madness.
One of my resolutions for the new year is to recycle more. I already made a decent effort to recycle materials that I consume a lot of such as plastics, newspapers, and magazines. Now, I’m trying to get into the habit of taking a second look at what is in my hand before tossing it into the trash can. So now I can add cardboard (from cereal boxes to other assorted packing), glass, and tin cans to that list. I’ve also started to actually remember to use my “green” bags for grocery shopping and am using biodegradable poop bags for Miles doo doos. AWESOME! doo doos.
no post would be complete without mention of doo doos, huh?
I’m also working on managing my money better. I have not balanced my checkbook in probably about eight years. I stopped looking at my account online since my bank re-did their website and you had re-register to use it. This was about two years ago. So rather than write everything down in my checkbook’s register, I made a spreadsheet. My goal is to come out with an extra $300 this month. Which means I’ll be cutting out a lot of extras. No miscellaneous fun shopping. This means no clothes/shoe shopping. For now, I am okay with this because it will just force me to wear something I already own, and if I want new clothes I should just lose five pounds so I can wear something that I haven’t in a while. Also, I will be eating out a lot less. This shouldn’t be too hard because this is something I was already working on before said resolution was made. Bonus…ding ding ding… this could possibly help with weight loss. I will also be making a list before going to stores like Wal-Mart or Target. This way, I will be more likely to get only what I need rather than wander aimlessly and purchase stuff I really don’t need. Also, I’ll be looking for less expensive alternatives to well, just about everything. But I want to do this without being cheap. It’s all about being THRIFTY. They are two completely different things, people.
Example: Fruit can be pretty darn pricey at the local Sweet Bay or Winn Dixie or whereever you go. I found a sweet place where you can get ginormous box of oranges for only $10! This is a mad good deal. I split them with my mom. Super juicy too.
*the starfruit were fifty cents a piece. They can run anywhere from $1-2.00 at the grocery store.
p.s. that box is only half of the fruit that we got.
So… Have you made any resolutions???
3 Comments
January 14, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Yeah, I was a little disappointed when I read it and discovered the author was pretty much generalizing about one rich person – and that one rich person was the wife of the guy who ran the bank that went bankrupt. Hardly a representative sample.
January 11, 2009 at 1:45 pm
ha…yeah…I just read that article…would have to agree that I have not seen this happening. I mean, these purchases eventually come out the bag revealing what they really are anyways.
To me, cheap is about quality, or lack of rather. Being thrifty is about getting something good for less. But your dad makes a good point.
January 11, 2009 at 1:15 pm
My dad used to say that when you cut out extras, shop around for bargains, think before you spend, etc., that you’re being thrifty. But when OTHER people do it – they’re being cheap.
The “possibly related post” that popped up was “Rich shoppers ask for unmarked bags to hide extravagance.” I have my doubts that is actually happening.