Things you've done when things got desperate!

filigree_2

Another loo roll bandit here

One Christmas when we were kids we got paper and colouring pencils for a present. Looking back I know they were "borrowed" from the stationery cupboard at my Mum's work.

When I first left home one flatmate had a cupboard at her office that was full of cleaning stuff, we didn't have to pay for loo cleaner or washing up liquid for ages.

One flatmate's parents donated a huge box of Weetabix. For several days I had buttered Weetabix topped with home grown mustard and cress for my lunch. I found a cheapie discount store that sold really nice flavoured rice with soya and veg in it, bit like a pot noodle. At 10p a pack I had that for dinner a lot.

I've picked apart cigarette butts and re-rolled them into new cigarettes _pale_

I travelled at child rate on public transport till I was about 19 or 20 - the advantages of looking young!

Also as a result of looking young, I used to tick the "under 19 and still in education" box on prescriptions to get them free till I was in my 20s

Handwashed everything because I couldn't afford the launderette, then when in desperation I had to take towels and sheets I didn't use soap powder

At work we used to take in turns to bring in treats on a Friday. People got more and more lavish and there would be breads, cheese, pate etc. I didn't bother taking a packed lunch on those days! There was so much surplus it would often be going mouldy days later. I prevented this wastage by taking a big tupperware into work and filling it with anything that could be eaten quickly or frozen.

I once found a purse with £20 and I didn't hand it in. There was no form of ID in the purse so the owner couldn't be traced. We'd been at the museum all day with a virtuous home made picnic, it was worth it to see my son's face when I took him for drink and cake in the cafe.

I've gone round to my Mum's even though I knew she was out, so I could have a warm bed and raid the food cupboards.

One night I needed to buy something to eat with a handful of coins and calculated that a Mars Bar had the most calories for the money and bought it, even though I don't like Mars Bars.

At the end of PTA fetes there would be loads of ethnic food left unsold and helpers were told to help themselves. We had some lovely curry feasts out of that. One of the parents donated loads of spicy food for the staff Xmas party, I took home a huge tupperware that fed the family for a couple of days.

Tetsuko

When I was a kid my mum hardly ever bought me any clothes. Everyone used to take the mickey out of me at school. I had to go to school in football boots for a while because I had no shoes. I was sooo embarressed. I used to click when I walked down the corridors. >.<

I used to forge my mum's signature on letters to the school when I was wearing jeans for the third or fourth day in a row and say that the rest of my clothes were in the wash when the truth was I didn't have many other clothes.

Also in Summer I had no Summer clothes so I cut a pair of jeans down into a pair of shorts. Come Autumn I began totally regretting that decision. So I used to stretch a pair of leg warmers up to my thighs to cover the fact that my jeans only went to just above my knees. This put me at the mercy of the well-off incrowd again because wearing legwarmers around your ankles was cool in the 80's wearing them up to your thighs wasn't >.<

cheekyweegit

I feel so humbled after reading this thread. I thought I was skint and do worry about my debts but after reading this thread I am lucky.

Here are some of my stories though, some familier, some not.

Pinched flowers from the vicars garden for my mum only to be mugged by a young guy and him take them off me (devine retribution) and couldn’t tell my mum why I was so upset. I was about 10.

Clothes were purchased from jumble sales / thrift / charity shops

Bought clothes worn them and taken them back

Bought something on sale and taken it back to same store but different branch and used the difference to buy food / clothes.

Salad cream on toast – yummy

Sugar & marg on a piece – yummy (surprised no one has mentioned this to be honest.)

Tampax from work which were free – yip done this too.

Burger King / McDonalds sauce / salt / pepper etc etc perfect for taking camping.

Franked stuff at work, borrowed stationery, particularly selotape at Christmas.

Wore a school uniform to get child’s fare on the bus to sign on.

Always take our own food / juice to pictures when we can afford it.

Less than £10 in the bank so unable to withdraw from cash machine so bought a mars bar and got cashback (days when cashback was less than £10).

Again less than £10 in bank hovered round checkouts waiting on someone paying less than what I had in the bank and asking if I could get their cash and pay by my card.

Wearing my denim jacket to school, the head thinking I was a rebel when it was the only coat I had. (Actually I was class swat, but a rebel to my mum!)

Being every so pleased with myself emptying my bankie as a 7 year old and doing my first ever weekly shop from my "berry" money down the Co-Op as I knew my mum was skint. I spent 62 1/2p. Memories eh?

Forgot to add - sold my erm well worn smelly slippers on ebay (wonder which thread I got the idea from?).

Oh and pasta cooked in oxo cubes with a tin of tomatoes goes down well as a cheap beef and tomato dish. Tasty too.

JCD_Capulet

When I've had absolutley NO money at all I have (and still do) create 'dinner' with whatever is in the cupboards. Tuesday just passed was some boiled rice with a tin of mushy peas thown in and mixed. It made enough for two bowls, lunch and dinner. Other times I've had bowls of re-hydrated broth mix (nothing more) and added dollops of bovril to pasta to fool myself into thinking there was something meaty and tasty in the bowl.

Once I ran out of cat food (worst thing ever, I don't so much mind me going hungry, but not my cats) and they were given what I think my mum used to call 'sups' for their breakfast. 1/4 of a wheatabix with the last of my milk. Luckily they're both lactose tollerant, and the breakfast filled them up so much they forgot about dinner later on and slept for hours.

I've nicked loo roll too, still use my old college ID to get discounts on busses and in shops, washed my hair with fairy liquid and did the rounds in the local Frasers for free samples and test tubes for makeup and nice smelling things.

I've done laundry with no washing powder but used soda crystals instead, I use radiator hangers for washing ALL over the house. they're on the radiators (which are never on) and I hang them from my windows when they're in 'tilt in' position. I live on a hill, so nobody sees.

Generally I don't use lighting untill 10pm when the sun has gone down and the computer is just starting to make my eyes nip. I have two quilts, one for under the bottom sheet of the bed and one as a regular quilt. It makes the bed so warm!

and on that note I'm way over my self imposed rule of three hours of lighting per night, so I'm off to bed

G'night y'all
Joanne x

Shazzadouglas

When i,ve run out of washing powder i once used washing up liquid but i put in too much and the kitchen ended up like an ibiza foam party with bubbles coming out of everywhere in the machine! Took me ages to clear the bubbles and even longer to clear the machine Now i just send away for loads of free washing powder samples and have got them stored away incase i ever run out again.

Shaz x

moanymoany

My sister is really good at this, she never has any money, so for my birthday the other year, I had her help me clean the house and do the garden before a barbeque, and make me a cardboard armadillo.

xx[/quote]

A cardboard armadillo!!!!!!!!!!

newcook

When I sign up to sites like lightspeed and pigsback I also sign up OH but do the surveys on his behalf so I get more chance of getting points to convert into vouchers you need to have 2 seperate email accounts though...

also send off for free stuff on his behalf so we get 2 of the free items.

I buy sainsburys basics washing powder for 50p and pour it into the Ariel box we have at home as apparently OH doesnt like the cheap powder as it makes him itch - he hasnt noticed I have done this for the last 6 months and I haven't seen him itching...!

moanymoany

I've done most of the things on here. When we were first married - 1968 - we lived on very little. A stew for a week, a chicken was the best. Roast, cold roast, cold roast, curried, curried, soup, soup.

I've used rag for ST's as well as paper. Rag washes!

As a kid we had some strange meals. Mum would burn sugar on a spoon over the gas, when it was brown, she added it to water and thickened it with flour - I had that poured over bread - vile! We lived for weeks on porridge and fried onion sandwiches. I loathed margarine of any kind so I would ask for dry bread, but my sister loved margarine and sugar. My absolute fave was dripping and I must have munched my way through tons of the stuff. My mum was a bus conductress and if the bus ran over anything edible we had it.

I remember 'cardboard' sandals dissolving in the rain. The clothes thing was not so bad for me as most of the kids at my school lived in grinding poverty.

I'm going to try the pasta and dried soup cooked together. My favourite sandwich is Tesco value brown sauce with value crisps. One pack is just enough.

Stalemango, have you thought of going into business for yourself? I think you would be very good at it. I liked your post, I like it when someone bites the system back.:T

lindens

Alot of mine have already been mentioned too.

Stealing loo roll/stationery from work
Taking jam sandwiches to work for lunch as that's all thats in the fridge before payday.
Taking annual leave days cos I can't afford the train fare to get to work just before payday
Going into work late on Wednesdays saying i overslept (worked flexi anyway) but inreality we were waiting for the PO to open at 9am to cash my Ex-OH Sick Pay Giro as had no money to get to work
Finding clothing i wanted with a reduced sticker on but not in my size, taking that one and the one that was my size into the changing rooms, and coming out with the sticker on the one in my size.
When ATM's weren't as sophisticated as they are now, me and OH would each withdraw the last of the money in the bank at exactly the same time using two different cashpoints round the corner from each other
Having to use the lawnmower petrol to put in the car and have also filled up the car with £3 of petrol using 10p's
Going to the market at the end of the day and asking for old cabbage leaves for "the rabbit" for free but eating them ourselves.

Actually reading some of these have been very touching, and has made me realise how lucky I was as a kid as money was in excess, and even now as I'm struggling through my own fault, it could still be alot worse.

bobbadog

I agree with Linden's last statement above, many of these are very very touching. Hugs to you all!

I have:
* regularly stolen office stationery, toilet roll, posted eBay stuff for free etc, plus use Pigsback and Quidco when buying things
* At my old job the boss supplied tea, coffee, milk, bread, jam, marmite, peanut butter etc (12 hour days, music industry, pathetic money) so i'd offer to do the Sainsburys run every month or so, stock up for the office and a few extras for me (like a jar of jam or peanut butter), plus get the Nectar points
* Ate for £6 a week whilst at university, on bread and noodles.
* Did sex texting
* Paid by cheque and took things back for cash
* Sold CD's and stuff at Music & Video Exchange, for £10, in order to buy food and phone top up to ring home (more often than not it was Pizza and Lambrini and phone top up)
* Pawned my 21st birthday jewellery and never got it back

When my Dad left us, we had no food and my mum got hold of a dead Mallard on the road near our house (near ponds) and we had Duck a'la orange for a couple of nights. We also lent our flat to the Police to use as a watchpoint for prostitutes and pimps, as we lived in a red light area - they weren't allowed to pay us for it, but they did buy me my first buggy.

It's all better now though x