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Fiscal Fast
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Fiscal Fast Day 17
Not a NSD but a low spending day, only bread and a wash kit bag with goodies from my favourite local cancer shop.
I must start looking in all my food cupboards and do a serious stock take - I think I would be shocked at just how much stuff we have :eek:"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
Sorry TM6, I'm reading with interest but nothing to add! I used to love shopping but don't miss it - I found all those little CS or Poundland purchases still added up, and usually it wasn't stuff I needed. I think the answer is to find a hobby that doesn't involve going near shops! Do you knit, or sew, or paint?Life is mainly froth and bubble: two things stand like stone. Kindness in another’s trouble, courage in your own.0
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I am interested how the store cupboards will fare under a no non-essential spending regime. I tend to keep very full stores in both cupboards and freezer. I like to think I don't waste much although I am sure improvements could be made.
Surely if household diet is not changing then once the store cupboards are used up then spending will revert back to normal? So yes, this attitude will save money to get through a tight month or two, but no long term savings will result and when stores are low there isn't the option to take advantage of bargain offers.
I have always liked to keep plenty of long life food in the house so that in the event of say illness or car breakdown if I couldn't get to the shops then I could survive for sometime without shopping.
There are problems of course. We had loads of ketchup so there was no need to stock up with more , repeat for a few weeks..... on Sunday I went to look for a new bottle of ketchup ............nothing there and I can't get to the shops until tomorrow !! It won't hurt me to do without of course ! Better stocktaking required , but what a bore !Decluttering, 20 mins / day Jan 2024 2/20 -
PollyWollyDoodle wrote: »Sorry TM6, I'm reading with interest but nothing to add! I used to love shopping but don't miss it - I found all those little CS or Poundland purchases still added up, and usually it wasn't stuff I needed. I think the answer is to find a hobby that doesn't involve going near shops! Do you knit, or sew, or paint?
Sadly, I'm not very creative, I wish I were.
Hobby wise I love the outdoor life and we live in a stunning part of Cornwall so walking and nature play a major part in our lives. However, bargain hunting gives me that adrenaline rush and I enjoy auctions, car boot sales etc and buying and selling on ebay so not going near shops is not an option. Getting the right balance is an option however so this fast is about rebalancing
Thanks so much for your post, it was getting quite lonely being the only poster for a week"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
oystercatcher wrote: »I am interested how the store cupboards will fare under a no non-essential spending regime. I tend to keep very full stores in both cupboards and freezer. I like to think I don't waste much although I am sure improvements could be made.
Surely if household diet is not changing then once the store cupboards are used up then spending will revert back to normal? So yes, this attitude will save money to get through a tight month or two, but no long term savings will result and when stores are low there isn't the option to take advantage of bargain offers.
I have always liked to keep plenty of long life food in the house so that in the event of say illness or car breakdown if I couldn't get to the shops then I could survive for sometime without shopping.
There are problems of course. We had loads of ketchup so there was no need to stock up with more , repeat for a few weeks..... on Sunday I went to look for a new bottle of ketchup ............nothing there and I can't get to the shops until tomorrow !! It won't hurt me to do without of course ! Better stocktaking required , but what a bore !
I'm totally with you Oystercatcher with regards to your thoughts -
'Surely if household diet is not changing then once the store cupboards are used up then spending will revert back to normal?'
I have thought about this myself but
1. Not visiting the supermarkets at the moment except for what we need is curtailing impulse buying and buying treats - it is the old adage of I only went in for milk and came out with a boot full :rotfl:
2. Although our household diet is not changing how and where we buy our shopping is changing.
3 I don't think we would hold so much stock anymore as deals come around between the different supermarkets on a regular basis.
I hope all this makes sense x"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
Fiscal Fast Day 18
As you are probably aware by now, I am a shopaholic who gets great pleasure from shopping but the desire to have an amazing time in the States means that I have to reign everything back to minimalism. I am however realistic and if the reins are too tight I'm setting myself up to failure.
So yesterday I went to the following shops without a shopping list and doing what I call an up and down shop - cruising the aisles looking for bargains!
Shop Number 1 - Home Bargains (how I love this shop) I was really proud of myself as I only spent £17.60 of which only 79p was a treat.
Shop Number 2 - Bookers - Only RTC purchases and only what we needed
Shop Number 3 - Poundstretcher - It was the opening day of a new store and there were bargains to be had. In the past I would have hit the bargains hard but this time I only bought a few
18 packs of Seabrook crisps for a £1 - we bought 2 packs and they will be for treats (like family night when we all watch a film together)
12 packs of Coca Cola for a £1 - one pack bought for my daughter - for treats again
Again, I am really pleased with this shopping expedition as I'm thinking more about what I'm buying and whether I need or want what I buy
How are you all doing?"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
Fiscal Fast Day 19
Another NSD today - extremely pleased :j
As you are probably aware I am lucky enough to live in a stunning part of Cornwall.
I have been looking into Local's passes and there are some amazing offers out there at the moment. So I am looking into the best options for the next year :beer:"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
Just a line of encouragement TM6, do keep it up. I like reading your posts. No spend days and staying away from shops is definitely the way to go.Downshifted
September GC £251.21/£250 October £248.82/£250 January £159.53/£2000 -
downshifted wrote: »Just a line of encouragement TM6, do keep it up. I like reading your posts. No spend days and staying away from shops is definitely the way to go.
Thank you SO much downshifted for the words of encouragement - it means a lot to have support x :T"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0 -
Fiscal Fast Day 20
Just a few bits this morning at Tesco and a £1 in the charity shop
Really pleased especially with the cut backs we are making on our grocery shopping.
To get inspiration I watched an edition of 'Extreme Cheapskates' but some of the folk on there are just plain weird! For example,
a millionairess who wees in a jar and then puts it on her veg patch to save money on water from flushing her toilet? :eek:"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much was in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like but the world may be a little bit better because I was important in the life of a child."0
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