Discussion on "Tips For Congoers on Strict Budgets"
This topic is for questions, comments, and discussion on the Tips for Congoers on Strict Budgets article found on this site.
Enjoy!
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My LJ - My Website
For those on a budget, making your own trail mix is a good way to keep fueled between sit down meals or on the train/plane/car ride. it keeps really well! Also makes a good breakfast.
Don't buy the premade mixes. They're usually laden with sugar and salt.
Basic components:
Cereal- something unsweetened you can eat with your hands, such as cheerios or chex. This makes up the bulk of the mix. Go whole grain if possible. Avoid crumbly items like flake cereal or rice crispies.
Raisins: good source of quick energy and good for you.
Peanuts: mmm, protein! This is the "main" component you should go lightest on.
Extras!
You can dress it up with a few of these items.
More fruit!- you want it sweeter, add more fruit. Craisens, banana chips, apricots, apples, mangos, dates. Cut larger dried fruits into finger sized pieces. Bad choices are gooey items or ones that are too small to be easily picked up like dried coconut or currants.
Something salty- it's hot, you want a little salt, but not too much. Add a handful or two to a large bag. You can go with something like salted nuts or pretzel nuggets. Bad choice: sunflower seeds. they're too small to pick up.
Other nuts If you're allergic to peanuts or don't like them, try some other large nut. Good choices: almonds, cashews. Bad choice: walnuts, pecans. They tend to crumble into hard to eat pieces.
You may also be able to get dried, roasted peas if you'd prefer. Or wasabi peas. http://www.amazon.com/Ayhans-Famous-Green-Peas-Wasabi/dp/B000BTBQTE/ref=sr_1_18/002-0452298-8216805?ie=UTF8&s=gourmet-food&qid=1178760226&sr=1-18
Other sweets: some people like to add chocolate covered raisins, marshmellows, or M&Ms. Adding more fruit is probably better for you, but you may want to add a few if you're a chocaholic and would eat them anyway.
Trail mix is often shared. To avoid the con crud, pour trail mix into friends hands or a cup, don't let them stick their grubby paws in the bag. They'll just share germs.
Also be sure to warn new pals you're going to share with that there's nuts in there. Some people have severe peanut allergies and the last thing you'd want to do is have your poor pal keel over. Most of them should be aware of this and pay attention, but younger furs that are used to being chaperoned by parents may not be so careful about checking first.
A long time tip Ive heard and made sure to share is the combination of instant noodles or oatmeal with a coffee maker. Use the coffee maker to make hot water(only add coffee if you have a strange addiction to the flavor and must have it mixed in with your chicken ramen noodles O.o Addin it in with instant oatmeal aint that bad. Actually can give you a tiny pep to your step and in rubbing the sleep from your eyes.
Then, mix it in with your chosen food and after a minute or two of letting it settle, you have either breakfast or dinner. Ramen Noodles are obviously good for dinner while instant oatmeal is for breakfast. Bring a few two liters for something to drink and you are all set. While its not the healthiest thing to survive on, you can manage a weekend on such a diet and pay under $10 in food with still some left for a few small side snacks. Dollar stores(particularly the Dollar Tree) are the best place to go looking for supplies fitting the aformentioned list. Some stores carry 3 liter bottles, so keep an eye out for the cheapest thing possible and careful about splurging.
CJ
Oatmeal is a great fooditem to live on! Try to bring some nuts or dried fruit(5 dollars together at most if you can spare it) will do wonders to spice up otherwise boring and tastless oatmeal.
You don't have to limit yourself to just instant oatmeal to. Grits(of all flavors) and cream of wheat both come in instant packages.
Why bring NUTS to AC? There are plenty of us walking around. "Runs, and hides from rolled up newspaper"
*nodscheerfully* Though somewhat less tasty in oatmeal than some others.
Peel us out of fursuits, and you'll have roasted nuts.
Pick us out of a cuddle pile, and you'll have mixed nuts.
Find us participating in a mad libs session, and we might be salty nuts.
Catch us after we've stolen from the art show, and we'd be bolted nuts.
Talk to us after we've lost all of our bids in the auction (or when we're eating cereal?), and you might get nut bawls.
Hrmmm...i should probably stop there.
Peanut butter and bread for teh win!
Though, there should be some common sense here. There is a fine line between wanting to save money, and barely scraping by at a con. I hate to be the one to say this but...
Do not go to a con without first knowing you have room, food, and registration taken care of. Even if its two bags of bread and a jar of peanut butter (under 5 bucks).
Perhaps a note could be added about volunteering this year to help with expenses for next? I mean, if your budget is tight one year, chances are it will stay tight for a while.
Granted, i'd rather have folks volunteering just b/c they love the gather and want to help. But i'd rather have them volunteer for selfish reasons than not volunteer.
Also, should there be a note in there about not paying for a hotel room with a debit card?