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Monday, August 22, 2011

Sorry For My Absence...

Where is that Cheap Sniveler?
I realize this blog doesn't have a lot of readers, but perhaps my one or two readers have been wondering why there have been no new posts. (Not likely, but bless you if are a reader and you have wondered!) And on top of my laziness, Google decided that this is a spam blog, and closed it down for about 6 months!

It's been a busy summer here, I've had a lot of projects at home. Of course, I've taken pictures and documented them, so that will result in a bunch of new money saving project posts once the madness subsides here. (Read: It's cold and miserable outside, and I have nothing better to do!) Projects include a garden pond, a storage shed, and a pig roaster - amongst other things - all with an eye toward getting the most for your hard earned dollars and avoiding mistakes that can turn a money saving project into a money pit if not done properly.

So I encourage you to sign up for my news feed or stop back to check in as the cold and snow sweeps in across the mountain west. Because a penny saved... is at least a nickel earned.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Save Money at Walmart on Clearance Electronics

Walmart announced last month that they are reducing the size of their electronics departments by an average 2000 square feet per store. Wal-Mart will also resume sales of fabric and crafts products. The retailer said it was also restoring 8,500 products to store shelves and kicking off an ad campaign in a bid to lift sales.

What does this mean for you, the savvy shopper?

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Electronic Cigarettes Helped Me Quit Smoking - And Save Money.

I have a confession: I am a cigarette smoker. Or I was. I have smoked for over 30 years. Not very frugal, right? Or very healthy.

Lets run some numbers, then, shall we? Thirty years of smoking one pack a day equals 10,950 packs. When I started smoking, cigarettes cost under $1.00 a pack. Today, the cost is about $6.00 a pack where I live. So, I'm going to pick a somewhat arbitrary number of $3.00 a pack as an average. 10,950 x 3 = $32,850. Today, at $6 per pack, it's costing $2,190 a year. And the price keeps rising every time governments can't control their spending.Yeah, the government says they are increasing the cigarette taxes to discourage smokers from smoking, but really, they just want the money. As a nicotine addict, I can promise you, smokers will pay whatever it takes to get their fix. So are there any good solutions out there?

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Be Prepared: A TV for Use in Power Outages and Emergencies.

I originally wrote this piece for my other blog, Cache Free TV. Frugal people, for the most part, are aware of the need to be prepared for the unexpected, and being prepared for minor and major disasters will allow you to sail through with minimal disturbance to your life and assets. Therefore, I have decided to duplicate that post here.
Q: Will my old portable DC TV work after the digital transition?

I was recently asked this question, so I set about doing some research about what options are available if you need a TV for use on a power outage.

A: Do you mean, an old analog portable - battery operated - TV? The short answer, in most cases, is NO.

However, do have a number of options that will get you TV in an emergency, even when nobody else has power or TV. You can even get that old analog TV to work if you have time (and money) on your hands.