The last time we bought rice, it was $20. This time? $38.
Want eggs? $3 a dozen, unless you're lucky enough to live near a Trader Joe's (at least the one near me, they sell local eggs for $1.49).
Flour? Same thing. Bread? That too. Milk? I wish I was lactose-intolerant.
Gasoline? $4.11 $4.15 is the cheapest I can find right now.
What can we do?
- Buy local. Supporting your local farmer helps him keep his prices lower. Plus you usually get organic veggies and humanely-raised animals from small farms.
- Combine driving trips. Need to pick up milk, your daughter from her job, and a prescription from the pharmacy? Do them all at once.
- Recycle. Duh. And not just in your blue bins. Some states give you a cash refund for glass, plastic and aluminum. Even if they don't, why make stuff from scratch that's already mostly-made? (This only counts for recycleables, not cake mix or mac'n'cheese. Please, make that from scratch.)
- Plan your meals for the week, or at least for a few days at a time. Buy only what you need. Americans throw away 10% of what they buy at grocery stores. If you can't plan your meals? Get a dog. He'll eat what you don't.
- Have unwanted books? Donate them to a library or sell them to a local used book store. It'll save people from buying new books, and save the fuel costs associated in shipping them.
- Get rid of cable TV. WTF, you say? Our TV died 2 months ago. I haven't replaced it, and haven't missed it. I read the news online. Instead of wasting time sitting mindlessly watching The Next Top Whatever, I'm doing more constructive things (reading, sewing, gardening). And I'm saving $40 a month by not paying for cable. Although I'm going to run in to a problem when football season starts...
- And lastly, in the words of Michael Pollan, which I'm sure you've all read before: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
We now return you to your regular programming.
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