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My big fat cheap life

October 9th, 2008, 8:23 am · 5 Comments · posted by Cindy McNatt

Suddenly, excess is so six months ago…

Gourmet kitchen with six-burner stove? If only that six figure sum were in the bank!

Your Louboutin shoe collection, you realize now, could feed your family for a year.

And the Gulf Stream motor home that you had to have is looking more like a place to live than an object of play.

The problem with living the high life for so long is that many of us haven’t clue how to cut back. The money tree is bare, job prospects look dreary and penny-pinching is what we did in the way-old days.

Jeff Yeager, the Ultimate Cheapskate says living the cheap life takes practice. Try this he says: Go one full day without spending. Not a cent, not even a Starbucks. You can do it — you’ll pack a lunch for work, ride your bike to the beach, rent movies at the public library, make popcorn at home.

Yeager calls it fiscal fasting, but you can call it green because living with less is good for the environment.

So how do you do it - save money during the meltdown? I’ll come up with money saving tips each week, you tell me how you survive. Click comments below.

Seriously, we want to know.

Talking cheap at the grocery store:

  • Stop buying paper products. No paper towels, no paper napkins, no paper plates or cups. Use terry cloth or microfiber towels to clean up and cloth napkins that you launder each week.
  • Don’t buy bottled water. Do the math, you may be spending more for bottled water per gallon than you spend to fuel your car. Filter and store your own tap water (virtually free) in the refrigerator.
  • Yeager’s handy grocery tip: He doesn’t buy anything that costs over a $1a pound. That’s a challenge, but an interesting one. When you’re cutting back you should cook and then cooking becomes your new pastime. Use leftovers at lunch, they taste better than cafeteria fare anyway.
  • Don’t pay for packaging. Buy cereal in bags, not boxes. Buy bulk snack items, not those wrapped in individual servings sizes.
  • Use coupons. I know, you’ve been stuck behind the coupon queen too many times. But watch “Coupon Mom” Stephanie Nelson save 81 percent on her grocery bill. In this video she pays $23 for $117 worth of groceries. (It makes you feel dumb for doing it otherwise). Click the arrow twice to start video.

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 5 Comments

  • COOKIE says:
    October 9, 2008 at 9:41 am

    You are right on!! Cooking at home saves a ton of money and when we do get a night out and my husband says “I think you make better food at home” it makes it all worthwhile….

    I use my crock pot once a week for each of these - spaghetti sauce, chili, taco meat, swiss steak, chicken etc etc . . .then leftovers are used to pack lunches or freeze for another day.

    Great easy recipe that I get three meals out of a yankee pot roast is - 1 crock pot, 1 stringy beef roast, 1 pkg Onion soup mix dry, water to cover meat, worchestishire and wine. Cook all day #1 in crock pot, serve with soft rolls and au jus, cut remainder in half and use one half for tacos and the other for hash, just fry add potatoes and eggs-talk about stretching a buck!!!

  • Ileana Liel says:
    October 9, 2008 at 11:09 am

    Product websites, such as Pillsbury, often have higher value coupons than Sunday inserts. We buy store brands - Ralphs Private Selection and Von’s Safeway Select are just as good if not better than some national brands for less money. Watch expiration dates on products,particularly if you stock up, so the sale savings do not wind up in the trash can. Hint - the pasta or rice from a packaged side is still usable after best by date, it’s only the seasonings that may be off. Meat (for carnivores) is the most expensive part of a meal. Try the Chinese approach of meat as a seasoning or condiment in a multi dish meal, focusing on vegies, rice and/or noodles. Practice portion control (good for your health) and work on your food plating skills. That 3 to 4 ounce portion of steak looks more generous when sliced and fanned out on the plate. Surprise: with ample sides of vegies it will satisfy you too. Check the meat counter for packages reduced because they have reached their “sell by date” - if you don’t cook them that day, put them in the freezer. Keep an inventory of your freezer/freezer compartment: both for having a choice of stuff to cook and rotating the stock.
    We have dogs (the most spoiled in the world) who like a bit of canned food with their kibble; the “buy x, get one free” coupons typically save more than just cents off coupons.

  • j steele says:
    October 10, 2008 at 12:28 pm

    As a green building professional remodelor, I am looking for simple ways to be ‘green’ and save green. In a recent speech, I told my audience that the ‘greenest’ remodel is possibly no remodel. That shoots myself in the foot from a strictly sales perspective but I think people know the truth when they hear it and respect the messenger, just like your article and the comments that followed.
    Living beyond our means, as individuals, a culture, and our govt has produced a superficial atmosphere that keeps us keeping up with the ‘Jones’ on a treamill to nowhere that causes plenty of stress. It’s almost refreshing to have to scale back, downsize, pinch pennies and not wonder when the sky will fall.
    Thanks for the conversation starter!

  • JT says:
    October 13, 2008 at 10:54 am

    Last holiday season I started a reading list with books recommended by family members. I made the rule that I would use the public library instead of buying any of the books to read. I add to the list from reviews on NPR or in the newspaper, or references from the books I already finished, etc. Go to the OC library online, and you can place a hold on your next book to read and have it delivered to your local branch. They’ll call you when it arrives. Take a walk to pick it up; save gas and get some free exercise. And, all that time reading prevents me from spending money on other stuff.

  • Cindy McNatt says:
    October 14, 2008 at 5:57 am

    Wow, some great tips - going directly to the product maker for coupons, and putting a hold on library books online. Who knew?
    And I agree, scaling back just plain feels good. I can’t help but think that as we tighten our wallets, we are also living greener because we are driving less, producing less trash, cutting back on energy and water, all the things that tank the economy, but make eco people happy. I vote for planet first.

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