The Frugal Bostonian

I recently participated in a focus group where I earned $75 for two hours of my time and got to eat delicious ice cream treats.

Focus groups are generally marketing done by an independent company for a company that wants to sell a new product.  The one I attended was for a national ice cream vendor contemplating bringing out new products.  They wanted reactions to specific marketing materials and comments about the taste of the actual product.

Just about anyone can do this.  Here’s how.  Find a company that runs focus groups, these folks post on craigslist all the time.  Register with them (it’s free, if it costs money, you probably don’t want to be part of it).  Either they will call you, or you’ll call them in response to an email or craigslist posting.  The telephone screener will ask question related to whatever they are researching and questions about your demographics.  If they are looking for men over 50 who use electric razors, and you fit into that catagory, you’re in luck!   If alot of people in your demographic are registered with the company, you’ll get fewer invitations due to the competition, but keep trying. 

You’ll be given an appointment to show up at the testing center (the one I went to was in an office building in downtown Boston).  Arrive early - sometimes there is an early bird raffle for those who get there early, and sometimes the company overbooks (and some people don’t get paid or get to participate).  They usually have sandwiches and soda while you wait (or after the group). 

The groups are usually held in a conference room, and are audio recorded.  There were eight people in my group, and one ”leader.”   Sometimes there is a two way mirror and other marketing folks are watching.  Everyone is on a first name only basis, and there’s usually a discussion about whatever topic / item / food the company representative brings up.  Sometimes you even get to eat the product!  The leader wants to hear from everyone, and its a pleasant experience contributing to the group.

At the end of the group, you’ll get an envelope with a check (or, increasingly rarely, cash). 

I enjoyed the experience.  The group was very diverse, and I enjoyed hearing different viewpoints about the same product.  And I am now “in the know” about a product that will probably hit the market soon.  Market research companies don’t want the same people all the time, so I will not be eligible for another six months.  But this was an easy and fun way to make a little extra money!

I drink soda, which is not a particularly frugal choice.  However, I try to make it less expensive by buying it on sale at the supermarket and bringing it to work, when getting in the car, etc. rather than buying from a vending machine.  For example, a 12 pack of soda can be found on sale for $2.50, which is about 21 cents a can, and with deposit, it’s a little over $.25 per can (Massachusetts has a 5 cent deposit on beer and soda containers).  This is alot cheaper than the $1.00 a vending machine usually charges for a can of soda.

One way I try to offset the price is by saving and returning the deposit bottles.  It seems that everyone is starting to recycle, and many people just put the returnables in recycling bins.  I pull out the deposit bottles from the shared bins in my building and add them to my stash.  For those in the suburbs, I see nothing wrong with pulling the returnable out of curbside recycling bins (provided that you don’t make a mess or noise).  The town is saved the expense of hauling them away (I am not sure if municipal recycling is now profitable, or if the savings are in keeping stuff out  of landfills - chime in if you know). 

A friend learned that I was returning bottles, and offered me his (which had been going into the recycling bins).   My workplace has big bins for returnables, the money is donated to charitable causes.  If your work does not do this, recommend that they start.  Otherwise, the returnables are fair game.   One thing I learned recently - in Massachusetts flavored water bottles have a deposit (plain water does not).  So if you find a pile of flavored poland spring bottles, they are worth a nickle each. 

Since I need to go to the supermarket anyway, and usually get there by car, I put the bottles in the back of the car once a week and redeem them.   This might be more complicated if you don’t have a car.  But, between my own returnables and those I find or am given, I usually pull in enough to pay for a 12 pack or two of soda per week, which totally offsets the cost.

Other uses for returnables:  Once I was walking to my car with my returnables when I passed a guy pushing a shopping cart filled with cans and bottles.  I gave him my returnables because he looked like he really needed the money.  Think about donating the returnables to someone or to a cause that needs money.  A few nickles here and there will add up.

My car decided to quit while I was driving home from work (probably the fuel pump).  Luckily, I am a member of AAA and called for roadside assistance.   I pay $75 a year to be a “AAA Plus Member.” 

I called the toll-free number on the back of my membership card and was told a tow truck would arrive in 45 minutes.  Three hours and several calls later, a tow truck finally arrived.  The tow brought me to my garage of choice (about 10 miles away) and cost nothing out of pocket.  The driver was pleasant, and after trying to start my car, agreed with that it was probably the fuel pump.  I was disappointed that it took so long for a tow truck to arrive, but all in all, I was satisfied with the service.  A friend met me at the garage and my transportation odyssey ended. 

If I had not been a member of triple A, I would have paid more than $75 for the tow, and I would have had to find a company to take my car.  I didn’t have a phone book or internet access in the car, so finding a tow company would have been logistically difficult and taken time.  The membership paid for itself based on this one experience, and I’m entitled to three more tows in the next nine months. 

Here’s what else Triple A provides for the car:

towing (up to 100 miles for plus members), minor mechanical aid, lock out service, flat tire service, emergency fuel delivery, dead battery service.

But, there’s more.  Triple A members are also entitled to free notary service (this is great if you need something notarized and would prefer not to involve the local bank, co-workers, friends, etc.), retail discounts (lenscrafters, linens-n-things, and more), movie and theme park discounts, tourbooks and maps, passport photos (free for plus members) and they also offer insurance and financing (and a bunch more stuff).  I’ve used the notary service several times, gotten discounted movie passes, and gotten 1/3 off at lenscrafters with my card. 

Triple A membership benefits are tied to the person who is a member, not any particular vehicle, so if a member is in a car that breaks down, the member can call triple A and use their membership to get that car towed, etc.  (But the member needs to be there - the tow driver checks id!)

I can’t think of a reason not to belong to triple A (or some other auto club, this just happens to be the only one I am familiar with).  The membership paid for itself last night.  Even though I had to wait, I knew I could keep calling triple A and eventually they would come get me.  Find out more about triple A at www.aaa.com.

I am a veteran of car breakdowns (I keep up with maintenance, but my cars tend to be at least 10 years old, and parts do suddenly wear out).  I was lucky that when my car quit, I was able to roll into a large parking lot next to a hospital.  I went into the hospital and used the bathroom, and could have gotten something to eat in the vending machines.  I made some business calls while I was waiting.  I am a glass half-full person, and saw it as a positive that a car break-down was just a minor inconvenience as I did not need to be anywhere, I was not in danger, I had access to restrooms, food, and reading material, and the weather was not too cold or too hot.

But I have seen many people have car trouble while driving, often newer cars, and they seem to have no idea what to do (like learning to swim, knowing what to do if your car quits is an essential skill).  If you car suddenly starts acting up, pull over in the first safe place!  If you are passing a parking lot, pull in and evaluate the situation.  Maybe it just slipped out of gear and you’ll be back on the road immediately.  But if not, at least you’re not endangering yourself and others while you try to figure out what to do with the car.  If you are on the side of the highway, don’t open the driver’s door and stand in traffic! (yes, I have seen this).   Get out on the passenger side.   If you are on the street or road, put the hazard lights and headlights on, especially if its dark (some people don’t want to drain the battery, so they think its a better idea to sit there in the dark - I’d rather a dead battery than be hit).  Depending on the circumstances, consider opening the hood (as a visual signal to other drivers that your car is disabled, not because you are going to be tinkering under the hood if you don’t know what you are doing).  Use common sense - you’re dealing with a broken car, but to other motorists, you’re a hazard - don’t make it more of a hazard than it needs to be.

Now I am waiting to find out the cost of the fuel pump!!!

I went on a mystery shop at a local chain restaurant this evening.  Mystery shopping usually results in a free meal or product and a little bit of money, or more money and nothing for free. 

Tonight’s trip was a free dinner with a friend, and a $6 stipent.  Here’s the process:

Register with a mystery shopping company.  You do not need to pay anyone anything to do this.  Do a google search to find mystery shopping companies.

Request an assignment.  I usually get an email asking me if I want to go someplace for a particular range of dates. 

When you get an assignment, read the directions carefully.  I typically get an email about a week before the scheduled shop.  It details where to go, when to get there, and what to do during the shop.  If you show up on the wrong date or at the wrong time, you won’t get paid.  A friend once ended up paying for an expensive meal because he arrived 20 minutes after the scheduled time (usually there is a window, so build a cushion in for yourself). 

For tonight’s assignment, I had to call a restaurant and recorded how long it took them to answer the phone, and what they said.  I later showed up with a friend for dinner.  We got seated and placed our order.  We ate the food, got dessert, and paid the check.  We were allowed up to two alcoholic beverages each, and almost $100 total for the meal (the actual cost was about 2/3 of this, plenty of money).  I had to check out the restroom, and keep track of when things got served, cleared, etc.

When I got home, I wrote my report, scanned the receipt, and emailed it in.  I will get reimbursed, along with my $6 stipend, after October 10th.

This isn’t a huge money maker, but it got me a free dinner, and a few drinks (I cannot believe they pay for alcohol, but they do!).  I have also shopped dry cleaners (getting my cleaning that I would pay for anyway, for free), department stores (paid $20-$25 to talk to salepeople about something on sale in the store), banks ($25 to ask about accounts), health clubs ($25 to ask about membership and take a tour).  I am not being specific about the places I have visited, but they are recognizable as national and regional chains (its in the agreement with the mystery shopping providers that I not publicly discuss their clients). 

Taking it one step further, when I get reimbursed for shopping and there is nothing in the store I want, I buy whatever appears to be most likely to sell on ebay or at a yard sale, then sell it.  Its like getting free inventory!

Part of my reason for starting this blog was to learn how to use a blogging platform.  Thus far, I managed to register a domain name, set up a wordpress account, download wordpress, and start blogging. 

But there’s alot I don’t know how to do.  Other than posting in the wordpress templates, I don’t know how to edit and upload code (I want to change the sidebars, but have not figured it out yet).  I want to install a stat meter, feedburner, edit the title, and learn how to put in hyperlinks to older posts. 

All in all, this has been a useful experience.  I think I am about 50% of the way to learning how to actually run this software.  I think I’ve learned more than if I took a course, and it probably cost about the same.

an image from the blue hills website

I joined someone to go hiking in the Blue Hills today.  It was great!  I have not been hiking in a long time, I am really out of shape.  The trail was rocky and challenging, with elevation changes.  But it was doable, and I am going to start hiking again.  There’s also a pond with a great swimming area (supervised by lifeguards), a snack bar, a children’s playground, picnic area, and places to play softball.  I could not believe all this was so close to Boston, and that I had not been to this place before.  And its free! 

I got there by car, its only a short ride (20-30 minutes from downtown Boston); its also accessible by public transportation.   Parking is free, but my guess is that the lots fill up in the summer.   The park is open from dawn to dusk.   Leashed dogs are welcome (I saw alot of friendly dogs today).  The area near Hougton’s Pond appears to be wheelchair accessible (the trails were covered in sand/packed gravel, and mostly had little slant (althought there was elevation)).  I saw folks using manual wheelchairs, and some folks pushing strollers. 

Here’s some things I learned while I was there:

• Apply sunscreen liberally!  There was alot of sun today, and even though most of the trails were in the woodsy area, I still got alot of sun.  I did not see anywhere to buy sunscreen, so bring your own.
• Bring a hat and sunglasses.   These really made a difference for me.
• Bring water (or whatever you want to drink) in a bottle with a cap (I foolishly brought cans of soda, not the best choice, but I did not decide to go until the last minute.)
• Bring a snack to eat while you are hiking.  The snack bar at Houghton’s Pond had a large menu, and was reasonably priced (about $5 for a burger and fries), but you’ll want something on the trail.
• Wear hiking boots or sturdy shoes.  I wore an old pair of sneakers, not the best choice for rocky trails.  Next time I will wear my “real” hiking boots. 

Although hiking might not work for younger kids, Houghton’s Pond would be a great place to bring kids, small and large.  The swimming area is well maintained, there are restrooms, places to picnic and grill, and a large playground.  There’s lots of green space to run around, and lots of benches for sitting.  I can envision spending a whole day here, some folks go hiking (there are 125 miles of trails) and meet everyone else back at the beach for a picnic.

 From the website - recreational opportunities:

Nonmotorized Boating
Camping
Fishing
Hiking
Horseback Riding
Ice Skating
Mountain Biking
Picnicking
Rock Climbing
Crosscountry skiing
Downhill skiing
Softball
Swimming
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/metroboston/blue.htm