[Win $250 giftcard] Are you cutting your budget?

[Lynn]

Scott Products is giving one lucky Wise Bread reader a $250 Visa gift card!

To enter:

Between now and 11/23/08, make a post in this forum thread and answer the simple question: Are you cutting back on spending?

If the answer is yes, we would love to know which items you are thinking of cutting. If the answer is no, please keep the gloating to a minimum.

We will randomly pick one lucky winner on 11/24/08. You must be a U.S. resident and be 18 years or older to participate
Scott's Dollar & Sense website

This giveaway is part of Scott's promotion of Dollar & Sense -- A website where readers can get stuff like

• Tips about personal finance and frugal living.

• Savings calculator

• Personal gift certificate generator

• Trip cost calculator and fuel efficiency quiz

Good luck everyone.

[aeperru]

I'm a grad student in San Diego - not a cheap place to live, or a wealthy existence. I've had to tighten my belt significantly since some of my investments tanked, and because the state of California has cut education budgeting, so my job as a Graduate Teaching Assistant pays me a measly $3 an hour now (I'm "salaried" so they're allowed to do that).

Times are tough, but I'm limiting my spending on going out, trying to carpool whenever possible, making and bringing lunch from home, and working out at home (which allowed me to cancel my gym membership). I could really use a $250 gift card, and hope you'll think kindly on this poor starving student when you're making your decision.

BTW, love the blog. Read it every day!

[breckrider]

I've started riding my motorcycle to work instead of taking my truck. I get 50 miles to the gallon on the bike opposed to 17 in the truck. The family used to eat out once a week. We've cut that back to once a month. We've always been frugal when grocery shopping so not much we can cut back there except that we are buying from our local produce store in bulk. If you ask for the boxes of culled fruit, you can get great bargains but you have to be prepared to do some work right away before the fruit and vegetables go bad and become unusable. Last time we did this, we got about 40 lbs of produce for $7.50. You just have to ask. We don't do Starbucks or any other coffee shop so nothing to cut back there.

Our biggest cutback is on gasoline and eating out. I don't know what we're going to do this winter to keep the house warm.

[JTeamMom]

As a family of seven, we are becoming more aware of our budget, or rather our lack of one. We will have an official budget in place by the end of the year. I do think Christmas spending this year will be down. Needless to say, a $250 giftcard would be great!

[houchin]

Yes, we're cutting back. We're slowing down some home improvement projects, but mainly just trying to be more deliberate about what we do and do not spend money on.

[FunnyAboutMoney]

I'd thought I was doing pretty well at living within my means, but the past few months I seem to be running the budget into the red without a lot of extra spending. Four lunches out and one $170 extraordinary expense meant I had to spend the last week of this budget cycle pinching pennies. I guess costs have risen enough that the amounts I have budgeted for daily living expenses no longer cut the mustard. Since we're sure not about to get a raise anytime soon down at the shop, it looks like the only thing I can do is figure out how to cut another $200 or $300...starting with no more eating out, period.

[SammyD1st]

Nope. My wife and I have both worked really hard to get our secure jobs, and our paychecks aren't going down. The economy may be scary to plenty of folks, but its not the only factor.

I suspect that answer ain't going to win me the giftcard though.

- Sam D.

[puterrocker]

yes, we are cutting back. Lowering the thermostat, closing rooms we do no use, searching for lowest prices on gas, eating at home more, using coupons where ever possible and buying store brands.

[judzillah]

Yes, we're planning our wedding for next year and needless to say, weddings are expensive! We've canceled our cable and YMCA membership, are cooking dinner at home more, and I've been riding my bike to work more often.

[Fianna]

I am not cutting back, although I believe I should. I am stocking up on food before inflation begins, clothing while it is on clearance. I plan on buying stocks in the coming months. The only thing I want to cut is money spent eating out. I haven't succeeded at that just yet...