Thank goodness my husband is fine with my thrifty/neurotic ways, if he wasn't he would have ran screaming towards the hills long ago.
It was his birthday yesterday and I have been trying to come up with some sort of small gift to give him. We traditionally don't go overboard for this occasion, a simple cake, favourite meal and a small token is the extent of our celebrating (kids being the exception at this point, although they do not get an abundance of gifts).
Since cutting out on a particular salty snack, commonly known as potato chips, he has been resorting to popcorn to cure this craving. For a while he was eating a bag of microwave popcorn each night and although this does contain less calories I am sure it has it's fair share of chemicals. After reading some frugal material I discovered that you can make your own microwave popcorn using plain brown paper bags. True to its claim it worked like a charm...for everyone except my husband. For some unknown reason when he attempted to make this treat it never failed to burn or not pop altogether. As the chip craving started to win over I knew I had to find something more reliable. I have been eyeing these fancy popcorn makers for some time now but was a little hesitant due to the sheer size of the machine and because I am a self proclaimed appliance fanatic I did not need another machine taking up valuable space in my kitchen (plus I am saving room for my much anticipated pressure canner) I stopped by Wal-Mart and picked up a small $20 hot air popping machine, a large bag of kettle corn from the bulk store and several flavours of popcorn seasoning. On my way home I stopped by our local resale store and staring right at me upon entering was the exact machine sitting on the shelf for $2. I immediately picked it up and thought not only is this $18 less there is one less piece of large plastic and all of the packaging for the new one being sent to the landfill. What's a frugal gal to do? You guessed it I picked it up and brought it home.
For me It's not always about the money rather the struggle to reduce our constant need for new things right away. I often stop myself from running to the nearest department store just because we need it now. You see stores can provide that instant gratification and therefore feed on that instinct and desire for buying things. I have also been purposely waiting to purchase anything to ensure I really do NEED it and many times I either found one used or realized I didn't need it anyway. The other problem for me when shopping is the overwhelming amount of stuff that I am bombarded with, stuff that I have been clearly been doing fine without up until that point. How is it that I can stay home for a week without needing anything yet I take one sweep through the aisles of Wal-Mart and discover I have been hard pressed surviving without something? This is an area I continue to struggle with and have been making strides in achieving...I still have a long way to go, but for now ....
here ya go Hun, Happy Birthday!!! here is a used popcorn maker (as he rolls his eyes and laughs to himself)
If you like all things frugal check out Biblical womanhood