Just curious who else is living super frugal

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
so true... You have to budget in the occasional video or book or drive for a picnic... me I am a videophile... I am also a painter and crafter...occasionally.

deb

 

[WindyHillFarm]

Just came home with a box of nectarines and peaches from the local food bank. When I cut into them they are very dark, like they were frozen in shipping ( probably why the food bank got them). Most are rock hard and need to ripen. Advice? Opinions? I tasted one and it tastes fine. Can I still bake with them? Can them? Or just feed to the chickens?

You can probably bake with them, freeze them, can them, make jam with them, and feed some of the scraps to the chickens! I'd say try a little slice of each one as you're working on them to make sure it tastes ok.

 

[KentuckyMom]

You can probably bake with them, freeze them, can them, make jam with them, and feed some of the scraps to the chickens! I'd say try a little slice of each one as you're working on them to make sure it tastes ok.

I made peach cobbler and we ate quite a few of the peaches, but a lot of the nectarines went to the chickens ( who then gave us eggs...) My sons would cut a slice out of one and then we'd decide based on color whether to eat it or not.. Most were dark brown inside and NOT good for eating!

 

[WindyHillFarm]

Good thing you have chickens! Glad you were able to enjoy some of them yourself too.

 

[DennisK]

I live frugal. Not super frugal, but I don't live a life of luxury. I guess for 1, it is not my personality nor my husband. I have a nice car because it gives me peace of mind knowing I wont be pumping gas into "surprise" repairs. I make a car payment anyways so Id rather just have the payment minus all the extra surprises. I don't have any kids, so we budget about $50-$75 in groceries each week. I definitely need to get better at budgeting. Any suggestions?

I am old; so my life is more settled and predictable, but even so, emergencies and unexpected needs always seem to pop-up. I think the younger you are, the less predictable your life is, and this will lay havoc on most budgets. What I found that helps my budget survive those unexpected expenses was a separate sum of money from which I can borrow. In essence, you become your own bank. Say, you start out with $300 – that is your personal credit rating, and you can only borrow $300. Add to that fund, and your personal credit rating increases. Now, you can borrow more. When you grow your account to the point that you cannot repay that sum during the next month, put a limit on your ability to borrow. You can even charge yourself interest on the sum you do borrow. Keep growing your account because some emergencies can be very expensive, but hopefully you can keep that balance no lower than your personal credit limit.
Treat your credit card like the disease infested parasite it is. But be aware that banks hate people who do not borrow money from their institutions. My real world credit rating is quite poor simply because I haven't borrowed their money for more than a decade. At my age, I really don't need it, but you may want to tickle your card, now and then, just to keep them hoping and your rating high.
I fond that computer finance applications on the market cannot apply to the way I live my life; so I became proficient in a spreadsheet language, which I use to build my own budget tracker. Microsoft's Excel is expensive, but Apache Open Office can be downloaded for free and it does pretty much the same as Excel.

 

[lazy gardener]

I use a credit card to track expenses. Almost everything we buy goes on the card, but it is paid in full every month. Do we spend more this way? Hard to tell. When I go over a statement at the end of the month, there's the occasional meal out. But, we'd do the same if we paid cash. Almost all of our expenses are medical, gas, and food. Very little else.

I'd recommend to any one who is interested in becoming debt free: Take a look at the educational programs offered by Dave Ramsey. He offers a systematic approach to financial discipline and debt reduction.

 

[Beekissed]

I haven't had a credit card since the late 80s.

 

[donrae]

LG, why does it not surprise me you're a Dave fan? Financial Peace helped us so much. When I was first diagnosed, we were not only debt free but the house, we had about 5 months expenses saved. Had I gotten sick a few years earlier, with no savings and a big debt load, we'd sure have been up a creek. I use myself as an example to challenge folks about their financial management.

"What would happen to you if your primary wage earner was diagnosed with leukemia, told they had to go 250 miles away for treatment and plan on the first hospitalization to last at least a month....and don't plan on being able to work for at least a year. "

I get some odd looks, but a few folks have taken his class cause of that.

 

[perchie.girl]

I have a debit mastercard. it pays cash only ... the master card part is in case I have to reserve a motel to go visit family.

If I dont have the money in the account I cant buy the widget I wanted.

I use it to pay my utilities online...

thats it.

deb

 

[Beekissed]

That's what I have too...just backed up by what I have in the bank.