When I fill up the fabric softener dispenser, I use the cap from the bottle. I fill it up just over halfway with water, then add the softener. It fills up the dispenser perfectly. Once the bottle is half full, then I also add water to make it full. I use vinegar when I wash clothes, though.
I have never had a problem yet with towels not absorbing because of the softener. I use just enough to soften them and since I don't use my dryer (my electric company has one of the highest rates in the country), I hang everything and so far, so good. ... View related article.
My town actually has printed stickers that are sent to residents at their request that say NO SOLICITING and any one coming around door to door should have a town issued photo identification badge, if they don't have one, we are told (and it is on the town website) to send them away and notify the police with a description. I have the sticker on my door, so does my neighbor and I have even seen it on businesses. I don't answer my door anyway unless I can see who it is through the peephole or looking out (discreetly so they don't see me) the window. I live alone and no way am I opening my door to anyone I don't know.
I absolutely love some of the suggestions given, they are great (funny but who knows, they just might work).
I definitely agree. My motto is to get the most I can for the least amount of money and I do very well. I watch sales, use coupons, walk instead of drive most of the time and just use plain old common sense when it comes to money. My parents taught me the value of money and how to save and encouraged me without making me feel like a cheapskate.
I retired at the age of 47 back in 1999, however six months after my retirement, my husband passed away and the income was cut even more drastically. However, I never had to go back to work (have no kids, which was a big help), paid off the mortgage (after we had refinanced once when he was alive and then I refinanced a second time and finally paid it off, wasn't that much left on it anyway). And I do use my credit cards since both my pension and his def comp payments are directly deposited so I carry very little cash and all cards are paid in full each month, with never a balance. I take advantage of rewards cards and that helps too.
It may take a bit of time to figure out the best for each of us but it works. ... View related article.
Depending on where you live (in US or outside), there is a website that you can register for free to eliminate catalogs. I send them back, marked return to sender when I receive stuff, until they eliminate my name (I also call the toll free number). My town has a recycle program and I check the junk mail to make sure I am not going to receive unwanted items, then it goes in the recycle bin to be picked up once a week. ... View related article.
When my husband and I bought our house in 1991, the price was reasonable (for Long Island, NY) and so was the interest rate. Then in 1998 we refinanced to a lower rate but continued to add extra money toward the principal as we had been doing since we bought it. After he passed away in 1999, I continued payments, adding extra again each month, then refinanced again a couple of years later, this time it went down to 4.825 %. But the taxes in my area are high so I ended up taking part of the insurance money he had left and paid it off a few years ago, at that point it was about $59,850 left (on a $128,000 mtge). Now my situation is different than others, we had no children (my second marriage, his first), I had retired about six months before he died in 1999 (not knowing he was ill) and owed absolutely nothing (other than the usual monthly expenses). Also, when I prepaid more each month, I had the choice of whether I wanted it to go to principal or interest, naturally, I chose principal. And again, make sure there is no pre-payment penalty. Mine wasn't, so I was able to pay it off without losing any more money.
Everyone has a different situation. I was able to pay it off (and have not been back to work since I retired). But what worked for me may not work for someone else. And I am very good at budgeting and making the most of what I have.
My motto is to get the most I can for the least amount of money and I do very well. It takes a bit of thought, but definitely worth it. ... View related article.
I have been doing that for a while now and it has been effective. I also use less than the suggested amount for liquid fabric softener and that works just as well too. And it is only me in my household so it lasts even longer. LI Roe ... View related article.
I have been walking for several years, started a little after I retired. And since I have gone back to two cars (got rid of my husbands, kept mine after hubby died, then took over my brothers SUV after he died) and have to keep two (due to my moms illness, long story, though she is now in an assisted living facility, I try to save on gas as much as I can. I walk so much, the cops wave to me, the store owners want to know where I have been if I don't show up for a few days. I am 57 now and walk more than ever. I usually do between 5-10 miles a day, pick up small items that I can carry from the supermarket, and even larger items (you'd be surprised at what I can carry home), books from the three libraries within walking distance, even my doctors are close enough to walk (unless I am deathly ill). If I need something, I just lace up my sneakers and off I go. When gas prices hit the high $4 (I live in an area where everything is way over the national average), I filled up my tank about once every five weeks or so. I don't have any kids so for me it is a bit easier but there are ways to not drive. My mom never drove, she either walked or took public transportation. There are a few parks by me too that I walk to. Once I started, I got hooked and now make it a daily routine. ... View related article.
I also use them as mini garbage bags, for instance, when I skin chicken and don't use the skin, or have anything that I don't want to smell in the garbage can, which is a small roll out one under my sink. I just dump it in the bag and throw it out. Makes it a lot cleaner too.
I send any suspicious e mails directly to my internet provider using their specific fraud/abuse e mail address. I also forward it to any government addresses I have and if it is from any bank that I do or do not deal with, I go to the correct bank website, find their email address for spam and forward that also. I have received numerous suspicious emails from different companies and do the same thing. Go to the correct and legitimate website, find out where to forward it and then do it.
I find the envelope method good for regular savings too. When I worked, I used to lahel different envelopes "vacation", "taxes", "emergency", "Christmas", etc. And each week after putting the amounts for bills in both our joint checking accounts (my husband was alive then and we had two accounts to make it easier to pay bills), we would add something to each envelope so that when the time came to use the money, it was there. I used to do that for years and a friend of mine was so impressed she started it. The only drawback is that you have to be real disciplined not to take any money from any envelope for something else. It is a great way to discipline yourself into savings. ... View related article.
