2020 Frugal Living Challenge

YORKSHIRELASS

Thanks ASB, the progress DS has made is amazing, lots to be happy about.  The £3000 is down to DH doing lots of extra hours and me keeping a very tight rein on our spending!  

I am snuggled under my electric heated throw, heating has been off all day.  Leftover stew made into a pie for tea, going to watch a bit of telly and get an early night I think.

Frugaldom

THIS IS GREAT NEWS! (RELATING TO BARCLAYCARD CREDIT CARDS)
"From 26 January 2021, we’ll be blocking any transactions made at a gambling establishment or on a gambling website, so if you try to use your card, it won’t go through."

This makes me happy, as it is so easy for those with gambling addictions to get carried away and rack up debts. Over the past few years we have seen a huge increase in advertising gambling and loan companies offering extortionate rates of interest and it really doesn't take a genius to work out that the two don't gel well in the frugal living stakes. I have previous experience living with a gambler so this move by Barclaycard appears to be a sensible one. HOWEVER... in the same instance, they are removing the interest charge on cash transactions for those who pay in full every month. This would be brilliant if there was a way of investing the withdrawn cash to earn extra over the space of one month but it falls far short of previous schemes where you could transfer to an interest free card without paying any fees at all. Stoozing isn't set to return just yet, I don't think.

Tonight was another free meal, thanks to what I was given and what I was able to claim through the waste food app. I am so glad to see that there are several food waste vigilantes here in the group. Long may it continue.

Pixiehouse55

@Frugaldom I received a letter from Barclaycard the other day about no longer being able to used card for gambling. Plus their monthly minimum payment has gone up  from Jan hasn't it? I've gotv1 payment to make Thursday and my card will be cleared!! Happy Bunny😁 that will be extra payment of £400 to our mortgage 

ditty1234

Hi have just been reading up on the £4000 challenge, and am well impressed. It is very inspirational and I can see how I can still keep reducing my spending. And also just got stuck on the page with black Friday tv offers, I might consider that, as want some more entertainment for this Christmas!

sashacat

Finally worked out how to use Olio.
just got two tins of sweet corn with best before date of 2023. 
They will keep until early spring. I always regard February as the “hungry month”. I think, in days gone by, it used to be. 

YORKSHIRELASS

Frugal DS has a work colleague who gambles excessively, but refuses to acknowledge he has a problem.  It's far too easy these days, so I am pleased to see Barclaycard are doing something about it.

I have just had a yoghurt from the back of the fridge with a BB date of 5th November, it was fine.  Very little is wasted in this house, it's one thing we are really good at.  Roast dinner tonight with a £3.20 joint of pork, mash, yorkshire puddings, stuffing, gravy and lots of veg.  There is enough pork left for DH and DS to have sandwiches for the rest of the week.
I also made carrot and lentil soup for my lunch, and there is enough for another day.

I have paid £100 for DSs deposit for his Uni house next year.  It felt so good to know that I had the money for this.  I could take it out of the emergency fund but I will probably just reduce my card overpayment this month.  We contribute very little towards DSs living costs so I dont mind helping him with this.

Frugaldom

@Pixiehouse55 well done clearing your card - I use mine constantly but always PIF each month - the cashback isn't much nowadays but every penny is one hundredth od the way to becoming a pound.

I;m seeing quite a few healthy frugal comments in here, which is great. I always like to think that there is still wriggle space even in the tightest of budgets and my best so far has been the frugal friends who now do the Olio supermarket run. I love being a food waste vigilante and with having the compost heap, ponies, hens, ducks, the wormery and friends who don't turn their noses up at sharing yellow sticker foods, it's amazing just knowing that food is not going to waste. I'm disappointed in council changing all the recycling yet again and no longer taking glass but that should mean plenty of jars available from friends and neighbours, which has given me an idea. I'll work on it first, before mentioning anything further, as it may not work.

in_my_wellies

Good luck with your new project Frugaldom. I collected jars for a woman who decorated them for weddings. She didn't need any more so as I was going to the recycling tip I popped them in the car - about 70.  The man on the gate said to put them in the 'hard core/rubble' bin as glass was no longer recycled. Shocking, I though glass was one of the easiest materials to recycle. 
I brought them home

In the garden it was more tidying of leaves. At the allotment it was cutting down and back a very wide hedge which has gained me sunlight and 4 sq mts of land ready for 2 new raised beds (a first for me) Still need to plant bulbs

I cooked a £3.40 pieces of gammon (pressure cooker) on Sunday. It served 3 of us for Sunday and Monday evening meal, 2 rounds of sandwich for mum on Mon and Tues and the remainder chopped up in pasta bake with white sauce using the last few mushrooms. We don't eat much meat, usually I cook a joint of some sort on Sunday and make it last. Tuesday is often a quiche, 
Thursday something vegan with pulses (new to this so a bit of a learning curve), Friday is fish pie with stir fry veg from the garden. 

Frugaldom

@YORKSHIRELASS I hope all creditcards ban gambling-related spending as it really is too easy for some to get carried away. I was wondering if they would also stop payments to the likes of the National Lottery but dont know if they have ever accepted them. I know Premium Bonds ask for debit cards or bank details rather than CC. I'm pleased they left the cashback element as losing that would be most upsetting after all these years.

[Deleted User]

Morning all,

We went to the local food waste share last night and it was brilliant, I have plenty of F&V, bread, cereal and treats for a while. Dinner tonight is chicken which I have just put in the SC on a bed of waste onions and parsnips. The chicken itself was a YS purchase. I am amazed that I've only spent £8.50 this week. Monthly meal planning is definitely the way forward for me. 

The temperature is set to drop today so I'll be lighting the fire when I get home from work, the kettle will be boiled once and the big thermos filled to avoid re boiling. DD has asked if she can go back onto school dinners until Christmas, she said she is bored with packed lunches. I have gotten into a rut and give her the same most days. Need to get creative with these as no way can she go onto dinners (£2.50 per day!), so that's a job for this weekend. 

Have happy frugal days all xx