Right, so I’m not actually starving, but with inflation merrily inflationing away, sometimes I feel like I could be. After housing costs, food is the next largest expense in my household, and it turns out that that’s pretty typical. So, apropos of a conversation with a friend who wanted to know how I managed to lock my keys in my car at the bagel shop after just having been at the donut shop (TooGoodToGO!), I’m going to share some of the apps I’m using to make a dent in the grocery bills.
Where applicable, I’ll share a referral code; full disclosure, if you use my referral code, we both get $. However, I would recommend these apps with or without that! And if you want to hear more from me, as always, keep reading below the fold to find interviews and news.
Top Apps for Saving on Groceries
Too Good To GoRestaurants list unsold food for half to a third of the sticker price; you buy it on the app then pick it up. I’ve gotten an entire pizza for the cost of a slice. No referral code, but seriously, try this one.
Flashfood | Save money and reduce food waste Grocery stores list close-to-expiring and discontinued food; you buy it on the app then pick it up. My best score was 20 pounds of potatoes for $5. If you’re asking what I did with 20 pounds of potatoes, you must not know me yet. Use referral code LAUR3SNBR on your first purchase of $10 or more, and we both get $8.
Ibotta This is the best coupon app for my time. Add deals to your shopping list and scan your receipt. Withdrawals are in cash to your bank account. Use code etdneic and we both get $10.
Brandclub Add your loyalty accounts (Target, Amazon, Walmart, etc.) to this app and things are tracked automatically. The real money here is in gamifying the surveys to get $2-$3 back at a time, but the locked rewards can be confusing–definitely read the guide here. Use the referral link and we both get $10.
Special Mentions
My local public library is now shelving inVISIBLE–and people are borrowing it!
I’m a Goodreads Author!I now have an author profile on Goodreads. Follow me to see what I’m reading and releasing. Plus, I’ll be answering questions about my CNF book inVISIBLE, experimental writing, and the writing life weekly through December 25!
Recently Published
Book Review for inVISIBLE — Elementary My DearLizzie at elementary my dear posted a wonderful review of Invisible here: “The text itself is brilliantly crafted…At times it’s funny, at times heart-breaking, but always insightful and, fundamentally, optimistic despite much of the subject matter.
20 Questions with… Laura McPhersonI was interviewed by Sam Szanto! “I grew up in a haunted Victorian house in a community plagued by radioactive industrial waste. It’s just recently I’ve begun to realize how much this has influenced me and to confront it in my writing.”
How Interfolio Actually Works for Graduate References / LORsIn case you missed it, I wrote a quick guide to the actual steps to use Interfolio for your LORs.
Upcoming
December: Poetry “Eight Synonyms for Shroud,” The Deadlands
TBD: Poetry “Fire Season,” Paperbark (UMass Amherst)
January ’23: Flash CNF “Pollywogs,” The Corvus Review
February: Flash satire “The New Millennial Library from A to Z,” The Gorko
Spring ’23: Guest lecture “Pynchon’s Sexy Lampshades: Categorizing Femininity, Feminism, and Universality with Pynchon’s ‘Accessible’ Women,” at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Spring ‘23: Short Horror “Eigengrau,” Ghostlight: The Magazine of Terror
PS: If you like what you read from me, you can also Buy Me a Coffee. Until next time!