Could you live of $21 a week?

[Jenn! 918]

Damn, my toilet paper bill is higher than that

OMG that made me laugh out loud!

[Nagishkaw 510]

My fiance cannot understand it either. He has a hard time understanding why I go without so my pets can have the best. All I know is, it's a way of life and really I don't know any different.

[chri'stina 190]

We spend about $275-300 a month on groceries, toiletries, cleaners, etc. So I guess that's about $75 per week. That doesn't include spending on a cheap lunch while out a couple times a week though. We have ourselves on a budget though, otherwise it'd probably be $400 a month(but we are saving extra money towards other stuff). No pets, thank God. Sujeet is a vegetarian so we don't really buy meat, but sometimes the veggies cost a lot.

Edited April 25, 2007 by stina&suj

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Yes, so long as I consumed only:

• Ramen noodles with some frozen vegetables
  
• one pint of milk with (generic) instant coffee powder per day
  

Edited April 25, 2007 by CherryXS

[chri'stina 190]

It would be an interesting expiriment to try though, living on $21 for food for the week. That would be per person, right? Suj would love if I could pull that off.

With a bag of potatoes, flour, ramen noodles, a couple Indian spices, peanut butter, white bread, and maybe some bananas and eggs(for me not Suj!), milk, and a box of cereal it could be possible even though it'd be hard. Who knows how much that would add up to that I just wrote. But if it's 21 X 2 people, it could definitely buy all that. I don't think it'd just have to be ramen noodles every meal. It would just take creativity and making things from scratch.

[akdiver 3]

If someone wanted to give me a free $21/week for food (or anything else), I wouldn't complain. Send it on over!!

People getting stuff for free have no room to complain, and are always free to take some responsibility for their own lives if they want to see some improvements in their situation. Give the five babies they can't afford up for adoption to those who CAN afford them, and get a freakin' job!

Cheers!

AKDiver

[KarenCee 3]

When I was married to my ex he only allowed me $75 (maybe $100) a month for food and stuff, since he was a big bad deer hunter he figured we didn't need to buy meat. Then a friend of his let him cull from their chicken houses for free. Still, it was dam hard to make it on $75 a month but I figured it out. I thought of myself as the frugal guru back then.

I learned a lot of frugal ways and those ways still work now that in my NEW marriage we don't limit ourselves to such a tight budget. We try to shop maybe twice a month and when meat is on sale...and I mean a really good sale...we stock up. It does depend on where you live too, and where you shop. We've been able to find ground beef on sale for $1.68 a pound (like it is here this week). We buy lots...make hamburgers and freeze...wrap some in 1lb portions for soups and casseroles and freeze. Same for chicken or pork. Staples I buy at Sam's. When I have time I bake our bread...which this summer will hopefully be when I can bake some and put it in the freezer too. I like making our own pizza shells and hamburger buns and freezing them as well. I realise not everyone likes to bake and if that's the case, bread is cheap to be had as well and that doesn't always mean the day old bread store. When our favourite brand of bread is on sale, we buy that too. Store brand milk, cheese, eggs, butter, etc. Those are usually the least expensive, however there are some things that isn't on the "compromise list"....like ketchup and mayo. I've read lots of those recipe sites that give you the directions for making dishes just like the ones you like in your favourite restaurant. When we just don't have the money to eat out, we experiment with whatever is on the pantry shelf to try and duplicate something from a restaurant. It helps.

I'm sure none of this is new info...just sharing what we do.

[BJZags 17]

Of course, missed in all of this: for the "working poor" the $21 a week per person is supposed to supplement their meager income, so in reality they are living on more than just 20-bucks a week for food. Makes me feel downright rich that I just dropped $50 at Red Lobster yesterday for one meal.

[mybackpages 0]

I don't know what we're doing wrong. I shop at the discount grocery store and I have a really hard time spending less than $100 a week, including toiletries and stuff to make our lunches for the work week.

I know a lot depends on where you live, but I'm sure we could cut down somehow....

take the beer out of the cart?

[Jenn! 918]

I don't know what we're doing wrong. I shop at the discount grocery store and I have a really hard time spending less than $100 a week, including toiletries and stuff to make our lunches for the work week.

I know a lot depends on where you live, but I'm sure we could cut down somehow....

take the beer out of the cart?

That's not part of the food budget, silly!

[SteveLaura 0]

USDA website- Characteristics of Food Stamp Households 2005

Most food stamp recipients were children or elderly. Half (50 percent) were children and another 8 percent were age 60 or older.

Working age women represented 28 percent of the caseload, while working-age men represented 13 percent.

Many food stamp recipients worked. Nearly three out of ten (29 percent) food stamphouseholds had earnings in 2005, and four out of ten (40 percent) participants lived in a household with earnings. For these households, earnings were the primary source of income.

The majority of food stamp households did not receive cash welfare benefits. Only 15 percent of all food stamp households received TANF benefits. Twenty-seven percent received Supplemental Security Income. Almost one quarter (23 percent) received Social Security benefits.

Food stamp households had little income. Less than 12 percent had incomes above the poverty line, while 40 percent had incomes at or below half the poverty line. Fourteen percent had no cash income of any kind. The typical food stamp household had gross income of $648 per month. Nearly one-fourth of monthly funds (cash income plus food stamps) available to a typical household

came from food stamps. The average food stamp household received a monthly benefit of $209. Nearly one-third (31 percent) received the maximum benefit ($499 for a family of four). Only 5 percent received the minimum benefit of $10; most (89 percent) of these households contained elderly or disabled members.

Food stamp households possessed few resources. The average food stamp household possessed only about $137 in countable resources (including the non-excluded portion of vehicles and the entire value of checking and savings accounts and other savings). Over two-thirds (70 percent) had no countable resources.

Most food stamp households were small. The average food stamp household size was 2.3, but varied considerably by household composition.

Households with children were relatively large, averaging 3.3 members. Households with elderly were smaller, with an average of 1.3 members.

[JohnK 0]

Taking all of the staples out of the mix is kinda ridiculous. The $21 dollars is expected to SUPPLEMENT the current food budget, not BE the food budget. And I'm sure one of the reasona why the food stamp amount is low is to encourage people to get a job and support themselves and not develop a comfortable lifestyle living off the government dole.

[BJZags 17]

Taking all of the staples out of the mix is kinda ridiculous. The $21 dollars is expected to SUPPLEMENT the current food budget, not BE the food budget. And I'm sure one of the reasona why the food stamp amount is low is to encourage people to get a job and support themselves and not develop a comfortable lifestyle living off the government dole.

-- you got that right!

[Fandango 1,439]

t. And I'm sure one of the reasona why the food stamp amount is low is to encourage people to get a job and support themselves and not develop a comfortable lifestyle living off the government dole.

What a concept!

Edited April 25, 2007 by LisaD

[Caladan 19]

My food budget just for me runs anywhere between $30 and $70 a week, depending on whether I need to buy staples that week in addition to the fresh stuff.

$21 would be impossible if I tried to keep the quality of food constant because I don't like eating processed #######.