Americans are going through tough times right now but even before the weak economy began, my personal financial situation spiraled downward. I was living in Michigan, where the demise of the automakers caused thousands upon thousands of job losses. Those losses then affected any related businesses in the state and pretty soon I was out of work, my spouse was cut to part-time and we were stuck with a home we couldn't afford, or even sell, because of the poor real estate market.
That's when I mastered the art of being cheap. It was what I had to do for financial survival. And now that times are starting to get better for me, I still stand behind these money-saving practices. Does that mean I am a cheapskate? You tell me.
I don't eat out unless it's a 2-for-1 deal. I use coupons from the Entertainment Book or local offers that come in the postal mail. Many restaurants allow you to register your email address on their websites to get e-coupons sent to you. When I do eat out, I like to order water. A soft drink at a restaurant like Chili's is commonly $2.00-$3.00 plus tax and tip. It's not worth it. Think about how much soft drinks for 2-4 people cost. At $2.50 a piece, 4 drinks total $10.00 plus tax and a minimum $1.50 tip. You're looking at over 12-bucks for non-alcoholic drinks. When my daughter was small I took a sippy cup or juice box for her whenever I went out to eat. I refuse to pay even $1 (plus tax and tip) for a toddler's drink when typically the child will take about two sips of it.
I rehea
t my Starbucks latte for the next day. I thoroughly enjoy a fine espresso beverage so I don't mind paying $4 for it a couple times a week but what I do mind is paying $3.50 for a tall (small) size when I could pay $4.25 for the Venti (huge) which is twice as big. Think about it…let's say your going to go to Starbucks 2 days in a row for a tall drink: 2 talls = $7.00, 1 Venti equals $4.25. As with most things, you get a better value out of a larger size. I started buying the Venti and making it last two days. Surprisingly, these milk-based espresso drinks, like latte, cappuccino and mocha, taste fine if you put them in the refrigerator overnight. I've done this for years. I'm always excited the second day when I already have the drink in my fridge and just have to put it in a coffee mug and pop it in the microwave.
I bring my own cream cheese. Why is it that bagel shops commonly charge $1 for a bagel and another $1.20 for the small amount of cream cheese topping? When my family picks up bagels from Einstein Bagels or Panera Bread, I bring our own cream cheese. I put it on in the car and we eat the bagels while we drive somewhere or go back home. It cuts the cost of our breakfast in half.
I play the prescription transfer game. If you watch your mailbox or the bottom of your receipts from drugstores like CVS or Walgreens, you'll commonly see offers where you can get a $25 gift card for transferring a prescription or bringing in a new prescription. There is a bit of a hassle going to a new drugstore and giving them your prescription and insurance information but it's worth about 10-minutes of your time for $25 in goods. Kroger recently ran a promotion where you could get a $20 gift card for each of your next 3 prescriptions. I took 3 and got $60 in free groceries that month.
I 'ride' gasoline prices. During the past few months especially, gas prices have been fluctuating like crazy. When you hear the price per barrel of oil has dropped, that means in a week or so the price at your local gas station will be lower. I use this information to my advantage. If I know gas prices are going up, I fill up my whole tank as soon as possible. If I know prices are falling, I fill up about half a tank and wait. Many times gas is 10 to 20-cents less when I return for my other half tank. It may not be much but even if it's a dollar a two a week, I'm happy.
I refill my pill bottles at home. I buy the hugest possible size of Ibuprofen (generic for Advil) or Acetometaphin (generic for Tylenol) and keep it at home. I then have a tiny size bottle for my purse. I use the huge bottle to refill my purse-size bottle throughout the year. Here's why...
A small bottle of Ibuprofen, say 50 tabs, costs about $5. An enormous bottle with 500 tablets costs $20. So if you buy the small size you would spend $50 by the time you purchase 500 tablets (10 x $5).
Saving just a few dollars here and there really adds up. If you do it long enough you might have enough money for some
new clothes or even a
Caribbean vacation.
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