Gross inconsistencies concerning money (our thoughts and behaviors)

[NW-Bound]

I just can’t throw away a bottle of soap, shampoo, etc., without getting a couple more uses adding a little hot water to the “empty” bottle.

Another thing that almost annoys myself, we got a solar system a year ago. I find myself checking the generation, output, storage and putting my Tesla on the charger only when there’s bright sun and the battery is well charged.

Meanwhile, my portfolio often fluctuates a larger amount in a week than I made in a year when I worked.

I find myself thinking, why am I thinking about this stuff? I’ve got enough to not have to sweat this. Relax. Enjoy. But old habits die hard.

At the risk of jinxing it, I am sharing that my stash increases by a 7-figure in the last 12 months, and it does not make me more wasteful.

Waste is bad. Waste is a sin.

Having more money changes one thing: it has allowed me to be more generous with my gifts and donations.

 

[Badger]

Sometimes save take out order napkins. Don't really think about it too much either way.
Will still pick up quarters/dimes.

+1 I keep them in the car to wipe my hands if they are dirty. Comes in handy when you check the oil or have to change a tire. I don't like getting grease on the steering wheel or upholstery .

I feel wasteful tossing those plastic takeout containers. They are made so well and some are are even stamped dishwasher and microwave safe. They are nearly as good as the Rubbermaid and Tupperware containers we buy. I usually use them a few times before recycling cause otherwise they would really pile up.

+1 I have some large plastic cups from a smoothie store from a couple of years ago that I wash and use for my homemade smoothies.

Does anyone else press the sliver of a bar of soap on to the new bar?

+1 I've been doing this for decades.


Cheers!

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

Does anyone else press the sliver of a bar of soap on to the new bar?

Every time!

 

[athena53]

Does anyone else press the sliver of a bar of soap on to the new bar?

Yep. I also take home partly-used bars of soap and partly-used bottles of shampoo from my hotel stays and use them at home. I'll also keep one of the shampoo bottles in my bag (provided I'm not carrying on a flight) to use on subsequent stays so I don't have to take a new bottle from the hotel.

 

[MichaelB]

I find myself thinking, why am I thinking about this stuff? I’ve got enough to not have to sweat this. Relax. Enjoy. But old habits die hard.

My theory is it’s not about pinching pennies or money saved, it’s about avoiding needless waste. We get, or at least try to get, every usable portion of toothpaste, soap, shampoo, and condiment from the container because it’s there and to throw it out is wasteful.

That’s one reason I prefer sauces, such as mustard and mayonnaise, in glass jars instead of plastic squirt bottles.

 

[ncbill]

Drinks for us in aluminum cans, not plastic, as much as practical.

Aluminum cans are crushed down & then recycled via collection bin at a local charity.

 

[Pellice]

Plastic store bags. They're supposed to be discontinued in NJ next year. What am I supposed to do, buy virgin plastic bags instead of reusing store bags for the several things I use them for? Particularly cat litter. But also: lining small bathroom wastebaskets, disposing of bloody/greasy poultry bones (I can toss most beef and pork bones into a field). Refrigerating harvested vegetables from my garden (fabric molds and paper disintegrates in the fridge). Disposing of produce that has occasionally gone bad/moldy in the fridge and stinks. Broken glass. And more.

Yes, I guess I'll have to start paying for single use plastic bags now.

Paper bags are nearly unobtainable except at Whole Foods. I am a thrifty housewife

 

[ugeauxgirl]

I ALWAYS keep fast food extra napkins in my glove box for spills. You would think my kids at 14 and 17 would be too old to spill stuff in my car, but you'd be wrong. My kids come home with Gatorade bottles which are the best water bottles. I know you aren't supposed to reuse those, but I do. I dislike waste.

My thrift has served me well. Yes I laugh at myself when I spend an absurd amount of money on something and then spy my Kleenex box which is filled with a roll of toilet paper (cause it's cheaper and lasts longer). Years of being thrifty is how I'm able to afford the expensive stuff.

 

[EastWest Gal]

I inherited button collections from two MILs and listed them as Free Stuff on Craigslist. I git e-mails form several people begging me to hold them aside for them.



Subway- even that is a sign of being frugal. It's my go-to place on road trips even though I've got a $4,000 Alaska cruise (excluding airfare in Business Class) coming up next week. My dear parents used to go to Subway and agree on what sandwich they wanted because it was cheaper to share a 12"! I do something similar- I buy a 12" on long trips at lunch and the other half is dinner. I keep the napkins in the car and the house to wipe up spills.



I like to think that the overall mentality of "don't waste" is part of what got me here in such good financial shape, even with my expensive travel and jewelry habits.

When we spent two weeks in Hawaii in 2017, we went out for dinner to a nice place on the water twice, once in Maui and once on the big island, and once overlooking the Kilauea volcano. I cooked a couple of times. Mostly, we went to Subway. I had started low carb then, so I had chopped salads. We also used airline miles to fly first class and stayed in timeshares.

In Hawaii, plastic grocery bags are banned. I forgot to bring my reusable bags so I bought a small one at Whole Foods. It’s perfect for bread (low carb!) and eggs while grocery shopping.

 

[tb001]

I ALWAYS keep fast food extra napkins in my glove box for spills. You would think my kids at 14 and 17 would be too old to spill stuff in my car, but you'd be wrong. My kids come home with Gatorade bottles which are the best water bottles. I know you aren't supposed to reuse those, but I do. I dislike waste.

My thrift has served me well. Yes I laugh at myself when I spend an absurd amount of money on something and then spy my Kleenex box which is filled with a roll of toilet paper (cause it's cheaper and lasts longer). Years of being thrifty is how I'm able to afford the expensive stuff.

Omg, the ‘Kleenex’ roll is genius! That is most definitely getting used in our house.

Add me to the list of napkin savers and shampoo swishers. I’ve even been known to replace the tube in a bottle of conditioner that never goes all the way to the bottom.

I do not save ketchup or soy sauce packets. We just try not to get them in the first place. Clutter like that drives me nuts. But mostly, I just dislike waste.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

One of the first things I did to revamp our spending in retirement was eliminate as many single use products as possible. Like our hand soap now is diluted Dr. Bronner's castille soap in reuseable mason jars with pump tops.

For bar soap, I found out the company that makes our glycerin bar soap is close to our house so I used to go and buy a wholesale box once a year at the factory office.

 

[GravitySucks]

Of course I save unused napkins. Why would anyone throw them out.

I also reuse the plastic trash bags I bring the bottles and cans to the recycle center in. Took a bit of a ribbing when hosting last week's get together. I told them I'm an environmentalist, not cheap.

Wendy's has the best plastic forks. Always keep one or two in the glove box.

Soup containers from Chinese takeout are always kept washed and reused. My friends have learned to wash and return them too me and they will get rewarded the next time I make soup or chili.

 

[ugeauxgirl]

Omg, the ‘Kleenex’ roll is genius! That is most definitely getting used in our house.



Add me to the list of napkin savers and shampoo swishers. I’ve even been known to replace the tube in a bottle of conditioner that never goes all the way to the bottom.



I do not save ketchup or soy sauce packets. We just try not to get them in the first place. Clutter like that drives me nuts. But mostly, I just dislike waste.

Carefully pry the cardboard roll out of the center and pull tissues from the middle. It's a little trickier to tear them one handed, but you develop the knack after a few tries.

 

[audreyh1]

We got so tired of the glass and cans for sparkling water that we finally went to a Sodastream. We’ve been quite happy with it. And you can exchange the CO2 canisters.

They don’t recycle glass around here. Aluminum cans they do.

 

[Palmtree]

One of my antique cars is stored in a carport, rather than a true garage. Sometimes the birds would get in there, see their reflection in the side view mirrors, and try to pick a fight with themselves. In the process, they'd crap all down the side of the door. So, I started using the bags to tie around the mirrors. Just one of many uses.

Same thing here! Every Spring our car mirrors are attacked by male bluebirds fighting with their reflection. We also tie bags around the rear view mirrors to keep them from crapping all over our cars.

 

[ceciledian]

Both sets of parents (depression kids) lived their lives like they were poor even though they were not in their later years. Those values took hold with my DH and I but not all our sibs. So yeah, my husband changes the oil in our cars, fixes everything he can and gets bent when he can’t repair something because replacement parts aren’t available or cost as much as a new item. I shop sales for food and clothes, use coupons, cut my own hair (his now too since the pandemic). I know we are sometimes penny wise and pound foolish though when it comes to big ticket items.

 

[CardsFan]

OK. I'll be the napkin curmudgeon here.

Fast food napkins tend to fall into 3 categories. 1- generic thin white napkins that require at least 3 to substitute for a home napkin, or 2- covered in ink advertising the joint, making them smelly and less absorbent, or 3- basic brown napkin, fairly absorbent and useful. I have no problem tossing the first 2, I will use the last.

And, as far as saving trees, I have said this here before: Today's paper industry plants and harvests trees just like planting and harvesting corn. Just a longer growing period. You are NOT saving trees, in the sense of saving a forest. If you want to argue you are saving the processing and associated energy and pollution, there is a rationale for that.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Same thing here! Every Spring our car mirrors are attacked by male bluebirds fighting with their reflection. We also tie bags around the rear view mirrors to keep them from crapping all over our cars.

We get wild turkeys either looking at their reflection in the car door or sitting on the hood looking at their reflection in the windshield. The poop issue usually isn't too bad with the turkeys, but the potential talon damage is more of a concern. So far our cars have survived their turkey encounters with the paint jobs not scratched up. The turkeys are kind of cool to see walking around strutting their stuff when they aren't on one of our cars.

 

[CDRE]

When it comes to those plastic store bags, we're not at the point yet, where we have to pay for them (that I know of, at least), but I still tend to save them. Not out of any sort of cheapness, but sometimes they come in handy. Although, they make them so biodegradable these days that they do tend to fall apart pretty quickly, so they're not as handy as they used to be.

One of my antique cars is stored in a carport, rather than a true garage. Sometimes the birds would get in there, see their reflection in the side view mirrors, and try to pick a fight with themselves. In the process, they'd crap all down the side of the door. So, I started using the bags to tie around the mirrors. Just one of many uses.

I tend to save fast food napkins, and condiment packs as well. I still don't think it's about being cheap, though. It's about not getting rid of something that still might have some use. Now if I do get too many of them piling up, I will start to throw them away, so I haven't gone into full-blown hoard-mode just yet!

Same thing here! Every Spring our car mirrors are attacked by male bluebirds fighting with their reflection. We also tie bags around the rear view mirrors to keep them from crapping all over our cars.

A piece of monofilament fishing line loosely draped down/around from the door jamb along side the mirror and glass will keep the birds away. It does not tangle them up but simply freaks them out and they stay very clear from the line, especially if the line moves from any breeze.

 

[Music Lover]

How about saving plastic grocery bags for reuse instead of paying ten cents for new ones.

One of my pet peeves is the term "single use plastic bags" as if people don't reuse them and instead just can't wait to get home and throw them out.

 

[Palmtree]

A piece of monofilament fishing line loosely draped down/around from the door jamb along side the mirror and glass will keep the birds away. It does not tangle them up but simply freaks them out and they stay very clear from the line, especially if the line moves from any breeze.

Thanks for the suggestion. I will give it a try next spring when the males are in their fighting mode.

 

[CardsFan]

One of my pet peeves is the term "single use plastic bags" as if people don't reuse them and instead just can't wait to get home and throw them out.

We re-use all the time. Maybe 2-3 times. So they are only single use to peoples throw them in the recycle bin to take back to the supermarket.

Used to use them for the dog poop bags, but they are such poor quality now, I would not dare to pick up poop with one of them. Why does the Rolling Stones album "Sticky Fingers" come to mind.

 

[marko]

"How do you think a man with my money got to be a man with my money?!"

 

[lesjrp]

During Covid, when you couldn’t get white paper towels, I would buy the shop blue paper towels. They’re much stronger, thicker, and certainly more durable than regular paper towels. I started using a folded up blue towel as a insulation blanket for my gin and tonic glass. They were so strong, when I was done they were still in good shape. So I left them on the counter and use them the following few days.

 

[Koolau]

During Covid, when you couldn’t get white paper towels, I would buy the shop blue paper towels. They’re much stronger, thicker, and certainly more durable than regular paper towels. I started using a folded up blue towel as a insulation blanket for my gin and tonic glass. They were so strong, when I was done they were still in good shape. So I left them on the counter and use them the following few days.

Heh, heh, Covid was my time to shine (to DW). She had gently criticized me in the past for stocking up on paper towels (and TP) - on sale when purchased. Guess what. I was suddenly the hero.