militarymoms

I don’t know if my local commissary management team reads this blog (probably not), but I really appreciated the neatly organized tortilla shelves on Thursday.  Thanks.

No, I’m not leaving.  We’ll be starting school this week at my house, so I’ll probably be too overwhelmed to blog for a little while, but I have too much fun writing this blog to totally let it go.

Today, though, I’m wondering about one very important question:  Why does my commissary stock 36 types of tortillas?

Now, counting tortilla varieties is a bit OCD, I admit, but there’s a method to my madness.  I was waiting for my daughter in the commissary’s international aisle and happened to be next to a very disorganized mess of tortillas.  I don’t like disordered shelves - I worked a few retail jobs - so I tried to make some sense out of all the floury goodness, and found myself counting the types and sizes of tortillas and wraps on display.

I stopped at 36.  There were corn tortillas, small, in packs of 10 or 36.  There were flour tortillas, in fajitas and burrito sizes, packaged in various quantities.  There were low-carb tortillas, too.  And then there were the wraps - you can think of them as designer tortillas - garlic and spinach and who knows what other flavors - and the whole wheat wraps…you get the idea.

Now, I grew up in L.A. and I love my Mexican food.  Tortillas are a pantry staple at my house.  But 36 kinds?

Someone please tell me why I need so many tortilla choices.  I’ll meet you in the international aisle.

These days it seems as though everything is getting more expensive - and it is.  It’s pretty hard to stretch a military paycheck to cover increased food and gas prices, let alone anything else.  While I can’t stop the price of gas from going up, I can offer a few tips on finding military discounts.

• Use your military privileges.  AAFES‘ website offers a feature called “Centric Mall” that includes merchants who offer discounts or free shipping to military customers.  I’ve bought shoes from Zappos this way and everything worked out just fine. 
• Your ITT office has discounted tickets to all kinds of events and attractions.  Check out their website, read their newsletter or drop by the office to find out what’s available.  We’ve bought tickets for everything from Sea World to minor league baseball games through ITT.
• Look online.  Google “military discounts” and see what comes up.  Read the websites of every company you buy from regularly.  If you have insurance through USAA, for example, you can get a 5% discount on Hertz rental cars.  All you have to do is book your rental through USAA’s online affiliate.
• Look on base.  Your BX or PX may have contracted with concessionaires, including cell phone providers, who offer military discounts.
• Network.  Find friends who like good deals and ask them about military discounts.  Read blogs written by military folks.  You’ll quickly find out where good deals can be found.
• Ask, ask, ask.  It never hurts to mention that you’re military and inquire about discounts.  For example, I took my daughter to a dance competition last fall and had to buy some accessories from one of the vendors there.  I mentioned in passing that we were military and she gave me a discount on the spot.

You won’t save mega-bucks going after discounts here and there, but everything adds up.  Over time, you can save a decent amount of money by taking advantage of special offers for military members and families.  You have earned these discounts.  Go out and use them.

Photo © Nancy Parode

Yesterday I drove over to my local AAFES Car Care Center and ordered tires for my car.  They don’t keep tires in stock; you have to order and pay for them in advance, and then set up an installation appointment when the tires come in.  This, of course, means that getting new tires is about a two-week process.  For me, because I know I’m saving money, it’s worth it.

I started the tire cost comparison process last year at about this time.  I went everywhere - Costco, Merchant’s, Firestone - and I wound up buying my tires at AAFES.  I did this with two goals in mind, saving money and buying tires that weren’t made in China.  I know that many Chinese-made tires are less expensive than the tires I eventually bought, but I’m sure I got the best possible deal on my tires.

For one thing, AAFES publishes a list of their quarterly tire sale prices; you can pick up the flyers at your Car Care Center.  You know exactly what you’ll pay, and there’s no sales tax.  AAFES offers a road hazard warranty (currently $9.95 per tire) and tire disposal ($1.00 per tire).  Their services are comparable to any other tire shop.  You can check around for tire sales at other places and make your own choice.

The only negative part of the entire experience is that it’s time-consuming.  If you have a tire emergency - blowing a tire on a car that has a mini-spare, for example - you may need to purchase a tire right away, and AAFES can’t help you with that (or, at least, mine can’t - and it’s on a big Army post).  Waiting for your installation appointment is annoyingly time-consuming, too.  It’s that old time-versus-money thing.  Whenever possible, I’ll plan ahead and pocket the savings.

Believe it or not, I have this discussion practically every week.  I’m a huge fan of military commissaries.  I’ve spent many hours comparing prices and figuring out how to get the most out of my grocery dollars, and I really believe that the commissary has the best overall prices.

Years ago, we were stationed in Norfolk, Va., and my husband was out to sea for six long months.  I was working full time and had a kindergartner and a baby to care for.  I tried every possible way to justify NOT shopping at the commissary.  It was half an hour’s drive away.  It was thronged on the weekends.  It was a pain to schlep grocery bags and two young kids; surely my time was worth more than that!  Finally I did the frugal mom thing.  I got out my ledger paper and made a price book. 

You guessed it - I discovered that I saved so much money on the basics of life, like milk, diapers and diet Coke, that I couldn’t afford not to shop at the commissary.  And that was without factoring in coupons and commissary specials!  Even when I subtracted the cost of gasoline and vehicle wear and tear, I still saved money at the commissary.

That was ten years ago, and I feel the same way today.  I carefully compare prices when we arrive at each new duty station, and I even memorize the prices of items I buy all the time.  (Diet Coke was $0.99 at my commissary this week, and Super Wal-Mart is charging $1.25, for example.)  I make occasional trips to Costco and the local grocery store, but I only buy items there that I can’t get at the commissary or need for a cooking emergency.  With gasoline close to $4.00 per gallon here, I’m glad I live close to my local commissary, but I’d shop there even if I had to drive half an hour each way.