A couple of Bay Area cities like San Jose and San Francisco are near the top of the list, but it is Austin, TX that wins by spending a whopping $12,447 per year on food and groceries! That’s over $1,000 in monthly terms or $250 weekly. (I bet these people are eating their retirement savings.)

Getting to this spending level is usually the result of dining out frequently. A simple homemade meal or brown bag lunch here and there can really add up. And that brings us to the contest.

Bring your lunch to work contest!

Bringing meals from home is a good step toward reducing food spending. A $10 deli sandwich could easily be replaced by a $3 one made at home.

And so, to encourage mindful spending habits, there is a contest at Bundle about bringing lunch to work.

Here is how the contest works:

Post a picture of it on our Facebook page, or share your story on Bundle. The crowds will vote for their favorites, and winners will be chosen by our distinguished panel of judges

…

Here’s what to submit:

• A photo of your best brown-bag lunch, uploaded to our Facebook page. Tell us what’s in it, how much it cost (roughly), and anything else you want us to know.

Or…

• Post a story about your homemade lunch on Bundle.com. To indicate it’s a contest entry, please include “My lunch” in the title.

The contest goes until May 28, 2010, so you still have a week to enter.

The winner gets a limited edition Bundle lunchbox and ever-lasting glory and fame (Bundle routinely gets coverage in major media outlets)

I submitted a veggie wrap with whole wheat tortillas, grilled potato, zuccini, tomato, onion, calabaza squash, bbq sauce, and my secret ingredient toast (sounds weird but adds texture and crunchiness to an otherwise mushy wrap). It doesn’t look great but I assure you it tastes fantastic.

So go and check out the contest! And bust out your most creative dish to help people see that bringing lunch to work is a great way to save money.

Also on Bundle

I have to highlight an article I found fascinating:

The cult of Groupon

Groupon offers are fun and often very good: “$55 for oral cleaning if 100 people sign up!” But are these social coupon sites really good for business and consumers? Janet Paskin’s article examines the issue and reveals things like how much of a cut Groupon takes–it’s more than you might think!

Many restaurants in fact lose a lot of money via Groupon promos with the hope that repeat customers will make up the costs. This hurts competing businesses too, and it appeared to me to have a game theory analog. I felt trying Groupon was like a “defect” strategy in a Prisoner’s Dilemma. At a minimum, read the “merchant math” section of the article to see what I’m talking about.

He said it was probably because food was getting stuck in my molars. He said my teeth had rough grooves and sticky food like raisins or potato chips might not be removed by brushing alone. He suggested I get dental sealants to fill in the gaps to prevent cavities.

At the time I was skeptical. I wrote an open-ended post about it should I get sealants to share my thoughts–I was surprised to see the 30+ comments it sparked!

At that time, I wasn’t sure about putting plastic on my teeth and taking an elective procedure. I decided extra dietary and hygiene lifestyle changes should be pursued first.

That was two years ago. I have spent some time thinking, and long story short, I decided that sealants were a good choice for me.

I put my thoughts into action last month and I got eight dental sealants. I want to share a bit about why I did this, the cost of the procedure, and how I feel now.

Why I did this: the case for sealants

The first thing is I realized that I trusted my dentist. He has been my dentist for years and he’s never suggested anything unnecessary. So I did take it to heart when he suggested I get dental sealants.

But skeptic that I am, I did my best effort to corroborate this. I asked friends and learned a few of them had gotten it as kids. They said it was painless, it helped prevent cavities, and it lasted for over 10 years.

I think did some web research and saw that dental authorities also back sealants. Notably the American Dental Association says sealants are safe and effective for kids and adults

I then observed my own teeth for a while. I wondered whether food was getting stuck even after brushing. I discovered that my dentist was right. Whenever I ate raisins, or almonds, or potato chips, the food would get stuck in my molars. It would get wedged deep and wouldn’t be removed by brushing alone. I occasionally resorted to using a toothpick or metal pick to get the food out, but this was annoying and wasn’t sustainable (was it even safe?).

My irregular-shaped back teeth put me at risk for developing cavities, and that meant more fillings. That really got me thinking since I hate getting fillings, and I worried about my teeth eroding away.

Dental sealants looked like a good option. The only thing left to consider was the cost.

The cost of a dental sealant

It can vary whether dental sealants are covered by insurance. Some times they are, and some times they are not.

For me, it was not covered so I was especially interested in the costs. It was important to consider the cost of a sealant that would prevent a cavity versus a filling that would “treat” a cavity.

I soon discovered that sealants were much cheaper. The general numbers I found are that that dental sealants cost about $35 to $60 per tooth. compared to getting non-mercury cavity fillings that can cost $150 to $200.

Since a sealant can prevent a more expensive cavity, this decision made sense financially.

(I am happy to share my costs to back up these ranges. My costs were middle of the line, with dental sealants costing around $50 and fillings $175.)

The procedure of getting a sealant: a patient perspective

So now, on to the procedure. The first thing I want to say is that it was almost painless. It was much easier than getting a cavity filled. The second thing is that it was pretty quick. I got sealants on eight teeth and my total time at the dentist was 30 minutes.

The procedure goes roughly as follows. The dentist first cleaned the relevant teeth to prepare the tooth for the sealant. Then he applied an “etching” material to kill any bacteria and dried it off. I had to keep my tongue away from the tooth and they kept my mouth dry with the saliva-sucking suction tool.

Lastly, he applied the sealant which comes from a tube and used a curing light for about 10 seconds to dry it off.

This whole thing was repeated for each tooth so I kind of got the hang of it.

All in all, not too bad.

How I felt after

This was the only tricky part about the whole thing. The sealants were noticeable when the dentist checked my bite. It felt a little weird since the sealant is a foreign object.

It was kind of like having some food stuck on my tooth. But I got used to it quickly and now I don’t notice it at all.

The other difference is cosmetic. My teeth look a little different now. The sealants are noticeable if you look carefully.

I tried to take a before and after picture, but failed miserably (it was harder than it sounds!). I did, however, find a webpage that has a perfect before/after comparison.

Check out the picture on Dr. Dan Peterson’s page about dental sealants. You can clearly see the sealant as the white material filling in the gaps and fissures.

Besides the cosmetic difference, everything else was normal. I felt pretty normal by the time I got home. I was able to eat right away.

And the best part: the food was not getting stuck (as much) on my back teeth! Yes, it still stuck but I was able to brush it away easily.

I’ve had the sealants for about a month now and I am happy overall.

The sealant brand that my dentist uses

I thought it might help to know exactly what was put on my teeth (I regretted not asking before the procedure).

The brand my dentist uses is Embrace WetBond Pit and Fissure Sealant. My dentist said this sealant seems to stay on the teeth longer. I have no knowledge about various brands, but if you’re a dental professional, feel free to educate us in the comments.

I checked out the sealant description page for a little more information. I am happy the website reports 99 percent caries free in 6-years in clinical results. I was also relieved to see the sealant does not contain bisphenol-A which has been linked to obesity, abnormal brain development, thyroid dysfunction, and possible cancers (weakly). There’s good reason a lot of companies are taking this out of their products.

I am happy to avoid these known risks and have something currently believed to be safe.

My personal opinion: go for it!

I have been happy with this experience overall. Sealants were easy to get, they were not very expensive, and I could see results right away. I would highly recommend talking to your dentist about sealants to see if it’s a good option.

And the usual caveats apply: I am not an expert and I am just one person. I cannot say how other people have felt about sealants but I would like to find out more. I certainly had a hard time finding information when I was searching.

So if you’d like to help others, I’d ask you please share your knowledge in the comments. Anyone get sealants as a kid or an adult? Did anyone try to get sealants but was rejected by their dentist? Did anyone have a bad experience with sealants?

I remember when discounts were easy to understand. Most stores would have sales like “25 percent off” and that would be that. Even the foolish K-mart ad shown above of “0 percent off” can at least be praised for its transparency.

Nowadays discounts come in a variety of coupons and sales, and they are much harder to understand. So many offers only seem good, and so many others offer illusory savings.

I’ll briefly refresh how to evaluate a discount percentage and then go into a few examples of offers that sound a lot better than they actually are.

How to calculate a discount percentage

The discount percentage is a simple formula. It’s calculated by dividing the discount from the full price (and interpreting the decimal as a percent)

discount percentage = discount / full price

An entirely equivalent method is to divide the amount paid (which is the discounted price) by the full price and subtract that from 1.

discount percentage = 1 - (amount paid / full price)

And of course, it is important to remember to include all parts of the costs, like shipping and taxes. These two things can often kill an otherwise good deal.

So with that in mind, on to a few examples.

Example 1: Target coupon for $5 off of a $10 purchase

I’ve occasionally seen Target offer a coupon for $5 off of a $10 purchase. I like these offers though I am careful to think twice.

A coupon that states a dollar amount off can be one of the sneakiest offers. These offers almost always seem better than they are because of taxes and lack of items at exactly the cutoff value (the many items at $9.99 don’t qualify).

There are three items that I like to compare. The first is the perceived discount which is the amount you think you’ll be saving. The second is the actual discount which is the amount you can theoretically save if you find an item that maximizes the offer. And the third amount is the practical discount which is an estimate of how much you’ll actually save if you go shopping.

Here is my calculation for the Target $5 off of $10 coupon:

Perceived discount: 50 percent
Actual discount: 45 percent
Practical discount: around 40 percent or less

Here is how I came up with those numbers.

The perceived discount is 50 percent. It seems like you’re getting half off when you get $5 back on a $10 purchase. That is part of the game that they want you to feel it’s an amazing deal. The true discount is 5 to 10 percent less, as I’ll explain.

The actual discount is 45 percent. The reason for this is sales tax which is not discounted. In my neck of the woods, sales tax is around 10 percent and that can make a big difference. The resulting actual discount is 45 percent [= 5 / (10 x 1.1)].

The practical discount is 41 percent or even lower. It’s not practical to be able to get an item that you want at exactly $10. Part of this is that so many items are priced at $9.99 that are not eligible for the offer. One has to choose between buying two smaller items, or instead to get an item that’s a little bit more. In my experience, I often end up getting something around $10.99 for an offer like this. The resulting practical discount is then 41 percent [= 5 / (10.99 x 1.1)].

In sum, the Target offer is pretty decent though it is not what it seems at first.

Example 2: Sweet Tomatoes buy one, get one free (must purchase two drinks)

This one gets me, even though I otherwise love Sweet Tomatoes, the restaurant with an amazing salad and soup buffet.

I’m on their loyalty list so I get coupons emailed to me. The bold print on the coupon is “buy one, get one free” and it is only in small text that you have to get drinks.

So how does this coupon stack up? It really depends if you were going to get drinks anyway. I know a lot of people would and this coupon would work out perfectly. For me, I prefer water to quench my thirst.

The coupon still offers savings over not using it–I often buy a drink and just have water–so here is how the savings turn out:

Perceived discount: 50 percent
Actual 1 discount, if getting drinks anyway: 40 percent
Actual 2 discount, if not wanting drinks: 26 percent

Here are some of my supporting calculations, using a $10.49 cost of meal, a $2.49 cost of drink, and a 10 percent sales tax.

Getting drinks anyway: 40 percent = (1 – (10.49 + 2.49 x 2)(1.1) / ((10.49 + 2.49) (2)(1.1)))

If you were not going to get drinks, the discount turns out to be much less, at 26 percent = (1 – (10.49 + 2.49 x 2)(1.1) / (10.49 x 2 x 1.1))

All in all, still a coupon I use but clearly not as amazing as it first seemed.

Example 3: Kohl’s every $50 spent = $10 store cash for next purchase

Another tricky discount is getting store cash on a future purchase. These again seem like amazing deals but they really do not always turn out to be so.

This Kohl’s promotion is interesting. It gives an incentive to purchase up to a $50 increment for the current visit, and it makes a customer come back another time just to redeem.

What is the math on this promotion? Here is  my thinking:

Perceived discount: 20 percent
Actual discount (max): 18 percent
Practical discount: 15 percent, or less

The perceived discount is 20 percent. The offer can give the impression that you are essentially getting $10 off of a $50 purchase. Not so. You have you spend $50, and then you get $10 off of a future purchase.

The actual discount is thus more like 18 percent because of sales tax. As seen in the first example, a cash discount does not affect the tax. A 10 percent sales tax means an extra $6 in spending from the two combined purchases ($50 x 1.1 + $10 x 1.1). With perfect denominated purchases, this sale is just a bit worse at 18 percent [ = 10 / ($50 + $6 in taxes)].

The practical discount is of course lower. I find it hard to plan purchases that add up to exactly $50 and exactly $10. More likely I can do something like $55 and $15 if I’m going for items that I actually want to buy. The result is the actual discount becomes 14 percent [= 10 / ($55 + $5)(1.1)].

All in all, this is not really a good deal at Kohl’s where 15 percent off is a standard promo for store card holders, and you have to visit the store two times.

What discounts mislead or irk you?

I’ve shared a few of the promos that I find a bit overblown. I notably omitted rebates which are so annoying sometimes that I want to write a separate post about them. Now I’m curious if you’ve noticed any offers lately.

What offers are not as good as they seem? What is the perceived discount and what is the actual discount? Share in the comments to save fellow shoppers from saving disappointment.

As you may know, I am a community editor for Bundle, a site about how America spends its money. What makes Bundle unique is its tool Everybody’s Money which visually illustrates how people spend money. The data comes primarily from Citi’s proprietary credit card data. As such, the spending can be broken down by age group, household type, income level, and zip code/city/state.

There’s so much to learn with all this data. We on the site have been using it for a variety of things.

In the spirit of sharing, I’d like to link out to a few of the coolest articles on the site:

The Bundle Report 2010
Which city in America spends the most money (it’s not New York)? Or which city spends the least? The folks at Bundle have used the Everybody’s Money tool to create clever infographics.

My favorite of these is spending by household type. Read this and you’ll have fun trivia to fill many a cocktail party.

Confession: I like my boyfriend more now that I know he’s loaded
Bundle also features content separate from its data tool. One type of article is a series of “money confessions” which are anonymous and true tales of money shame.

This particular article sparked a big discussion about whether this woman was justified in her feelings and how guys should react. I commented with a link to a psychological study showing women were more attracted to guys in expensive cars. I think this discussion reveals a lot about social attitudes in my generation…

Awkward Dollar: I know it’s only $15. But it’s my $15 and I’d like it back
The Awkward Dollar is another regular feature on Bundle somewhat separate from the Everybody’s Money data. This series is about anonymous rants and uncomfortable money discussions.

This linked to article is about dealing with a friend who “forgets” to repay a small amount of $15. What to do? I’ve been there before, as I’m sure you have. I gave my opinion as a comment though not everyone felt the same way. Never easy to deal with money and friends, so you gotta choose one way.

Fun fact: San Franciscans spend 43 percent more than the national average on food and drink
This is one of my insights from the data. I rolled up monthly data for the city of San Francisco and for the nation at large and found a surprising trend. Here’s a graph I made with the data from Bundle:

Pretty cool to see how local and state spending were in line with the seasonal trends at the national level. Lesson learned: national statistics do matter!

What are the five most charitable states?
A fun statistic generated from Bundle data.

I would have never guessed these were the five most…and I was also intrigued to see where my home state of Illinois ended up (middle of the pack).

How to save money on cool, crisp water (and Part II of the same article)
This is one of the early articles on the site so it’s got plain formatting.

Nonetheless it is full of great trivia and it’s very well written piece about bottled water, and I hope you check it out.

Do you Bundle?
I’ll keep you posted on interesting finds on Bundle, but I hope you find it interesting and check it out too! There are many cool areas to explore and spending patterns to uncover.

And if you like, you can also find Bundle on Facebook and Twitter and Tumblr. Let me know what you think!

image credit: muffet

I often end up with leftover food in the fridge. It may be because I buy groceries generously, or because I cook in bulk, or because I often bring food home from restaurants.

A while back I had a refrigerator full of leftovers including things like Parmesan cheese, a homemade vegetable soup, Chicago style pizza, and leftover gourmet sandwiches from a catered event I attended.

The situation made me deliberate, and several issues came to mind, like:

–Waste versus cost: is it better to prioritize eating all the food or the most expensive items?

–My money or not: should it matter whether I bought the food or it was given to me for free?

–Diet versus waste: is it okay to throw away gifted food because it’s unhealthy? should I throw it away and just lie to the friend that I liked it?

I’m not sure these questions can be answered generally, for all people, but there were a few thoughts that came to mind.

Waste versus cost
I run across this issue many times. There are many times when frugality and quality conflict.

The pattern is as follows. I’ll buy a ripe avocado, forgetting I already have one. I attempt not to waste anything so I eat the old and slightly overripe one first. In a few days when I get to the new one, it has turned overripe.

I feel foolish that I ended up eating two overripe products. In the pursuit of not wasting food, I have wasted quality.

I could have just as well thrown the overripe avocado and simply enjoyed the fresh one, and then bought another fresh one when the time came.

I face this pattern with leftovers too. I try to balance quality with frugality, though it is a constant struggle since I don’t wish to waste food. But I think quality is the way to go.

My money or not
I know it shouldn’t matter if I bought the food or not. This is evident from the idea of sunk costs.

The food is already purchased. It should not matter whether I paid for the pizza or whether the sandwiches I got were free from an event.

But deep down it is hard to forget. I still remember the time I threw away $10 of guacamole dip, or the time I wasted fine artisan cheese.

So I remind myself about sunk costs, and slowly I am getting better at this. I think the answer here is to prioritize the foods you enjoy.

Diet versus waste
This is perhaps the trickiest area. Occasionally a relative or family friend will be thoughtful enough to send over some food. But what to do if I don’t want it?

I would feel awful throwing it away. It seems like a real slap in the face to the chef.

But I am not always thrilled about eating the food given to me–for instance I don’t usually enjoy sweets besides chocolates, but I still end up getting Indian sweets and cakes.

I have come to a sort of halfway solution here. I usually eat a small amount so I can honestly thank the person for the food. But I usually freeze the rest so I can manage food inventory better.

What do you do?

I’ve shared a few of my experiences with leftovers and would like to hear about yours.

Do you take leftovers from restaurants?

What do you feel bad about wasting?

How can you manage unwanted food given to you?