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I think a BFC general/daily discussion thread would be useful for many of us, especially me. I was originally going to post something in that spergy "Favorite Little Ways to Save Money" topic but it's apparently gone and I didn't see an appropriate thread or forum elsewhere. Not to mention I think it might help some of us stick to our budgets. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 15:32 on Feb 10, 2015 |
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Mar 13, 2014 16:57
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CountOfNowhere posted:I like this thread. If I kept everything else the same, and simply started obeying the instruction in the title, I could probably retire a year or two earlier... Yeah, this is my main problem which is why I put it in the title. edit: I will resist Wendy's on the way home today. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 19:34 on Mar 13, 2014 |
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Mar 13, 2014 19:30
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If the end result of having a just mini-fridge is going to the grocery store more often it won't affect us much since the grocery store (Aldi) is on the way home from work and only about a 2? mile drive from the house if I have to get something on the weekend. Or I could get a second mini-fridge without a freezer (ours has a lot of space for a mini freezer), it's still significantly cheaper than a full sized/featured fridge. When I get home (and avoid Wendy's) I'm going to try to justify some of my Misc purchases.
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Mar 13, 2014 21:03
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I go to Aldi for 80-90% of my groceries and Amazon for stuff. Costco is out of my way, I don't have a card and the only reason I go there is when I run out of allergy meds, which won't happen again for another two years, maybe less since I seem to be less problems with allergies as I've gotten older. This thread reminds me I need to pack some food for work tomorrow.
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Mar 14, 2014 01:45
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EugeneJ posted:OTC meds or prescription meds? Can you buy OTC meds there without a card? OTC. One of my co-workers doesn't drive but has a Costco card so that's how I got my hands on a years supply ($15) of generic Zyrtec and Claritin last year. If we ever need to go to Costco we usually just find a friend/relative with a card and offer to drive. lol I never thought to look up Kirkland on Amazon. $15-16 dollars inc shipping. It will be a long time before I ever need to buy OTC allergy meds again though. edit: Also, packed a couple days worth of lunch inside the mini-fridge last night and brought it in. I need to try and make use of the company fridge as much as possible. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 14:58 on Mar 14, 2014 |
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Mar 14, 2014 13:23
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I hope this thread ends up like that episode of South Park where Randy creates a frugal economy and people are stoned for not being thrifty.EugeneJ posted:If you're ever in a bind, Dollar Tree has a ton of cheap generic meds. I think they have 14 tabs of generic Zyrtec for $1.00. Wow that's great and I didn't know. I've stupidly relied on Walgreens in the past but it's definitely better to drive a couple miles further to Dollar Tree. Thanks. edit: Anyway, misc things I bought this month that I will now justify to the BFC gods: A kindle paper-white/no ads: It was on sale, we're moving to a smaller place and I really have too many books. I also promised my wife that I won't buy books for at least a year so I can use whatever amazon gives away for free, public domain and my local (couple miles down the road) library. There's also a ton of free public domain audio books I really should listen to. I'm pretty sure when I sell the books I have I'll cover the cost of the kindle anyway. A navigator for my wife's car: She gets lost. She grew up in a foreign city where very few people use cars and she only has a few years of drivings experience under her belt. I understand a lot of people use phones for this now but I'd much rather her use a dedicated device that's easy to use. She's as frugal as I am and didn't mind and was actually happy to receive it as part of her anniversary gift, all she wants on the actual date is a cheap box of chocolates. This really nice monitor arm(s) that attaches to a desk and will allow me to attach two monitors. Right now my monitor is jerry-rigged into the right position so I don't get neck pain but I would like to be able to adjust it on the fly when I go from my desk chair to the couch. It was only $50 on Amazon and I'm sure the reduced use of pain pills will be good for my body. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 15:14 on Mar 14, 2014 |
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Mar 14, 2014 14:59
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Yeah, I'm not sure how it works but I currently live in NC and will be moving just a couple miles away to SC pretty soon. Since I have a card I assume I'll still be able to make use of that library. Libraries are lending books to e-book reading devices like kindle now?
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Mar 14, 2014 17:06
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I'm not really concerned about credit card fraud, just identity theft. I remember someone in BFC told me that you can have your credit report frozen or something simply by contacting the rating agencies. So I'll probably do that once I get a new rewards card. edit: I usually request new cards (or claim I lost them/they were stolen) with new numbers from my bank/credit card company once a year anyway, especially since it's free. That way I reduce the chance of credit fraud happening if some online company that I used for a one time purchase gets hacked. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 00:23 on Mar 15, 2014 |
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Mar 15, 2014 00:17
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Juanito posted:You'd freeze it, just because? Seems like that would be a hassle to freeze, and then another hassle when you wanted to unfreeze. Yeah, it depends on how big of a hassle it will be (since I've never had it done) but I don't use credit very often. I mean, I use it a lot in some situations (like for example I've used it a lot now that I'm moving and applying for new credit cards) but once I'm settled I never really use it. Until we decided to move the last time I had my credit report pulled was 2 years ago when my wife and I applied for our rewards card. I think once I'm settled in my new home I won't have my credit report pulled for 2 years? It really depends just how big the hassle is. Anyone have a good horror story about identify theft? edit: I didn't eat out today. 
Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 03:11 on Mar 15, 2014 |
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Mar 15, 2014 00:59
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I lucked out with car repairs after my wife found a reputable and affordable mechanic. We've been using him for several years now and I've never had an issue with how much he charges or the quality of his work.pancaek posted:I don't want to sound like a huge jerk (maybe just a little jerk), but aside from taking up space. That's it really, I love books. However, I had a tendency to be a little goony with books and buy too many, especially in bulk at yard sales. I have several (mostly used from Amazon/yard sales but still) that I haven't finished or haven't even opened yet. Anyway in daily news I brought a few things to eat from home today and we didn't eat out on the weekend either.
Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 13:54 on Mar 17, 2014 |
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Mar 17, 2014 13:32
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Basil is expensive as hell unless you get it from a farmer's market. I used to have to spend $3-4 dollars and get next to nothing. At the farmer's market we would spend a $1 and get probably three times as much. Wait, you are talking about basil right?
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Mar 17, 2014 17:09
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I used to live off Ramen and Mt.Dew  and I'm glad that was a long time ago. Today when I have Ramen (which isn't often) I usually crack a couple eggs with it and some vegetables. edit: I also did not eat out today. I remember jumping in Tuyop's thread a long time ago just because I wanted to know what his avatar was about. Nocheez posted:I did not eat out today. Good job edit: quote:You must be so proud of all the threads that get derailed with BASILtalk. It's not really a derail in this thread so I'm not rewarding him any points. If something hilarious happens in one of the other BFC threads (or something financially related in another forum) bring it up here if you want. I'm sure I'm not the only one who doesn't have time to go through every thread. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 03:17 on Mar 18, 2014 |
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Mar 18, 2014 00:05
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 BFC is my shepherd, I shall not want. I'm very happy with the bluetooth Logitech headset I got off of Amazon (daily deal) a couple weeks ago. Now I can sit on the couch or go to the bedroom and listen to what I want when my wife wants to watch something else on her laptop. edit: I went the extra mile this morning and packed some food for my wife to take to work this morning. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 13:18 on Mar 18, 2014 |
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Mar 18, 2014 13:15
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Once in a blue moon I'll buy a couple lottery tickets (I probably spent $7-8 bucks last year on lottery tickets) but only when the jackpot is obscenely high. I enjoy having the "What would you do with the money if you won" conversation with my wife, co-workers, friends and family that are also playing. I know I won't win but it's fun to participate in the social aspect of it. That said, I have a hard time understanding people that play it every day, I even know someone that probably gambles hundreds of dollars a month away on lottery tickets. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 14:42 on Mar 18, 2014 |
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Mar 18, 2014 14:38
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If I needed to watch stuff on my TV today I would just hook up the Xbox 360 for streaming files from my PC (I only had issues with certain formats) and then I would spend like $50-99 bucks for a Roku. Anyway, bad news, we ate out and bought beer today I know, I know, :entitlement: but I couldn't resist eating out with my wife on our anniversary. Seriously, it was great and worth every penny. Haifisch posted:Every extra dollar you spend on vegetables/fruit/lean meat now is saving you a gazillion dollars in healthcare costs later. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 00:57 on Mar 19, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 00:52
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(At least it is if you live in the US)
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spwrozek posted:Dude you can eat out and drink beer...my word. If you have a budget for it and enjoy it no big deal. We have $150 a month in our budget which is basically 2 nights out with drinks and a few lunches a month. You have to enjoy life a little. Yeah, I know. The last post was a joke but in general I go over-budget because I would (hopefully would) eat out too much during the work week. It's not the $20-40 my wife and I spend on a Saturday that I want to cut, it's the $7-10 I spend Monday through Friday that needs to go. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 02:42 on Mar 19, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 02:38
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Boiling eggs and peeling them has gotten real easy since I learned the "Russian" way to remove the shell. That's pretty much my go to snack (with some vegetables) now. edit: Also, I've never really kept up with GWS, have they ever had a thread about healthy snacks/meals that can be cooked up in 10-15 minutes? Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 13:31 on Mar 19, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 13:21
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Yeah, the great thing about eggs is you can also boil them using a bowl of water and some salt in a microwave which allows me to keep some at work too. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 13:52 on Mar 19, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 13:50
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Fruit may be candy, but it's nature's candy. I treat it like the former though, so it's a "sometimes" food. Except for the obvious fruits that people confuse with vegetables like tomatoes and avocados. I usually have an avocado a day since they're so cheap ($0.89 cents each) at Aldi.
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Mar 19, 2014 14:19
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antiga posted:On topic: I need new work slacks. My normal places would be Marshalls/TJMax, but any suggestions? Open to spending more if the durability makes it worthwhile. Ross? I would say Goodwill but then I realized my wife has never bought pants their for me, just shirts. Veskit posted:It's a common theme I've seen in BFC to have car chat and food chat because those run as people's highest expenses that go un noticed that they are super big expenses. I'm cool with food/whatever chat as long as it's related to BFC in some way. A conversation about eating cheap while still maintaining a healthy/body builder's diet fits in with that.
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Mar 19, 2014 14:53
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It's still a monthly bill but a co-worker is getting a no contract, unlimited text, phone and data plan for $50 at Walmart. I think there is even a goon run phone company in SA Mart that has some deals. edit: I'm having trouble finding that thread but some goons are also setting up friend/family plans with Sprint. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3604751 quote:What is Sprint launching? Walked posted:Moving on, my current status: trying not to overthink the money I have in index funds (in taxable accounts for longer-term savings) as there seems to be an murmur about the market topping out. I know its all about time in the market but there is media influence everywhere and its difficult to ignore. Stay the course I don't pay attention to financial news (Thanks Bernstein) but why are people saying the market is topping out? I'm leaning toward interest rates eventually being raised but I doubt that would be as bad as some think. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 15:17 on Mar 19, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 15:08
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Yeah, it's funny but I'm on the same team. I'd feel bad if a 2008 level crash happened again but I would still take advantage of it.
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Mar 19, 2014 15:18
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My guess is that once you eat that much basil your body will develop chloroplasts and you'll be able to eat sunlight the rest of your life. The only downside is your skin will likely turn green.
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Mar 19, 2014 15:43
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In today's America you really should be on the news as a local hero by now. Anyway, I didn't eat out today. I tried microwaving a couple eggs at work and that turned out great, along with an avocado, a couple bananas on the drive and a few other things throughout the day. I think the thread is making this easy for me because it hasn't really been hard since I started.  Usually it's a struggle because I so want to leave the office but there's nowhere to go without having to drive, sit in the cold or feeling obligated to buy something.
Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 00:54 on Mar 20, 2014 |
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Mar 19, 2014 23:51
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I managed to avoid eating out yesterday, I think I can do the same today. Right now I'm just looking forward to moving out and getting into my new home. Once everything is settled our monthly savings will be over $500 at a minimum. We're saving about 70% on the mortgage/escrow but the HOA brings us closer to 50-60% The HOA also covers our old water/sewer/trash pickup bills as far as I know.
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Mar 21, 2014 15:06
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lol the tenant ran off with the key today and wouldn't let any repair people in so now the sellers have to negotiate with me again because they won't get the work done before closing. Why I agreed to buy a house with a tenant in it was beyond dumb but at thankfully I was lucky and things worked out this time. Now I'm going to force them to do a lot of things (including paying for another inspector of my choosing) before I close. Lessons learned. Too bad I actually want this house because I could probably go further but risk losing it. edit: Time to dig in the mini fridge and get something to eat. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 23:53 on Mar 21, 2014 |
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Mar 21, 2014 23:50
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Juanito posted:Sounds like the kind of tenant that runs off with all the copper plumbing in the house, and dumps a bunch of cement down the drain.. Yeah, that was the sudden realization I had when I found out about it, so I really lucked out.
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Mar 22, 2014 00:59
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Going to a restaurant on the weekend feels much better when I haven't eat out all week.
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Mar 23, 2014 00:04
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Are you master of your domain? I'm out.
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Mar 23, 2014 02:30
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Juanito posted:I think we can all agree that the best part of the challenge will be arguing about the details. As with everything. edit: never mind the stuff about my cable. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 18:15 on Mar 23, 2014 |
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Mar 23, 2014 18:05
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The main reason why I haven't jumped onto smart phones is because I'm on computers all day at work and at home, not to mention I want to avoid paying for a data plan when I don't need one. So right now I have a prepaid phone in my car for emergencies and rare car calls I usually make out of boredom. I use my work phone and google voice for everything else. I use a dedicated map device in our family car for my wife and for trips. So right now our yearly phone bill is about $220 for the cost of the 2 phones and plans. Anyway, I didn't have anything at work so I drove down to family dollar and got a gallon of 2% milk (I know I shouldn't drink calories but milk fills me up) and some eggs. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 01:46 on Mar 25, 2014 |
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Mar 25, 2014 01:43
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Is there a general rule of thumb for when it's a good idea to get the insurance involved over car matters? My wife bumped into a concrete pole and messed up the front right end of the car pretty bad. My gut feeling is to get an estimate on things first and then contact the insurance. I've never been involved in a wreck that was my fault so that's why I'm hesitant. Anyway, I forgot to bring stuff today so I ended up going to the only grocery store in walking distance…. Whole Foods. I ended up just spending $3.00 on two egg biscuits and walking back because buying groceries would have been a waste. I'm going to stop at Aldi on the way home and buy a ton of eggs and other stuff to eat at work.
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Mar 25, 2014 21:43
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I feel really bad, so it looks like I'll be using a sick day tomorrow.
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Mar 26, 2014 06:04
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tuyop posted:Paid or unpaid? Paid but I ended up going to work anyway. I might leave early though if I feel worse. edit: Why can't I simply set a budget with my credit card company? *Slides Card* "Sir your card has been declined because you'll go over your grocery budget this month. Do you want to over-ride?" *People behind me in line are scoffing, "guy can't even stick to his budget" "I... OK, I'll put it all back, there's stuff for me to eat in the fridge anyway" *Everyone in line begins to clap* Oh because they and everyone else will make less money never mind. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 13:35 on Mar 26, 2014 |
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Mar 26, 2014 13:30
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I think I packed a few things today but left it all in the car, thankfully it's cold out today.tuyop posted:Nobody would ever use such a feature anyway, just like how most people don't use automatic bill payments or travel rewards intelligently. I think there would be a market for it, I mean there's a credit card for everything these days. Also I think a lot of people that don't use auto payments are older or simply untrustworthy. Target hosed up my auto-payment once because they redesigned their website and failed to mention that it basically reset all of their settings. So I had to call and dispute a late charge. So it took me awhile to give them another chance. Speaking of Target it annoys me that I can't set autopay for a specific date, for some reason it can only be set to the day the statement is due. I'd much rather get a confirmation a week before by email than the day/day after the payment is due. Anyway, I'm the only one that can do my job so it sucks when I miss work, especially now that we're busy. I'll just get the "flu" when were slow on take a three day vacation or something since I'm killing myself here right now. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 14:41 on Mar 26, 2014 |
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Mar 26, 2014 14:29
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I suppose Mint could do something like that if they partnered with the cc/banks. I would pay a $10 a month or something premium service for that even if it means I hold up a line at the grocery store every now and then. People do it with cash, why can't I? Still, I don't see why a CC/Bank would find that beneficial to them unless they were also getting something out of it.
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Mar 26, 2014 14:37
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You make a good point but a lot of people need to be forced to stick to a budget (names several famous BFC people that can't stick to budgets) before they can stick to one on their own.Your Dead Gay Son posted:My problem with Mint is the delay. I swear things take a day or two to show up. Not to mention they think I owe my entire credit card balance every month. Granted, that is probably wise, but I'm not there yet. The only real problem I have with mint is the investment section. I don't know why but Mint always tells me (for example) that one fund is doing horribly compared to the S&P even though it is entirely invested in the S&P. What? They should make a game version of their budget section. "Gain exp and find new equipment if you meet or go under your budget! Every transaction generates a random encounter!" Of course people would cheat but for serious minded people it would be a fun way to stick to a budget. dreesemonkey posted:The mint app could send you an alert when it detects your near your grocery store with your available grocery balance.... Somehow. Wifi. It simply starts yelling "GET THE gently caress OUT OF HERE FATASS AND GO TO THE GROCERY STORE" when you walk into a McDonalds and the signal strength is strong enough. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 14:52 on Mar 26, 2014 |
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Mar 26, 2014 14:46
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Your Dead Gay Son posted:Lol everytime you drive by the McDonald's your phone yells at you for committing a thought crime. I know "Super Size Me" is a horribly flawed movie but I do agree with the point they made about how places like McDonalds engineer their younger customers to want to return there when they're older, so Spurlock stated "Yeah, that's why everytime I drive by McDonalds I'm going to punch my kid in the face". Now your cellphone can do that! tuyop posted:This is only a problem if you spend more money on your card than is earmarked for spending in your chequing account. This is only stressful for me because Target already screwed up once and most other sites allow you to select the day you would like the autopayment to occur. With Target (as far as I can tell) it's always on the day before it becomes late. I'm not really concerned about overdraft or anything like that. I just like to know, idk a couple days before the due date that the bill has been paid.
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Mar 26, 2014 15:27
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Well, things are going to suck at the end of March budget-wise but I'm hopeful for April now that I'm skipping lunch during the week.
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Mar 26, 2014 15:49
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Can you guys think of any products that have actually saved you time/and/or money? I know there's a product recommendation thread in PYF but I'd rather get BFC's opinion on most things. I know it's probably because I thought it was cool on Breaking Bad but a Roomba or an altnerative to a Roomba just seems neat to me, especially since I'm moving into a single story/mostly hard-wood home soon. I understand pushing a vacuum around isn't very difficult but my house will be rather small so the more space I have the better. I'm also quite fond of my Nest. I figured out a really efficient way to keep the home heated/cooled (since I could play around with the settings online and get a score) by simply burst heating the house and then allowing it to cool. So energy would be used sparingly but my house would stay warm when I needed it to.
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Mar 26, 2014 17:45
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