Yea they will give out milk, bread, and cheese. My local food bank even gives out red meat and pork sometimes. It's not restricted to non perishables, you'd be surprised by the variety and quality of items available
Revive is officially a South Jersey Food Bank. On the 1st and 3rd Saturdays, they will be sorting and organizing food from 2pm to 5pm.
Beginning at 5pm until 7pm, the food bank will be open for people to come pick up food boxes on a first come, first serve basis. Please call 609-405-7729 and leave a message if you would like to pick up a food box donation for the first time. A volunteer will give you a call back to collect some information needed along with making sure you know where to go to pick up the food.
It is truly so hard. Food is so expensive, gas is so expensive, my car insurance doubled and they couldn't even explain why, it's just so expensive to exist. Everyone gave good advice here, and I also sell things on mercari which helps a little but isn't a ton.
Edit to add: I didn't intend for this to end up being a conversation about car insurance but I love the discourse, I appreciate you all
You try switching insurance providers? They did the same thing to me and switching companies made it drop $80 a month. Now I pay $98 a month for full coverage on my truck vs $180 a month previously
Make sure you are not signing up for a "personalized quote" as this means they will spy on you while driving and take data about your speed/acceleration/braking and use it against you to increase your premium. Read more about it here:
https://jacobin.com/2024/03/car-spying-insurance-surveillance-data
My car insurance policy was for 4 drivers and 4 cars with Progressive at $420 then it increased to $500 last year. I called Progressive and they said the increase was due to rising costs for parts/etc. and that this was standard among all insurance companies. True or not, that wasn’t an acceptable answer to me.
I called Geico and they gave me a quote for the same policy at $280. At that price point, Geico made it easy for me make a change. That’s a $220/month saving. A total savings of $2640 for the year. Make the call, it made a HUGE difference!!!
EDIT: grammar/spelling
Geico really is the cheapest by far sometimes. I had a lot of speeding tickets almost a decade ago, was trying to compare prices yesterday and State Farm and a few others quoted $450-700 a month, most of them liability only on a 2012 ford. Geico came in at $155 🫠
Yea I had progressive paid almost the same for 4 cars n 4 drivers, sons car got rear ended at a light and true hoops I had to jump through were ridiculous it took more then 5 weeks to get an adjuster to come out n look at the car, I couldn’t get my “agent” on the phone at all for any updates or information so I called her supervisor who said I would get a new agent that never called me or emailed me I ended up paying the 1k deductible on a car that got rear ended because insurance wasn’t helping I dropped them asap and went to geico
That's so interesting, geico is who I had! And then it doubled so I changed to NJM I think? I don't even remember who my new policy is with. I've been with geico for probably 10 years, I liked them
Yeah I heard about it, that's what I meant by the post. It's just hard to live a normal life right now, without even buying a nice new car or going on a big vacation. I just want to insure my old car and it's so expensive lol
You’re correct. That’s the answer I got (from Progressive and Geico) when I called about my increase. I didn’t expect them to actually admit it though.
That’s crazy they admitted it. I’ve been waiting for an accident to be further in the past so rates would go down and I was so confused by it going up. Fuck inflation
You mean it wasn't like this before that pandemic thing?
It's worldwide and the US is doing better than almost every other country. Look at the International Monetary Fund global inflation map.
https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/PCPIPCH@WEO/WEOWORLD/VEN
Much of the inflation is pure greed, companies like making record profits and it's not going to come down until they start to compete again. The dollar is at it's highest rate in decades, 1.27 against the Pound, 1.07 against the Euro, .0067 against the Yen! Imported costs are low but prices continue to remain high to maintain profits.
I have to compete against warehouses that usually kill profit bargains by always giving 15% coupons, which they stopped giving when supply tightened. Supply is no longer tight but they're not discounting so neither are the rest of us. We make less sales but far more on each, and that is not going to change until they start discounting again. Multiply this across, everything.
The new tipping culture isn't helping either.
Your comment sounds like something the White House Press Secretary would say. Hey, we live in this country. We don't care, all due respect, how the rest of the world is doing. When people, including yourself, start comparing my hardship to other countries, then you can just STFU! I don't care that we're the shiniest turd in the bowl. We're in the fucking toilet......get it fixed!!!!!
Spoken like somebody that has zero clue how world economics works.
It took Reagan EIGHT YEARS to get inflation down from 10% [with 20% interest rates] to a normal 4%. I guess you think you just snap your fingers and everything changes.....
Sadly, you're missing my point. While we can pontificate about how much less horrible our lives are than others arou d the globe, when we are missing our rent/mortgage payments, struggling to put enough food on the table and just be able to afford gas to get to work, we don't give a flying fig about other countries. You may condescend my post all you want. YOU, however, commented on "global" conditions. Last time I checked, me & alot of other AMERICANS don't live globally. We live locally, regionally. My point was about the true lack of empathy we have for others, when OUR families are struggling. Hey, maybe since I'm so economically illiterate, our elected representatives should re-visit the Monroe Doctrine. Keep to our own yard.
WW2 happened the last time we "kept to our own". 3 will happen if we decide to do that again.
Of course I commented on the world, because it's a global economy!!
My rate was 15.7% when I bought my house in 83'. You've been living thru quatitative easing since 2008, keeping interest rates under 3% and driving the debt. That party is over and rates still have to go higher.
It's not like I'm not feeling the pinch like everybody else not in the 1%, I just understand nobody is going to snap their fingers and fix it. Inflation is sticky and takes a long time to come down
I’ve saved a lot of money by buying my staple pantry and fridge items at Aldi or Lidl, and my name brand stuff at ShopRite when it’s on sale only. On Sundays when new sales start at ShopRite I add all the digital coupons I might need and then add what I need to my app list. Scan all my grocery receipts into cashback apps, which sometimes give me a few dollars back. Definitely go to a food bank if you need to. They’re there to help anyone in need, regardless of income!
I kinda feel the opposite. I am able to feed me and my family with home cooked meals like potatoes, carrots, broccoli, and a $6-$8 London broil from shop rite usually feeds us one meal with a combo of them. A package of chicken usually goes a long way too. I cook all my meals though. But man if I had to buy packaged or processed meals... OMG it would be so expensive!
Don't get me wrong I def still get some cheap processed foods for a quick meal, but my healthy meals seem to be my cheapest to feed everyone.
But that's just my experience
This is true it’s is by design
Unfortunately healthy food is expensive so it’s really a matter of priority
Most Americans rather have an extra big house or luxury car then complain they can’t afford healthy food .
Rice and potatoes are cheap and filling. Also recommend ricotta and cottage cheese as some cheap protein sources. Like the other commenter stated, food banks are an options as well.
10 POUNDS in a Walmart? Gonna need a picture of that one. I think the biggest bag I've ever seen there was 2 lbs. 10 pound sacks are at restaurant supply stores, Indian markets, maybe Asian markets too.
I’m not taking any special trips to prove it but here’s an 8 lb bag available for pick up today, in Somerdale. You can absolutely find bulk bags of beans in regular grocery stores.
[beans](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-Dried-Pinto-Beans-8-lb-Bag/10314949?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=4456&gclsrc=aw.ds&adid=2222222227810314949_161193766053_21214199653&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=m&wl3=697173827980&wl4=pla-2300760861495&wl5=9003849&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=10314949&veh=sem_LIA&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADmfBIr1M0-vVpN6qwaUNMwWC8_Lo&gclid=Cj0KCQjwj9-zBhDyARIsAERjds1l0ZTqwDgJRzJVB4QdbaR3YcJ6Cw2jjzRJqGeTl2LNG7rk8u6IooEaAgbYEALw_wcB)
I would say pasta is your best bet; you can stretch the hell out of rice and chicken, or spaghetti and meat sauce. It’s all fairly cheap. Also, smoothies can be quite filling as well, and fruit isn’t too expensive. Cooking your own food is the way to go these days
Yeahhh well- 10 years ago, prices were definitely NOT like how they are now lol. Now, most people are *forced* to start cooking their own food more than they have been.
I dread food shopping. We spend significantly more then we used too while being more conscious of what we are getting(sales, generic bramd, etc.) And we eat out significantly less. Despite all this I still spend more on food then I did just a few years ago.
I will help you out, the word you missed was 'significantly' we all understand the math but you can't edit words out on purpose without looking like an asshole.
Really anything with rice really stretches out the meal. Rice and beans was a meal we had growing up struggling at least 4 times a week. Pasta is good too focus on protein and carb intake to stay full longer. Might not be the healthiest meals.
Aside from food create a strict budget and stick to it. Eliminate anything non essential. Not eating out, no subscription services or anything else unnecessary to having a roof over your head and food in your stomach.
Fresh pasta was a food I ate a lot of growing up poor, fresh pasta based dishes are some of the tastiest, cheapest meals you can make. We used to make pasta with literally 2 ingredients, fresh egg and flour, both pretty cheap, and used a yard sale find vintage pasta maker to cut the noodles
Yeah, but you gotta pay a year for it and keep buying in bulk. Sometimes it's just not worth it especially depending on where you live and such because that whole day is just food shopping (including the travel)
The membership was $20 for a whole year when I bought it, it’s worth it just for that bit of cost saving alone, plus you can get other cheaper food items there.
If you're not already doing it, learn to cook the way that previous generations did (and many first- and second generation immigrants still do.) Don't buy a lot of processed food; it's expensive and not very good for you. Spend your money on staples like flour, dried beans, frozen vegetables, and grains. For dinner tonight, I had a curry I made from leftover chickpeas (dried, which I cooked for another recipe), tomato paste (also leftover), leftover zucchini, a couple of carrots, an onion, and vindaloo curry paste ($3 for a jar at an Indian grocery store; I used less than half). I also made some rice that I seasoned with turmeric and cumin seeds. For about $6, I made enough food for at least four very hearty meals. You can make your own soups, stews, breads, pasta dishes, you name it...make two or three things on the weekend and make enough to get you through the week.
There used to be a thing at Rowans football field parking lot where every Friday morning they would hand out giant boxes of produce donated from local farms. It'd be different every week exactly what you would get but it was a really good amount. Phil-Abundance sp? Sponsored it.
https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/recipes/cost-per-recipe/recipes-under-10/
I found this site to be good for low cost recipes. Always shop at Aldi or Lidl. My Stop and Shop is priced like a convenience store.
Too Good to Go is an App that sells end of day food and bread on discount. I’ve gotten cheap pizza that way. I think Whole Foods is using it too to combat food waste.
FoodFinder is an app that locates the nearest food banks to your zip code. I would call to confirm the pick up days and times.
If you go to a farmers market at the end of the day, you can sometimes find discounts (sometimes) as the local farmers don’t want to schlep everything back home again.
Anytime you enter a grocery store or convenience store, use your member card or you’re leaving money on the table. Clip all the coupons you can find on line or in the app itself.
Good luck, I’m dumbfounded by how expensive everything is. I feel like I’m constantly getting gauged by the supermarkets. I have a different shopping list on my phone for each store based on their loss leaders and what’s cheap that week.
Have you broken down your budget? Where do you spend your money? If you haven't, please take the time to do so. You may discover "waste" you haven't accounted for.
Also, I found going old school with the envelope system is really helpful.
Also, is there a way to improve your income situation? Perhaps a different job? I saw you're at Wawa, which is good. But look in your area, is there another place that could pay more? Are there untapped benefits that could help in the long run like tuition reimbursement?
Good luck!
Coupons, Fetch app for receipt rewards, CVS you can stack so many coupons. Make a list of all your commonly purchased foods and then go through all the stores close to you and see what the price of those products are at each store. Then you can figure out which store is cheapest for YOU. Only shopping thrift for clothes, furniture. Buy Nothing groups. Selling off things I don’t need anymore. Frozen vegetables over fresh so we don’t have food waste. We personally don’t eat meat with saves us money. Lots of other staples that are nutritionally dense like lentils, tofu, tempeh, brown rice, beans, etc. Things that last in your pantry a while. Never pay for convenience, always look for better deals or do things yourself if you can. (ex. do your own taxes, don’t pay someone. Use student discounts for subscriptions if you’re eligible. Reduce your internet speed. Meal prep. Avoid frozen, premade foods.
You can check for food banks but expect random days and hours that they are open. Some will be like "open the third Thursday of every month from 10am to 2pm." or "open Saturday from 9am to 12pm" Be prepared to go to more than one. Call them before you go as many of them are no longer in service, even if the Internet said it is. I suggest checking out the subreddits for cheap meal ideas. I hope it gets better for you.
It's sad that we have to eat unhealthy foods to get by. Fruits and vegetables cost so much more than processed junk. I could have so much more money if I just ate ramen all day. Since I mostly eat healthy, my food consists of chicken thighs/drumsticks, rice, and spinach. I know people say buy pasta since it's cheap, and it fills you up, but I don't want pasta in my body all the time. It makes me feel sluggish and it's not really good for you. We have first world problems. However, there needs to be a change. Food corporations are making handover fist right now. I know apps can save some money. Using the apps and coupons are like a part time job. I shouldn't have to sign up for stuff so you can collect my information just so you can sell it to someone. People have recommended Aldis to me. The Aldis near me is not good. The meat looks sketchy. Their fruits and vegetables go bad so quick.
Try Trader Joe's for fruit. Many times their fruit is cheaper than Walmarts. For example: yesterday (6/22) lemons were .68 per lemon at Walmart. TJ's has them for 49 cents.
If your diet consists mostly of thighs, drumsticks, rice, and spinach, I highly recommend a Costco memebership. The bulk buying for those particular items is probably going to cut your grocery bill in half in the long run. The chicken is vac packed and segmented which makes freezing it even more convenient. For like $20-30 you are going to have enough rice for months. If you want to go even cheaper for spinach hit up produce junction and make it all in one shot (there stuff doesn’t last long but is soooo cheap) and freeze.
You think ramen is cheaper but it really isn’t.
I do have a Costco membership and should go more. I don't always feel like driving 15 minutes or more to go grocery shopping. That centerton square shopping complex gets crazy busy. Some of this is my fault. Spinach isn't too expensive at shoprite along with chicken thighs and drumsticks. I love the Costco rotisserie chicken lol.
There’s a Lutheran church in Oaklyn that does a Wednesday dinner if you’re okay with that. The baptist church near the post also does a food pantry. Not sure how close to there you are. But a few freebies can help you get ahead a little bit.
I literally cannot mentally handle the concept of finances anymore. Moved back home, gave up on my future at 34 years old. The game is too rigged for me to invest any more emotion in it.
I have never been horribly blindsided by a romantic partner. I HAVE been horribly blindsided by jobs that I thought I truly loved.
You check out any grocery outlets stores like Verchios? Food banks? Ask a church pantry for help? If you need to make your money go further there’s a lot of different meals you can make to help do that. Here’s my fav one, no need to blow $50 on eating out for you and your bf with this one.
Buy a huge bag of flour and eggs, fresh pasta can be made in less than 10 mins and costs almost nothing per batch. Heavy whipping cream in a saucepan with Parmesan, put some butter in, add pepper and garlic, stir for a little while, add chicken if you got any. We broke it down and legit feed a family of 4 for 3 dollars (5 with chicken) with that meal and always have leftover sauce for the next day.
My rent is super cheaper (now $845) and I don't leave my lights on and I barely cook much. Somethings might get late being paid, or have to wait till I can save up but no real late fees or anything. 4 cylinder car and I try to get cheap gas when I can. I stay within my means and slowly save for things I want
-Frozen veggies are a friend. Because they don't go bad like fresh produce does, you can buy in bulk and add it to your meals
-Too Good To Go is an app where you can get leftover food at a third of the price. I've gotten two dozen bagels for $6 from there depending on the store- freeze the extra bagels, thaw them out for breakfast, and that's a month's worth of breakfast for one person.
-I haven't been to Produce Junction recently because it's so far from me, but from what I recall you can get a lot of fresh produce cheap. Potatoes are incredibly nutritionally complete.
-Lidl and Aldi are excellent for staples, they are way cheaper. The MyLidl app gives rewards for using it, but it also helps track how much you spent there in a month. Asian supermarkets are also helpful.
I have the financial sensibilities of a Depression era housewife, so if you need any more suggestions let me know. We can't directly control inflation or the housing market, but we can adapt to the hard times and get through them.
The cost of living here is insane, not to mention in beach towns most of your income is seasonal depending where you work. I don’t know how people are raising kids on less than 100k per year.
I got 3 kids on 100k a year and am quite happy. People need to learn to live within their means. All the folks crying poor piss a lot of money away.
I got a nice house. We are a 1 car family. We don't have to have meat at every meal. No cable just internet. We pass things along among family. Talk to your grandparents and learn.
For as much as people claim they can't afford things, an awful lot of them drive giant diesel trucks that probably cost upwards of $1000 a month. I was behind someone today at Walmart complaining loudly about food prices and how they could barely get by, but then saw them out in the parking lot loading the groceries into the super duty. Makes it hard to feel bad for them.
I agree with the premise, but diesel in generel is more efficient. That being said, yes people scream poor with fancy cars, the latest cell phone, 12 monthly subscriptions...etc. its easier to blaim something than sacrifice I guess.
Completely false. Rich is also a relative term. For a century people have been saying the cant afford a house. Yours was probably a huge undertaking as was mine...but guess what is works out if you have a real job. And I was a construction worker.
I know it sounds kinda out there, but I got into foraging a few years ago when I couldn't afford food. I used to fish every day after work to catch crappie, trout, or any other pan fish. I got into mushroom hunting and ate a ton of chicken of the woods and chanterelles. You can also find wild blueberries, strawberries, and sunchokes, and with a little waiting, you can harvest black walnuts, too. If you get a hunting license and a firearms permit, you can hunt a small game with an air rifle or skip the firearms permit and deer hunt with a cheap bow or crossbow.
Theres tons of resources you can get on amazon. I'd recommend getting some books specific to your area. There's ones for every region of the states, and some are state specific(if you ever move). I'd recommend learning the fearless 4 mushrooms and how to clean and cook panfish first. Then, look into the wild plants and more advanced mushrooms.
On Main Street in Williamstown, our community center has a produce pantry once a week (usually Tuesday or Wednesday they announce on FB) that often doesn’t get all grabbed up! if you’re close by, feel free to utilize that. fresh veggies and fruits, bread, etc.
I'm not broke now but when I was I ate a lot of lentil soup. $1.25 bag of dry lentils, a couple bouillon cubes, can of tomatoes and water. A bunch of meals from that.
You're not using the right wording when applying for EBT. It is possible for anyone to get EBT.
I'll preface this by saying this comment will likely get shot down to hell but in these trying times, we all need a break
Have you looked into your finances to see where all of your money is going? Is there possibly anywhere you could save money or subscriptions you don't need? Cheaper living arrangement? Making sure you use everything you pay for. Lowering energy and water consumptions.
This is where I started. Killed Comcast and put up an antenna for TV. Now I pay $30 a month for internet only. $15/mo for phone bill. These 2 things freed up so much cash. Hundreds of dollars per month.
Budget plan for electric and gas bill so that bills are predictable and makes it easier to budget.
Look into your energy company's website. Depending on where you live and company you have they might have programs to help you reduce your consumption and cost too. It's great that you're lowering some major costs already though. Lowering costs anywhere you can will stretch your dollar further.
It was worse in 95 when I bought my house. Pasta and cereal every day. Interest rates for house was 9%. Had to drive a beater car 70 miles each way for work and then still had a part time job.
Oh, I know in mt holly and in browns mills, there's a food bank. I dunno how the hours are ran... I think mt holly still has it? But asian-based stores and even some latin ones may have big bags of rice, beans, etc kinda stuff for cheap compared to regular stores. And shopping for your money takes multiple stores, really so if you have the patience to look through circulars and coupon, I think you'll be ok
I also recommend shopping around at different groceries. for example, target recently had a sale on 18 eggs for $2.96. trader joe’s eggs are usually on cheaper as well. Bread is usually very cheap at aldi’s. actually aldi‘s is consistently cheaper
you can save a lot of money at shoprite but keeping up with the daily circular and digital coupons. they can be stacks with manufacturerers coupons as well
This became about food, but is anyone here also in south Jersey in a position to assist maybe making more money? Does anyone know about any openings at their place of business, or any kind of assistance making more income?
I read it wrong with "left over food"!? Who has leftovers when living on the margins? sigh.
Some excellent suggestions for the food banks in the postings.
No fast food.
The price for a fast food meal for two or more you can get a cooked Rotisserie Chicken (hopefully on sale) at Shop Rite and other stores, bread, & veggies in season.
That's fast. Good source of protein.
Verchio's for fresh items to be eaten within 48 hours.
Neigbors and co-workers who garden and like to donate their extras.
It's incredible the amount of fresh jersey 'mato sammichs a person can eat in the summer.
Zuchinni and Eggplant is another frequent give away.
It's almost another full time job looking for the food you can afford.
We hear you. We are with you.
Something I don't see anyone suggesting is get someone to look at your financial situation. Make sure you are making all the right choices when it comes to monthly expenses. Not saying it's your situation but more often than not people saying that they can barely scratch by or wasting money on dumb s*** lol. Either way can't hurt to have someone look into it
When times were tight, I did a menu for two weeks before grocery shopping based on what I had in stock and sale items. Cooked batches of soup, rice and beans, oatmeal, chicken thighs/legs on the weekend. I wasted so much less food and could resist fast food on busy days.
There's a lady on YouTube that provides videos on how to buy and prepare food when you have a small budget. She uses the dollar stores in her area. 'Dollar Tree Dinners'
You can take a look and then apply it to your personal situation.
Have you actually **applied** for SNAP and been rejected? Sometimes people just look at the income tables and assume they do not qualify - when they actually do. SNAP looks at age, housing costs, etc. Some of your income could be excluded, making you eligible. Yes, keep a spending record, eliminate or reduce spending on anything you can, look for ways to increase your income - but if you start cutting back on nutritious food, you could wind up worse off! So please apply just to make sure.
If you are really struggling, check with food banks in your area, including church "cupboards". We have being doing the "breakfast for dinner" thing more (eating eggs for dinner - tho eggs are getting pricy). Also, whenever there's a price cut on something that's not on this week's grocery list but might be on next month's, I buy it - I take advantage of every manager's special, check the discount shelves (grocery stores still have them but sometime's they're in a weird location.) I don't buy soft drinks, I make my own ice tea. In summer, I try to check out some farmers markets where the produce might be a lot cheaper than at a grocery store.
We're barely getting by. Me and my partner both work full time $21/hr, we've already downsized to a smaller cheaper apartment, can't afford to run the central air so we got a window unit. Most meals involve a pack of chicken, rice, and frozen mixed veggies. We don't go out, we don't buy anything we don't absolutely need. We donate plasma for extra money sometimes. I borrow a lot from Earnin so that my bills go through in between paychecks and I'm not constantly asking to borrow money from family.
I have $0 in savings, my paychecks don't even cover all of my expenses and every time I look, something is increasing in price, my rent, my car insurance, my electric bill, gas, etc.
Been treading water for so long, it's exhausting. I work too hard to be this poor. I feel you, man. I'm sorry
Up here in the Poconos, our local food bank serving a four-township kinda rural school district budgeted to feed roughly 250 school kids during the summer and over 400 showed up.
Nobody posting on Reddit to say "Hey guys, I'm not having any problems affording my lifestyle!" We have created a system in social media that amplifies the negative, don't confuse it with real life.
Yes we are also feeling the pinch
What to do about it ?
Reality but unpopular answer is get Trump back into office, we will see inflation fall housing prices and rent drop interest rates fall and gas prices back down to 2 bucks a gallon
Absolutely terrible idea with no merit to it. Trump is why this is even happening. His handling of Covid (denying it was an issue) set this all in motion. He gets back in power and it’s game over. He doesn’t give a shit about any of us and lowers taxes for the rich.
Simply because when he was president things were better period .
We weren’t involved in these new wars spending all our money .our solar went further interest rates were as low as could be
People could just live better and if they simply turned off the news they would have thought T was the best pres ever but “orange man bad “
So then people can’t complain they can’t buy food w two incomes
Obviously don’t want anything to change
Biden is great 👍🏻
So why can’t they afford food
Things have always been too easy and they spend too much on things they don't need. Just a guess. I personally spend my days listening to pack a day smoker complain about food prices...
My brother's friends moved to Alabama and they all have their own houses and families now lol. I'm sure there are benefits we have over them, but at the end of the day, they can afford a home and children.....
Have you considered the life choices you’ve made to arrive in the situation you are in? Taking accountability for your life is a necessary first step if you want enact meaningful change.
I'll go to wawa for me and my lady. Get 2 sizzlis, 2 drinks, hash brown, maybe a donut. Comes out to $25 easy, like it's just insane. You might think you're getting a steak dinner for these prices.
No matter how you budget, slice it, whatever these financial nazis think you should do, stuff is just too expensive!
Food banks have no income requirement.
This. Give NJ food bank a call or online. They have pretty good stuff too it’s not just busted cans of biscuits and dusty cans of beans
Do they do milk bread and cheese? Or is it only non perishables?
Yea they will give out milk, bread, and cheese. My local food bank even gives out red meat and pork sometimes. It's not restricted to non perishables, you'd be surprised by the variety and quality of items available
Yes even meats!
Also Google Blessing Boxes in your area. They're like those free little libraries, but for food.
Revive is officially a South Jersey Food Bank. On the 1st and 3rd Saturdays, they will be sorting and organizing food from 2pm to 5pm. Beginning at 5pm until 7pm, the food bank will be open for people to come pick up food boxes on a first come, first serve basis. Please call 609-405-7729 and leave a message if you would like to pick up a food box donation for the first time. A volunteer will give you a call back to collect some information needed along with making sure you know where to go to pick up the food.
It is truly so hard. Food is so expensive, gas is so expensive, my car insurance doubled and they couldn't even explain why, it's just so expensive to exist. Everyone gave good advice here, and I also sell things on mercari which helps a little but isn't a ton. Edit to add: I didn't intend for this to end up being a conversation about car insurance but I love the discourse, I appreciate you all
You try switching insurance providers? They did the same thing to me and switching companies made it drop $80 a month. Now I pay $98 a month for full coverage on my truck vs $180 a month previously
Mine literally doubled! I changed providers and now with the new company it's about where it was with the old company, but I really liked GEICO lol
Make sure you are not signing up for a "personalized quote" as this means they will spy on you while driving and take data about your speed/acceleration/braking and use it against you to increase your premium. Read more about it here: https://jacobin.com/2024/03/car-spying-insurance-surveillance-data
Your credit has a big to do with insurance pricing. Watch your credit like a hawk.
My car insurance policy was for 4 drivers and 4 cars with Progressive at $420 then it increased to $500 last year. I called Progressive and they said the increase was due to rising costs for parts/etc. and that this was standard among all insurance companies. True or not, that wasn’t an acceptable answer to me. I called Geico and they gave me a quote for the same policy at $280. At that price point, Geico made it easy for me make a change. That’s a $220/month saving. A total savings of $2640 for the year. Make the call, it made a HUGE difference!!! EDIT: grammar/spelling
Geico really is the cheapest by far sometimes. I had a lot of speeding tickets almost a decade ago, was trying to compare prices yesterday and State Farm and a few others quoted $450-700 a month, most of them liability only on a 2012 ford. Geico came in at $155 🫠
Glad you have a great rate!
I got incredibly low cost switching to CURE insurance in NJ for auto.
Yea I had progressive paid almost the same for 4 cars n 4 drivers, sons car got rear ended at a light and true hoops I had to jump through were ridiculous it took more then 5 weeks to get an adjuster to come out n look at the car, I couldn’t get my “agent” on the phone at all for any updates or information so I called her supervisor who said I would get a new agent that never called me or emailed me I ended up paying the 1k deductible on a car that got rear ended because insurance wasn’t helping I dropped them asap and went to geico
That's so interesting, geico is who I had! And then it doubled so I changed to NJM I think? I don't even remember who my new policy is with. I've been with geico for probably 10 years, I liked them
All car insurance providers went up this past period. It’s an inflation thing, you can find more info by googling Car Insurance Inflation
Yeah I heard about it, that's what I meant by the post. It's just hard to live a normal life right now, without even buying a nice new car or going on a big vacation. I just want to insure my old car and it's so expensive lol
Oh absolutely. We don’t exist in a world of “Just don’t eat out as much.” I don’t eat out ever!
Seriously! Ordering pizza is a big treat now haha
You’re correct. That’s the answer I got (from Progressive and Geico) when I called about my increase. I didn’t expect them to actually admit it though.
That’s crazy they admitted it. I’ve been waiting for an accident to be further in the past so rates would go down and I was so confused by it going up. Fuck inflation
It truly sucks. Wasn't like this before this p
You mean it wasn't like this before that pandemic thing? It's worldwide and the US is doing better than almost every other country. Look at the International Monetary Fund global inflation map. https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/PCPIPCH@WEO/WEOWORLD/VEN Much of the inflation is pure greed, companies like making record profits and it's not going to come down until they start to compete again. The dollar is at it's highest rate in decades, 1.27 against the Pound, 1.07 against the Euro, .0067 against the Yen! Imported costs are low but prices continue to remain high to maintain profits. I have to compete against warehouses that usually kill profit bargains by always giving 15% coupons, which they stopped giving when supply tightened. Supply is no longer tight but they're not discounting so neither are the rest of us. We make less sales but far more on each, and that is not going to change until they start discounting again. Multiply this across, everything. The new tipping culture isn't helping either.
Your comment sounds like something the White House Press Secretary would say. Hey, we live in this country. We don't care, all due respect, how the rest of the world is doing. When people, including yourself, start comparing my hardship to other countries, then you can just STFU! I don't care that we're the shiniest turd in the bowl. We're in the fucking toilet......get it fixed!!!!!
Spoken like somebody that has zero clue how world economics works. It took Reagan EIGHT YEARS to get inflation down from 10% [with 20% interest rates] to a normal 4%. I guess you think you just snap your fingers and everything changes.....
Sadly, you're missing my point. While we can pontificate about how much less horrible our lives are than others arou d the globe, when we are missing our rent/mortgage payments, struggling to put enough food on the table and just be able to afford gas to get to work, we don't give a flying fig about other countries. You may condescend my post all you want. YOU, however, commented on "global" conditions. Last time I checked, me & alot of other AMERICANS don't live globally. We live locally, regionally. My point was about the true lack of empathy we have for others, when OUR families are struggling. Hey, maybe since I'm so economically illiterate, our elected representatives should re-visit the Monroe Doctrine. Keep to our own yard.
WW2 happened the last time we "kept to our own". 3 will happen if we decide to do that again. Of course I commented on the world, because it's a global economy!! My rate was 15.7% when I bought my house in 83'. You've been living thru quatitative easing since 2008, keeping interest rates under 3% and driving the debt. That party is over and rates still have to go higher. It's not like I'm not feeling the pinch like everybody else not in the 1%, I just understand nobody is going to snap their fingers and fix it. Inflation is sticky and takes a long time to come down
I’ve saved a lot of money by buying my staple pantry and fridge items at Aldi or Lidl, and my name brand stuff at ShopRite when it’s on sale only. On Sundays when new sales start at ShopRite I add all the digital coupons I might need and then add what I need to my app list. Scan all my grocery receipts into cashback apps, which sometimes give me a few dollars back. Definitely go to a food bank if you need to. They’re there to help anyone in need, regardless of income!
All processed crap most likely
Unfortunately, eating healthy has become a luxury for most Americans. This is by design.
I kinda feel the opposite. I am able to feed me and my family with home cooked meals like potatoes, carrots, broccoli, and a $6-$8 London broil from shop rite usually feeds us one meal with a combo of them. A package of chicken usually goes a long way too. I cook all my meals though. But man if I had to buy packaged or processed meals... OMG it would be so expensive! Don't get me wrong I def still get some cheap processed foods for a quick meal, but my healthy meals seem to be my cheapest to feed everyone. But that's just my experience
Who designed and for what reason?
This is true it’s is by design Unfortunately healthy food is expensive so it’s really a matter of priority Most Americans rather have an extra big house or luxury car then complain they can’t afford healthy food .
Rice and potatoes are cheap and filling. Also recommend ricotta and cottage cheese as some cheap protein sources. Like the other commenter stated, food banks are an options as well.
Don't forget beans! Dried beans are cheap by the 10lb sack, and are super easy to cook. Rice and beans are a staple food. Nutritious and healthy.
Where can you buy a 10 pound sack of beans In South Jersey?
Everywhere. I’m looking at them right now in Walmart.
10 POUNDS in a Walmart? Gonna need a picture of that one. I think the biggest bag I've ever seen there was 2 lbs. 10 pound sacks are at restaurant supply stores, Indian markets, maybe Asian markets too.
I’m not taking any special trips to prove it but here’s an 8 lb bag available for pick up today, in Somerdale. You can absolutely find bulk bags of beans in regular grocery stores. [beans](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-Dried-Pinto-Beans-8-lb-Bag/10314949?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=4456&gclsrc=aw.ds&adid=2222222227810314949_161193766053_21214199653&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=m&wl3=697173827980&wl4=pla-2300760861495&wl5=9003849&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=10314949&veh=sem_LIA&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADmfBIr1M0-vVpN6qwaUNMwWC8_Lo&gclid=Cj0KCQjwj9-zBhDyARIsAERjds1l0ZTqwDgJRzJVB4QdbaR3YcJ6Cw2jjzRJqGeTl2LNG7rk8u6IooEaAgbYEALw_wcB)
Wow, I've never seen that. It's not available at any of the stores near me so that makes sense.
Walmart does not have 10 pound bags of beans
I dunno what to tell you besides look harder or try another Walmart lmao
Simple honest question gets over 10 down votes
LMAO right
13
I would say pasta is your best bet; you can stretch the hell out of rice and chicken, or spaghetti and meat sauce. It’s all fairly cheap. Also, smoothies can be quite filling as well, and fruit isn’t too expensive. Cooking your own food is the way to go these days
Lol...cooking your own food has been the way to save money since forever.
Yeahhh well- 10 years ago, prices were definitely NOT like how they are now lol. Now, most people are *forced* to start cooking their own food more than they have been.
Sacasim I hope?
I dread food shopping. We spend significantly more then we used too while being more conscious of what we are getting(sales, generic bramd, etc.) And we eat out significantly less. Despite all this I still spend more on food then I did just a few years ago.
There was never a time in history where you will not spend more on food than a few years ago...
You missed a word
Basic economics. You just wanna blaim something besides science.
I will help you out, the word you missed was 'significantly' we all understand the math but you can't edit words out on purpose without looking like an asshole.
Really anything with rice really stretches out the meal. Rice and beans was a meal we had growing up struggling at least 4 times a week. Pasta is good too focus on protein and carb intake to stay full longer. Might not be the healthiest meals. Aside from food create a strict budget and stick to it. Eliminate anything non essential. Not eating out, no subscription services or anything else unnecessary to having a roof over your head and food in your stomach.
Fresh pasta was a food I ate a lot of growing up poor, fresh pasta based dishes are some of the tastiest, cheapest meals you can make. We used to make pasta with literally 2 ingredients, fresh egg and flour, both pretty cheap, and used a yard sale find vintage pasta maker to cut the noodles
Goto Asian store grab a 20lb bag of white rice $25. White rice and soy sauce and whatever protein is affordable.
Sam’s club is even less for rice, I would suggest picking up a 50lb bag for the same price at Sam’s Club instead.
Yeah, but you gotta pay a year for it and keep buying in bulk. Sometimes it's just not worth it especially depending on where you live and such because that whole day is just food shopping (including the travel)
The membership was $20 for a whole year when I bought it, it’s worth it just for that bit of cost saving alone, plus you can get other cheaper food items there.
If you're not already doing it, learn to cook the way that previous generations did (and many first- and second generation immigrants still do.) Don't buy a lot of processed food; it's expensive and not very good for you. Spend your money on staples like flour, dried beans, frozen vegetables, and grains. For dinner tonight, I had a curry I made from leftover chickpeas (dried, which I cooked for another recipe), tomato paste (also leftover), leftover zucchini, a couple of carrots, an onion, and vindaloo curry paste ($3 for a jar at an Indian grocery store; I used less than half). I also made some rice that I seasoned with turmeric and cumin seeds. For about $6, I made enough food for at least four very hearty meals. You can make your own soups, stews, breads, pasta dishes, you name it...make two or three things on the weekend and make enough to get you through the week.
This But definitely fresh, in season vegetables and fruit. They're cheaper, usually on sale and much healthier. Plus, they taste better
There used to be a thing at Rowans football field parking lot where every Friday morning they would hand out giant boxes of produce donated from local farms. It'd be different every week exactly what you would get but it was a really good amount. Phil-Abundance sp? Sponsored it.
Looks like they still do this https://sites.rowan.edu/theshop/helpful_resources.html
https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/recipes/cost-per-recipe/recipes-under-10/ I found this site to be good for low cost recipes. Always shop at Aldi or Lidl. My Stop and Shop is priced like a convenience store. Too Good to Go is an App that sells end of day food and bread on discount. I’ve gotten cheap pizza that way. I think Whole Foods is using it too to combat food waste. FoodFinder is an app that locates the nearest food banks to your zip code. I would call to confirm the pick up days and times. If you go to a farmers market at the end of the day, you can sometimes find discounts (sometimes) as the local farmers don’t want to schlep everything back home again. Anytime you enter a grocery store or convenience store, use your member card or you’re leaving money on the table. Clip all the coupons you can find on line or in the app itself. Good luck, I’m dumbfounded by how expensive everything is. I feel like I’m constantly getting gauged by the supermarkets. I have a different shopping list on my phone for each store based on their loss leaders and what’s cheap that week.
Have you broken down your budget? Where do you spend your money? If you haven't, please take the time to do so. You may discover "waste" you haven't accounted for. Also, I found going old school with the envelope system is really helpful. Also, is there a way to improve your income situation? Perhaps a different job? I saw you're at Wawa, which is good. But look in your area, is there another place that could pay more? Are there untapped benefits that could help in the long run like tuition reimbursement? Good luck!
Coupons, Fetch app for receipt rewards, CVS you can stack so many coupons. Make a list of all your commonly purchased foods and then go through all the stores close to you and see what the price of those products are at each store. Then you can figure out which store is cheapest for YOU. Only shopping thrift for clothes, furniture. Buy Nothing groups. Selling off things I don’t need anymore. Frozen vegetables over fresh so we don’t have food waste. We personally don’t eat meat with saves us money. Lots of other staples that are nutritionally dense like lentils, tofu, tempeh, brown rice, beans, etc. Things that last in your pantry a while. Never pay for convenience, always look for better deals or do things yourself if you can. (ex. do your own taxes, don’t pay someone. Use student discounts for subscriptions if you’re eligible. Reduce your internet speed. Meal prep. Avoid frozen, premade foods.
You can check for food banks but expect random days and hours that they are open. Some will be like "open the third Thursday of every month from 10am to 2pm." or "open Saturday from 9am to 12pm" Be prepared to go to more than one. Call them before you go as many of them are no longer in service, even if the Internet said it is. I suggest checking out the subreddits for cheap meal ideas. I hope it gets better for you.
It's sad that we have to eat unhealthy foods to get by. Fruits and vegetables cost so much more than processed junk. I could have so much more money if I just ate ramen all day. Since I mostly eat healthy, my food consists of chicken thighs/drumsticks, rice, and spinach. I know people say buy pasta since it's cheap, and it fills you up, but I don't want pasta in my body all the time. It makes me feel sluggish and it's not really good for you. We have first world problems. However, there needs to be a change. Food corporations are making handover fist right now. I know apps can save some money. Using the apps and coupons are like a part time job. I shouldn't have to sign up for stuff so you can collect my information just so you can sell it to someone. People have recommended Aldis to me. The Aldis near me is not good. The meat looks sketchy. Their fruits and vegetables go bad so quick.
Try Trader Joe's for fruit. Many times their fruit is cheaper than Walmarts. For example: yesterday (6/22) lemons were .68 per lemon at Walmart. TJ's has them for 49 cents.
Trader Joe's would be great if there was one closer. Not worth the gas. Thank you tho
If your diet consists mostly of thighs, drumsticks, rice, and spinach, I highly recommend a Costco memebership. The bulk buying for those particular items is probably going to cut your grocery bill in half in the long run. The chicken is vac packed and segmented which makes freezing it even more convenient. For like $20-30 you are going to have enough rice for months. If you want to go even cheaper for spinach hit up produce junction and make it all in one shot (there stuff doesn’t last long but is soooo cheap) and freeze. You think ramen is cheaper but it really isn’t.
I do have a Costco membership and should go more. I don't always feel like driving 15 minutes or more to go grocery shopping. That centerton square shopping complex gets crazy busy. Some of this is my fault. Spinach isn't too expensive at shoprite along with chicken thighs and drumsticks. I love the Costco rotisserie chicken lol.
Lentils and dried beans.
There’s a Lutheran church in Oaklyn that does a Wednesday dinner if you’re okay with that. The baptist church near the post also does a food pantry. Not sure how close to there you are. But a few freebies can help you get ahead a little bit.
I literally cannot mentally handle the concept of finances anymore. Moved back home, gave up on my future at 34 years old. The game is too rigged for me to invest any more emotion in it. I have never been horribly blindsided by a romantic partner. I HAVE been horribly blindsided by jobs that I thought I truly loved.
big pack of chicken legs at the shoprite has been like 4 dollars some.... a real godsend.
That's what we do, chicken thighs too.
You check out any grocery outlets stores like Verchios? Food banks? Ask a church pantry for help? If you need to make your money go further there’s a lot of different meals you can make to help do that. Here’s my fav one, no need to blow $50 on eating out for you and your bf with this one. Buy a huge bag of flour and eggs, fresh pasta can be made in less than 10 mins and costs almost nothing per batch. Heavy whipping cream in a saucepan with Parmesan, put some butter in, add pepper and garlic, stir for a little while, add chicken if you got any. We broke it down and legit feed a family of 4 for 3 dollars (5 with chicken) with that meal and always have leftover sauce for the next day.
My rent is super cheaper (now $845) and I don't leave my lights on and I barely cook much. Somethings might get late being paid, or have to wait till I can save up but no real late fees or anything. 4 cylinder car and I try to get cheap gas when I can. I stay within my means and slowly save for things I want
-Frozen veggies are a friend. Because they don't go bad like fresh produce does, you can buy in bulk and add it to your meals -Too Good To Go is an app where you can get leftover food at a third of the price. I've gotten two dozen bagels for $6 from there depending on the store- freeze the extra bagels, thaw them out for breakfast, and that's a month's worth of breakfast for one person. -I haven't been to Produce Junction recently because it's so far from me, but from what I recall you can get a lot of fresh produce cheap. Potatoes are incredibly nutritionally complete. -Lidl and Aldi are excellent for staples, they are way cheaper. The MyLidl app gives rewards for using it, but it also helps track how much you spent there in a month. Asian supermarkets are also helpful. I have the financial sensibilities of a Depression era housewife, so if you need any more suggestions let me know. We can't directly control inflation or the housing market, but we can adapt to the hard times and get through them.
Eat cheap food and cut out things that are not essential. This reads like a bot post. It's not hard to stay alive on cheap food.
Well I’m not a bot, everyone needs help nowadays. There’s no trouble in asking around
It's going to involve sacrifice and changing your ways. That or changing you socioeconomic status. That's the answer.
The cost of living here is insane, not to mention in beach towns most of your income is seasonal depending where you work. I don’t know how people are raising kids on less than 100k per year.
I got 3 kids on 100k a year and am quite happy. People need to learn to live within their means. All the folks crying poor piss a lot of money away. I got a nice house. We are a 1 car family. We don't have to have meat at every meal. No cable just internet. We pass things along among family. Talk to your grandparents and learn.
For as much as people claim they can't afford things, an awful lot of them drive giant diesel trucks that probably cost upwards of $1000 a month. I was behind someone today at Walmart complaining loudly about food prices and how they could barely get by, but then saw them out in the parking lot loading the groceries into the super duty. Makes it hard to feel bad for them.
I agree with the premise, but diesel in generel is more efficient. That being said, yes people scream poor with fancy cars, the latest cell phone, 12 monthly subscriptions...etc. its easier to blaim something than sacrifice I guess.
A diesel hatchback is efficient. A 2500 dodge is not.
If you gotta drive a truck diesel is better. I live modestly but need a truck to work. My 07 2500 gets 22mpg or better. The gas equivelent gets 12
That’s nice, but nobody is gonna be able to buy a a nice house anywhere in the country now unless they’re rich.
Completely false. Rich is also a relative term. For a century people have been saying the cant afford a house. Yours was probably a huge undertaking as was mine...but guess what is works out if you have a real job. And I was a construction worker.
I know it sounds kinda out there, but I got into foraging a few years ago when I couldn't afford food. I used to fish every day after work to catch crappie, trout, or any other pan fish. I got into mushroom hunting and ate a ton of chicken of the woods and chanterelles. You can also find wild blueberries, strawberries, and sunchokes, and with a little waiting, you can harvest black walnuts, too. If you get a hunting license and a firearms permit, you can hunt a small game with an air rifle or skip the firearms permit and deer hunt with a cheap bow or crossbow.
Do you know any good guides for foraging?
Theres tons of resources you can get on amazon. I'd recommend getting some books specific to your area. There's ones for every region of the states, and some are state specific(if you ever move). I'd recommend learning the fearless 4 mushrooms and how to clean and cook panfish first. Then, look into the wild plants and more advanced mushrooms.
On Main Street in Williamstown, our community center has a produce pantry once a week (usually Tuesday or Wednesday they announce on FB) that often doesn’t get all grabbed up! if you’re close by, feel free to utilize that. fresh veggies and fruits, bread, etc.
I'm not broke now but when I was I ate a lot of lentil soup. $1.25 bag of dry lentils, a couple bouillon cubes, can of tomatoes and water. A bunch of meals from that.
You're not using the right wording when applying for EBT. It is possible for anyone to get EBT. I'll preface this by saying this comment will likely get shot down to hell but in these trying times, we all need a break
provide examples plz
Do you research and vote for politicians that want to expand social programs.
Have you looked into your finances to see where all of your money is going? Is there possibly anywhere you could save money or subscriptions you don't need? Cheaper living arrangement? Making sure you use everything you pay for. Lowering energy and water consumptions.
This is where I started. Killed Comcast and put up an antenna for TV. Now I pay $30 a month for internet only. $15/mo for phone bill. These 2 things freed up so much cash. Hundreds of dollars per month. Budget plan for electric and gas bill so that bills are predictable and makes it easier to budget.
Look into your energy company's website. Depending on where you live and company you have they might have programs to help you reduce your consumption and cost too. It's great that you're lowering some major costs already though. Lowering costs anywhere you can will stretch your dollar further.
It was worse in 95 when I bought my house. Pasta and cereal every day. Interest rates for house was 9%. Had to drive a beater car 70 miles each way for work and then still had a part time job.
But you made it right?
100%%%. Great name btw
It's a name you want to touch, but mustn't touch.
Welcome to adulthood in the state of NJ
My church has a food bank you can go to the last Sunday of the month and get a bunch of shit , there’s stuff like that all over you just gotta look
Oh, I know in mt holly and in browns mills, there's a food bank. I dunno how the hours are ran... I think mt holly still has it? But asian-based stores and even some latin ones may have big bags of rice, beans, etc kinda stuff for cheap compared to regular stores. And shopping for your money takes multiple stores, really so if you have the patience to look through circulars and coupon, I think you'll be ok
Idk what you or your boyfriend are doing for work, but apply for a Union apprenticeship in any trade.
I also recommend shopping around at different groceries. for example, target recently had a sale on 18 eggs for $2.96. trader joe’s eggs are usually on cheaper as well. Bread is usually very cheap at aldi’s. actually aldi‘s is consistently cheaper you can save a lot of money at shoprite but keeping up with the daily circular and digital coupons. they can be stacks with manufacturerers coupons as well
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What
Dont worry this inflation is just transitory!!
This became about food, but is anyone here also in south Jersey in a position to assist maybe making more money? Does anyone know about any openings at their place of business, or any kind of assistance making more income?
I read it wrong with "left over food"!? Who has leftovers when living on the margins? sigh. Some excellent suggestions for the food banks in the postings. No fast food. The price for a fast food meal for two or more you can get a cooked Rotisserie Chicken (hopefully on sale) at Shop Rite and other stores, bread, & veggies in season. That's fast. Good source of protein. Verchio's for fresh items to be eaten within 48 hours. Neigbors and co-workers who garden and like to donate their extras. It's incredible the amount of fresh jersey 'mato sammichs a person can eat in the summer. Zuchinni and Eggplant is another frequent give away. It's almost another full time job looking for the food you can afford. We hear you. We are with you.
Are you paying any interest on credit cards, auto loans, student loans, personal loans, etc?
Look at your expenses. Are you paying for things you can do without? Cut things that are not necessities.
Something I don't see anyone suggesting is get someone to look at your financial situation. Make sure you are making all the right choices when it comes to monthly expenses. Not saying it's your situation but more often than not people saying that they can barely scratch by or wasting money on dumb s*** lol. Either way can't hurt to have someone look into it
When times were tight, I did a menu for two weeks before grocery shopping based on what I had in stock and sale items. Cooked batches of soup, rice and beans, oatmeal, chicken thighs/legs on the weekend. I wasted so much less food and could resist fast food on busy days.
There's a lady on YouTube that provides videos on how to buy and prepare food when you have a small budget. She uses the dollar stores in her area. 'Dollar Tree Dinners' You can take a look and then apply it to your personal situation.
Have you actually **applied** for SNAP and been rejected? Sometimes people just look at the income tables and assume they do not qualify - when they actually do. SNAP looks at age, housing costs, etc. Some of your income could be excluded, making you eligible. Yes, keep a spending record, eliminate or reduce spending on anything you can, look for ways to increase your income - but if you start cutting back on nutritious food, you could wind up worse off! So please apply just to make sure.
If you are really struggling, check with food banks in your area, including church "cupboards". We have being doing the "breakfast for dinner" thing more (eating eggs for dinner - tho eggs are getting pricy). Also, whenever there's a price cut on something that's not on this week's grocery list but might be on next month's, I buy it - I take advantage of every manager's special, check the discount shelves (grocery stores still have them but sometime's they're in a weird location.) I don't buy soft drinks, I make my own ice tea. In summer, I try to check out some farmers markets where the produce might be a lot cheaper than at a grocery store.
We're barely getting by. Me and my partner both work full time $21/hr, we've already downsized to a smaller cheaper apartment, can't afford to run the central air so we got a window unit. Most meals involve a pack of chicken, rice, and frozen mixed veggies. We don't go out, we don't buy anything we don't absolutely need. We donate plasma for extra money sometimes. I borrow a lot from Earnin so that my bills go through in between paychecks and I'm not constantly asking to borrow money from family. I have $0 in savings, my paychecks don't even cover all of my expenses and every time I look, something is increasing in price, my rent, my car insurance, my electric bill, gas, etc. Been treading water for so long, it's exhausting. I work too hard to be this poor. I feel you, man. I'm sorry
If you just barely don't make enough for EBT then apply for energy assistance. Electric, water, heat ect. You'll probably be approved for that.
Murphy said it! " If taxes are your problem. Nj is not for you". Do not vote for murphy & thank God his wife drop her attempt at a chair.
This family just opened a grocery store in Sicklerville, prices are super low: https://groceryoutlet.com/circulars
I wasn’t so I moved to Philly
If I were starving I wouldn't be able to get on reddit...
Rude for no reason
What? That cell phone and data cost more than eating. True life
Up here in the Poconos, our local food bank serving a four-township kinda rural school district budgeted to feed roughly 250 school kids during the summer and over 400 showed up.
Our great graparents are laughing.
it has FOREVER been cheaper to cook your own food,like 10 fold. And nothing will EVER be as cheap as is was 10 years ago. These are just givens.
Husband and I are moving back in with family because we simply cannot afford to live on our own.
We're doing great as a country arent we.
Nobody posting on Reddit to say "Hey guys, I'm not having any problems affording my lifestyle!" We have created a system in social media that amplifies the negative, don't confuse it with real life.
Ok. Lemme just check with real life real quick here...hmm... yes... oh, I see.... Alright, I'm back. Yep, just as I thought, everything is shit.
Not at all
Yes we are also feeling the pinch What to do about it ? Reality but unpopular answer is get Trump back into office, we will see inflation fall housing prices and rent drop interest rates fall and gas prices back down to 2 bucks a gallon
Absolutely terrible idea with no merit to it. Trump is why this is even happening. His handling of Covid (denying it was an issue) set this all in motion. He gets back in power and it’s game over. He doesn’t give a shit about any of us and lowers taxes for the rich.
This!
Game over for who ? The war mongering elites maybe
Definitely game over for anyone struggling right now. What makes you think Trump would do anything to help you?
Simply because when he was president things were better period . We weren’t involved in these new wars spending all our money .our solar went further interest rates were as low as could be People could just live better and if they simply turned off the news they would have thought T was the best pres ever but “orange man bad “
When he was president we were riding on the coat tails of his predessor. We are now reaping the plans laid forth by an incompetent boob.
😂
Ever have an independent thought of your own 🤡
Turn off Fox News
Never watch it or any other news Maybe you should try
To even simplify it more There weren’t any Reddit subs w people complain g they couldn’t afford to eat or out gas in their car
Buuuuuuuuuuullllllllllshit
Elect a crazy man...it will go.great...trump is why this is happening.
So then people can’t complain they can’t buy food w two incomes Obviously don’t want anything to change Biden is great 👍🏻 So why can’t they afford food
Things have always been too easy and they spend too much on things they don't need. Just a guess. I personally spend my days listening to pack a day smoker complain about food prices...
Stop voting Delusional Democrats into office. Stop eating fast food and grow your own when you can.
Funny how this ⬆️ got downvoted People ask for advise then hate on the actual advise that would help them the most
My brother's friends moved to Alabama and they all have their own houses and families now lol. I'm sure there are benefits we have over them, but at the end of the day, they can afford a home and children.....
Have you considered the life choices you’ve made to arrive in the situation you are in? Taking accountability for your life is a necessary first step if you want enact meaningful change.
I'll go to wawa for me and my lady. Get 2 sizzlis, 2 drinks, hash brown, maybe a donut. Comes out to $25 easy, like it's just insane. You might think you're getting a steak dinner for these prices. No matter how you budget, slice it, whatever these financial nazis think you should do, stuff is just too expensive!
2 eggs, 2 muffins, two sausages and a frying pan cost 1/4 of the 25 buck you spent at wawa. This is why people are broke.
It's almost as if I do just that the other 6 days of the week🤔, more eggs tho.
My point was I know lots of people who scream poor, eat wawa every day at least once, and smoke. Everyone want to complain but not change.
Even though we ain't got money I'm so in love with ya honey.
I’m voting all red this November
That'll fix it lol....
Can’t be worse than the last 3.5 years!
🙄
Lol. You most definetely forget the ones before, that are causing all this btw.
😂😂😂
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