HOW DO YOU CONSERVE????

[Wilma]

I was just going to add this to the gasoline thread, but didn't want to mess it up with another thought. 
So, here goes. 

How are you conserving on gasoline? 

Angie has put hers on the gasoline thread and I thought it was very interesting.

I am doing my part by not having to go someplace every day.  Daughter combines her needs so that one trip downtown a couple times a week is enough.  You should see the list I carry to Wichita with me of things I need but can't get here.  I learned that I could wait for a lot of things when we lived 10 miles from the nearest village and 30 miles from Salina, the nearest larger town.  I also stockpile so I don't run out of necessities at an inconvenient time.  Incidentally, I save lawnmower gas by letting my son in law mow my yard.

[sixdogsmom]

I shop every two weeks, unless I am close to the store from a doctor appointment for Ted. I use a list and stockpile also. When we go to Kansas City we always stop at the Petsmart store in Lenexa on the way home. I stock up on dog and catfood there, as I can save quite a little bit. Sometimes I spend $150.00, but then I do not have to buy for a couple of months. I also cook for the dogs as part of their regular diet. I walk to the post office, city office etc. Once in awhile, I drive, but not often. However, sometimes I have quite a little shipping to do with my Ebay sales. I also shop online. If I am looking for something that is hard to find, I usually find it online. I also call ahead for local purchases. Hubbys' dog has had to cut back to one ride daily instead of the accustomed two. He has always been a 'go' dog, and hubby and he always have to get out of the house for a little each day. I think this helps to conserve sanity for all three of us, dog, hubby, and myself. We are thinking about moving hubby's heart care to Tulsa or Wichita. He uses the K.U. med center transplant program, and is doing so well that we hesitate to move his care. I guess we will have to bite the bullet for awhile more. I will probably drive my little Miata a little less  as it is purely for this old ladys' pleasure. But I'm not going to give it up yet. I waited many years to get it! 

[Dale Smith]

To conserve, I bought a Toyota Prius Hybrid... I currently am averaging 57 mpg.  My commute to and from work is an average of 400 miles per week.  I have cut out 100 miles by going to a 10-hour work day and only working 4 days per week. 

Additionally, I have changed every single light in my house to CFL's (compact florescent lights).  I saw a very dramatic difference in my electric bill when I did that.  I also turned off my land-line telephone and just use my cellphone for everything. 

I try to do all my shopping and errands on one day so that I am not using the car anymore than I have to. 

[Devyn-Leann]

Good grief. I live on a farm and believe me, we are trying to conserve every ounce. I'm so scared of what's going to happen the first time Billy has to fill up the tractors to cut hay in a week.

I had to take Lane to Howard every other day for preschool. I try to drive slow. I drive an old feed truck. I know, not the most economical choice, but I feel safe in it. We change the oil regularly, and keep the gas tank full.

Billy drives a 4x4 diesel pickup to Moline every weekday. He can run on one tank for 2 weeks. He, too, drives the speed limit or a little under and changes oil regularly. To fill that monster up costs sometimes around $115.

I plan errands on the days I will be in town. My schedule will have to change now that school is out and I no longer have to take Lane to the bus. I park at Batson's, walk to the bank, Cookson's, Lanning's...wherever I have to go. The truck does not move until it is time to go home. I also try to coordinate doctor's appointments in El Dorado on days that I know Billy's grandparents have to go.

I used to drive to El Dorado to WalMart, Dillon's, & Orschelen's every 2 weeks. I haven't done that in the past year. I have been shopping locally. We also try to order more clothing online so we don't have to drive. It's easy to shop for Billy since he's worn Wranglers all his life. For Lane it's also easy, we order his clothes from Old Navy because they always fit. It's a little more difficult for myself. But I try!

We mow once a week and do not shut the mower off until we're finished. The garden tiller is a bit more tricky. I'm still recovering from using it Tuesday night. I still have two more spots to till up. It has used a half tank of gas. Not sure how to conserve there.

I'm also unsure as to how to save fuel with the tractors. Any ideas?

[Diane Amberg]

     Nice photo Dale! I'm jealous of your Prius ( I keep wanting to call them Pious.)  The 4 day week is really great when you can do it.
I've always been such a tight wad, that I've always done what lot's of people are just starting to do.  I have a hard time getting Al to turn off lights, but going to all CFLs has helped a little.  Now I have to find out what to do with them when they do burn out.   Wait for a hazmat day, I guess.  My regular bills are all automatic deducts from my bank account (free service) and we went to online banking for our charge card payment (free, don't carry a balance) and have a value checking account that has some free things with it and only requires a balance amount that I'm comfortable with anyway.  I'm not going to renew several magazines the next time they are due, and I've stopped buying cookbooks...I can find whatever I want online.  I'm starting more plants from seeds, expanding the garden and putting in a new cold frame. I'll can and freeze even more than I do now.  Several of us neighbors may go in together on a steer, but we have to really look at that.  We try not to have both cars on the road at the same time, which ever one of us has to be out anyway runs whatever errands need to be done.  We still have fire house duties, but can usually do some errand with that also.  I cold water wash when I can stand to do it, some things just have to have some hot water for me. We take shorter showers, almost GI style. I use "green" homemade cleaning products when I can. I use house brands, buy in bulk on sale and clip coupons with the best of them.

[Lookatmeknow!!]

I might add that if there is something that you need from the grocery store or even Cookson's we have learned that if you just ask they might be able to get it for you.  If you put a pencil to it, you are saving so much in gas money by shopping here in town.  I have also found out that some of the things in town aren't, if at all, very much higher than Walmart.  

Another thing Jeff and I try hard to do is, we check to see if someone in the family or around town is going out of town and we have them pick up what we need.  My van does pretty good on gas, but it is just the thought of filling it up!!  

I saw this mentioned above and it is shopping online.  I want to tell you that that is the way to go.  Do you know that Old Navy has only 5.00 shipping.  That is for whatever you order and no matter the amount!!  Now you tell me, you can't drive out of town and get the same thing for that price.  But you can buy almost anything online and you don't have to drive it is sent to you.  I love ebay.  

Devyn, as for the tractors I have the slighest idea how to save fuel on those.  It makes me sick to think that we are not going to be custom haying and baling.  Do you know the amount of money we are not going to be making?  It is a little chunk of change believe me.  Jeff has said that we would save money if we would just buy our hay and save the grass that we will have for the cattle this winter. I don't know, but if anyone has an idea please do tell???

[frawin]

Wilma, this is a great thread and is garnering lots of great information. I am 67 years old and office in my house, I work 8-10 hours a day and enjoy every minute of it. Many days neither Myrna or I drive anywhere, when we grocery shop we try to buy in large enough quantities to last for awhile. There are just the two of us here and we use minimal energy for heating and cooling, we turn lights out when we leave a room. We stepped down from V8 engines to 6 cylinder engines in Myrna's car and my pickup both, we drive economical Hondas, we have slowed down our driving speed. I have been involved in the energy supply side for 40 years and it really is encouraging to see the positive attitude and effort that is exhibited here, the future will get worse before it gets better but I am confident the "AMERICAN CAN DO ATTITUDE" will get us all through this.
Frank

[sixdogsmom]

I certainly feel for folks like Sally who must decide that their job away from home is now worth the drive, or would it be better to move closer to the job, or to give up some other expenses to pay for the current gas expense. The rural communities are hurting for sure; what was expensive before now is totally outrageous. Most of us have been conserving already, in many ways. Many of us get by with second hand clothing, medicine samples, generic drugs, and strict monitoring of home temperature. A great many of us live on fixed income, our lives devoted to our families, pets, and church. We take enjoyment from the outdoors, but do not go camping because it is too expensive. Social security looks at the rise in the cost of living and gears the increase of payments to match that rise. I know that the 2.3% we received last year was not even close to the true cost of living for us. Our out of pocket medical expense was over $12,000.00, not a lot by todays' income standards but a huge chunck and it hurts a lot. This does not include expense incurred to get to the doctors. We have all but given up feeding the birds because it has gotten so expensive. I worry that any increase for social security is going to be tied with the sagging real estate and automobile markets, two markets that seniors seldom use. It hardly seems fair that we might be penalized for the indicretions of the housing speculators who got caught with their pants down whilst 'flipping' houses. I guess that this really should have gone under a sop box heading, but it is almost Friday.

[Devyn-Leann]

Old Navy also has a special right now that is if you spend $50 or more you get FREE shipping. Believe me, I took advantage.

[greatguns]

My garden is getting bigger.  I haven't went out to eat as you people know it since Sept. 29 1995.  I buy groceries once a month or less.  Everything I cook is from scratch.  Changed light bulbs a long time ago.  Now I use to go deer hunting for meat, but that is now a rich man's game.  Fixing to cut my dish channels back to the least amount I can.  And yes I could move closer to work, but the housing is quite a bit more expensive that here in Piedmont, Kansas.  Driving to Howard to shop is not any savings as compared to driving to Augusta.  I won't be driving to town in something that isn't highway legal  even if I am bad for using more gas.  I truly don't think I'm near as bad or wasteful as Frank thinks I am.