz screw top tupperware and frozen it. It will go in my 1 quart liquid bag.
3. I finally hear about bar shampoo. Where have I been? I bought the cheapest paraben free bar, cut a small piece and put it on top of a rubberband ( for ventilation) in a quarter size old lip balm container. No drips and apparently the bar lasts forever. It will go next to my Crystal deodorant stick which is on it’s 7th year,.
4. All of my food and clothing will fit in one under the seat bag for ease and no extra fee.
5. This “low buy” August has been my most successful ever. I cut expenditures by 66%. It has convinced me to set a retirement date of Jan. 1st 2025.
Sorry about the typos. I am exhausted. It helps me more to check in than to not because of perfectionism.
Mary Ann, your comments were so interesting I didn’t even notice any typos. Kudos on your brilliant homemade Talking Sticks!
I second that I love the concept of a talking stick. I wish I could use this with some adults I know.
Also, challenging oneself to stay away from UPF is a very good thing. You go!!!
What MB said. And typos are so common nowadays, I barely notice them anymore. (Am still a bit OCD about homonyms, tho’ – pardon my editor’s brain.)
P.S. Does UPF stand for Ultra-Processsed Foods? If so, extra bonus points for you! (Not that they’re mine to hand out.)
Congratulations on setting your retirement date!
1. Won an office chair on our Buy Nothing Group. Mine would not raise up so I felt like I was sitting in a hole.
2. Used my Kroger card to purchase five pounds of Kroger butter for $1.99. A good bargain considering Land of Lakes was on sale” for $4.99.
3. Used up chicken legs and thighs from the freezer to make chicken noodle soup. We don’t like dark meat but it is cheaper and fine for use in soup.
4. Returned Aldi cart from parking lot for the 25 cent return.
5. Gave up drinking coffee for my husband’s health. Good coffee is expensive so much money will be saved over time.
seriously love that you salvaged the card for your sis…awesome that a conversation with strangers so often leads to savings/zerowaste.
Glad to hear you are somewhat better. Thought I’d share this old but still valid piece on restoring lung function post covid. Though you’re a nurse and no doubt already aware of this… It’s just that sharing medical info is my family’s way of saying “praying for your speedy, 100% recovery” (sharing newspaper clippings was my mother’s thing–so it’s genetic ha) https://www.cedars-sinai.org/newsroom/improving-lung-capacity-pre–and-post-covid-19/
Heh. I tell people “links are my love language”. 😀
FTFT, Around the ‘Hood and House Edition:
(1) A neighbor down the street (also a recent widow) took me out yesterday for a belated birthday dinner at a new Indian buffet restaurant. This gave us a chance to get thoroughly caught up on each other’s news. (She’s been sidelined a lot recently by migraines and allergies.)
(2) I continue to dry laundry on the indoor racks I’ve been using for decades, all but one of which were scarfed from DH’s old rental properties. I only use our old Maytag dryer every two weeks for sheets, since I don’t have enough room to hang sheets.
(3) Dr. Bestest Neighbor brought over a few tomatoes, a cucumber, and some bok choy from their garden last night. The BNs have a veggie patch reinforced by barbed wire that my DH built for them many years ago, so they’ve had better luck keeping the deer out of the veg in recent years. (Such a patch isn’t feasible in my yard for various reasons, alas.)
(4) I’m using an ear of corn, part of an eggplant, and part of a zucchini (all purchased last Saturday at the Regional Market and now looking a bit sad) t0 make a stir-fry, with some shrimp and some of Dr. BN’s bok choy.
(5) And while walking my dear Bailey dog for my neighbors down the street (Bailey’s mom had to report for staff duty in the city schools today), I greeted five other neighbors/friends. Nobody needs to worry that I’m going to be one of those old folks who don’t get enough social stimulation.
A. Marie, I’m in sympathy with the deer-proofing issues. We don’t have the space for fencing here, so our garden gets raided regularly. I’ve been threatening for years to start a “vegans for venison” hunters support group.
Dear Frugals,
This week I come to you looking for advice. My 2017 kia soul with 260k miles has a bad cylinder. I have had two mechanics tell me to get rid of it because engine replacement is 7-10k. They suggested I put that money into a newer car. How in the world do you sell a car with a non working engine?
Help!!!
-Ashley
I sold our 15-year-old non-working Mercedes via Craigslist. I checked what others were asking and asked a bit less than that. Only took ten days. Gooc luck.
@Ashley Bananas, I don’t have advice on how to sell the non -working car (although whatever your local Craigs list/marketplace/kijiji/Etc online sales app is most popular is a great place to start). I DO want to congratulate you for getting so many miles on your Kia. Well done!
I can never find cheap bananas. Even at Aldi they are 59 cents…. Sigh. Our grocery prices suck lately and I guess that is everywhere.
I kills me when I end up having to pick up bananas from a standard grocery store.
Glad you feel better! I’m also getting over COVID, and don’t think I did myself any favors by running a lot this weekend (did a relay), when I unknowingly had COVID. But, slowly (ever so slowly) starting to feel better.
1) Ate only out of the cooler for meals, minus the baked potato I bought myself at a grange near the Oregon coast. Also treated my van mates to a baked potato. It’s a perfect running meal, because it’s super bland.
2) My husband took me to/from the airport, saving the cost of Lyft. Filled up my water bottle for free, and bought nothing at the airport.
3) Brought home leftover van treats for the teens, who polished them off quickly.
4) Used DoorDash credits (credit card perks) to do delivery, while I was quarantining away from the rest of the family.
5) Used a Panera gift card to get myself a lunch, and a “family feast” for everyone else on a night when cooking wasn’t going to happen, & I was still quarantining.
I am both feeling better and concurrently feeling like crap.
I still love reading your blog! It’s great inspiration to reduce waste and consumerism, whenever possible.
My frugal five:
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5. Stayed with a friend overnight, at her invitation, rather than booking a hotel room for an away from home ‘Christmas in July/August’ visit. Instead of going out for brunch on the Sunday morning (which is usually crazy busy and noisy, with expensive, underwhelming food), I suggested we stay in and eat leftovers from the night before. The Pumpkin Quinoa salad I made was a hit at breakfast time, as was the Berry Crumble my friend had made for our dessert but was hardly touched. Friends mentioned that they preferred sitting around in the living room chatting rather than battling to connect at a cafe. I also shared some herbal tea that had come to me as a free gift.
My husband plays in an Irish Music group once per month in the town we visited. Coincidentally, it was the same weekend as our ‘Christmas in July’ event so we made only one trip in our car, not two (200 km round trip). Now I’m not drinking alcohol and avoid sugar laden sodas, I’m happy to drink the free water. The wine I did drink (anything cheap!) is about $10/glass now.
That sounds like an amazing visit! I love not having to scream my conversation over the din of restaurant noise.
1. I used a coupon at Aldi, $5 off $30. I gave the other two to people in line. $5 is $5. They were happy.
2. At Aldi, I offered a quarter to the person returning their cart. They said they didn’t need it. I left my cart where someone else could use it. I hope they paid it forward too.
3. The air conditioner is off. I hope not to have to use it until next summer.
4. Cancelled going out to dinner with friends. I just don’t want to spend the $ right now.
5. The usual-cold water laundry loads, coffee and water from home, keeping on top of fresh fruit and vegetables so they don’t go bad ect
I so wish they had Aldis in Oregon!