Category Archives: Frugality

Frugal Activities

Re-Using Printer Paper At Work

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A few months ago, when I was walking by a fellow prisoner, erh… cube dweller, I noticed that he had a stack of paper that was about 1 foot high.  I was perplexed… what was it for?  So I asked him, he told me it was scrap paper.  I thought that was a pretty good idea.  But wow, 1 foot high… hmmm.

So I decided to build on his idea.  I’ve collected used printer paper (that is in good shape) in a pile like my buddy’s.  But instead of using it just as scrap paper, I decided to use it as a daily log.  Instead of staples, I’ve been using a metal clip to hold the papers together in groups of 5.  Then when I am finished for the week the daily log represents, I punch holes in them and put them in a notebook folder.

Getting more out of used printer paper

Getting more out of used printer paper

After a month, I’ll start to purge them from the folder and throw them in a recycling bin.

-D

Navy Shower

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Showering the Navy way…

 

 

This summer, I started showering the Navy way.  Ironically, I didn’t know it was called that at the time.  I was showering, and thought “Wow, most of the shower water is being wasted and that I could reduce my water usage”.

Here is What I Did:

So I started to soak myself, turn off the water, scrub down, then turn the water back on to wash away the soap and shampoo.  I cut my water consumption by about half.  Later, after I got a rhythm, I was able to cut my water usage by at least 80%.  I’m sure it’s possible to achieve a better percentage, but this was fine for me.

At the time, I thought it was pretty clever and I told one of the older guys at work…  He said “So you took a Navy shower huh”.  I googled it, and apparently, that’s almost exactly what I did.

A Navy shower is one where you:

  • Soak yourself
  • Turn the water off
  • Lather up and scrub
  • Turn the water back on, and rinse
  • Dry

My buddy (a Navy man) told me that the fresh water stored on the ship was a limited supply.  And apparently, to conserve the fresh water, everybody would follow the technique above to save as much water as possible.

Practicing such a technique will:

  1. Save you money (less water waste)
  2. Conserve water (better for the environment)
  3. Keep water hot for the family (nobody likes a cold shower)

What a great way to get more bang for your buck!  You (and your family) will benefit 3 ways all at once.

I don’t practice this on very cold winter days, although, it’s a great way to wake up!  Coffee is overrated anyway… 😉

Another debatable perk is…  After doing this for a while, taking a nice regular hot shower is a treat, almost a luxury.  I now make sure I take a regular shower at least once a week just to reward myself and enjoy it!

Anyway, that’s my 3 cents for the day!

-MR

How To Eat Out Cheaply At Lunch With Co-workers

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I broke down and decided to go to lunch with the guys.

We ended up going to Macaroni Grill.  A great restaurant, but a bit more pricey than I like to spend at lunch.  While the bulk of the group I was with bought meals that were over $12, I decided I didn’t want to spend that much.

On the menu, I usually go to the soup section to save money.  Low and behold, they have listed a cup of soup for $3.59.  The portion was very large for a cup, but not enough to fill me up.  But ahh, the bread, the combination of the bread and the soup more than satisfied me.  And it was tasty to boot.

So the total lunch cost me $5.59.  I gave the waitress a $2.00 tip (that’s a 55% tip) , she was really good, and deserved at least that much.  Beside, I always feel kind of cheap if I don’t at least tip at a minimum $1.00 for food.

I justify my tipping about by the following logic: she still had to serve me just as much as the other (silverware, drink, bread, bread, dish, etc).  So the quality and quantity of work she prepared getting mey food was the same as the other guys…  If she didn’t do a good job, I still would have tipped her at least a dollar.

I’m pretty frugal about a lot of things, but giving fair tips for the amount of work performed is one area that I’m not…

Library Savings

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I’m lucky, that I work close to a library (it’s about 2 miles away from work).  My work library has an added bonus!  I found a special little spot in the library, that has a peacefully homey feeling to it!  It a small nook that looks like it could be a family room with a nice fireplace as the center focal point.

Much like superman’s fortress of solitude, I go here for lunch to escape the stress of work!  I find that the trip, which is less than 2 minutes drive, often leaves me refreshed and I go back to work with new vigor, ready to get back to the rat race.

Library Fireplace

Library Fireplace

 

While I’m at the library, I typical do the following for free:

  • Read magazines that I’m interested in
  • Surf the web and enter/edit this blog
  • Walk back to the pond behind the library
  • Sit and read a book out on the patio
  • Read the newspaper
  • Check out books, CD, DVDs, Audio books
  • Play Xbox with Kinect while I’m there (not often though)
  • Request books from other libraries
  • Check out software (but it’s mostly old stuff)
  • Check out the Leapster cartridges (wish they had DS ones)
  • For the kids, I check out board games, and activity kits
  • Some libraries (not this one) even have a weekly movie night

These are the reasons I go to the library. But probably my favorite reason for going to the library is for the 3 day DVD selection!

Some libraries now offer 3 day videos!

The way this works is when the library gets new DVDs, the videos are tagged 3 day videos.  What this means is instead of people checking them out online, they have to come in and pick them up first come, first serve.  People can then checkout the videos (both DVD and VHS) only for 3 days and only 2 at a time.

I know many think that the library is nerdy, but it’s also a very frugal way to go!

Check it out!

MR