I laughed when I saw your post- I do my grocery shopping at Safeway and did a similar thing last week- my total was $14, and I stacked the coupons with a similar promotion. And I got some good groceries! For the amount the 2 bottles of multivitamins should have cost [$14] I got the 2 multvitamins plus 6 bags of groceries. Great job! It sure feels good to get an amazing deal... I think I figured out I saved 85%.
I hate to share my little secret, but since I learned so much from all of you- if you look up in the right top corner of those red stickers, you'll find a teeny tiny number, 15, 30, 50, or 75. That's the percent off! Can't tell you how many times I've waited for that 30 to turn to a 50, then a seventy five! Don't bother reading the % off signs, just look at the little number!
Awesome - Fry's (aka Kroger) did a similar promotion not to long ago, and they were already having a great sale so I stocked up then. The following week, they had a bargin of a sale on Kellogg's Cereal, which I had 3 high value coupons for, and I ended up with 12 boxes of cereal for $0.40. Total! That's 3.333 cents a box!
absolutely agreed! I hate gift cards so much. My guy gave me a $25 AMC gift carda few months ago, we've already seen a movie together and now there's $5 left on it. That means we'll have to go back to see another movie to use up the money that's left on it. Usually we just rent DVDs, so it's kind of annoying...
I actually started a blog of gift ideas called "Die, Gift Cards, Die" to give people ideas for gifts (in the $25, $50 and $75 price range) instead of resorting to gift cards.
Price scanners do not show a ballpark figure. This is illegal. Also, no secret sales, just price change team not on best practice. That and the price on the register will not change until 12:00 am, due to the fact that no stores are open at that time. Most stores are 8-10 through the week, although there are perhaps 10 in the company with odd hours because of local laws.
To last comment if your ahead so much then pay my bills. I'm tired of watching you people buy crap you dont need. When people like me work hard and just make too much for food stamps and watch all those lazy ass people who dont work get everything from the state. The money i get back all goes right to bills,and to think i was in the navy and helped the worlds probblems when we should work on our own probblems in our own country.
Despite their advice, if I spotted a counterfeit before I accepted it, I'd refuse it and ask for good money. Otherwise, you're pretty much stuck--it'd be a crime to pass it, and the police aren't going to give you good money for it when they take it away. A local business might reimburse you, if you could convince them that their clerk had really given you a counterfeit, but it would be pretty tough to prove that the counterfeit had come from them.
My fridge is full. My freezer is full. My fridge freezer is full. I have a pantry we bought at the department store, and it is full, and the top is loaded, and there's a bag of canned goods on the table. Several bags hang from my kitchen rack.
I have too many bottles of shampoo, but I also have plans to pick up more because my brand is on sale, cheaper than I've seen it in two or three years.
Very slowly, I'm starting to accept that I can let our stock dwindle some. I don't really need more than six cans of mandarin orange pieces, ever, and if I can organize better I will know for sure how many I do have. I don't need to buy tomato soup anymore since we don't actually eat it no matter how good an idea it'd be. :P
If there's a good thing, it's that I don't have to throw out much, and if my husband doesn't manage to find time to take me grocery shopping, we're good for probably two or three weeks (ok, who am I kidding... months), except for perishables.
But I see that I need an addition to my grocery list. There's the sales items, there's the things we need - I have to add a new category. "Don't Buy these because I already have too many!"
First off, I write this from a family of two, living happily but without savings on less than $17K a year after tax.
From my point of view this article is both correct and very ignorant. I understand completely the feeling of your lifestyle not being on par with the lifestyle expected of a six figure income. I do not understand this from personal experience, but I do understand it from knowledge of the human psyche.
Now, as have already been pointed out in a previous comment, you are seeing this from the completely wrong perspective. The expected six figure lifestyle does NOT include savings, pension fund, emergency funds, and so on. And it especially does not include charity. Instead it includes spending as much money as possible on appearances, big tv, fancy clothes, new cars.
Your six figure lifestyle centers around saving for the future, for the unexpected, and giving to charity. Ironically this means you live less today. Simply put, your choices have put you where you are, and if you want the six figure lifestyle of popular belief then it is as easy as just re-prioritizing.
I just found this blog today, and I thought I would look around because it talks about 'living large on a small budget', and 'frugal living'. You on the other hand speak about 'living small on a large budget'. I can understand your problem, but I laugh at the concept of finding this article on this site.
I've been traveling to Thailand for the last 5 years and have learnt a lot about haggling too.
I find the best way to know how good a deal you're getting is if they're really annoyed with you. The more annoyed they are the more you know you're not getting as ripped off as the last bloke.
Also just walk away you'll soon find them chasing after you giving you an even better discount! They just wanted to find out if they could get more money out of you as soon as they know you mean business they won't want to let you go.
This apartment in a box might work for kids between 10 and 15 or so, but considering the materials and construction these things would break if an adult used them as a replacement for real furniture. It is a cool idea, but it just isn't workable with normal everyday use. And the market for an apartment in a box, only to be used temporarily, is rather slim. Maybe a moving away from home present from parents to cheap to give their kid the furniture in their old room?
Hi,
I completely "got" your point.
My husband and I, according to our 2006 tax forms, made $84,000 that year. I believed I was frugal (and by most peoples' standards, I really was). I shopped second-hand, we ate at home, did not have premium cable, etc. When we saw that number, though, we both looked at each other because "where in the heck did it all go?" And you know what, if you do what all of the "experts" tell you to do--put aside 10% for retirement, buy life insurance, set aside some for the kid's future, etc., well, that's what you get, I guess.
What happened to us was, my husband became ill and suddenly was not able to work any more. Our income went from $84,000 to about $40,000, with me working two jobs. I thought I had been frugal. But there are so many ways you can cut back when you have to. We are getting by, in no danger of losing the house, car, etc., but absolutely no wiggle room, because even though our income went way down, our bills didn't. That $40,000 a year is hard to come by in my area, and very hard to hang on to. We have a very modest 2-bedroom house, we pay $950/month for our mortgage on that, which was tiny when we were both working, but when there's just one of us, it seems huge. Our grocery bill (family of 3) is supplemented by venison and fish, our chickens and ducks, and our garden. Sometimes I think about that $84,000 a year and how frugal I've become now, and I think about how rich I would feel with that extra money now....when I thought things were tight then!
The really sad thing is, and this is what ties into your post, my dad worked for the same company for 25 years before he passed away. When he passed, I saw his last paycheck (in 1988), he made $49,000 a year. On that money, he supported my mom, me, my brother, a cat and a dog, in a house that was much nicer than what I live in now. We had cable TV, we had a new car. We never shopped second-hand. We didn't buy "generic" groceries, because my mom didn't really like them. But we weren't hurting at all. There was no struggle from paycheck to paycheck, like there is right now with my family. And people look at a family of 4 that makes $49,000 as nearly poverty-level these days. But back then, it was plenty of money for everything that a family needed, without having to make tough choices. When you put things into this kind of perspective, it's easy to see why a 6-figure income doesn't go as far as you would think.
Please don't go around haggling people for things they can't provide. Nothing blows my nerves when a customer tries to haggle a price set in stone - like in a restaurant setting.
I laughed when I saw your post- I do my grocery shopping at Safeway and did a similar thing last week- my total was $14, and I stacked the coupons with a similar promotion. And I got some good groceries! For the amount the 2 bottles of multivitamins should have cost [$14] I got the 2 multvitamins plus 6 bags of groceries. Great job! It sure feels good to get an amazing deal... I think I figured out I saved 85%.
What a coup! I HAD to link to this in Funny's Sunday round-up. Thanks for the great story.
Most of your posts are a little too technical or just not applicable to me, but this one was very useful! Thanks!
I hate to share my little secret, but since I learned so much from all of you- if you look up in the right top corner of those red stickers, you'll find a teeny tiny number, 15, 30, 50, or 75. That's the percent off! Can't tell you how many times I've waited for that 30 to turn to a 50, then a seventy five! Don't bother reading the % off signs, just look at the little number!
Not only do I love that you shopped smart, but you:
a) played by the rules (one per store per day)
b) bought stuff you would use (thus preventing waste or clutter.)
I wish we had more than one grocery store in a 30 mile radius!! Great article!!
Awesome - Fry's (aka Kroger) did a similar promotion not to long ago, and they were already having a great sale so I stocked up then. The following week, they had a bargin of a sale on Kellogg's Cereal, which I had 3 high value coupons for, and I ended up with 12 boxes of cereal for $0.40. Total! That's 3.333 cents a box!
The three Safeways are just on the way home on the same road. Also, the coupon says one use per store visit per day.
why do you feel the need to go to different stores if you don't think you're doing anything wrong?
absolutely agreed! I hate gift cards so much. My guy gave me a $25 AMC gift carda few months ago, we've already seen a movie together and now there's $5 left on it. That means we'll have to go back to see another movie to use up the money that's left on it. Usually we just rent DVDs, so it's kind of annoying...
I actually started a blog of gift ideas called "Die, Gift Cards, Die" to give people ideas for gifts (in the $25, $50 and $75 price range) instead of resorting to gift cards.
check it out here: http://diegiftcardsdie.blogspot.com
I think that there are many of us who would love to hear more from you. Do you contribute over at the forums? It's a great group!
Price scanners do not show a ballpark figure. This is illegal. Also, no secret sales, just price change team not on best practice. That and the price on the register will not change until 12:00 am, due to the fact that no stores are open at that time. Most stores are 8-10 through the week, although there are perhaps 10 in the company with odd hours because of local laws.
To last comment if your ahead so much then pay my bills. I'm tired of watching you people buy crap you dont need. When people like me work hard and just make too much for food stamps and watch all those lazy ass people who dont work get everything from the state. The money i get back all goes right to bills,and to think i was in the navy and helped the worlds probblems when we should work on our own probblems in our own country.
The Secret Service has a page on what to do if you get a counterfeit bill.
Despite their advice, if I spotted a counterfeit before I accepted it, I'd refuse it and ask for good money. Otherwise, you're pretty much stuck--it'd be a crime to pass it, and the police aren't going to give you good money for it when they take it away. A local business might reimburse you, if you could convince them that their clerk had really given you a counterfeit, but it would be pretty tough to prove that the counterfeit had come from them.
I signed up to this offer over 6 months ago and have still not received my free book............
I signed up to this offer over 6 months ago and have still not received my free book............
When you get a counterfeit five from local store what do you do and should you reprot it and to who?
My fridge is full. My freezer is full. My fridge freezer is full. I have a pantry we bought at the department store, and it is full, and the top is loaded, and there's a bag of canned goods on the table. Several bags hang from my kitchen rack.
I have too many bottles of shampoo, but I also have plans to pick up more because my brand is on sale, cheaper than I've seen it in two or three years.
Very slowly, I'm starting to accept that I can let our stock dwindle some. I don't really need more than six cans of mandarin orange pieces, ever, and if I can organize better I will know for sure how many I do have. I don't need to buy tomato soup anymore since we don't actually eat it no matter how good an idea it'd be. :P
If there's a good thing, it's that I don't have to throw out much, and if my husband doesn't manage to find time to take me grocery shopping, we're good for probably two or three weeks (ok, who am I kidding... months), except for perishables.
But I see that I need an addition to my grocery list. There's the sales items, there's the things we need - I have to add a new category. "Don't Buy these because I already have too many!"
Hello.
First off, I write this from a family of two, living happily but without savings on less than $17K a year after tax.
From my point of view this article is both correct and very ignorant. I understand completely the feeling of your lifestyle not being on par with the lifestyle expected of a six figure income. I do not understand this from personal experience, but I do understand it from knowledge of the human psyche.
Now, as have already been pointed out in a previous comment, you are seeing this from the completely wrong perspective. The expected six figure lifestyle does NOT include savings, pension fund, emergency funds, and so on. And it especially does not include charity. Instead it includes spending as much money as possible on appearances, big tv, fancy clothes, new cars.
Your six figure lifestyle centers around saving for the future, for the unexpected, and giving to charity. Ironically this means you live less today. Simply put, your choices have put you where you are, and if you want the six figure lifestyle of popular belief then it is as easy as just re-prioritizing.
I just found this blog today, and I thought I would look around because it talks about 'living large on a small budget', and 'frugal living'. You on the other hand speak about 'living small on a large budget'. I can understand your problem, but I laugh at the concept of finding this article on this site.
I've been traveling to Thailand for the last 5 years and have learnt a lot about haggling too.
I find the best way to know how good a deal you're getting is if they're really annoyed with you. The more annoyed they are the more you know you're not getting as ripped off as the last bloke.
Also just walk away you'll soon find them chasing after you giving you an even better discount! They just wanted to find out if they could get more money out of you as soon as they know you mean business they won't want to let you go.
Fountain Pens and Books....sigh....
I raid Ebay looking for certain pens but for books...well Hamilton Books for steep discounts and I always try to find them used before I buy new.
~ R
The taller person can block the water for the shorter one with their body, or adjust the height of the water spray when you're using it.
The taller person can block the water for the shorter one with their body, or adjust the height of the water spray when you're using it.
This apartment in a box might work for kids between 10 and 15 or so, but considering the materials and construction these things would break if an adult used them as a replacement for real furniture. It is a cool idea, but it just isn't workable with normal everyday use. And the market for an apartment in a box, only to be used temporarily, is rather slim. Maybe a moving away from home present from parents to cheap to give their kid the furniture in their old room?
Hi,
I completely "got" your point.
My husband and I, according to our 2006 tax forms, made $84,000 that year. I believed I was frugal (and by most peoples' standards, I really was). I shopped second-hand, we ate at home, did not have premium cable, etc. When we saw that number, though, we both looked at each other because "where in the heck did it all go?" And you know what, if you do what all of the "experts" tell you to do--put aside 10% for retirement, buy life insurance, set aside some for the kid's future, etc., well, that's what you get, I guess.
What happened to us was, my husband became ill and suddenly was not able to work any more. Our income went from $84,000 to about $40,000, with me working two jobs. I thought I had been frugal. But there are so many ways you can cut back when you have to. We are getting by, in no danger of losing the house, car, etc., but absolutely no wiggle room, because even though our income went way down, our bills didn't. That $40,000 a year is hard to come by in my area, and very hard to hang on to. We have a very modest 2-bedroom house, we pay $950/month for our mortgage on that, which was tiny when we were both working, but when there's just one of us, it seems huge. Our grocery bill (family of 3) is supplemented by venison and fish, our chickens and ducks, and our garden. Sometimes I think about that $84,000 a year and how frugal I've become now, and I think about how rich I would feel with that extra money now....when I thought things were tight then!
The really sad thing is, and this is what ties into your post, my dad worked for the same company for 25 years before he passed away. When he passed, I saw his last paycheck (in 1988), he made $49,000 a year. On that money, he supported my mom, me, my brother, a cat and a dog, in a house that was much nicer than what I live in now. We had cable TV, we had a new car. We never shopped second-hand. We didn't buy "generic" groceries, because my mom didn't really like them. But we weren't hurting at all. There was no struggle from paycheck to paycheck, like there is right now with my family. And people look at a family of 4 that makes $49,000 as nearly poverty-level these days. But back then, it was plenty of money for everything that a family needed, without having to make tough choices. When you put things into this kind of perspective, it's easy to see why a 6-figure income doesn't go as far as you would think.
Please don't go around haggling people for things they can't provide. Nothing blows my nerves when a customer tries to haggle a price set in stone - like in a restaurant setting.