Insane Math
By Jim Bauer
@porwest (92589)
United States
December 6, 2023 5:08pm CST
Money is my game. It just always has been. Math was always my arch nemesis. Yet, at the same time, math has become a bit of a friend.
Go figure.
So, today I needed just a couple of items right away, and I just didn't feel like driving all the way to Ruler Foods where I KNOW what I need now is cheaper.
I don't normally choose convenience over value, but at the same time, look. I'm human, right?
So I went to Schnuck's instead, which is typically more expensive, and there were no deals from their current ad than interested me at all. Nonetheless. I needed to get beer and their price on a 30-pack of Miller Lite wasn't unreasonable at $22.24, only about 26 cents more than Walmart.
I knew I needed to get onions and green peppers. The onions were HORRIBLE at $3.14 for a 3-lb bag, but okay. I had decided I'd pay it. The green peppers weren't terrible at 89 cents a piece and I took three of the biggest ones I could find.
When I am there I always check the meats since they often have things about to expire that are on sale under a manager's special. I found 80/20 ground beef, which was actually on my shopping list, for $2.90 per pound, 9 cents per pound below my threshold price of $2.99 (for 73/27 by the way).
I bought 7 pounds.
Here's the deal and how I thought about the onions which irked me just a little bit. I used my Discover card which pays me 1% cash back. I also claimed an Upside deal which offered 4% cash back from Schnuck's. My purchase also offered me $1 back in Schnuck's rewards.
I spent a little over $50.
The total I got back in all my rewards was 50 cents from Discover, $2 from Upside and $1 from my Schnuck's rewards. That was a total of $3.50.
I found a great deal on ground beef I would not have known about, and essentially my bag on onions was free, and my beer was actually only $21.88, about 10 cents less than Walmart.
All this math is insane, and the fact that I actually sat down to figure all this out probably is too. At the same time, I think the fact that I DO do this is part of the reason I actually have money.
Do you ever do crazy math stuff like this?
12 people like this
11 responses
@cherriefic (10399)
• Philippines
9 Dec 23
When I don't have enough budget for the usual groceries, I suddenly become a Math Wizard. 
2 people like this
@akalinus (43372)
• United States
13 Dec 23
I could write a book about the weirdness I have gone through to feed my children. I could make a meal out of anything if I had to.
Also, food just appeared to me sometimes when I had nothing. Stranger's freezers would break down and they asked me if I wanted some of the frozen food. Once, a truck dropped a case of industrial-sized pudding cans. The kids feasted on pudding.
That was in the past. I always have more than enough now.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
9 Dec 23
@2ndchances24 Like I always say, I can either choose to keep as much of what I earn and work less, or not mind the money and be forced to work more. I choose the former.
4 people like this
@2ndchances24 (9290)
• Cloverdale, Indiana
8 Dec 23
@porwest You are so right, if you
spend your $ the wrong way it
cost you in the long run.
People have to take heed to the fact that $
isn't what it use to be spend wisly my friends.
2 people like this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
9 Dec 23
Time is money and money is time. The way I look at it, if I waste even 30 cents, I have to make up for it somewhere...working. So even if I THINK I am saving time, I am not. I am forcing myself to have to spend more time working to make it up.
Just my two cents.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
10 Dec 23
@akalinus It is part of the reason for me I decided very early on to get and keep my financial house in order, learn the art of investing and so on and so forth. It allowed me to retire earlier this year at 50. I never once wanted to spend my entire life working.
As for the writing, thank you. Although what I do here, I never consider writing—but I am sure you've probably seen some of my stuff published elsewhere.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (220245)
• Walnut Creek, California
9 Dec 23
@porwest Managing money well does involve math. I am finding my "research" (gathering case histories and generating hypotheses at this point) on the relationship between autism and music to be fascinating. Autistic people like structure/organization, and are often good with numbers. I find that they also understand and can express themselves through the language of music quite often. I am wondering if there is an underlying reason for this. Specifically, I am wondering if some autistics see music (in some sense) as safely organized noise. If I can find it, I'll send you another class handout, this one about the relationship between music and math. It's been a subject of interest to me for most of my adult life.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (181681)
• United States
7 Dec 23
We buy most of our groceries from Walmart and Giant Eagle and a few times from Marc's or Aldi's. Those are the stores in the immediate area. The other stores like Meijer's are too far away to be economical. Have a great day.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (181681)
• United States
11 Dec 23
@porwest They opened a Trader Joe's in the same area. I've never been to one of those. I'd like to visit TJ and Whole Foods (we don't have one of those). Have a good week.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
14 Dec 23
@LindaOHio Whole Foods is foo foo. But you might like it. I have been to a Trader Joe's once about 15 years ago and wasn't all that impressed with it. But I actually want to give it a go since some of my tatstes and interests have changed a bit. The closest one here is across the river in St. Louis. Not a terrible trek, so eventually I will get there. It's on the list anyway to go.
1 person likes this
@2ndchances24 (9290)
• Cloverdale, Indiana
7 Dec 23
I'm not a numbers cruncher but I do watch what spend
I keep up with what $ I have on hand & I know how to
save back, we stock up on food that last us a good while
to eat, but since I got sick my diet in what I eat has been
changed being I have diabides, no sugar or starch or any
fried foods, so food is a challange to keep stocked up on.
1 person likes this
@2ndchances24 (9290)
• Cloverdale, Indiana
7 Dec 23
@porwest your right, but we manage with
what $ we get every month to save some
for next payday.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
7 Dec 23
@2ndchances24 You have to do what you have to do, that's for sure.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
9 Dec 23
That's why you time and schedule where you shop according to what you need and put an item that needs to be replaced on your list long before you are out of it. That way you are never making a special trip and you are never forced to pay more than you should. If I am at Ruler and they have the best price for macaroni and cheese, I buy 5 boxes and put it on my list when I am down to 2. When I have five or more items on my list for Ruler, I decide to go there.
To me it is never worth it to spend more just because. It will take me more time to work to pay it back. A lot of people don't think of what they have to do to earn the money they decide to waste.
You either take the time to shop right and pay the best price, or you'll need to work longer.
@Marilynda1225 (83118)
• United States
7 Dec 23
I'm glad you did all that math so I wouldn't have to try to figure out how much you saved at Schnucks
These days you have to be very conscientious about spending especially when shopping for groceries. Pennies add up these days
These days you have to be very conscientious about spending especially when shopping for groceries. Pennies add up these days1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121715)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Dec 23
Man, you really are crazy! Lol. But if more people adopted your strategy, they’d probably be less in debt and/or have more money to save
1 person likes this
@porwest (92589)
• United States
7 Dec 23
As the old saying goes, or I just made it up, if you never mind the money the money won't be there to mind. Keeping every penny in check makes sure there are dollars to tend to. Money is not a number. It's a mindset.
Well, that was more than one saying, but yeah...I probably am a little bit crazy. lol
@just4him (317242)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
9 Dec 23
Math and I are enemies. I don't pay much attention to prices when it comes to what I need, but I do pay attention to where the better quality is for what I need. There's no price on quality. I know a lot of people I associate with don't like going to Hy-Vee. One, the store is too big, and two, it's inconvenient to get there. So, says them. One thing I like about Hy-Vee is their price comparison. They show the comparison on the item. It's always lower than Wal-Mart or Festival. I don't and will not shop at Wal-Mart. Festival is my other go-to store for quality. I know it's also higher in prices. So, I only go there when I need to. The other store close to me is Pick N Save. It might look like a discount store because of their prices, but when you look at product size, it's not. I get more product when I shop Hy-Vee or Festival. I do like Pick N Save's produce. For me, it's all about quality. I like the savings too. And speaking about savings: I have a Perks card from Hy-Vee. It saves at Shell. I always look for the best price for gas. However, the last time I needed gas, Shell was the closest. I put my Hy-Vee perks reward in the slot, and I thought I was seeing things. I got gas for .76 per gallon, or $6.88 for a full tank. I saved $20.40 on gas. Now, that's a deal. Do I like Hy-Vee? It's my favorite store for so many reasons.
@Beestring (14697)
• Hong Kong
7 Dec 23
I don't have the ability to calculate like you. I just look for good deals such as buy one get one free and discounted stuff. I use credit cards to get cashback.
1 person likes this
