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Posted
May 09 2008, 10:07 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Tomorrow is the National Association of Letter Carriers Annual Food Drive, billed as "the world's largest single-day" food-gathering effort. In the past 15 years, the drive has collected more than 750 million pounds of food, according to the U.S. Postal Service.
With the rising price of food, lower-income folks are finding it harder to put food on the table. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, some 26 million Americans are fed with help from food stamps. If you're lucky, you're not among them -- and if you're that lucky, could you spare even a little something to help others? Say, a 33-cent can of tuna?
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Posted
May 07 2008, 11:02 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
"Dividend" has been using the snowball approach to debt reduction. To do so, the reader treats debt reduction payments as a monthly bill, "as necessary and unavoidable as paying rent."
Dividend started by creating a minimalist yet realistic budget to live on. This includes predictable expenses such as car insurance, gift-giving and "a little bit of play money." Everything left over is officially invisible. "I treat that money like it doesn't exist until the end of the month. Then, out of that, I pay minimums on everything first, and then the remainder gets paid to the next item in the snowball."
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:59 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
If only there were a magic pill that would give us 100 miles per gallon. Well, there isn't. "Frustrated Monk" uses a mix of strategies to get the most bang for the four bucks.
He drives 60 mph even if the speed limit is higher. The reader says that doing this earns him an extra three or four miles per gallon in his three different vehicles. Monk also keeps the car tuned up, checks the tire inflation, uses cruise control (except in hilly areas) and has removed any the junk from the trunk.
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:56 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Water bills getting you down? "Katurah82" favors a multipronged approach to keeping usage in check. She takes three "navy showers" a week, i.e., water turned off while she lathers up. The rest of the time she heats a few gallons of water on the stove and pours it into the bathtub. "I use way less water."
Katurah82 learned to wash dishes in a gallon of hot water while camping. Why not do them that way at home? Oh, and about that water: Most heaters are set way too high, she says, so turn yours down. (A setting of 120 degrees should work fine, and could save you $20 to $50 in utility bills according to this article.)
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:51 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
How to be a one-income family, pay off debts and still save for retirement? There's no magic formula for reader "Steph041401" -- just a bunch of coping strategies. Among them:
Drinking mostly water. Baking at home. Cutting out most processed foods. Shopping with cash only. Trading magazines with friends. Making single-serve snack packs with dollar store ingredients.
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:48 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
We're in awe of the way "HollyM" does lunch. This thrifty reader starts by cooking big batches of soups, stews, stuffed peppers, lasagna, casseroles, enchiladas and other goodies -- all of it made with on-sale ingredients. The entrees get frozen in individual servings because variety is the spice of lunch.
"No boredom. Lunches ready to grab. Saves time/energy/money."
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:34 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Having raised eight kids, reader "SGW" can make a little bit of meat go a long way. She would buy a chicken on sale and make a huge pot of soup -- but they didn't eat the chicken itself, just the broth with vegetables. Then SGW would cut up the bird and freeze it in one-cup portions.
"Yep, I make chicken enchiladas, chicken chow mein, chicken salads, you name it for a family of 10 using only one cup of chicken each meal."
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Posted
May 07 2008, 10:00 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
"Frugal-Cook" doesn't skimp on ingredients. Check her shopping cart and you'll find stuff like shallots, fennel, olive oil and fresh herbs. Yet she spends only about $500 a month to feed her family of five-going-on-six -- the mom of three is expecting again -- even though she lives in spendy Chicago.
Frugal-Cook bases her meal plans on weekly grocery specials, viewing the ads online at http://www.centsible.net/groceries.shtml. She also hits smaller markets in ethnic neighborhoods. Then she cooks one and only one type of cuisine per week.
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Posted
May 05 2008, 09:17 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Putting all your change in a jar each night is a time-honored frugal hack. One guy bought himself a new pickup after setting aside coins for years. A Smart Spending message board reader named "Amberstorck" wasn't aiming that high -- she just wanted to save some money.
But now she's having trouble unloading the lucre. Local grocery stores refused her rolled change. Her bank charges a 6% coin-counting fee. "What is the point of saving coins if nobody will take them?" Amber wrote in a message board thread.
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Posted
May 02 2008, 09:00 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
About six weeks ago I wrote an essay about why getting rid of some of the clutter in your life could help you save money. Yesterday I read an Associated Press article about people who are emptying closets and attics just to keep the wolf from the door.
Online auctions are bristling with family heirlooms, home electronics and designer duds. Craigslist ads are getting increasingly frantic, like the one in which a teen begged on behalf of her unemployed mom for people to "please buy anything you can to help out." One cash-strapped Wisconsin woman put her diamond engagement ring up for grabs.
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