Tightwad Alert

[Joamy]

Hope this is in the correct forum.  There is a thread on the about women section that inspired this one.  We have some black belt tightwads swimming in this tank -can you share your tips?

[libby]

coupons

buy meat by the animal if you have the freezer space

never waste ANYTHING... boil a chicken, make soup with the broth, sandwiches from the meat, dinosaur projects from the bones

sales, deals, BOGO if the original price is good

buy clothes after the season is over (for the following year)

buy good quality ( even if it's expensive). I will buy a $ 100.00 pair of shoes (on sale) because it will last me 10 years. That's a lot cheaper than a $40.00 pair every year.

never use credit cards if you can help it. Never.

and, above all, no matter how good the sale or price, don't buy cat food if you don't have a cat.

[Anastasia]

Craigslist free page.
I've gotten clothes, and oak cabinet, a double stroller, crown molding, a dishwasher, all the stuff for a new bathroom, you name it -it's there.

[libby]

oh, yeah, that's right!

also, Freecycle lists -

you can get ANYTHING there, and it's free.

[Joamy]

... and, above all, no matter how good the sale or price, don't buy cat food if you don't have a cat.

   Nobody taught me that in Tightwad class!!!!!

My tips (for those singletons out there)
Buy a small freezer if you have the space.
Invest in  The Tightwad Gazette  and The More With Less Cookbook .

I've kind of adapted the idea of once a month cooking (cooking in bulk and freezing in smaller portions).  Frozen Assets   is  a good cookbook, also.

Crockpots are a lovely invention.

I live in a college town (three university's and several tech schools.)  Free or cheap entertainment    (Actually - this is going to sound bad, but Walmart is an excellent source of amusement.)

[Joamy]

oh, yeah, that's right!

also, Freecycle lists -

you can get ANYTHING there, and it's free.

I loved freecycle - they don't have one for my area anymore. 

[libby]

... and, above all, no matter how good the sale or price, don't buy cat food if you don't have a cat.

   Nobody taught me that in Tightwad class!!!!!
.

it's an old joke - the husband found diapers in his wife's shopping bag, even though they didn't have any children.

She told him that the price was so good, that she couldn't resist buying them.

 

[Satori]

Does anyone else here do alley shopping?

I love it. I stroll down the alley behind my apartment building every week before garbage day, trolling for good pickings. But I'm not bold enough to dumpster dive, like some.

[Walty]

I buy my meat off ebay. 

[libby]

I buy my meat off ebay. 

.......sigh*.

Walty, Walty, Walty.

[James02]

buy meat by the animal if you have the freezer space

I bought a chest freeze on sale at Sears for $279.  Went and bought a whole cow. (Actually started with 1/2 cow and currently on a whole cow). Wrapped and in the freezer at $1.30/lb. of meat (not cow).  Most is 90% lean hamburger.  So that is a cost of about 33% of what you get in the store.  On the downside, the wife can always grab a few packs of hamburger and cook something, so our stores of snacks sometimes runs low.

[Walty]

buy meat by the animal if you have the freezer space

I bought a chest freeze on sale at Sears for $279.  Went and bought a whole cow. (Actually started with 1/2 cow and currently on a whole cow). Wrapped and in the freezer at $1.30/lb. of meat (not cow).  Most is 90% lean hamburger.  So that is a cost of about 33% of what you get in the store.  On the downside, the wife can always grab a few packs of hamburger and cook something, so our stores of snacks sometimes runs low.

Does anyone here actually own living cows that they slaughter and cut up right in their kitchen for meat?

Everyone else here is a wuss.  If you aren't going to do this you might as well not eat meat.

[libby]

buy meat by the animal if you have the freezer space

I bought a chest freeze on sale at Sears for $279.  Went and bought a whole cow. (Actually started with 1/2 cow and currently on a whole cow). Wrapped and in the freezer at $1.30/lb. of meat (not cow).  Most is 90% lean hamburger.  So that is a cost of about 33% of what you get in the store.  On the downside, the wife can always grab a few packs of hamburger and cook something, so our stores of snacks sometimes runs low.

see?

it works - and it's cheaper, and MUCH more nutritous.

although, anything's better than Walty's " SlimJims by the gross".

...that's just gross.

[jovan66102]

Does anyone here actually own living cows that they slaughter and cut up right in their kitchen for meat?

Everyone else here is a wuss.  If you aren't going to do this you might as well not eat meat.

Don't know much about butchering, eh? When I was a boy I helped in the slaughtering of many steers, hogs and literally hundreds of chickens. My mum would have KILLED my dad and I if we tried to bring a carcass into the kitchen to cut up!

[SanctiDominici]

buy meat by the animal if you have the freezer space

I bought a chest freeze on sale at Sears for $279.  Went and bought a whole cow. (Actually started with 1/2 cow and currently on a whole cow). Wrapped and in the freezer at $1.30/lb. of meat (not cow).  Most is 90% lean hamburger.  So that is a cost of about 33% of what you get in the store.  On the downside, the wife can always grab a few packs of hamburger and cook something, so our stores of snacks sometimes runs low.

Does anyone here actually own living cows that they slaughter and cut up right in their kitchen for meat?

Everyone else here is a wuss.  If you aren't going to do this you might as well not eat meat.

I know some of my good old italian folk who slaughter everything right on their property, grow their own veggies and fruits, have chickens laying eggs. Everything tastes so fresh and awesome.