The solution to dangly earrings awaits at your local Office Depot. photo: Franck Mahon
continued...To get to and from Connecticut, we rented a ZipCar and packed 5 of us into a peppy Honda Fit. In an actual car, this was our chance to load up on goods without having to lug them across streets and on subways and buses like Cool Pack Mules.
We looked up the nearest Target to Hartford. When we were almost there, we passed a Wal-Mart, and I wondered if we should stop there instead. Then I immediately perished the thought. Why, though? What do I have against Wal-Mart?
WM certainly got me through my college years, with its affordable twin comforters, toilet paper, and underwear. Now, I’m a Target devotee. Am I just a sucker for style? My obsession with being cool might be getting the best of me – Target seems much cooler than Wal-Mart. Four examples:
COMMERCIALS
Target: Red-leather clad guys and girls strut around stylish furniture while the Target bullseye pulsates in the background.
Wal-Mart: A family touts the cheap bags of name-brand chips that one can score for the big game.
STOREFRONT
Target: The clean, red Target and bullseye lure shoppers all day and night.
Wal-Mart: The Wal-Mart sign – burdened with one more letter and a hyphen – often renames the store “Wal-Mrt” or “Wa-art” as letters won’t light up or have just fallen off.
CLOTHING BRAND
Target: Their Merona brand is trendy enough for work and social activities, while comfortably priced.
Wal-Mart: I’m not sure who was in charge of naming their apparel line, but ‘Faded Glory’ doesn’t make me feel good about what I’m wearing. I know I’m getting old; I don’t need my khaki shorts reminding me every time I put them on. I will give WM the benefit of the doubt for the possibility of a veiled, yet unfortunate Moses reference.
PRICE
While I initially had the impression that Target was more expensive across the board, they often give WM a run for our money. We just got 82 size 4 Target diapers for $14, regular price. WM may or may not match with their store brand diapers, which I’m not sure are named. UnderPoos? Fetid Glory?
I’m not knocking Wal-Mart shoppers; I’ve been one for decades. I wish we had one nearby. And cheap chips are a better use of money than pricey, boutique chips.
But as you know, we’re fighting inevitability here and need to hold on to every last shred of cool that we have. If that means propping my red leather-clad legs on stylish ottomans, then I guess we’re aiming for the bullseye.
Where does your discount store loyalty lie: Target or Wal-Mart?
This post is part of Works for Me Wednesday.
I spent the past week in my parents’ mansion. It’s not really a mansion at all, but compared to our place, it is. Four bedrooms, two baths, formal living and dining areas, etc. I enjoyed it, but over the course of the week I developed a new appreciation for our very humble abode.
You see, Cool Baby has just learned how to open door handles. Or maybe this is just the first time we realized he already knew how to open door handles. For the latter part of the week, I mainly wandered from room to room trying to find CB as he opened and closed doors behind him to explore the vast expanse of the Cool Grandparents’ house.
Treasures awaited in rooms beyond my view–random computer chips just sitting out in the home office, hair gel bottles in the bathroom, important books and documents in the bedrooms. He could’ve done a lot of damage, but we left right as the novelty of breaking-and-entering was about to end and the destructive stage was about to start.
Our good old NYC studio apartment has one interior door–to the bathroom. That has been covered with a baby-proofing thing for months, so no problems there. The windows are secured with bars (which may be used for both keeping people out and keeping toddlers in, I suppose). All two lower cabinets are filled with tupperware, pots and pans, and other harmless items. Our two chairs fold to store behind the fridge where they can’t be used to climb for table dances. We don’t even have a couch for him to use as a diving board. The 200-something square feet do not allow for much long-distance running/hiding when it’s time to change diapers or clothes either.
My life is suddenly WAY easier. Who knew?
Sidenote to CB: Sorry to spoil your fun, man…I promise I’ll spend many hours at the park with you to make up for this. Thanks for being cool with whatever crazy situation you land in. Oh yeah, and are you telling on us?
Gallon of milk
FL: $3.49 on sale at Publix
NY: $3.59 regular CVS price
8 oz block of cheese
FL: $2.00 Kraft, on sale at Publix
NY: $1.99 generic, regular grocery store price
Goya can of black beans
FL: $0.89 regular price at Publix (by memory)
NY: $0.89 regular grocery store price
Health insurance – family coverage
FL: under $200
NY: $1,200.00 or $1,000.00 COBRA
Housing expenses, incl. electricity
FL: ~$1000/mo for 1200 sq ft house
NY: $1450/mo for 250-300 sq ft studio apt in Manhattan (electricity included in rent)
———————-
Groceries are definitely more expensive in general for non-sale items, but we found a favorite grocery store and the staples we buy don’t seem to be much more than we were paying in Florida!
But, in keeping our living expenses under $3000, we don’t have much to work with after paying $1000/mo for COBRA health coverage from the last job and $1450 of rent. Yikes.
More keys to the cheapo life that we hope will continue to work:
1. We don’t have to eat meat with every meal. Cool Dad usually has on-sale deli meat sandwiches for lunch, while I eat a LOT of beans and rice with cheese (I was blessed with an undying love for this meal, which may help us stay here!). Cool Baby has the best and most varied diet–he gets the best stuff and we eat his leftovers. I sometimes shake my finger at CD if he tries to eat some of it before it has been turned down by CB. Sad?
2. We shop at the produce stands on nearby streets–super cheap. Especially if you happen to be there as they are closing down for the day. A shining example–eight large bananas for a dollar! And I didn’t spend any gas money to get there, just a one minute walk from our place.
3. Walk. Everywhere. Cool Dad has been getting his unlimited metro card covered so far, but I don’t have one. So I try to avoid using public transportation ($2 each way) more than twice a week. I like walking, but it may get tough in the dead of winter!
4. Did I mention beans and rice?
Some areas for improvement:
1. Sometimes we can’t resist the 2-3 dollar slices of pizza, which may add up quickly.
2. We need to find a better solution for health insurance. This one item is killing our budget!
3. The occasional thrift shop or clearance rack clothing purchase. Ah, New Yorkers sure do have some cool cast-off clothing.
So there are some numbers for the curious, as promised. Thank you for giving me more motivation to analyze this stuff! Any advice?
Our entry for Works for Me Wednesday.
This is our experiment in minimalism. Cool Dad and I have always said we don’t care much about space or “stuff.” We do care about chasing dreams and having interesting experiences.
The following experiment is not for everyone, but we both really felt like we were supposed to go for it. So here we are!
The dream: Living in Manhattan. And doing it on one income so that I can keep my SAHM gig.
What we left: A 3 bed/2 bath house on one acre of land in Florida. Family, friends, cars, and most of our possessions in storage at our families’ houses.
What we brought: Our one-year-old son (Cool Baby), a large rolling suitcase, small rolling suitcase, car seat, full backpack, and diaper bag. Only what we could carry through airports and train stations.
What we have: After 2 months of my husband’s job search, he landed a job at a small organization which will allow the good work/life balance that we were hoping for. We currently live in a studio apartment (zero bedrooms). It does have a separate dining area (size of a hallway) and kitchen (also the size of a hallway). It is in a clean and updated old building in the Upper East Side. It is also the cheapest rent we could find in this neighborhood. I’m not sure of the square footage, but the main room of the apartment is about 10 feet by 12 feet. This room serves as the living room and the bedroom! We have a great park and playground across the street, a public library, and groceries are a couple of blocks away. We love this place.
Some common reactions: Are you crazy? Did you know it gets cold there? Your son won’t have a yard! Or space! You can’t raise a baby/toddler in New York City! Don’t you know that everything is more expensive there?
Almost three months in, current keys to what we hope will be a successful year:
1. Using COBRA insurance coverage from the last job. (Never would’ve guessed that COBRA would one day seem cheap in comparison to health insurance costs here!)
2. A studio apartment. This is huge. I mean, the importance is huge.
3. Only buy items that are on sale that week at the grocery store, unless it’s a staple that we really need.
4. Craigslist and IKEA.
5. Try to laugh off (then forget about) minor frustrations–bumping into things as you move about your home, sharing a room with a sleepless toddler, and having your sweater fall into the sink because you’re storing clothes in your kitchen cabinets.
Tomorrow, Cool Dad will begin a series of posts telling how God got us here. If you want to catch up on the story, look out for that.
If anyone is interested, I’d be happy to post some of the numbers for how much things cost here. We are attempting to keep our expenses below $3,000 per month.
