I just discovered a cool frugalista site called Rubbing Nickels. I like them because they gave my book a great review. I also like them because they list a variety of useful cheapo deals on travel, entertainment, eco-living and all that good stuff.
I also like their motto: “Cutting back while moving forward.”
One site they wrote about is called Dinner Garden.org. This is an organization that provides people and community groups with free vegetable seeds and growing tips for cheap gardening in whatever space they have available: patios, backyards, schoolyards, community lots, and church lawns. “They envision a nation where front lawns, empty lots, medians, parks, schools, churches, and community centers devote space to fruit and vegetable gardens.” Sounds good to me.
Waffle irons are among the many appliances that can be picked up on the cheap at yard sales. I bought two George Foreman grills for two bucks each at a church rummage sale. We then invited a gaggle of visiting Danish relatives over for a panini party. Everyone selected their own combo of cold cuts, cheese, veggies, and dressings for a custom-made grilled sandwich. Everyone loved it – especially the little kids. And I didn’t have to do any cooking – always a plus for my lazy-ass self.
Houses in Los Angeles are not insulated, so our rooms are cold and drafty. If I turn on the central heating system, it reaches jungle temperature after ten minutes and when I turn it off, it’s chilly again right away. I solved this dilemma by picking up small space heaters for a few bucks at thrift shops. They warm the room I’m in without blasting wasteful heat through the rest of the house. Climate control is not an issue for my Danish husband, Benni. He has the interior thermostat of a lizard and never seems to need heat or air-conditioning. Lucky guy!
On those rare occasions when I do some serious cooking, I use my food processor which was purchased at an estate sale for five dollars several years ago.
I’m still on the lookout for an espresso machine for family visits. My Danish relatives are caffeine fiends and require at least five cups of joe every day.
We take pride and pleasure in furnishing our home with unconventional treasures that we buy on the cheap. A few years ago we picked up this weirdly interesting face at a yard sale for a few bucks. My husband, Benni, got creative and added the peacenik hair-do, and we hung it on a wall as a quirky piece of found art.
Last week, we were at a flea market and saw this hand-carved table that had a carved face that was identical to our hippie lady. Read More »
I live in Los Angeles, where water is scarce and costly. My plants were looking thirsty, and I was advised to put down a three-inch layer of bark mulch to help retain moisture. I have a very large front yard and a smallish back yard, so we’re talking mucho mulch. One bag at the nursery is about six bucks and I needed about 30 bags.
I went on Craig’s List and looked for freebies. Several tree services would deliver, but you had to take an entire truckload. This seemed risky. I had a nightmarish vision of getting a huge mountain of pine chips dumped on my front yard which I would never be able to use. Then I noticed another ad from a private person which said “A tree service dumped a huge mountain of pine chips on my front yard. I will never be able to use it all. Come and take as much as you want.” Perfecto!
We filled our station wagon twice – which barely made a dent in the poor girl’s mountain – and our formerly parched garden is now thriving. What a deal!
The common wisdom is that it makes more sense to buy rather than rent. Real estate goes up in value, they say, (whoever they are) plus you get a tax break on the mortgage interest. But common wisdom has its flaws. True, I know people who bought Manhattan co-ops in the ‘80s for pocket change and then made millions. I also know folks who now have to move in with their married kids after losing their homes.
WOULDA-COULDA-SHOULDA
We used to own an apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, and a weekend house in Columbia County – about two hours north of the city. We sold them both after moving to Los Angeles. Since that time, both areas have become popular, trendy, and costly.
The six-room apartment we sold for four hundred thousand dollars in 1992 sold in 2007 for a million/eight. The cottage on a hill near Hudson, NY brought us sixty-thousand and is now worth over two hundred thousand. OUCH!
Because we paid very little, we did make some money on each sale – but not the killing we would have made if we had held on longer and sold during the boom. When I have attacks of self-pity, Benni gives me a dose of reality. He points out that we would have struggled for fifteen years to come up with increased maintenance fees, higher real estate taxes, and constant repairs. Having a low rent during those years allowed us extra money for important things like theatre tickets and restaurants. Twelve years of eating home every night is not worth any price.
A LEASE ON LIFE
I’m much happier as a renter. First of all, I hate responsibility. Houses are money pits. There’s always some nasty problem: sewage issues, leaky roofs, termites, whatever. I don’t want to have to replace a furnace or fix the plumbing or hire a crew to prune the dead treetops. I just call my landlord. Some people do a lot of this stuff themselves, but my husband takes three weeks to change a light bulb – and he’s the handy one in the family!
Owning a house can be a chain around your neck, and I want a life-style that’s as flexible and stress-free as possible. If a polka band moves in next door, I need to be able to move on a moment’s notice.
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