Monday, October 25, 2010

I would notice $3,000. Pretty sure of that.

From HuffPo: How to Save $2,997 a Year on Food Without Even Noticing

Another pet peeve helpful numbered listing that I can't resist picking at. I am just hoping to find one that's really helpful to me personally someday...

1. Eat Vegetarian a Few Nights a Week
Savings: $210 per year. (Replace 1 pound of sirloin [$5.99] with a 14-ounce block of tofu [$1.96] once a week for a year.)
We eat vegetarian every night. No help here.
2. Minimize Waste
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans throw out more than 25 percent of the food we prepare.
...
Savings: $590 per year. (Estimated value of the food an average American household of four wastes in a year.)
25%?? We throw out almost nothing, except the broccoli stalks that MrB won't eat. And those are made into compost along with coffee grounds and empty toilet paper rolls.
3. Plug in the Slow Cooker
Savings: $78 per year. (Replace 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast [$4.99] with 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs [$3.49] once a week for a year.
Their reasoning is that the crock pot lets you use cheaper meat because of the stewing process. N/A, no help.
4. Discover Great Ways to Use Canned Fish
Savings: $224 per year. (Replace 1 pound of fresh tuna [$7.99] with 1 pound of canned tuna [$3.68] once a week for a year.)
Canned fish is cat food. N/A again.
5. Don't Order a Pizza. Make One at Home
Savings: $520 per year. (Make pizza once a week instead of ordering.)
OK, this one is debatable. The last time I created a pizza myself, it cost more than ordering it, but it was such a long time ago that there was meat on it. Any thoughts? Cheaper or not?
6. Pack a Lunch
Savings: $1,375 per year. (Replace an $8.50 lunch with a $3 lunch from home 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year.)
Now they're talking! We always pack lunches and it does save a bundle - as promised. I guess this one and #5 both have enjoyment factors to consider. Do you enjoy cooking enough to make pizza from scratch and then clean up the mess?

Do you like a social setting for lunch, something away from the office? Most people do, I think. I really don't. I have an office, so I close (and lock) my door during lunch, eat my cheapo nonfat tofu dog with lo-cal bread and fat-free condiments and garnish, plug in the earbuds and watch Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, or maybe Rachel or Keith, on their respective websites. So... already doing this one so adapting it wouldn't represent change.

Indeed!

3 comments:

Dr. Monkey Hussein Monkerstein said...

I hate those kinds of articles. The poor among us, or those of us who grew up poor, already know how to squeeze the food budget.

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Blueberry said...

Hell yes, DrM, and not just the food budget.

Those numbered "helpful" lists drive me nuts and can't always resist tearing them apart.