Please share your practical advice: What are you doing NOW to survive through a recession?

[Angela Shelley]

Now that the economic activity has openly been described as "recessionary", we could all use the combined practical wisdom from experienced "frugal folks" here at DU.

Please share your practical advice.

What are you doing NOW to survive through an economic recession?

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. First things first, PAY OFF ALL YOUR DEBT IF YOU CAN

Live as long as you can in a cash economy

second, there are many things you can do, like go to your local market, and used stuff stores

[mdmc]

3. I've been depositing my spare change so I can pay my debt down

quicker :toast:

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. That's the way to go

we have none.. not bragging, just have been lucky

But when it came time to replace my computers, we SAVED... we used the credit cards just to pay for it, but the damn things were paid within 72 hours, aka as long as it took them to get the checks.

Same for vacations... we pay cash for everything we use these days.

It means I have to wait to get my toys... so be it

[Angela Shelley]

6. Waiting is half of the fun!

[mdmc]

2. Aldi

www.aldi.com

I buy my cereal there. Cookie Crisp cost over 4 bucks at the unionized supermarkets (Shoprite / Stop&Shop), and at least 2.50 at walmart.

The Aldi store brand is better tasting (it kinda has a waffle taste) and only costs 1.65

I also no longer have cable tv - just bunny ears and dvds.

[Angela Shelley]

4. Great practical advice!

just so happens that I live in Germany, the home of ALDI.
:-)

[mdmc]

7. may I ask you a question

Prior to ALDI, I only shopped at union organized grocery stores (in my area, the Hudson Valley of NY, we have Shoprite and Stop and Shop).

I decided to shop at ALDI because they seem to be pro-worker and pro-family. They pay better then the union grocery stores and they are closed on Sunday.

Do you think that I am correct in my opinion that Aldi is a socially conscious chain? Some here on DU claim that ALDI is anti-union, anti worker.

[Angela Shelley]

12. Aldi has a very positive reputation in Germany.

They pay their workers exceptionally well, but the work is not easy (retail is never easy).

They use a bonus system for the whole store, if the team does well, everyone profits.

Germany has a very competitive "discount grocery market", and Aldi has to control costs just like everyone else.

Walmart came to Germany several years ago, and has left the market in the meantime. Walmart couldn´t compete with the low prices for staple groceries in Germany.

Compared to Walmart, Aldi was designed in employee heaven.

[Mountainman]

8. First I have a marketable skill, and I work for the county government.

Chances are I will not get laid off since I do a very needed job, as long as I am needed and I think that is the case I will remain employed.

My wife has a good job also. We are selling our house to buy a less costly one and are hoping to save money and get out of debt. We no longer have 4 horses and 6 dogs. I gave them to good homes. We are lowering our cost of living.

[TransitJohn]

32. I'm close to the same boat mountainman.

I took a petroleum geology degree and work oilfield services as a wellsite geologist. So I'm pretty confident that my skills will be needed over the rest of my working career (I'm 36). The money isn't as good as some think, but it is allowing me to stay above water. I'm whittling down some CC debt I accumulated 2 to 3 years ago (over half way done!). I'm also about 3 years ahead on my student loans. They say that those are the lowest priority, as the interest is low, but the interest on those is over $100/month. My mortgage is mostly doable, about $990/month. It is tough stretching one salary though...I'm single, with joint custody of my kid with my ex.

[CTyankee]

9. Drive an older, but good, car and keep it in good shape.

Pay cash or pay each credit card bill in full every month. Only use credit cards that give you points for something. Get the best deal with checking accounts that you can. Cook as much as you can from scratch asit is inevitably cheaper.

HAVE A BUDGET. That is the single best thing you can do to help you save money. It is NOT a scary thing to do; it is a liberating thing to do. By breaking down your expenses into categories you can see how much you are spending on each one in relation to other items and also where you can look for savings, such as insurance.

[Bucky]

10. Kissing my boss's ass

If the recession keeps going for a while, isn't this a good time to run up a little debt?

[Angela Shelley]

14. DuZY Alert ... for some great economic advice.

:yourock:

[lonestarnot]

18. Good luck with that ass kissing.

[Angela Shelley]

27. It´s not an issue of luck, determination is the key!

:-)

[Quantess]

11. This may sound off topic, but

I enjoy leisure activities that are free or low cost, such as enjoying the outdoors. A few months ago I started going on long walks with my dog, and now I'm jogging with my dog. It's a lot cheaper than going to the gym (or sitting in a bar), and it's a rewarding way to spend free time.

[Bucky]

13. Why do you hate America?

The president told you your patriotic duty was to shop, dagnabbit! All that love and health is destroying our economy, Osama!

[AnnieBW]

15. Become a high priced escort

Hey, if Eliot Spitzer will pay $5K for two hours to get his freak on, I'm SURE that some old, rich Repukes will be willing to pay more to have me spank them! :spank:

[tabasco]

21. Republicans might want you to poop on them though.

Or change their pampers.

[juajen]

26. Hey, pooping on them is a great idea!

nt

[redwitch]

40. God knows they have been pooping on us for years.

Time for a little payback!

[Quantess]

41. LOL I bet David Vitter is hoping the recession will give him leverage

to get him cheaper diaper changers!
:rofl:

[backscatter712]

16. Consider arming yourself.

There may be breakdowns in law and order in the near future.

Come to think of it, law itself may be broken (more than it already is) and turn on the people it's supposed to serve.

Do what you have to do...

[Quantess]

42. Well, of course there will be breakdowns of law and order.

Please refer to my post #11 where I talk about jogging with my dog.
Most of the time I have his leash bundled in one hand, unattached to the dog's collar. :o !!!!!1 :beer:

:hi:

[taught_me_patience]

17. Getting an MBA

when the economy turns around, I'll be in position to make mucho dinero! Plus, with interest rates so low, I can refinance my student loan into an absurdly low fixed rate and ammortize it for 30 years. It's almost like getting an education for free.

[wuushew]

19. White rice

mixed with cooked onions and peas with cut up hot dogs for protein.

[eShirl]

35. and if that gets too expensive

you even can eliminate the hot dogs

as long as you are combining a grain, and legume/bean-type things (peas, beans, peanuts, etc) you are getting a full or near-full spectrum of proteins

peanut butter sandwiches for example

[tabasco]

20. Turning off the satellite tv service.

It's mostly garbage anyway.

Saves $50 a month.

[Angela Shelley]

28. That´s good, get rid of the expensive garbage.

:-)

[eShirl]

36. we did that too

we still get 3 broadcast channels (PBS, CBS, FOX)

All the networks let you watch their latest series episodes from their websites now anyways (see the link in my sig).

[Manifestor_of_Light]

22. Learn how to cook, sew and garden. Talk to your Extension Agents.

Grow your own flowers and food. You can learn all these domestic things from the agents located in your county seat (the town the courthouse is located in), FREE OF CHARGE. Your extension agents know about all sorts of things, from agriculture to home economics to pest control to natural resources.

The Cooperative Extension Service is associated with more than 100 land-grant colleges in the U.S.
Lots more information:
http://www.csrees.usda.gov/qlinks/extension.html


Two of my grandparents were County Extension Agents from the 1920s to 1960s. This nationwide program has helped and continues to help millions of people.


Learn to cook from scratch. Yeast bread is especially good and easy to make in a bread machine or food processor. I use a large (holds 6 cups flour) food processor I've had for 25 years. Also, if you cook from scratch you can avoid high sodium foods and make things they don't sell in the store, or don't offer in restaurants.
I have yet to find any storebought cookies that are as good as home made, too.

Recommended cookbook: The I NEVER COOKED BEFORE COOKBOOK, by Jo Coudert. I have a paperback copy of this. It is idiot proof. It explains simple recipes step by step.

Learn to sew, or at least how to alter & repair clothing. I have old all-steel Singers with electric motors (1930s to 1950s) that will never wear out. They make great buttonholes with an attachment. Clothing styles nowadays are much looser and straighter than they used to be. That makes them far easier to make. Many people use a newer specialized machine called a serger, and use fabrics like t-shirt knits.

If you can't find a pattern for what you want, learn pattern drafting. There are plenty of books on these subjects.

Buy from secondhand stores in affluent neighborhoods, if you need a good quality, more durable item such as a purse, shoes, coat or furniture.

Learn to knit, crochet, tat or embroider.

Learn to check your car battery, air in the tires, and fluids.

Learn how to change the oil in your car.

Learn how to make your own artwork (this includes clothing).

Learn how to play a musical instrument so you can entertain yourself and jam with others.

If you're not artistic or musical, please patronize your artistic or musical neighbors!

I learned these things when I was small. I was fortunate to have parents with manual skills. They taught me all those things listed except for music.

Buy good leather shoes (I get Italian ones, they come in narrow widths and they are soft & flexible) and get them resoled and re-heeled at a shoe repair shop.

Sign up for Freecycle (on the Net) in your town. People on the list offer an item and then whoever wants it picks it up. No money changes hands. Also, look at Craigslist.

Hope these suggestions help.


:grouphug:

[Richard Steele]

23. Practical advice: buy books. Books on gardening, books about how to fix and build things.

And buy TOOLS- any tools you can get your hands on that you come across
for cheap.

I'm riding a Honda scooter around town these days- 85 mpg. It's gonna pay for itself
long before it wears out.

[girl gone mad]

24. I'm increasing my inventory.

We're a micro-business, but our international sales have grown over the past few years. I think inflation is going to be the rule for the time being so we are buying more right now on fears of further dollar devaluation. I am concerned that asset deflation could occur at some point, but for now, I think having assets on hand that will keep pace with inflation not a bad plan, be it gold, collectibles, food, prescription drugs, barrels of oil.. whatever.

[juajen]

25. Not driving unless necessary and combining trips.

Checking specials at all stores to get best buys within good distance of each other, so as not to waste more gas than you save at the store. Buying generic medicines. Cooking mostly from scratch.

[MadinMo]

29. Thanks for this thread. I'm eager to hear other's plans/ideas.

Trying to pay off credit debt as fast as possible. The REBATE will help with this immensely when it comes.
Fixed rate mortgage only has 4 more years, but I worry that it could be called in and we would still be screwed.
Planning a bigger garden to eat out of this season with enough to freeze/can extras.
MAYBE getting chickens later in the season.
Eating less meat, using up left overs.
Trip to Aldi's once a month.
Driving less, taking lunch to work.

[MissB]

30. Well, I just restarted my career.

I left my career when my kids were young. I'm making more than what I made when I left years ago by a wide margin - part of that is because the job market for my field is strong and part of that is simply the increase in wages over the past few years.

We've lived on one income for so many years that it should be easy to sock away a good portion of the second income. And that is exactly our plan - 30% savings, 30% mortgage principal (after paying back a small heloc), 30% home improvement and 10% job costs.

But living on one income for so many years taught me many skills that would've helped us even if I hadn't picked up my career.

I have a large garden that is easy to maintain (most is set up as square foot gardening). I have chickens in my urban/almost suburban yard. I'm used to cooking from scratch, and I've done the twice-a-month cooking thing which works for the few meals during the week where all of us are sitting down together (the rest of the meals are usually simple like soup or a sandwich). I'm used to buying bulk foods and using them.

Food is one of those pieces of most everyone's budget that is widely variable. If you can learn to bake a simple bread from scratch or your favorite meal from scratch, you're going to save a bunch of money.

[SteveM]

31. Here's what I have been doing for some years...

(1) electricity under 500 kwh
(2) water use under 900 gallons (no lawn watering in 5 years)
(3) use credit car only for airline tickets and rent cars
(4) drive my 21 mpg van (14 yrs old) under 8,000 miles a year (in Texas!)
(5) house has been clear of mortgage for 19 years -- ALWAYS clear the mortgage first.
(6) do much of my own cooking
(7) hunt for most of my meat (2 deer last season), and fish
(8) keep IRA/retirement in very conservative investments
(9) eat/shop locally-owned businesses (these folks remember and will ask for your services, and their customers become reliable friends)

Always consume less at every opportunity: when I take a bath, I dump light clothing into the same water & hang to dry; when I wash heavy clothes I use one cold cycle. Buy used clothes and books, refill the ink cartridge, keep out of the mall and experience some art: the let-in on my 1905 Winchester rifle is more beautiful than some damned gold chain.

"In confusion there is profit!" -- Tony Curtis to Cary Grant, Operation Petticoat (1959)

[Blue_In_AK]

33. A few things..

We took my husband's IRA out of the stock market and put it in money market or something -- I don't understand this stuff, but since we were losing thousands of dollars a week, and we're on fixed incomes, that seemed like a good plan. It won't earn much, but it won't lose much either.

We're not driving much, buying economical food and waiting for spring so I can get my vegetable garden in. I'm going to try to grow more freezable stuff this year so maybe I can put some away for next winter.

I'm working as much as I can. I'm a legal transcriptionist and since crime goes up as the economy falls, I should have good job security. Working at home means I don't have to drive anywhere.

[eShirl]

34. I'll be doing container vegetable gardening (windows and apartment balcony/porch)

garden seeds are 10 packets for $1 at the dollar store
(they also sell potting soil!)
I'm starting some of them this afternoon to germinate & grow inside until it's warm enough outside (at least the cherry tomatoes)

next:
washing & saving plastic food containers for planters,
macrame-ing plant hangers to hang them on hooks near windows and from the porch roof

[Subdivisions]

37. We're just two and we've elimated up to 200 miles per day

of commuting by working from home (me) and working in our neighborhood (her) instead of driving 30 miles roundtrip (her) and alot for more for me, depending on where a job site is located. This has saved us alot of money on fuel and wear and tear on our vehicles.

We also recently had 3 in our home and 4 and 5 before that. Now that it's just the two of us, we're saving on food expenses as well as learning not to take food for granted. When there was five of us, all the food was consumed easily. But when it got down to just the two of us, it was nothing to throw enough food away to feed another person because we are only now learning as a result of inflation to waste less of everthing.

But that's not all we're doing. This economic downturn was not a big issue in making the changes I spoke of above. We (really I) began doing these things more than a year ago not on my personal economic predictions but on my belief that we are facing serious consequences from two other fronts: climate change and Peak Oil. I began preparing (her participation has been half-hearted as she doesn't like hearing bad news) for an emergency situation like Katrina. But, after reeling from the shock of going down there (Biloxi/Gulfport & NO) myself just two weeks after the storm and seeing with my own eyes the total governmental clusterfuck, I began getting my house in order. While researching the governments reaction to the Katrina aftermath, I discovered another more ominous problem: Peak Oil. Believe in it or not yourself but, after looking at the situation myself and using my own judgement, I began stockpiling food and other supplies and making contingency plans.

As far as the current economic turmoil, when I began preparing for tough times, it wasn't even on my radar as being anywhere near as bad as it is getting now. As a result and as a consequence of the savings from not having to commute all over north Texas, I've been able to pad my preparations even more.

My advise to everyone is to unload your debt. We're down to one car payment which will be paid off in 7 months. After that, we're debt-free. You cannot lose by stocking up on the essentials and tools, seeds, cash, etc. If you lay in supplies and everything turns out ok, then you really haven't lost anything. But if worse comes to worse, you'll have at least provided yourself with a cushion. Also, find any way you can to reduce your use of fossil fuels. If you're able and have the space, grow your own food. Buy chickens and goats and learn how to manage them. The most important advise I can offer though is this: Whatever you do, DO SOMETHING! Don't rest on your laurels because none of us truly knows what's next.

[Angela Shelley]

43. Thanks for the details and the motivation.

:-)

[EFerrari]

38. I live very simply, no real debt but the mortgage, and am looking

for a good start up so I won't be dependent on an employer. It's still scary though.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

39. First of all, pay down debt

Beyond that:

1. Buy clothes only on clearance sale or used. When you have money, don't buy faddish clothes but clothes that are timeless enough to wear for years, if necessary, without looking outdated. Solid colors and natural fibers go out of fashion less rapidly than synthetics or patterns.

2. The public library is your friend, full of free books, CDs, and DVDs. Even my tiny neighborhood library has about fifty DVDs that I'd like to see.

3. Every day, put whatever coins are in your wallet into a jar. When you run low on money, take the coins to a change machine and see how much they add up to. If you've been saving for a long time, you may find $10=15 dollars that you would have otherwise frittered away.

4. If you don't know how to cook from scratch, start learning now. A pile of vegetables, a couple of sauces, and a starch and you can make a delicious stir-fry, curry, pasta dish, or enchiladas. Learn about nutrition, so that you can go vegetarian or vegan without endangering your health. If you have a job and money now, start stocking up on canned, frozen, and dried staples now.

5. If you live in a city with good public transit, don't drive. You'll save literally thousands of dollars per year that way. If you're able-bodied and the weather isn't too awful, a bicycle or scooter is much cheaper than a car, both to buy and to run.

6. Turn the heat down in the winter and don't run the air conditioning in the summer unless you're nearly ready to pass out. If you have a house and money now, add a screen porch onto the back, so you can mostly live out there during heat waves without being bothered by bugs.