Weather: Rain with more rain.
I love rain and rainy days. But there has been a lot of rain lately and that becomes depressing. When I start to become depressed I start thinking, and then I start writing. So this will be my new little subpage of my blog.
Rainy Day Musings
One of the things about being FRUGAL is that you are constantly involved in looking for deals. This is more than just looking for sales in the paper, this is a way of life. In a way this is a return to the days of trade and barter. I have X and you need X, and have Z. I don’t need Z but know of someone who can give me Y for Z and I need Y.
Sounds simple, but this can be exhausting. One will need to have a network to be able to trade. Freecycle, and Craigslist are full of half-timers. Half-timers are people who want to trade things only a few times and don’t want to be on a Friend’s List to swap when things come up. Other swap sites, like seed swaps, will only deal with a particular item. In order to develop a true FRUGAL network, a person will need to be on many different groups. But not only do they have to be a member, a person will need to be an ACTIVE member.
It can be a full time job.
Personally I am in two seed swaps, one card swap, two freecycle groups, check daily on the local Craigslist, two religious swap groups, and three homeschool groups. I am also lucky to be in a town with a Teacher Supply Swap and about 15 “Little Free Libraries.”
If you have yet to hear about little free libraries check out the website below. They are a great way to trade books and get people reading again.
https://littlefreelibrary.org/about/
Another way to live FRUGAL is to buy at resale shops. You would be amazed at what people will donate. You will also be amazed at what people will throw away.
And you will be horrified at what some people will think is an equal trade.
Thing is I realized that I spend at least 15 hours a week looking for ways to find what I need in a frugal way. This is cutting into my life quite a bit and I am not as financially stable as I would like to be able to devote a full 40+ hours to this.
I did find, thanks to two of my friends from my network, three apps that are a good way to be frugal and earn money.
Wags!
This is a dog walking app. Sign up, pass the tests and pay a fee to become a licensed dogwalker. If you are walking dogs for two hours a day, you save on gym fees, earn some cash, spend times with dogs and can see what free stuff is up for grabs in areas you might not normally go. For example a house on my dog’s route had free topsoil (well they called it top soil, it was really fill dirt). After the walk I picked up a few buckets.
Taskrabbit
This is not in all cities, but if it is in yours take the time to fill out a profile and run errands. Be a courier for a day or a personal driver. Earn some money and be on the lookout for new opportunities.
TAKL
Akin to Taskrabbit, Takl is a safe one shot job site. Want to avoid rush hour traffic and help clear a gutter for a few dollars? How about help clear an attic? Or move a couch? Or polish silver wear? You can meet new people, chat about things, do some work and earn some cash. And also see what Frugal opportunities there are near by.
Being Frugal does not mean living a dull life. It means looking at life, and the way we have been told to live it, a bit sideways. Try new things, use old things and see what comes out. Frugal mindsets are not only for the young, embrace your age and be the zany person you have always wanted to be. Or not.
Just be yourself. To the best of your ability, be your self.
And if that means making bird feeders out of chipped chinaware, planting in an old broken dresser, converting a broken freezer to hold packages to avoid theft or even giving up planting and putting chipped brightly colored plates in your yard for color. Do so. Be inspiring. Be you. So that I can be me. And that others can be themselves.
FRUGAL GARDENING 