Frugal Friday
Feb. 28th, 2025 05:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ecosophia
Welcome back to Frugal Friday! In honor, so to speak, of the wildly inflated price of eggs, this month will be Egg Meme Month on Frugal Friday. Yes, you may consider this encouragement to get your own henhouse up and running!Aside from that, this is a weekly forum post to encourage people to share tips on saving money, especially but not only by doing stuff yourself. A new post will be going up every Friday, and will remain active until the next one goes up. Contributions will be moderated, of course, and I have some simple rules to offer, which may change further as we proceed.
Rule #1: this is a place for polite, friendly conversations about how to save money in difficult times. It's not a place to post news, views, rants, or emotional outbursts about the reasons why the times are difficult and saving money is necessary. Nor is it a place to use a money saving tip to smuggle in news, views, etc. I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.
Rule #2: this is not a place for you to sell goods or services, period. Here again, I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.
Rule #3: please give your tip a heading that explains briefly what it's about. Homemade Chicken Soup, Garden Containers, Cheap Attic Insulation, and Vinegar Cleans Windows are good examples of headings. That way people can find the things that are relevant for them. If you don't put a heading on your tip it will be deleted.
Rule #4: don't post anything that would amount to advocating criminal activity. Any such suggestions will not be put through.
With that said, have at it!
2-liter bottle terrariums
Date: 2025-02-28 10:22 pm (UTC)In service of actually providing a tip: I've taken to reusing my empty 2L seltzer bottles as mini-greenhouses / terraria. I cut them in half around the equator, put in a layer of pebbles, then a deeper layer of potting soil, then the seeds I'm in the mood to sprout. Spritz with water, pop the top back on, and wait. (Re-spritz with water if things dry out, but that's rarely more often than once every 1-2 weeks.)
I've tried some old chamomile, mint, lavender, and echinacea. The chamomile LOVES it, the lavender is tentatively growing, and the others haven't sprouted.
Re: 2-liter bottle terrariums
Date: 2025-02-28 11:23 pm (UTC)Friends...
Date: 2025-02-28 11:32 pm (UTC)Re: Friends...
Date: 2025-03-02 02:02 am (UTC)Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 12:07 am (UTC)I've owned cats (they'd beg to differ) most of my life.
We currently have four.
When we acquired this set (one dumpster kitten and three young adults from two different Petsmarts), we decided that they weren't going to the vet.
We no longer have a dog and haven't for several years. This is critical because even if your kitties are strictly indoors, your dog brings in fleas, ticks, and everything else.
Thus, strictly indoor kitties who came into our house clean. Dimitri, our dumpster kitten saw the vet, got dewormed and defleaed, and so forth and then three weeks later, we got Lulu, Madeline, and Sasha.
They eat Iams dry food and split two cans every day of Friskies.
We decided that, even though we'd stuck to dry food in the past, canned food probably had nutrients that meat-flavored sawdust did not.
So, no flea poison, no tick poison, no vaccines (because there's no exposure), four litterboxes (which we clean faithfully), and a good diet.
Four years later, they're all bright-eyed, active, and healthy.
I've met a few other people who admit they do the same if their cats are strictly indoors AND there are no dogs.
What do you do?
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 11:48 am (UTC)This is sort of related to what you brought up. I've been wondering about vaccinations and vet stuff too - I adopted a kitten last year. The intention was to keep him indoors, with minimal vaxxes (rabies), and no flea treatments. But he decided otherwise and is now an indoor/outdoor cat. There is *a lot* of wildlife around here, and a high risk of tick-borne infections, so I've decided to do one of those flea-and-tick preventatives that you apply to the skin. They're probably toxic but I don't know what else to do. I really don't want to fumigate the house for fleas later on. Is there a less toxic, yet reliable, way to do flea and tick prevention? What vaxxes do people think are worth the risk/benefit ratio for an outdoor cat?
Chickadee VT
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 03:00 pm (UTC)Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 03:32 pm (UTC)FVRCP protects against three diseases, one of which (feline distemper) survives on objects for up to a year. You can pick it up on your shoes walking through grass and bring it to your indoor cat. However, cats who have had the regular kitten injection series then retain high titers for at least seven years for all three, maybe for a lifetime for two. Vets will tell you to give boosters at least every three years but that is not necessary.
One of my cats is of feral origin and spends days outdoors, and she once brought fleas in to infest my poor old sedentary rescue cat, AND ME, and it took months of battle to get rid of them. Now, during the warm months I give her the topical treatment once a month. I'm sure it IS toxic, but fleas carry diseases, and the flea-killing house sprays are toxic too.
I did get her one shot of the feline leukemia vax as well, but probably wouldn't repeat it. Like the over-rated FIV, FeLV spreads through bodily fluids, mainly bites, and she's a runner, not a fighter. But if your cat is a scrapper, he should probably have it. I wouldn't do that for my indoor cat, since no grubby street cat is going to come in here and bite him.
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 01:06 pm (UTC)Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 04:40 pm (UTC)Wash all bedding, sweep or vacuum floors.
"Never have a rug so big you can't take it out and Beat it!"
Various herbs. (But most of the ones that are Most effective are Also toxic to cats.)
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 07:52 pm (UTC)Sadly, nothing works as well as those few drops on the back of the neck every month.
When we had a dog and still did flea treatments for all the animals (and heartworm for Fido and Muffy), I'd give them ALL a medication vacation for December, January, and February because I assumed -- correctly as it turned out -- that fleas and ticks were in hibernation. I never had a problem and believe me, we would have known.
Flea collars are useless.
The other thing that *MIGHT* help is having a widely varied yard with many, tiny ecosystems because the healthier your backyard ecology is, the more varied it is and, thus, you have a wider array of healthier little critters like rabbits, squirrels, mice, voles, moles, chipmunks, shrews, and snakes and hawks to eat them. I don't KNOW if this helps.
I ALSO change my birdbath water faithfully, never let water stand anywhere, and maintain a mosquito bucket of doom from spring into late fall. Many diseases are mosquito-borne so if I have fewer mosquitoes, I have less risk. I can't do anything about the neighbors other than discreetly dump their mosquito plantations.
If you've got regular, hard winters, a medication vacation might work. If you live in Florida, it's flea and tick prevention year-round.
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 01:11 am (UTC)Please explain the mosquito bucket of doom!? Others may be interested in having one :)
The herb tansy is known for repelling fleas.
I don't have tansy but I do grow yarrow.
After posting here about mosquitos and ticks a few weeks ago I found a paper where scientists tested a few local herbs (IIRC, in Jordan) for repelling fleas, and yarrow came up top.
Its scent is very mild and the cat does not seem to mind it. I have been rubbing it on my hands and then rubbing him, with apparently no ill effects and the diminution of the line of hard little parasites which were living along his jawline. (We had resorted to the flea drops last month as fleas were getting him badly, but being of a breed with very thick fur he didn't seem to get much relief.)
It says on the Internet that others have also found yarrow of use for fleas, eg
https://fleaseason.com/homemade-organic-flea-powder-recipe-2/
However, I myself wonder how suitable the powder would be for cats. I have found diatomaceouus earth to be awfully messy and difficult to apply thoroughly; further, they probably would object to the smell of neem, and not stick around to be treated. If anyone gives it a go please report!
iridescent scintillating elver
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 01:21 pm (UTC)My cat might tolerate being lightly rubbed with an herb powder. I suspect he won't tolerate flea combing though it's worth a try.
I agree, "mosquito bucket of doom" sounds intriguing! Teresa, what is that?
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 07:10 pm (UTC)%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%%% The Mosquito Bucket of Doom %%%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
or, how to minimize mosquito reproduction in your yard!
At heart, the mosquito bucket of doom is a big bucket (Orange Home Depot buckets are excellent as supposedly, mosquitoes are attracted to the color) containing water, dead weeds, and >>>> this is CRITICAL >>>> a mosquito pond dunk which keeps the mosquito eggs from hatching. Dump the water and weeds and mosquito dunk every month without fail. Replace with fresh water, a new handful of weeds, and a fresh mosquito dunk.
Mosquitoes lay their eggs in this inviting, fetid pond and they never hatch.
Mosquito dunks are sold in garden centers for people with ornamental ponds to keep the skeeters down. You need a half dunk for a bucket so a package of six will give you 12 months of coverage. They're safe for expensive koi.
Jo Brichetto devised this method.
Here's the link to her website where she goes into detail:
https://sidewalknature.com/2022/05/08/mosquito-bucket-of-doom/
She's on Instagram and Facebook as well as posting regular updates about sidewalks, your neighborhood, and nature.
This will be our second full year with the bucket of doom. Has it helped? Yes, I'd say my skeeter count is lower, although it helped considerably more when the next door neighbor removed the decaying shower stall from behind his garage that was a mosquito plantation.
Like everything else, doom buckets take time to show their effects and you STILL must remove every other source of standing water that you can find. Mosquitoes can breed in a teacup of standing water.
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-04 03:45 am (UTC)Nom du jour: Beatrix Potter Fan Clun Prez
dump and dunk
Date: 2025-03-04 05:09 am (UTC)Well well, so many things you Transatlantics can get that we just don't merit here in the Antipodes!
Bacillus thuringiensis is only available in complicated fruit fly traps as far as I can tell and yet that mozzie dunk solution sounds to be totally miraculous for control of mosquitoes, with which practically every area is plagued. Of course there are toxic chemical larvicides on the market. Wouldn't it be frugal to culture your own bacteria for the pond? (hint) We can't even buy native fish to eat the larvae; virtually all the species in the pet market are imported. Woe betide the owner whose minnows escape into the nearby national park...
And linen - if it's not a luxury dress, shirt or see-through thin pair of pants then forget it. Practical garments? Excuse me while I stifle a macabre chcukle. The hours I have spent searching online for ordinary linen clothes and underwear would have been sufficient for me to learn to sew them myself... but to source the fabric, again forget it. $35+ per metre plus postage.
Mary, please don't mention socks without polyester: you'll make me cry. All right, I exaggerate - here they come with nylon, or polyester, or perhaps both.
iridescent scintillating elver
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 01:16 pm (UTC)There's plenty of animal diversity here. He's probably going to get up close and personal with all of it at some point. I know from personal experience that there are ticks in the yard : ( We have lots of "mosquito plantations" in the area too (thank you for the chuckle!), but they're the natural kind - marsh, forest pools, etc.
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-01 08:47 pm (UTC)Without meaning to be critical, I am surprised you haven't had problems with this diet. We used to feed our cats Iams decades ago. Then Iams was bought by a major conglomerate. We were losing every one of our cats early (i.e., younger than they should have been) due to kidney related problems. When we switched to a premium, locally-made brand of kibble, the kidney issues went away and our cats lived long, happy lives.
In contradiction to our own experience, my mother has always fed her cats grocery store quality food and has not experienced the kidney problems we did. Of course, all of her cats were free-range, indoor/outdoor cats. Ours, being city dwellers at the time, were indoors only. Perhaps, they were getting something outdoors to augment their diet?
Caldathras
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-02 07:14 pm (UTC)I vary which variety I use.
If I eventually notice an issue, I'll move up a notch.
I DO know that the cheaper the dry food, the more sawdust there is.
In the end, because we are poor (our health care is subsidized by the state of Pennsylvania and our children were on the free lunch program while in school), cost matters.
I can't buy organic raw chicken breasts for my cats when I sure can't afford them for us.
Re: Our four cats don't see the vet
Date: 2025-03-04 06:54 pm (UTC)Caldathras
Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 12:08 am (UTC)Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 03:21 am (UTC)Open pan in electric range.
Cast Iron with a lid on stovetop.
Toaster Oven with tray.
Pot on independent burner.
Crockpot. (Though this is the best for initial preparation.)
Your question suggests that you are not making your meals from individual ingredients. If I might make a suggestion, buy some lentils and rice out of the bulk bins and practice cooking them. It will save you more time, money, and health than ordering prepared food. But it does take effort to change a habit. Best of Will! -c.a.
Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 04:17 am (UTC)Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 04:46 am (UTC)Pizza, burgers*, burritos, potato products: heat in a dry skillet on the stove, covered with a lid. Adding a little bit of oil/grease to the pan first is optional. Once the bottom of the food starts to sizzle, turn it over/stir it if possible, turn off the heat and cover so that the heat can be distributed.
I’m assuming the burger is not already assembled in a bun. If it is, personally I would just eat it cold.
Pasta, dumplings: same as above but put a little water in the skillet instead and heat it before adding the food. Cover and let the steam heat and rehydrate the food.
The dry skillet foods can also be reheated in the oven, but it’s faster and more energy efficient to use the stovetop, unless you have a toaster oven or similar. The wet skillet items usually need to be covered if they’re heated in the oven, to keep from drying out.
Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 01:14 pm (UTC)The other advantage that heating up leftovers in a pan has is that you will have an opportunity to go beyond simply reheating, especially pasta. Add some fresh veg, garlic, maybe some peppers. Take another leftover, (chicken, pork, steak) heat it up, and add it to the mix. It is a good time to experiment if you like making up your own recipes, since you are only risking ruining leftovers (I follow P. J. O’Rourke’s first principle of bachelor cooking, “what ever happens; eat it.”) And fried rice is a great way to clean out the fridge for a Saturday lunch.
Like all specialty devices, the microwave limits your scope even as it presents you with so many options (reheat, defrost, popcorn)
C
Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 01:26 pm (UTC)Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 02:14 pm (UTC)Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 02:26 pm (UTC)Re: Heating food without a microwave oven
Date: 2025-03-01 09:10 pm (UTC)Frugal Friday (Jan 24th) (https://ecosophia.dreamwidth.org/313370.html?thread=53640730#cmt53640730)
Nice to know it would work. There were lots of other good ideas, so I've included a link.
Caldathras
Microwaving lefttovers
Date: 2025-03-01 03:35 am (UTC)I don't own a microwave either. When I reheat left over pizza, I do it stove top in my cast iron skillet. I cook everything in this skillet, in the oven or on stove-top except for tomato sauce and fish. So, all my left overs get heated up in my skillet. For tomato sauce based meals or fish, I still heat by stove top in a non stick frying pan, but not my cast iron.
Happy Heating :-)
Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 03:40 pm (UTC)There was far more liquid in the pan after cooking than before. It seemed oily, but not like liquid fat, more like a fatty broth that stayed liquid even when it was not hot enough to really burn fingers. But, when it had cooled fully, it became gelatinous at room temperature. I didn't know what to do with this substance so I [save your judgement here] threw it away. But there must be something to do with it. I don't know if what runs out of the chicken is mostly water (dilute and freeze as broth?) or mostly fat (render somehow to get the fat out?). Suggestions??
Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 07:29 pm (UTC)Sorry for the lack of clarity about rendering chicken fat, btw. Here's a more detailed description:
1) Scoop the fat off the top of the broth -- it normally forms a solid layer.
2) Put it into a saucepan half full of water.
3) Heat on medium until the fat has entirely melted. Stir thoroughly so that the fat and the water mingle as much as they ever will.
4) Take off the heat, cool, and refrigerate. The fat will now be much cleaner, as all the water-soluble protein and other stuff will be in the water.
5) Use the fat in cooking.
Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 09:20 pm (UTC)"1) Cool the broth (you may need to let it sit overnight in the fridge). The fat will rise to the top and solidify. Scoop the fat off the top of the broth."
This is the approach we used to remove the fat from stock when I worked in professional kitchens. It was faster And more efficient than trying to skim the liquid fat off while the stock was hot.
Caldathras
Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 11:05 pm (UTC)Thanks very much for the detail on the chicken fat, too. This is why the Weird of Hali Cookbook is one of my go-tos -- you explain things nicely for the incompetent. I make chili with beef that winds up, after a night in the fridge, with thin plaques of beef fat at the top. I just stir it in so it will melt in the microwave (I don't care what my arteries look like...) but perhaps it too could be rendered for cooking fat. I will experiment.
Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 11:15 pm (UTC)Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 09:38 pm (UTC)Congratulations, you just inadvertently made chicken stock! It's a shame you threw it away.
Like JMG said, it is likely highly concentrated, you might want to dilute it when you use it for whatever sauce or soup you wish to make.
Follow JMG's excellent instructions for recovering the fat. You will gain two items: the fat for rendering and the stock for soups & sauces. Makes excellent gravy and the gelatin in the "goo" is so good for you!
Unflavored stock like you made can also be given to cats and dogs (cats are allergic to onions and garlic). If you want to pump up the flavor next time, add mirepoix (2 parts onion, 1 part carrot and 1 part celery) when you cook the chicken.
Caldathras
Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-01 11:07 pm (UTC)Re: Soliciting advice on chicken goo
Date: 2025-03-02 07:36 pm (UTC)1) I would remove the mirepoix before shredding the meat off the bones. The mirepoix is usually cut larger for stock than you would cut it for a soup. -- makes it easier to remove.
2) Most of the flavour will be extracted from the veggies by the long cooking process. You'd likely find it quite mushy and bland. You could feed it to chickens or dogs, both would be happy to have it. Worst case, you could donate it to your compost.
3) If making a soup from the broth, I would suggest fresh mirepoix, cut smaller, along with the potatoes and lentils. The veggies won't be as overcooked that way.
4) Herbs and spices can also be added to the stock, the flavours of which will infuse into the meat while it braises. Just be careful what you choose, because it can limit the reuse options for your stock.
Caldathras
Chickens
Date: 2025-03-02 02:07 am (UTC)One more pitch for the value of generosity in living a frugal life. A large part of living frugally is cooperating with others. Share with others when you have too much, and you'll find a lot more people willing to help when you don't have enough. Of course, exercise some discretion on who the 'others' are; people who boast about free-riding on others will also free-ride you if you let them. But cooperating and being generous with people of good will is a big part of living frugally.
DIY furniture by Enzo Mari
Date: 2025-03-02 11:49 am (UTC)The Italian designer Enzo Mari once wrote a book of furniture designs were made entirely of wooden boards and 2x4 beams found in most hardware stores, and joined only with screws and nails. This seems a bit common now, but it was Enzo Mari who was one of the earliest to have pioneered and advertised this style of furniture.
If anyone wanted to get started with woodworking, but was unready for anything requiring joinery skills or tools fancier than a saw, hammer and nails, I would suggest that this book is a decent place to start.
I would warn though that not all of his designs are equal in style. His designs for the wardrobe and table are his best, but his bed designs seem a bit off to me, though style intriguing.
https://www.rootsimple.com/2020/12/enzo-maris-autoprogettazione/
https://self-assembly.org/sedia-1-chair/
J.L.Mc12
The Difference Between Stock and Broth
Date: 2025-03-02 08:40 pm (UTC)Well ... it's actually a pretty fine line, really.
From a commercial point of view, broth is a flavoured liquid that may contain some severely thinned-out stock, a lot of flavouring additives (some natural, some chemical) and is often high in salt(s). The so-called commercial stocks that have popped up recently are not much different (I've chilled them -- they don't contain much gelatin).
From a culinary point of view, broth is considered to be a simmered liquid flavoured from meat and veggies. Stock -- also sometimes called bone broth (just to confuse the issue) -- is a simmered liquid made from bones (preferably joints) and veggies. Stock tends to be richer in gelatin than broth.
Of course, that's where you hit the fine line in defining the difference. A simmered liquid made from both meat and bones could be a highly flavourful stock or a very rich broth.
In the end, it is relatively immaterial, as homemade stock or broth is so much more flavourful and good for you than most of the commercial products out there. Slow cookers make it so much easier to prepare stock too. There is no risk of scorching and less attendance is needed, although you may need to add water at some point during the simmering process.
When I make it, I portion it to meal-sizes and freeze it in freezer-grade Ziploc bags, removing as much air as possible and laying it flat (on a baking sheet until frozen) to maximize storage space. You could also use freezer jars (leaving enough head room for expansion) or, if you have a pressure canner, seal them up in canning jars and store at room temperature instead.
Caldathras
Brain dump of frugality tips
Date: 2025-03-03 03:39 am (UTC)Health
- Eat real food - this is a tricky one with frugality, but important for long term frugality, diabetes and other diseases are more expensive ultimately. Minimize sugar.
- Get plenty of exercise.
- Stay flexible to avoid injury. Practice good posture, and figure out what this means. Do yoga, joint exercises (I did and still do "knees over toes" after a knee injury), etc. Avoid sitting for long periods. I play fiddle and have focused on how to play without hurting myself - i.e. focused on minimizing tension.
- Don't consume stuff that's bad for you. I don't know for certain how bad these things are in themselves, but they cost money usually they or the products they come in have some kind of negative health impact, and I at least don't need them: sugar, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, any other drugs basically.
- Ruthlessly avoid unnecessary medication or medical interventions. I had doctors try to sell me on optional surgeries (nose surgery to fix deviated septum, and jaw surgery to 'correct' overbite) when I was younger which I'm glad I rejected even though I was not super confident about it at the time. The problems these surgeries were to correct were fixable without surgery. Similarly, doctors have several times suggested antibiotics to me when not truly necessary, or people have offered me painkillers for things like headaches that I could survive without them. I have never regretted not taking these things. Since those times, we've collectively learned much more about the harmful effects of antibiotics and painkillers like tylenol, ibuprofen etc.
- Figure out sleep - I had sleep apnea most of my life, I'd sleep 9 hours and feel tired still when I woke up and want an afternoon nap. Using a nose dilator and mouth tape I've been able to fix my nose breathing and now I can sleep 7.5 hours and wake well rested. It seems almost everyone I know has sleep apnea to some degree. CPAP machines can be great, but aren't necessarily cheap. I borrowed one once but didn't like it and now I don't need it.
- Ditch the glasses if you don't really need them. This only will apply to a few people but is very interesting to me. I had prescription glasses in my early 20s. I quit wearing them and started spending more time outside. Three years after this, my vision improved significantly to where I can see things in sharp detail, and it's been five years now with these better eyes, they still seem to be improving even. I haven't been to an eye doctor in 10 years. That's money saved. No guarantee this will happen for anyone in particular but it worked in my case. Obviously if you really need glasses to drive, wear the glasses to drive etc. But some people like me have glasses when they're not really necessary and I might not be the only one whose eyes could heal/improve on their own.
- Take care of your teeth! Brush and floss. Use natural tooth powder. Do not eat sugar. Rinse the mouth immediately after eating fruit or other sugary or acidic things. I know it's partly luck but not entirely so - that I had some cavities in my teens and early 20s, and I had a few cavities beginning to form around 10 years ago, but since then dentists have not found any cavities - i.e. the cavities that were starting to form must have unformed. !
Food
- Don't eat out if you don't have to. 99% of restaurant food has poor quality ingredients and is way more expensive. Bring healthy snacks in the car, and/or learn to go without food for a while so you're never stuck and forced to eat stuff you don't want to eat.
- Don't store vegetables or mushrooms in plastic containers or bags, they will go bad fast. Fresh food needs airflow to keep from spoiling.
- Store food unsealed - airflow is important for slowing down spoilage. If food is slowly drying out it will keep longer than food that is moist but sealed up.
- If food is going to go bad because it's been stored too long fresh, cook it - this resets the spoilage countdown. If you cook food thoroughly every 24 hours even without a fridge, it will never spoil. (Eventually it won't be appetizing but it's still food and safe to eat.) This is easy with soup, a little trickier with other things but still doable. If you have a fridge you can store food in it for ~4 days, then cook it to reset the clock and store it another 4 days. (If you haven't eaten it for some reason..) With these tips to prevent spoilage I almost never throw out food.
Technology
- Don't use subscription media services. Once upon a time I had amazon prime and netflix. That was around $25 a month I was spending. It's been 8+ years since I paid for a subscription like that, which is.. $2400 + compound interest in my bank account now. As an alternative to spotify I have a phone with an sd card and all my music in mp3s on it, which I can listen to with or without internet connection.
- Use an ad blocker. Firefox is better than chrome for this, other browsers like Brave might be even better I don't know. No idea how much this has saved by keeping me from seeing ads.
- Avoid or block social media feeds. These can trigger FOMO of things that cost money, and also of course include lots of ads. I don't have the strongest willpower so I use apps and firefox extensions to block social media feeds and also block those horrible short videos that are everywhere now.
Hygiene
- Don't use soap or shampoo. I use soap for cleaning my hands, and dish soap for washing dishes, that's it. I quit using shampoo in my hair 10 years ago, and after a month or two my hair smell stabilized, it doesn't smell like flowers, it smells like hair, but isn't bad. I could make it smell like flowers with essential oil or something else natural. Using just water on my body seems to be plenty to keep me clean and have healthy skin that doesn't smell bad. I use vinegar in the armpits when I need to kill a bad smell - it works instantly and the vinegar smell goes away after a half hour. When I used body soaps and shampoos I always stunk except right after a shower, and often had skin irritation and rashes. Now, I never have itchy / rashy / stinky skin. I simply wash in cold water every day, and once in a while take a hot shower or bath.
- Don't get a haircut. I used to get a $15 haircut every three months, until I quit ten years ago. I keep my hair tied in a knot and brush it out every few weeks which takes 15 minutes. This is $600 + compound interest in the bank now.
- Quit shaving. I used to have an electric shaver, I stopped using it 10 years ago and just have a beard. Once in a while I trim the unruly hairs with scissors, and I cut back the mustache every week or two which just takes a minute.
Clothing
- Use wool clothing as much as possible. Wool resists smelling bad much better than anything else. I do laundry once every month or two. I wear a cotton t shirt under my wool sweaters in winter, and change the t shirt and wash it, but the wool I very rarely wash. Wool underwear, at least as a man, can go weeks without smelling bad, particularly if you just rotate it. It wicks moisture so it doesn't stay wet from sweat. I spend an average of maybe $30 a year on wool underwear but save a lot on not having to do laundry.
- Any time I am in a thrift store I do a quick check for any wool sweaters, or jeans in my size. It takes some practice to learn to rapidly identify wool by look and feel in contrast to cotton, acrylic, etc. But once learned I can find the one wool shirt in a rack of 100 shirts in a minute, and it's often priced like everything else because the thrift store doesn't know better.
There are endless more aspects to living a rich, frugal life, to do with relationships, community, diy-ing things, choosing what kind of work to do, hobbies, etc, that deserve thought. These are just some of the very simple generic tips on things I've done in my day to day life that are less typical but have saved me lots of money and thus time that I have spent with loved ones and doing things I love.
Re: Brain dump of frugality tips
Date: 2025-03-03 02:48 pm (UTC)Re: Brain dump of frugality tips
Date: 2025-03-04 01:33 am (UTC)Re: Brain dump of frugality tips
Date: 2025-03-04 04:58 pm (UTC)Re: Brain dump of frugality tips
Date: 2025-03-03 03:48 pm (UTC)Fresh produce can be soaked in water with baking soda for longer shelf life and to deter fruit flies. Also, the soak is a way to reassure germaphobes that your garden produce won't poison them.
The best thing you can do to preserve health while grocery shopping is to READ LABELS. Mary Bennett
Sewing Machine needles on sale
Date: 2025-03-06 06:08 pm (UTC)A you tube sewist with years experience in the upscale garment making industry gives it as her opinion that you DO NOT have to discard machine needles after three garments, so long as the needles are not nicked or bent. Another reason to sew slowly and baste, not pin. It is much quicker to baste and sew slowly than to have to pick out a crooked seam and redo. Mary Bennett