The Non-Consumer Advocate

I drove the minivan to the closest cheap (ha!) gas station and spent $22 in cash to save 30¢/gallon, even though it only filled my tank to the halfway mark. I need to be mindful to keep enough cash on hand to actually fill the 21-gallon gas tank, as 30¢ X 21 = $6.30, which makes this frugal hack worth the trouble.

 I called to follow up on two things that could’ve saved me money. The answer was “no” in both cases, but you never know unless you put in the effort.

1) My daughter returned our grocery cart to the cart corral in the Winco parking lot without noticing that her paper towels and toilet paper were on the bottom shelf. I called to see if someone had turned them in, but of course they hadn’t.

2) I left my nice (thrifted) Hydroflask reusuable water bottle in an urgent care exam room a couple months ago. I was with my father who was having a health issue, so it wasn’t that day’s priority. I finally called their lost and found, only to be told that they don’t save any food related items, which totally makes sense. I figured it was a bygone lost cause, but at least it’s not because I didn’t follow up.

My 26 year old and I stopped by Fred Meyer to pick up needed supplies for their weekly meal-prep-palooza. They were about to buy a loaf  of bread, but instead accepted my offer of a loaf from my freezer.

You may remember that I bought ten loaves of $1 bread at the Franz Bakery Outlet store a few weeks back and I’m more than happy to share. Seriously, I’m so pleased whenever I can help my kids save their hard earned dollars!

I pulled a mostly eaten Costco rotisserie chicken from the freezer and cooked it in my countertop pressure cooker to make a big pot of chicken soup. Portland’s been extra frosty this past week and we’re even expecting snow on Thursday, which calls for comforting warm meals. I’ll probably bake up a loaf of overnight artisan bread to dip into the broth.

I didn’t enrich the Fox television network by watching even a minute of the Superb Owl.

My son and I watched the movie A Real Pain through my friend’s Hulu account. (Thanks, Lisa!) Written, directed and starring Jesse Eisenberg, the movie is about a pair of cousins whose recently deceased grandmother was a holocaust survivor. The two of them travel to Poland for a guided tour to see where she grew up, as well as the concentration camp where she’d been held. Also starring Kieran Culkin, this film had nuanced characters and was beautifully filmed, thought provoking and even funny at times.

Although my Jewish family left Europe long before World War II, (I had a great-great grandfather who fought in the Civil War.) I did have extended relatives who didn’t make it out.

I curb picked a pair of structured basket cubes that I’ll clean up and use for storage. These Branäs baskets sell for $24.99 apiece at IKEA, so it was well worth turning the car around. The baskets do have some superficial mildew and condition issues, but I can give them a soapy vinegar scrub and bring them back to life.

Remember . . . there’s nothing wrong with a dented basket!

I mailed one of my father’s framed needlepoint mazes to my cousin in Pittsburgh and used PirateShip.com to prepay for the postage. I spent $16.24 for UPS shipping as opposed to the $25.98 had I gone directly though the UPS.com website! (I’ll save you the math, that’s a $9.74 savings!) I don’t have a photo of the specific piece, but here’s one that hangs in my home:

• I took my daughter to Winco and although I didn’t have more than a couple things on my shopping list, I did stock up/take advantage of a few sale items including mini peppers, avocados, onions, cucumbers and bananas.
• I got another Fred Meyer coupon in the mail for a free pint of Häagen Dazs ice cream.
• I had a carton of blueberries that got unpleasantly soft, so I made a tiny batch of refrigerator jam adding a squirt of lemon juice and a handful of sugar.

I didn’t spend 290 million dollars to buy myself into an unelected federal government position.

We had my mother and stepfather over for dinner and served a simple but tasty meal of marinated Winco chicken thighs. (I got the recipe from a Struggle Meals YouTube video.) Rice and a big green salad rounded out the meal and my mother brought dessert. We all drank ice water and I’m guessing that the total for the five of us was around $20. There were even leftovers!

My sister just finished a six day visit from New York and although this always costs a little extra for me, there are money savings for her. Here’s how which she saved money while visiting Portland:

• I picked her up and dropped her off at the airport, thus saving her the price of an Uber.
• I loaded a Safeway e-coupon for Tillamook cheese and sent her off loaded down with a pair of two-pound cheddar loaves for $6.99 apiece. My treat.
• We ate all but two meals at home, one of which she paid for, (a shared fish and chips entree) the other, (dim sum) was on us.
• Lodging was obviously free, complete with a hotel-style robe, suitcase stand and pillow mint.

We kept the house at a higher temperature while my sister was visiting, but reset the programmable thermostat after she flew back to the East coast. We’re fine keeping the house a bit colder than most households, but always crank up the temperature when we have guests.

We watched the Star Trek: Section 31 TV movie through our $1.99/month Paramount Plus subscription last night and still feel like we overpaid. My husband, sister and I all love Star Trek, but this movie was abominable. Worse even, the movie served to set up a future television series!

I didn’t buy an election so I could dismantle the inner workings of my country.

I grabbed this Heywood-Wakefield-ish bedside table off the curb, even though it was soggy and grimy as all get out. Luckily it’s solid wood, (likely maple) so there’s no veneer to get ruined. It’s also incredibly heavy, which is a good sign. I’ll dry it out on the porch and then set it in the basement until the weather’s mild enough to sand and refinish it. Should be a fun (and cheap) project!

It’s giving this vibe:

I went on the library website at midnight on February 1st to see if they’d loaded any new free “discovery passes.”  I was able to reserve passes for the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education (value $20) and the Japanese American Museum of Oregon. (value $16)  The reservations aren’t until March and April, but it’ll be nice to have something to look forward to.

My sister and I stopped at the Goodwill near my father’s house and I thrifted this handmade wooden tray for just $3.99. I’ll probably keep it as I’m a sucker for a good tray to corral like items.

I slept in my daughter’s old bedroom for a night as my husband was fighting a cold and was coughing a fair amount. I rarely go in this room except to water plants, so I was super surprised to discover that an orchid plant was in full bloom. This plant was given to us by a neighbor a couple years ago after she lost interest in it. I never expected that it would bloom as this room is kind of cold, but I guess the key to success was to do nothing whatsoever.

I didn’t buy an election.

I’ve gone for a couple of cold weather walks over the past few days and been pleasantly surprised both times to discover cozy chenille gloves in my coat pockets. Gloves that I’d found from under the soccer bleachers where my husband and son play. Super soft and warm, with the extra satisfaction that I rescued them from the waste stream and the price was free-ninety-nine!

I returned books to my sad temporary library that’s open while my branch is being expanded over the next year or so. All this branch/not a branch offers is holds pick ups, book returns and “lucky day” books. I browsed the lucky day books and found a hard copy of Margo’s Got Money Troubles, which I hadn’t been able to finish in time as a Libby audiobook. Now to figure out my place in the book.

I had my mother and step father over for dinner and kept the meal simple, serving pasta, salad and a $1 loaf of garlic bread from the Franz Bakery Outlet. Plus tap water, as I’m fancy that way.

My friend Lise gave me a terry cloth robe no one in her family was using, as she knew I was keeping an eye out for an extra robe for house guests.

I didn’t buy an election.