I am one of those people that are always looking for a bargain. In today's economy you have to learn to be thrifty or you will be broke sooner than you think. Everything from food to gas is so expensive nowadays that many people are flocking to the foodbanks and financial aid for assistance. My friends are always laughing at me because I am always looking for a coupon or coupon code online for some good or service. I have saved myself alot of money with these strategies and I am not embarassed one bit to bargain or haggle with the vendor to get a deal.

I am sure some of you who agree with my way of thinking have landed yourself some good bargains over the years.  I once bought a $300 waterford crystal frame for $20 from Craigslist.  Now that's a bargain!  You can find some great deals on Craigslist from unsuspecting sellers who don't know the value of the item they are selling.  That great frame I received was from a woman who got married and didn't like it as much as the Mikasa frame she received.  I can only assume the lady did not know the real value of Waterford compared to Mikasa to sell it for so cheap;but hey I am not complaining.  You can get the same great deals at thrift stores, flea markets and garage sales.  Some people just want to get rid of their merchandise as a result of a divorce, death in the family, items they received as gifts and from supplier clearouts.  If you were lucky like I was, you picked up some of those great 90% off items at your favorite department store.  They always give these insane markdowns close to inventory time, so they can make room for new inventory.

I am so thrifty, I refuse to pay for items that I know I can get for free, unless the hassle is more than it is worth to explore this option. One of the things that I avoid putting money into is long distance phone calls. There are so many phone companies offering long distance service plans that you would think you are getting a great bargain until they add on this fee and that fee and taxes, etc. It no longer feels like a bargain after the real total is calculated.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is the way to go nowadays. It provides you the benefit of making long distance calls through your internet connection for free. If you want to know how to get long distance for free now is your opportunity .

I live in a neighborhood where I can walk to all my destinations including work. The odd time I might take the bus, take taxi, or rent a car but for the most part owning a car is not a necessity for me. I was contemplating buying another car just for the convenience of having one and then I realized all the expenses I had to put into it.

• Gas
• Insurance
• Monthly Parking
• Maintenance

It appeared to me that this was an expense that I was not willing to put my hard earned money into so again I did my research.

I found this great car sharing program that pays for your gas, mileage and insurance. The program is called Zipcar. I used to see these cars on the road that said zipcar but I never really knew what they were about until I came across a brochure. I decided to sign up as a member and have never looked back to car rental companies again.

Zipcars are great because you can rent them anytime, anywhere at a moment's notice. Sometimes when I just want to go pick up a bunch of groceries, or have lots of shopping to do, I rent a zipcar for a few hours and know that the only extra charges I have to pay is the taxes. You can rent a zipcar by the hour or the day which makes it very convenient. They have so many stylish vehicles to ride around in that I make sure I choose a different vehicle everytime I need one.

Maybe a zipcar is something you might want to look into.