Between a recent marathon and The Election That Shall Not Be Discussed Right Now and a restorative trip home to visit family, it’s been a busy couple-three weeks. But though I haven’t been posting as I ought, I’ve still found plenty of ways to be frugal! (How have you been behaving the past couple of weeks? Let’s hear it.)
1. I used some rewards points to get $10 off my bagel order.
Every month or so, LeeLee and I order a baker’s dozen of bagels from one of our favorite local shops, the Chewish Deli. This time around, I was presented with a surprise when I got to the checkout: We’d earned enough rewards points to knock $10 off the bill! This turned a $24 tab (including tip) into $14 — I’ll take it!
2. I got a sweatshirt to wear to my marathon start line for … $7.99.
So often before longer races, I stand at the start line freezing only to begin to swelter by Mile 1 once the blood starts pumping. Rather than wear a trash bag with a hole cut out for my head (which, I will admit, was a go-to of mine for years), I’ve taken to using either old worn-out long sleeve shirts from my collection OR purchasing a “new” one at Goodwill. This time I elected to do the latter, and I was warm and toasty while I waited for the race to begin! And bonus: All the discarded outerwear that runners left along the course is scooped up and donated to local shelters and charities.
3. I stretched my Monday Chinese takeout to three meals.
LeeLee wasn’t home for Chinese takeout last week, so I did something I don’t normally do: I ordered kung pao tofu AND lo mein, and as a result my takeout lasted for three meals. Not too shabby for a $35 tab!
4. Our friends graciously paid for a dinner out!
A couple of our dear friends were in town for the aforementioned marathon a couple of weeks ago, and we all convened for dinner after the race to toast our accomplishments and swap war stories. To our surprise, when the check came, they insisted on paying! (Funnily enough, on the car ride over, LeeLee and I had also agreed to pay for them.) They swore that we paid last time, which maybe was the case and maybe not, but regardless we were so grateful for their generosity! (And we’ll definitely pick up the tab next time. You heard it here first!)
5. We’ve been doing a considerable amount of “shopping the pantry” the past couple of weeks.
We’ve had an embarrassment of riches accumulate in our pantry and freezer, and I’ve decided to put them to the test a lot lately. Some notable concoctions: Tofurky ham with scalloped potatoes; chik’n divan; ramen with veggies and chik’n patties; and more!
6. I transferred a hefty sum from an old Metro card to my current one.
While our friends were in town for the marathon, LeeLee and I dug up a couple of SmartTrip Metro cards that we’ve had on hand for them to use (and keep) to get to the race and to keep for their sightseeing afterward. I decided to log into my SmartTrip account to add a little bit of funding to both so they wouldn’t have to hit up a kiosk. Much to my surprise, I had a balance of $248 on an old, expired SmartTrip card that was just sitting there doing nothing! So after I added a jaunty $10 to each of their cards, I transferred my $248 from the old card to my current card. At my current usage rate, this will easily pay for a year’s worth of Metroing for me! (And even better? Much of this $248 came from work transportation benefits pre-pandemic that I’d just never used. So it’s truly a gift!)
7. We have yet to turn the heat on.
Much to LeeLee’s chagrin, we haven’t turned our furnace on for the season yet, but not to worry: It’s been so unseasonably warm that even he admits we haven’t been suffering too much. This week I replaced the furnace filter in preparation for colder weather, but I’m hopeful we can stretch this heatless period for a little bit longer! Can we make it to Thanksgiving? Who knows? We’ve already broken last year’s record of Nov. 1, so everything from here on is gravy!
What have you been up to the past few weeks? Let us know in the comments!
:)
