Frugaldom

[djs]

I started this topic however due to being so Frugal I had to leave That Forum Site due to not winning the free to enter competition this time round although i have won over £100 from That Forum Site in the past.

Before leaving i decided to through a strop and delete loads of my posts (think of it like throwing my toys out of the pram because i'm a saw looser). Therefore this topic is now ruined.

If you still want to speak to an overly frugal person then you can visit my own websites:

http://www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk/Frugal/
http://www.frugaldom.com/
http://frugaldom.blogspot.com/
http://frugaldom.myfreeforum.org/

BE WARNED THOUGH, i will insist on responses to my posts within 12 minutes otherwise i will throw a childish strop as i did on this topic which is a shame considering i claim to be an adult.

Hope to see you there.

Frugaldom (NYK Media)

[ThatForumSite]

So what's this all about?

If you've ever been skint or wondered where all your money is disappearing to without stopping to consider the cost of living, life can add up to some big numbers. Let's lighten the load and discuss all the alternatives, then find out how easy it really is to beat the banks by living without debt. No point crying over spilt milk when things go t*ts up on the money front, far better to get a grip and sort it out in a way that's best for YOU.

How much does your fun cost and can you afford it?

Can the Frugaldom Arms suggest simple, even silly, fun ways of helping to reduce your costs and help make stuff affordable?

Always been interested in your pearls of wisdom to save money however do you not agree that one must spend money to make money and it's the wise ones that make this work so rather than looking to save money, focus should be on the best way of investing and spending the money you have available to you?

[ThatForumSite]

We can probably explain away everything if we bring it all down to money and/or the lack of it. If we owned the country and ruled the banking institutions, we'd simply push to print more of the stuff. But us mere mortals can't do that.

We try to save or invest, they try to make us spend... who is winning the battle?

Debt will always exist though due to interest on every bit of money that enters into the world economy, it's just a matter of who's smart enough to shift the debt onto those less smart!

[ThatForumSite]

BBC News - Naked rambler Stephen Gough arrested again

This kind of thing costs us all money. We, the general public, pay taxes on almost everything and how do they get spent? On part to keep law-breakers sheltered, fed, clothed and watered!

This individual chooses not to remain clothed and has been kept by the country for quite some time, probably in better surroundings than many people on the outside.

Why'd he quit his lorry-driving job?
How can he afford to live?
Does he deserve media attention?

In my opinion he needs sectioned, not jailed.
Either way, he's going to cost us a hell of a lot of money to pander to his refusal to comply.

Life on the inside sounds like it's too good for him to stay away from for very long. Do you feel you need to do without anything that you would otherwise have access to if you happened to be 'inside' at Her Majesty's expense?

3 square meals a day?
Access to a gym?
TV?
Telephone?
No bills to pay?
Free dental care?
Further education opportunities?
Crafting and hobbies?
Christmas & New Year's dinner?

Anyone got anything to say on this subject?

This is political correctness taking over again, I'm not the most PC person out there and think that prisons should not only be a place for reflection but somewhere that isn't quite so appealing to down and out types. I'm not suggesting solitary confinement for everyone in all prisons but maybe life should be a bit harder than it appears to be to us outsiders.

Maybe it is though, having not been in prison myself I can't comment on what it's actually like but it does appear to be like a cheap holiday when you list the benefits available as you have above!

[ThatForumSite]

As my 4th and final response today to our new shop, the Frugaldom arms. I'm intrigued, in all your years of frugal living and advise, what's the biggest money saving activity you've done?

[Hundred Degrees]

As my 4th and final response today to our new shop, the Frugaldom arms. I'm intrigued, in all your years of frugal living and advise, what's the biggest money saving activity you've done?

Kudos on good topic.

Personally I eat less which doesn't sound like much but in the long run it makes a difference what with food being one of the biggest consumables bought. So I only have half a tin of beans now when I would have had a whole tin a few years back.

[Hundred Degrees]

Can I ask a pertinent question? Is your half tin of beans a well known brand or is it a cheap, store's own basic brand? I'll explain my reasons for asking afterwards.

I went from a premium brand RO supermarket own brand, this was down to taste preference as well as money saving. Not down to the cheapest they do though as that tends to just be half a tin of juice and less beans so don't see the point of cutting things down that far.

[Hundred Degrees]

Thanks for answering. The reason I asked was also part of your answer - the quantities nowadays are shrinking and shrinking. So many places seem to be holding their prices but failing to state that the amount of food you are getting for that price has been reduced by as much as 10%

Giving my age away here, but pre-metrication/decimalisation, tins of beans (or jars of jam or loaves of bread etc, etc, etc) were sold at a weight of 1lb. (A large loaf was 2lb.) But then everything became metric and changed to the rounded up figure of 454g. But then the companies began to see ways of earning more from us supposedly deluded consumers - they rounded down further, to 450g but charged us the same. Then came 440g and now, if you look at tins and bread, there's only 400g in a supposedly standard (1lb) tin and 800g in a supposedly standard (2lb) loaf of bread. Don't gert me wrong, some of the jars are still stating 440g, but if you read the percentages actual product compared to those of the juice, water or brine they contain, even the top brands are fleecing us.

Heinz used to include cheese in their recipe for ther sauce used in spaghetti and beans, but it has been a long time since that was removed. As a result, we need to buy the cheese separately. Likewise with salt in the products. The Government declated that to much salt would kill us, they legislated against having too much of the stuff in food products and, as a result, we need to buy it separately.

There are countless food items I can think of that are shrinking and shrinking, but is the general health and well-being of the public improving? Is obesity being curbed? No! The food packaging contains so little food that many people now buy twice as much. Only the other day there I was looking at lunch - half a tin of beans on a slice of toast - and wondering how the hell our parents managed to make one tin of beans go around 3 or 4 of us. It was simple - the tins back then contained far more beans, far less water, more salt and, of course, that glorious cheese that was what used to make beans mean Heinz.

Anyone got a tin of Heinz baked beans to list the weight and ingredients? I have only the Aldi own brand and cheap cheese.

Well that is a lot of info right there about beans and how manufacturers are finding ways of screwing us over and leaving the consumer out of pocket.

The same principal I guess can be applied to sausages as it is to tins of beans. As long as a sausage has a higher than 40% (I believe this figure is correct but please don't quote me on it) pork content then it can be called a pork sausage. Anything less than this then it is not allowed to be called a pork sausage. To me, that seems a lot lower than it should be which allows manufacturers of sausages to get away with putting any old cr4p into a sausage and being able to sell it as a pork sausage.

[1234go]

TH£ FRUGALDOM ARM$



OPEN ALL HOURS

Making the most out of life

After much persuasion, I have been tempted to open up shop, so to speak, right here on That Forum Site.

The Frugaldom Arms will soon become THE place to meet, as talk is cheap (free) and so is everything else on offer here.

So, if this sounds like your kinda place, invite your friends and scoot on down for a pint of savings and some unsavoury nibbles. Bring your own bottle - make sure it's homebrew - and we'll pack in as many nuts as possible.

Topics at the bar this week - Your choice!

We'll be kicking the cr*p out of any debts that may be lurking around in the cellars and calling the shots as far as spending goes. Calling time on being skint is what this place is all about, so let's get butts on seats and sort out life, the universe and all that from the comfort of ... wherever you may be at the time of entering the Frugaldom Arms.

SPREAD THE WORD - FRUGALDOM ARMS NOW OPEN!

I don't get it, well, i think i might, is this basically www.moneysavingexpert.com all in 1 thread?

[Hundred Degrees]

The increase in food prices in the last few years since we hit recession has rocketed compared to the official inflation figure. That was what was covered on Panorama the other day, it was shocking stats. A steak had gone up by twenty something percent I believe it was over the last 3 years.

What's to blame for the added increase in the cost of food though?

[ThatForumSite]

Always been interested in your pearls of wisdom to save money however do you not agree that one must spend money to make money and it's the wise ones that make this work so rather than looking to save money, focus should be on the best way of investing and spending the money you have available to you?

Wise spending IS moneysaving for the mere fact that a penny saved is a penny earned.

When it comes to investments, that's something nobody, from a domestic point of view, should really look at until their everyday debts have gone. Probably the first big investment anyone will ever make is in property - buying a house. Any investment is a gamble, not knowing if you'll can afford the payments for the next 10, 15, 20, 25 or even 40 years. I find it both incredible and ridiculous that anyone of sane mind would take on the terms of a 40 year mortgage, but many do.

I took out a 40 year mortgage, it was the only way to get on the property ladder. When I move and remortgage in a couple of years I'll be planning on reducing the term though.

[ThatForumSite]

TH£ FRUGALDOM ARM$



OPEN ALL HOURS

Making the most out of life

After much persuasion, I have been tempted to open up shop, so to speak, right here on That Forum Site.

The Frugaldom Arms will soon become THE place to meet, as talk is cheap (free) and so is everything else on offer here.

So, if this sounds like your kinda place, invite your friends and scoot on down for a pint of savings and some unsavoury nibbles. Bring your own bottle - make sure it's homebrew - and we'll pack in as many nuts as possible.

Topics at the bar this week - Your choice!

We'll be kicking the cr*p out of any debts that may be lurking around in the cellars and calling the shots as far as spending goes. Calling time on being skint is what this place is all about, so let's get butts on seats and sort out life, the universe and all that from the comfort of ... wherever you may be at the time of entering the Frugaldom Arms.

SPREAD THE WORD - FRUGALDOM ARMS NOW OPEN!

I don't get it, well, i think i might, is this basically http://www.moneysavingexpert.com all in 1 thread?

Yes, I think it is, wonder if it will be as popular at money saving expert. Think we got a few posts to go to catch up to their volume of info!

[ThatForumSite]

Debt will always exist though due to interest on every bit of money that enters into the world economy, it's just a matter of who's smart enough to shift the debt onto those less smart!

We need to keep in mind that there is 'good' debt and bad debt. For example, I loathe bad debt of any description but my best friends are cashback credit cards. Absolutely everything possible goes on those (although I do ask if there's a cash discount first, in case that's better value) and then the balance paid off in full at the end of the following month. It may only generate an extra £50 to £100 over the period of a full year but that money is totally FREE money, a gift, if you like, to reward us for spending on plastic. There's also the added benefit that spending on credit cards, as opposed to debit cards, offers far more protection as a consumer.

It used to be fun to switch and swap credit cards, there was even money to be made from them. Sadly, this is no longer the case, as the 3% initial charges cost more than you'll gain in interest in any bank or building society at the moment.

That's a great way of "making money" but ultimately that money must come from somewhere and the only place it can come from is those who are less fortunate in that they cannot pay the full balance off every month and their interest rates are higher so it will take even longer for them to get out of debt. It is almost taking from the poor to give to the rich, on a very small scale mind you.

[Frugaldom]

Taking from the poor to give to the rich? Is that like the reverse of Robin Hood tactics?

No, this is in no way, shape or form a duplicate/copy/extension of money saving expert. In fact, we've been going for longer than the MSE website and forums, it's just that none of us involved knew the right people in journalism/the media to get the word out there. So there you go, now you know! (First published in print in 1999 )

Chit chat is always money orientated and the less disposable income people have, the more they have to talk about, because let's face it... we don't see forums set up for billionaires to compare notes of how to make their next million, do we? That would be really boring!

[ThatForumSite]

In conclusion, I would say that we of the 'pay it all off every month' fraternity are financially supporting those who can't, by the fact that every merchant who accepts credit cards is charging the companies 2% or 3% for the convenience. That means if the business is accepting credit cards then their prices include sufficient profit to cover those additional costs. Indeed, it is the companies themselves who benefit out of being paid in cash. The cash we get back at the end of each year comes from that, hence the reason we get 1% and they charge 3% or whatever.

Ah yes, i'd completely forgotten about credit card companies making the money the other end too out of the merchants :-s

How easy is it to set up your own credit card company........?! ThatForumSite Credit card anyone?!

[ThatForumSite]

Ah yes, i'd completely forgotten about credit card companies making the money the other end too out of the merchants :-s

How easy is it to set up your own credit card company........?! ThatForumSite Credit card anyone?!

Cor blimey, think of the expense of that! Secure servers, backing of a major bank, underwriters, company set up in the first place, printing all the crads everyone would be applying for once news got out and financing the thing in the first place in the hope that more people paid back in full each month than borrowed the money on the never, never. I'll leave that one to you, TFS, not quite my idea of a fun investment. Think I'd rather take my 2.5% gu7aranteed interest or whatever from the banks after sinking £30k into Premium Bonds 'just in case'.

Same with any business though isn't it really, set up costs are the stinger, unless there's any businesses one can set up with little or no set up costs??

[ThatForumSite]

Hahaha, frugaluers indeed! Wonder if any of them suggest starting a forum based website as a busniess, I'd probably advise them it's not gonna become life changing!!

There's definitely some truth in spending money to make money though isn't there, the ones that succeed are those who work out which risks are best to take and which to avoid.

How about some type of recycling business, you charge people to pick up their junk and sell it to recyclers, all you'd need for that is suitable transport and time. Think they did a similar thing on the apprentice once and I was shocked that you get paid both ends of the process!

[Hundred Degrees]

Frugaldom Arms happy hour, coming soon!

Planning to have an online happy hour and might hold it right here, in the Frugaldom Arms. Would anyone be interested in something like that? We've had great fun with these in the past.

What exactly does this involve? Do we get loads of money for free as a reward for being frugal?

[Hundred Degrees]

And whilst we are on the subject. Credit Cards suck, end of.

[ThatForumSite]

Frugaldom Arms happy hour, coming soon!

Planning to have an online happy hour and might hold it right here, in the Frugaldom Arms. Would anyone be interested in something like that? We've had great fun with these in the past.

What exactly does this involve? Do we get loads of money for free as a reward for being frugal?

How very kind of you to fund such a thing Frugaldom, thanks for the support and generous donation (how much?!).

[Hundred Degrees]

Got to be at least £50 per participant hasn't it?

[Hundred Degrees]

Ok, I'll settle on £20?

[Hundred Degrees]

We want happy hour, we want happy hour, we want happy hour..... Hehehe!!

[Hundred Degrees]

Shouldn't the question be...... What's the likelyhood of being raided if I'm doing my own home brew spirits?!

[Hundred Degrees]

I'm here! Was only here for the potential to win some cash but thought I'd show my face in case it had been announced and I'd missed it!

Great money making tip, write stuff on that forum site to win cash, can't get any easier than that can it. Need to hit my 50 posts this month so I'm the ony one that can win it. £1 per post is easy earnings