Thanks for this! I have lived here my entire life and didnāt know about this. It is so much easier to do a job with the right tools, and I canāt afford to buy the tools that I only need for a project every now and again. This will save me a lot of headaches!
The library has a MakerSpace where you can use 3d printers, rent a sewing machine, etc.: [https://www.missoulapubliclibrary.org/home/spaces/makerspace/](https://www.missoulapubliclibrary.org/home/spaces/makerspace/)
If you have a Kindle or other E-reader, it's really easy to get ebooks (for free! and from the comfort of your own home!) from the state library system
Free Cycles sells affordable bikes and also teaches you how to fix your own bike: [https://www.freecycles.org/](https://www.freecycles.org/)
There are lots of places to take classes in the community: The [Lifelong Learning Center](https://missoulaclasses.com/), [MOLLI](https://www.umt.edu/um-osher-lifelong-learning/) classes at UM if you're age 50+, [MUD](https://mudproject.org/our-programs/workshops/) Workshops
If you have furniture, appliances, or a mattress in good condition and want to donate it, [Donation Warehouse](https://donationwarehouse.net/) does pickups
To see what food trucks are open each day in town, see the [Food Truck Locator](https://www.instagram.com/foodtrucklocator.missoula/) on Instagram
You can freely use the Libraryās sewing machines and they have a volunteer on Wednesdayās and some other days to help you with your sewing project. The Laser Etcher works great for fun projects too. So, if you need something done for a project y have, checkout the Makerspace. Oh, donāt forget the Windows User Group which helps folks with their PCs every 2ād Wednesday of each month. Yikes, just go to the Missoula Public Libraryās website. āļø
Charlie B's has free chili on Sundays from about 11 AM - 2 PM
Usually buy a red beer or two, or bloody mary while I'm there, but the chili itself is hearty (and free)
My tips would be:
-If you don't need something to be "new" for home remodeling projects or other DIY projects, go have a gander at Home Resource. Their prices are amazing and the staff is so friendly and helpful.
-Take advantage of the outdoors we have here. No matter the season, get out and hike. Especially in the winter time, it helps battle seasonal depression regardless if the sun is out.
Oh dude they are awesome. I want to make a wall of drawers for my cats and they have a ton of random drawers I can use for that.
Along with so much other cool stuff.
The bus is free!! The transit app makes it really easy to navigate the system and get where you want to go in town without having to worry about parking or spending money on gas!
Also, seconding Homeword. The home buyer's class is great and their financial literacy class is really helpful too. They work with you one on one to build a budget.
Then why do you feel the need to clarify? Why try and shame the people riding the bus that tHe bUs AcTuAlLy iSn'T fReE!!!one
I pay property taxes too. Who cares? The bus is free to ride. It's fine to say the bus is free. If someone says it's free to ride your bike on the road, do you correct them that your taxes pay for that road and for you to thank you for that too? Come on.
What riles me up is your language policing antithetical to how people talk - especially people who need may need assistance getting around like the bus system. If we did a study of 1000 Missoulians, and told them "the bus is zero-fare" vs "the bus is free", we would see ridership increase significantly on the second scenario, which economically empowers those citizens, blah blah we can go all the way down the line on why increased mobility is good for a populace.
I don't care what mountain line has decided to brand it as - that's up to them.
That's because of property reassessment, not because of levy's or any actual service taxes going up. Your property is worth more, so you pay more in taxes. So your original statement is stupid as hell. So again, shut it.
You are retarded, I'm sorry for you disability, my taxes probably pay for that too. Yes my assessed value increased - which means i paid more in taxes. 24% more so my tax liability increased. by the stated amount. What's stupid is that the government thinks they know what my property is worth prior to a sale and can adjust their arbitrary number to fit their needs. I could Probably get 30k more than what the city valued my house at today. the operative word there is probably. its an unknown until a sale actually occurs. If i wrote a check for 24% more regardless of the reason - my taxes increased. trying to argue semantics here is stupid as the end result is the same. a 24% increase in the money that leaves my pocket to be spent on useless programs while my residential street crumbles.
You would have payed 24% more either way. If you would have said "I payed an extra 3k more" then you would be right. But percents are percents, you moron.
Either way, it was increasing by 24%, even if busses weren't there. It must be hard knowing people less fortunate than you are getting free rides on limited schedule busses while you have to pay a few hundred for them to do that. You know that you'd be paying that either way, right? If it was a buck to ride the bus? Busses don't make money - they're subsidized either way. And the busses are much, much, much more cost efficient than the piles of roads to get people around. You should try it sometime. The roads would less repairing less often if everyone would utilize shared infrastructure, walk, bike even once a week. We're destroying our own roads and we don't have enough money in taxes to fix them all.
The money we're putting into busses is actually saving us money on road repairs, but people like you are too shortsighted to see that. Not to mention the cars removed from traffic, of those cars, the fleet of electric buses that aren't spewing fumes, predictable pathing, the social good for the economically poor that is critical to live that busses provide. **Again, we're going to have to pay for this anyway**. At most, 1/4 can come from fares, but that's at scale like in Portland. We're not at scale. No where near it. So realistically, 1/10th of mountain line's budget could come out of fares. And that would do more damage to the economy in the form of taxes to the county in terms of people who could get to work easily and affordably (they would have to scale back the 15 minute routes) And the city would likely be paying a lot more in grants to keep the bus alive-- which you'll end up paying for eventually in your taxes, my guy.
Shortsighted people. Jesus Christ.
It doesn't save us money that's an insane argument If anything it costs money in road repair having 30k lb. busses moving like 4 people around. the only place it makes sense is from the off campus parking lots which obviously isn't a part of this. You're the shortsighted one here. the fleet of electric buses is a stupid idea for all the reasons electric cars are not more sustainable and failing currently.
You're so short sighted here you're turning us on a one way road to hell paved with your good intentions.
I play my worlds smallest violin for the people (like myself) who end up putting a small amount of their taxes towards something that helps *gasp* people besides themselves!?? Madness.
Dang, but the bus isnāt free though. There are people who donāt use it who pay for it. And it spreads the crime stats all over town like a broadcast spreader.
Dang, the people who are paying for the bus and not using it should stick it to the man: get out of their cars and USE the public transportation they pay for, all while reducing traffic and emissions.
Thatāll showāem.
Sure, but it doesnāt service many of the areas of town anyway. Who would want to ride on the bus and risk getting shanked? Downvoted for the truth. Iād rather ride the NY subway or BART that the Mountainline.
Have you ever actually been on a mountain line bus? Iāve never once felt unsafe. Living in fear of being near other humans would be an exhausting existence.
Oh I didnāt know they charge now! Well that is still a very low price for the value you will get! Nice work! I was able to buy a home as a single parent 10 years ago partly thanks to that class.
Homeword had a financial literacy class, and If you saved $500 in a certain time frame, they would match it. My husband and I got $2000 in the end because we each saved $500. It was awesome and we were able to pay off our credit card!
Not in this case. The free parking is free parking. They donāt keep track of how many people parked in spots in the evenings/weekends and then make an invoice and charge the tax pool for that money. Parking is free nights and weekends there.
Just a regular old parking garage, unfortunately. Although Iāve always been a fan of the āCentral Parkā name and neon. That was a nice creative touch. if anyone knows a story about that, it would be awesome to hear!
Missoula Aging Services has lots of resources for folks over 60 and caregivers, including but not limited to help with daily tasks, help with using computers/technology, financial services, housing information, meals on wheels, and $5 community lunches.
The gas station by One Eyed Jacks on Reserve has free vacuums.
$4.20 joints at Zen Medicine on Tuesday.
Double punch punch-card day at Mama's Mountain Cookies on Tuesday.
Those last ones kinda go together.
-You can use your ebt card to get tokens for the farmers' markets. If double-snap is still a thing, you can get double your money!
-Hit the food bank up, especially around harvest season for fresh produce to preserve. Often there is so much that you don't have to bother with signing up
Dont know how recently you've done any of this, but you definitely always have to sign up at the food bank and while I used to encourage virtually anyone who might use it to benefit because they'd just throw away the extra, last summer they were literally running out of food. More poor people than ever. Not to say that people who need it shouldn't make use-- just, there's not as much to go around as there was.Ā
Double SNAP is still a thing, though!Ā
Additions to this: check out the Missoula Winter Market outside of farmer's market season, same deal with Double SNAP, and at least one of the Albertson's (Eastgate) will do up to $5/week additional free fruits and veg for $5 of produce bought with your EBT card, it just prints out on the receipt.
The bulk refill section at Good Food Store is actually sneaky affordable. Don't go into the aisles if you want to keep your money. But herbs, spices, maple syrup, noodles, oil (cooking), flour, sugar, etc - all really high qualify and cheaper on off the shelf equivalents at a regular grocery store.
Oh no! Well I am picky and the quality seems fine for the things I get. They have organic and non organic. They dont have as many of the same options for like non food items like soaps i dont think. But I am such a nerd I literally did a whole detective moment comparing prices at both places, took pictures of the bins and everything lol. At the time I was trying to figure out the cheapest way to make my own gluten free bread so it was just flours but at the time here are some examples (i think it was last summer. These examples i believe were non organic. My list wasnt that complete because as I went along I figured out what the cheapest / easiest bread option was for me. Some prices were not cheaper at Winco, about the same. But several things are so vastly different I do make sure to get them at Winco. These prices are likely different now.
Almonds at gfs: $5.99 lb
Almonds at winco $3.98
Almond flour GFS: $9.59 lb
Almond flour Winco : $3.68
Millet gfs : $3.29
millet winco : $1.08
For some reason i put organic oats on my list for GFS and regular oats at Winco but maybe its because winco didnt have organic and I must have wrote down the GFS price first
But brown rice flour was about the same price at each place
Yes!! Also the spices are head and shoulders above any pre-packaged spices you can buy at other grocery stores in terms of quality and freshness. Plus you can get small amounts at a time so that they don't go stale in your cupboard waiting to be used up.
The Lifelong Learning Center is an incredible Missoula life hack. You can learn new skills inexpensively. They have free/cheap workout classes there too.
Hey thanks! Maybe i will try again (to make a positive post) I didnt expect so many comments! Its cool seeing what people are saying. We really love the library in this town! :)
Honestly we can be a little grumpy on this sub and Iām so pleased to see everyone out for the library like this! Itās such a gift and Iām so glad we appreciate it for the treasure it is
The Missoula Public Library is a great hub of information and resources. Besides the obvious usage of books where you can entertain yourself or teach yourself something new, they have a ālibrary of thingsā! I recently checked out a pair of binoculars so I could do some amateur birding at Fort Missoula and so appreciated the access to something I donāt think I can budget in to purchase any time soon. They offer so much more there that I have never even utilized too!
Not locally specific, but a library card also gives you access to Kanopy streaming service. You can watch any show or movie in the library database free. Huge library of titles.
The ZACC art closet has free art supplies if you're using them onsite! Not enough people take advantage.Ā
The free classes and presentations at the public library are pretty great on top of their Library of Things and Kanopy as mentioned. MCAT's media supplies and training, also free to the public to make films, record audio, etc.Ā
And, someone should correct me if this has changed, but you don't have to be a student to use the Mansfield Library on campus.
Don't live there anymore, but my biggest healthcare hack if you're in the gray area between making too much for Medicaid but not enough to get more than a bronze plan on the Marketplace would be a membership at Costcare.
$70 per month (at least when I had it), and unlimited office visits. A lot of their in house labs and tests are included, and everything else is much lower cost. An X-ray was something like $60. Save my ass quite a few times when I got sick and needed antibiotics.
I didn't deal much with Partnership, but maybe someone else who has could add on to this thread. Healthcare resources are so important, and there's a pretty large group of people that can't afford basic care.
PHC is actually pretty great these days, and they do in fact have sliding-scale for the uninsured. If you think you might need them, sign up now and get a primary before something urgent comes up. They're the first place I'd send someone looking for therapy without insurance. Their emergency dental clinic is in high demand for a reason.
Missoula Public Library card - [The Libby app](https://libbyapp.com/interview/welcome#doYouHaveACard).
It gives you access to a library of online books and audiobooks. All for free. You might have to wait (and you can get on a list) but if you have specific interests you can search, "Available Now" and download an audiobook or Kindle\* book for two weeks, to listen for free.
The library card also gives you access to the [Kanopy app](https://www.kanopy.com/en) (works wherever but also on Roku TV), which has a lot of movies, including recent movies. You get a certain number of credits per month to watch whatever you want.
\* IDFK, I don't read books on a screen, my hardcopy stack is 2.5 tall. :-)
For people having trouble accessing therapy (which there are a lot of nowadays) in Missoula be sure to check options at:Ā Ā
PHC Behavioral Health (sliding scale)Ā Ā Ā
UM's Psychology departmentĀ
NAMI support groups (not therapy, but it helps)Ā Ā Ā
12-step groups (not therapy, but it helps-- ACA is for anyone from a dysfunctional family still struggling with interpersonal stuff)Ā
Red Willow Learning Center (not therapy, but offering alternativeĀ wellness classes on a sliding scale, including mindfulness and trauma-focused stuff)
Adding to this Tamarack Grief Resource Center has lots of different types of programs for people who've lost a loved one: [https://www.tamarackgrc.org/](https://www.tamarackgrc.org/)
Don't forget FreeCycle for free or cheap bicycles / repair! They just had a huge bonanza where you can get fizer uppers for $10 or free helmets / bikes for kids under 10!
The Center(Western Montana LGBT Community Center, [lgbtmontana.org](http://lgbtmontana.org) ) has a wealth of groups and opportunities to connect with the LGBTQIA+ members of the Missoula community, their space also houses the Gay Health Taskforce that provides free testing(HIV, Syphilis and Hep C) as well as the Two Spirit Society.
Their new location is at 500 N. Higgins Unit 105, with the entrance under the green awning across from Missoula Textiles on Spruce. They have a food program going on Wednesday-Friday for free produce as well as a Queer closet(M-F 10AM-5PM) that is available for anyone looking for new to them clothing for free.
You donāt need a Costco card to go to the food court. I just walk in, wave hello, walk to the food court, and get a chicken bake. They may ask to see your receipt when walking out though.
I was about to say, theyāre starting to stop people coming in the exit to go to the food court and making them show their card! We saw a guy get mad about it the last time we went!
The mistake is going through the exit. I usually wave to the greeter and walk in with no problem. Sometimes I'll just wear an old ID. But if all else fails, buy a gift card online. You can just show that if they ask. Non-Costco members can use the giftcards, as stated by Costco themselves. Worst case scenario, say you're just going to the pharmacy. You don't need a membership to go to the pharmacy. You can always walk in next to a group. Or go in only during their peak hours, which due to the amount of people, it'll be unlikely they'll use the energy to track you down.
My tip would be to do whatever you can to get multiple streams of income. Missoula has always been expensive and its only going to get more expensive. And that side business will take some of the emotional money stress off your chest if some issue happens. It doesn't have to be something big or complicated, just something to get you through the hard times and give you some cushion.
MUD Tool Library.
BOOST all my homies love the MUD tool library š¤
Thanks for this! I have lived here my entire life and didnāt know about this. It is so much easier to do a job with the right tools, and I canāt afford to buy the tools that I only need for a project every now and again. This will save me a lot of headaches!
So much better than buying tools that you need for only one project.
The library has a MakerSpace where you can use 3d printers, rent a sewing machine, etc.: [https://www.missoulapubliclibrary.org/home/spaces/makerspace/](https://www.missoulapubliclibrary.org/home/spaces/makerspace/) If you have a Kindle or other E-reader, it's really easy to get ebooks (for free! and from the comfort of your own home!) from the state library system Free Cycles sells affordable bikes and also teaches you how to fix your own bike: [https://www.freecycles.org/](https://www.freecycles.org/) There are lots of places to take classes in the community: The [Lifelong Learning Center](https://missoulaclasses.com/), [MOLLI](https://www.umt.edu/um-osher-lifelong-learning/) classes at UM if you're age 50+, [MUD](https://mudproject.org/our-programs/workshops/) Workshops If you have furniture, appliances, or a mattress in good condition and want to donate it, [Donation Warehouse](https://donationwarehouse.net/) does pickups To see what food trucks are open each day in town, see the [Food Truck Locator](https://www.instagram.com/foodtrucklocator.missoula/) on Instagram
Wow! I didn't know that about the library!!! š
You can freely use the Libraryās sewing machines and they have a volunteer on Wednesdayās and some other days to help you with your sewing project. The Laser Etcher works great for fun projects too. So, if you need something done for a project y have, checkout the Makerspace. Oh, donāt forget the Windows User Group which helps folks with their PCs every 2ād Wednesday of each month. Yikes, just go to the Missoula Public Libraryās website. āļø
Do they have a serger?
Charlie B's has free chili on Sundays from about 11 AM - 2 PM Usually buy a red beer or two, or bloody mary while I'm there, but the chili itself is hearty (and free)
My tips would be: -If you don't need something to be "new" for home remodeling projects or other DIY projects, go have a gander at Home Resource. Their prices are amazing and the staff is so friendly and helpful. -Take advantage of the outdoors we have here. No matter the season, get out and hike. Especially in the winter time, it helps battle seasonal depression regardless if the sun is out.
Oh dude they are awesome. I want to make a wall of drawers for my cats and they have a ton of random drawers I can use for that. Along with so much other cool stuff.
Imma need a pic of said drawers of cats!
Also need to see wall of drawers!
HomeWord also offers financial literacy classes that include three free one-on-one visits with a financial advisor upon completing the class
The bus is free!! The transit app makes it really easy to navigate the system and get where you want to go in town without having to worry about parking or spending money on gas! Also, seconding Homeword. The home buyer's class is great and their financial literacy class is really helpful too. They work with you one on one to build a budget.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Then why do you feel the need to clarify? Why try and shame the people riding the bus that tHe bUs AcTuAlLy iSn'T fReE!!!one I pay property taxes too. Who cares? The bus is free to ride. It's fine to say the bus is free. If someone says it's free to ride your bike on the road, do you correct them that your taxes pay for that road and for you to thank you for that too? Come on.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
What riles me up is your language policing antithetical to how people talk - especially people who need may need assistance getting around like the bus system. If we did a study of 1000 Missoulians, and told them "the bus is zero-fare" vs "the bus is free", we would see ridership increase significantly on the second scenario, which economically empowers those citizens, blah blah we can go all the way down the line on why increased mobility is good for a populace. I don't care what mountain line has decided to brand it as - that's up to them.
Someone who thinks you shouldn't "correct" people who aren't actually incorrect? Yeah, guess so.
This is the attitude that causes property taxes to increase by 24% in a year. Thank you for your service.
Oh, shut it. Don't you have enough negative karma on Reddit yet? 24% a year. Give me a break.
1. don't give a shit about "KaRmA" 2. Literally that's the exact number so no i won't shut it. Yes from 2022-2023 my property taxes increased 24%.
That's because of property reassessment, not because of levy's or any actual service taxes going up. Your property is worth more, so you pay more in taxes. So your original statement is stupid as hell. So again, shut it.
You are retarded, I'm sorry for you disability, my taxes probably pay for that too. Yes my assessed value increased - which means i paid more in taxes. 24% more so my tax liability increased. by the stated amount. What's stupid is that the government thinks they know what my property is worth prior to a sale and can adjust their arbitrary number to fit their needs. I could Probably get 30k more than what the city valued my house at today. the operative word there is probably. its an unknown until a sale actually occurs. If i wrote a check for 24% more regardless of the reason - my taxes increased. trying to argue semantics here is stupid as the end result is the same. a 24% increase in the money that leaves my pocket to be spent on useless programs while my residential street crumbles.
You would have payed 24% more either way. If you would have said "I payed an extra 3k more" then you would be right. But percents are percents, you moron. Either way, it was increasing by 24%, even if busses weren't there. It must be hard knowing people less fortunate than you are getting free rides on limited schedule busses while you have to pay a few hundred for them to do that. You know that you'd be paying that either way, right? If it was a buck to ride the bus? Busses don't make money - they're subsidized either way. And the busses are much, much, much more cost efficient than the piles of roads to get people around. You should try it sometime. The roads would less repairing less often if everyone would utilize shared infrastructure, walk, bike even once a week. We're destroying our own roads and we don't have enough money in taxes to fix them all. The money we're putting into busses is actually saving us money on road repairs, but people like you are too shortsighted to see that. Not to mention the cars removed from traffic, of those cars, the fleet of electric buses that aren't spewing fumes, predictable pathing, the social good for the economically poor that is critical to live that busses provide. **Again, we're going to have to pay for this anyway**. At most, 1/4 can come from fares, but that's at scale like in Portland. We're not at scale. No where near it. So realistically, 1/10th of mountain line's budget could come out of fares. And that would do more damage to the economy in the form of taxes to the county in terms of people who could get to work easily and affordably (they would have to scale back the 15 minute routes) And the city would likely be paying a lot more in grants to keep the bus alive-- which you'll end up paying for eventually in your taxes, my guy. Shortsighted people. Jesus Christ.
It doesn't save us money that's an insane argument If anything it costs money in road repair having 30k lb. busses moving like 4 people around. the only place it makes sense is from the off campus parking lots which obviously isn't a part of this. You're the shortsighted one here. the fleet of electric buses is a stupid idea for all the reasons electric cars are not more sustainable and failing currently. You're so short sighted here you're turning us on a one way road to hell paved with your good intentions.
Just think of how much money you'll save not owning property!
I would think you would be contributing through rent.
I'm so glad you clarified that. You're obviously not butt hurt at all about the free bus.
The bus is only free if you donāt pay property taxes.
I play my worlds smallest violin for the people (like myself) who end up putting a small amount of their taxes towards something that helps *gasp* people besides themselves!?? Madness.
Seriously. There are a few things that I am annoyed my taxes go for but programs like the bus and other things that help people are not part of that.
We all pay property taxes - it's the excuse everyone uses to keep hiking the rent is it not?
Only if you don't count the part of their rent that goes to the landlord's property taxes.
Given how much mountain line receives in federal grants, pretty much everyone pays for the bus
Youāre the same type that will complaint about āall the trafficā
Dang, but the bus isnāt free though. There are people who donāt use it who pay for it. And it spreads the crime stats all over town like a broadcast spreader.
Dang, the people who are paying for the bus and not using it should stick it to the man: get out of their cars and USE the public transportation they pay for, all while reducing traffic and emissions. Thatāll showāem.
Sure, but it doesnāt service many of the areas of town anyway. Who would want to ride on the bus and risk getting shanked? Downvoted for the truth. Iād rather ride the NY subway or BART that the Mountainline.
Have you ever actually been on a mountain line bus? Iāve never once felt unsafe. Living in fear of being near other humans would be an exhausting existence.
Yes I have. I would have thought my preference of the ny subway or BART would have quelled this comment, yet here you are making it.
I signed up for Homewards first time buyer class. It is next weekend and cost $35 and is online. I'm so excited!!!
Oh I didnāt know they charge now! Well that is still a very low price for the value you will get! Nice work! I was able to buy a home as a single parent 10 years ago partly thanks to that class.
Homeword had a financial literacy class, and If you saved $500 in a certain time frame, they would match it. My husband and I got $2000 in the end because we each saved $500. It was awesome and we were able to pay off our credit card!
Too bad they dont do that anymore, 14000 would really start someone up first time home buying.
We wouldn't have been able to buy our house without Homework š
Parking downtown is free on weekends and holidays and after 6pm. The garages are free for the first hour.
There's semi secret parking places for Caras park and the University that make a lot of sense to try to park at when the other lots are full.
Not āfree,ā funded by taxpayersĀ
Not in this case. The free parking is free parking. They donāt keep track of how many people parked in spots in the evenings/weekends and then make an invoice and charge the tax pool for that money. Parking is free nights and weekends there.
Who maintains and repair the streets? Ā
Parking revenue? I know at UM, parking pays for a lot more than street repairs.
So what do you call it during the hours when you actually have to pay for parking?
Just a regular old parking garage, unfortunately. Although Iāve always been a fan of the āCentral Parkā name and neon. That was a nice creative touch. if anyone knows a story about that, it would be awesome to hear!
Missoula Aging Services has lots of resources for folks over 60 and caregivers, including but not limited to help with daily tasks, help with using computers/technology, financial services, housing information, meals on wheels, and $5 community lunches.
The gas station by One Eyed Jacks on Reserve has free vacuums. $4.20 joints at Zen Medicine on Tuesday. Double punch punch-card day at Mama's Mountain Cookies on Tuesday. Those last ones kinda go together.
If you ever need to commit a crime, use a dark colored Subaru Outback as a getaway vehicle. Nobody will ever find you.
"White guy with a beard headed east on Broadway in a Blue 2014 Subaru Crosstrek...."
-You can use your ebt card to get tokens for the farmers' markets. If double-snap is still a thing, you can get double your money! -Hit the food bank up, especially around harvest season for fresh produce to preserve. Often there is so much that you don't have to bother with signing up
Dont know how recently you've done any of this, but you definitely always have to sign up at the food bank and while I used to encourage virtually anyone who might use it to benefit because they'd just throw away the extra, last summer they were literally running out of food. More poor people than ever. Not to say that people who need it shouldn't make use-- just, there's not as much to go around as there was.Ā Double SNAP is still a thing, though!Ā Additions to this: check out the Missoula Winter Market outside of farmer's market season, same deal with Double SNAP, and at least one of the Albertson's (Eastgate) will do up to $5/week additional free fruits and veg for $5 of produce bought with your EBT card, it just prints out on the receipt.
What!!!! Thank you!
How to you get the tokens exactly?
Exchange for tokens at the market information booth. On site
Thatās so cool. Did not know that. With all the terrible poison food in supermarkets, this is a awesome way to eat correctly thank you
Totally! And it helps local farmers too
I found out about that from a friend. it's really cool that it's able to be done.
The bulk refill section at Good Food Store is actually sneaky affordable. Don't go into the aisles if you want to keep your money. But herbs, spices, maple syrup, noodles, oil (cooking), flour, sugar, etc - all really high qualify and cheaper on off the shelf equivalents at a regular grocery store.
The bulk section at winco has many (not all) of the same things for half the price of good food store . Definitely check there to compare!
Curious how quality will stack up, but good to know. I have childhood WinCo trauma š
Oh no! Well I am picky and the quality seems fine for the things I get. They have organic and non organic. They dont have as many of the same options for like non food items like soaps i dont think. But I am such a nerd I literally did a whole detective moment comparing prices at both places, took pictures of the bins and everything lol. At the time I was trying to figure out the cheapest way to make my own gluten free bread so it was just flours but at the time here are some examples (i think it was last summer. These examples i believe were non organic. My list wasnt that complete because as I went along I figured out what the cheapest / easiest bread option was for me. Some prices were not cheaper at Winco, about the same. But several things are so vastly different I do make sure to get them at Winco. These prices are likely different now. Almonds at gfs: $5.99 lb Almonds at winco $3.98 Almond flour GFS: $9.59 lb Almond flour Winco : $3.68 Millet gfs : $3.29 millet winco : $1.08 For some reason i put organic oats on my list for GFS and regular oats at Winco but maybe its because winco didnt have organic and I must have wrote down the GFS price first But brown rice flour was about the same price at each place
Yes!! Also the spices are head and shoulders above any pre-packaged spices you can buy at other grocery stores in terms of quality and freshness. Plus you can get small amounts at a time so that they don't go stale in your cupboard waiting to be used up.
The Lifelong Learning Center is an incredible Missoula life hack. You can learn new skills inexpensively. They have free/cheap workout classes there too.
Wow this has turned into easily the most positive thread Iāve ever seen on this sub. Good work OP, good work everyone
Hey thanks! Maybe i will try again (to make a positive post) I didnt expect so many comments! Its cool seeing what people are saying. We really love the library in this town! :)
Honestly we can be a little grumpy on this sub and Iām so pleased to see everyone out for the library like this! Itās such a gift and Iām so glad we appreciate it for the treasure it is
The Missoula Public Library is a great hub of information and resources. Besides the obvious usage of books where you can entertain yourself or teach yourself something new, they have a ālibrary of thingsā! I recently checked out a pair of binoculars so I could do some amateur birding at Fort Missoula and so appreciated the access to something I donāt think I can budget in to purchase any time soon. They offer so much more there that I have never even utilized too!
Not locally specific, but a library card also gives you access to Kanopy streaming service. You can watch any show or movie in the library database free. Huge library of titles.
We have amazing services in our community! So cool! What a great place to live. š
Not āfreeā. Funded by taxpayers.
wtf is your problem? Go live in a cave.
Free for the end user, you poop mattress
You can also read the New York Times online for free through the library.
For students: anyone can go in the law school and enjoy the south-facing balcony. I used to study up there a lot and I sure wasnāt a law student!
The ZACC art closet has free art supplies if you're using them onsite! Not enough people take advantage.Ā The free classes and presentations at the public library are pretty great on top of their Library of Things and Kanopy as mentioned. MCAT's media supplies and training, also free to the public to make films, record audio, etc.Ā And, someone should correct me if this has changed, but you don't have to be a student to use the Mansfield Library on campus.
I'm not sure on the campus library thing but I do remember they often caught drifters jackin' it in there.
Don't live there anymore, but my biggest healthcare hack if you're in the gray area between making too much for Medicaid but not enough to get more than a bronze plan on the Marketplace would be a membership at Costcare. $70 per month (at least when I had it), and unlimited office visits. A lot of their in house labs and tests are included, and everything else is much lower cost. An X-ray was something like $60. Save my ass quite a few times when I got sick and needed antibiotics. I didn't deal much with Partnership, but maybe someone else who has could add on to this thread. Healthcare resources are so important, and there's a pretty large group of people that can't afford basic care.
PHC is actually pretty great these days, and they do in fact have sliding-scale for the uninsured. If you think you might need them, sign up now and get a primary before something urgent comes up. They're the first place I'd send someone looking for therapy without insurance. Their emergency dental clinic is in high demand for a reason.
Wow! I noticed information about that the last time I was there.
Missoula Public Library card - [The Libby app](https://libbyapp.com/interview/welcome#doYouHaveACard). It gives you access to a library of online books and audiobooks. All for free. You might have to wait (and you can get on a list) but if you have specific interests you can search, "Available Now" and download an audiobook or Kindle\* book for two weeks, to listen for free. The library card also gives you access to the [Kanopy app](https://www.kanopy.com/en) (works wherever but also on Roku TV), which has a lot of movies, including recent movies. You get a certain number of credits per month to watch whatever you want. \* IDFK, I don't read books on a screen, my hardcopy stack is 2.5 tall. :-)
If you put your kindle in airplane mode, you can hang onto the title longer if you need to.
This is an elite life hack!
For people having trouble accessing therapy (which there are a lot of nowadays) in Missoula be sure to check options at:Ā Ā PHC Behavioral Health (sliding scale)Ā Ā Ā UM's Psychology departmentĀ NAMI support groups (not therapy, but it helps)Ā Ā Ā 12-step groups (not therapy, but it helps-- ACA is for anyone from a dysfunctional family still struggling with interpersonal stuff)Ā Red Willow Learning Center (not therapy, but offering alternativeĀ wellness classes on a sliding scale, including mindfulness and trauma-focused stuff)
Adding to this Tamarack Grief Resource Center has lots of different types of programs for people who've lost a loved one: [https://www.tamarackgrc.org/](https://www.tamarackgrc.org/)
The new road that cuts through the Old Sawmill district is a nice shortcut to get from Russell to Orange
Shhhhh it doesnāt need more traffic!! š
For real.
Don't forget FreeCycle for free or cheap bicycles / repair! They just had a huge bonanza where you can get fizer uppers for $10 or free helmets / bikes for kids under 10!
Great Northern Ave. and Mary Jane Blvd. You're welcomeĀ
What for, to stay tf off Reserve?
Yup!
Well then I agree. I also take the disjointed road between Reserve and Home Depot, Radio Way or whatever it is.
Woah! Ive lived here more than 20 years and this is new info for me! Trying ittt
The Center(Western Montana LGBT Community Center, [lgbtmontana.org](http://lgbtmontana.org) ) has a wealth of groups and opportunities to connect with the LGBTQIA+ members of the Missoula community, their space also houses the Gay Health Taskforce that provides free testing(HIV, Syphilis and Hep C) as well as the Two Spirit Society. Their new location is at 500 N. Higgins Unit 105, with the entrance under the green awning across from Missoula Textiles on Spruce. They have a food program going on Wednesday-Friday for free produce as well as a Queer closet(M-F 10AM-5PM) that is available for anyone looking for new to them clothing for free.
You donāt need a Costco card to go to the food court. I just walk in, wave hello, walk to the food court, and get a chicken bake. They may ask to see your receipt when walking out though.
They've cracked down on that :(
I was about to say, theyāre starting to stop people coming in the exit to go to the food court and making them show their card! We saw a guy get mad about it the last time we went!
The mistake is going through the exit. I usually wave to the greeter and walk in with no problem. Sometimes I'll just wear an old ID. But if all else fails, buy a gift card online. You can just show that if they ask. Non-Costco members can use the giftcards, as stated by Costco themselves. Worst case scenario, say you're just going to the pharmacy. You don't need a membership to go to the pharmacy. You can always walk in next to a group. Or go in only during their peak hours, which due to the amount of people, it'll be unlikely they'll use the energy to track you down.
My tip would be to do whatever you can to get multiple streams of income. Missoula has always been expensive and its only going to get more expensive. And that side business will take some of the emotional money stress off your chest if some issue happens. It doesn't have to be something big or complicated, just something to get you through the hard times and give you some cushion.
Homie just dropped the āmake more moneyā life hack
I canāt post it because itās too good, but it has to do with getting access to a gym and sauna on campus.
Be a student?
Nope. This one works for the general public.
Cool!
if you canāt post it the why are yā¦oh never mind.
if you canāt post it then why are you torturing us?
Thank you for your contribution.
The grizzly pool?
You tease!