Most Pleasurable 40 bucks or less

[Live Free]

Stealing away from the kids, housew*rk, co-workers, clients, etc. and having a mani/pedicure while reading my kindle. In peace.

That is $35 well spent, IMO. Not all the time, just a nice treat every once in awhile!

 

[Amethyst]

Certainly can't do it around these parts. Heck, 2 burgers, a beer, 2 salad bars (small plates!), and an iced tea at the local Ruby Tuesday's is $35.00 with tax and tip (with a coupon), and the food isn't very good. We go there sometimes because it's close, and the servers are nice to us.

Amethyst

I can't think of anyplace in my region of the Chicago burbs where DW and I could go out and have a nice bottle of wine plus two enjoyable entrees plus tip for $40.

 

[Rushmore]

Community Concert tickets are under $70 for 5 shows. It almost always is great entertainment for little money. I also like season tickets to the community theater for about the same price.

 

[athena53]

Yesterday I was feeling a bit gloomy- ugly grey weather, DH drooping because of a very bad cold, cleaning out DS' old room and realizing how much we spent on Stuff (mostly video games) that's worthless now. I thought a lot about what would provide a little pick-me-up and decided to head for Whole Foods after my workout. The workout helped a lot, and then I picked up some stuffed grape leaves, quinoa salad and brussels sprouts and kale salad. I spent $10.60.

 

[DAYDREAMER]

A cruise around the bay in my boat on a calm sunny day, rum and coke in hand, and the motor purring. At 3 miles/per gallon on a 24 mile cruise=8gallonsX$4.00per gallon=$32+rum and coke=approx $40. I drink alot on that cruise.

 

[youbet]

OK! We made the "$40 challenge" happen last night and had a great time!

Here's what we did:

1. Won tickets (face value $55 each) to see now-very-mature folkie Judy Collins at a great venue called the Genesee Theatre. Cost = zero.

2. Had dinner before the show and local to the theatre so we were able to find on street parking. Parking cost = zero.

3. Used a restaurant.com coupon to get a $25 discount for a very decent dinner at a Mexican restaurant down the street from the theatre. 2 margueritas + 2 draft Modello Negros + 2 shrimp based entrees = $53. $53 - $25 coupon + tax = $32. Gave the wait person two twenties to cover the bill and tip (15% of the pre-coupon amount) exactly meeting the $40 goal.

Caveat emptor. We put about 90 miles on the car and I'm not counting that expense. To stay within $40 I had to win $110 worth of tickets which might not happen everyday! (Thank you local public radio station!) The waitress got slightly short changed when I left only a 15% tip to stay within the $40 budget.

Oh, Judy Collins at 74 yo is still singing and playing well and focused on her most famous and popular work from the 60's. It was a real trip down nostalgia lane! That's what we wanted. The audience was made up of several hundred like-minded geezers enjoying the music and reminiscing about the 60's. Many seemed to be "pot smoking hippie turned CPA" types........

 

[Walt34]

Certainly can't do it around these parts. Heck, 2 burgers, a beer, 2 salad bars (small plates!), and an iced tea at the local Ruby Tuesday's is $35.00 with tax and tip (with a coupon), and the food isn't very good.

That's about what it would be here too. DW collects Ruby Tuesday's coupons and then wants to use them. The food is okay though. Not great, but okay. I usually just get the salad bar, no dressing on the salad.

 

[haha]

A bottle of Evan Williams and a good book and I'll stay on the porch all day.

Just don't try to get off the porch. The trauma bill will blow your $40 to smithereens.

Ha

 

[Senator]

Cover charge, $10
2 beers, $14
1 lap dance, $10

A great hour...

 

[yakers]

My favorite restaurant to celebrate with my husband is Barbarella's in La Jolla They have a great menu but we always order the same 3 things - and split them. Fritti (usually lightly battered shrimp and green beans or asparagus... with an awesome olio to dip in. But sometimes the seafood may be calimari, or something else... and the green bean can be almost any long skinny green veggie) Pizza Max - a thin crust brick oven pizza with creme fraiche, thin salmon (like lox) and roasted capers. Chocolate tort with homemade banana ice cream We split these items and it's *just* the right amount of food. Sometimes we'll order wine or a martini - but that blows the $40 budget. It's a nice, but casual place that we really enjoy.

Try Solace And The Moonlight Lounge in Encinitas, maybe over $40 but worth it.

 

[jerome len]

Switch the wine to two diet cokes and have our dinner at either of our two favorite Mexican restaurants and we can do it for twenty bucks....plus tip. Or, two diet cokes and a pizza.....$16.00 ......no tip since it's a serve yourself. We really love mexican food and pizza.....do both every couple of weeks.......wine only when having dinner with friends.....then we will always spend more than $40.00 bucks.

 

[W2R]

I got 1750+ happy hours of entertainment so far from one video game cartridge that cost $39.97. That's about 2 cents an hour for lot and lots of great, wholesome fun.

Not only that, I'm nowhere near done with that game or with my enthusiasm for it.

Of course, my video gaming has cost me much more than that overall. But this one game was a great way to spend $40.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We went out for a lunch special at our favorite Thai restaurant (soup, salad, brown rice and an entree) on the weekend with a buy one got one free Entertainment.com coupon I got from Verizon rewards. We drank water, which is what we drink at home. We paid for one meal for $10, one was free, plus tax and I left a $5 tip. We ate out for two for $16 and it is was so much food I didn't eat much more at home the whole day, so the net cost to go out isn't much more than if we'd stayed home and had to cook and do our own dishes.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I got 1750+ happy hours of entertainment so far from one video game cartridge that cost $39.97. That's about 2 cents an hour for lot and lots of great, wholesome fun.

Not only that, I'm nowhere near done with that game or with my enthusiasm for it.

Of course, my video gaming has cost me much more than that overall. But this one game was a great way to spend $40.

This is why I don't get the whole spend money on experiences not things. Things that lead to fun like video games, camping equipment and bikes seem to me to be great values per use.

I bought a $3 vase at a charity thrift shop down the street from stores like Neiman Marcus. They have really pretty things and I don't care if items like a glass vase are used or not. I think people must drop off their donations near where they shop. I keep the vase on the windowsill in the kitchen and put cut flowers like fresh lavender from the yard in it. I enjoy the flowers and the vase every day. The $3 stayed in the local economy and went to an animal charity.

 

[ERD50]

This is why I don't get the whole spend money on experiences not things. ...

Agreed, I tend to buy 'things' for the experiences they provide. Seems like an odd distinction to me.

I suppose maybe some people buy 'things' just to brag 'I have that thing' - so what? Maybe they get something from that 'experience'? Who am I to judge? Buy whatever floats your boat. Of course, if ER is your goal, you probably need to consider the value of each purchase carefully.

So here's a 'thing' that cost under $40, and has provided many hours of joy:

SanDisk Sansa Clip+ 4 GB MP3 Player (Black) (when I bought mine, they were 2GB at about this price)

http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Sansa...r=1-1&keywords=sansa+clip+&pebp=1416244868661

Great sound quality - I just plug it into my amp with good speakers on the porch, or use with high quality headphones for private listening. Incredible performance at a low price. Oh, I did buy a cheap 8GB u-SD card to expand the storage, but I think you can still keep that under $40. And it will play the FLAC lossless format. I use a computer and external DAC for real serious listening, but this thing is nice for everything else. It is a near-miracle they can pack all this in a sub $40 device.

-ERD50

 

[Buckeye]

Two tuna pokes (tons of fresh ginger!), two micro brews, and a healthy tip at the Olde Bay Cafe at the Dunedin, FL marina with DH.

 

[ArkTinkerer]

Its cheaper here in the south! For $40 or less:

1. Tickets for two at one of the local college's theatre events.
2. Breakfast for two at the local diner downtown.
3. Beers and appetizer (makes a meal for us!) at Flying Saucer in Little Rock (over 100 beers/ciders available!).
4. Ammo or bait and gas and sodas for a hunting or fishing trip.
5. Two steaks, potatoes and charcoal for the grill.
6. Fixin's to make about 5 gallons of homemade ale!
7. Gas and welding rods to tinker in the garage for a whole day.
8. Several months of NetFlix thru the internet.
9. Gas and sodas for a long motorcycle ride.
10. Campground fee for taking the trailer to a lakeside spot for a weekend. Cheaper if "boondocking".

 

[Bestwifeever]

This is why I don't get the whole spend money on experiences not things. Things that lead to fun like video games, camping equipment and bikes seem to me to be great values per use.

I bought a $3 vase at a charity thrift shop down the street from stores like Neiman Marcus. They have really pretty things and I don't care if items like a glass vase are used or not. I think people must drop off their donations near where they shop. I keep the vase on the windowsill in the kitchen and put cut flowers like fresh lavender from the yard in it. I enjoy the flowers and the vase every day. The $3 stayed in the local economy and went to an animal charity.

Do you not already have vases or other vessels to put this lovely lavender in? You could just enjoy giving the three dollars to the thrift store, let them keep the vase, and not add another thing to the household possessions. Just wondering.

 

[rodi]

Try Solace And The Moonlight Lounge in Encinitas, maybe over $40 but worth it.

I'll give it a try. I'm meeting a friend up in Solana Beach next week for lunch- I'll suggest those places.

On a "free" note... watching surfers at Swami's beach is definitely a fun way to spend a few hours.

 

[ls99]

In my youth it was the two six pack lady.

 

[robnplunder]

A condom?

 

[Theseus]

23# turkey on sale for 0.89/# = $20.50
Charcoal & lighter fluid ~ $1.00
Apple wood scraps from the orchard - free
Bottle of wine ~ $12.00
Big batch of scalped potatoes ~ $6.00

The smells wafting around the neighborhood - priceless

 

[Bestwifeever]

Re food: yesterday I made short ribs for DH and me, because we often order them in restaurants and I had never made them. The short ribs, just enough for the two of us, cost $17, a decent bottle of merlot for braising was about $14. Miscellaneous other parts of the recipe and the meal probably brought it to a little below $40. I am sure I won't be making short ribs again; although they were delicious, anything braised in a bottle of merlot and mirepoix for three hours is going to be delicious--I'll toss a chuck roast in next time!

 

[Moemg]

Re food: yesterday I made short ribs for DH and me, because we often order them in restaurants and I had never made them. The short ribs, just enough for the two of us, cost $17, a decent bottle of merlot for braising was about $14. Miscellaneous other parts of the recipe and the meal probably brought it to a little below $40. I am sure I won't be making short ribs again; although they were delicious, anything braised in a bottle of merlot and mirepoix for three hours is going to be delicious--I'll toss a chuck roast in next time!

Also delicious is sipping the Merlot as the short ribs are cooking !

 

[Ginny]

I know I'm in the right place when 1/2 the answers include wine. My bottles cost under $40!