SamsongAZ Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 at Dollar Tree but it sure felt good. Or not! I realized how much I love my "stuff" and having "things" and how much guilt I used to feel for liking things (more than God) now realizing we only have one life and we need to live for now and be happy, like, enjoy what we have acquired... I still felt the brainwashing guilt that if I like and enjoy stuff, I will lose it and be punished....I think it's going to take some time to let go of this way of thinking after all these years On a lighter note, my my husband and I were talking and he said he's happy he I won't be decorating the house will all my dollar store religious stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator florduh Posted October 22, 2011 Super Moderator Share Posted October 22, 2011 I know what you mean. I was at Everything's A Dollar today and put an item on layaway. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fallenleaf Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 LOL... I don't even want to discuss how much I over-spent this weekend. I went to Disney with the GF and her son. We stayed on the property and ate all our meals on the property. I think the 3 days amounted to more than my typical monthly food budget. But I enjoyed it and can fit it into my budget. It still is unsettling though. So much money spent so quickly. Then again, I'm a cheap fucking bastard (my GF's words). My typical work-week food expenses run under $15 for the 5 day week. Often it's much less. I do spend more on the weekends when we might have family over for a big meal or eat out... but I still don't blow through a lot of money on food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 I love stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hereticzero Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Whoever dies with the most toys wins! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulofSilver Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Don't feel bad. You should see the account balances on some of Walmart Layaway's customers. One woman bitched because each item has to be a min of $15. 4 of her items didn't hit it, but only totaled about $20. I was just shaking my head because she can bitch about how hard her life is as a single mom so and can't afford to not have those items not in layaway, but expects to pay off a $400+ balance in 4 paychecks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deva Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 My typical work-week food expenses run under $15 for the 5 day week. Often it's much less. I do spend more on the weekends when we might have family over for a big meal or eat out... but I still don't blow through a lot of money on food. Wow, could you give us some more details on how you accomplish that. I am in real trouble because I am used to eating like some kind of gourmet and now my hours have been cut at work and I really need to cut back on the food. I just can't seem to do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue elephant Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 As long as your expenditure was not on tithing - that's OK. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fallenleaf Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 My typical work-week food expenses run under $15 for the 5 day week. Often it's much less. I do spend more on the weekends when we might have family over for a big meal or eat out... but I still don't blow through a lot of money on food. Wow, could you give us some more details on how you accomplish that. I am in real trouble because I am used to eating like some kind of gourmet and now my hours have been cut at work and I really need to cut back on the food. I just can't seem to do it. Before I get into this, I have a funny story to tell. I grew up poor. We went through a really bad time when I was a kid. But we almost never ate pasta unless it was from a food pantry. "Spaghetti," my mom told us, "is poor people food." And then she would spoon a big heap of rice, beans, and (sometimes) chicken onto our plates. You see, rice and beans was normal people food but pasta was poor people food. I've never developed an appreciation for pasta. I hear that it's a great way to spread a thin food budget. You might want to consider that along with everything else I say. Also, my weekday food budget and variety is spartan. If I ate like this 365, I would probably go nuts. But doing it 5 days a week is easier because I know the weekends will allow me to splurge a little and enjoy something different. That could be eating out... or it could be making a roast chicken, potatoes, veggies, and a dessert then inviting family over to eat with us. I would highly recommend having a "big" meal built into your budget to relieve the monotony. It doesn't have to be a $60 evening out... it can be a $12 home cooked feast that serves several people. It just needs to be something that you can look forward to. I tend to keep rice and beans (dried not canned) as the main components for both lunch and dinner. I very rarely will add some meat. I try and plan my 5 days of food in advance and cook as much as possible on Sunday. I then portion and chill (or freeze) the individual meals. That's less about costs and more about me being lazy during the week and avoiding excuses. I also have no shame about picking up things at the Dollar Tree if they are something I would eat anyway. I will often buy bread there (it's usually a few days from being too old to sell) and freeze it. Breakfast is usually oatmeal or an egg sandwich (sometimes with cheese). I'm not a big breakfast person. My lunch varies. Sometimes it's a sandwich with baked crunchy chickpeas as a snack. Often it's a bean dish or a bean and rice dish. I try and bring veggies to work with me. I grab whatever is cheapest and will go a long way. Sometimes that's frozen but it can be fresh. Today I had kidney bean salad (eggs, kidney beans, celery, onion, vinegar, seasonings) with pita chips (from the dollar store). Dinner will be a blackbean and pinto bean paella with a side of frozen veggies. I also don't mind having the same dish 3-4 times in a week... which helps. Sometimes I get free cheese sticks from work. I drink unsweet iced tea by the gallon but I make it at home for about $0.07 a gallon so that doesn't have much impact. I don't get enough fresh fruit and veggies. I take a multivitamin and pretend it makes up for that. Anyway, the tricks to make it work: plan ahead, rice, dried beans, spices, dollar store items, and hot sauce... there's no food that can't be made edible by dousing it with hot sauce. YMMV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freespirit Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Beans and rice are really good for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yask Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I love "Dollar Tree". It's the one time I can feel rich if I have a twenty in my pocket, knowing I can come out with bags and bags of stuff. Talk about eating on the cheap. The Dollar Tree's here even have refrigerator and freezer sections. And those have bags of frozen fruits, which is a true blessing during the hella hot summer. WWJD? Buy more frozen raspberry's! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deva Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Thank you for that description Fallenleaf. I have never been in Dollar Tree but think I will go and check it out! Those suggestions are good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fallenleaf Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I love "Dollar Tree". It's the one time I can feel rich if I have a twenty in my pocket, knowing I can come out with bags and bags of stuff. Talk about eating on the cheap. The Dollar Tree's here even have refrigerator and freezer sections. And those have bags of frozen fruits, which is a true blessing during the hella hot summer. WWJD? Buy more frozen raspberry's! Yep we have the frozen and chilled section too. I often grab eggs there. They are 8 packs but that's still cheaper than I can get them from any of the local grocery stores unless there's a sale. You never know what you're going to find. It isn't all great deals though. Some things are cheaper elsewhere. Their pinto beans, for example, are $1 for a pound. But if you buy a few pounds at once (as I often do) Wal-Mart is much cheaper. I think it was like $0.68/pound last time I checked. I'm not too sure. It all depends and comes down to knowing what you normally eat and the price point you typically get it at. I'm a nerd like that and pay attention to those things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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