Save Some Green & Be Green

I obviously like to save money and, to some extent, work to be "green" - we recycle (Phoenix as a great program and picks up once a week). I use reusable containers when storing leftovers. And I try to get all of my driving done in one trip to avoid driving more than necessary. Where I fall short is on my constant use of paper towels (back to that "I have too many dogs" excuse!) and I still buy bottled water...(and I'm certain there are lots of other things I should be doing, but don't).

The April '09 issue of "Woman's Day" (p.16) had a great feature on this particular topic. A few of the suggestions include:

* Ditching paper towels and using a sponge or old kitchen towels instead.

* Buy the smaller size concentrated liquid laundry detergent (cuts back on packaging)

* Cut 5 minutes from your daily shower (this saves water and your water bill!)

* Use old loofahs to scrub your tub.

* Attach a scratched DVD or CD to a child's bike as a safety reflector.

For more ideas along this line, check the cited issue or go www.womansday.com.

Make a Difference

I received an e-mail from a friend the other day and at the bottom of her message was a comment that read "i'm EMAILING FOR THE GREATER GOOD." So, out of curiosity, I clicked on it and found another amazing way to help a wide range of charitable causes!

Microsoft started the "i'm Initiative" in March, 2007 and since then it has raised over $2.4 million dollars for its partner causes. Sign-up and every time you use Windows Live Messenger or Windows Live Hotmail (their free webmail service), Microsoft shares a portion of their advertising revenue with the cause you select from their list.

Go to the following website to join now!


http://im.live.com/Messenger/IM/Join/


You can select from the following causes:

* UNICEF
* Susan G. Komen for the Cure
* National Multiple Sclerosis Society
* The Humane Society of the United States
* Boys & Girls Clubs of America
* StopGlobalWarming.org
* Sierra Club
* ninemillion.org
* National Aids Fund
* American Red Cross

Make a difference!

Wow - Room AND Board at College?

My son, soon to be a junior at the University of Arizona in Tucson, is wait-listed as a potential Resident Assistant (RA) for the 09/10 school year. This may not seem exciting to those of you whose kids haven't yet hit their college years, but from a budget-perspective this is a biggie! (And yes, we are also proud of it as an achievement for him, make no mistake about that!). When a student is selected as an RA, he is the "guide/leader/head honcho" for a floor/hall in a dorm. This is definitely a great responsibility and will look great on a resume. But, from a mom and dad's perspective: WOW! He has just scored free room and board with this gig!
Needless to say, we are waiting to hear if he gets in...if not, it's back to the Student Union deli - (not a bad job, but room and board it is not! :)

And, FYI this is not my son in the photo above...many thanks to Google!

Music to our Ears!

Concert tickets are quickly becoming a luxury...me, I try to win tickets but often to no avail as the radio station lines are jammed (nothing new!). My husband sometimes scores tickets through colleagues, but the opportunities don't come up often. So what are you to do if you want to see a big-name act and don't have the mega-bucks to shell out for seats? First, be willing to consider less than premium seats...the sound quality will still be good and big screens in the venues (and binoculars of course!) still provide a good experience.

And don't doubt for a minute that your idols are not aware of the economic concerns that you face. Check out the article "Bands Offer Concert Deals in a Tough Economy" (4/10/09) at:
www.mainstreet.com/article/lifestyle/bands-offer-concert-deals-tough-economy

Keith Urban offered some tickets as low as $20/seat to accommodate fans on a budget. And "No Doubt is giving away a digital download of their entire catalog in exchange for the purchase of a premium ticket ($42.50 before taxes and fees)..." And the list goes on...Kudos to those giving a regular fan a break!

Spend Some to Save Some

We all have made purchases of certain things for which we (and our budgets) are forever thankful! Today, I thought I'd address a few of those that over the past few years have been "priceless"!

* An extra freezer: It wasn't too expensive to begin with (fyi, paid for it with proceeds from a garage sale a number of years ago), but it saves me lots of grocery money by allowing me to stock up during sales. It is also great for when I bake since I can make a double batch and freeze one.

* Home Warranty: OK, so the price seems a bit daunting when the bill rolls around each year, but they do allow us to break it into 3 payments! For just under $600 per year, we have warranty service on most aspects our home's plumbing, electrical work, spa, air-conditioning, roof, etc. And not a single year (out of seven!)has passed that we haven't used that service. We pay $50 on a service call and anything covered by the warranty is fixed or replaced at no additional charge. We have had two air-conditioning units replaced, electrical rewiring, roof work, plumbing and replaced a hot water heater. Not a bad deal at all!

* Water purifier: In Phoenix where our water is safe but by no means a beverage of choice, this is a "must". We use it for drinking water at home (and making coffee!). If I were true to my blog, I would probably also be refilling water bottles and stop buying bottled water...just haven't been moved to go to that level though.

Those are the top ones that come to mind, but I'm sure another day I will add to this! I would like to note that the espresso machine, while occasionally used, has not yet replaced my yen for lattes! No, I no longer go to Tully's or Starbucks daily or even once a week, but I lean toward my "regular" coffeemaker versus wrestling with that other contraption in the early mornings!

The Warehouse vs Supermarket Shopping Debate

I have until recently been a cardholding member of Costco and gladly paid my annual membership fee to wander the aisles of larger than life grocery products. I will concede that typically the non-food items sold there represent a significant value versus what I would pay for similar products elsewhere. But what about the groceries?

This is by no means a true price comparison, but rather my comments here are based on my own shopping experiences. Feel free to post your thoughts on the subject (even if they don't agree with mine!). And note that I can't speak to the prices and quality at Sam's Club...although I have also shopped at Smart & Final here in Phoenix.

Here is my personal take on best/worst bets of the warehouse over my supermarkets:

BEST:
* Alcoholic beverages are much cheaper at warehouse prices (also check-out BevMo or similar stores for good prices)
* Meat is typically a great deal and even if the packages are larger than what you would typically buy, you can always repackage and freeze the excess.
* If you do a lot of baking you can usually get good deals on bulk sugar and flour.
* Coffee has typically been cheaper - I could even get Starbucks whole bean coffee at a good price.
* Paper goods (TP and paper towels) and cleaning goods (laundry detergents, cleansers, etc.) are items that you always need extra of.
* Bottled water and soda are usually cheaper at the warehouse too.

(These accolades do not however mean that they are ALWAYS the best bet - sometimes the supermarkets run amazing deals that beat these out!)

WORST:
* Large frozen dinners - unless you are really into leftovers, these huge boxes take up valuable freezer space and cost more than making something from scratch anyway.
* Dairy products - unless you are certain you/your family will eat all of that yogurt, think twice!
* Fresh produce - prices often are better at the local supermarket!
* Canned vegetables/fruit - great for restauranteurs, but not so great for the average family - once opened they don't save well anyway!

Other considerations - at Costco, you can use a debit card or American Express card but NOT a VISA, MasterCard or Discover...not so convenient for everyone (though personally, I'm opting on debit for everything anyway). And, as you are aware if you've been following my blog, I am a fan of coupons and those are frequently doubled, tripled or even quadrupled at supermarkets but not at Costco. It may come down to personal preference in the long run, but shop smart regardless!

Now That's Entertainment!

I've covered some inexpensive "out-on-the-town" experiences, such as the Culture Passes offered by the Phoenix Public Library. And we all at one time or another have rushed to catch that last matinee at the local movie theatre. But when you'd like to have a live theatre or concert experience for little (or sometimes no) money, consider going to a local high school production. We recently to see "Little Shop of Horrors" at Desert Vista High School here in Phoenix. It was so close in quality to the Broadway production we saw awhile back at ASU, that I was in awe! And the band, orchestra and choirs also perform several times each school year. Sometimes we underestimate the talent that is just down the street!