Money for Nothing and Your Giftcards for FREE

Who doesn't like to get something for free? Especially when that something is money or a cash equivalent! I started out looking for ways to "earn" gift cards when I was a SAHM (stay at home Mom). We were living on one salary with 3 mouths to feed and I for one really liked eating out and renting movies. So what is an unemployed Mom to do? Well I started spending more time on the internet for one. I dabbled in some eBay resell items and random searches. Quite honestly I am not sure how I came across MyPoints.com but it started me on the path to riches. Well relative riches. If I "clicked" on emails and signed up for newsletters, took advantage of insurance rate quotes or 30 day trial periods for various websites I earned points. Those points could then be cashed out for gift cards for  a variety of different retailers including Burger King and Blockbuster. So this became a way for me to get to splurge without it coming out of the budget. After time I we started to use these points to "pay" for Christmas presents each year. Gabe's Grandma Smith really enjoyed the Olive Garden Gift card we sent annual. Needless to say that this prompted me to sign up for survey sites like e-Rewards where you earn a "dollar amount" that is then cashed in for magazine subscriptions or travel reward points. This one has come in handy when we are short on Hilton Honors points and need a little extra to get the free hotel rooms.

 

Fast forward several years, no need to get specific right. Now we have computers in the palm of our hand with built in cameras and 100s of APPS. So now you can "make" money on the go! Plus if you layer on the APPS you will get three times the payout. That's right 3 times the payout (in the case of a grocery receipt). Let me explain; and this is in no certain order, download the following APPs: Coin Out (as seen on Shark Tank) , Fetch Rewards (referral code C3EXM gets YOU 3000 points), Shopkicks and   Ibotta .

 

     Starting with Shopkicks, which costs you nothing but some time while you are already at the store. Scanning barcodes of specific products. That's right just open the APP, select the store and for each item show, scan and earn. Some stores give you points for just walking in! At Christmas time I could get 50 points just for walking in the doors at Marshalls and then I would walk right back out. If you purchase an item on their scan list you get even more points. Points cash out for gift cards for a boatload of retailers including movie theaters starting at the $5 level.

 

     Now let's take a look at what each of these give you when you give them a photo of your receipts. Starting with Coin Out.

     Coin Out will give you random amounts of pennies for scanning any sort of sales receipt. There is a limit as to how many a day you can upload but you can do this every single day of the week. Plus they don't even have to be your personal receipts! That's right, I am cleaning up the environment by picking up receipts that I find laying on the ground and getting pennies. After all, how many of you would honestly not stop to pick up a penny, a nickel, a dime, a quarter? Like I said, it is a random amount from 1 cent to 26 cents and some times they give random bonuses just because! You can cash out starting at $5 or you can build it up and up and up. You have the choice of a PayPal deposit, checking account deposit or Amazon gift card.

     Next up is Fetch Rewards . Now this is just for your grocery related receipts. So if you got some groceries at CVS you can still take a picture and upload. Every receipt is worth a minimum of 25 points unless your receipt has a 0 dollar amount, in other words the total has to be at least $1 for it to count. More points will be awarded based on certain items that Fetch is highlighting for that time period such as Goldfish crackers, Prego sauce, or Scott paper towels. FYI you do not have to select the items to get the points, it is automatically taken care of for you. Starting at 5000 points (not hard to do), you can select from a large variety of gift cards almost any genre/retail experience you can think of.

     Lastly is the Ibotta APP. Now with this one you do need to do a few extra things to get credit for your specific purchases. You must preselect the items before purchase in most cases when a store rewards card is used (exception being Harris Teeter). Make sure that you have inputted all rewards cards prior to use or you will not get the points, such as with Lowes Foods and Food Lion. Ibotta cashes out at $20 and your choices are PayPal, Venmo, or gift cards.

 

Now it may seem like a little thing but imagine how much you could build up for a few minutes of your time each day over 365 days. That's right, the Condies will be paying for Christmas with Ibotta cash, Fetch Rewards gift card, Shopkicks Gift cards, and Coin Out  cash in 2019.

 

Thank you to the following people for sharing

 

 

Valentine's is for Cozies

Running from Arrows
A Running Store Myster
written by T.C. Wescott
Published by Better Mousetrap Books


I am not a favor of running but I am certainly a fan of this series. At least I hope it is going to keep going. Cupid's arrow causes the Black Cat to run out of lives and a case of mistaken identity causes the death of another. So many mysteries wrapped in pretty Valentine paper and sprinkled with glitter including the anonymous roses and notes for Lacy from a secret Valentine. I wasn't able to guess the admirer but I was able to figure out the killer but not the reason behind. Unlike Ms. Ruby, I did not piece together the puzzle behind the  motive. I must say that after reading this mystery I would LOVE to find an Escape Room to put my mystery solving skills to work like Stax, Lacy, and Ms. Ruth. An excellent read!

Instacart - The Gig that feeds you!

     From scooters to meal delivery to personal grocery shopping with delivery. Our latest gig adventure is with Instacart. Instacart is the answer to several questions. How to avoid the grocery store after work, even though I need to pick up some staple items?  How do I get help to a sick friend/family member? How do I avoid the bitter cold weather and still get my wings and beer before the game starts? The answer is the Instacart App or the Instacart website. Based on your location you can choose from a couple of different stores such as Food Lion, Publix, CVS, Total Wine & More, Petco or Lowes Foods to name a few. Select your groceries and within a 2hr time frame they will be delivered to your location. 

     

     To be able to understand the process completely as a Instashopper I placed an order for a few items to come from Food Lion and had them delivered to my office. You are charged a delivery fee but you can also take advantage of your grocery store membership deals just be sure to input the card number before you check out, this will also help you with the Food Lion Shop n Earn rewards if ordering from Food Lion. It could take less than 2 hours to receive your order but keep in mind that your personal shopper is not a store employee and may be assigned multiple orders.

Once your order is assigned you will be notified via text with your shoppers first name, and that they have started shopping. If an item is not available and the shopper makes a substitution you are notified. At this point you should either approve the substitution or message your shopper through the APP if you want something else or request a refund through the APP. You can also add additional items if you suddenly remembered something.All changes should be reviewed as soon as possible otherwise the shopper will be calling you prior to checkout.  No they do not have access to your phone number, the call is routed through Instacart. You will be notified that your shopper is in checkout and that no further changes may be made. After the checkout process is complete you will be notified that your shopper is on their way. After this point all you do is accept the groceries and the best way to thank your shopper in addition to your tip is to give them a 5 star rating.

Now for the Shopper side of the story...

     Starts with an application through the website like all other side gigs find it here at Instacart  Once approved you will be sent a lanyard and a debit card. It is VERY important to have your Instacart debit card with you EVERY time you accept a batch. The debit card is the property of Instacart and is in now way associated with any bank account which you might have. But before you get to accept a batch we need to get your hours scheduled. First go to the Menu and select Hours. You will start out with "Early Access Status" which means you get access to the available hours early in the week. Which means that at 9am e.s.t. you can select the hours you want to work. When you select your hours you are locked in so if you need to get out of the hours be sure to release or cancel hours at least 6 hours ahead of your shift start or it will generate an incident report. Too many of those and you will not get orders/batches sent to you. Early access status can be earned if you lose it but it will take about 3 weeks. You need to work 90 hours total over a 3 week period or 25 weekend hours. That doesn't mean you are shopping every hour, just that you are available to shop during the hours of your shift. You can be sitting at home folding laundry or out running errands and still be getting "credit" for the hours worked. You must be within your "zone" though for it to count. For example, I work in Raleigh which is one very large zone so I can sign up for hours for after work or I can pop over to Knightdale on the weekend for hours. Just recently most of Johnston County was approved and is considered the Clayton zone so I now have myself set up to work evening hours in Clayton. Most nights I am working on my Wildtree business or taking care of household chores. If I need to run out to Lowes Foods for an order I am only 10 minutes away and completely in the zone. 

     So now that you're approved and have your debit card and lanyard at the ready and your hours are set up; here comes your first notification. You will have 3 minutes to decide if you want to take the batch, be aware that you must accept 80% of all batches for the week to earn your $3 quality bonus.  That is a $3 bonus for every time you earn a 5 star rating from a customer. Needless to say, I take all my batches because that bonus adds up. You will have about an hour depending on the order size to get the groceries and get through checkout. Most of the time and especially when I work evenings, Gabe will go with me and help out. He will take part of the list and I will take the other part so we split the work and have time to spare. Speaking of the list, you will want to look through it completely. While the app does its best to route you in the most efficient manner sometimes and item is in the deli section next to veggies and the app shows it to be at the end of the list making you think it is by the frozen foods. So whether you start on your left and at the bottom of the list to work up or start to your right and the top of the list down, always remember to look over the WHOLE list. Never be afraid to ask a store worker if you can't find something and if an item is unavailable follow the prompts in the APP for how to scan a substitution. I always find it best to establish a conversation with your customer through the APP if there are any changes made so that they can approve or disapprove prior to check out so that you won't need to place a call to them verifying changes. You will follow the prompts on the APP for check out. The only difference I have come across so far for checkout is that Publix requires you to use a 4 digit pin number which shows up right in the checkout screen so be sure to look for it in order to have the purchase approved. Next you swipe to start delivery and use the Navigate button to get to the customers home. 

Easy Peasy! You are paid by direct deposit once a week and will receive a 1099 MISC before tax season starts so be sure to keep track of your mileage.

  

Dashing for Dollars - Gigging on the Go!

Next on the hit parade for Gigs on the Go is Door Dash. Like Uber Eats this is about delivering food. I also want to point out that my posts are based on my experiences so if you have tips or advice of your own please take a moment to share in the comment section!

On to Door Dash. Just like Uber Eats there is a basic application that can be found here Door Dash . Payday is once a week and your earnings will be deposited into your bank account to make life nice and simple. Keep in mind that you are an independent contractor so they will not be taking out taxes on your behalf and they will be reporting your earnings to the IRS and sending a 1099 your way. To be safe we save 20% of our earnings and keep track of miles for each day we are out making deliveries in a spreadsheet.

Door Dash allows you to really manage your time by scheduling yourself for a "zone" for an hour or many more hours each day. Door Dash also provides you with an insulated bag that will hold most 2 item orders allowing you to keep the hot food hot or the cold food cold. HINT #1 you can use this same bag to keep your Uber Eats deliveries hot/cold just don't take the bag into the restaurant, it will confuse the workers.

Door Dash has the customer tip up front and gives them the opportunity to go back and give a rating and adjust the tip in case you did a stellar job or maybe showed up in a Santa hat during the holiday season and they wanted to give you a little more.

Door Dash will send you a pretty red debit card to be used to pay for a customer order. Not all orders are pay when picked up so be sure to check the order info in the APP before heading into the restaurant. The debit card is tied to Door Dash so don't worry, you aren't buying the food and getting reimbursed you are just the taxi service.

 In addition to scheduling yourself ahead of time you can also "drop in" to dash. In other words if you find yourself with an hour or two of free time, open your APP and "Dash Now". HINT #2 When it's a slow Uber Eats night, open up the Door Dash APP and run them both at the same time.

Door Dash jobs will let you know how much you will earn (minimum) and how far you will be driving. You can take a break and go offline for 30 minutes with out being penalized which is great if you want to get to another area before orders come in that you might not want to take. You can ignore an incoming order or Deny an incoming order but if you do this too often the APP will end your dash.

We are still working on our Door Dash technique so be sure to subscribe to learn with us.

Cozy Christmas Reads courtesy of NetGalley

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Yeast of Eden by Amanda Fox

(A Pancake House Mystery)

Kensington Books Publishing

Christmas is right around the corner and things are getting festive at the Flip Side. At least until Wally the self proclaimed Waffle King  announces his arrival. Wally is long on odious and short on friends and soon finds himself, or rather Ivan finds the man dead in the Waffle Kingdom store, a victim of foul play and  liquid nitrogen. Was it for money, for revenge, or for no other reason than because the guy was a blow hard. Now the sheriff has his sights set on Lisa and Ivan as possible suspects and there is now way that  Marley can sit this one out. Balancing the business her boyfriend Brett, Marley will get to the bottom of not one but three murders. This was another great installment and I really enjoyed the mystery within the mystery. Looking forward to the next Flip Side and starting the new book pub series expected to release next month.

Twas the Knife Before Christmas by Jaqueline Frost

( A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery)

Crooked Lane Books Publishing

What a fun story! Mistletoe, Maine is a winter wonderland and what better place to grow up than on a Christmas tree farm with a lumberjack for a Dad and a baker supreme for a Mom. The only thing better is to be a crafty gal who is about to run her own Inn on the family property that holds Reindeer Games during the festive time of the year.  Unlike other characters I've encountered,  Holly is threatened from the get go for trying to help her Caroline who is suspected of knifing a local judge's son and leaving him dead in a giant bowl of candy mints. Several people have a motive and means, more so than cupcake creator Caroline and faster than you can say Chris Cringle the Contractor (could it be) Holly is working through the clues and a  menacing mints, while recycling glass into the cutest bracelets that are being ordered faster than she can create. With all of this and the Hearth restaurant going through a major kitchen remodel and the construction of the Inn how will Holly get it all done without being done in! Great read loved the teasing bit of romance with the local Sheriff and the introduction of his sister. Can't wait for the next one!

Premediated Peppermint by Amanda Fowler

(Amish Candy Shop Myster #3)

Kensington Publishing

Bailey King,  New York confectionary creator and one of the few non-Amish workers in the town of Harvest, Ohio is ready for the Christmas season with peppermint bark and her new romance with the local deputy. Last thing she needs is for her ex-boyfriend Chef Eric Sharp to blow into her town like a blizzard with Hollywood hype and a producer bent on  filming a "real" Amish Christmas. Seems no one likes his yelling personality on the reality chef show. Bailey wouldn't mind a little publicity but not when it becomes murder and the main suspect is  Eric. Bailey is as soft hearted as a marshmallow in a cup of warm cocoa and does her best to help Eric while making it clear that his amorous attentions are not wanted. Why give her boyfriend the investigating Sheriff's Deputy any more reason to lock him up than he already has. Thankfully her partner in crime or chocolate; the new boss at JP Chocolates, Cass is back to help. Bailey is a wonderful character and those recipes are the BEST.  Read this fast and still didn't figure it out until the very end, so many possibilities and a twist or two for added measure. The only thing sweeter than this story is the next one that I can't wait to read!

In Peppermint Peril by Joy Avon
(A Tea and Read Mystery)
Crooked Lane Books Publishing

They say you can never go home, but Callie Aspen is just visiting during her slow season as an international tour guide.  Back in Heart's Harbor to help Aunt Iphy to oversee an afternoon tea party complete with puzzle cake based on an Brother Cadfael mystery. This authors first cozy is off to a good start. Callie seems to be your typical heroine/main character with the good heart and inquisitive spirit. She is a little older, but she has been leading a busy whirlwind life abroad visiting far off exotic places leading grand tours. She is a little more morose than most but once she realizes that she no longer has the "school girl crush" feelings the thoughts of "what if" or regret disappear making her even more determined to learn who did in the gardener and why. What is the secret of the will and who will be the master of Haywood Hall.. Not as light hearted as a normal cozy but the story ends on a sweet note filled with future possibilities, if Callie just looks for them. Just like I will be on the lookout for Joy Avon's next installment Sweet Tea and Secrets.

As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles by Leslie Budewitz

(A Food Lovers Village)

Midnight Ink Books Publishing

It's Christmas time and the whole town is busy decorating Main Street with lights and all the trimmings. All those special touches like the items you might find at The Merc, the place to find your boutique-like specialty foods, for the true foodie. It's a time for family and friends or at least you would think so, but not for Merrily who returns home after turning her life around only to find that it isn't enough for her Mom who is as cold as the weather in Jewel Bay. Erin Murphy the manager of Murphy's Mercantile AKA The Merc believes in second chances and befriends Merrily, just in time for the annual cookie exchange. Unfortunately Merrily never makes it to the exchange and won't be able to make anymore in the future. Erin works to not only clear Merrily's name of theft suspicions but to also find the killer as well as plan her wedding that is set to take place on Christmas eve. I would LOVE to have the multitasking skills of the cozy heroine. Erin is a fun character and her conviction in getting to the bottom and belief in someone she barely knew was heart warming. Looking forward to the next installment. OH and if you like to cook you will LOVE the recipes as the end of the story. I really appreciate that they are not in the middle, so that I don't get side tracked. 


Christmas Cake Murder by Joanna Fluke

(A Hannah Swenson Novel) 

Kensington Books Publishing

I have been a long time Joanne Fluke/Hannah Swenson fan. From the story lines to awesome cookie recipes every book has been a blue ribbon winner. The Christmas Cake Murder is the best one yet because it is the prequel. Before she was married, before the dentist and the cop, before the cookie truck and the shop there was a girl who loved to cook and was finished with school, who moved back home and suffered the loss of her father. To get her Mom to reengage life after the death of her husband Hannah, her two sisters and a couple of civic minded ladies. This is a story within a story quite literally as Hannah reads each night from Essie's story book journals. This is a great story and just in time for the holiday season. Wonderful recipes for both cakes and cookies can be found scattered through the story, usually shortly after Hannah makes them. I for one cannot wait to try my hand at the hazelnut truffles.

Death of a Russian Doll by Barbara Early
(Vintage Toy Shop Mystery)
Crooked Lane Publishing

New favorite character! Liz is a no nonsense, straight-up, heroine! So very relatable with spot on character development. While she would never wish her ex boyfriend ‘s wife any ill will, she certainly goes above and beyond to help solve her murder to help prove that Police chief Ken, aka the ex didn’t do it. That doesn’t mean she will forgive his forgetting to mention that he had an estranged Russian bombshell for a wife. Besides, there are better slightly more mature fish in the sea whom even her former police chief father approves of. Speaking of former, Liz’s Dad is put back on active duty to head up the investigation which spurns Liz on even harder to help solve the mystery of the holiday who done it to the hairstylist. Her Dad is supposed to be enjoying his golden years as a rare and collectible toy seller, not giving Liz conniptions about his health and well being. Leave it to Liz though as she pieces the puzzle together.

Can I Get This Gig To Go

    READY, SET, DELIVER

     So now that you have scooters covered and have decided that cold night-time scavenger hunts  are for the "birds," it's time to make "limes" into limeade. Flexibility is the #1 characteristic for a gig, and your time is worth money. Why else would you be considering a gig. Which brings us to Uber Eats.

     All it takes is an APPLICATION and an APP. You will need to be at least 18 years old and have access to a bike, moped, or car (with proof of insurance). The beauty of Uber Eats is that you can be ONLINE or OFFLINE as often as you like. You can decline a job or just let the timer run out. No harm, no foul, no penalty and no time commitments that lock you in.

     As an approved driver, there are a few tips you'll want to know. First of all, you will want an insulated bag (I will share how to get a good one for free in the next post Dashing for Dollars). Next you will want to create a "thumbs up" card to be attached to the bag (leave a comment if you need a template). Most importantly you will need to become familiar with the promotion time slots work with the area map in the APP.

     Which brings us to Boosts, which make it possible to work smarter and faster. Your average delivery fee is about $3.49 for a short drive. Same distance in an area with a Boost will increase this based on the boost amount which ranges from 1.0 to 4.0 and can change depending on the day or even the hour. Which is why Boost is BOSS and brings us to 2 simple rules. Rule #1 Don't accept a job with less than 2.0 Boost. Rule #2 don't take an order that is more than 10 minutes away unless it is getting you closer to a bigger Boost.

     Now for the fun part. Think of it as a date night that pays you. Gabe and I, do this as a team, we even grab a bite to eat.  As soon as we get going we both open the APP (we each have an account) and whoever gets the best job first accepts and the other goes OFFLINE. The delivery person helps navigate although the APP has a navigation guide built in I like to know what which lane to be in after a turn and help finding street names/numbers. When you have two people it is more efficient for finding parking, grabbing the order, and remembering the comment reminder card. Imagine how much a of a challenge it would be to rob a bank without a wheelman!    

     Unlike scooters you are only limited by the amount of free time you have and how much fuel is in the gas tank. Sometimes Uber Eats/Uber will post Quests which are challenges that give a bonus such as "complete 5 deliveries and get a $15 bonus." 

Scootters...The Gateway Gig

     If you have been downtown Raleigh or by NC State then you have seen the scooters either on the sidewalk or in the street. It seems that people either LOVE this mode of transportation or they HATE it. It is not for me to debate the greater good or ultimate evil but rather to illustrate how these mechanized modes of transportation are a great way to enter the gig way of life. 

     The job entails locating, taking temporary possession, recharging the unit, and returning it to a designated location. In order to get the job, which is an  independent contractor position; one must apply. Applying for the position is not as hard as one might think. For the Bird scooter, the "application" is found on the Bird website. For the Lime S scooters visit the Lime website. You will need to be able to download the App. In addition to the application it is necessary to purchase the charging cords. These are similar to a laptop charging cord. Before you go out looking for extra cords be aware that the end pieces are not the same. Bird charges a deposit of $10/charger and will with hold your first $30 of earnings to cover your deposit. Lime will charge you $6 for a set of 4. Tip #1 be sure to follow up with both Bird and Lime if you have not been approved within 2 weeks. Be sure to use the zip code of the area where the scooters are to be picked up. You will need to be willing to charge and return scooters at least 3-4 times a week and have a vehicle large enough to carry several scooters. We have a crossover SUV but primarily use the Elantra as our commuter car and scooter transport. Better gas mileage and all.

     Now that you have been approved to charge scooters  be aware of some general "rules". You can acquire 20 Birds and 12 Limes per day. Birds and Limes must be returned to a designated spot before 7 AM. Birds must be returned between 4 AM and 7 AM while Limes may be returned at anytime before 7 AM. In order to be paid by either, the scooter must be fully charged.  Prices paid are determined by the dollar amount assigned to the scooter. This is based on ease of acquisition in other words if it is in plain sight you will be paid the lowest amount. The harder the scooter is to locate the more it is worth, we refer to these higher priced scooters as "unicorns" because they rarely exist even if the map shows them. Scooters become available for charging based on their battery levels. Lime will release scooters if they drop below 17% charge. The lower the charge level the longer it will take to fully charge so keep in mind that if you need all night to recharge a 3% scooter battery do not pick up more scooters than you have chargers or you will be up half the night switching out. Tip #2, we suggest you get two $5 scooters with more than 50% charge rather than a $6 or $8 scooter with only 3% charge because you can recharge the higher charge % sooner. Tip #3, the chargers are interchangeable so if you have Lime scooter chargers they can be used to recharge Bird scooters and vice versa. Tip #4 when you set your scooters out in the early morning hours go ahead and see if there are any scooters which can be scooped up for recharging.

So you see, this is a super easy way to make a few extra dollars in a sort of scavenger hunt sort of way. Easy peasy and even somewhat fun! I would suggest buddying up and working as a pair or a team if nothing else it is very efficient. Up next is the next level with Uber Eats be sure to subscribe to learn the tricks and tips!