Saturday, April 27, 2024

Frugal Friday.....on Saturday, the April 27th Edition(3 Weeks Worth)

There are a few Frugal wins over the past 3 weeks. I missed posting this on Friday due to technical difficulties(jet lag, etc.)....

*  Forgot to mention at the beginning of the month I found a spiral cut ham at Kroger on clearance.....

*  Made some friends on the ship(and a new person to play trivia with online).

Trivia buddies on the ship, not the one who invited me to an online trivia group.

*  We made good use of our drinks package.  I gave Kim a run for her money drinking diet Coke(actually Coke Zero as it's better), tried lots of mixed drinks, bourbon, as well as have a pint (or 5) of Guinness. lolz  

*  I picked up some on sale(on offer)chocolate in Barcelona, Spain at a chocolatier and it made it home in my suitcase unscathed.  Mnnn, chocolate.

*  Here are all my shipboard prizes I won.........




1 t-shirt for dancing(LOL) at the sail away party
1 water bottle for winning a main stage game
2 decks of playing cards for various wins at trivia
3 tote bags 3 phone stands, 1 insulated wine glass, another deck of cards and another t-shirt chosen for turning all my signed activity cards (104 signatures)



I also got this kid's robot toy as part of the winning team at another main stage game.  I didn't want to carry this home(took up space in the luggage)so I went down to the "Splash Academy" and gave it to the Youth Staff to use as a prize for a game down there for the kids.

*  I also got these things for free.......


The earbuds and the Biscoff cookies were from two different flights.  The cruise memories keychain was something someone on the ship was giving out to folks and I happened to be in the right place at the right time to get one.  The Australia bracelet was found tucked into a deck sign near "The District" which was the beer pub on the ship.  We had A LOT of Aussies on this cruise and I made a few friends(a group who played Progressive Trivia like us, a lady named Grace, and a couple we sat next to at the Seafood restaurant among others).  

*  We received a bottle of champagne because we were Gold Tier.  That got used on the last full day of the cruise.  We brought the bottle, 2 champagne flutes from our room and glass of OJ from one of the restaurants and made Mimosas for Breakfast while playing morning trivia. ;-))  
 
*  We also got a free bag of laundry done by the ship housekeeping staff due to our tier level......

It came back washed, dried, ironing and presented in tissue paper placed in a wicker basket.
I thought of Sissie when I saw it. lol

*  We also received chocolates one day when we came back to the room......



And then a plate of cookies another day........




And then, after the Shore Excursion people f'ed up big time and screwed 5 busloads of cruisers out of their excursion, we found this in our room the next day......

They tasted pretty bad and left a bad taste in our mouths, but not as bad as the taste from them ruining our excursion and wasting our whole day. 8-(


 We got a lot of food on the flight back from Rome....


I FINALLY got a Dr. Pepper(well I actually had THREE on the flight from Rome to Charlotte-it was looooong!)after going through withdrawal since the ship only had Coke Zero and no place we saw in Europe had a Dr. Pepper.  Those people are savages I tell ya, savages! ;-)


We got a proper meal(lunch or dinner, who's to say as we were traveling back in time heading home......

A tiny little snack of ice cream from the UK.  It needed more vanilla in it.



And a Monty's Bakehouse Pastry.  Think fancy Hot Pocket. lol

I found money!  Yes in Europe I find money. 8-)


In Dallas I found a penny at the airport, before heading to the hotel for the night.....



Then at various times on the cruise ship I went through the casino and found a .30¢ voucher and an .80¢ voucher abandoned in two different slot machines.(Didn't get a photo of the .80¢ one before cashing it out.)


That ticket turned into this at the cashier's booth and the ,80¢ voucher turned into more coins....


Then I found a .20 Euro coin in Portugal while buying a cork bag from a vendor.....


And another 2 x .10 Euro coins on the ship that someone dropped and left in the Atrium.....



Then in the airport in Rome we both found 5 Euro.  I saw it first but was riding in a wheelchair and the pusher didn't speak English so I couldn't get him to stop so I pointed it out with my cane the Hubs and he scooped it up.....




Then we found a quarter going through TSA in Charlotte.....




And we went out for pizza Thursday night as we got in after 4pm from Dallas and I found 2 pennies in the pizza place...





Total Found in the last 3 Weeks.... $1.38 & 5 Euro and .30 Euro

Grand Total Found this Year.......$4.07 & 5.30 Euros

That's all I got.  

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

Sluggy    

15 comments:

  1. Oh no!! Why were you in the wheel chair! I hope not another stool accident!

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    Replies
    1. Well there were collapsible stools involved on this trip but I didn't fall off them.lol I always ask when I fly, especially to a huge or unfamiliar airport for wheelchair assistance on my ticket. Glad I did too as Rome's aeroport was massive and we don't speak Italian. 8-)

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    2. So someone pushes you around? Versus just walking? That’s an option for anyone? Interesting.

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    3. Well I still have mobility issues in large airports with short layovers since the new knee is only 6 months old(1 year is the benchmark for being fully healed and operational)so better to get assistants some times.

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  2. You look great! Did you have fun and was the food good on the trip? Where all did you go? Lol. Lots of questions. Cindy in the South

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    Replies
    1. Oh I gained 13 lbs. on this one. UGH The food was uneven I'd say....sometimes good, sometimes not so good. It was a Transatlantic crossing with Ports of call in Bermuda, the Azores, Lisbon Portugal, Cadiz Spain, Malaga Spain(where we-300+ cruisers, had a big clusterF*** with an excursion), Ibizia Spain, Barcelona Spain, Cannes France, Livorno Italy and ending in Rome.
      We had fun despite the clusterF*** day. The Cruise Director was great and his staff was fan-so-tastic! Can't recommend them enough.
      Norwegian Cruise Lines OTOH needs to get their act together.....
      I'll write more later on this one since I have 4 previous cruises to blog about first. lolz

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    2. Wow that is a lot of places! Cindy in the South

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    3. 16 days was just a bit too long IOHO. I think 12 days is a better fit for us going forward. Plus boarding the dogs that long was $$$.

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  3. So, you are a globe-trotting, penny-picking traveler! I used a wheelchair in an airport. I was not even flying. Your hair looks great. I almost did not recognize you.

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    Replies
    1. Hubs has had instances where he doesn't recognize me from the back. lol

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  4. Welcome home!
    What an exciting cruise! What was your favorite country?
    Spain, France, Italy, Portugal?

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    Replies
    1. Spent the most time in Spain but can't say which was favorite as the experiences and the countries were all so different.

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  5. Wow, what a fascinating trip, Sluggy. I would want a wheelchair/pusher too in an unfamiliar airport due to my knees. It's the not knowing beforehand that necessitates these types of things like that old saying, better to be safe than sorry. How neat on all the money you found. That is too bad they messed up your excursion. You must have been so disappointed. It's great to "see" you back, I've missed you!

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    Replies
    1. Aww, thanks Belinda. 8-) It was fun(outside of that one day NCL f'd up). I was surprised I found money in Europe but NO used dental picks there...lots of cigarette butts however. lol

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  6. Oh, I have to say, the new photo of you, with your weight loss, you look absolutely beautiful! What an amazing transformation. I wish you nothing more than continued good health AND beauty!!! WOW!! Cindy In The North.

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