Wednesday 4 October 2017

Alternative way of living on a low budget

Hello. I have been browsing the frugal living/money saving videos on yoootooob, thinking I might pick up a few tips here and there. Everyone has their own way of budgeting their money, I wondered if I had missed something which would benefit my own budgeting. After trawling through a dozen or more, and not learning anything new, I came across this one. Low income living and how to do it.

After watching for a few minutes I couldn't believe what I was hearing, 'What the heck', and 'Oh my God', came to mind. Surely this is a wind up, but sadly I think it isn't.



Who are we to criticize how anyone else is managing their money? It's a personal thing, I will spend mine on what is important to me, and you will do the same. If you view this on yoootooob you will see that the comments are split between those who think he has got it massively wrong, and those who think he is doing ok. I know which side of the fence I sit on, but because of political correctness no one is allowed to say how unfit and overweight he is because of all the rubbish food he is eating.

He seems oblivious to the fact that he is killing himself, and is quite happy to talk about his best frugal living tip of buying all the wrong foods in bulk. I say wrong foods, but they are obviously not wrong to him. He seems a nice guy, but as this was posted in 2011, I wonder if he is still alive.

I always say to people, this is how I do it, you do what you want. I don't preach that my way is best, because it might not suit everyone. No one has the right to tell anyone what they should be spending their money on. But hey, in this instance, what I will say is please think twice about following his advice.

Please comment with your thoughts. Thank you for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

63 comments:

  1. He needs to have a good clean up and throwing out session!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh my golly :/ It's not for me either Ilona. It's a far cry from being a healthy way to make ends meet. A wind up? Sadly, I don't think so either...

    ReplyDelete
  3. I agree with your sentiments Ilona. Surely he is playing a zero sum game because he does not say that he buys stock when things are on offer. In other words he is locking his money into goods for the sake of building up a large stock.Where is the frugality?

    ReplyDelete
  4. I can see some of the points he is making but I fear his mountain of food will out live him. Why are American packs do large? I've been to America 3 times and it amazes me. They must feel like they're buying same packs in the UK 😁

    ReplyDelete
  5. I couldn't watch it all the way through it made me cringe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Same here, I felt desperately sorry for him.

      Delete
  6. I'm going to stick up for this man. Sure he's overweight and I'm sure he knows it but he mentions kids and we don't know what his monthly income is. He looks too young to be on a pension so his income may not be secure. If I didn't have a fixed income I would stockpile on the cheap stuff that I know would see me through.He's pointing out that if you have all the basics like flour and sugar and cooking oil and you want to make something involving say eggs and its getting near the end of the fiscal month you won't be blindsided by forking out for oil.
    Love your blog Ilona.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree to a point Anne. Plus when you read the LDS web site for food security it recommends: flour(wheat berries), sugar, rice, milk (The Mormon 4) and cooking oil in quantities for at least one year per person, 2 years is better and 7 would be optimum (think Moses). Anything else you add to your food stores is considered an added blessing.

      Do I agree with all he is doing? No, I don't. I have suffered from appetite fatigue and it is not pretty. I would have rather have seen him with one bag of flour, sugar, rice, milk, and oil. Then spent money on canned vegetables and fruits, dried eggs, potted meats, spices and herbs, before purchasing the next go-round of the Mormon 4. A deep pantry does save you money.

      Ilona and others, I would ask you to give this a thought; y'all live on an island. If there were, let's say, a natural disaster(we could add something political if you want) and there was no food delivers to Tesco or any grocery store for a month, 60 days, 90 days. How and what would you eat until the grocery shelves were restocked?

      Delete
  7. OMG This guy has serious shopping issues. Whilst it makes sense to always have store cupboard basics in stock you do not need bucket loads of things! I fail to see how this saves him money as he is spending on things he's not eating. Also if he's worked in the catering industry you'd think he would have a clean Kitchen!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I am almost speechless! I only got half way through because I couldn't bear to watch him any more. What a crazy way of doing this. As you say, it is totally unhealthy and he is so overweight. His kitchen and "buckets" look filthy. It all seems pointless and takes up so much space and nothing fresh or healthy. It made me cringe.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I only got 1 and a half minutes in. Can't waste anymore life watching that rubbish

    ReplyDelete
  10. Where do I start? First of all, he repeatedly refers to having been a cook, how then can he keep such a dirty kitchen? I am not talking about messy, it is downright filthy! He is confused as to just what the pantry principal is. Instead of getting a "buttload" of an ingredient and buying it whether/not it is needed, he needs to first determine his needs as regards the ingredient, keep a price book, and once the deal on the ingredient is found, stock up in appropriate amounts until the next sale starts on that particular item. Also, instead of deciding "I will cook this" he needs to shop his pantry first and make do with what is already on hand. Lot's of convenience foods that are a lot more expensive than making it from scratch: mac and cheese dinners, pancake mix, prepared pasta in cans. Where's the protein except for the $1 tins of sardines? no beans/nuts/lentils etc? He says that OJ will keep him healthy-actually, it's loaded in sugar and calories. Far better (and cheaper) to eat steamed cabbage with stewed tomatoes, steam greens, etc. I seriously question his training in nutrition, sani-serve endorsement, and finance management. Ack!

    ReplyDelete
  11. i love the way you arent preachy about money some bloggers seem to think that every penny they spend is genius and every penny you spend is useless and foolish really annoys me regards tessa

    ReplyDelete
  12. Good luck to this man but I won't be taking his advice. The buckets of sugar and salt were the worst in my opinion. Amanda

    ReplyDelete
  13. America is the richest third world country!. But American people do not reolise that!.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I was more appalled at the filth than the type of food. And don't get me started on his overuse of the word buttload, ugh. He is right that here in the US the cheapest food is what he shows you, unfortunately it is the worst for you. I can assure you that the fresh vegetables and such like you find for pennies cannot be had that cheap here in the US, at least not where I live. Most grocery stores, especially Walmart our largest chain store, will not sell out of date items, they throw them away and prosecute anyone that attempts to take stuff out of the trash dumpster. Its very sad but that's what happens here. As to his method of buying stuff--he's what is termed a prepper.

    CTMOM is correct that those convenience foods are more expensive in the long run than making it from scratch. I won't be subscribing to his channel but in checking it out, he looks about the same today except he has a beard.

    I buy as much as I can of what is on sale and keep extra in the pantry or freezer. That is my way of saving money, however I buy better food than he does. Buying in bulk when it is on sale has saved me several times when I was out of a job as I didn't have to buy any food when I didn't have money. I also put up fruits and veg in jars when I find a good sale or have extra from the garden.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I need to be careful of how much I spend on groceries.I do buy larger sizes of some products when they are on offer such as washing up liquid or washing powder.Even when not on offer it is cheaper of course to buy larger sizes of what I use regularly but not junk foods,I do my best to eat fairly healthily most of the time.I do use salt occasionally,but I prefer to buy a small tub of sea salt and use it sparingly,rather than huge,cheaper bucket for example.Then again today I bought 4 avocados for £1 at a street market.That is my idea of bulk buying to save myself money.I did think he seemed a pleasant man though-I just couldn't eat all that stodge x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Flis,I hope your avocados were better than my 3 for a pound market ones were...mine were brown mush when i sliced them open!.I do the same as you with my salt,buy small and use sparingly.Debi,xx

      Delete
    2. I know,Debi-avocados are so risky.The first one's been fine-fingers crossed thanks x

      Delete
  16. Ooh those potatoe flakes with milk- yuk. How disgusting, what about buying a bag of potatoes, or growing some - easy in the right conditions eg weather and space. I'm sure that spider was a cockroach in disguise who was hiding from all the rats and mice. LIsa J. Australia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't see anything disgusting in potato flakes with milk ? dried potato is not my first choice but a couple of packs in the storecupboard can get you out of scrapes, and haven't you ever added a splash of milk when mashing potatos ?

      Delete
  17. I think because he has worked in a kitchen with large stocks of dry goods he thinks thats what he needs at home. He ought to buy a stock of an item which is on offer, as long as he will use by due date and not buy everything every shop leaving less money for fresh items and variety. Lets stick with Ilona!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hello. I watched the video and it's not the lifestyle I would choose but it's a lifestyle many have here in the states. If you listen to the very beginning, he states that his economic situation makes him have this lifestyle. For me, I would go out and get myself a job(s). It's good that he's happy. I wish him the best.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I couldn't do more than five minutes because firstly - it was chaotic. My cupboards are tidy and organized so I know exactly what is what. And I don't believe in stock piling - which I think is an American thing, but his choices are really bad. That spider! Needed a trigger warning. x

    ReplyDelete
  20. This is not a typical thought for most in America. I do know of some that believe in this way of eating but I know more people that believe in vegetables, fruits, and beans. Even if someone doesn't have much money, a huge box of organic spinach is not expensive and the extra can be processed and frozen before it goes bad. Dry beans are very reasonably priced. Living in southern Ca. we have many fruit trees and I always have a garden....even in winter. Aldi market has opened here and has many reasonably priced food items. They've had organic ground beef on sale for $3.99 a lb. for those that are meat eaters. It is a combination of how you were raised and how much one has looked into healthy eating. All can see how this persons food choices affect his health and how your choices have affected your health. Blessings to both of you. Patty McDonald

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I also live in Southern California and am very blessed to live by a special market that carries last chance produce! However, I do understand that not everyone has access to the amazing amount of fresh produce around the country. And many people just prefer to rely on carbs and meat or convenience food for their calories. When I changed my eating habits, it was a real eye opener for me. I think government subsidies encourage people to choose processed foods over fresh and meat and dairy over vegetables. The mass produced meat and dairy by the way. Not the pasture raised kind...too expensive. All this is to say, I've realized, as so many others have, that I can only control me and not other people. But I do feel moments of sadness sometimes for people like this man.

      Delete
  21. So much criticism of this man and his lifestyle. I wonder just why you chose to post about this, to encourage people to criticise?

    You're right that we should abide by political correctness and not say that any person is unfit and overweight but that's exactly what you're doing, highlighting and drawing attention to that by your comments. Why did you feel the need to say the words unfit and overweight?

    Not one of your better posts Illona.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Why do you not put your name to your comment?

      Delete
    2. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
  22. I am wondering why you feel the need to critize Ilona.It's her blog and she can say whatever she chooses.I think it's wonderful that she helps and encourages many of us to lead a healthy lifestyle.It's a pity more people don't take advantage of her wise words x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. In my opinion Ilona is spot on with her comments - at this moment in time I am feeling happy and well and it is thanks to reading this blog and using the grey matter in my head to make some small changes to my lifestyle. Keep up the good work. Sharon

      Delete
  23. I am afraid I eat very similarly and I hate it, I am disabled and haven't left the house for 11 months so I cannot buy yellow stickered items. Most of my money goes on carers and I am left with very little. I am overweight and I know I eat unhealthily but cheap carbs fill me up and are all I can afford. It is sad for me because I absolutely love fresh vegetables and fruit, I could live off them alone but I cannot afford the prices when I can buy a loaf of cheap bread for 40p. Honestly, eating rubbish food is a choice I make so that I can afford a carer another day of the week. Sadly I don't have family or friends to help me.

    I don't know this man's personal circumstances but some of us have no choice but to live this way although I wish it was different. I don't want to kill myself with bad choices but I just don't have the money to eat more healthily or to get to a shop for yellow stickered items. Please don't judge me, I don't know what else to do.

    Love the blog Ilona, I have learnt so much from you and you always make me smile which means a lot. Take care and please cuddle a kitty for me, Lin

    ReplyDelete
  24. Watched a few mins of this video to see if it was the same one i watched a few years ago. From the comments made here i figured it was. And yep...sure was! It takes all sorts i guess. The only thing he accomplished with his video for me was that i got the urge to go and make sure my kitchen and pantry were clean....i have that same urge just from the few mins tonight. :-) I look forward to reading your posts...thank you for taking the time to write! Deb

    ReplyDelete
  25. So sad. When my husband left (years ago), I was left with next to nothing. My daughter now jokes that that's when we embraced "The Road to Wigan Pier" diet (lots of raw carrots and brown bread) which continues to this day. We both now pay a LOT of tax where we live and, while I am eternally grateful for our excellent "free" health care and other public services, I am always troubled by people who do not engage in preventative maintenance with respect to their health. Thank you for still allowing anon comments! Hugs from Barbara (Canada)

    ReplyDelete
  26. You don't need oil and soap and all that every time you shop! Save money when they are on sale. Back stock is good to a certain extent. Overindulging is what he's doing. I agree with you Ilona. Save some space there too! Icky spider! Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  27. I could not watch more than a few minutes of this video. I sometimes make unhealthy choices, too, for example I love me a piece of cake. But all these prepared foods - horrible. For the same money, he surely could buy beans, lentils, potatoes and some cheap veggies along with milk and eggs as cheap protein.
    Of course you cannot for sure say that this person is unfit, but even with all political correctness you can call him overweight.

    ReplyDelete
  28. hmm.. I can see positives & negatives in his logic - I will buy extras of basics if that works out cheaper than buying smaller packs and I also do buy 1-2 extra packs of my staples when they're on offer. But I also find that if I 'over-buy', things just end up sitting in the cupboard until they go stale or I forget about them.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Ilona you eat a veg based frugal reasonably healthy diet but nutritionally its probably not ideal because its all from the suppermarket and up to its sell by date . The point im making is that youre doing great and living to your budget but theres lots of people who will jump on the its not organic and grown 10ft from your door bandwagon and criticise you for being frugal .
    This bloke is making unhealthy choices , hes not perfect, but hes being frugal in his own way , theres as many spectrums of frugal as there is autism . Your retired and have the time and the motivation to yellow label shop and your health . But as time goes by you will find that the simple act of aging will make being frugal so much harder , it happens to so many who live rurally , once you cant drive theres only the bus and getting your shopping home becomes hard work , once you cant manage the bus and have to shop very locally you realise that all the shops have gone, the doctors seems a hundred miles away etc etc , i do feel that the future holds many horrors for those of us getting to a vulnerable age , we will only be connected to the human race via computer instead of staring out of a window from our shackletons high seat chair, we will be staring at a screen

    ReplyDelete
  30. Firstly,glad your back on accepting Anon for the time being...I havent got a clue how to do it any other way,lol.Also,Ive been down Brighton for a few days so it was great to get back,catch up on your blog and be able to join in the comments...I do understand why you have to change it though.Well,ive just watched this guys video...the spider made my skin crawl!!.I couldnt stand all than clutter and boxs and buckets around me and i would be worrying about the sell by dates on things.Years ago,i used to be guilty of buying lots of freezer things if they were on offer...12 packs of fish fingers that we didnt even eat that often...i got sick of looking at them every time i opened the freezer door and after about 8 months the remaining packs got binned.It was just a waste and i wouldnt make that mistake again!.I too feel a bit sorry for this guy and im sure he means well...but there is no way i could buy my food that way.To be honest...i couldnt afford to even if i wanted to!.Still,each to his own and all that!.Ive got a shopping day tomorrow but i am lucky that 2 Aldi,an Asda and a Tesco are all within 5 mins drive from me.My fridge and shelves are almost empty because i like to try and use most things up before i shop.Hope everyones having a good day!,Debi,xx

    ReplyDelete
  31. He's doing it his way - not my style or life choice, but who are we to criticise ? who is anyone to criticise ?
    Don't judge the weight, hygeine, cleanliness etc., look at the man ! it's his choice to be overweight, unhygeinic, etc., I don't think it's anyone else's business.

    ReplyDelete
  32. P.S. - don't get me wrong, I love your blog Ilona, but you talk here about 'political correctness' but you have said that he is overweight, you said 'who are we to criticise' , but you have criticised. You have had your share of trolls and nasty comments and have now taken the step to moderate all comments to presumably cut these out, so you know what it feels like to be publicly mocked and criticised. You say you don't care about trolls and nasty comments, but if that were the case, you wouldn't moderate all comments.
    So I am surprised and a little disappointed at this post, as someone else has said 'not one of your best'.
    Hoping the next one is back to your normal charitable self.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Can I just say that I think this is a terrific post.It has had the effect of many of us possibly being more determined than ever to continue or even improve our on our food choices.I will be anyway.

      Delete
    2. Hope its ok to comment on a post a few days old..But i do agree with Flis..He should be looking at eating more healthy and not living like that because in the long run it wont do him any good.I can see what he means by buying the basics..but only for a couple of weeks..not for weeks and months ahead.Dont stuff like this get tiny insects in it?,Well at the end of the day..he can live how he wants..just dont try telling other people it is healthy and frugal...It isnt!!,Debi,xx

      Delete
  33. Oh dear. Weevils is all I can think of!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Maybe he is afraid to be hungry. Maybe he was hungry as child and doesn,t want to go there again. So he buys bulk stuff which he knows and he always has something in for hard times. I really don,t know. I can,t comment about shopping in the USA as I don,t know about prices or what is available He does need a bit help to widen his cook skills and having a clean up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you have hit a nail on the head there, Jill. It is no good to have government messaging about healthy food unless we give people the skillsets to cook nutritious food and this has to start in childhood.

      Delete
  35. wow this is a thought provoking post, I watched some but it made hard viewing and skipped the rest. I couldn't stand there and talk with spider I would have had to put him out the door. People are saying who are we to criticise, but the fact that he has put it out there for the world to see brings forth the comments, criticism and the rest. It shows another view of frugality, I felt sad that he said he has always been from the lower end of life as if he aspires to nothing else. I think he is still living as if he is cooking for the masses in his truckstop not just himself. I don't even get through one small oil bottle in 6 months and small salt pot lasts for years unless I put it on my front step in the winter to prevent slipping. I believe all the comments should be fors and against, not just to be filtered the nice way, that people have a right to an opinion. Yes he is overweight and having the camera on his stomach half the time sort of emphasised it a little and I did feel claustrophic, but he did seem 'nice' and I guess felt for him that he was doing the right thing. I do stock up but only a few cans of each in the cupboard, trying now to get that down so we can move next year with very little stockpile. Going through 27 years of stuff, decluttering etc, filtering its amazing how hard it is to let go of stuff, but once out the house you don't really remember it at all. I am glad someone posted that he is still alive and kicking albeit with a beard, which sort of shows that his life hasn't been too detrimental to him, but who knows going forward. Wishing everyone a great day x

    ReplyDelete
  36. forgot to say all those buckets make me think of creepy crawlies, had some in a small tin of flour once that I though was okay and was going to make cakes, until I looked a little closer and it was all moving around, arrrhhhhhhhhh, lid went back on quick, double bagged and out the door. cue scrubbing of cupboards commenced. I do not stockpile flour, sugar or anything like that now.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I could only bear to watch for a minute or so, until he began to show us his store of buckets of stuff and everything looked so grubby I couldn't watch any more.
    Margaret P

    ReplyDelete
  38. I live in the US and I can tell you that buying healthy foods is expensive because of all the "food fads" we gyrate through monthly. Really ticked me off when the price of kale went out of sight because the foodies were making kale chips or putting them in their smoothies. I am always amazed at your yellow sticker finds because our groceries simply don't have that type of pricing. The discounts you do see here in the US are pretty much a joke. Maybe 20 percent off the original price. So it's a challenge if you are on a tight budget and want to avoid living on junk food. The recourse is to grow your own and figure out a storage method for keeping them when the growing season is over. Again that can be expensive on a tight budget. Not everyone can receive food stamps here as well as it depends on your situation and what state you live in and what food products those food stamps allow you to get. The guy in the video was stockpiling basic ingredients that have an extremely long shelf life that require no refrigeration with the premise that having so much of those things on hand means you don't have to keep buying it every time you go to the store. Frees up some cash for the "premium foods" as he said. It looks like he lives in a trailer so storage space is probably non-existent and if you are trying to stockpile ingredients you got to put them somewhere. Maybe a good question to consider would be if the grocery stores could not restock their shelves for a few weeks or months how long would your food supply that you have on hand last you? Here in the US that is a question we ask ourselves during hurricane season or the winter blizzards we get.

    ReplyDelete
  39. The US, in my opinion, truly is the richest third world country.

    I do get the general idea of the video from comments and would like to point out some of the reality of living in poverty in the US. One commenter already pointed out the lack of reduced price quality food. The corporations will toss food into a dumpster rather then allowing it to be purchased, most likely a result of the sue happy public. So no 'yellow sticker' eating here.

    Quality food costs many times what 'junk' food costs so for the poor that is often the only option to going hungry.

    Yes, there are food shelves and free giveaways for food (Ruby's pantry). However, many food shelves don't allow the selection of their food, they take what they are given. The general thinking is that "If you are hungry, you will eat what I give you." And what they are given is surplus beans, peas, potato flakes, and out of date dented cans. I am from a large family where many never rose above the poverty level so I've seen the donations they receive. A diabetic brother is continually given surplus bags of sugar which are traded off for something else once the recipients get out to the parking lot. Even the fresh produce that is given away is often way past being edible and always given is such bulk that no one could reasonable eat that much before it rots. One sister received 30 pounds of bananas, and yes if she wanted to get anything she had to take them all. She gave as much away as she could and traded some for other foods. I know, some commenters would suggest freezing them, well to do that you must have a freezer and have the money to pay the electric bill to power the freezer.

    Some people really do not have a choice in the foods they eat, it's eat junk or starve. There isn't readily available resources for everyone to have a garden or plants in a pot. Dirt and seeds cost money with no guarantee of food in the future.

    I know this is getting too long it's difficult to understand what life is like for people in other countries, which is why I read your blog Ilona - to gain and understanding of daily life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A very interesting and thought provoking post, thank you.

      Delete
  40. This is sad as this man is stockpiling refined dehydrated carbohydrates which are all usually processed with chemicals. There is no sign of any fresh or frozen fruit and veg or meat or fish. The protein section of his diet is missing and also the roughage. I hope he is taking vitamin pills to try and compensate for this. A high carbohydrate intake is the probable cause of his obesity. Sadly he is stockpiling to satisfy his fear of starvation. I think this is a mental health problem and he will need therapy to help him.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I never buy salt or sugar, I don't use them as I think there is enough in our food already. I don't do much home baking unless I could fill the oven as it's quite large but I do sometimes make apple pies and crumbles; I prefer to use small sweet apples, flavour with cinnamon, and make a custard with egg and milk and flavour with vanilla and nutmeg. You don't have to use the big Brammleys which are tart. Each to his own.

    ReplyDelete
  42. I do believe a lot of people in America, particularly rural areas, are on a somewhat similar track as this guy. However, as one of these people, I will also say I think he's in danger of moving from the food security/prepper column to the "hoarder" column. I agree with his basic tenet- if you spend a few dollars now on "extra food" for long-term storage, you won't be in such a fix when unexpected circumstances keep you from being able to go to the store. The biggest difference for me is the items I try to "stock up" on are rice, beans, whole wheat pasta, low sodium canned veggies, and canned fruit.

    Just for a bit of context, I live in the US in a small resort town in the mountains of Western North Carolina. The views are gorgeous, but since the town is set up to mostly cater to tourists, living here full-time presents some challenges to doing so frugally. :-) There is one grocery store and one general store in town, neither of which is within walking distance. The nearest Aldi (or Walmart for that matter) is a thirty minute drive. And all it takes for my family to be cut off from civilization for days at a time is a bit of ice in the winter. The main road down the mountain from our house has actually been closed by the police before when weather conditions are bad...i.e., ice, snow, even heavy rain. It's also not out of the ordinary for people in this area to be without power for days, or weeks even, at a time in the winter due to ice storms. Having a supply of "emergency" food, even if it's just a few cans of soup, for these conditions is considered normal by most people I know.

    Which brings me to another thing- I don't think most people outside the US realize that unless you live in a large city, public transportation here is non-existent. If you can't walk or take a bus to the shops, a bare pantry might make some people nervous. Another reason that might be is job security. Some people see having a fully stocked pantry the same as having money in the bank. If you or your spouse loses a job, it's comforting to know you could still feed your family for a few weeks, or months, or in some people's case, years!

    Ultimately, we all have to find the means that works for us, right? I don't have five-gallon buckets of staples in my pantry, nor is there any pancake mix on my shelves, (at the moment at least) but I think I have to draw the line at slagging someone off for doing their version of the best to provide for their loved ones.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for your insights about America, Shellie. I think we do forget the sheer landmass of the United States and that you have huge distances.

      Delete
  43. Watched it all through and all I can say is "Oh dear!" Sugar, salt and flour cooked in oil doesn't sound very appetising to me!

    ReplyDelete
  44. This is a very intriguing post and discussion. Yes, this man is unhealthy, his style of shopping and what he buys is impractical and unhealthy, (and oh my goodness that rice bucket hasn't been cleaned in years) but I think what we are mostly seeing is his response to poverty. He's doing the best he can, even if we feel that to be misguided. Ilona wondered if he was still alive but I see that he was posting on his channel until 4 months ago, obviously we can't be sure why he stopped/paused.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Sugar, salt, oil, and flour are good things to have on hand. BUT, he should buy at the lowest price, not just every week at whatever the price may be. He has got the stockpiling thing all wrong! He worked in kitchens. He did not shop for them. He said the owners kept these supplies. Of course, they did. But, it was not so they could afford quality food. It was so they would have basics on hand and could/would spend money on fruits, vegetables, meats. He doesn't have a clue as to what a prepper does--stock a well-balanced diet.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Onr thing I did like was his comment at the end 'Live by your wits, not by your worries'. Not always easy to do if you are a worrier! Linda, South Devon

    ReplyDelete

Some comments will be accepted. I decide which are published.