Create a little side business to take advantage of the recession-era atmosphere. Start raising some chickens. Avoid car dealerships for oil changes and routine maintenance. Consider selling your home and relocating to a cave. And other ways to improve your financial outlook, if not necessarily your quality of life.
food
How to Bring Your Grocery Bill Down to $15 a Week
Some folks were less than impressed with a trio of bloggers featured on The Cheapskate Blog who limited their food expenditures of $50 a week. A few commenters were downright angry—outraged, insulted even at the idea of the blogger experiment. Well, maybe they’ll be more open to reading about a pair of bloggers living on a weekly …
Salvage Grocery Stores: Who Cares About Sell-By Dates if You’re Saving Money?
Sell-by dates, schmell-by dates. The discount, or salvage, grocery store is filled with merchandise that’s marked with sell-by dates that came and passed sometime before the recession was called a recession. You know what? The food inside most super-packaged containers is still fine—and it’s often 50 percent cheaper than the stuff in …
It’s a Deal: Free Entrée Salad at Denny’s
To promote three new salads (cranberry pecan chicken salad, baja chicken salad, prime rib & bleu salad), Denny’s is offering them for free—with the purchase of another entrée and two beverages. The offer is valid through August 9, and a coupon is required. Print it here.
Bellweather for the Economy: The Hot Waitress Index
Sure, to get a sense of how the economy is faring, you could look at home sale prices, or unemployment stats, or what products are actually selling well at the time. Instead, a New York magazine story explores the symbiotic relationship between the attractiveness of restaurant waitstaff and the economic climate: Basically, if your …
It’s a Deal: Two Free Tacos at Jack in the Box
It’s Taco Tuesday at Jack in the Box. With a downloadable coupon, each customer can get two free tacos today only, August 4. Get the coupon here.
It’s a Deal: Buy One Smoothie, Get One Free at Jamba Juice
A “Summer Bliss” promotion offers two-for-one smoothies at Jamba Juice locations. The offer is valid through August 9, and a coupon is required, which you can print here.
What Will a Cheapskate Spend Good Money On? Part VIII
When a cheapskate drops cash on something, you know it’s worthwhile. After a brief hiatus in the series of posts that explore what seriously frugal folks will spend good money on—and when cheap is the way to go—here’s another entry, from Gary Foreman, editor of The Dollar Stretcher.com.
What the Success of a $5 Slice of Pizza Means
People will pay for quality. Even during an economic crisis. Even when the people involved are self-described cheapskates.
It’s a Deal: Free Mars Bar on Fridays
Candy manufacturer Mars is hosting a “Real Chocolate Relief Act.” When you register at its site, you can print out a coupon for a free candy bar every Friday through the end of the summer (max four coupons per household). More details here.
Obama’s Beer Summit: For a True Show of Unity, They’d Drink a Pitcher of Whatever’s on Tap
What beer will they drink? That’s been the big question around the meeting of President Obama, Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., and Cambridge police officer James Crowley to discuss race relations in the aftermath of Gates’ arrest.
The Government Saved $102 Million Without Really Trying. How Much Could You Save?
Three months ago, President Obama challenged his cabinet secretaries to come up with $100 million in budget cuts. Apparently, the task wasn’t that difficult. They’ve already found 77 different ways to save a total of $102 million. Most savings came through the simplest of solutions, like eliminating unused phone lines and printing on …
