I hate bottled water.  Not only is it bad for the environment, it’s also bad for you!  Drinking water out of plastic, BPA filled water bottles is not good for your health.  Studies have proven that some bottled water is just tap water that’s been put into a plastic bottle. Why pay for something that you don’t have to?

I hate when I see people drink bottled water and then throw their plastic bottles in the trash. Plastic never breaks down, so those bottles are around for the rest of time. How sad. There are alternatives to bottled water (duh). I try to make sure that I never consume bottled water, for the benefit of my health and the Earth’s!

I always make sure that I am carrying a water bottle with me. I prefer a bottle like the Klean Kanteen . I used to use a Sigg bottle but after the BPA fiasco I went through last year, I’ve ditched that and gone with a brand that I have more faith in. I’ve seen stainless steel water bottles at Costco as well. Check your local grocery or sports good store for one.

Do you hate the taste of tap water? Purify it for free, or invest in a filter. We’re looking at purchasing a Big Berkey system. I just need to save up for it!  I’ve decided that this is something that is very important to me, and I drink a ton of water, so I don’t want it laced with fluoride, chlorine, and other crap!

The point is: no matter how you drink your water, please don’t purchase bottled water.  Not only is it a waste of money, but it’s bad for the Earth.

What type of water do you drink? Are you worried about the quality of your tap water?  (Poll below!)

Mr. Money and I are still trying to figure out what we want to do for our anniversary trip.  We’ve been going back and forth between Hawaii, Colorado, or even traveling up to Michigan to go camping.  I thought it would be neat to go back to the place we met and fell in love in Colorado, but it’s like a 19 hour drive from where we live.  That’s a lot of driving!

We’ve thought about just going back to Colorado and staying with his mom (she has a huge house) and doing our own thing.  We love Colorado in the fall and it would be a great trip.  However, I don’t want to put all those miles on our car driving out there.  I want our car to last many, many years since I hate having a car payment.

It seems almost silly to think about paying to rent a car to drive out there when we have two perfectly (now) operating vehicles that we own.  I’m just thinking though- if it cost us $200 for the week to rent a car it may be worth it.  It’s about 3000 miles round trip.  If we took our own vehicle, we’d have to get an oil change when we got back (or do it ourselves) which would cost around $30 roughly.  We’d also be adding wear and tear on the vehicle.  We’d still have to pay for gas, but at least if we rented a car we’d eliminate the worry about the number of miles we’re adding.

Here’s some math I’ve been calculating.  The Mileage Reimbursement rate for 2010 is 50 cents a mile.  The mileage reimbursement rate includes the cost of operating the vehicle plus gas.  If we drive our own vehicle out there, the mileage reimbursement rate would be $1500 round trip!  If we didn’t use those numbers and just paid for gas, it would cost us at least $250 just for gas.  I looked up the cost for a rental car and it’s about $222.07 for a week.  Add in gas for a compact car ($190 total) and we’re at $417.  All in all, we’re really out $167 ($417-$250) to rent a car versus driving our own.

Do you think it’s silly to consider renting a car when we own one?

The other day I looked at the roll of toilet paper in the bathroom and realized that it was hung under.  This drives me nuts.  (I know, separate story, right?!) I took the roll off and hung it so it was over, and called it a day.

photo credit: Looking Glass

Here are a few ways we save money on toilet paper.

1.  Obviously the biggest one is that I use cloth toilet paper for #1.  Believe me, it’s not bad at all.  I haven’t had to buy toilet paper in months!

2. Squish the roll of toilet paper.  When you do this, you create resistance when the roll is pulled.  It makes people aware of how much toilet paper they are using.

3. Hang it over.  This also makes you more aware of how much you’re using.  Of course, if you have kids, I don’t know if that makes them more likely to pull and drag?!

3. Buy in bulk. We buy the huge Kirkland brand toilet paper at Costco, and it’s great quality and lasts us a long time.  That’s one thing I won’t do to save money is buy cheap quality toilet paper!

4. Buy a higher quality toilet paper and combine with coupons.  I believe the higher quality, the less you will use because you don’t end up using your hands as backup.

5. Go to the bathroom while you’re out.  Of course this will save money on toilet paper.

6. Buy recycled toilet paper.  It’s not recycled toilet paper, it is toilet paper made with recycled paper.  Don’t be scared.  Americans could save over 400,000 trees if each family bought one roll of recycled toilet paper just once.

7. Get a squeeze bottle and use that as your poor man’s bidet.  You can use your cloth toilet paper to dry off, or even drip dry.  Chances are, you’ll be cleaner than if you used just toilet paper.  You could even go all out and buy a diaper sprayer, which will do the same thing but more effectively.

What do you do to save money on toilet paper?

Today Mrs. Accountability from Out of Debt Again and I are exchanging question and answer posts. Mrs. Accountability is a personal finance blogger who is working on getting her self out of debt… again!  She also shares things she makes from scratch, which I think is really cool!

After you read her answers here, go over to her site and read my answers. And while you’re at her site, take a look around and subscribe to her blog!

What is your most expensive hobby?

That would have to be our dairy goats. Currently my husband and I are abstaining from all dairy products, but I am still milking my four milkers once a day. We provide the milk to two families with young children. One family pays us $5 a gallon for the milk (they would be paying $3/quart at the grocery store) and the other family the father’s income was cut by 30% so we donate the milk to them. We tried to make a business initially but decided to consider it a hobby instead.

Where did you last eat out? What did you eat?

Let’s see, the last time I ate out… well, I am going to have to say back on December 3rd my son and I stopped for breakfast at Jack in the Box. I had two tacos and french fries. I have not eaten out since, and have cleaned up my diet considerably.

Do you buy your lunch or brown bag it? Why?

I bring leftovers from home because I am able to control the foods that I eat without worrying about getting anything I’m not wanting to have like MSG, soy, margarine, etc., or was the food microwaved at some point, etc.

Do you wash your own car or take it to a shop?

I wash my own car, or my husband will do it for me once in a while. I have used a car wash place to wash my car once or twice in my life. It needs to be cleaned inside and out, currently!

Do you DIY oil changes or take it to a shop?

My husband takes care of oil changes. I have taken my vehicle in to a oil changing place maybe five times in the last twenty years. I have never had an oil change done by a dealer.

Do you prefer to work for someone or be self employed? Why?

I have mixed feelings on this. I like working for someone else because it feels more secure than working for myself. On the other hand, I would love to retire and do the accounting for my husband’s businesses. Then I would be his employee, but it would be like being self-employed.

Have you ever grown your own food?

Yes, I have a garden, and we have chickens currently for eggs and dairy goats for their milk. We have also raised turkeys, pigs, and steer. We also learned how to and have butchered chickens, turkeys and goats. Not the funnest job in the world, but a lot less expensive than taking them to the meat processor.

What is the hottest you let your house get in the summer?

In the summer of 2008 we kept it at 81°F but we found that Big A kept getting heat rash under his arms so in the summer of 2009 we lowered it to 80°F. Interestingly what difference one degree makes. In May of 2008 we installed a programmable thermostat so that we could lower the temperature at night after the electricity rate goes down (9pm) and set it higher during the day.

Do you use regular bulbs or CFL bulbs?

We don’t like CFL bulbs because of the mercury problem. We prefer to use regular light bulbs. In fact for Mother’s Day in 2008 we bought 70 boxes of 100 watt light bulbs which were on clearance at Lowe’s, marked down to $0.23 for a four pack. We’re still working on using those up.

Who had the most impact on you as a child when it comes to financial matters?

My grandmother. She counted every penny, saved rainwater, had a garden, washed clothes by hand, used minimal electricity… she is my frugal heroine.

What is the most frugal thing you do?

I guess I would have to say making soup from the weeds found in my garden. Back in October 2008 I discovered that one of the weeds thriving in my garden was purslane, and I learned it is edible!

What car would you drive if money were absolutely no object?

I really love my Nissan Pathfinder, and it’s a 1996. I guess I’d just be happy to keep driving this vehicle! If money were no object, I could fix it up to be just like brand new. Or maybe I’d for a newer model Pathfinder.

Thank you, Mrs. Accountability! Now go on over to Mrs. Accountability’s, read my answers to the same questions and take a look around!

If you’re interested in participating in a get-to-know-you post like this, please contact me!

Good morning, lovely money bloggers!  As I mentioned yesterday, I’m going to be gone for about a week next week and I’d love to have some guest posts if you’d be willing to share them with me.  I’d be very grateful and even return the favor when needed!

Please comment here or email me at ultimatemoneyblogATgmail.com if you’re interested in guest posting.  I’d love to hear from you!  Have a Happy Tuesday!

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