NationStates Jolt Archive

my husband has decided to run for public office sometime in the near future, to get some $$ together for him we are going to have to cut back big time. I have lowered my utility bills as much as possible, turned off my cable and got the cheapest high speed internet I can (yes, I actually do NEED highspeed internet)

I am trying to cut down the cost of our groceries, but with my kids' diets that's not going to be really all that possible...

so, what's your best money saving on a budget tip?

my husband has decided to run for public office sometime in the near future, to get some $$ together for him we are going to have to cut back big time. I have lowered my utility bills as much as possible, turned off my cable and got the cheapest high speed internet I can (yes, I actually do NEED highspeed internet)

I am trying to cut down the cost of our groceries, but with my kids' diets that's not going to be really all that possible...

so, what's your best money saving on a budget tip?
I don't know... how much money has he set aside for bribery purposes?

I don't know... how much money has he set aside for bribery purposes?
we won't need to bribe anyone, I am pretty popular so people will vote for him because he is married to me......everyone loves me :p

my husband has decided to run for public office sometime in the near future, to get some $$ together for him we are going to have to cut back big time. I have lowered my utility bills as much as possible, turned off my cable and got the cheapest high speed internet I can (yes, I actually do NEED highspeed internet)

I am trying to cut down the cost of our groceries, but with my kids' diets that's not going to be really all that possible...

so, what's your best money saving on a budget tip?

Buy everything from the grocery store, and in bulk. Don't ever, ever frequent places like 7/11, no matter how much more convenient they are.

we won't need to bribe anyone, I am pretty popular so people will vote for him because he is married to me......everyone loves me :p
that's a very good point.. I'm terrible at budgets unless you consider "don't spend money" a good tip..

Running for office eh. If your husband isn't an influencial Freemason as of yet then I suggest he become one ASAP.

I wouldn't hold out too much hope of actually trying to make politics a fair play game. If your husband wants to become a successful politician he's going to have to learn how to be a corrupted crook like all the rest.

There is no place for good people in politics thats for sure.

my husband has decided to run for public office sometime in the near future, Wow! That is a very heavy commitment to make! You guys can sneak into office with your outwardly 'religious conservative' background, and then gleefully ban creationism in science class, and legalise gay marriage:) I refer to you in the plural because it won't just be him running for office...you'll be a big part of it too, and I wish you both the best!


to get some $$ together for him we are going to have to cut back big time. I have lowered my utility bills as much as possible, turned off my cable and got the cheapest high speed internet I can (yes, I actually do NEED highspeed internet)

I am trying to cut down the cost of our groceries, but with my kids' diets that's not going to be really all that possible... If you don't have a garden, get going! You can grow an incredible amount of food in a fairly small space. I would even suggest some cucumber plants inside. Grow veggies that freeze well...carrots, zucchini, squash, corn, asparagus, etc. Start lettuce as early as possible, and you'll have it all summer, nice and fresh. Grow bok choy (Swiss chard) and spinach...both freeze great and make awesome fillings for spanikopita, quiche, etc. The seeds are a bit of an investment in the beginning, but after that you just harvest your own seeds. Learning how to garden is pretty simple, even for a black thumb like I.

This alone cut down our monthly food budget by a huge amount. Mmmm...another thing, if there are potato farms around your city, there is generally a 'processing' plant in the city where they deposit their harvest, and you can usually go there and pick up a 50lbs bag of potatoes for less than $10. Seriously. The one we have in Edmonton also sometimes sells onions wholesale, and we split them up between the families. Check into it.

Meat is another huge expense. No, I'm not going to suggest you start raising chickens and pigs in your backyard:). But start going to butcher shops to get your meat...the price is often MUCH better. We buy our beef at a butcher shop, and get a huge chunk of chuck. Sometimes we can convince the butcher to cut it up for us for free, but if not, we take it home, cut it into four pieces, and freeze them for about an hour, just so it's stiff enough to cut up. Some parts are only good for stewing, others are very soft, and good for steaks. We've cut down on how much meat we eat by cutting the steaks very thin, and making meat a PART of the meal instead of the centre.

Buy bulk. It is a mystery to me how more food can cost you less, but it's true. When big bags of rice (20lbs) are on sale, buy a bunch. What fresh veggies and fruits you need, buy in season. There are a million ways to cut your food budget without sacrificing the food itself.

There is no place for good people in politics thats for sure.
You'll hear this a lot. But like all things, good people CAN survive in even the most corrupt professions, without selling their souls. It's just harder, is all, and often means extra work, and job instability. But it's all about priorities. You guys will be fine as long as you keep your eyes open.

hmm…we grow our own veggies, but the other thing i do is to shop at the farmers market for produce instead of the grocery store. i get way more food for the money, and the profit is going directly to the farmers, and not to delivery people and grocery store overhead.

for entertainment, one thing I do for the kids is to buy memberships to our local nature center, zoo, and science museum. it’s a little pricey up front, but considering how many times a year we go, i save a lot of money in the long run.

i have tons of budget suggestions but none that fit you or a short term plan for saving money

for example i would normally tell people to buy the cheapest car possible that fits their realistic needs. but its not practical to do so for a short term saving plan

i would tell you to stop buying coffee at starbucks but if you dont know THAT you cant possibly save any money.

your need to look at your current spending and see if there are some "luxuries" that you can eliminate for a while. do you buy any of those new specialty cleaning products or ones that promise to kill germs? go back to Pine-sol and a mop or sponge. i assume you have to cook from scratch already and that you know to look at store flyers and plan meals from whats on sale this week. do you already swap coupons with your friends?

in any case, stop going to the store. make a strict barebones list, leave the kids at home, and buy only the stuff on your list. go once a week only.

probably your best budget choices are things that will make campaigning cheaper rather than living cheaper. there is only so much you can squeeze out of an already frugal family.

in any case, stop going to the store. make a strict barebones list, leave the kids at home, and buy only the stuff on your list. go once a week only. And go after you've already eaten:)

probably your best budget choices are things that will make campaigning cheaper rather than living cheaper. there is only so much you can squeeze out of an already frugal family.
This is true. Most people are already on the bare bones of their budget as it is.

Your kids have rather specialised diety needs, which I can see making 'saving' on food a little problematic. But those expenses are not luxuries. I like the idea of looking into 'cheaper' ways of campaigning:)

if your so popular why don't you run

if your so popular why don't you run
ah, because it would interfere with my job.

Your kids have rather specialised diety needs, which I can see making 'saving' on food a little problematic. But those expenses are not luxuries. I like the idea of looking into 'cheaper' ways of campaigning:)
hmm. I will have to look into that. we probably won't hit the elections this time around since it's going to mess up my strategy of getting people to know him and not just Smunkee's husband, but I will look into ways to best spend the money that we do save up.

ah, because it would interfere with my job.

what about his job? or is he unemployed?

he has a job, his job is not like my job.

My job is to be a supportive but submissive wife and a mother, running for office would limit my ability to do those things to the best of my ability.

And go after you've already eaten:)
That's the best advice :)

Cut down on meat (unless it's really necessary) - most people eat too much, and it's expensive. Veg is cheaper and quicker to cook, and you can always add stock (or stock cubes, marmite, etc.) to flavour it. Also, eating stuff like Black Pudding is cheap because most people don't like it :)

I know petrol's dirt cheap over there, but walking/cycling most places is good for you and cheap. Also, get an economical car instead of a Zaibatsu Monstrosity; these differences mean I spend less on petrol in a month than Mum spends on diesel in a week. Besides, it's amazing how far food spreads when you know you've got a two mile walk in the snow/rain/general miserableness to buy any more...

Oh, and good luck!

another thing.... this weekend is supposed to be pretty nice, I have decided to go through my garage and clean it out, I think I will have a garage sale in a few weeks.......

anyone got any garage sale tips?

what is the near future anyway?

what level of office is it? local, county, state, national?

will it be heavily contested?

do you have enough time to solicit campaign contributions from your supporters? any chance for party support?

another thing.... this weekend is supposed to be pretty nice, I have decided to go through my garage and clean it out, I think I will have a garage sale in a few weeks.......

anyone got any garage sale tips?
go check the prices that people are getting for stuff so you can price your stuff appropriately for the market (it may be so low that its worth more to take it to the thrift shop)

put a price on every item

make the price higher than you expect to get for it so that when the customer talks you down, you get the price you wanted.

anyone got any garage sale tips?
Make sure you have somewhere else to keep the car afterwards!


Sorry.


I'll get my coat...

what is the near future anyway?
2 years. (believe me I usually plan things 10 years in advance)

what level of office is it? local, county, state, national?
state

will it be heavily contested?
yep. it would be easier if we were "the other party" because they usually don't run here, but we aren't so yeah, there will be about 8 people from our party running, most of them well known to the point that people will vote for them just because they always have.

do you have enough time to solicit campaign contributions from your supporters? any chance for party support?
we have some time, but most of the people we know are already supporting someone else, so we have to really set out a good case as to why they would switch over, party support might be viable, but probably not early in the campaign, they tend to see who is coming out ahead before they put any money in.

I managed to survive on 5000eur per year, there or there abouts. Buy food in bulk. Buy a whole chicken and cut it into the separate pieces - you get two breasts, two thighs, two drumsticks and two wings for less than 5 bucks, the same will cost you nearly ten if you buy pre packaged meat. If you're a veggie, try growing some of the hardier veggies yourself - potatoes, onions, tomatoes are all relatively easy to grow yourself (provided you have a small patch of ground on your property. My grandparents grow all their own veggies, so groceries consist of about 20 eur of meat for the week, including a roast for Sunday, bread, tea bags and a few basic toiletries - for two people, less than 50eur per week on food!

Cut your kids hair yourself, it'll save a small fortune on expensive barbers/stylists that can do the same job as you can.

Instead of giving the kids lunch money, give them a home made sandwich and piece of fruit that'll cost less than half over the course of a week.

Use both sides of your printing paper.

Never throw out anything that the thrift stores won't take - you WILL find a use for that pair of pants none of the kids fit into, or that threadbare sheet thrown at the back of the cupboard. Even if it's to patch up a pair of pants with a tear in the backside. Sell everything else in a jumble sale - reasonably good clothes that have grown too small, books, old ugly ornaments your great aunt left you in her will (but you never liked her anyway).

Oh, and one last thing, learn to knit, sew and crochet. You can make some beautiful sweaters and cardigans for yourself, your husband and your kids. I'm making some of the most beautiful baby clothes for our expected, it's so easy to find free patterns online for some of the prettiest and easiest things to make.

another thing.... this weekend is supposed to be pretty nice, I have decided to go through my garage and clean it out, I think I will have a garage sale in a few weeks.......

anyone got any garage sale tips?

Try to talk some of your other neighbours into joining in. Let everyone set up their own table. If a small group of you get together to do it, it'll attract more attention, and you can share the advertising workload between you all

turn off lights, TV, stereo when leaving the room...if you use it to fall asleep to, put it on timer.

Reduce how much you drive....gas is expensive.

drop the temp in your house to maybe 68 or so. You can always bundle up. Also, if you have electronic thermostats, program them to drop the temp around midnight. Just turn it off completely. Your body temp drops naturally, and you will actually sleep better.

the garden is also a good idea.

2 years. (believe me I usually plan things 10 years in advance)

ahhh well in THAT case...

dont invest in your own garden (except for a small one for the kids to learn from) its too much start up money for what you get

instead, start looking for canning jars and other canning equipment at yard sales. plus blanching equipment (a big pot and with a perforated insert) in order to freeze some veggies too.

i prefer frozen to canned but to do it right you need a freezer. buying a freezer will ruin the money saving of this plan

when your FRIENDS' gardens come in, they will have much much more than they can ever use. tomatos, zuccinis, greenbeans, peas, all kinds of stuff will be available for the asking. they will be grateful to you for taking it off their hands.

you can fill your cupboards and refridgerator with food for the cost of preserving it.

Wow! That is a very heavy commitment to make! You guys can sneak into office with your outwardly 'religious conservative' background, and then gleefully ban creationism in science class, and legalise gay marriage:)

shhhhh...don't tell or the rednecks won't vote for us!

on a related thought, I should clean up my act a little, if they go back and try to bring my past in I should be able to say "but, I have been really really good lately" right? (that probably won't work)

shhhhh...don't tell or the rednecks won't vote for us!

on a related thought, I should clean up my act a little, if they go back and try to bring my past in I should be able to say "but, I have been really really good lately" right? (that probably won't work)

Well, surely what you want you emphasise is that you've undergone a change. If you can make it seem like the change and the policies are intrinsically linked, you should be alright (of course I am guessing).

get together with a bunch of likeminded families and do a clothing swap. everyone brings the clothing they no longer use and takes away clothing that would be good for their family. clean and in good repair only.

if it needs a bit of regulating, im sure you can come up with rules.

Well, surely what you want you emphasise is that you've undergone a change. If you can make it seem like the change and the policies are intrinsically linked, you should be alright (of course I am guessing).
AND you can claim that your reform is due to having a great man like your husband in your life. (no lie) who wouldnt vote for such a paragon?