Anything you won't give up?

[relief13035]

That cracked me up! As for me, I cannot give up my DVR or Heinz Ketchup. When grocery shopping, I buy ALOT of store brand items, but just can't get myself to buy Catsup.

I agree. I can't handle store brand catsup OR mustard. Yuck.

I'm also a little weird about my sheets. Can't sleep on cheap scratchy sheets, so I buy good quality, high thread count sheets on Overstock.com for a fraction of the price. They last a long time and are soft!

[Kansas1960]

I won't give up my Bud Light or my yearly vacations. I am so tight on everyting else I treat myself to beer and my family to vactions each year. My vacations are usually in a car and we stay cheap and eat cheap. I stop by the grocery store when they discount meat and bakery from previous day and immediatly freeze it. I only buy what is on sale and make a meal out of that. I get my plants for my yard from the nursery when they throw out stuff and I bring it back to life. I shop at Kohls and only buy when it is on the clearance rack at least 80% off. Only get hair cut from "chop shop" when there is a 5.99 sale or a coupon. My car has 200,000 miles and no AC. When Maxwell House is on sale for 4.99 I buy 20 canisters. We don't go out to eat often but when I do I have a cocktail or two before we leave and sometimes a little snack so I won't buy too much. Will only run the AC when it is over 90 degrees and use the windows to allow heat through in winter and seal tight at night to keep drafts from entering. Hyper-mileing when gas is expensive. I max out my 401K and flex benefits so I can keep family healthy with regular dental and medical visits and keep tax bill low. I file my own taxes and shop on craigslist when possible. I found a mechanic and he comes to my house and fixes my car very very cheap, I just buy the parts at O'reillys. The kids do buy lunch at school but wish wife would let me make the lunch (she won't let me). I use a coupon or discount every chance I get. When things break I am not shy about retuning it or getting credit. There are so many things people can do to save money.

[frustrated7]

Over the past year, my husband and I have cut expenses like crazy, but there are a few things we refuse to budge on. We are picky about the foods we feed our kitties, and we would live on ramen noodles before allowing them to go without something they need. I have skin problems and can only use certain products (which means my husband cannot use anything I am allergic to either) so we have to buy specific products instead of cheapies. My medication is expensive even with health insurance, but I need it and I'm not going to go without necessary medical care. Also, we have held onto our cable/internet and our cell phones (we don't have a landline). Frankly, our cell phones are necessary for my job search and so is the internet. As for cable, that is the major "luxury" we allow for ourselves. We do have Netflix, but we downgraded to the 1 at a time unlimited plan for $8.99/month and since they are so quick in getting movies out to us, we usually have one at home for us.

Frankly, even if we cut absolutely everything out of our budget except for the barest of basics, we still wouldn't have been able to keep up with our credit card payments with their outrageous interest rates and fees.

There are really only a few things I miss since we cut expenses so much. I do miss our YMCA membership, as I have really been wanting to swim and get out of the house lately. I know that they offer a program for financial hardship, and since we filed Chapter 7 I would think we would qualify, but I'm not comfortable with that, so we'll just wait until we can afford it again. I also sometimes miss Showtime, but not too much (we did keep HBO). I also miss eating out more, but that wasn't exactly good for our physical health or our financial health, so I don't miss that as much as I would have expected. I also miss going to movies sometimes, though only when there is something I really want to see. A trip to the movies can be pricey and since my husband works second shift we can't go on the bargain night on Tuesdays. Oh well, we do have Netflix, so we just have to wait a few extra months. Now, when Harry Potter comes out...there will be no waiting!

[WillinVT]

That cracked me up! As for me, I cannot give up my DVR or Heinz Ketchup. When grocery shopping, I buy ALOT of store brand items, but just can't get myself to buy Catsup.

I have never seen Catsup before. Is it only available in certain parts of the country? (Serious Question) Everytime I go into the grocery store, I look for the stuff and can't find it. Not that I would buy it, but I want to see it.

The DVR definitely comes in handy and I don't think me or my wife could give it up.

I like to record the Simpson's so I have something to watch when I get home from work while I am eating before heading to bed. Even though I own all the seasons that have been released on DVD, it's just easier to scroll through the DVR and find an episode that I want to watch.

We also have some shows / movies that our daughter(s) like and even though they are annoying (the movies that is), they keep our girls quiet.

Plus, there are a few shows that I like on Discovery, but aren't on when I am home.

I am a BIG 24 fan and I have been recording and watching this season. My plan was to record all 24 episodes and then sit down and watch them all. I had 20 episodes recorded and our DVR crapped out on us. I had to exchange it for a new one. I was a little ticked about that.