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War time vs debt and/or savings

6 Responses to “War time vs debt and/or savings ”

1. LuckyRobin Says:
   March 1st, 2022 at 10:53 pm 1646175227
   1646175227
   I'm upping my food storage, because inflation is out of hand, and if we go to war it is going to just continue to skyrocket. I'd do that first. By a set of shelves and fill it up with canned goods that you like, fruit, veggies, meat, chili, beef stew, dry beans or canned, rice, spices, etc. Stuff you will definitely eat, not stuff you think you might eat. You need to ask yourself the question of how long you can get by on your emergency fund. If it is only 3 months, you should up it to six as fast as you can. If you stock up your food like a semi prepper, you'll be able to get along longer on your EF. And then go back to paying down your debt as fast as you can. As you know, interest is a bear, but hunger is a bigger bear. Are you able to plant any kind of a garden this spring? Even if it is just lettuce, green onions, and tomatoes in a couple of pots on a patio or kale and chard in the front flowerbeds (as they are decorative, but also edible if your neighborhood does not allow front yard gardens), with the raise in produce costs, especially greens, anything you can plant will be a help.

2. Lots of ideas Says:
   March 1st, 2022 at 11:27 pm 1646177245
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   Amber, until May, setting aside the money you would pay to your loan in a separate account ( whether you add to your fund account or set up a new account) has the same affect because the loans are not accruing interest. If the interest waiver isn’t extended, you can make a decision then based on the situation then. If the worst doesn’t happen, you will have a pile of cash to send to the loan.
   
   If you are concerned about food supplies, you can use some of the loan payback money to build a supply of non perishable food like canned goods, pasta, rice. Really think about what/how you eat though. Having bags of beans and rice that you never eat doesn’t help. Buy food that can be part of say a rotating three month supply. I wouldn’t buy a freezer unless you have always wanted one. I would clean out the freezer I had and replace low value stuff like bread, and throw away mystery stuff, and replace with the best priced meat and chicken on sale this week - and do that for a few weeks to take advantage of bargains (assuming you eat meat). But again, think of this as a rotating supply.
   
   When the crisis passes, you can stop stockpiling and for a few months, you’ll have food budget money to direct to the loans.
   
   If we go to a full scale war, there will sadly be plenty of work for everyone. War historically is good employment because so many are sent to fight, leaving their jobs behind.
   
   

3. Amber Says:
   March 2nd, 2022 at 05:02 pm 1646240531
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   Thanks everyone for the tips.
   I think I'm just going to leave the money from my consulting gigs in a separate account. I'll also start doubling up on things that I use, such as toothpaste, toilet paper and can goods.
   
   This week, I'm going to go through the pantry and freezer to clean things out. Unfortunately my HOA doesn't allow for a garden but I can definitely plant a few things in pots. Right now I have scallions and peppers
   

4. crazyliblady Says:
   March 2nd, 2022 at 08:31 pm 1646253081
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   One trick I do to lower my food expenses is to freeze some vegetables and herbs. For example, I like to grow carrots and onions in the summer. When I ready to harvest my carrots, I cut them up like I normally do, blanch them, and then freeze them in portions of around 8 to 12 ounces. Onions do not need blanching, but I do either chop them or slice them and freeze them in freezer bags. I also grow herbs, dry them, grind them, and freeze them, In the winter, the cost of some produce and seasonings pretty much doubles, so having a stop gap for some things helps me to not have to spend so much money. This helped me a lot during the shutdown and also with the supply chain problems.

5. LivingAlmostLarge Says:
   March 4th, 2022 at 07:39 am 1646379595
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   Nothing. I already stockpile non-perishable stuff but I started adding 1x laundry detergent, soaps, etc stuff we use that is hard to find. Everything is allergy free. Food stuff I just buy normal amounts from costco that's my stockpile size. But I will say that covid has been good to use about not eating out. We really haven't been spending. I sort of want to but I can't pull the trigger anymore to spend like $1000/month eating out.

6. terri77 Says:
   March 5th, 2022 at 02:37 pm 1646491078
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   I noticed that they raised the prices on the salads that I buy for lunch from Trader Joe’s. They went from $4.99 to $5.49. Not a big jump & still more economical than buying lunch in the hospital cafeteria. My freezer is about as stocked as I can fill it. I will start buying more canned goods & eating what I have.

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