It's getting tough out there. Feeling the pinch?

wondercollie

Here in Canada, we still pay deposits on our bottles, cans, and drinks cartons.   When we return them, we put the deposit money into a jar.  The funds are then used to pay for the New Years Eve Chinese take a way (family tradition goes back 45 years).

Cubs and other groups hold bottle drives for fundraising.

Our sons are pretty careful with their money but as our youngest said, there is only so much you can cut back on and where do you go from there.  There is no public transport to where he works, so he has to drive.   It's winter five months of the year and he keeps his house at 17C and wears fleeces.   He eats here twice a week (we love the company)  But reality is it's hard.

London_1

nannygladys said:

  
Times are changing and I just hope the younger generations will be able cope with the changes and come out the other side wiser and still solvent.
Nannygladys




 

I think that will be the probelm The generation today has grown up with the ability to have what they want, whenever they want it ,whereas the older generation can remember  having to wait ,or do without until they had the cash.

We never knew any different and everyone was more or less in the same situation .We grew up with parents that knew even more privitations than we had. Mine were married in 1935 during the depression years.

Things were perhaps valued for longer than today and 'built-in obsolescence was unheard off. Things were built to last because they had to, and as a previous poster said repairing shoes was a normal thing.

Today they would just be thrown out not reheeled. I daresay there are a few folk on here who can remember their Dad's or brothers repairing shoes at home on a shoe last.
Blakeys were hammered into my brothers shoes to make them last a bit longer, and stick on soles were bought at Woolworths for  your shoes.
If you had boots before they were put away in the spring they were checked to make sure they didn't need resoling or heeling then paper stuffed in the toes and put away in the bottom of the wardrobe until the autumn.

I still have in my kitchen two saucepans bought from a set that I saved for when I married in 1962 they are stainless steel with copper bottoms and although the lids are long gone and the handles are a wee bit wobbly I still use them.They cost me £6.19.11d and I wish I had a pound for every time I have used them over the past 60 odd years. I am loathe to bin them as they are still usable  But I was so proud back then to have such an expensive set of saucepans Under £7 for three I have other ones that I use as well but still turn to my old ones for boiling and mashing spuds  

My DD says she will pop one into my box when I shuffle off this mortal coil She thinks its a hoot that I still use them . I did have three pans but one eventually lost its handle and I couldn't repair it a few months ago, and it was like losing an old friend when I finally binned it  

So we will no doubt have to step up and help the younger folk to 'make do and mend ' perhaps in the coming months as I do think things will get pretty lean for awhile but like all things this too will pass

in_my_wellies

I'm another enjoying the memories
Not a memory but in Denmark they have a deposit on bottles and cans. In Copenhagen many litter bins have a shelf round the edge where these can be placed for homeless people to collect and return. Keeps them safe

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/genius-garbage-can-makes-it-easier-for-homeless-people-to-collect-cans_n_562fd0e3e4b06317990fc7c0 

I'm fortunate to have an allotment (just paid my rent for 38th year) and aim to grow as much as I can. Soft fruit is by far the most cost effective. That which can't be eaten fresh on the day is open frozen then when I have time later in the year, when it's cold outside, I make jam, jelly, chutney, etc. I also bottle some to save space in the freezer and add variety

I grow parsley and chop it and freeze it with a little water in and ice-cube tray. I pop one cube into a white sauce and I have a quick parsley sauce to use with fish or gammon. 

I do grow veg but I concentrate on reliable crops. Potatoes, reds do best in my soil, last me through till the end of February. Carrots last till January. Kale and broccoli do well for winter and spring but I no longer bother with other brassicas as I compete with slugs, snails, pigeons and a sandy soil. Leeks and winter onions do well but for some reason summer onions are rarely worth it.  And every sort of bean - broad, runner, French - all do well and are the best value crop regarding effort put in for the small space they take up 

My mum lives with me now so time is limited but before that I ran a very small local veg box scheme and could usually find enough for 9 months of the year for 6 to 8. It didn't seem like hard work as I had time and it's my hobby. I'd love to do it again one day. 

Spendless

Today is one of my Grandmother's (I still have both ) 98th birthday (the other is 96). I am setting off shortly to buy a couple of inexpensive birthday cards and some flowers from an independent florist that takes what M &S don't want.  This afternoon her nursing home is allowing a garden visit only to her (as they have/had covid there). Going with my parents and also taking DD who unexpectedly came home this weekend. I need a grocery shop but wish to take DD with me with a shopping list and cash as budgeting is something she struggled with whilst living away for the first time.  

I've now sorted out all food cupboards. Discovered a bottle of unopened salad cream as well as the coffee. Thought we were out of both so came as welcome surprises. It's a lot nicer to open my cupboards and be able to see things neatly. 

I currently lack meat and veg in, but have a whole stack of various sauces and herbs/spices. Thinking of doing a meal plan over the coming weeks, where I plan meals to include using these. 

[Deleted User]

Our council tax has risen by quite a small amount, just over £1 per month, but the internet will go up by £2.17 per month from the start of April. 

I have the princely sum of £3.76 to my name until next Friday 25th. Thankfully however all of my bills are paid up to date, I have a stocked fridge and freezer, and a trip to the library is on the cards this week for some new books. Entertainment for the children at the weekend will be yet more crafting, sowing of seeds and pottering outside. No need to spend here. Good job really! 

Another low cost filing bake is Yorkshire tea loaf. I bake a couple of these per week, and the children love it toasted with butter when it starts to go a bit stale. Asda smart price mixed fruit is £1.06 a bag and does two loaves.

Florenceem

I will fill my oven tonight with our dinner plus a jam sponge pudding and a Victoria Sandwich.

OrkneyStar

London_1 said:

nannygladys said:

  
Times are changing and I just hope the younger generations will be able cope with the changes and come out the other side wiser and still solvent.
Nannygladys




 

I think that will be the probelm The generation today has grown up with the ability to have what they want, whenever they want it ,whereas the older generation can remember  having to wait ,or do without until they had the cash.

I don't want to start a debate, but I just want to point out that this isn't completely true. I am in my 40's and was taught how to save and budget and economise, and my son (14) is being taught the same. He does get treats but he saves for them and knows that things don't just magically appear. I understand your general point, but it doesn't help to make sweeping generalisations! I know people in their 70's who waste much more money (and resources) than we do as a family, so it's not all black and white.

EssexHebridean

OrkneyStar said:

London_1 said:

nannygladys said:

  
Times are changing and I just hope the younger generations will be able cope with the changes and come out the other side wiser and still solvent.
Nannygladys




 

I think that will be the probelm The generation today has grown up with the ability to have what they want, whenever they want it ,whereas the older generation can remember  having to wait ,or do without until they had the cash.

I don't want to start a debate, but I just want to point out that this isn't completely true. I am in my 40's and was taught how to save and budget and economise, and my son (14) is being taught the same. He does get treats but he saves for them and knows that things don't just magically appear. I understand your general point, but it doesn't help to make sweeping generalisations! I know people in their 70's who waste much more money (and resources) than we do as a family, so it's not all black and white.

How does that compare with the majority of his friends, I wonder? I was brought up the same way - but I'm a wee bit older than you, and regardless of that I've still had my spendy times! Certainly just from observations around me I'd say there's a real mix out there - I have some friends younger than me who are really frugal, careful with money, save up for things etc. I've also got some of a broadly similar age to me who almost seem to view not knowing how much their bills are, being in overdraft and doing everything on finance as some sort of badge of honour to be bragged about! It's an odd one. 

The thing about getting shoes repairs is also an interesting one. My last pair of winter boots lasted well but eventually went through on the soles - when I tried to get them resoled I was told by several cobblers that it simply wasn't possible - the way they were made meant that new soles just couldn't be fitted. There is also a general tendency for people to wear far more footwear now with moulded soles like trainers or walking shoes, I guess, and those aren't repairable either. My old walking boots are shortly going to have to get binned - I enquired about having new soles put on those but at a cost of £85, and no certainty that they'd be as comfortable with the new soles as they have always been with the old ones, I'm afraid that's not a cost I'm willing to pay. 

euronorris

Deleted_User said:

Our council tax has risen by quite a small amount, just over £1 per month, but the internet will go up by £2.17 per month from the start of April. 

I have the princely sum of £3.76 to my name until next Friday 25th. Thankfully however all of my bills are paid up to date, I have a stocked fridge and freezer, and a trip to the library is on the cards this week for some new books. Entertainment for the children at the weekend will be yet more crafting, sowing of seeds and pottering outside. No need to spend here. Good job really! 

Another low cost filing bake is Yorkshire tea loaf. I bake a couple of these per week, and the children love it toasted with butter when it starts to go a bit stale. Asda smart price mixed fruit is £1.06 a bag and does two loaves.

Kids are more easily entertained than we often think. My 5 year old DD was ever so happy to help me defrost the small freezer (the tiny one attached to the top of our fridge) this weekend, and thought it fun to be carrying small bowlfuls of ice over to the sink for me. I'm sure one day, I will remind her of that, and she'll think I'm mad, but she loved it. Especially placing with all the frosty ice afterwards

Toonie

It's curious, I find the "have what you want, when you want it" group of people doesn't apply to a particular generation. In my area of London I've found that people across generations have quickly come to rely on the ability to have whatever they like, and generally delivered straight to their homes. My neighbours are prime examples, they have deliveries every day (I know as they are often not at home and so my door gets knocked often by couriers and Amazon drivers), several types of delivered food a week including meal boxes, veg boxes, and top up emergency groceries (from the likes of Getir), and then they also have takeaways delivered often (the drivers locally can't seem to tell houses apart-the last three weekends we've had someone knocking for next door). They are in their mid 40s with two young children. 

Whereas, even when I have disposable income, I question what I want, where can I get it at the best value, is there a second hand option, etc. As far as food is concerned we have a fantastic market that does great fruit and veg, we have a farmers market on Sundays which does slightly more expensive things (but still good bargains to be had, especially if you are polite), and a great variety of shops from different cultures and countries. There is an amazing amount on our doorstep and I use as much of it as I can as I like supporting local (and a lot of it is really good value).

I have a lovely woollen winter coat which I've had for about 10 years. It's still absolutely perfect (it was a good investment and on sale when I bought it), I have two pairs of good quality smart shoes (one black, one beige) though I don't often have need of wearing them, it's good to have quality shoes which I can get repaired if needed.  But otherwise, so many things are not made to last, so it's hard to get a decent amount of use out of them.