Poorcraft by C. Spike Trotman for January 23, 2017

Bad here the miracle of coupons doesn’t exist.

Tried it, years ago, but the effort involved put a real crimp in my lifestyle. Now I look for a few items here and there, or look for something if I’m looking for a deep discount on a high-end item. (Plus the ones from renewing my Books-a-Million membership.)

Pre- mixed salads/salad greens are cheaper for single people. Think about how many different individual items you would have to buy to have a fresh salad and then how long those items would last in that quantity. It just wouldn’t make financial sense unless all you ate is salad for meals.

So pre-prepared and canned foods are bad unless you can get them cheaply? Really? And for the record, I’m pretty hard-core when it comes to couponing; the recession hit me and a few others rather badly, so it’s a big part of how we’re paying the bills.

I am allergic to chemical derivatives of corn and other stuff manufacturers add to prepared foods, so, I avoid them and make my food from the basics. I very pointedly read labels to avoid those chemicals. It may cost me more, but, being over the age of 70, I find that I am healthier than a lot of younger people.

I use what coupons I can. Don’t have much money for food so it has to stretch all month plus 6 days. The less the food costs the health of that food also decreases.

I save coupons only for stuff that I was going to buy anyway, and the majority of them still end up crumpled in the wastebasket.  

I note that evangelical couponists who say you can save $nn for “only a few hours work” are careful not to say how many hours.

How much do you get paid per hour at work? That’s how much your time is worth. How much time does it take to coupon? Is what you save with the coupons worth the time you spent on them?