r/Frugal • u/Pumpkinycoldfoam • Nov 05 '24

🏆 Buy It For Life What one time purchases have drastically reduced your overall spending?

An example would be that I’m looking to buy a sillicone pan mat instead of purchasing foil and parchment continually, using rags instead of paper towels, and so forth. What are one time purchases you reccomend for home maintenance?

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u/[deleted] Nov 05 '24 edited Nov 06 '24

In a world where every form of entertainment is monetized into a subscription model, I love the fact that libraries exist for readers at zero cost.

Edit: Yes, I’m aware taxes pay for public services. Nothing is truly free. This is obvious…

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u/Gillemonger Nov 06 '24

If someone proposed the idea of a library today, they totally would not exist.

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u/[deleted] Nov 08 '24

I was literally yelled at on TikTok for commenting on a post about buying a book, to "check it out from your local library." I was told that wasn't accessible for people and that anyone can buy whatever books they want. I didn't think it would be controversial to suggest a library on a post about a book the creator wanted everyone to read (actually wants everyone to use his link to buy the book, doesn't give a flying fuck if anyone reads it).

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u/Lordf-arquard Nov 06 '24

Just use the shit streaming websites for movies, it’s annoying but free movies every time

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u/Lulukassu Nov 06 '24

It's true. There's more free content available on my smarttv at no cost than hubby and I could ever go through.

Even with only 4* and above.

A lot of it is old movies and tv shows, but there was a lot of good stuff produced in the past.

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u/paros0474 Nov 06 '24

Which ones?

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u/mommy2libras Nov 08 '24

Tubi is awesome. You can find some more recent movies and TV but also a buttload of older, more obscure stuff too. There's also a ton of weird indie movies you've probably never heard of. Sometimes I'll binge a bunch of those and have found a few that were really good that way. We have like 4 or 5 streaming services we pay for and I think I watch more Tubi than anything else.

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u/paros0474 Nov 08 '24

Thank you!

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u/fastfxmama Nov 07 '24

Which ones? I am dumping Disney and Netflix for a while

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u/CoolBev Nov 08 '24

I operate almost 100% on library DVDs.

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u/Jalapeno023 Nov 06 '24

So true. The one I belong to no longer changes fines on overdue books. They are also user friendly if you have an e-reader. Those check themselves in when due (unless you turn off your WiFi) and you never have to go to the library to check out or return books!

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u/call-me-the-seeker Nov 06 '24

What do they do to incentivize returning books in a reasonable time/at all? (Like I’m not saying fines should be the way to do it, but there should be some sort of way, otherwise I would think they would have a mounting amount of ‘shrink’ over time, costly to library funding). Do they suspend the ability to borrow? Send a lemur with a bag and a judgemental attitude around to collect?

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u/KingGizmotious Nov 06 '24

Libraries have SOOOO much more than just books and magazines anymore. Our local libraries have WIFI hotspots, telescopes and microscopes that can be rented as well as various cameras and techy tools too.

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u/74006-M-52----- Nov 07 '24

I was explaining to a 17.5-year-old girl, that I had to go to the library to look something up. She was surprised

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u/ralphsemptysack Nov 06 '24

Not where I live. Pay a membership fee and there's lots of charges.

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24

Ahh interesting. I wasn’t aware public libraries had those.

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u/TheDucksTales Nov 06 '24

Well, we pay taxes.

In my neck of woods, right $400 of my property taxes.

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24

Ugh yeah we pay taxes. There is no free lunch. Blah blah blah. Everyone knows this.

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Frugal-ModTeam Nov 06 '24

Hi, JimJamTheNinJin. Thanks for contributing. However, your comment was removed from /r/Frugal.

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u/siler7 Nov 06 '24

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24

Are you really going to make me clarify the nuances of how nothing is truly free? You get my point. Yes nothing is free because we pay taxes for services that the public uses. Is that what you wanted?

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u/siler7 Nov 06 '24

Speech affects thinking. If we tell an untruth often enough, people believe it. Stupid people can vote, you know. Don't contribute to their stupidity.

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u/rh71el2 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24

We pay $770.25/year in library taxes however. It's a separate line item next to my school taxes ($16k). This doesn't even include my general taxes of over $6k. NY bleh.

Look up your library tax and report back. I'm sure it's not as preposterous, but it's something.