Absolutely fabulous everyone!!!
(She applauds!!!)
I have insomnia tonight and have thoroughly enjoyed, top to bottom, this thread. Thanks to all.
I have to go check out this flowbee and hunt around for those power converters (another thing to do when you can't sleep).

My money saving tips - nothing new - I cook ahead my meals on weekends in bulk, freeze in dinner sizes, have low watt florescent lights for general evening 'wind down' time and use elbow grease to do a lot of things. I use rechargeable batteries whenever possible and love to see anything/anyone/anyway of helping to investing in our children's future environment. Afterall, aren't we the caretakers of this planet for the next generation!
NOw, what the heck is a flowbee (she says with the back half of her head chopped funny.... ;o)

McPeg

I know I am a few months behind, but have to tell you all the "funniest outrageous money saving idea" I had heard (know) about. Many, many years ago, my mom and I went shopping to the larger town near ours with the neighbor and his wife. He was known as frugal to some and cheap to others! After he and his wife and my mom and I did our shopping we all got in his car and instead of driving away, he just sat there and lit up a cigar and smoked it. After a few minutes, my mom asked what we were waiting for. "Well", said the neighbor man, "we still have 10 minutes still left on the parking meter so I'll just sit here and relax. It is a waste of money to drive away leaving ten minutes on the meter". In those days, I think the meters took all of five or ten cents for an hour's time! Anyway, my family has enjoyed a laugh over that for many years!!

Cleo 1443,

Here's a better idea than merely hearing a testimonial from a warm body who's used a Flowbee ...

how about inviting bouncing pig to visit your locality on her next holiday?

She could show you how it works, even demonstrate - and I'm sure that you'd get a free haircut.

We had a cold and snowy winter, so I pretty well let my hair grow (needed to wear a cap, though, as the hair is almost non-existent on top).

Wouldn't want to do that in summer, though.

Have her let you know a month or so ahead, so you'll have lots to cut when she arrives.

joyful

Cleo,

Even better - have hubby let his hair grow.

Then you can get a training session from an expert.

Even better - have bouncing pig's hub let his hair grow, too - then she can cut his hair at your place, while you observe and she explains. Then critiques you as you do your hub's hair.

Who knows - your kids might even let you cut their hair - if you did a good enough job on Dad.

Think of the savings that amount of increased skill might generate!!

ole joyful

P.S. Is your neighbourhood heavily populated?

Think of the possibilities!

O J

I love ruhbehka's ideas. Anyone who does not use of our Earth's resourses just for the fun of it, is someone that I know I like.
My big outrageous money saving idea is: get ready to groan: subsidized housing. After being widowed with 3 children ages 2, 5 & 8, I worked hard to raise them and get them into professional, good people, lives. When my health decided I needed to retire, it looked like I would end up living with a child - uggggg. I love them, BUT. I spent hours search the net for information. What I found was the Lutheran religion has the neatest senior housing, based on income only. I have a one bedroom duplex apartment, new tile & carpet in a lovely park with lots of trees. NO crime. The complex bus takes us to the grocery store & walmart. I have my flower garden in the front and a veggie garden in the back. My dog loves the place. If I go away for a month to visit a child, no problems or worries when I return. I am happy as a clam and can live quite well on a small income.

This thread came up in a search I did and I thought it might be interesting to resurrect it. :-)

pm2

I guess the most outrageous thing I've ever done is to empty a vacuum bag (took some doing, and involved a coat hanger) and reused it. I reused it about 4 times, then it tore.

The most outrageous thing I ever heard was on t.v., and it was a man who made his family wash paper towels and hang them out to dry.

The most outrageous thing I could NEVER DO is the "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down" thing. Eck!

This is still good reading - even though I responded in 2003 - it has reminded me to turn off the light beside me because I really don't need it?
TTT

How about two more:

1) Cut open a nearly empty (cant squeeze any more out) tube of toothpaste - good for another half dozen brushings
Keep open tube in airtight box (eg. food saving container) to prevent drying out
Use finger to swipe the very last bit of toothpaste for another 1 or 2 brushings
DonÂt really save much but why waste? DoesnÂt take much more time.

2) When cooking oil jug is "empty" (thereÂs at least 50 to 75 ml. left in there!)
Drill a hole in the recessed rim of the jug - chose the lowest part when bottle is upside down
Stand jug upside down, mouth in a glass, bowl, whatever
Use 3 POP bottles (full) as support so jug wonÂt fall over
Let ALL the oil drain out - no wastage.

Those bottles are designed to drain oil back in if you use the cap as a measure.
You canÂt pour the residual oil out, even if you stand it bottoms up
No drill, or worried about plastic fragments (easily seen & picked out)
Use a heated awl, or even a nail, to poke the hole through

d2e1

It might not sound so outrageous, but just ask my kids, and I am sure they would think so..lol. Instead of hiring someone to remove a 120ft of overgrown shrubs and saplings, the grown children all pitched in and dug them out by hand. It took them a lot of their free time over a period of about 3 months.

When our daughter was in high school she redid the very small front lawn, preparing the soil and reseeding and keeping it watered.

It was very labor intensive but now they all feel it is 'our' yard/garden. Plus it saved us a ton of money!

:-)
pm2

WOW - this post was originally from 2002 ?????? A blast from the past ! I Enjoyed reading it. I can't add anything to it , but thanks for the information !

Yes, it started in 2002 ... but it was in December, so getting close to 2003.

Several years ago I worked as a security guard in a trucking company where many trucks passed through.

As you know, moderately heavy oil flows slowly, especially in winter, and many truckers when changing their engine oil were too impatient to let much of the residual oil drain out before they threw the jug away.

I used to collect them, then stand one up near a corner of a room and prop another jug on top of it, held in place by the corner of the room, to let the last of the oil drain out.

I collected two or three jugs full of engine oil, over a period.

In case of some dirt or other contaminant having got into the collector jug, I used to use some absorbent paper, e.g. paper towel or toilet paper and put several layers into a funnel, then pour the collected oil through it into another jug, labelling that jug as containing filtered oil. I got two or three oil changes out of that project ...

... and, by the way, I change my own auto engine oil.

In fact, I explained to a lady here who was interested in doing it how to do it. Including some problems that she might run into, e.g. the filter being turned on so tightly that she couldn't remove it. One being to be careful when removing the drain plug or filter ... or one might get the impatient oil running down one's sleeve, making a stain on our clothing that it would be hard to get out, and leaving a mess on her arm that would require quite a bit of clean-up.

I find that a number of the things that I do that many would consider outrageous are things that I may well bypass if I'm busy ... the frugal stuff is pretty well for spare time.

And frugal operations should be mostly a challenge, a game, a project - not some onerous burden that one approaches with some trepidation or distaste .. if they do, it probably won't last long.

As for it being distasteful to, " ... let it mellow if it's yellow ...", it seems to me that with the heavy and increasing shortage of not only available groundwater but of rain, as well, in substantial portions of the U.S., before long some of the residents may be so short of water that they'll be glad to flush only a few times a day, before many more years have passed.

And, wouldn't you know, the major places of inmigration by U.S. people at present are exactly the places where they are short of useable water now.

The liquid that was sought out (at a cost of not only money but also political intrigue and blood in the last century was [and is]) ... oil.

The scarce liquid of the upcoming century will be ...

... water.

We in North America are, as more or less usual, fortunate, as we have the Great Lakes, which contain 20% of the world's fresh water ... and they are shrinking.

Exposing toxic sludge along the shorelines, that blows on land to contaminate our lungs, or back into the lake, where it gets even more concentrated. And requiring that major ships travel only 90% loaded ... which requires more trips, using more oil and more scarce resources. And, as the ships pass a number of shallow areas, they stir up the crap on the bottom.

By the way, would you call it an outrageous money-saving idea to turn off your car's engine when running downhill, if there isn't another vehicle following to be interfered with, or approaching a traffic light that just turned yellow? When I do the latter, I often see cars go charging by at speed, then travel a couple of hundred feet, and have the brakes light go on. Wouldn't it be wiser to at least take the foot off of the throttle when ones sees that yellow light appear and one's vehicle is still a few hundred feet away? Those hundeds of feet disappear under the wheels rather quickly, remember?

I hope that you all have an enjoyable (late fall?) weekend.

ole joyful

I've enjoyed this thread so much and learned a few things too!

I have to agree with Ruhbehka, I'd rather "deny" myself a few things and not be in debt.

My good friend's MIL washes and dries her used paper towels too.

I remember visiting a doctor's home years ago. They had recently moved from big city to the country. They had a sign in their bathroom that said "In this country land of fun, we never flush for Number One".

The Flobee, another friend used it or something like it that used a vacuum cleaner for years to cut her husband's and her 6 sons' hair. I think the husband cut her hair with it too. They always looked great.

VG

I bought a Robocut. Its similar to the Flowbie but a little less expensive. It doesnt make me look as good as does a barber but its acceptable to me and paid for itself in just two uses.

Hi from the UK where the weather is chilly (40F) but windy - so like most of my friends/neighbours I just dryed a load of washing - FOR FREE - using mother nature's dryer - an OUTSIDE (rotary) washing line. I know - quite outrageous for (a few) sensitive souls who cannot cope with knowing that their neighbours use towels (when fresh from the shower - shock) , sleep in sheets (the very thought) and even wear underclothes (O no - shield the children from these sights)!!
P.S - even more shocking - I do not even have the excuse of being very poor and/or not knowing any better, in fact am lucky to live in what has been voted in a recent TV poll, one of the most desirable areas of our lovely country.

Whatever next!!???

Sylvia,

Is it true that the English have a predilection for "dry humour"?

I like to use my wash line, as well, though it gets a bit uncomfortable when there's snow on the ground.

Not so bad when hanging, for one can put cold hands down among the washed clothes for a few seconds.

But removal is less interesting.

For one thing, the winter underwear combination is so stiff, and takes up so much space, that one needs almost tuck the thing under one's arm and head for the house! Stand it up in the living room, next to an easy chair ... it'll soon wilt!

But ... removing the clothes takes much less time than hanging them! So you're soon back into the comfortable home.

ole joyful

Dear joyfulguy - yes very DRY humour - Ho, Ho, Ho - seriously you ARE a dedicated washing line fan if you really hang out in the snow - or are you kidding me. My dryer does come into use when its v cold & not windy or when its raining ofcourse. Moderation in all things!

I'm stripping the 21-year-old wallpaper in my bathroom, and painting the walls. It's a lot more work than I thought, but I'll be darned if I pay someone else to do it. I also wanted to prove to myself that I could do this.

Nothing that saves money is outrageous.....

When I grew up we got new jeans in the fall at the start of school. When we wore out the knees on a pair of jeans they were patched. When we wore out the patch my mother cut the legs off and turned them around and sewed them back on. When we wore out the knees on the back they were patched. When we wore out the patch, it was time for them be become cut-offs and the cut-off piece went into the rag bag that eventually was braided into a denim rug.

If we grew out of our jeans anytime during this process, they were handed down. I was third in line and had one more behind me.

Despite a successful career and net worth probably in the upper 10%, I still pinch pennies.... I guess the next generation will benefit as they sure seem to be able to spend it faster than they can make it....

OK ALL OF YOU OUT THERE:
I have been reading alot of your notes back and forth and some of them I agree with others are just a little far out there for me (like the idea of unplugging the small appliances just cant see having my family yell at me about their things though)..... but here is a new question

For all of your "cheapness" I have not seen any comments about the reasons that you save. I personally have done this all of my "adult knowledge years" (I am 48yrs old) because my parent were/are VERY poor money managers. They are so far in debt my heart breaks just thinking about them. I decided early on that I would not be in debt for all of my life. And so with that, I did and do many of the things that you folks are doing. I am my husband are out of debt, we owe no one other than those monthly utilites and taxes that are required of us. We are able to tithe as God instructs us to. BUT ARE ALL OF YOU TAKING ALL OF THAT SAVINGS AND PAYING OFF THE CARS AND THE HOUSE AND DUMPING THOSE SAVINGS THEN INTO ACCOUNTS THAT WILL KEEP YOU FINANCIALLY SAFE???? thanks for responding, pam

When I was a kid, Mom bought us two pairs of shoes each year-one pair of dood shoes for school and a pair of $2 Keds sneakers for summer. She's worth about $350,000 right now and lives on her Social Security of $700 a month. It can be done.

My supervisor used to take whole sheets of discarded computer paper out of the wastebasket, flip it over to blank side, then use a paper cutter to cut into pieces about four by five, then staple at the top, then distributed the "scratch pads" to employees to use for phone messages,etc. Very thrifty and smart!

I stopped cutting my hair, got so tired of shellng out for bad cuts and perms that never looked right. I get a lot of compliments on it and all I do is wash and condition it.

pamcrafter posed an interesting question- why do we save? I think for a lot of people these days, it's a matter of necessity, Many people on the lower end of the wage scale can't live any other way. For us, we went through some tough times financially, not entirely our fault, but we did our share to make it difficult. I was guilty of running up large credit card balances, and we bought new cars every few years. Since we got past our problems, we have become very thrifty- and it's fun! Kind of a game for us. The only money we owe is a modest mortgage, which we will be paying off in a few years. We all drive serviceable used cars that we paid cash for, and I maintain/repair them. Credit card balances get paid EVERY month- no exceptions! It's so nice to have money in the bank, and not have to worry when the phone rings. For us it started out of necessity, we learned how to manage money and possessions, and now it's both for fun, and for our future.

This thread has been enough to really get me thinking of saving electricity. So much of our things are on 24/7, just in this room alone are 3 computers. 1 is used daily while the others are used intermittedly. I just got up and turned them off. There are 2 printers on plus the modem and wireless. I must remember to flick them off at night to see how much power saving there is.

The washing machine and drier are plugged in and on all the time too, in future I'll just plug them in when needed. The stove too. We can do without the clock in it. Microwave will be a bit more of a pain, have to get on my hands and knees as the powerpoint is in the back of a cupboard. But do we really need 3 clocks in the kitchen?

We have 3 tvs each includes a dvd, video - 1 has playstation and xbox. 2 lots will be easy to flick off but the third has the powerpoint behind the entertainment unit, we did cut a hole through the back of it but it means emptying a book filled cupboard to reach.

This room has gotten much quieter, I can only hear the hum of 1 computer now, instead of the drone of 3. Both printers are off, reminds me I need to tell the others that they are turned off so I don't hear whinging later when the printers don't work.

We live in a small house and most appliences are plugged into walls with furniture against it.If a television is plugged into a power strip which is then plugged into the wall,will it draw electricityif the power strip is turned off but plugged in?

im all for reusing paper for scrap, no name brands, used cars that you pay cash for and dont have to put hefty insurance on, turning lights off, etc, but im sorry, taking a bowl of chili and adding hot water to it! COME ON if your going to be that "thrifty" stay home and eat! recycling your toilet paper, UGH!! there is being thrifty, and trust me i have 4 kids we know about handme downs, and leftovers for lunch. but if i treat myself or my kids to eating out, its that a treat there is no way that im going to water the food down to stretch it out.

If a television is plugged into a power strip which is then plugged into the wall,will it draw electricityif the power strip is turned off but plugged in?

No it will not use/draw any electricity. It will be just the same as if it was unplugged.

Sue

Great thread. In the East of the UK in 2006 we had a serious water shortage after several very dry years. We had hose pipe bans and stand pipes in some areas. We were advised to "let it mellow if yellow" etc but do find doing this stains the toilet & found I was using bleach more often (am very fussy about my loo) which defeated the object of helping the environment. Since then husband & me have got into the habit of shouting "do you want to go too" after using the little room & before flushing. At least this saves water sometimes!!

I agree with all the recommendations about not leaving appliances on stand by when practical, also

*think about washing at lower temperature - with new detergents I now usually wash at 30C (94F ?) & my whites are sparkling clean - saves a lot of money

*am very fussy about clean clothes but think my 92 year old mum is right - with washers we automatically wash too often - no one will die if we wear clothes a few days running without washing them (underwear and obviously grubby items excepted of course)
*hang washing outside of course where you can

*compost waste to make free garden fertilizer

However - rubecka - you are very admirable to avoid debt, consumerism etc but just be a little careful that it does not become too much of an addiction and you miss out on some the fun things in life as a result. We have very dear friends who have always been very careful with money - now they are comfortably off but still deprive themselves & seem to get a kick out of it. Not that I am advocating wasting your money & am careful myself & have never been in debt or thrown money on stupid things - but on the other hand there are no pockets in shrouds!!

I just checked this forum out after someone on selling houses mentioned it to a poster who was having severe financial issues. What a great forum!

I like the watering down fruit juice idea. Sometimes grape juice seems too strong/sweet to me. Watering down with water or red zinger tea makes it taste almost as good, saves money, plus reduces calories. I can drink more for my buck.

I should follow more of these frugal ideas as I tend to be wasteful. Will continue looking at this forum,
Thanks,
Rachel

Good for you Rachel... that was a contentious thread.

I was just reading back on here about the line drying vs dryer use which got me thinking about line-drying indoors. Drying some or all of your wash indoors during the cold winter months is going to add much needed moisture into the air. Especially for houses/people that don't have a free standing or built in humidifier on their furnace.

WoW ! !! !!!!!
Great Ideas....
and gee ain't it great to type.... talk.... listen...
and it's free...
well, mostly !!!
Saving Money $$$ is hard...
I wish I had done... more of it !!!!!
but....
I still believe God gives us commandments and guideline and
when we follow them.... WE ARE BETTER OFF !!!! things go smoother for us and we are HAPPIER !!!!
I think teaching our children and them teaching their children.... our grandchildren is just about the
G R E A T E S T Investment and the GREATEST BLESSING !!!
I enjoyed reading this POST!
I enjoy being able to still use my mind to make a
DECISION..... To make a C H O I C E !!!!!!
Thank God!!!!
God Bless!!!!!!!
Susiesunshine

Hi pkguy - although I am a great advocate for drying laundry outside where possible - tumble dryers use a lot of expensive electricity (I know some people have the misfortune to live in dusty/polluted areas so just not possible for them)

HOWEVER I DO AGREE WITH YOU about drying clothes indoors when the heat is on. My basic knowlege of science tells me that you then reduce the air temperature in the room & therefore must make your heating system work harder. Also you risk a build up of mould due to the dampness.

Admit I do occasionally throw things on the radiator if nearly dry, however would not dry a lot of things indoors & do use my dryer in inclement weather.

However, it is surprising how dry things can outside get even on a chilly day if there is a bit of a wind.

I also unplug my appliances & miscellaneous things when not in use. I save about $11.00/mo just by doing this.

Though not originally intended as $$ savings, I really enjoy quilting. I don't make quilts for $$...it's just pure enjoyment. I sew the top with a machine, and do the quilting by hand. I always surprise myself at how cheap this hobby is. Depending on cost of fabrics, I will spend $20-$35 for supplies and end up being thoroughly entertained for about 6 months...and end up with a nice product at the end to change out the look of a bedroom...or a wonderful heirloom gift for someone else.

Re drying clothes indoors.
There are in my mind a few variables about when/where it makes sense and when it doesn't. It doesn't make sense to do this in a humid climate, summer etc when your a/c is struggling already. In the northern states etc it does make sense in winter when the furnace is running if you don't have a whole house humidifier on the furnace etc. You want to add some humidity to the air. Humidified air feels warmer than dry air at the same temperature therefore you may be able to lower the thermostat slightly. Wouldn't hurt to do it in the arid and prairie states either where the air is always so dry summer and winter. Plus the clothes will probably dry inside very quickly.

IMHO, I think there's a difference between saving money and being just downright tight. I have an uncle who falls into the "tight" category. He is basically an embarrassment as his tight borders on downright selfishness.

We went to a restaurant when he was visiting and he created a scene as the buffet was low on a certain item and he refused to pay. We wanted to crawl in a hole as we were regulars at this establishment. This uncle lives in a brand new home, no dime spared on that of course.

When Christmas dinner is at his home, he stands at the front door issuing you a paper cup and plate and a sharpie pen as you better put your name on it, that's the only one you're getting. He is repulsive. He is tight towards others, but has plenty of money for himself. That's selfishness, not being miserly. Many times they go hand in hand.

Sounds like an arse LOL
Personally if it was me I wouldn't stand for it especially in a restaurant. I would tell him point blank in no uncertain terms to STFU on his principals because he's ruining it for everyone else. Sometimes it takes a hammer.

Ugh my condolences - sounds like my inlaws - they used to only allow us to eat one serving of dinner at their house. I remembered on serval occasions where they rationed apple pie and cookies - one per person. They too lived in a brand new house and drove new vehicles - very selfish people to others but definately lavished on themselves. Funny thing is, when one of them died a couple of years ago, the surviving spouse had to beg relatives for a donated cemetery plot and for help securing the insurance money to pay for the funeral because their lifestyle left them broke.

I guess you reap what you sow.

Regarding most outrageous Money Saving ideas:

In my town, we have two salvage yards - every month or so I take all the metal (by way of tin cans or broken fans, busted up frying pans - etc) and cart them them down to be recycled. My son also likes to collect aluminum cans with me when we go for our walks. I always tell him it's like picking up other people's money. Plus you help, in a small way, to keep the neighborhood a little cleaner.

The yard is only about a 1/2 mile away so not much gas is wasted. The metal gets recycled and my kids get some pocket money.

Today, we took some old rusted barbell weights and some cans and walked away with almost $6 bucks.

biking to work saves us on gas, we get exercise, and feel better in the long run....most people probably can't do this, but we bought our house with the idea that it was close enough to bike or walk to work.we grew up in granola-ville, so we wet our toothbrush and then turn the water off, recycle everything, turn off lights, reuse bags, etc as a matter of course. i don't remember even being taught that it was for the environment, it was just how you learned to do things because everyone around you did it that way.

i really enjoyed reading about all of the different ways people live. i think it's great that people think outside the box, and don't feel like they have to spend x to buy y so they can fit in with their neighbors. the economy sucks right now, so it can't hurt to be a little careful.

i learned a lot about money management by watching how my grandparents saved. turns out they had plenty of money, but never forgot the depression. they never bought anything they couldn't pay cash for.

Posted by peterbog (My Page) on Thu, Dec 13, 07 at 14:21

Nothing that saves money is outrageous.....
When I grew up we got new jeans in the fall at the start of school. When we wore out the knees on a pair of jeans they were patched. When we wore out the patch my mother cut the legs off and turned them around and sewed them back on. When we wore out the knees on the back they were patched. When we wore out the patch, it was time for them be become cut-offs and the cut-off piece went into the rag bag that eventually was braided into a denim rug.

With all respect to the poster, was this during the Depression? A pair of new jeans from Walmart costs about $6. Wearing patched, turned around, patched again pants...you must have been dreadfully poor.

To pkguy: what is STFU? I'm new; just wondering.
Thanks!

workingwoman wrote: "To pkguy: what is STFU? I'm new; just wondering.Thanks!"

Shut the 'fart' up?

!

naw, that F is not for 'fart'

Hi again folks,

When I worked as a personal financial advisor, I talked to clients about "financial freedom" adding to one's peace of mind (in addition to providing the worthwhile liquidity that some envy in others but lack it themselves).

The person who is deep in debt, owes on credit cards, and worries when the phone rings as to which creditor is calling, this time ... does not know the peace of mind that comes with financial freedom.

The homeless person doesn't, either.

When a person has come beyond the age of retirement and lacks enough money to pay for all of needed medications, food, housing and the fuel to keep it comfortable in winter ... which is getting more difficult as some of the basics of life have recent substantial increases in price ... that person lacks the luxury of financial freedom, also.

But I also said that I wanted people to boss their money, not having their money bossing them.

The people who have adequate resources but squeeze the buffalo on a nickel till it bellers ... aren't making best use of their financial freedom, either.

To my mind the rich old guy in the restaurant who made a fuss about refusing to pay because one item on the buffet was lacking was, to my mind, just being boorish.

Though I lived on pretty thin income for a number of years during my career, now that I'm near age 80 and don't have to worry about paying for some (of the rather few) things that I want, or about leaving my executors so strapped with regard to my estate that they have to go fishing for extra money to pay for my burial ... that level of financial freedom pleases me. Plus I have some to help pay for my extra care before death, if necessary.

If I'm at a party where it's to go on for several hours and they're using styrofoam cups ... for juice now, possibly for water later (and I eschew bottled water, at home) and perhaps for coffee, eventually ...

... I've been known to use my own pen, or hunt up one of theirs, to put my name on my cup in order to use it throughout the period. Not so much for frugal/tight reasons, as for reusing things - reducing our wasteful use of scarce resources, plus making less garbage (and that was true long before I lived within a couple of miles of what used to be a local garbage dump [pardon me - "landfill"] but recently had their licence heavily expanded - then were sold to a major city over a hundred miles away). A city that now trucks their garbage something like 250 miles ... and over an international border.

It took millions of years to make the petroleum ... and we've been using it, often wastefully, for the past hundred years - did you hear that: "hundred years" - like it's going out of style. It's not going out of style, in fact, the demand is increasing. Unfortunately - it's availability is decreasing.

In addition ... have you heard U.S. folks recently whining about the increase in cost of gas (Canadians, too, but we've been paying some more for some time)?

In those threads, we had some Europeans telling how they've been paying $5.00 or so for gas for some time.

Have you ever heard the saying that, "Necessity is the mother of invention"?

Guess who have been studying, working on, building, evaluating and revamping, various means of production of electricity from renewable resources in recent years.

It was the Europeans ... not us North Americans, continuing to walk (no, "drive") along our paths of cheap energy availability. Much less, until recently, concerned to find alternative sources of energy.

Additionally - cheap food, which has been our policy for years, is finished. Not only was our food cheaper than in many areas, the fact that our incomes were larger meant also that it consumed a much lower percentage of our total incomes.

By the way ... some time ago, on a similar thread, I reported another frugal situation, which someone said that she'd never thought of, but was impressed by. I took some hamburger and peas out of the freezer a while ago ... to let them warm up in the expensively heated air put out by the furnace. I'm cooking a pot of rice ... so took the lid off of the rice cooker and put an aluminum pie plate on there, then put the peas on it, then another aluminum plate with the hamburg on that, with another plate or the pot lid set down on top. Two/three birds - one stone.

Good wishes for making good use of a lovely spring weekend - it's snowing, here ... again!

ole joyful

1. I've timed the wash cycle on my dishwasher. When running a load of dishes, I set my own timer. When my alarm goes off, the wash cycle is done. I turn the dishwasher off and let the dishes dry themselves. My dishwasher does have an energy saving "no heat" drying cycle...but it's still running/drying when it's in the drying mode. Huh...the dishes were never actually dry after the drying cycle anyway.

2. My 2 year old is old enough now to start playing with my digital alarm clock on my nightstand. Every night I was re-setting my clock and checking whether she changed the alarm. I realized I didn't even NEED THE CLOCK AT ALL!!!! I charge my cell phone every night, so I figured I could charge my phone in my bedroom instead, and use the alarm clock feature on my phone. Yay! 1 appliance I used to rely on...not necessary anymore!!!!!

Well I only made it thru 50%-60% of the posts here but it struck me that people get so weird and defensive over such stupid things. The water in the chilli for instance...show of hands...who tried it before they went all crazy and argumentative? It was a long standing piece of advice from MD's that drinking plenty of water, specfically before a meal helps you "feel full". Having thinner chilli does make perfect sense in that you are more likely to feel sated on 12oz in your tum then 7.5...

As far as the crappy stuff people do to save cash? My fiancee is a manager/trainer for starbucks and people are so tight. I make coffee at home, I don't bother getting coffee from her at work because it is pricey and bein' a big guy I don't need the sugar calories. But the stories she tells of people doing stuff like ordering a large coffee in two small cups to save 35c or asking for a "12pump chai Latte" (3x the syrup) and then coming back and asking for 3 cups of hot water, dumping a half of each of them in the garbage and dividing. Get a grip. I am pretty tight but at least I am not a thief! (no it isn't creative ordering, it's theft)

Also I don't know the cost difference but is using a candle or oil lamp really cheaper then a 4w compact flourescent bulb? Maybe it is, and they do smell good. Honest question no barb intended!

I don't know if what we do is considered extreme but here goes...

1 - I walk/bike everywhere and my fiancee takes the bus to work...
2 - I gave my sister our TV so we watch DVD's on the computer, when we watch movies. A 19"LCD+tower seem to use less Kwh then a 26" flat tube TV.
3 - We are vegitarian (mostly) so we go through a lot of Veg. I try and go to the market 2-3x a week (or more) and look for "Dollar bags" of bruised, wilt etc fruit and veg. If you are gonna cook it hard to make a curry or pasta sauce it doesn't matter if you had to trim a spot or if the peppers had "corking"
4 - My fiancee loves to sew...so she makes all of my clothes, and most of hers. The stuff she makes is nicer then the stuff from the store and is less the 1/4 the cost.
5 - In 3 years we haven't had the heat or AC on in our Apt...
6 - I have a balcony garden that supplies us with all of our salad needs and fresh herbs in the summer.

Does anyone know how 1st time home buyers can receive the Lowe's 10% coupon? I read about it here years ago but can't seem to locate it on their website. It requires registration.

Any ideas?

Maybe not outrageouse but lots of fun and brings our family together.

EVERY Sunday afternoon we all meet at a different house, everyone brings a dish for supper. We visit, have a great meal, play cards, ride the horses, play a game of catch, swim, sledding, horse shoes, garden, what ever we feel like. One rule-no TV or computer!

I cook my dish on Sat. night with our supper and I have no cooking to do for Sun. afternoon. Bring home leftovers for Mon. night. Works great.

Karyn

10% off coupon for Lowe's - go to your post office and get a moving package. You'll find either Lowe's or HD in that packet.

Ole Joyful, I have been doing the stack method cooking for years. We purchased Salad Master many years ago because of the stack method demonstration and the clean cooking sales pitch. The stack method saves lots of electricity.
Lexi