Just curious who else is living super frugal

[mickey328]

Congrats, and good for you, MS!! We did that a couple of years ago, and I did miss a few shows...for a little bit. But as you said, we have the internet. We also went with Netflix for $10/mo which let us order CD's and watch lots of stuff on the computer. My brother moved in with us a few months ago and just couldn't go "cold turkey" though, so we got it back just for him. Since it's here, I watch it but he's moving on again the end of July and we'll drop it again then. Ours is split just about 54 for cable and 60 for internet...I like the idea of being able to cut that bill by 50%.

 

[ScottnLydia]

We've been completely without the T.V. (cable/broadcast) for 3 years. I SO don't miss it! I love the constant quiet we have, not the constant barrage of jabber like at my daughters house. I realized that for every minute of program watched, there seems to be 2 to 3 times as much ads. BLAH!!!

Netflix for me, watch what I want, when I want. Library has movies too to fill in between shipping days.

Otherwise, I listen to Ravel or Vaughn-Williams to relax, or Bach or Rachmaninoff for motivation.

 

[In His Service]

We have also been without TV for 4 years or more. The kids never even missed it. We order movies from the library if they don't have something we want to watch on the shelves. We play some video games together and read books, I am usually reading at least 2 books - one that my 15 yo DS is also reading and one that my 13 yo DD is reading. We still play board games, too. We can't have just the cell phone yet as we don't get decent service at our house

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[MoonShadows]

I do have a Roku Box that allows me to stream things to my TV via the internet. I was looking through the channel selection this morning. A lot of channels charge a fee, but there are some that are absolutly free. I love travel shows and there is a channel totally devoted to travel....over 1000 travel videos. I hope some are with Rick Steeves, my favorite. My other half has a great pick of cooking channels and shows that are free as well. And, you can find channels with old movies and TV shows for free when you need a "fix". Besides the money I am going to save, I did it because I was starting to feel I was being "poisoned" by all the inane nonsense and depressing news. I will miss watching Bill O'Reilly and the O'Reilly Factor, but I can get the previous evening's highlights on the internet.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I do have a Roku Box that allows me to stream things to my TV via the internet. I was looking through the channel selection this morning. A lot of channels charge a fee, but there are some that are absolutly free. I love travel shows and there is a channel totally devoted to travel....over 1000 travel videos. I hope some are with Rick Steeves, my favorite. My other half has a great pick of cooking channels and shows that are free as well. And, you can find channels with old movies and TV shows for free when you need a "fix". Besides the money I am going to save, I did it because I was starting to feel I was being "poisoned" by all the inane nonsense and depressing news. I will miss watching Bill O'Reilly and the O'Reilly Factor, but I can get the previous evening's highlights on the internet.

We have a roku too and don't have satellite anymore (dish). We also subscribe to Netflix, which we access on the roku. Also amazon's streaming and hulu. We are still saving money, even with 3 subscriptions!

 

[Peep_Show]

We dropped cable TV a couple of years ago. I had had a job (I'm a deposition reporter working part-time) of one of the Real Housewives of Orange County and I had no clue who she was and so thought I'd catch a couple of episodes....which turned into a major time sinkhole and a realization that there's better things to spend your time on in life than THIS. So we dropped down to basic cable/antenna mode with the caveat that we resubscribe for one week only per year: Shark Week. (Our cable company lets us do this) Husband isn't a sports fan and there's only so many cooking shows I can stomach before I scream "Uncle!".... I mean, really, do we *need* 7 shows about cakes?

Then we pared down our Netflix subscription which was the 4 disks at a time one....mainly because in the desert during the summer there isn't much to do and, ergo, movie watching. So I found another diversion for the summer which was jam/jelly concocting. We're at 1 disk subscription level and we use that for TV series that we don't get on cable anymore: Dexter, Justified, etc.

Do we miss it? Nahhhhh.... And I can hardly wait until we move back to a more temperate climate so I can spend extraneous time veggie gardening, tending an orchard, raising chickens and goats, which I've done before and which is Nirvana for me. (Schedule launch date for that is under two years with our present financial plan). Being frugal, admittedly, is easier when there's a tangible goal. A lot of my coworkers are big into wardrobe. Me? I realize that in my line of work I don't see the same clients day after day and so I don't need multiple outfits. I have one black skirt that's my staple wardrobe item and lots of mix and match vs. owning several suits. I cannot tell you how many years this has carried me. Too, I don't go and buy new equipment every year. It wasn't until last year that I finally gave up my Windows 95 computer! (Honest truth, the thing NEVER crashed...but I needed a few new applications in technology and more ummph for business and so I had to phase it out.)

Both husband and I have lived at poverty level before and so appreciate the value of the bare basics. And we're both extraordinarily frugal. Yes, it IS a lifestyle choice....and, really, one without much sacrifice if that's what you're comfortable doing.

 

[weezilgirl]

I am single and live alone. My coffeemaker is old didn't make a good brew. Years ago, another lifetime, I had a nifty little coffee cup that had a brass screen in a thingy that sat on the cup. Since I only drink one cup a day, it worked beautifully. I've thought of it longingly since then. I found one made by a fancy coffee company and it was almost $10.00. I don't have kind of money. So, I brainstormed and here is what I came up with.. I bought one of those screen things that you put in your sink to catch food when you empty your dishpan. I already had the filters for the old maker. I heat water to boiling in my microwave, put screen thing over a jar with a filter in it and put in one healthy teaspoon of coffee. I pour the boiling water over it and catch the coffee in the jar. When I've poured the water through, I pour the DELICIOUS coffee into my favorite porcelain cup and enjoy. The sinky thingy was $1.00.

 

[mickey328]

We recently bought a single cup coffee maker. It was originally designed for use with those K cups, but who can afford those?? Besides, we're pretty basic in our coffee preference...we like Columbian, black, in a cup. LOL The reason we went with the one we did was that it also allows you to just use regular grind coffee. I found the permanent filter basket that came with it let a little too many dregs through so we found a mesh one that fits inside it and snaps closed. Takes less than 2 minutes to a fresh 10 oz cup.

 

[DragonRider]

Believe it or not, I have become an expert at finding printable coupons on the internet now!

 

[mickey328]

That's awesome! I use a few, but since the stores in this area never double, most of the time I can get generic or store brands for less the the name brands even with a coupon. There are a few brand names I'm loyal to and will always use a coupon for them, but it just seems that 99.9% of the coupons I find are for things that I either don't use or are still more pricey Sure glad it's working for you...love hearing anyone find a way to save $$