borman818,Money, Money, Money, February 6, 2009. ,via Flickr, Creative Commons License

The only thing that is on my mind as much as bananas and beer is money, that is so I can buy more bananas and beer hehe. Everyone seems to have tips such as going green to save green and logging your expenses like I discussed in my post, Loans will be the Debt of Me. Why is it so important, well because the average person is not financially secure. Most people have some kind of debt, not enough savings or some other financial worry that they are ill prepared for and I’m sure you are no different. If you are not one of those people, stop what you are doing right now – yes stop reading this post and Donate to a poor wittle monkey. hehe

After applying all the wonderful tips in my Loans post and you still need to figure out a way to add a little more change in your pocket, try out these additional money saving tips.

• Food – After checking out the local CSA plans, I’ll be honest I didn’t have the money to buy into one of these programs upfront, so I looked for alternatives.
  • Buy Generic – Most foods you eat can be bought at a generic grocery store except for maybe meat which can be ‘ify’ at times and ketchup. I don’t know why but off brand ketchup just tastes bad to me.
  • Grow Your Own – I don’t have much room but with a few pots and some dirt I’ll supply myself hopefully with enough tomatoes, chives and hot peppers to keep me happy for the summer. I also have all the makings to jar any seasonal extra tomatoes for the winter.
  • Farmers Market – More often than not you can get a better deal if you shop around at your local farmers market. The key is also to look at what is in season, you may want squash but if eggplant is in abundance maybe you should check the alternative and the same can go for meat if you have a local butcher that sells wild game. If you are over 60 you can get vouchers to your local farm market through the Senior Farmer’s Market Nutrition Program, otherwise simply shopping at your local farm market and buying what’s in season can help save.
• Entertainment – While visiting my friend in Jasper, Indiana we watched TV and movies without ever using satellite or cable. Using the internet and connecting a computer to his TV he could watch every show he wanted through free (minus Netflix) online services.
  • Netflix – for $8.99 a month you get unlimited online viewing. I use a Nintendo Wii to connect but most new TV’s have a vga connection. If you have an older TV you can buy a converter box to connect the two.
  • Hulu.com – If you haven’t heard about Hulu yet then maybe you do need cable.
  • Justin.tv – for various TV entertainment
  • TVShack.cc – this is the former tvshack.net that was shut down by the feds, but is now up and running. You got to love the internet.
  • BlueXeal.com -  This is good for recent episodes of ongoing TV shows.
• Alcohol – Oh my weakness, the magic elixir of life – wine, beer, liquor and other spirits. In fact, I’m drinking what’s left of a beer I used to marinate my dinner right now. How do you save without cutting back, well my friend if you are an American you take it back to your freshmen years at college. If your goal is to get a slight buzz going to loosen you up before you go, then why not pre-game a few drinks before you even head out. There is also my favorite, the hidden flask technique. If you must buy, why not purchase a pitcher or a drink sampler where you can usually get more for your money. Alas, do the calculations in your head before you start downing your drinks because I’ve encountered a few shady bars in the Rio Grand Valley of Texas where a bucket of 5 beers cost more than purchasing 6 beers individually.
• Healthy living – How you eat and live can also effect the weight of your wallet and not just your waistline. Eating fruit followed by a salad before you have your dinner which is served with a filler like yams or rice will slow you down from gorging down six pieces of chicken.  Start off your morning with a pot of water that you pour into the coffee maker but only a single tea bag to brew the full pot. Buying a water bottle that you can refill throughout the day will prevent you from building up an appetite and keep you energized throughout the day. You can be financially frugal and yet still eat and live well, in fact your health is one area you shouldn’t be cheap on because it can keep you healthy which could save you from medical bills in the future.
• Coupons – You don’t need to be that crazy shopper who has a binder with ever coupon organized and only buys what they can get discounts for, no that isn’t you and it surely isn’t me. However, with the age of technology being what it is, it’s hard not to take advantage of opportunities that are a touch screen away. That’s right my fur less friend, your phone so interlinked with everything you do to socialize why can’t it be included in how you shop. Free applications are constantly being developed for your web ready phone. All you have to do is pull up the coupon and they can scan your phone to get your savings.

Do you have any money saving tips or how about a certain food that you just can’t buy generic? Is there a certain application you favor to track your expenses or to find local coupons?

Money shouldn’t dictate everything you do, but by being financially conscious we can stretch out the money we have and maybe get to reach some goals that we’ve set or a trip we’ve always dreamed of.

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Tags: entertainment, finance, food, frugal, money, Travel