How Can We Save?

[Ed Rooney]

 

We all need a basic functioning kit to capture stuff. But I will need to be more frugal to deal with inflation and live on my small fixed income. 

 

One thing I do is cut my own hair. I have less chance of getting Covid or flu by doing that too. It would be a better idea if I were not such a terrible barber. Should we eat less, drink less, and smoke less? I never smoked, and I don't eat dinner now. Drink less than I drink? Don't get too close to me and say that. A doctor I had in NYC suggested I stop drinking alcohol altogether. I made the appropriate change. I found a new doctor.

[Ed Rooney]

13 minutes ago, Mr Standfast said:

Sadly, full price! Yes I looked!

 

Mr. S, I know this post was supposed to be about frugality. The purchase of my new £110 M&S puffy coat with 5 useful pockets up here on the Irish Sea has changed all that. 🙂

[Mr Standfast]

5 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said:

 

Mr. S, I know this post was supposed to be about frugality. The purchase of my new £110 M&S puffy coat with 5 useful pockets up here on the Irish Sea has changed all that. 🙂

 

What's your position on hats? Lined fleece Beany or Fur Trapper?

🤔

[Ed Rooney]

 

Hats? I favor one of my Yankee caps. They keep a light rain out of my eyes and serve as my ID. I have a warm watch cap if needed. And there's a detachable hood on the puffy. 😃

 

I still consider myself frugal since I eat no dinner -- the meal that is most costly for most people. 

 

 

Edited October 4, 2023 by Ed Rooney

[Mr Standfast]

Ok...frugality.

 

Going to a cafe? Americano and no cake!

I drive slowly!

Second hand (mostly...) cameras

Pensioners bus pass, saved nearly £70 since May.

Solar panels on the roof. Texan daughter in law still laughing at my optimism. "You all have Solar in the UK?"  ( how do you abbreviate you all?)

No Netflix or Apple tv.

I've heard that I can subsidise my photography by selling my pictures. Might try that.

[Martin L]

4 hours ago, John Mitchell said:

 

Sure thing. But why not get just one straw and cut it in half... 🥤

🤣🤣 , good on yer

[Martin L]

9 minutes ago, Mr Standfast said:

 

I've heard that I can subsidise my photography by selling my pictures. Might try that.

Unfortunately you'll find the buyers have frugality down to a fine art

[Sultanpepa]

13 hours ago, sb photos said:

 

My wife has cut my hair for over 40 years, makes a good job of it. I never let her cut it if it's late or if she's tired, not worth the risk. Occasionally I may trim around my ears or at the back on my neck, but when I do my wife accuses me of butchering it, although it looks ok to me. Your right re Covid and flu, although I had my flu jab a few days back and will have my Covid booster this coming Saturday, both better my odds.

 

For the last 30 odd years I've kept my hair very short mainly for work reasons. Now retired I took a notion to grow it long. Call it an old age crisis. However I don't know how much longer I can stand it. It's now tickling my ears and beginning to drive me mad. It might be back to the old clippers and a number two very shortly. Besides I might need to actually visit a barbers to tidy it up, and that costs money. 🫤

[Sultanpepa]

deleted

Edited October 4, 2023 by Sultanpepa

[Sultanpepa]

deleted

Edited October 4, 2023 by Sultanpepa

[Sultanpepa]

Deleted

 

One minute it won't save and the next it's saved them all😬

Edited October 4, 2023 by Sultanpepa

[Allan Bell]

1 hour ago, Martin L said:

🤣🤣 , good on yer

 

As your short straws will not reach the bottom of the glass can I join in a finish the dregs.

 

Allan

 

[MDM]

3 hours ago, Ed Rooney said:

 

The purchase of my new £110 M&S puffy coat with 5 useful pockets up here on the Irish Sea has changed all that. 🙂

 

A life jacket in other words? How long before hypothermia sets in then? 🤣

[MDM]

10 hours ago, zxzoomy said:

It is fine to say I am crazy. No excuses just do it!   Love Want Do!

 

This post makes me feel quite sad. Some very deep stuff to admit on a public forum. Not really crazy but somewhat confused with a strong flavour of depression, exaccerbated perhaps by standing outside the Tory conference taking news pics of the delegates. Even the thought of it is enough to give me the shivers. Best of luck.

[wiskerke]

2 hours ago, Mr Standfast said:

( how do you abbreviate you all?)

No Netflix or Apple tv.

 

y'all

 

- No Netflix -

Nor Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu, Hotstar, Star+, Peacock, Hayu, Paramount+, Noggin, BET+, Voot, Discovery+, Max, Crunchyroll, SonyLIV, ZEE5 or GulliMax.

But OH has Spotify and Evernote and a whole bunch of those only 1.99; 2.99; 3.99; 9.99 services.

Me just Photoshop and I must admit: since a couple of months Amazon Prime.

 

wim

[Martin L]

52 minutes ago, Allan Bell said:

 

As your short straws will not reach the bottom of the glass can I join in a finish the dregs.

 

Allan

 

You can nip in while John and I are untangling our beards (assumption is if John is on the frugal side, he foregoes razors like me 🧔)

[Jose Decio Molaro]

No more buying cameras or lenses...it's not worth it anymore...too expensive!
Abusive prices! Too many taxes
Photographs: Only when I go for a walk I no longer run after photos or those emails that say: We need photos of these themes. I never took these photos again

[Jill Morgan]

I dumped our satellite TV years ago.  Out here in the country no such thing as cable, so satellite was it if you wanted TV.  Did go for awhile on just antenna, but soon all channels went digital so very few analog signals.  Did consider digital antenna, but would have had to put it way too high.

 

I subscribe to streaming services one at a time.  Watch what I want on one, dump it, then get another one.  Gave up on Netflix a long time ago.  It has become way too expensive, especially since you can only have it on one device at a time for $14.  Lots more if you want more devices. 

 

I have the full Adobe subscription package, but need it for my business.  More than pays for itself.  And I just spent a pretty penny on a Roland print and cut machine, but this is a business investment, so not the same as personal frugality.  Being too frugal in business can sometimes cost you money in the long run.  Some machines I would not buy used (such as this one) as you just don't know how they have been maintained, and maintenance is mega important.

 

Three cameras, two used, one bought new.  Lenses bought used.  Have served me well. I would still love a 300mm prime, but simply can't justify the cost.

 

Stopped going to Tim Hortons to pickup coffee.  Got myself a YETI and now take my coffee to go from home.  It is surprising how much money you can waste a month on small things.  They add up.

 

Jill

[Gervais Montacute]

I dumped Netflix ages ago because I found it to be imbecilic in its film making with far too much of a political stance for my taste.

[zxzoomy]

Here is a success of mine. I bought a lens described as very good or better from MPB for my new (to me) Nikon D810. The lens which arrived had a bent stop down prong and a missing screw so it didn't work. I got a refund of some £347 many messages later after spitting feathers liberally and I will not buy from MPB again. So I went to the Real Cameras shop in central Manchester, UK, and did a deal with some old photo items I don't use and got an AF Nikkor 28 to 85mm 3.5 to 4.5, by adding £50 cash. It even has a 62mm skylight filter. I also bought a 1996 roll of 120 Fujichrome Velvia for £4 for my 1936 Super Ikonta. So I have saved £290 plus. I bet you all have old photo gear items you don't use which can be traded. 

[zxzoomy]

8 hours ago, Ed Rooney said:

 

What you need, zxzoomy, is a puffy coat.

All ideas are welcome, Ed. But I have two of them, as I am very queer and puffy, plus a Helly Hansen orange jacket I bought in 1968 and used outside the tory conference the other day. Plus a big leather farmers' jacket I got in a charity shop for £5. That has loads of pockets and is perfect for pretending to be an old conservative from Yorkshire as I listen to conference attendees as I sip my gin and tonic and stay very quiet as I have never joined a political party and never will. My sources say the next General Election will be in the first 10 days of October 2024. If one listens carefully to tories it is amazing what one can learn. Unless Sunak has announced a GE today of course, in his levelling down speech about wasting £75 billion on HS2.

[Dave Richards]

Have Spotify. No more buying CD's or vinyls.

Dumped Sky TV, just not worth the money.

[Gervais Montacute]

27 minutes ago, Dave Richards said:

 

Dumped Sky TV, just not worth the money.

 

Good move. It's garbage and owned by Comcast. Like Netflix in many ways.

[Betty LaRue]

I’ve already stated I do my own haircuts, styling, & nails. I’ve saved thousands over my life & also cut my 3 kids hair until they were ready to leave the nest.

I don’t have Netflix or any of the streaming things.
It’s a rare time for me to buy a steak or roast to cook at home. For years, I baked a beef roast about once a week. I did buy a small beef roast recently, cut it up & now have made two large pots of beef stew, 3 weeks apart. I can get 5 or 6 meals out of a pot. I have one average-sized meal a day, usually lunch. Never eat breakfast, & may have a snack for dinner, like a slice of buttered bread.

A tank of gasoline lasts me 4-6 weeks. I’ve drastically cut down on driving. I watch for good sales at the grocery store.

My daughter had neck surgery last Thursday & I’ve cooked for them. Yesterday I took over an apple pie, hot from the oven. I’m getting ready right now to take over a pot of chili, still hot.

 

[Jeffrey Isaac Greenberg]

(wifey does most shopping now)

Publix Grocery stores has price guarantee

if not charged correct price, item free (limit 1)

I noticed weekly replaceable price cards on shelves

were occasionally outdated so I'd grab that

item AND price card as proof so cashier

didn't have to go check shelf, & got item free...

Ethical?  Moral?  Prolly not.  Legal? yes...

 

in general, be consumer assertive without being

argumentative & request some form of compensation,

e.g., recent road trip several hotels with issues,

2 of 4 nights no housekeeping, at another TV didn't

work 1 night, etc.  Reported civilly, got points compensated.

(points as good as cash for that chain of hotels)

 

something I've never done but heard about:
big box store dumpsters can have slightly damaged

items that otherwise work well -- IDK dumpster diving laws;

[MDM]

3 hours ago, Gervais Montacute said:

I dumped Netflix ages ago because I found it to be imbecilic in its film making with far too much of a political stance for my taste.

 

2 hours ago, Gervais Montacute said:

 

Good move. It's garbage and owned by Comcast. Like Netflix in many ways.

 

Perhaps you should qualify these statements as in IMO (not really IMHO as there is no humility on show). While no doubt there is a lot of garbage on Netflix, as there is everywhere on TV, Netflix have made some top quality series - Ozark and Better Call Saul to name two of my personal favourites. There have been numerous other excellent series and movies either made by Netflix or available there. I don't know what political stance you are referring to. 

 

I currently get Netflix for £5 a month - two devices simultaneously as part of my Virgin package where I also have Sky Sports, essential if I want to watch live Premier League football which I do. So are you saying football is garbage? The other option, apart from spending an absolute fortune going to live matches, would be to go to a pub. I greatly dislike pubs where I have to sit with a load of drunks and I also don't like alcohol. It would cost me more to go to a pub for every game I want to watch in any case than to subscribe to Sky Sports.

 

I don't have Sky Atlantic but there are a lot of high quality series on there too I believe. So please qualify your statements as opinions rather than blindly ranting.

 

Edited October 4, 2023 by MDM