Superscrimpers...

I do boggle in wonderment at some of the participants on Superscrimpers. Up to their eyeballs in debt but incapable of not spending money. It's like watching a bunch of junkies justify their habit. "This is normal, everyone lives this way", "we need, we must, we have to...".

Everyone seems to think they should be living a millionaire lifestyle - holidays, weekend breaks, designer clothes and accessories, eating out more than they eat in, beauty treatments, redecorating the house over and over...

The thing I note more than anything else is that none of them look particularly content and most of them are interchangable in their consumerism. They don't seem to be nasty people but come across as shallow, superficial and shit-scared of thinking outside the box (or even thinking in it) let alone being seen to be a bit different.

Most of them think quality is something indicated by the price tag on something. They've bought the lie that to be happy, you have to spend money: The more money you spend the happier you will be. If you are spending money and aren't happy, you must need to spend more money. It isn't the consumer lifestyle that is failing to bring happiness, it's just you need to commit to it even more and *ping* you will become happy...

This is a problem, because in order to change really change they would have to challenge the way things are and, after a long time of living a particular way, that's a big thing.

The scrimping army, on the other hand, are folks who really couldn't give a shit about "what the neighbours think". These are people who are comfortable with themselves and who know that spending money does not bring happiness.

One thing that the programme really fails on is its insistence that cheap substitutes are the answer - rather than looking at cutting something out completely until you can afford it. Making more money to cover things you don't need isn't the answer. Juggling finances to get something you don't need isn't the answer.

I can't believe that this week there was a suggestion of using Party Plan selling to make money. Party Plan! Make money out of your friends by trapping them in your living room and pressurising them to buy stuff they don't even want...

*head desk*

Gas!

British Gas are doing free cavity wall insulation and loft insulation for existing customers. We don't qualify for the cavity wall (not enough of it as ours are part solid and part cavity) but we do get free loft insulation - huzzah!

Other companies have similar offers for customers and some even for non-customers.

Have a look through on Martin Lewis's site to see if you might be entitled to a "freebie" http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/free-cavity-loft-insulation

Appliances.

Before buying some appliance or gadget ask yourself:

Do I need this at all?



Can I afford to buy it?



Can it pay its way in money and/or time saved?



Can it do more than one job?



Do I have space for it?



Is it easy to clean/maintain?



Does it do the job it claims to do well enough to justify its purchase?



Can it do more than one job?



Will I use it a lot?



Should I use it a lot?

Some people end up with a kitchen full of gadgets that only do one thing - the cupcake maker, the doughnut maker, the pizza cooker, waffle maker, the egg cooker, the hotdog toaster, crepe maker, popcorn maker...

There are specialised gadgets that are a good purchase if you use them a lot - rice cookers, bread machines (these often also make jam and cakes) or coffee machines.

We have a bread machine because there is just the two of us, it's cheaper and there's no point heating up the oven just for one loaf. It also mixes, kneads and prooves the bread so I don't have to do anything other than put the ingredients into the pan and wash it afterwards.

I can use the combi microwave for baking (tried it today, works fine) be it for traybakes, cookies, cupcakes, muffins, sponges, tarts, pies, shortbread... I think I'd soon get bored of a cupcake maker. Besides, it only bakes the cupcakes, it doesn't mix them or wash itself up afterwards so where's the advantage over an oven?

Which reminds me, got to go and make the chapatti dough ready for dinner tonight. Yeah, I do have a chapatti pan but it is multi-purpose - I can get a really good swing with it!

I got tagged.

But I won't be tagging anyone else but will answer the questions.

1.When did you start blogging and why?

Back in 2004 (not this blog obviously), mostly as a vent space and so I could put the ideas in my head outside my head.

2.What was the last thing that you bought that you wish you didn't?

We tried some fish called Basa from Aldi and neither of us liked it and even the cats pulled faces.

3.What is your most precious childhood memory?

Reading and being able to escape into books.

4. What is your favorite colour and why?

Green - good job as it's everywhere!

5. What do you like about other blogs?

I'm a very nosey person so I like to see what others are up to! It also helps when ideas bounce around and are shared with the world.

6.What do you consider your biggest achievement in life?

Remaining childfree.

7.If you were cast adrift on a desert island, which 3 possessions would you choose to have?

Just one: a luxury hotel.

8.What could you not live without?

Stability. I like the quiet life.

9.If you were granted 3 wishes from a genie, what would you ask for?

Unlimited wishes (like everyone doesn't think that) then you'd really see some changes on planet Earth.

10.If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

I think if I really craved to go somewhere I'd arrange to go somehow.

11. Who is your best friend?

My husband

Hungry Planet: Where's the Food?

Like most frugal folk, I base my eating habits around scratch cooking. Most ready meals are out of the question anyway because I can't eat onion which seems to be put in more and more things even those that don't traditionally contain onion. I swear it will appear in cheesecake soon enough.

Look at most convenience sauces for pasta, curry and so on and note what is often the first ingredient: Water. Often the rest of it is mostly flavouring and not a lot of substance. This is why they can make "pasta sauce" cheaper than you. You will make it with tomatoes, herbs, garlic and they make it with mostly water.

There are also those who are so precious they couldn't possibly eat the same thing two days in a row. Curry and chilli are often better the second day. This is something that those living on ready meals will never discover.

Anyhoo, talk in the blogosphere about what people eat and buy reminded me of an excellent book called "The Hungry Planet". It ain't cheap so get thee to a library!

Photographer Peter Menzel and Faith D'Alouisio travelled the world photographing families and their weekly food. It is quite eye-opening both in terms of the amounts people eat and what they are eating. Some excerpts on the following website.

http://www.amusingplanet.com/2010/07/hungry-planet-what-world-eats-by-peter.html

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5005952

http://www.freakonomics.com/2008/05/16/show-us-your-food-a-qa-with-the-authors-of-what-the-world-eats/

Catching Up

Last week's superscrimpers...

Ya know, if I had the best part of £20k credit card debt, the last thing I would be planning is another holiday. It's one thing to show frugal holidays like house-swapping but I think that family had the kind of finanacial problems that needed looking at in detail and bugger the holiday fixation.

Stressing about DH job at the minute. The management have called a meeting for next week and charmingly entitled it minimum staffing requirements. It's one thing to have to make cuts but why do they have to be such insensitive wankers as well? Perhaps you need a particular type of personality to work in management. Some sort of Reptilian Brain as David Icke would put it. *looks at current political and economic situation* Hmm, lizard overlords would explain a lot of it.

Jeff Yeager

Just discovered this guy. Worth hunting down his articles and TV appearances. In particular he uses a technique called Fiscal Fasting which is like a No Spend Day stretched to a week a few times a year. Take a peek.

http://blog.aarp.org/2012/01/17/diary-of-a-fiscal-fasting/