Embarassing Things You Do To Save Money

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i wear my silver wedding shoes to work as my main shoes no matter what i wear (from 3 yrs ago).

i tell the garage guys at work sometimes i have no $$$ to pay them that day (to park).

I ask coworkers for change to buy a bag of chips from the vending machine. And I ask for k-cups.

HHI $155

There is a difference between saving money and just screwing other people over/being cheap.

[Anonymous]

I don't do this but my neighbor and a friend do this: to save stamps, they drop their bills/checks directly at the utility companies - gas company; electric company; phone company. We live in a small town so all of these places are close by so it is not a long drive.

Or just sign up for online bill pay with your bank and you don't have to pay for stamps. Even if it isn't a long drive, gas prices are high and stamps are relatively cheap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Aside from a couple folks, this has mostly been a bust - most people just brag about their thrifty habits (old carsm no Starbucks, hotel shampoos) as opposed to things that are actually embarrassing.

Here is something that embarrasses me. My husband routinely tries to use expired or not applicable coupons. Drives me nuts! He is very polite, and if the coupon doesn't work he just says okay, thanks and continues with his purchase but he MUST try, even if I beg him not to. Sometimes I have to stand a few feet away I am so embarrassed.

Ex. We went to the Baltimore Aquarium recently and you get $10 if you have a Maryland utility bill. It says right on the website. He brings our Virginia utility bill just to see if it will work. Of course it doesn't, he pays and we go inside and have a great time, but WHY OH WHY does he even have to ask when it says RIGHT THERE that its for Maryland only. I will tell you why, because his shenanigans work at least 50% of the time and he doesn't mind being told no. Ugh. I still love him to bits, but wish he wouldn't do this. We make $235k, its embarrassing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reusing stamps is close to stealing. But I admit I've done it too. Just one of many reasons why USPS is bankrupt.

Nothing "close" about it: it is stealing.

Yeah, reusing stamps (especially if your income is 1 million!!) crosses the line from being embarrassing to just being a douchebag.

A little harsh, in my opinion. I appreciate the person's frankness...we don't need to be name-calling...

[Anonymous]

$60 k p year combined
- shop from a farm share, no tv or cell phones, buy generic/no name household items, drive a hybrid to save on gas (city driving saves a lot), wait for sales to print photos on shutterfly, pack lunches for work
- go on vacation twice p/year, I work only part time to spend lots of time with dd, put her in swimming and music lessons

[Anonymous]

I get books from the library and only watch free shows on Hulu, not Hulu plus. We do not have a home phone or cable TV. In fact, we so not have a TV - just a computer.

We do not pay for magazine subscriptions, we type in Coke Codes to get magazines.

I use MyPoints to read advertisement emails and as an online shopping portal. I rack up about $100 a year in gift cards.

I only shop at J Crew when it's 25% and when I get free shipping. I only shop at CVS when I get a 20 or 25% off shopping pass coupon in my email.

HHI = $250-300k depending on my bonus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reusing stamps is close to stealing. But I admit I've done it too. Just one of many reasons why USPS is bankrupt.

Nothing "close" about it: it is stealing.

Yeah, reusing stamps (especially if your income is 1 million!!) crosses the line from being embarrassing to just being a douchebag.

A little harsh, in my opinion. I appreciate the person's frankness...we don't need to be name-calling...

On an anonymous forum why should we be gentle on someone who steals? It's not like that poster is going to cry herself to sleep tonight. Maybe she will think twice about stealing stamps if she knows it's a trashy, douchebag thing to do. Apparently just being wrong is not enough motivation for her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i wear my silver wedding shoes to work as my main shoes no matter what i wear (from 3 yrs ago).

i tell the garage guys at work sometimes i have no $$$ to pay them that day (to park).

I ask coworkers for change to buy a bag of chips from the vending machine. And I ask for k-cups.

HHI $155

I used to work with someone like you. A coworker taught this woman's toddler son to do an impression of her asking everyone for change, with that special shake of her hand. Brought the house down every time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reusing stamps is close to stealing. But I admit I've done it too. Just one of many reasons why USPS is bankrupt.

Nothing "close" about it: it is stealing.

Yeah, reusing stamps (especially if your income is 1 million!!) crosses the line from being embarrassing to just being a douchebag.

A little harsh, in my opinion. I appreciate the person's frankness...we don't need to be name-calling...

On an anonymous forum why should we be gentle on someone who steals? It's not like that poster is going to cry herself to sleep tonight. Maybe she will think twice about stealing stamps if she knows it's a trashy, douchebag thing to do. Apparently just being wrong is not enough motivation for her.

Again, harsh...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reusing stamps is close to stealing. But I admit I've done it too. Just one of many reasons why USPS is bankrupt.

Nothing "close" about it: it is stealing.

Yeah, reusing stamps (especially if your income is 1 million!!) crosses the line from being embarrassing to just being a douchebag.

A little harsh, in my opinion. I appreciate the person's frankness...we don't need to be name-calling...

On an anonymous forum why should we be gentle on someone who steals? It's not like that poster is going to cry herself to sleep tonight. Maybe she will think twice about stealing stamps if she knows it's a trashy, douchebag thing to do. Apparently just being wrong is not enough motivation for her.

How do you know the poster is female?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let's find out the embarrassing things you do to save money:
1. State your HHI.
2. List some things you do to save money.
3. List some ways how you waste money (not a waste to you, but to most people)
Then we can make fun of each other. Or maybe we can learn new ways to save money.

I'll start.
1. HHI = $500,000
2. I am embarassed about using lots of dining coupons (not enough to stop though). I love the Entertainment Book and restaurant.com. I almost never return to the same restaurant unless I get another discount. I am very conservative with paper products. i.e. Napkins, tissues, toilet paper, writing paper. One shampoo bottle can last nearly a year.
I like to walk instead of drive. I shop online but always through a portal that gives me 1-10% cash back.
3. One year, I bought about 10 timeshare weeks. Some I love, some I now regret. I have a $2.5 million house. My DS had about 6 private tutors each week in a variety of areas.

Many of the "embarrassing things" we do to live a smaller carbon footprint also save money.
1)HHI $160k - one income-
2) We wash our plastic ziplock bags, I shop at thrift stores first, no paper napkins, 3-4 rolls of paper towels per year, we compost and have only one trash pick up a week, we wear clothes to their death, we wear out cars to their death, brown bag lunches, we plan errands for the most efficient driving plan, we try to do without first, we drive instead of fly...
3) I try to buy local sustainable food, I buy TP made from recycled paper, we have an every other week housecleaner, we buy good shoes,...

I'll take one of your timeshare!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's find out the embarrassing things you do to save money:
1. State your HHI.
2. List some things you do to save money.
3. List some ways how you waste money (not a waste to you, but to most people)
Then we can make fun of each other. Or maybe we can learn new ways to save money.

I'll start.
1. HHI = $500,000
2. I am embarassed about using lots of dining coupons (not enough to stop though). I love the Entertainment Book and restaurant.com. I almost never return to the same restaurant unless I get another discount. I am very conservative with paper products. i.e. Napkins, tissues, toilet paper, writing paper. One shampoo bottle can last nearly a year.
I like to walk instead of drive. I shop online but always through a portal that gives me 1-10% cash back.
3. One year, I bought about 10 timeshare weeks. Some I love, some I now regret. I have a $2.5 million house. My DS had about 6 private tutors each week in a variety of areas.

Many of the "embarrassing things" we do to live a smaller carbon footprint also save money.
1)HHI $160k - one income-
2) We wash our plastic ziplock bags, I shop at thrift stores first, no paper napkins, 3-4 rolls of paper towels per year, we compost and have only one trash pick up a week, we wear clothes to their death, we wear out cars to their death, brown bag lunches, we plan errands for the most efficient driving plan, we try to do without first, we drive instead of fly...
3) I try to buy local sustainable food, I buy TP made from recycled paper, we have an every other week housecleaner, we buy good shoes,...

I'll take one of your timeshare!

Forgot about using the library and we share books we buy and have friends who share books they buy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't do this but my neighbor and a friend do this: to save stamps, they drop their bills/checks directly at the utility companies - gas company; electric company; phone company. We live in a small town so all of these places are close by so it is not a long drive.

Isn't that what online bill pay is for?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reusing stamps is close to stealing. But I admit I've done it too. Just one of many reasons why USPS is bankrupt.

Nothing "close" about it: it is stealing.

Yeah, reusing stamps (especially if your income is 1 million!!) crosses the line from being embarrassing to just being a douchebag.

A little harsh, in my opinion. I appreciate the person's frankness...we don't need to be name-calling...

On an anonymous forum why should we be gentle on someone who steals? It's not like that poster is going to cry herself to sleep tonight. Maybe she will think twice about stealing stamps if she knows it's a trashy, douchebag thing to do. Apparently just being wrong is not enough motivation for her.

How do you know the poster is female?

Most of her post revolved around shopping, particularly for toys. I don't see a lot of men hunting for bargains at thrift stores or bragging about their ebay sales. Most of the time the female is the one who focuses on that kind of stuff. Or it could just be the universal "she."

[Anonymous]

Public school