Living frugally

The price of gasoline is skyrocketing! It doesn’t take the wisdom of an economist to realize that prices of commodities will go up as well. At times like these, we have to spend our precious money wisely.

Having been raised in the Philippines, I have always been thrifty anyway. Some of my kababayans (countrymen) may think that we’ve got it easy here in the northern part of the world, but I beg to disagree. We are also feeling the pinch of rising prices and expenses of a growing family. Blogger Ajay has cited time-tested ways on how to live frugally here.

I have a few tips to share as well. The following are some of the things my family and I do and have done to cut down our expenses.

1. I switched my credit card account to a low-interest account – from 18% to 10% interest rate.

2. I later on applied for a credit line at my bank and transferred my credit card balances. A credit line has a considerable lower interest rate.

3. I don’t use my credit cards when I shop. I keep them just for emergencies.

4. I sit down and record my purchases from my interact card and I balance my checkbook at least once a week to make sure that I don’t have an overdraft, hence avoiding overdraft and NSF fees.

5. I work overtime especially if I have an upcoming expense. I set limits though. I don’t work on Sundays and I don’t let work interfere with family obligations.

6. We take the bus because we don’t own a car. Or I could paraphrase that. We don’t own a car so we take the bus. We don't have to spend a lot on monthly payments, gasoline and car insurance.

7. When we signed up for internet service four years ago, we switched to basic cable service. We used the money we saved – the difference between full cable and basic cable service – to pay for the internet service.

8. We refrained from buying cell phones. We don’t need these. I work from home and my family can reach me anytime of the day.

9. In the summer, we use electric fans. We turn on the air-conditioning unit only when the temperature reaches 27 C degrees and up. Likewise, in the winter, we turn the heat down before we go to bed. We can feel warm under the covers.

10. I avoid buying celebrity magazines. I get celebrity news from the internet or TV.

11. We go to the movies only once or twice a year. It could be expensive. The last time we went to the movies, we spent about $60.00.

12. I swap books and movies (VHS tapes and DVDs) with family and friends.

13. We seldom do this now, but when my children were younger, we used to go to the library to borrow children’s books and movies.

14. I read “Anna Karenina” on the internet. Literary classics can now be read on-line.

15. We seldom eat out. We usually eat a meal at home before going shopping. In case we get hungry while out, we have snacks – still cheaper than a meal.

16. We own only one family computer and we don’t intend to buy another one. Having only one computer can sometimes be frustrating in a family of five, but the good thing is that the kids (and I guess Mom and Dad, too) have learned how to take turns - patiently.

17. I shop for groceries at Superstore. It has the best bargains and discounts. I’ve also applied for a PC points program. Whenever I earn at least 20,000 points, I can redeem them towards $20.00 free groceries.

I have also posted these grocery tips in Catherine’s Corner a few years ago.

1. Make a shopping list before you go to the grocery store. This will avoid impulse buying. This will also help you remember to buy the things that you need and avoid several trips to the store.

2. Sort your shopping list. Write down all the items that you'll find in the same aisle, i.e. list all dry products together, meat products on one column, fruits and vegetables on another column, etc. This will save you time at the grocery store.

3. Use store coupons. You can find them in newspapers and flyers.

4. Look on the top shelves. Most stores put the less known brands (less expensive, too) on the top shelves. The more common brands (more expensive) are on the lower shelves, or on your eye level, to attract you, the consumers.

5. Buy store brands or generic brands, they're a lot cheaper. Every cent that you save on each item will add up to $ in savings.

6. Buy in bulk. Not only are you saving money, but you're also helping the environment with less packaging. Be conscientious, though. Do not buy perishable items in bulk if you won't consume all of them before they go bad.

7. Buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. They are cheaper and fresher.

8. "Mommy, I want that! Mommy, buy me this!" Sounds familiar? Well, leave the kids at home. (Just kidding!)

Don't have lots of money

I am always trying to instill into my kids’ minds the value of money. Money doesn't grow on trees. Even in this part of the world, we have to work hard in order to get by.

When my oldest son, Reggie, was still a little boy, I would tell him that he couldn’t buy every toy that he desired in the store. I would explain to him in the simplest words that his young mind could understand, “We don’t have lots of money.” When we had to wait for the bus for half an hour because we just missed the last one, he would ask me, “Why don’t we have a car? Our cousins do.” I would tell him, “Because cars are expensive and we don’t have lots of money.”

I didn’t realize then if he understood what I had been explaining to him. That is, until I read what he had written on his Grade 2 school journal. I knew that his teacher always read and checked her students’ journals. At first I didn’t know if I would be embarrassed or proud of the journal entries below.

October - All about Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving, we eat turkey but some of us don’t eat turkey because we don’t have lots of money. Some of us celebrate Thanksgiving and some of us decorate our house and some of us put lots of decorations and some of us put a little bit of decoration because we don’t have lots of money.

December - My Christmas Wish

The people that don’t have our stuff are very poor because they don’t have lots of money. If there are sick kids I wish somebody can give them a present.

Now, I don’t know if “We don’t have lots of money” follows correct grammar. Should it be “We don’t have a lot of money”? And we don’t really celebrate Thanksgiving at home. I grew up in the Philippines and we didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving there. Thanksgiving is just another day off for me. Also, I prefer chicken to turkey.

I guess in the end, I felt more proud than embarrassed of his journal entries. He was getting what I was trying to teach him.

Reggie, by the way, is now 15 years old and will start Grade 11 next week. His writing has become a lot better and deeper. He still understands that we don't have a lot of money and that he can't buy every CD that he desires in the store.

11 Inexpensive things I did this summer

As usual, I didn’t go away this summer. With a limited budget, I can’t really go on trips. But one doesn’t need to spend much to enjoy this time of year. These are some of the things I did with my family.

1. We went to The Red River Ex. We used two of the kids’ “Read and Win Pass.” Regular ticket price was $7.50.

2. We went to see the Bears on Broadway. This is free. There are three bears situated at locations other than Broadway Avenue. One outside the Winnipeg Art Gallery, one inside Polo Park, and one at the airport. The bears will be on display until October 2005.

3. Ryan and I watched a Goldeyes baseball game. Mama gave us two free tickets. Regular ticket price was $15.00.

4. We went to Steinbach Aquatic Centre. Entrance fee was $20.00 per family. Plus another $20.00 for gasoline. We carpooled with Mama. Steinbach is a city just an hour drive from Winnipeg.

5. We rented and watched lots of movies. Ninety-nine cents only every Thursdays at Pick-a-Flick.

6. We watched a free jazz concert at McNally Robinson.

7. We went to Folklorama. Entrance fee was $3.75 each. Children under 12, free.

8. We went to Tut at The Forks and visited the Egyptian Treasures Exhibition. Ticket was $5.00 each. Children under 5, free.

9. I read and finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince during my two-week vacation from work. The book sold for $21.40 at Superstore.

10. I held a garage sale.

11. I shopped for school supplies and clothes for the kids at Superstore, Zellers and Walmart. There are always great bargains at these stores. I avoided brand names as much as possible except for a few items. For instance, UHU glue sticks are better than generic brands. Payless shoes tend to last longer than the ones from Superstore and Zellers. My kids, and also myself, prefer the clothes style better at Sears or Zellers than those from Superstore or Walmart.

There are a few other things that one can do without spending much or anything. Picnics at parks, visiting the zoo, going to garage sales (instead of holding one), biking, hiking, camping.

How about you? What did you do this summer?

How I held a garage sale

Every summer, I tackle the job of cleaning out our basement. My three boys have bins and bins of neglected toys behind the stairs. We also accumulate unused items all year round and these are tucked away in the laundry/storage room. I usually sort the toys and other items that we don’t need any longer and I give those to The Salvation Army, the Canadian Diabetes Association, or whatever charity would call first. Really, I wonder how they got my phone number, and once you give them your old clothes or unwanted items, they will call you occasionally. It's just bad that I don’t always have anything ready for them.

We had been really on a tight budget this past seven months since hubby had been out of work. (He’s working now, thank goodness!) So as I was sorting those toys, I thought, mmn, why don’t I hold a garage sale? I could use the extra money for buying school supplies and clothes. I tell you, my boys do shoot up like trees.

I’ve seen people in our neighbourhood hold garage sales. I rarely go, though. I didn’t have any idea on how to price my wares. But sis and brother-in-law go to these sales occasionally. So, I’ve asked for their help. They priced almost all of my merchandise.

Here are some tips that I have learned from them and from my recent experience as well: (Click on the images for a larger view.)

1. Find out if you need a permit. I was searching the internet on how to hold a garage sale and a few sites mentioned to first find out if your community requires you to have a permit. After asking around, I found out that I didn’t need one.

2. Clean the items. Dust or wipe with a damp cloth to make them look appealing.

3. Put small toys of the same kind in a bag. For instance, I put four “Toy Story” toys in a sandwich bag, price - $1.00/bag.

4. Time your garage sale around payday (the 15th or end of the month). People are more likely to buy if their wallets are full.

5. Clearly mark the items with labels or tags. I used masking tape.

6. Make signs that indicate the place (your street address), the date and time of the garage sale. I printed mine in big bold letters on a white bond paper and taped it to a corrugated cardboard.

7. Put your signs up on strategic spots around your neighbourhood. I put mine at intersections close to bus stops around our area.

8. Set up a table or two in the garage, yard, or driveway. I borrowed sis’ folding table and an old picnic table, which I covered with the colourful plastic table cover, which I used at my son’s last birthday party. Arrange your merchandise neatly on the table or on the floor around it if you don’t have enough space. One lady commented that I had a very nice set-up. Thank you very much.

9. Put up balloons or any markers in front of your house on the day of the sale. One customer said that the balloons helped her find my place.

10. Make sure you have lots of change – coins and small dollar bills.

11. Have lots of plastic bags ready.

12. Greet your customers with a hello and a smile and thank them even if they just browsed.

13. If they seem friendly, don’t hesitate to chat with them.

14. If you notice a customer constantly holding, flipping, or examining an item, go ahead and ask, “How much do you want that for?” I gave a 24 mini Bible board book set for $2.00 even if the price tag said $3.00.

15. You will have free time in between customers and you could use this time to read or write, or whatever it is that you do. I read six chapters of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (finished the book in twelve days) and four chapters of Carol Shields’ Unless. I wrote this piece (How I held a garage sale) during that free time as well.

16. Ask your older kids to watch the sale when you have lunch or when you need a break.

17. Any unsold items may be donated to a local charity or may be kept for the next sale.

My two days (two Saturdays) of garage sale had been a pleasant experience. I got to meet the people in my neighbourhood. Some are friendly and some are just like, “whatever.” I was quite surprised that about a quarter of the people I met during this time spoke French. (I’m sure they sounded French.) The proceeds weren’t that bad either.

He wanted a peaceful reconciliation

To commemorate Ninoy Aquino's 22nd death anniversary, I'm sharing with you this letter that I wrote my mother.

Mandaluyong, M. Manila
September 12,1983

Hello Dolly,

Hi! Hope you have lesser worries now. You shouldn’t, really. Because as Ninoy said, “I want a reconciliation with no violence.” That’s why we, here in the Philippines, are just cool. There is no violence. At first, people were panicking because they were afraid that there would be a rampage. But there hasn’t been any. It was kind of funny nga eh. We heard that people were withdrawing money from the banks, just in case of a turmoil. Then, on August 22, the day after Ninoy died, most of the schools here suspended their classes. My school (PSBA) was one of those. Did you really see on TV when Ninoy was shot? You see, that wasn’t shown on the news here. We saw when he got out of the plane, went down the steps, then CUT. The next thing we saw, his body was being carried away. He was already gunned down. That’s why the question, “Who shot him?” was a really big issue. At first, the story being reported on the news was that it was a “wanted” person (by the government) who shot him. Later on, it was reported that it was one of his escorts. One more thing, it was 2:00 pm when they televised the news here, when in fact, he was shot at 12:00 noon. I think, abroad, the shooting was shown on TV right away after it happened. It’s really very suspicious. It has been on the news ever since, up until now. People are really very dubious of FM, FL, and JPE. I think FM is the least guilty of the three. Because, you see, there are reports that FL and JPE are planning to resign. Siguro hindi na kaya ng conciencia nila.

Ninoy was buried on August 31. (You mentioned on your letter dated August 29 that you saw on TV his funeral. He was buried on Aug. 31. How did that happen?) Well, anyway, there were many people who attended the funeral. I was one of them. There were barely any students when I went to school that day. I saw two classmates, Tess and Lyn, and we went to Lerma-Espanya to watch the funeral. The procession, which started at Paranaque, passed through Espanya, on the way to Memorial Park. There were so many people on the streets, even on the rooftops. Hindi nga mahulugang-karayom eh. Even the overpass was full of people. Duon kami nakisiksik. We placed ourselves by the stairs so we could see clearly down below. We waited for a long time. When the procession came, we saw people carrying banners saying “ Ninoy hindi ka nag-iisa,” “Marcos the great liar,” “Marcos nag-iisa ka na lang,” “Fight for justice and freedom,” and many more. I didn’t see any representatives from the government, which was a good thing, because the writings on the banner were all against the government. And it was interesting to see that the police officers were not carrying guns. Batuta lang ang dala nila. Ninoy’s widow suggested that because he didn’t want violence. He wanted a peaceful reconciliation, which wasn’t granted to him. Then we saw the coffin, which was surrounded by yellow flowers. At the exact moment that the coffin came right below where we were watching, rain started to pour. We all got wet. Umuwi ako na parang basing sisiw. People in the jeep were staring at me because I was soaking wet.

That was done and over with. There was no violence. People are expressing their anger in the newspapers. Everything that we read in the papers is against the government. One paper was asking FM to resign in order to better the condition of the Philippines. Yesterday, September 11, was FM’s birthday. Only a few TV stations run tributes to him, unlike the past years, when every radio and TV stations have something to offer him. Ay naku! So much for that.

Is it true that you are planning to come home in December? I really hope so. Hindi naman delicadong magbalik-bayan. As I’ve told you, there is no turmoil here. You have nothing to worry about.

O sige ha, ‘til here. I am very sleepy now. I hope you can still read my handwriting. Don’t worry, okay. Bye. Ingat.

I love you,
Irene

You can also view this at Hello Dolly.