Oil Change - The 3,000 Mile Myth!

I think we can all agree that our modern vehicles are pretty dang sweet.  They have become, for the passengers at least, a moving living room of sorts with DVD players and TV screens.  There are heated seats, automatic defrosting windows, push-button ignitions, GPS, exterior proximity sensors, etc.  We've come a long way from that old Model T.  Suffice it to say, so has our motor oil.

Not sure about you but, I tack up lots of miles with my commute to and from work.  I found myself getting an oil change every two months.  I got pretty sick of spending an afternoon in the waiting rooms of auto shops which invariably - no matter where I go - will be screening trashy, daytime talk shows like Maury etc. 

That 3,000 mile oil change rule isn't a rule.  It's more like a bad suggestion.  With modern vehicles and new advances in motor oil, we don't need to change our oil that often.  To do so is just more money in the pockets of oil companies and auto shops, and not to mention harder on the environment.  Here is a great article describing this in more detail.  Save yourself the money and hassle by waiting until 8,000-10,000 miles to get your oil changed.  

No-Spend Challenge Complete!

It's finally over!  The 30 Day No-Spend Challenge is complete!  I was really dragging there by the end, but here's my 30 day, budget breakdown:

Average monthly gas usage - $108.42
Gas usage during NSC - $109.09
No savings here, but just a few cents below average: -$0.67.

Average monthly food purchases - $324.28
Food purchases during NSC - $156.93
I was able to cut my food costs by over half, saving $167.35!

Average monthly "fun money" - $47
Fun money spent during NSC - $17.15
I did break the eating out rule twice, but I was still able to stay way below my monthly average and saved $29.85.

Savings by simply not buying random things during NSC - $72

This brings my total savings during the 30 Day No-Spend Challenge to $268.53!

Photo Credit

I'm very happy with that end total.  It is a surprising amount for me.  I've always thought of myself as a pretty thrifty person, but this challenge taught me exactly how thrifty I could be.  If I kept my spending this tight for a whole year, I'd save over $3,200!  Craziness!  

If I were going to try to do this challenge more often, I think a more reasonable and sustainable time frame for me would be 15 days each month.  By only strictly restricting my spending half of the month, I could still feel like I could live a normal life while still saving some money.  I've heard of people going for a 6 month+ No-Spend Challenge!  I commend them wholeheartedly, but I've got to have a little wiggle room.  I like obscure food ingredients and eating at new restaurants way too much to go without them for a half a year.  

For those of you who tackled this challenge as well, how did it go?  Did you save as much as you thought you would?  Did you surprise yourself?  Thank you for joining me on this journey.  Stay tuned for more budget tips and kitchen tricks.  

Budget Tip - Bake your own Bread

If you and your family eat a lot of bread, that money can stack up, especially if you are buying good quality bread.  Were're talking about $1 homemade vs. $5 store bought for a single loaf.  Making bread at home can be very easy though.  I've been making our own bread for maybe 9 or 10 years.  The traditional method takes quite a bit of practice/experience and trial and error, but I've been thoroughly enjoying the laziness convenience that is the No-Knead method.

My good friend at work got me started with no-knead bread, but YouTuber ArtisanBreadWithStev showed me how simple it really is.  He has a great introduction video that is definitely worth watching.  I'm partial to using a sourdough starter so this is the recipe that I use most often, but when I want to use dry, packaged yeast, I use this recipe.  You can still make a variety of flavors and shapes with the no-knead method, and you don't need any special equipment.

I love that I can control what goes into the bread we eat.  Ours doesn't have any preservatives, unnecessary binders, or other junk.  Obviously it's got a much shorter shelf life than the plastic bagged bread you find at the grocery store, but any extra loaves you make can be stored in the freezer.  And stale bread has it's place in the kitchen too: homemade croutons, breadcrumbs, panzanella, French toast, bread pudding, hello!  

Budget Tip - Shoot for Zero Food Waste

Being a frugality master and having to watch our spending very tightly for the last couple of years, I've developed a pretty good strategy to prevent food waste and therefore budget waste.  Apparently 40% of the food produced in America gets tossed into landfills, and on average, Americans throw away 20 pounds of food per month per person!  After watching an episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on the topic of food waste, I thought I'd put forth my tips on how to save money by throwing out as little food as possible.

Photo Credit

And I'm not talking about eating the leftovers in the back of the fridge that will bring you a nighttime of repentance for pain relief here.   I'm talking about property managing your food stores.  This requires knowing what food you have at home and what food you need before you head to the store.

It doesn't have to be complicated or tedious.  Practically every bit of food that I bring home is consumed.  Here's what has worked for us;

- First eat the foods that are fading:  spotty bananas, softer potatoes, sprouting onions, etc.
- Refrigerate!  I know that fruit looks pretty in a bowl on the counter, but everything lasts longer in the fridge.  You can even store tomatoes and bread in the fridge which are commonly thought of as a no-no.
- Freeze leftovers.  Soups, broths, pastas, casseroles, beans, grains, chilis, and stews store and reheat really well.
- Only open one packaged thing at a time.  You don't need to have 5 boxes of partially eaten cereal, crackers, or cookies.  Open one at a time.  Eat that box completely, then open a different one.
- Use bag clips to seal opened bags.  Clothes pins work just as well.
- If you have a surplus of fruit that you can't eat before it will spoil, wash and cut it.  Place the pieces on baking sheets in the freezer.  When they are frozen, throw the pieces in a freezer bag.
- Minimize leftovers. If you aren't the sort to eat leftovers...I'll refrain from lecturing here...reduce your food waste by cutting recipes in half when cooking at home and ordering lunch portions when going out to eat.
- Label and date your freezer food!  There will be no more guessing as to what frozen thing is what.
- Try to keep a mental inventory of what you have opened.  It's even better to write the opened date on the package so you know when it needs to be used up quickly.
- Keep your fridge and freezer decluttered and organized.  Things will be less likely to be shoved to the back and forgotten.

I hope you find these tips helpful.  They are just small steps to save some money and the planet. :)

Update - Day 20 on No-Spend Challenge

Greetings.  So I totally fell off the wagon on Saturday, but it wasn't a long fall.  I mentioned a few days ago that I made plans to spend the day in Indy, and I was concerned about breaking the No-Spend rules.  I did end up breaking a few:
 - Gas to get to and from Indy ~$7.50
 - Lunch $7.40
 - Frivolous fabric buy $2
 - Donation to Buddhist center $2

I don't regret spending a single cent because my cousin and I had a great time.
Our day began at the Indiana Buddhist Center.  Neither of us had ever been to a Buddhist center before, and we came for a meditation session.  We were treated to butter and milk tea and an impromptu teaching by Hlarampa Geshe Jinpa Sonam.  It was an honor to be there.

After a great meditation, we headed to Irvington for lunch at one of the best pizza places in Indy, Jockamo's.  Ashley had never been to Broad Ripple before, so we spent the rest of the afternoon walking around BR window shopping, walking the Monon, perusing the Indianapolis Art Center, and pining for ice cream.  We had very good self control though and only splurged on lunch.  

Day 15 - Half Way There

We made it half way!  15 days into the 30 Day No-Spend Challenge, and I'm not sure about you, but I'm feeling the struggle now.

I've made two plans with friends for this weekend.  Accommodating friends and this budgeting game has got me scratching my head.  I'm packing a picnic dinner for Friday evening to be enjoyed during an outdoor symphony - which I can get everyone into for free.  That's a nice bonus.

Saturday will be harder because I'll be taking my cousin around Indy, and who wants to pack a lunch when there are so many delicious restaurants around!?  The conundrum!

There have also been instances where I've wanted to get frivolous with the ingredients I have at home.  I've stopped myself quite a few times from making cookies, brownies, or something else sweet.  We don't really need these, and it would be sort of wasteful when that flour could be used in something more nutritious, like bread.

But...I have made a mug cake or two to subdue my raging sweet tooth.  It's only a single serving and that's how I've justified it.  My go-to mug cake comes from Not Quite Nigella's blog, and you can find the recipe here.

This photo comes from Table For Two's blog.  Aaaand I'm making their mug cake recipe right now.  It's been one of those days.  How do you cope with stressful days and a tight budget?

Kitchen Tip - Regrowing Your Scallions

Whenever I buy green onions at the store, I think of them as a tiny investment.  They are a wonderful cut-&-come-again food that can easily be grown inside.  I bought some recently and planted them so I can have perpetual onion-y goodness in my windowsill.  

They are extremely low maintenance plants to regrow.  When you are buying them, look for the bunch with the longest roots.  Use the green parts as you would, but reserve the bottom two inches to plant into potting mix or compost enhanced soil.  Keep a little of the stalk above the soil level - about half an inch.  Water it regularly, don't let the soil dry out completely, and you're on your way to your second cutting of green onions!