Helpful tips to save money during tough times
By Layla Aslani, DMG writerArticle Photos
HOUGHTON - Harley Sachs said he never made much money, so that is why he lives frugally.
Sachs shared his tips for stretching food to save money during these tough economic times in a letter to the editor published in The Daily Mining Gazette on Sept. 13. His tips included baking his own bread, avoiding prepared food and buying tea in bulk. Although some people may write off his methods as too much work, Sachs said they are a great way to make ends meet and be less wasteful during tough economic times.
Sachs said his thrifty days date back to his college years when he used the GI Bill of Rights to attend the University of Stockholm in Sweden. During his summers off, he traveled with little money.
"I had to travel cheap for $2 a day," he said. "I was hitchhiking around Europe, it was a ball, it was an adventure."
Later, Sachs married his wife, Ulla, who was from Germany, and the pair went on a year-long honeymoon around Europe for only $3 a day. Sachs said they ate simple food and did not have the luxury of refrigeration while on the move.
"That's how you learn to get by," he said. "You had to carry everything."
Despite living cheaply, the couple had fun. They even rented a castle gatehouse in Scotland they found for only $25 a month after Sachs placed an ad in the paper seeking inexpensive living accommodations, he said. Today, he said the castle is an expensive hotel.
Even years later, Sachs still has the saving mindset he developed during his travels. He retired 21 years ago from Michigan Technological University and estimates his pension has lost 60 percent of its purchasing power in the time since due to inflation.
Between rent on an apartment in Oregon where Sachs and his wife winter and medical expenses, Sachs says there isn't much money left for luxuries like eating out, smoking and drinking.
"If you eliminate them from your budget, that would leave you with a lot of money," Sachs said.
Sachs said he also shaves using one cup of water and recycles old clothes for "camp clothes."
"I never throw a shirt away, unless it's torn," he said.
When doing laundry, Sachs dries clothes on the line.
"They smell nicer and they don't waste energy," he said.
Sachs rarely throws away food and often makes a Danish fruit soup out of overripe fruits with a thickening agent like tapioca, potato flour or corn starch. Sometimes he even uses hot water to get leftover jelly out of jars to add to the soup, he said. Topped with milk and corn flakes, the dish is a tasty sweet without added sugar. Sachs' other speciality is a Danish apple cake, which is made with bread crumbs, applesauce and cool whip.
Sachs often cans fruits and vegetables and is especially proud of his green tomato marmalade made with lemon and tomatoes. Sachs reuses lids, an action canning guides warn against. However, Sachs said he's never had a problem.
"I've never had one fail," he said of his reused seals.
Over the years, Sachs has also found cheap substitutes for pricey items. For instance, instead of buying ginger marmalade, which can sell for $4 a jar, he said he makes his own pineapple ginger marmalade.
"It's a poor man's approximation of ginger marmalade," he said.
Some people may think Sachs' ideas are too thrifty, but in a time or rising food and energy costs, he just may be on to something.
Layla Aslani can be reached at laslani@mininggazette.com.
