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What have you had to give up so far .. economy ..
Topic Started: Mar 22 2009, 10:51 AM (369 Views)
La Gringa
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Starving Artist
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For me, most everything extra.

I am even considering just renting movies instead of paying for satellite TV.

We are eating out a lot less. I may move out of my house and back to California too if I don't find a regular job soon. I have sent out so many resumes and no repsonses.. My house payment is too high, I have no income. Enough said.

It's getting serious. Next to go will be the OTTB, the trailer.. and who knows what else.

This is hitting home in a big way.

I guess it's a vent.... a scared one too. :lonely:
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MissBri
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But, I don't care - it's 5:00 somewhere
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I'm right there with you LG - if I don't get a job soon there is a good chance I will lose the house. But I try and stay optimistic, and just pray that I get called in for an interview someday soon. I hate applying on-line - no personality comes through.....
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Copper Leaf
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Is the meadow on fire?
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Hey... I hear ya... I'm a starving artist/art student. I will say that we haven't had to sacrifice much seeing that hubby's job is pretty secure, but we have learned how to cut a lot of corners. We grow a garden every year (I plan on learning how to can/freeze some of our veggies this year), I am seriously thinking about getting a goat (for milk and yogurt), and the plans for the chicken coop are in hand.
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jillincolorado
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You're BANNED!
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Hang in there LG and MissBri!!!! Things will come around :luck: :luck: :luck:
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NZ Loopy Lou
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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We've put in a vege garden (after living here ten years and being too lazy!) and we're bartering with our neighbours a LOT. We milk a goat for the house and all of the excess is going up the road to feed their pigs and, in return, in six months time, we will have a freezer full of pork. They are grazing our cows and, in return, in a few weeks time, they will have a freezer full of beef. We let out chickens hatch out chicks this year and are overrun by chickens, a number of which we are going to eat (apparently - not sure how I am going to cope with that tho!). We are very lucky to be in a position to grow a lot of our own food, I cannot imagine coping if we were not! My husband is not working through illness and I am currently between jobs so things could be better for us too. Hang in there guys - it's tough times to be sure :(

We have friends, in town, who have converted their tiny section into a garden and are now growing nearly all their own vegetables - They are doing so well!

Our daughter, at five, catches the school bus (which is free) so we don't have to drive her to and from school. She wanted to do it so I sucked it up, and let her - she loves it! I am buying second hand clothes for the entire family - it's amazing what you can get when you look hard enough.

As for the horses. I have not bred any foals for next season but instead leased my mares out and the lease owners bred them to my stallions. That has worked really well for me but I am very lucky that I have been able to keep my girls gainfully employed. I am about to change horse feeds (after feeding the same products for nearly 20 years) because the price of premix feeds has gone up over 30% so it will be back to basics again! I have also taken on grazers and the money that we get from that is helping pay for my own horse's care.
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Buryinghill1
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You're BANNED!
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With a bad economy I am greatful to have a good, secure job. So I am very careful about being on time, doing my job really, really well, and I don't screw around. I have a lot of co-workers who are pretty casual about their work habits. They're brave! :o

I haven't given up much. I don't eat out, I pack my lunches, I don't shop. Since the hospital isn't paying for school anymore, my discretionary income is ALL going to pay for college, college and more college. When I get a PhD :rofl: :rofl: I will have spending money again.

Good luck to all the job hunters!

I too am putting in a huge garden! Can't wait for the sweet corn. yummmm
Edited by Buryinghill1, Mar 22 2009, 12:38 PM.
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La Gringa
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Starving Artist
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I am putting Buzz up for sale, I think it's the best right now. If I do have to move I will take the Zunster but too hard to take 2. I am going to prepare for the storm. I also have a very nice Passier I am going to sell, Dressage saddle.

Time to go thru the tack box again I think.. sigh..
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Fish Cheeks
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You're BANNED!
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With the exception of the vitamin/mineral/selenium supplement, and Adequan for the Tomato, I have dropped all other supplements off the feeding program. I haven't had a lesson in forever, but I do hope to be able to start that up again in a couple months. We have really limited our eating out which I think makes a big difference. I try to buy less "stuff". I never buy myself clothes, but always seem to find something I need for the ponies; I'm trying to do that less. Miles is barefoot right now and I'd like to try to keep him that way this summer; we'll see if that works out. Our Weim died in December and we haven't gotten another dog. When Skipper (our old pony) goes, we'll keep it at three.

LaG, I don't know if moving to California would be a big help, unless your industry is there or you have family to stay with. While prices have come down, the cost of living is still higher than you'll find in most places.

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jillincolorado
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You're BANNED!
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I am dropping baled alfalfa off the menu for Luna. Her diet is restricted (PSSM) but she was getting one flake per day of alfalfa. It's now jumped to 20.00 per bale for stemmy, mediocre hay, so I've gone to Chaffehaye bagged alfalfa instead. It's half the cost and will last two times as long as the baled. I had already cut her supplements down to a minimum and had started ordering some in bulk to take advantage of discounts.

We planted a garden and had already quit eating out as much. We're lucky in that Kiltman's job is not in danger, but it never hurts to cut back and make smarter choices!

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La Gringa
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Starving Artist
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Fish Cheeks
Mar 22 2009, 01:13 PM
With the exception of the vitamin/mineral/selenium supplement, and Adequan for the Tomato, I have dropped all other supplements off the feeding program. I haven't had a lesson in forever, but I do hope to be able to start that up again in a couple months. We have really limited our eating out which I think makes a big difference. I try to buy less "stuff". I never buy myself clothes, but always seem to find something I need for the ponies; I'm trying to do that less. Miles is barefoot right now and I'd like to try to keep him that way this summer; we'll see if that works out. Our Weim died in December and we haven't gotten another dog. When Skipper (our old pony) goes, we'll keep it at three.

LaG, I don't know if moving to California would be a big help, unless your industry is there or you have family to stay with. While prices have come down, the cost of living is still higher than you'll find in most places.

I would be moving to California back in with mom and dad if I do that. If I lose my house and have no job... it's about my only option.

My SO is in the Army in a very small one bedroom apt in arlington and I have 2 dogs and a bird...

So I would have to go to Cali until I could find a new job... wherever that is.
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buryinghill2
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It'll be an adventure! We're going on an adventure!
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I haven't given up anything because have always lived a really frugal life. I don't go out, ever. I can't remember the last time I spent money in a restaurant. I get all my clothes at the free recycle place my town has. I live in jeans and a sweatshirt during the winter, and shorts and tee shirts in the summer, so my clothing needs are minimal anyway. The not going out thing makes that possible. I pack all my meals for work, I haven't been in the hospital cafeteria in years!
When I need to get away, I'm happy camping somewhere, so that costs me about a whopping $15 a night. The winter vacation is my obviously my huge splurge, along with one or two trips to Fenway in the summer. I save all year for the winter vacation.
The thing I know I could do better on is my food shopping. I need to be more careful, plan my meals and use more coupons. I'd also like to put in a raised garden and grow some vegetables.
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jn4jenny
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Is the meadow on fire?
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Hubby and I live pretty sparely (although not nearly what BH2 is describing), and thus far it's been pretty minimal. We only go out 2x monthly on payday and our budget is $25 per outing. I've learned to play The Grocery Game and it's cut my food and household expenses bill in half (www.thegrocerygame.com, as if anybody on this forum hasn't seen that link in my posts yet :lol:).

Hubby and I will start feeling the burn in August when I go to grad school. Horsie will have to go back on pasture board and I'll probably pull his shoes, no more lessons or showing, no more new tack, cable TV will have to go, etc. DH and I hope to avoid some of the pain by purchasing a cheaper house--real estate in Columbus is so cheap that it's a LOT cheaper to buy than rent. We pay $875 for our townhouse here in Ann Arbor, a similar house would rent for around $675 in Columbus, and we could own something like it for a $500/month mortgage.

Getting DH a job in the new city is going to be the biggest challenge. Anyone need a ridiculously good nanny? Visit http://www.chris-hawkins.com/.
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alltheprettyponies
Shunnnnn the unbeliever. Shunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.
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jn4jenny
Mar 22 2009, 02:07 PM
Hubby and I live pretty sparely (although not nearly what BH2 is describing), and thus far it's been pretty minimal. We only go out 2x monthly on payday and our budget is $25 per outing. I've learned to play The Grocery Game and it's cut my food and household expenses bill in half (www.thegrocerygame.com, as if anybody on this forum hasn't seen that link in my posts yet :lol:).

Hubby and I will start feeling the burn in August when I go to grad school. Horsie will have to go back on pasture board and I'll probably pull his shoes, no more lessons or showing, no more new tack, cable TV will have to go, etc. DH and I hope to avoid some of the pain by purchasing a cheaper house--real estate in Columbus is so cheap that it's a LOT cheaper to buy than rent. We pay $875 for our townhouse here in Ann Arbor, a similar house would rent for around $675 in Columbus, and we could own something like it for a $500/month mortgage.

Getting DH a job in the new city is going to be the biggest challenge. Anyone need a ridiculously good nanny? Visit http://www.chris-hawkins.com/.
Tell your hubby to try this site:

http://www.mommymixer.com/

All he has to do is submit his resume and attend a mixer. Before you know it the families will be calling/emailing him!

I did it for my first two years of college and it was great!

BTW, I'm going to try the Grocery Game ;)

What have I given up due to the economy?

Horses, yoga, clothes, getting my hair done, etc.

Luckily, I'm downsizing to a newer and cheaper apartment in a few weeks. The unit I'm in has some plumbing problems and has to be completely redone. So, I get $350 off of rent every month as a result! Yay! It's also on the first floor and has concrete floors throughout! Yay! NO more yucky carpet. With dogs..keeping it clean is impossible.

Someday I'm hoping to get some furniture :) I'm going to take a class at the community college on furniture refinishing and upholstery. So, I can search craigslist, antique stores, etc. for good deals that I can re-do and modernize a bit. My aunt has a company in Dallas that does something similar.

Here's a link

http://www.larruleathers.com/AppPages/Larru/index.aspx
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Sing Mia Song
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I'm from the Government and I'm here to help.
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I am very, very lucky to have a good government job that I really like. DH, on the other hand, had been doing well, but the crunch is about to come. He is a cabinet maker by trade, and manages a shop of about 23 people. Usually they have about $2 million worth of work on the books at any given time. Right now they have 1.5 on the books, and when that's done (in about a month), there's absolutely nothing in the pipeline. He has already had the talk with his boss about how many people he will have to lay off, and it looks like it will be about 2/3 of his workforce. He is having to make really tough decisions about who to keep and who to let go. Many of his guys have been with him for 10+ years.

I lost my two old dogs last summer and we made the decision to just stick with our Beagle and the two cats. We have Puzzle the cripple, who has successfully moved from wedges to barefoot--that was actually not due to expenses, but because he really couldn't hold his foot up long enough for nails, even when I buted and sedated him to the gills.

Rudy has been on layup since his surgery in January, and I have probably spent $7k on meds and veterinary supplies in that time--at cost. Thank God I am a tech, and can place his IV catheters on my own. He was on Baytril for two months at a rate of about $300 per week. That went on the credit card, needless to say, and I am eating Ramen for lunch until it's paid off. No clothes for me. No movies or dinner out. Trying to cut back on wine, but it's hard to rein DH in on that one. ;) Even he of the frivolous spending is getting better, although I have to slap his hand at Costco when he lingers over the hardback books. :pissed:

My biggest expense is gas. I drive 100 miles a day, as does DH. Carpooling is not an option and we are not near public transportation. Last summer, when gas was near $4 a gallon, I spent about $2500 a month just on gasoline. Luckily, my car gets about 27 miles per gallon. DH's truck gets 18-20, but it's been paid off for years and the insurance is dirt cheap, so it wouldn't be cost effective to get something else and have yet another payment.
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MayaTy02
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You're BANNED!
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well I have to say that we have not cut down as much as we should but we are both employed and able to pay our bills in full and on time. BUT, we have definitely cut down on discretionary spending. We eat out less, I never buy clothes - in fact I am in desparate need of a new pair of shoes and I can't bring myself to spend they money. Definitely driving less and trying to save on gas. The kids each do two sports, cheap ones...sadly no riding right now for my daughter or ME. We love to travel but will only go somewhere if we can get a ridiculously good deal on Hotwire or similar.

We're pretty much screwed if either one of us loses a job, but we're trying to save.
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