My Frugal Miser

Hey, I just found you via my friend Marilyn at Mar...

2010-03-04T13:48:06.321-06:00

Hey, I just found you via my friend Marilyn at Marilyn's Money.
Nice blog!
I'd like to add here that something that also is bad for your clothing is fabric softeners and those dryer sheets. The 'softening' wears out the fibers of the fabric quicker. Plus that stuff is full of toxic chemicals....

Oh and welcome to my blogroll!

2010-03-02T19:50:32.500-06:00

Oh and welcome to my blogroll!

Hey, its just me, do you think you could once agai...

2010-03-02T19:47:53.588-06:00

Hey, its just me, do you think you could once again give a detailed post on how to sign up with these companies, and expected income? You do a really great job on telling the amount of time it takes, but how about a how to get started? Your so good at this? I'd be glad to feature it on my blog.

I have one rental also that my daughters live in, ...

2010-02-17T14:23:41.146-06:00

I have one rental also that my daughters live in, we bought the house 27 years ago, when I was er 10 (hee hee) , the housing and the neighborhood has declined along with the housing market so selling it right now would be a big loss, also I was able to take a big loss on it for my taxes, hence the 46,0000. Even though I have one 15yr old at home I do stretch every dollar. My new avenues are exploring passive online income, and regrettable I haven't checked in to the mystery shopping. I have plenty of time I work 3 12 hour shifts per week as an RN any great ideas? I'd like to do more online passive income too, changing from blogger to dot com. I've already bought my domain name wwww.marilynsmoney.com , would like to start a network of blogs that support each other and refer to each other. I dunno, just thinking.

Marilyn, The kicker is my rental properties. For ...

2010-02-17T13:56:49.315-06:00

Marilyn,
The kicker is my rental properties. For over 6 years I made a nice income (up to low 6 figures one year) and I spent just about every free dollar I had on buying houses. I lived like I was making $20,000/year (well, except for when I bumped my head and bought the BMW), so I had a lot of free cash to do this.

I'm a HUGE fan of recurring income, especially the passive kind where you don't have to work too hard for it. Once I renovate the property, most of my rentals work like an annuity with positive cash flow month after month with minimal effort.

Thanks for adding the me to the blog roll, I am st...

2010-02-17T12:24:27.628-06:00

Thanks for adding the me to the blog roll, I am still amazed at how you can pay off eveything! Personally we only netted $46,000 on our income tax, and we're still finding it hard to pay off our past credit card debt.

I am impressed that you have kept up this pace giv...

2010-02-01T21:11:41.455-06:00

I am impressed that you have kept up this pace given that you have gone back to work. I owe you some thanks. After reading about your experiences, I decided to sign up to be a mystery shopper, too. My first gig is in a few weeks.

Congrats! These are good news for you, indeed. I ...

2010-01-28T18:51:50.819-06:00

Congrats! These are good news for you, indeed. I would take so much longer to amass that value :)
This month I also paid off my only credit card but it was a very very tiny debt compared to yours.
Good weekend.
Mizé.

Saving on clothes is something I´d really like to ...

2010-01-25T16:44:07.886-06:00

Saving on clothes is something I´d really like to achieve. Spending under 50 is a great goal but with a young daughter growing and my recent weight loss (over 10 Kg) I won´t be able to join you on this challenge.
If you´re trying to lose weight and you´re able to do it be prepared for the need to renovate your wardrobe.
Regards, Mizé

debtmaven... getting rid of user manuals cleared h...

2010-01-15T19:04:16.221-06:00

debtmaven... getting rid of user manuals cleared half a drawer in a filing cabinet for me. I almost threw them away without searching for their electronic cousins but I knew as soon as I did that I would need one of them. I definitely had a "lightbulb moment" when I freed up all that space.

I also like to set goals. It really gives me a sen...

2010-01-15T00:13:01.092-06:00

I also like to set goals. It really gives me a sense of direction and helps me focusing.
Even when we don´t accomplish them, at least, we tried. Mini goals can work as baby steps towards a major goal.
See you soon, Mizé.

Thanks for adding my link! It´s an honour to have ...

2010-01-15T00:07:53.335-06:00

Thanks for adding my link! It´s an honour to have a link of my simple blog among your "Blogs I Read" list.
See you soon :)

This is a really great idea. I have to say I'm not...

2010-01-14T23:05:34.966-06:00

This is a really great idea. I have to say I'm not quite ready to take the plunge, but I'm tired of a full file cabinet and I don't want to have to get another "cube" from IKEA or buy a regular ugly 4-drawer one. This might be a good solution... but I have to think about it a little while before I commit.

I will certainly ditch the manuals though, they are annoyingly thick!

That is impressive. Gambling is my main vice. I on...

2010-01-14T22:30:16.915-06:00

That is impressive. Gambling is my main vice. I only play poker though. Unfortunately, I'm not a winning player although I'm getting close. I definitely lose a lot less playing poker than I would playing the slots or table games. We have casinos here and they have never given me any promos like you received. I do earn a few points for playing poker but they don't add up very quick.

That would be great, Mize...and Marilyn, would you...

2010-01-14T20:30:22.276-06:00

That would be great, Mize...and Marilyn, would you care to exchange links? It's been on my mind. I just haven't done it. I'll add a section right now and add your blog links. Would love it if you'd do the same for me. Thanks!

If your goal is less than half of what you spent l...

2010-01-13T23:12:18.508-06:00

If your goal is less than half of what you spent last year than it´s a very ambicious goal.
I also need to make meals while I´m working, specially due to my shift´s schedules. Many times, I cook at home and take a meal with me, others I just eat at the hospital´s bar. It´s more expensive but it´s a way to relief some stress because I get out of the workplace and get to talk with different people.
Although our winter isn´t as cold as yours, I also think eating out in the park is out of question. We have a small room with a microwave to heat our meals.
Have you thought about promoting your blog more? I bet there are other frugals out there who would enjoy reading your ideas.
If you would like to exchange links with me just let me know, I´m creating a blogroll and I think it would be cool to include your blog.
Regards, Mizé

I'm really jealous of this one, we are getting 4 c...

2010-01-11T13:57:13.065-06:00

I'm really jealous of this one, we are getting 4 casinos built in Ohio, one will be within 15 miles from my house.

Yeah I do e-rewards too and swagbucks, fyi, you ca...

2010-01-11T13:55:36.566-06:00

Yeah I do e-rewards too and swagbucks, fyi, you can find alot of free magazines posted on the internet, I never pay for them, we get TV Guide, Forbes, Business Week, Flying, Car and Driver, Hot Rod, Seventeen (from erewards) Marie Claire, Elle, Woman's Day, Weight Weighters and Cosmo for free, I've decided to let a few of mine expire since we weren't reading them! I really never would believe FREE!

Marilyn - isn't it insane that a soft drink costs ...

2010-01-10T17:12:35.111-06:00

Marilyn - isn't it insane that a soft drink costs $1.50 and up at a restaurant when a 2 liter can be found for less than that! Mypoints.com has been good to me. I've about passed the 100,000 point mark. I also do mysurvey.com for the cash. If you haven't checked it out, another good site is e-rewards. The redemptions there are for magazines or travel points but they send out a lot of surveys.

Mize- I'm hoping to do even better than $5, but that's less than half what I spent in 2009, so we shall see. I'm with you on falling weak to the restaurant meal. It's so easy, convenient, and tastes good. But for lunch...I just have to get out of the office and it's too cold to go to the park and too far to come home, so I eat out a lot right now for lunch.

Thanks for reading my blog. Getting started with ...

2010-01-10T16:59:53.801-06:00

Thanks for reading my blog. Getting started with mystery shopping is easy. One of the best websites around to discover what companies you'd like to work for is www.volition.com (click the "Get Paid" link). A few that I really like are Maritz, Marketforce and Corporate Research International.

I, too, am working towards our family being debt-f...

2010-01-10T15:59:37.137-06:00

I, too, am working towards our family being debt-free. How do you even begin mystery shopping?

My country´s reality is very different from yours,...

2010-01-10T00:16:47.514-06:00

My country´s reality is very different from yours, here we don´t have so many coupons, gift cards, mistery shopping, etc...I just wish we had :)
I really save money by cooking from scratch. I buy fresh meat and fish and freeze it myself. Pasta dishes are also very frequent in my menu because they´re versatil, healthy and inexpensive. Vegetables soups are also good, they last 2/3 days and toguether with a sandwish or fruit make a complete meal.
I often make breakfeast for lunch or dinner (eggs, saussages, toasts, burgers, etc). My biggest problem in food budget is eating out. Who resists having a good meal without much trouble, right? Reduce eating out is the categorie I must work on 2010.
I often cook dishes that serve more than one meal (ex: stews, lasagna), it saves me time & money.
All the best for your 5 target. It´s an impossible figure for me, specially because I have a child to feed.
Regards, Mizé

We eat in mostly, on our special outtings involvin...

2010-01-09T18:47:07.998-06:00

We eat in mostly, on our special outtings involving alcohol, we try to hit the happy hour for drinks, also we we eat out we usually order water to drink, this usually saves around $6, $2.50 a pop, then tax and tip, I try to get restaurant gift vards for doing surveys...my points, however if cash is an option, I will take that first, my survey, can consistently supply about an extra $10 a month with little effort. I still haven't tried the mystery shopping yet, but its on my list to sign-up. Also we try to split a meal and an appetizer too.

Dogfood - All my friends caution me to "be sure yo...

2010-01-03T20:00:06.805-06:00

Dogfood - All my friends caution me to "be sure you find a job first". That's the smart thing to do but part of the excitement of starting over is getting there and then figuring it all out. Not saying I would do this, but just a thought. I would set aside enough to live on for several months if I went this route, plus would keep recurring expenses to the bare essentials.

My partner is all for it. He's originally from Phoenix and is used to warmer environs.

Dogfood - right now my partner drives it. He's sa...

2010-01-03T19:54:58.409-06:00

Dogfood - right now my partner drives it. He's saving to buy a car later this year. Once he does I will decide for sure, but most likely I will sell it.