Have you changed spending habits yet? (purchasing, income, maintenance) - Maine (ME) - Page 5 - City-Data Forum

island mermaid · 10-21-2008, 05:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlisonL

Yikes. I checked out Whole Foods out here and its way overpriced in my opinion. No way could I afford to shop there all the time.
Try mixing powdered milk half and half with regular milk. Keep in the milk carton and I bet your husband will never notice the difference. My mom did that for years and I never knew. LOL

I LOVE Whole Foods! I love to go in and LOOK! There is no way in hell I could ever afford to do my weekly shopping in there. I'll pick up an occassional piece of fish or chicken- maybe a little fresh fruit, but just couldn't ever justify an entire weeks worth of food. Can you imagine what that would cost?

txmom · 10-21-2008, 06:08 AM

Whole Foods, aka "Whole Paycheck"

Maine Writer · 10-21-2008, 06:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fort Lauderdale mermaid

I LOVE Whole Foods! I love to go in and LOOK! There is no way in hell I could ever afford to do my weekly shopping in there. I'll pick up an occassional piece of fish or chicken- maybe a little fresh fruit, but just couldn't ever justify an entire weeks worth of food. Can you imagine what that would cost?

WF is over rated. They're importing food from great distances just like any other grocery store, and they're selling a lot of non-whole processed foods - just like any other grocery store. They have great marketing skills.

island mermaid · 10-21-2008, 06:59 AM

What do they do to their meat to make it look so freshly cut and so deep red in color? I don't buy it but it's amazing to look at.

broadbill · 10-21-2008, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zymer

My food budget is down to $1/day (sometimes a little more). I watch for sales and buy large quantities of the items on sale. I plan trips so that I'm always going to more than one place at a time, If I have to go somewhere I look to see if I will be passing another place that has something I need.

Curtailed the gourmet coffees and expensive booze. No impulse buying- now it's a question of "do I *need* this?"

really though...how do you eat for $1/day?

Am I missing an entire row at the supermarket? Are you subsisting on a cup of rice at day and thats it? How do you possibly get enough fruits and vegtables in your diet?

You mentioned buying in bulk...but still I can't see how you do it.

mollysmiles · 10-21-2008, 07:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by takagi1901

Children do not "need" milk, it is just a marketing ploy to make people buy more milk. Matter of fact, too much milk is bad, esp. cow's milk, it actually weakens bones, as it has too much vitamin A, read here the link from Harvard Public Health
Calcium and Milk - What Should You Eat? - The Nutrition Source - Harvard School of Public Health
In addition, milk has a lot of yucky staff in it: BGH, traces of antibiotics from treated cows, fat is homogenized, which is not good.

I think you might want to look over that article again. NO WHERE does it state that milk is bad, or unnecessary, or that it weakens the bones!! It states that too much of a particular vitamin (A) causes this condition, not milk. Pediatricians, health care providers, and the AMA recommends dairy products as an excellent source for our vitamin D and calcium, but none of them say that these should be the *only* source for these.

mollysmiles · 10-21-2008, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by broadbill

really though...how do you eat for $1/day?

Am I missing an entire row at the supermarket? Are you subsisting on a cup of rice at day and thats it? How do you possibly get enough fruits and vegtables in your diet?

You mentioned buying in bulk...but still I can't see how you do it.

If you buy in bulk you divide the number of servings in the container and the price of that container. For everything you put into your meal, you do the same. A slice of bread, a slice or two of tomato, and a couple of slices of turkey that was cooked and saved makes for a very inexpensive sandwich. Add in an apple picked from a local tree (we have those here), or some fresh apple cider, and a 25 cent bag of chips and you've got a meal for less than a dollar, with room to add more. Simple.

broadbill · 10-21-2008, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mollysmiles

If you buy in bulk you divide the number of servings in the container and the price of that container. For everything you put into your meal, you do the same. A slice of bread, a slice or two of tomato, and a couple of slices of turkey that was cooked and saved makes for a very inexpensive sandwich. Add in an apple picked from a local tree (we have those here), or some fresh apple cider, and a 25 cent bag of chips and you've got a meal for less than a dollar, with room to add more. Simple.

I can see a sandwich for less than a dollar (and only if you use your own lunch meat....I don't think you can make a sandwich for under a dollar with store bought lunch meat, not to mention the other stuff), but Zymer was talking about $1 A DAY.

Most people need more than a sandwich per day...

mollysmiles · 10-21-2008, 07:43 AM

So, if he made mac and cheese the day before (from scratch) and warmed it up, that's free for the day. And pancakes are only pennies. It's very possible, but requires planning. I feed a family of 6 for about $100/week.... I can do it on less if I have to. That includes 6 gallons of milk and snacks and ice cream... and there's always something to eat here. BUT it takes planning, and most people won't put planning into their meals any longer. I don't buy "prepared" foods--they don't taste as good, have unnecessary ick in them, and are more expensive. For example, last night we had brown bread with our meal.... I made it homemade, it costs me *nothing* for the ingredients this time around because they were all ready here in the house. If I cook a roast or a turkey, that leftover meat is used for other meals, and there is soup base there too. I don't buy beef or chicken stock unless I have to, I pull the stock from what I've cooked and freeze it, sometimes in ice cube trays, to use later.

BacktoNE · 10-21-2008, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mollysmiles

So, if he made mac and cheese the day before (from scratch) and warmed it up, that's free for the day. And pancakes are only pennies. It's very possible, but requires planning. I feed a family of 6 for about $100/week.... I can do it on less if I have to. That includes 6 gallons of milk and snacks and ice cream... and there's always something to eat here. BUT it takes planning, and most people won't put planning into their meals any longer. I don't buy "prepared" foods--they don't taste as good, have unnecessary ick in them, and are more expensive. For example, last night we had brown bread with our meal.... I made it homemade, it costs me *nothing* for the ingredients this time around because they were all ready here in the house. If I cook a roast or a turkey, that leftover meat is used for other meals, and there is soup base there too. I don't buy beef or chicken stock unless I have to, I pull the stock from what I've cooked and freeze it, sometimes in ice cube trays, to use later.

Well I'm glad it's not just me. I've had people look at me as though I sprouted a 2nd head when I say that I make my own stock. Good grief, chicken stock is the easiest thing in the world to make. Roast a chicken or turkey and you have all you need. And it's so much better than store bought.

I admit freely that I can't fathom eating for $1 a day. I was thrilled yesterday when our entire grocery bill, including the trip to the butcher, came in at $124 for one week!