Let's give some restaurants the benefit of the doubt. Let's say the average soft drink only costs $1.50 and you get free refills. Think of how many times you go out to eat per year. I would render a guess at the average family eats out once a week. $1.50 X 52 weeks = $78! For ONE person.
Seventy-eight dollars is a lot of money, and that's at the low end for price per beverage and a low estimate for the number of drinks you order per year. Add in when you get fast food, the number of people in your family ordering, the amount you spend on groceries a year for soft drinks to enjoy with dinner, or the coffee you buy for your mornings.
You know how much money I spend a year on beverages? Zero. Nada. Nothing.
As I teen, I was drinking WAY too much pop/soda/coke/whatever-you-wanna-call-it than anyone should have ever been allowed to drink. It was easy for me to drink 8 cans of something without thinking it strange. Now, as a mother who doesn't let her kids drink pop, I am floored by this memory.
About 9 years ago, I decided to quit cold turkey. I did this during my first real job. You see, at this job, I had lunch breaks. It didn't take long to realize that my added beverage at lunch was taking up too much of my $7/hr wage. Pop was expensive, lemonade was cheaper, but a cup of water was free. I was sold. "Can I please have a cup/glass of water?" has become quite the natural question when I do go out to eat.
Whether I go out to eat, drink at home, or take something with me to the park or whatever, I don't buy anything aside from food. I haven't come across a single place that has denied me a cup of water. The very worst case scenario was when I was dying of thirst and ran through a drive-thru. Because I wasn't ordering food, I was informed that I'd have to pay $0.16 for a small cup of water. Big whoop.
Want to be really frugal? Ask for no ice. Most restaurants have their drinks ready to serve cold. Since ice cubes take up more space than water, you'll get more water in your cup AND it will still be cold.
And please understand that I am not advocating drinking bottled water. If that is your solution, you've missed the point. Bottled water costs money and produces a ton of waste.
I have a water filter on my fridge at home that pumps out ice cold clean fresh water to me whenever I want it. If you don't have a fridge that does that, you can get a water filter for under $30. You can also purchase a thermos to carry water with you if you see fit. You can find those for under $13.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but putting a $30 investment into a water filter and $13 into a nice reusable water bottle is still LESS than that original amount we added up earlier.
These products would last for years, work out to be infinitely cheaper, reduce an unlimited amount of waste, and it's all completely healthy for you.
Click here to read some reasons why water is not only thrifty, but how it has a ton of great health benefits.
For the skeptics, I know you're considering how high my water bill must be because of how much I drink water at home... Well, for one, it isn't even a noticeable increase in our water bill, but furthermore, we conserve water like crazy at home. But that post is for another day.
If your wondering where I get my caffeine fix, I don't have one. I don't drink pop, tea, or coffee (coffee and tea costs money too, you know). I've learned that a human CAN survive without pumping caffeine into their system.
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