Five Tiny Frugal Things
by Katy on October 5, 2023 · 63 comments
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I saw an online tip to freeze fresh ginger and then just grate off the amount you need for a recipe. Although ginger is a small percentage of my overall grocery budget, I always feel bad when I inevitably waste that last dried out bit.
I tried it out and it works, so my kitchen now functions a tiny bit more efficiently. It’s increasingly rare for me to find new frugal hacks at this point in my life, which makes this one extra exciting!
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I saw a bra that might work for me in an Instagram ad, so I opened my eBay app and found a used one in my size for 1/3 the price. I didn’t like the color of the one listed, (bright white) so I set an “alert” to get notified when they get listed in my size. I’ve spent my adult life fruitlessly searching for a comfortable bra that fits me properly. Like whatever the Jewish version of the holy grail is, but for big boobs.
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The friend who fostered our sweet kitten came by to visit with “Mama’s Little Meatball” and brought two opened boxes of cookies and half a bag of tortilla chips. She explained that she didn’t want the temptation of having them in her house, which was my gain. The odd part is that she has no idea that extreme frugality and the fight against food waste are my jam.
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I walked to the library to pick up my holds even though I was low energy and it was the last thing I felt like doing. (Stupid long Covid!) It’s one thing to venture out into the world when you’re feeling energetic, but it’s an entirely different accomplishment when your preferred activity is couch based.
I gave myself three gold stars.
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I didn’t buy a tiny Lear Jet.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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{ 63 comments… read them below or add one }
Regarding ginger-I buy mine at the Asian market, because it’s cheap and they turn it over quickly. At homeI slice the large piece into coins with the food processor, freeze on a cookie sheet, then move to a ziploc bag.
When I need ginger for a recipe it’s easy to take out just enough. It thaws quickly, and it’s easy to chop/mince.
Kathy, I love this idea!
Thanks, I’ll give this a try.
I just buy a jar of pickled ginger. It keeps forever in the fridge and I’ve never noticed the pickled flavor.
I must admit to having the same hunk of ginger in my freezer for over 4 years. And though a little dry still tastes like ginger
Going to do this today! *Smacks head* brilliant.
As a person with chronic fatigue, I give you five gold stars for walking to the library. It’s such a juggle of enough but not too much.
I, too, freeze ginger and haven’t wasted a bit in years. I have apples sorted on my table, a pile to use right away, and a pile to find space for in my refrigerator.
I’m unexpectedly subbing today, which is a job that fits with my chronic fatigue, and we will appreciate the extra income.
Mama’s little meatball is the cutest baby kitty! My dilute tortie girl cat is more like a meat loaf: we suspect she is part Maine Coon due to her size, coat and awesomely cool personality.
Today I scored some organic, cage-free chicken thighs on last day of sale: $5 for a pack of eight. They were still a bit frozen, so I think the store over stocked.
Cleaned out a car for the estate I am executor of and took a load of perfectly good and new stuff to Goodwill. It looked like the car trunk had been used for storage.
Did some research and found our elderly cat with inflammatory digestive issues will do just fine on his preferred wet and dry food, but we have to stop giving him treats. This is a big relief as we did not want to play a few expensive rounds of RX food roulette with a 17-plus year old cat who is firmly set in his ways.
The drugstore gave me $5 in rewards after the online pharmacy app went haywire. Got a big package of free paper towels, which we needed with the upchucking old cat. He is feeling much better after a second round of shots and a medication adjustment.
Got our dryer repaired this week and learned it’s 23 years old, which led the repairman to say the magic phrase: “They sure don’t make ’em like this one any more.” IIRC, we sold some never used inherited china, two sets of it, to pay for the dryer.
Ruby, your story about selling inherited china to pay for your old dryer reminds me of when DH and I got married in 1979 and he sold his baseball card collection to pay for our new washer and dryer. He would occasionally indulge himself in regrets about what the collection might have been worth in later years. But greater love hath no man, to do this with only a few post-sale sighs.
Your DH was always such a good guy! We wound up selling my late mother-in-law’s fancy silverware, which she had never liked, to buy the washer and a lawnmower, though we had to have a yard sale to raise the last little bit. I am still kind of conflicted about the silver because I thought it was pretty, although cleaning it was a pain. In truth i am not the type of person who needs anything that has to be washed by hand, except the dogs. 😀
Ruby, my brief stint in Junior Altar Guild at my hometown Episcopal church at age 12 cured me for life of wanting to own anything silver or brass. I loathed the smell of Brasso and Gorham polishes so much that I quit after 3 months. (And, truth to tell, DH and I usually considered it a good spend to take our two dogs to groomers!)
I sold 2 sets of sterling that had been husbands parents and grandparents. We seldom used it in 49 years of marriage plus our kids have no interest it in. The $$ went to good use with home repairs
Those pesky home repairs are awfully greedy!
I inherited my grandmother’s sterling silver. I never knew why because I only saw her three times in my life. She was pretty prickly and I may have been the only grandchild who didn’t get a chance to offend her. 😀
Anyways, I used it for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners for about 40 years. Families change and eventually there were no more family holidays so I sold it.
I froze my ginger in 1″ bits with the skin on, too. I think I read that hack here on NCA? Is there a similar thing for garlic? I happen to have a bag of it that I bought at a farm stand, even though it was too much for my household but it saved me a trip to the store.
Husband has COVID and is quarantining and the rest of us are negative so far. Staying home has helped me with my Freezer and Pantry Challenge. Using up the bits and bobs.
I think I mentioned freezing ginger here a while back. You can also freeze garlic. One year I peeled, pureed, and froze garlic in 1 tsp sized lumps. I didn’t have a great storage system (not airtight) so everything in the freezer tasted lightly of garlic. We both like garlic a lot, but not as the aftertaste of mint/chip ice cream. The next year I froze peeled cloves in glass jars. Easy to chop while they were frozen and the jars kept the taste out of other things.
Katy,
I’m so sorry the Covid is hanging in there with long-term effects. I do hope you feel better sooner than later.
I also keep a bag of jalapeño peppers in the freezer (put them there when they’re on sale). I pull one out when I need it. I think they’re easier to cut that way and I always have them on hand.
Thanks for the tip!
I shop my jalapenos before I freeze them. Easy to break off a chunk for a recipe. Also this method lets me be more discreet about how much I use. The urge to use a complete fresh pepper has rendered a few dishes inedible.
FTFT, Beating Wegmans at Its Own Game Edition:
(1) On my way home from my annual Medicare wellness check (and medical clearance for my upcoming cataract surgeries) at my GP’s, I did a flying run through my usual Wegmans supermarket, which is right on the way home. Since football season started, Wegmans has been doing a Game Day Special of 20 wing *pieces* for $20–and though Weggies’ wings make me drool, I’m damned if I’m going to pay $1 per wing piece for them. Well, on my trip through the meat department, I found a 4.78-lb. package of *whole* wings marked down from $15.78 to $10.99. I pounced on this and gave myself a post-lipid-test indulgence in chicken wings this afternoon, using a combination of recipes off the internet. (BTW, it seems to be true that a spoonful or two of baking powder makes the wings crisp up better.) Danny Wegman, eat your heart out!
(2) I’ve also found a total of 80 cents in and around the Coinstar machine on my two trips to Wegmans this week.
(3) And I returned almost $10 in NY State deposit bottles and cans on my two trips. (The only brands Wegmans won’t accept are Aldi’s, Trader Joe’s, and various small local microbrews.)
(4) Frugal fail: I can definitely relate to Katy’s #2 about bra buying. I have yet to find a bra that works perfectly for me, despite numerous attempts. If I ever find a bra that I don’t yank off the minute I get home/out of the public eye, I’ll know I’ve found the (ecumenical) Holy Grail.
(5) And while the wings have been crisping up in the oven, I’ve been enjoying the last warm, dry day we’re likely to have in Central NY for a long while. A cold front with major rain is moving in Friday afternoon. I’m telling the few late monarch butterflies moving through my garden to hurry!
I’m very envious of your coins as my forays have been unsuccessful lately.
As a fully ( VERY fully) paid up member of the Big Bucket Brigade, I am seriously envying the Itty Bitty Titty Committee! I am eternally in quest of the Holy Grail, an “ no underwire “ bra that doesn’t give me a mono boob! A bountiful bolster of a mono boob! , With a grumply shoulder, a front fastener would be particularly blissful, but I’m not asking for miracles, just something that doesn’t feel as if. It was designed by Torquemada!I live in Brisbane , Australia, but would order online if necessary
You can be on my committee intead.
Add me to the eternal searchers of comfortable bras with no underwire. I envy women with small breasts.
I’ve been using the ginger hack for years – congrats and the discovery!
Glad to hear it stands the test of time!
I joining family for one night of their five day backpack into Tahoe’s desolation wilderness. Talk about minimalism:
1. It is free to hike into the wilderness and sleep near a beautiful lake.
2. Since I am not bringing a bear canister ( only one night over) I am not bring toothpaste I will brush my teeth with a clean toothpaste and salt. (bear’s love toothpaste.)
3. My family is providing the big dinner. I just scooped up some bars, dried food and nuts that I already had. I finish most of it during the day. Put two bars n their bear cannister and call it good. We will be back to the cabing by the second night and they have promised to buy dinner.
4. So two full days of no additional layout for a vacation.
5. I almost bought a “sprint” bear canister on impulse. Then I decided God will put a second-hand one in my life when I am suppose to have it.
I do not like using a bear canister. I have such a hard time opening them. According to my children, I’m a momma bear through and through.
“I’ve spent my adult life fruitlessly searching for a comfortable bra that fits me properly. Like whatever the Jewish version of the holy grail is, but for big boobs.”
Same, gurl. Same.
While bra shopping is not high on my shopping list (or even on it), I read this today and found it interesting.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/the-real-reason-so-many-women-wear-the-wrong-bra-size/ar-AA1hJoWW
Does your holy grail search qualify as a bucket list item?
1. I made Snicker Doodle cookies and had leftover cinnamon sugar (used for rolling the dough in) so I used it to make Ginger Snap cookies.
2, I walked to the grocery store to buy on sale/with a promotion yogurt and picked up freebies earned with rewards points (a lemon, a can of black beans, and a carton of oat milk).
3. A friend suggested I bring a lunch to her house instead of going out. She often feeds me but moved less than two weeks ago so is still a bit overwhelmed. She ate leftovers and I ate my packed lunch and we had a nice visit. I got some loving from her kitties, even the one that hisses at some people.
4. I walked to a friend’s house for a nice outdoor visit. We get together most weeks and sit outside when the weather is nice. I use an umbrella as a parasol when I walk during the day since I don’t love to slather myself in sunblock. I buy less sun block that way.
5. I used yarn from my stash to knit more hats and scarves for seafarers. They are generally not allowed to get off ships in the US so they rely on the generosity of people in this country to help them be provisioned.
4.
KD, can you say more about seafarers? This specific-sounding use of the word is unfamiliar to me, and I’m so curious.
I don’t know if this is the same organization, but here is one I have found and used the patterns
https://seamenschurch.org/programs-services/christmas-at-sea/patterns-publications/
For ginger, I cook coins in sugar syrup, drain them and freeze them. This way I get ginger syrup, slices I can bear to chew on when I have a migraine, and they are still gingery enough to use in other dishes.
I’ve just ordered a bra from Poshmark that was featured on an inst real, for big boobs. I will come back and post if it’s a good one! I also now have the battle of being very uneven, since menopause. The religious experience of a bra that fits seems even farther away.
I’ve been dealing with a post viral/auto immune thing for over 20yrs. I am wary of pushing through when tired. With these kinds of illnesses, where you feel worse for pushing yourself, the pushing through can make you worse for a lot longer than the activity itself, sometimes for weeks or months. Post Exertional Malaise is horrible. Pacing helped me some. Progressive exercise regimes made me worse. It’s not just me that finds this to be true.
1. we have been eating tons of roasted vegetables, with a base of cheap, orange pumpkin. Playing around with the herbs we saved this summer. Lower carb than fried potatoes and very economical.
2. We lost our large, elderly dog this week. That was not at all frugal and is emotionally devastating. It will affect the budget going forward, but there’s no celebrating.
3. Filling my fall wardrobe gaps with a mixture of free store, thrifting and poshmark. Not many gaps, not much spent.
4. picked up a couple of extra work days, so wont loose money when I take some time off at the end of the month.
5. Harvested the potatoes that we planted as an experiment after the garlic crop. Two grocery store potatoes have become a couple of pounds of potatoes, so I am calling that a success!
3.
I’m sorry for your loss. Based on what I’ve seen on FB, it has been an awful year for pet family members. I lost my sweet girl Jane (black cat) this September — so I agree; it was not frugal and there is no celebration in saving money by not buying food and treats in the future.
I’m sorry to hear of your loss. Sending wishes of strength and comfort.
Nicola, I understand the emotional devastation. I’m sorry you’re grieving.
If you are uneven from surgery (cancer or otherwise) or genetics, a place that fits mastectomy bras can fit you with proper bras and a small custom prosthesis to make you more comfortable and even out your look.
Your doctor or midlevel can write a prescription for “mastectomy bras and prosthesis” using a diagnosis code for asymmetry or cancer and it doesn’t mean you’ve had a mastectomy – it’s just what it’s called.
In Michigan, most plans cover 4 to 6 bras a year and a new prosthesis ever 2 years or more frequently if your weight changes by 20 pounds.
Awww, so sorry to hear about the loss of your old dog. that heartache is real and deep, those pet-buddies have been there for many of our life experiences in the past decade or so, and they are special beings. losing one just plain hurts…
As for your lovely phrase “Post Exertional Malaise” – thank you thank you THANK YOU.
I have a cyclical (if I only knew WHAT the cycle is, though…) disease that sometimes is somnolent and sometimes so wide awake I am frightened it will never quiet.
When it has been sleeping for a while, though, I forget what it is like when it is just jumbling along beside me, not too loud but also not absent. So I mis-remember that pushing when I am tired will lead to MUCH more tiredness.
The last couple of weeks (well, maybe the last 5-6 weeks) have been full to the brim with lovely fun positive things, and I am getting REALLY tired. So thanks for reminding me that rest is actually a necessity when I am getting overtired.
PEM doesn’t make sense until you experience it personally, and by then…
I’m so sorry about your pup.
For ginger, I cook coins in sugar syrup, drain them and freeze them. This way I get ginger syrup, slices I can bear to chew on when I have a migraine, and they are still gingery enough to use in other dishes.
I’ve just ordered a bra from Poshmark that was featured on an inst real, for big boobs. I will come back and post if it’s a good one! I also now have the battle of being very uneven, since menopause. The religious experience of a bra that fits seems even farther away.
I’ve been dealing with a post viral/auto immune thing for over 20yrs. I am wary of pushing through when tired. With these kinds of illnesses, where you feel worse for pushing yourself, the pushing through can make you worse for a lot longer than the activity itself, sometimes for weeks or months. Post Exertional Malaise is horrible. Pacing helped me some. Progressive exercise regimes made me worse. It’s not just me that finds this to be true.
1. we have been eating tons of roasted vegetables, with a base of cheap, orange pumpkin. Playing around with the herbs we saved this summer. Lower carb than fried potatoes and very economical.
2. We lost our large, elderly dog this week. That was not at all frugal and is emotionally devastating. It will affect the budget going forward, but there’s no celebrating.
3. Filling my fall wardrobe gaps with a mixture of free store, thrifting and poshmark. Not many gaps, not much spent.
4. picked up a couple of extra work days, so wont loose money when I take some time off at the end of the month.
5. Harvested the potatoes that we planted as an experiment after the garlic crop. Two grocery store potatoes have become a couple of pounds of potatoes, so I am calling that a success!
I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m sure you gave your dog a wonderful life.
I am sorry to hear that you are still experiencing the post-covid malaise. It took me a long while to recover after my first bout with the virus.
It has not been the most frugal weeks. My daughter has been visiting and I tend to spoil her. But as always, some frugality has been practiced.
1. I picked up my book club’s selection from my local library. I think the library makes nearly every frugal list!
2. I had a load of mulch delivered —3 yards of it. I have shoveled, carted it and spread it in all my flower beds. My back hurts, but my yard looks much better. Best of all, I did not pay a landscaper.
3. I have a big birthday tomorrow, and we are taking a trip to celebrate. My daughter will drop us off at the airport tomorrow on her way home and my sister will pick us up. Our airport parking fees have gotten astronomical. This with save well over $100.
4. I used my bank’s bill pay app.
5. I have purchased very few groceries this week and have made sure we have eaten all the leftovers. I’m leaving the house with an empty refrigerator in anticipation of my week away.
Wishing everyone peace, good health and prosperity!
Congratulations on your “big birthday,” Bee–and cheers for your daughter and sister for saving you the airport parking fees!
Bee, happy big birthday!
Happy Birthday and best wishes for a fun celebratory trip!
“The great thing about getting older is that you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been.” Madeleine L’Engle.
Happy birthday, Bee!
I feel your pain of long Covid. Someone tried to tell me it wasn’t real but I highly disagree. I spent MONTHS coming home from work and going to bed. The exhaust was REAL. Even now, three years later – I still have bouts of exhaust. Then I could not smell or taste for almost a year. I lost so much weight, and I looked good, but then people began to ask me if I was “on drugs” and it started getting downright upsetting. You have extra weight, you get beat on for being unhealthy. You lose it, you’re on drugs and people start calling you a skinny bitch 🙁 Anyway, I’ve never been quite the same since Covid and I am better – but my body took a beating from the initial monthlong sickness I had years back! I feel like I am STILL recovering! And no I never get the shot. It seemed pointless when I got sick right after it came out!
I am so sorry to hear that you’ve been going through this for so long!
Michaela – I long ago lost patience with the Covid deniers, and I think those of us who got very sick for a long time were a bit invisible. I know I didn’t have the energy to spend a moment in public if I didn’t need to, or to talk to people about it anywhere but on the internet.
I do want to offer one possibility to consider, if you’re not outright against the shot. It helped me get better. I was very sick for 16 months with little change – felt as though I was dying every day. The first shot helped a little, but after the booster, I improved rapidly. Within six weeks it was clear I was on the way back and now I feel nearly normal (albeit older, and having missed a lot of exercise). I still can’t push hard because I also have an autoimmune joint disease, but the point is, I feel alive and like myself, my heart and kidney function and blood pressure have returned to normal, and I’d given up hope that that would ever happen. Many others have had the same experience.
Also, the new variant is on its way, and the vaccine has been updated to cover it. We can get it again. In our case, it’s very possible that we were among the first in our area to get it – my husband brought something home from a business trip just before things shut down that felt just like our diagnosed Covid, which was the episode that gave me long Covid. Looking forward to getting my booster this weekend.
I’m glad the Covid vaccine had an unexpected (good) side effect for you. My unexpected (good) side effect came from a flu vaccine about twenty years ago. In the past, every year I came down once or twice a winter with bronchitis. A friend told me to get a flu shot every year and I wouldn’t get bronchitis. She was right. In all these 20 or so years of getting flu shots every fall, I’ve had ONE bout of bronchitis and it was very mild. Who knew.
Not a frugal week. We took our newest, nicest farm truck to the dealership to figure out a couple of warning codes. Apparently my brother drove it like he stole it while he was alive and the estimate is $5k for repairs. Since a new truck would be over 100k, I’ll take my lump. After I detailed the outside and inside, it looks brand new and only took 5 hours of hard labor. They offered me 65 for it if I wanted to trade it in. sigh.
I scrubbed the house, puttied and sanded the exterior doors that my brother’s gsd tore into and primer and painted. They look as good as new.
I set up the fire pit area with freshly cut wood, my denim covered seat cushions and flannel and wool quilts for our out of state guests arriving soon for a 2 week stay.
I went to a neighboring community’s thrift store while i was waiting for the truck’s inspection and they had a honey bucket sale. Buy a 3 gallon honey bucket for a quarter and everything you can fill into it is 20% off. I got 3 bras and I too have yet to find a comfortable bra (36 DD), 2 still had their tags, one was a very schwanky brand all for $1 each. I also got a 600 thread count flat queen sheet for $2 in package that I will use for a quilt back, a new pair of blush pink suede grand court adidas, a new pair costco wool sherpa slippers, a spring wreath for the front door and kong ball for the pup. I walked out spending a total of $17.
I used my full card at the outlet bread store and brought home 6 loaves of Seattle sourdough misc for the freezer to use for company. They had my GF bread for $2.50/loaf and I stocked up and bought some for my niece and uncle, too.
I bartered my wine grapes for the use of the vineyard’s apple press to make cider (I freeze in 1/2 gallon jugs). It was a good grape year and I got a little over a tote. I bartered with another neighbor for a bushel each of braeburn, fuji and gala apples for 50 lbs of cover crop seed for the garden. The remainder will be sold to the local schwanky garden store as they sell it by the pound.
I stopped at the local tennis club and bought dog balls for 5/$1. I picked up enough for Christmas presents for the family.
You had an extremely impressive week! Well done, you!
I’m super jealous of that GF bread for $2.50! Wow!
I feel you on the long covid! My husband and I had covid in August for the first time and it was brutal. We both took paxlovid and had rebound infections and zero energy since then. Forcing myself to do a bit more than I feel like each day and hoping it gets better.
Twinsies! In the worst way. 🙁
I hope this long Covid eventually goes away! Virtual hugs!
My frugal 5:
1. Had Pizza Hut pizza one night for supper and used my free pizza coupon. My friend came over and I was able to share. She wanted me to drive to her lawyer’s house and she used her gps while I drove.
2. Found 2 pennies in the self checkout and used them as my total was probably $2.02. Horrors that someone left 2 pennies. Don’t they know that’s money?
3. Got a free travel size bottle of lotion from Bath and Body Works.
4. Instead of going to get a massage I spent $5 on the massage chairs in the mall.
5. Hubby and I are keeping the grocery bill down as we don’t have to pick up dd’s usual stuff as she has moved out.
I enjoy the pictures of the kitten. She looks happy & contented. Cats so love to sit in the window & watch the world go by. Do you think she will be a small cat as an adult?
Regarding bras, I love Cacique from Lane Bryant, specifically the “unlined full coverage no-wire.” You don’t need to be plus-size for their bras. They range from band size 34-54 and cup size B-K. I’m a 38F and love the fact that even after a big weight loss and being in my 50’s, I don’t need underwire to keep them up and help give me a more defined waist. Lol
Thanks, I’m ever hopeful to find a comfortable bra during my lifetime.
I use my sterling silver every day, as I feel there’s no reason to put off enjoying the nice things in life. Plus, it’s my only silverware!
I gave my sterling silver to my daughter who also uses it every day.