Present
Cutting corners and finding frugality
March has been quite a month, as far as money goes. I paid off my credit cards. I worked up an actual budget. I put $1,000 into my new savings account, even though the APR dropped twice in March alone. I am looking at how quickly I may be able to pay Colbert off, because, although I financed him for 54 months, the sooner I get him paid off, the better.
I have been thinking of other ways to cut costs as well. When it’s time to get my prescriptions refilled, I’m going to see about using Wal-Mart’s $4 plan. From what I understand, that would save me $7 a month. Hey, seven bucks is seven bucks.
I emailed Cablevision to see about getting the rates for our cable/internet package lowered, but they are really bad about answering emails, apparently, as it took two emails from me for them to pawn me off to the retention division, who has yet to get back to me. I see no reason to switch the landline (in my roommate’s name) to cable, because I honestly don’t think the landline has a point if you have a cell phone. I have AT&T’s cheapest monthly plan and over 4,000 rollover minutes. I would actually love to tell everyone with the landline number to stop using it and call my cell, so I could see how many minutes a month I’d actually use (I doubt it would increase all that much). No landline would save another $25ish bucks a month. Actually, my new billing period starts today. If you have my cell phone number and my landline number, please use my cell until further notice. Consider it an experiment.
As for cable… I think it works out to something like $110 (between the two of us) monthly. Now, granted, we have two DVR boxes, but that only adds an extra $20 a month. $90 for the other parts? It seems like a waste, which is why I emailed in the hopes of getting it lowered. Add in Netflix every month and it makes me feel really guilty about the money I’m spending to sit in front of the television while my brain rots!
There are other places I can cut corners. While I love and use my monthly eMusic subscription, I don’t really need to buy thirty new MP3’s every month, especially seeing as I’m trying to listen to the 18,000 tracks I have on my iPod in the next two years. Adding to that number every thirty days doesn’t help. Even for an audiophile like me, there’s such a thing as too much music, right? ETA: I just suspended my subscription for 90 days. We’ll see how this goes.
I tend to eat out an awful lot - because I don’t cook and I’m lazy. I’m sure I’d save money buying more at the grocery and less at the diner every month. I may even raid TLo’s Rachel Ray cookbook to see if there’s something simple enough for me to make. (Seriously, I’m the worst ‘cook’ ever.)
I have been considering letting my hosted domain die for awhile now, too. Not because I don’t like blogging, but because it would save me another seven bucks a month for hosting plus whatever I pay each year for my domain. The world wouldn’t end if I utilized my LiveJournal or got a Wordpress.com blog, right? Then again, I’ve had a domain for seven years now (though not this particular one). I like the freedom it allots me, whether people are reading or not.
As you may be sick of hearing, I am really changing the way I think about my money and where it goes. I know that when I’m old and grey I’ll have no one to depend on but me and I want to do the right things when it comes to planning for my future in the old folks home.
Discussion
6 comments for “Cutting corners and finding frugality”
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It’s funny that money has so been on my mind recently too. Trying to figure out where to cut costs and how to add to my savings so that I’m not completely in the hole. I’m impressed at all the changes you’re making.
You know I really need to budget. I need to stop already. but yeah, i’m totally admiring you on doing this! I wish I had the patience and unlaziness to do this too. I really need to get off my ass and just do it!
You know.. considering I’m out of a job as of the coming Monday, I should really cut more corners myself. ;) I have cut back on some expenses though, or way prepaid others last year when I found out we were closing (ie, most of my domains are paid up thru 2009.)
Speaking of hosting - you pay $7 a month? If you’re not ready to completely let go of your domains yet - would you prefer to pay $5 a YEAR? I am allowed unlimited domains on my hosting plans, and can set up multiple users. I can always set you up as a user on my plan, at least until you decide if you want to get rid of the domains completely or not? Technically you wouldn’t even have to pay $5 if you didn’t want to - I don’t care about that at all.
Check your local grocery store pharmacies, too, if there’s one closer than Walmart. A lot of ours down here have started the $4 generic in response to Walmart doing it. (I know Kroger does.) If one of the stores is closer - that saves you the prescription $ AND gas money. :)
Thank you for your support and all, guys. It helps a lot :)
If you’re reading this comment, then Keiran’s offer to host me totally worked. Huzzah to the Kiwi! :)
if you have cable internet, look into getting Vonage, it’s WAY cheaper than a regular landline :-)
@Luka - See, but I don’t even *want* a ‘landline’, even if it’s Vonage. I just want my silly little cellphone. Baby steps :)