Sneaky tips to fox anti-OS husband

codemonkey

Hoping you magnificent OSers can help with this one.

You see, I was raised by my mum who was used to feeding a huge family on a tiny budget. My mum is frugal and passed it on to me, so I largely ignore use by dates - I check for mould and bad smells and do the sniff test and if it passes I use it. Helps that I have a cast iron stomach -probably from years of my mum's terrible cooking :rotfl: This wasn't a problem when I lived alone, but now I have a DH and he's driving me crazy.

I swear he lurks by the fridge waiting for food that's gone past its use by date and the second it does, he throws it out. He once threw out a large block of cheddar because it had a pinprick sized bit of mould on it, whereas I'd just have cut that off. He goes through the cupboards and throws out tinned and store cupboard stuff. He threw out my flour even though it didn't have flour mites and was still ok.

He also goes into the freezer and throws out anything that gets in his way.

Also, I've tried refilling the hand soap dispensers in the bathroom with cheaper stuff but he just goes out and buys new expensive stuff.

He doesn't listen to my protests.

Any ideas to train him or for sneaky ways to fox him?

pigpen

take everything out of its packaging and put in sandwich bags etc.

Iron his hands every time he goes in the kitchen


Or kill him...

I'd kill him, much less hassle!!!

I hate people who do that complete and utter waste with no regard for money or the sheer waste of it.. yep, strangle him, in his sleep..

Lilyplonk

Some men will only learn when they notice a problem with the bank balance ............................. and they frequently need some kind of 'goal' to envisage for a result of having to be frugal.

You may need to work out what kind of financial carrot to dangle in front of Mr Codemonkey for him to come-to-heel.

Good Luck with getting YOURS 'cash-trained' .

Floss

Take everything he has chucked back out of the bin & work out its cost on My Supermarket and give him the bill everytime he does it - he obviously doesn't see it as money.

Also ban him from the kitchen unless supervised, fill his expensive brand packaging with your cheaper things, and don't let him wear you down!

Do you have a comfortable lifestyle, or does he not realise how much it now costs to keep a family?

beedeedee

Take out everything he chucks in the bin. Have a good look and a sniff etc then rewrap it in freezer bags with todays date on and a date 6 months hence...

FairyPrincessk

Just wondering if you've tried talking to him about it when he hasn't done something to annoy you. If he didn't grow up doing these things he will find them strange and possibly even irrational so it might take a few calm conversations. I'd also suggest some compromises, it will take him time. For example, perhaps send him this link about the difference between use by and best before dates:
http://www.food.gov.uk/northern-ireland/nutritionni/niyoungpeople/survivorform/bestreadbefore/usebyandbestbefore#.U6pvbdLV_Ek

Then maybe you can convince him that throwing out flour etc. isn't necessary, although he'll still want to check the fridge for use bys.

On things like hand soap, show him the difference in price in the supermarket and tell him you'd like to buy the cheaper bottle and refill the smaller one. If he object then, you can have a conversation about it and come to some sort of a agreement. He'll be far less likely to undermine you if he is in on the decision making.

Do the budget with your OH as well. Set aside time either each month or week or however often you do it and do it together. Set a budget for the SM and everything else. Show him how this comes out of your wages and how the amount you spend at the SM affects how much you have left for other things. Then take him to the SM with you--remind him of the budget before you start, check in after you've paid talk about if you were over/under any other things you may have to pick up elsewhere and how well you did.

He'll get there, but he'll have to be a part of it and that might mean taking a step back on some things for awhile.

flipper_72

My brother does this when he visits my dad!!! I had words the last time, problem is he earns about 15 times what my dad earns so doesn't understand the cost thing.
My suggestion for OP would be to get a sharpies pen and write over the dates to obscure them, or if something has an inner and outer package then write on the inner package what it is and throw the outer away. Getting your other half into your mindset will be a gradual thing so if you take away the incentive it should be easier to stop him throwing things away (I hope). Good luck!

ETA
For hand soap, can you get him to choose a bulk buy one that he likes so is maybe not as cheap as the one you buy but is cheaper then the little ones? My DH actually prefers the cheap bubble bath smell to the "nice" ones I used to buy.

good_advice

Hiya, some people take longer than others to learn the OS way.
My dear OH still struggles sometimes.. Wants to buy daft stuff.

We now eat a lot of YS food and are thankful of a lower shopping bill wile eating very well.
I go through our fridge most days and move things around. Decide what is for dinner. Not much stays around long enough to go in the bin. Then it has to go past the dog first.

I do watch the dates as some food will go off if kept to long.

elsien

Start with explaining the difference between use by and sell by dates?
I have to be honest though, I've had food hygiene thoroughly drummed into me at work, and I'd be reluctant to eat sandwich meats etc that are passed their use by date. I'm It a bit more flexible on other foods, depending on what they are. It may not be OS but unless you're direly strapped for cash your Oh does have his beliefs and one of them is about how fresh he wants his food to be, why should he change to do something he doesn't like the idea of just because you think differently?
So in my book educate rather than trick, which is a bit underhand if it's something he feels strongly about.

jlhmd666

My OH can be like this. When I fist introduced the family to approved foods I got lots of negative comments but most things are accepted now - mainly that which goes into the goody box for Friday night treats

I need to start saving more pennies though so will have to look at our brand named items and see what they can be replaced with and then just hope I don't get the negativity along with the changes Good luck, OP

codemonkey

Wow. Thanks. I knew you guys would be helpful.

I realise I kind of made it sound like food poisoning roulette in my kitchen - obviously I don't take the chance with things that could kill us but its things like for example bread - when it gets a bit stale its still good for toast and after that breadcrumbs whereas he'll see the date on it and throw it out.

I do need him to throw some stuff out cause I'm pretty bad at remembering to do that. There's only 2 of us so sometimes things do go off. I also don't want to discourage him from tidying the kitchen. Its just annoying when I go to get something and its not there.

May have to transfer my flour to jars or something to save it from him.

We used to be comfortable but I work in the public sector so pay rises way under inflation and increased pension contributions mean that I'm actually earning less and the cost of everything has gone up so feeling the pinch. I hate it how supermarkets have cottoned onto the value ranges populatity and put the prices up and the price of baking and sewing stuff has gone up since that got quite cool. DH is actually really good at saving and we're working hard to keep a cushion and save enough to do up our house and travel a bit.

Maybe I should send him to live with my mum for a bit and she can teach him frugal ways. :rotfl: