Five Tiny Frugal Things
by Katy on January 21, 2025 · 31 comments
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My husband and I started watching The Pitt through my parents’ HBO account and are hooked. We’re both health care workers and although I normally stay as far away as possible from hospital drama shows, (they’re cringingly inaccurate) this one mostly holds up. Plus, my family’s from Pittsburgh, which makes The Pitt an extra layer of enjoyable.
I’ve see the hype for the second season of Apple TV’s Severance, but we can wait until the season ends and then scout out a free trial.
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My husband and his brother got free tickets to last week’s Colter Wall concert, as his brother knows someone in the band. Their seats were well situated and would’ve cost over a hundred dollars apiece.
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I was out and about running errands with my son the other day, when we realized we were both super hungry. Luckily I keep a stash of got-them-from-the-clearance-shelf apple bars in the glove compartment. They aren’t tempting enough to snack on, which makes them perfect for these “we have food at home” situations.
Saved us from grabbing fast food.
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My Eufy robot vacuum cleaner stopped working, so I ordered a new off-brand battery for $16.14. I see a lot of similar robot vacuums in thrift stores and wonder if people just donate (or toss) them when they stop functioning. It now works possibly better than before, which is great since I use it at least three times per week.
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I didn’t travel to Washington D.C. to celebrate any felonious white supremacists.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
I love Severance. It’s so weird but sucks you in!!
What a great score on those free tickets for Mr. NCA and his brother.
1. My sweet DIL made cheeseburger soup and gave us two big bowls of it, enough for four heaping servings for DH and me.
2. A former coworker took me out for a coffee. It was nearing the end of the day so the waitress gave me two double chocolate Donuts, free of charge. She did get a good tip.
3. I had another $4 off anything at CVS and Grandson16 is visiting so I got him a package of Chips Ahoy Cookies (3.99) and a twelve pack of candy cane’s (75% off). The whole thing cost me .94.
4. I bought DH a Van Huesen dress shirt in perfect shape for $3 at my church’s thrift shop.
5. I also did not travel to DC to watch the clown show yesterday nor did I watch it on TV or listen to it on the radio. I instead preferred cleaning the bathroom, normally not one of my favorite activities, but a far more pleasant task than watching a felon and rapist get sworn in to lead (?) our nation.
You know things are bad when we prefer to clean toilets than tune in the a presidential inauguration. I’ve been spending time reading and following folks who are advocating for ways we can get more involved in our local communities and take care of ourselves. Also looking into what sorts of alternatives exist to the more mainstream social media platforms. Had a really interesting conversation with my twenty-something kids about how social media monetizes us even when we’re not actively purchasing things through those sites.
I’m with you, Christine and Katy. I did not watch, but I was sick at my stomach the whole day just at the thought of it. Why wasn’t he arrested four years ago on Jan. 6? Why does he get off scott free every time? How on earth could this happen to our great nation?
Oh, and Cathy, too.
Just an FYI, and you may already know this, but some may not – shows like Severance come out in DVD and Blue-Ray format and may be available at your local library if you don’t have or don’t want to find a free trial of the service that particular show is on (check interlibrary loan as well). Ted Lasso is SUPER popular at the library where I work, and I just had a copy of the first season of Severance come through the front desk the other day. 🙂 Check the library for full seasons of TV shows as well as just plain movies. 🙂
FTFT, Out of the Snow Machine/Back in the Deep Freeze Edition (revised/updated from today’s FFT at The Frugal Girl):
(1) It has finally stopped snowing here (and, thank goodness, I don’t live in one of NY State’s two main lake effect snow belts). However, we are once again “enjoying” very low temperatures; it was a bracing 8 degrees F here at 8 this morning. The result as regards spending is the same: I’m not tempted to go out and spend money any more than I have to.
(2) But the temp actually got up to 18 degrees at noon yesterday, and there was no wind chill, so I bundled up and went for as long a walk as I could manage under the brilliant blue sky (which is something we don’t see much of around here in January). Much more cheering, and better for my blood pressure, than watching what was happening in DC then. (And JASNA BFF, who did watch the clown show, had this one-word comment: “Ugh.”)
(3) I spent much of the rest of the day organizing my tax paperwork, and got about as far as I can go till various 1099 forms come in. This will be my first year of filing solo, and I hadn’t realized how much simpler the process would become. (Much as I still miss DH, I don’t miss the paperwork aspect of caregiving.)
(4) I surprised myself by needing to break out a new box of tissues and a new roll of paper towels over the weekend. As the heiress to a considerable collection of handkerchiefs and cloth napkins, I go through paper products very slowly indeed.
(5) And I’m off to go bask in some more sun in my plant room. All the houseplants are overdue for a feeding, which they’re going to get now that the days are finally starting to get longer.
1. Saw there was a discount on a safe driver course that my husband did over Christmas. Nicely asked for, and received, a price match.
2. Contacted Home Depot about an item that was defective but outside return window. They gave a refund.
3. Received a strawberry tower and about 50 strawberry plants from 2 friends. Planted them all yesterday and covered them with plastic to keep the freeze off.
4. I’ve had a cold and made a lovely pitcher of lemonade from free lemons. Much easier to drink the needed fluids! I usually drink only water, so this was a fun change.
5. After our couple of atmospheric rivers, we haven’t had much rain, so I’m doing the bit of needed watering using water from the rain barrels.
Kara – My family and I were just giggling about my daily “treat” which is fresh squeezed lemon juice in a glass of ice water with a splash of stevia. They think I’m so silly but I love it!
1. I hosted my friend’s 49th birthday party at my house this past Saturday. Having it at my house saved her the cost of a rental, let her stay in the neighborhood, and we had a great time.
2. We had a lot of left over food from the party. It was a potluck and people left most food at my house. I did ask people to bring a plate home, but only a few did. We’ve been eating well on left overs.
3. I decided to stop at Walmart and do some Shopkick scanning. My goal is to make just under $600 with that app so I don’t have to claim it on my taxes.
4. I am beginning to receive different tax forms and plan to file my taxes with AARP again this year, which is free through my local library.
5. This weekend my family committed to catching up on tasks at home including potting plants, planting trees, taking down outside Christmas lights, cleaning and re-organizing the garage, giving away a few items we no longer want, folding laundry, and cooking at home. It was not expensive and helped reduce stress to get things done. I want my home to always be a haven to the outside world.
1. I borrowed a partial can of Kilz and some ceiling paint from my daughter to paint the ceiling in my closet where there is an old water damage stain. I had my closet torn apart due to a shelf that fell off the wall so it felt like a good time to do it.
2. The stained area on the ceiling crumbled as soon as the paint brush hit it. So I ended up with a hole instead of a stain. I patched it up as best as I could. It doesn’t look very professional since I have swirly plaster in my closets which is above my skill level to repair. It’s good enough and no more stain and no hole.
3. I received a $45 Amazon gift card for doing a Michigan travel survey.
4. I fixed a towel ring with some gorilla glue and a toothpick. I also fixed three dresser knobs that kept coming off . I used gorilla glue for that also.
5. I cleared out my own driveway again. I also clipped my dogs nails. I’m reading another library book on my kindle. I did not travel to DC either, or watch any of that crazy business on TV. I’m ignoring that clown for the next four years.
Target App has a coupon for three months of free Apple +. I redeemed it last week. Checked earlier today and it’s still there. It’s in the section where they have partner deals.
1. The daughter of the lady I help, who lives with her, has a stomach bug so I haven’t worked this week. That is not frugal but I haven’t left my house so I saved on gas. It’s a 20 minute commute each way without traffic.
2. I ordered a Welcome poster for my daughter’s bridal shower from the library technology department. It will cost me about $2. I looked online and they go for $20-$30. I also ordered a cute kitchen towel with embroidery for her. The towel I got on clearance($1) and the embroidery will be about $1. I have been trying to buy used stuff from FBMP bridal group to lower costs too.
3. I made banana chip muffins and a loaf of bread yesterday. My husband has been eating all the bread saying it is my best loaf ever. I’ve done nothing different so I have no clue why it’s better this time. I’m glad he is enjoying it.
4. I had ribs in the chest freezer so I am cooking them low and slow all day. I threw in baked and sweet potatoes too. I lowered the heat in the house since the oven is on. I am wearing layers and have a blanket on me when I sit down. It is 10 degrees today. The roads are icy and wet.
5. I had a library class last Friday. We made red heart snowflakes. I kept my heart cutouts. They are now on my windows, mirrors and glass throughout the house. I used glue dots to hand them that I dumpster dived from an office that moved. I had gotten a case of them. I gave ½ to my sister who is a teacher to hang stuff in her classroom.
I thawed the piece of elk that’s been sitting in my freezer. It was a gift from the neighbor and I know nothing about cooking elk. I made a soup, and it was delicious. I’m truly shocked! It was a great frugal meal for a cold night. I served it with homemade bread.
1. Sold two baby gates thru FB marketplace $30 in my dwindling fun fund
2. Flying Southwest on Thursday (airfare paid by dog club) so I’m checking luggage for free
3 Staying with long time friend so saving dog club $$
4. Ran out of emery board so snagged one from my sister
5. Bundled up as it was 6 degrees in Central Oklahoma this am
First, the not frugals, previously confessed on Frugal Girl:
1. Houndini found a dead bird and ate it. He then proceeded to be sick multiple times all night. Had to do several loads of barfed on sheets and blankets and dog beds.
2. Clobber Paws is a very anxious dog who bites his own claws off. He refuses to let us trim them and one got infected. More laundry to clean up the bloody paw prints he left all over the house. More money spent taking him to the vet, who drugged him to the point of falling over and he still managed to fight her giving his remaining nails a trim.
3. Brand new vehicle, less than a month old, lost the passenger side mirror while being backed into the garage, built in 1951 when cars were smaller. Since it has computer sensors in it, we had to take it to the dealership. $997.79 to replace it.
4. Saw Sumo oranges. Put four in my basket…they rang up as $27.99. Not a mistake, as I asked the cashier to double check. Bought them anyway. Cheaper than liquor and better for me than chocolate.
Frugals:
1. So far this month have spent less than $50 for food, well until the Sumos anyway. Making good use of freezer foods that need to be eaten before they surrender to freezer frost.
2. Sold 2 items on eBay, bringing in $95.
3. By shoveling for just 5 minutes a day, I cleared the path for the fuel delivery guy instead of hiring someone to do it. It took an entire week. I know that seems very little but for me to manage to be out of a wheelchair and moving snow is a victory.
4. Library for puzzles and books.
5. Husband has a potluck and is to bring the dessert. I was tempted to just buy something ready made, but I forced myself to make Reece’s and chocolate brownies using some leftover candy from Halloween.
Oh, your poor Pound Hounds, and poor you and the husband. But please give Auntie A. Marie’s love to Houndini and Clobber Paws anyway–and keep an ample share for you and the husband.
For the party I attended on Sunday, I asked the hostess what I could bring and she said wine would be good. I asked my son to pick up two bottles on the way home from c hurch. I was a little taken aback that the large 1.5L bottles were about $15 each, but decided, whatever, I’ll bring them along.
I slightly cringed when another partygoer (I knew none of these people personally) mentioned to the hostess what a “wine person” the hostess is. I whispered to the man sitting next to me (who reliably laughed at all my jokes) that I was cringing to bring such cheap wine. Well, he got another glass of red and really liked it and asked the hostess what it was. You see where this is going. Of course it was the cheap junk I bought, which I confided to him, laughing, and he said he didn’t have a very refined palate. I said, “Me neither. Bottoms up!”
Later, when another guest said she had reiki the next morning, he whispered to me, “What’s reiki?” I said, “It’s bullshit,” and he laughed again. I’d like to see him and his wife again–we really got along.
Lindsey, I wish i could send you back in time before your garage/car mirror incident. I recently did the same thing and came in to Google the price of a new mirror. Honda said it would be $1,000. My hubby and I looked on a discount site for said computer side mirror for the car, purchased it for $80, and watched a YouTube video on how to install it. We are NOT ihandy people. It was so simple.. Thank you YouTube. I wish i could have helped you… I was so mad at myself when I did it, but $80 versus $1,000 was a bit of relief.
I have chronic illness and I understand the win that it is to accomplish something bigger in 5 minute increments. Well done to you!
1. A previous occupant of our Airbnb left a purple Crown Royal drawstring bag that I repurposed into a shoe bag for my suitcase.
2. Didn’t use all the dressing for my restaurant salad so I saved it in a little jar that I have in my kit that I bring with me to every restaurant so nothing goes to waste.
3. Ordered a turkey sandwich and asked them to put the turkey on the side (there was plenty of other vegetarian ingredients to make it a substantial sandwich). Into my stainless container it went. Our dog enjoyed a huge pile of shaved turkey over several days.
4. Used popcorn seasoning mixes in homemade dips. These were from a gift set and we didn’t like them on popcorn.
5. Added cold cooked green beans to a green salad. So good.
Related to Katy’s ongoing spot-on #5s: As far as I’m concerned (and I am concerned), the flags should stay at half-staff for the next four years.
Three things:
1. I usually ask for extra dressing because I drown my salads. I always admire people like you with restraint, while I’m a giant glutton for dressing.
2. Popcorn seasoning mix for dips is a good idea. I have a bunch sitting there unused. I never seem to have popcorn.
3. Just this morning while eating breakfast I was thumbing through my beloved Peg Bracken where she advised that today’s left over green beans, known as has-beens, should be added to a green salad tomorrow and wondered why I never do that.
MB in MN,
AMEN to that! It’s going to be a terrible sad 4 years…RIP, American democracy.
Our governor here in Texas (as big of a creep as the orange guy) ordered the flags to be flown at full mast for the felon’s inauguration. But I was thrilled to see that most of the neighborhood businesses kept theirs at half-staff in honor of Pres. Carter.
What kind of containers do you keep in your kit for taking to the restaurant? I want to get in a habit of doing this when I go. I have saved a few pill bottles…those might come in handy for left over dressings or dips.
Oh my goodness, my professor was just talking about The Pitt during our cardiac lecture today. And I saw I’d need to pay the $9.99/month to watch it.
Perhaps I’ll do that once the semester is over and I have more time to watch TV!
1. Frugal investment? We just had an energy audit done which will cost us $150 after the instant rebate of $200 and the future $150 credit on our 2025 tax return. Learned a lot and once we get the report we will decide whether to do it all at once or in stages. I’m going to have to work up to be willing to have holes in my recently painted outer walls for insulation to be blown in but that would be the biggest comfort improver and energy efficiency gain apparently.
2. Another frugal investment? Had my 6 month dental checkup and cleaning. Postponed X-rays.
3. We used all leftovers as usual but did have to throw out a bit of lettuce that got slimy.
4. Planning dinner main dishes for the week seems to have reduced our grocery bill plus dividing up the cooking more evenly and eliminating the morning headache of “what will we have for dinner”
5. The pup doesn’t agree, but no more purchased chew bones for him as he has started to aggressively guard them. For a sweet dog I didn’t expect that. His grooming and vet checkups are enough.
Apologies if you’ve read this on FG today.
1. It’s super cold here, no snow but still below freezing at noontime (which is unusual for my area), and I’m letting all the indoor faucets stream. That counts as frugal bc the water bill won’t be half as high as a plumber’s bill would, should the pipes freeze.
2. I double-covered the outdoor spigots with the styrofoam thingy that fits around them, and then an additional layer of styrofoam boxes. Some were trash-picked and were the styrofoam boxes that Omaha steaks come in; one was a styrofoam picnic cooler that lost its lid. I prop the boxes around the covered faucets and put bricks or rocks or whatever I can find to make sure they stay. Probably don’t really need ’em in Central Texas, but I’m not taking any chances; the plumbers charge a LOT of $$$$$ to fix broken pipes.
3. Major score, but a long story: Since yesterday was a holiday from both my jobs, I thought I’d replace a pair of favorite slacks. They are cobalt blue, and I get many compliments any time I wear this color. I’ve worn the pants so many times, the hem on one leg is badly fraying, so that’s not good for work. I still get Woman Within company catalogs addressed to the former roommate and I saw some slacks that were on special: buy one pair (at marked-down clearance price) and get the second for a dollar. I put it aside to order, and my cleaning lady threw it away. So….I looked this up online and the website did not have the slacks on special. I then called the company’s 800 number and told my tale of woe to the customer service lady. (Politely letting her know I usually buy a competing brand.) Long story short, she fixed me up with not only that special price, but if I got a third pair it’d be 20% off and if I said OK to their credit card offer they’d let me have a 4th pair and knock a LOT more money off the price. Bottom line: I got $42 worth of my favorite style of pants, different colors, for $28. New instead of thrifted, for a change, and around $7 each — just about what I’d pay for ’em in the thrift store. With free shipping. (And yes, I need some slacks!) Needless to say, I will completely pay off the credit card as soon as I get the bill; I imagine their interest rate is sky-high.
4. I was struggling to read my book due to eyestrain so I got some reading classes that were a stronger strength than what I usually wear — +3 instead of +1.25. It made reading more comfortable and I have finished my book. The glasses were at our store and cost only $3.99.
5. The drapes covering my patio door haven’t been cleaned in a very, very long while….like almost forever. Instead of taking them to the dry cleaner, I took them down, put them in the washing machine and dryer, then re-hung them. (Yes, they are washable). They look as good as new. No big bill at the cleaner’s!
Great score on the tickets!
1. The cord on my hair straightener split so my dh patched it up with electrical tape. The wire inside was still intact so this should allow me to keep using it for hopefully a long time.
2. There were great sales at 2 grocery stores so dh and I split up. The store he went to has a clearance bin that we can almost always score great deals at. He got 2 bags of coffee for $2 each and a box of candy canes for $0.50.
3. I cooked 2 large meals over the weekend and we have been alternating leftovers ever since.
4. Dd’s car had some random lights on that we were unable to fix on our own. We took it to the dealership we bought it from (we thought the lights were part of a recall). We had them fix the issue (not anything recalled) and of course they printed off a laundry list of other things that needed fixing to the tune of $2000! Dh was able to do a lot of the work himself and we took it to a local mechanic to do the brakes and rotors.
5. I made some protein balls for snacking on this week. I don’t always have time to make homemade snacks but we are off school due to the cold so I am trying to take advantage of the extra time.
Car snack and free tickets for the win this week!
1) Sorted and organized my pantry. All close to expired items are being eaten this week. A bag of food items we can no longer eat going to my extended family, and a bottle of expensive teen boy vitamins that my son didn’t agree with off to a friend’s son. No food waste this week at all.
2) I used some duct tape I had on hand to repair my recipe binder (that I used in my classroom over 15 years ago) and a storage box (that was crafted from a reused shoe box over 13 years ago). I love decorative duct tape. While I was at it I also sorted and organized my recipe binder as well and discovered some forgotten recipes to put back into our rotation.
3) My ex husband called and said he had an abundance of Butcher Box poultry/meat in his freezer and told me to come and get what I wanted. SCORE!
4) Read Sustainable Minimalism with my free Kindle Unlimited trial (love that I can use that without being a Prime member). It’s is in my top two favorite books on minimalism I’ve read and it had a wealth of great information and sources.
5) I needed a coffee scoop and even had one in an online shopping cart. As I was sorting through my kitchen yesterday I came across a metal scoop we had from a former vitamin subscription. I did some comparison measurements and it’s now my new coffee scoop. No purchases made.
Long time reader, first time poster.
1. Grocery store had reduced packaged salads and lettuce. For $3 I bought enough that will make a week’s worth of lunches.
2. At same store I had earned enough store card points to receive $12 off my order.
3. I pass CVS during my work commute. I’ve learned that the more purchases I make there, the more coupons I’ll receive. I almost always have a percentage off coupon to use and I don’t mind stopping frequently as I pass it twice a day. The other day I combined a 35% off coupon, a BOGO deal, and CVS extra bucks to save 60%off vitamins. This purchase earned me a 20% off my total order of non-sale items so on the way home I stopped for face wash and toothpaste.
4.Had potatoes that were starting to go off so made crockpot potato soup. This will be dinner for a few days.
Just want to say that I’m really grateful for this community!