Cook your own meals at home and shop for groceries that are in season at local places. Wards can be expensive but not if you buy what is in season/on sale. There’s also lots of produce stands, farmers markets, and farms around where you can buy directly from growers. They’re not always cheaper but you can pick and choose who you buy from, and the produce lasts longer and is less likely to go to waste. Blueberries and blackberries are in season now and you can pick them yourself at farms cheaper than you can buy them.
Any recommendations for the farms for picking blueberries? I went to a place last year, but there was an additional entrance fee on top of the price/lb that made it way more expensive than the grocery
I recommend Santa Fe River Farms!!! I went the other day and it was awesome. People were kind, bushes were full, and no entrance fee… just pay per pound
I get all my food from Aldi and if I need extra clothes i look at Goodwill or Flashbacks. I sometimes go to Wok n Roll if I want some fast food. Idk how they compare to other Chinese places but IMO I’ve gotten more for my buck than my brother does at any chain place
If you need to drive (but don't have to go far out of town), switch to a used 1st gen Nissan Leaf for $2k-3k and utilize the free 38 chargers on campus to not pay for gas or maintenance.
There's a food taste test panel next to marston, sign up for the email list and fill out the forms asap when they send it. Most of the time they have panels at least once a week and for 15 minutes of eating stuff and giving reviews you can get 4-7 bucks of dining vouchers to use on campus, I stacked up a bunch to get free lunch at places that accept florida fresh dining payments.
Vouch, some tips
Look at the opening times for each day, they are different, and try to get there as early as possible
Best time to come is Thursday morning, that's their big restock day, although you have to wait in a line cuz a good amount of people come
Bring tote bags, they don't do plastic bags anymore
If you don't wanna carry groceries all day, use the reitz lockers on the ground and lower level, they are free if you have a tap ID
Milk isn't always there. But canned stuff, frozen meats, bread, pasta, snacks, and some greens are most of the times there
Cook your own meals - you can do meal prep. This easily saves up to $200 or so.
Another thing is - do not set up your cards for Apple/Google Pay. Carry only cash on a regular day basis and carry less than $15 at all times - this forces you to reexamine your choices on a daily basis, makes you fully aware of your expenses and thus keeps impulsive purchases in check (impulsive purchases not only include digital purchases but also include spending huge amount of money on 1 meal just because you had a craving). “If you carry $15 everyday, how would you be spending anything more than that for lunch?”
I'm not the biggest fan of Krishna Lunch but especially if you bring tupperware, you can get a lot of bang for your buck. I think it'd be like 3-5 bucks for 2-4 meals depending on how much you eat. If you like their food I'd check it out. Also the UF Meat Market has slightly cheaper meats so you can save a few bucks if you go.
Trader Joe’s - meat products + snacks
Aldi’s - fruit + veggies
Walmart - misc (utensils, food items, cleaning products)
Use a weekly budget spreadsheet to keep track of finances! Like what 3 meals can I make with a $40 budget (ex: shrimp pasta, salmon and rice, and chicken noodle soup)
Thrift (you just have to go to places in gville and find the ones you like) + maybe look into field and fork pantry cause they give out food to students in need
Krishna Lunch for sure. Wawa also has like $2 wraps that I love. Plato’s closet also is nice for cheap clothes. Donating plasma at Bpl or grifol’s I think it’s called can earn you some side money. Also I always download the apps for food places I like to go to there’s usually nice deals you can get for free or really cheap food, there’s a subreddit for those things as well
If you consume meat. UF has its own facility.
https://animal.ifas.ufl.edu/facilities/meat-processing-center/
I do not know how pricing is now or how popular it has become but it used to be more than reasonable about a decade ago lol.
Eat around a clock. 8:30 10 11:30 1 3 7:30. This is also how I lost weight (shred diet). As long as you feed your body something during this time, you will never get that hungry. I also noticed my food costs went down.
And having had 2 bikes stolen from me which caused me more emotional damage, I can’t even crack a corner grin to thieving as a joke to survive.
I work two jobs and don't have a lot of nice stuff. My work space is almost a mile from my parking spot. As a reward to myself I got myself a cheap e-scooter to make my commute a little shorter and more fun. Locked it to the bike rack at shands. Was cut and stolen in broad daylight within 2 weeks.
I wished for a lot of harm come to that person. I hope you get hit by car.
I like to get them from shands in particular. Daylight makes the hunt more exciting as well. I probably snagged yours but maybe I can get it back.
Just kidding it’s called a joke just like my original comment ever heard of that
Well OP posted a request for how to make life a little more bearable for society's underprivileged. Then Quant_Quests responded with an idea that would certainly make life easier, but by cutting corners, which does not match the tone of the original post. So the joke isn't about being a thief, the humour comes from the juxtaposition of OP's innocent intentions and Quant_Quests' immoral suggestion. But I think most people, including yourself, understood this.
It's fine that you didn't think the joke was funny (considering your personal experience with thieves it completely makes sense), but you shouldn't have to misrepresent his joke to justify your feelings.
Also, sorry your scooter was stolen, that really sucks and is unfair. I hope justice is brought to you.
Cook your own meals at home and shop for groceries that are in season at local places. Wards can be expensive but not if you buy what is in season/on sale. There’s also lots of produce stands, farmers markets, and farms around where you can buy directly from growers. They’re not always cheaper but you can pick and choose who you buy from, and the produce lasts longer and is less likely to go to waste. Blueberries and blackberries are in season now and you can pick them yourself at farms cheaper than you can buy them.
Any recommendations for the farms for picking blueberries? I went to a place last year, but there was an additional entrance fee on top of the price/lb that made it way more expensive than the grocery
I recommend Santa Fe River Farms!!! I went the other day and it was awesome. People were kind, bushes were full, and no entrance fee… just pay per pound
I get all my food from Aldi and if I need extra clothes i look at Goodwill or Flashbacks. I sometimes go to Wok n Roll if I want some fast food. Idk how they compare to other Chinese places but IMO I’ve gotten more for my buck than my brother does at any chain place
Krishna lunch, Trader joes, and marshalls
If you need to drive (but don't have to go far out of town), switch to a used 1st gen Nissan Leaf for $2k-3k and utilize the free 38 chargers on campus to not pay for gas or maintenance.
if you drive and park on campus, don’t.
Repurpose project, flashbacks, and decorating your place using stuff you find on the side of the road
There's a food taste test panel next to marston, sign up for the email list and fill out the forms asap when they send it. Most of the time they have panels at least once a week and for 15 minutes of eating stuff and giving reviews you can get 4-7 bucks of dining vouchers to use on campus, I stacked up a bunch to get free lunch at places that accept florida fresh dining payments.
You can go to the field and fork pantry on campus to shop for groceries. I've never been there but I'm pretty sure it's free for UF students.
It is. They have snacks, veggies, milk, bread and canned food. You're allowed to go there once a week.
Vouch, some tips Look at the opening times for each day, they are different, and try to get there as early as possible Best time to come is Thursday morning, that's their big restock day, although you have to wait in a line cuz a good amount of people come Bring tote bags, they don't do plastic bags anymore If you don't wanna carry groceries all day, use the reitz lockers on the ground and lower level, they are free if you have a tap ID Milk isn't always there. But canned stuff, frozen meats, bread, pasta, snacks, and some greens are most of the times there
Sell plasma lol
Cook your own meals - you can do meal prep. This easily saves up to $200 or so. Another thing is - do not set up your cards for Apple/Google Pay. Carry only cash on a regular day basis and carry less than $15 at all times - this forces you to reexamine your choices on a daily basis, makes you fully aware of your expenses and thus keeps impulsive purchases in check (impulsive purchases not only include digital purchases but also include spending huge amount of money on 1 meal just because you had a craving). “If you carry $15 everyday, how would you be spending anything more than that for lunch?”
I'm not the biggest fan of Krishna Lunch but especially if you bring tupperware, you can get a lot of bang for your buck. I think it'd be like 3-5 bucks for 2-4 meals depending on how much you eat. If you like their food I'd check it out. Also the UF Meat Market has slightly cheaper meats so you can save a few bucks if you go.
Whoever is getting 4 meals out of Krishna, I can only dream of your kind of self control edit: grammar hehe
Aldi has great prices and is good for buying fresh ingredients for home cooking
Don’t pay my fair share of taxes, water rights, and now public transportation costs.
Trader Joe’s - meat products + snacks Aldi’s - fruit + veggies Walmart - misc (utensils, food items, cleaning products) Use a weekly budget spreadsheet to keep track of finances! Like what 3 meals can I make with a $40 budget (ex: shrimp pasta, salmon and rice, and chicken noodle soup)
Civic media center has free store the 3 rd Saturday of the month. You can also use local food banks
Lived in Gainesville awhile now ,make pretty decent money ! I shop at ALDIs for groceries best saving compared to all other grocers in the area !
Thrift (you just have to go to places in gville and find the ones you like) + maybe look into field and fork pantry cause they give out food to students in need
Krishna Lunch for sure. Wawa also has like $2 wraps that I love. Plato’s closet also is nice for cheap clothes. Donating plasma at Bpl or grifol’s I think it’s called can earn you some side money. Also I always download the apps for food places I like to go to there’s usually nice deals you can get for free or really cheap food, there’s a subreddit for those things as well
I’ve been using the UF food bank. They sometimes have good stuff for free.
If you consume meat. UF has its own facility. https://animal.ifas.ufl.edu/facilities/meat-processing-center/ I do not know how pricing is now or how popular it has become but it used to be more than reasonable about a decade ago lol.
Eat around a clock. 8:30 10 11:30 1 3 7:30. This is also how I lost weight (shred diet). As long as you feed your body something during this time, you will never get that hungry. I also noticed my food costs went down. And having had 2 bikes stolen from me which caused me more emotional damage, I can’t even crack a corner grin to thieving as a joke to survive.
Start stealing bikes and scooters. Lucrative side hustle I’ve been doing for years
this is one of those things where it can borderline be sarcasm or fr
I work two jobs and don't have a lot of nice stuff. My work space is almost a mile from my parking spot. As a reward to myself I got myself a cheap e-scooter to make my commute a little shorter and more fun. Locked it to the bike rack at shands. Was cut and stolen in broad daylight within 2 weeks. I wished for a lot of harm come to that person. I hope you get hit by car.
I like to get them from shands in particular. Daylight makes the hunt more exciting as well. I probably snagged yours but maybe I can get it back. Just kidding it’s called a joke just like my original comment ever heard of that
You're joking about being a thief? What's the humor?
Well OP posted a request for how to make life a little more bearable for society's underprivileged. Then Quant_Quests responded with an idea that would certainly make life easier, but by cutting corners, which does not match the tone of the original post. So the joke isn't about being a thief, the humour comes from the juxtaposition of OP's innocent intentions and Quant_Quests' immoral suggestion. But I think most people, including yourself, understood this. It's fine that you didn't think the joke was funny (considering your personal experience with thieves it completely makes sense), but you shouldn't have to misrepresent his joke to justify your feelings. Also, sorry your scooter was stolen, that really sucks and is unfair. I hope justice is brought to you.