musings from the road: The Fact of the Matter

When I come home, it's hard to switch gears. I'm not much of a cook (read: I am really bad in the kitchen) and if I go shopping, I'm usually leaving in the next 2-3 days, so most perishables will go bad. Plus, after working multiple shows and jumping around time zones, the last thing I want to do when I get home is think about spending any time in the grocery store or slaving over a hot stove.

The fact of the matter is -- I'm going to go out for dinner. A lot. I try to come up with reasons of why eating at home is cheaper, healthier, the "adult" thing to do, etc. And I've tried to motivate myself to make a grocery list or watch cooking shows, but sometimes it's just easier to face the facts.

Working within this fact, I am doing my best to find ways to save money and explore the city a bit more. My new mini-obsesssion? Deal-of-the-Day websites. First it was Groupon. And it took me a while to really get into this one since I wasn't 100% sure that it wasn't just a scam. But I bit the bullet and tried it out... and enjoyed my first Groupon experience last night. I paid $15 for a $30 coupon (er, groupon) at Whitfield's Restaurant in Belle Meade. This is some place I definitely would have not gone to if I didn't have the extra incentive and even though it was a bit of a drive, the boy ordered probably THE BEST FILET I've tasted in Nashville. Granted, with a filet (an a bottle of wine and my meal and a soup and a salad), it was still pretty pricey, but we did save $15 from what we might had spent anyway.

A few days ago, I met with a friend for coffee and she was all about Groupon too... and then some. She told me about a couple of others -- Living Social and Sharing Spree -- and from a bit of my own research, I also found RunDaisy. I signed up for all of them, so now I'm getting 4 emails a day with local deals that may just save me a few bucks when I go out to eat that night.

Sharing Spree also offers a charity component to their site. Every deal you purchase benefits a local charity. You can select one charity as your default to ensure that they receive a percentage of every purchase that you make. Plus, each daily deal benefits a specific charity, which rotates each 24 hours.

Obviously, I jumped on this immediately and by the time it was all said and done, Thistle Farms is not only added as a charity you can choose from but is also featured on TODAY'S daily deal! *which is $29 for a $60 meal at The Standard Restaurant -- a 52% savings!

(NOTE: You now have 7 hours left to order your deal and donate to Thistle Farms -- get on it!)

Last but not least, I even went as far as getting the book. Not THAT book, the other one. For only 20 bucks, I have over 300 pages of discounts at restaurants, attractions and stores. I may not get to use them all by the end of the year (or even remember each time I go out), but I'll certainly make it my goal to at least have a little something to take away from the bill each night.

The fact of the matter is, I may be turning into some crazy coupon lady, but I probably still won't make it into the kitchen... unless it's to refill my wine glass.