Nervously rubbing two nickles together

With the cost of gas rising by leaps and bounds, my el cheapo instincts are eerily sharp right now. Last week, I sat in a gas line waiting to catch the $3.17 price at the parkway rest stop before they changed their price the following day. The fact that the parkway rest stops in NJ only change their prices once a week was once a little know secret but on that particular day every tv truck and newspaper was out there crowing about it. Hence the long lines. I had a flash back to the 70's, sitting in the back of my mother's Honda hatchback, happily drawing, smelling the crayons warm from the sun beating in the windows as we waited for gas. Are gas lines going to be the new norm? Sweets may fill his tank once every few weeks or so unless we take a longish trip to New York or Philadelphia. I commute 100 miles a day, so my tank is hungry twice a week. Today I paid $42 to fill her up. Oi!

It's time to get as creative as possible here. A recent attempt to carpool with one coworker didn't make it past a week. I'm going to try again with a woman in my department. We went to our department head and asked for our shifts to be the same on two days a week so we can carpool. On the other three days, I may have a slim chance of traveling with the man I was driving with earlier. Or I may attempt taking the train occassionally.  As gas gets more expensive, this option may become more financially attractive. Right now it's more trouble than it's worth.

Anyone who knows me in real life, knows I am super thrifty. The other day my sister was telling me a story about her son and said, "he's like us- cheap." The two of us can stretch a dollar like salt water taffy. There for a while, I was relaxing, trying not to be so thrifty. Even Cyndemouse, who's taught many a thing about thrift, told me last year that sometimes I can be downright cheap. There is evidently a fine line between financial responsibility and freaky. Recently I took this book, "America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money: Your Guide to Living Better, Spending Less, and Cashing in on Your Dreams," out of the library and realized I am not nearly as cheap as this family but I'm getting there. (Note: I took it out of the library instead of buying it)

I notice I've been getting really weird and hoardy feeling about groceries. One of the tips in the book was to grocery shop less frequently to avoid impulse purchases. Great tip. I also find it helps to have a menu plan for the week and and a grocery list with me once I hit the store. We usually shop on Sundays but I'll often pop in midweek for something additional. This week, I found myself going in just to cruise the clearance sections of the store. I scored big time on Sunday when I stumbled upon the produce boy marking down spring mix, shitake mushrooms, and vine ripened tomatoes down to 59 cents a package. Basically, the yuppy vegetables aren't selling. Which tips me off to something being off for real in how other people are spending these days.

A few stories I came across this week, prove to me I am not the only one behaving differently lately.

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal had a story about people stocking up on groceries and  the New York Times had one about women buying themselves lipsticks as a treat instead of bigger ticket items.

Usually, I keep my free flowing thrifty tips off blog but in light of the times, I think I'll begin talking about how I'm pinching every penny's cheeks before I let it slip out of my fingers. I'd love to hear how you're doing it, too.

Comments

[bella]

Yes, I'm feelin that same pain every time I fill up my car. ::sigh::
I have to streamline my grocery store visits. I loathe the once a week trip so I go every 2-3 days with no list in hand. Not good. That's my new goal - plan out a weekly menu, write out a list, clip some coupons, and shop-till I don't drop.
:)

[tanaya]

I was ridiculously happy when I stumbled upon chicken at 69 cents a pound Wednesday. Whole fryers, organic & cage-free. I wanted to buy them all! I ended up with 3.

[lisa]

keep the tips coming, I need all the help I can get. no one has ever called me thrifty. I need to go into a 12-step program...

[darlene]

gas is even pricier here and only going up up up ... we paid 40 for just over 1/2 a tank on the weekend ... so glad i drive a small car and live close to downtown where i work so we don't have to drive much during the week.

i was talking to someone on the weekend and we were pleased to discover that the other person was also doing the food stockpiling. i thought i was being weird so it was nice not to be alone in this. for the past six months or so, i have been buying bulk when things are on sale ~ i remember my grandmother used to do this and have been picking up 10 pound bags of rice and bags and bags of dried beans and stuff that will last forever. i never used to have more than a couple of cans in my cupboards but now i have a pantry full of dry and canned goods. am not even sure why i started doing it and yet there it is.

i have become thrifty and we have pretty much stopped eating out except for 2-3 times a month. and am contemplating getting the gear to bike to work in the winter ~ i used to do it when i was in university and it wasn't so bad so long as you dress for it and stud up your tires. am also doubling my garden this year and am thinking about canning stuff. i don't know ~ i think we are entering a new era with how we live and spend. the good news is that many of done with less before us so its doable i think : )

[The Shopping Sherpa]

I'm planning to turn last June's Fiscal Fast (http://theshoppingsherpa.blogspot.com/search/label/Fiscal%20Fast) into a yearly event. Perhaps you'd like to join in? I figure the more the merrier!

[Emily]

We're hosting a recipe contest and the winner will be mailed 2 lbs. of fresh morel mushrooms! If you have a favorite mushroom recipe, consider submitting it to http://marxfoods.com (contest link is under the Kobe burger photo).