On the Hunt

I need to find a friend. Don’t get me wrong I have a few ride or dies and even more chill buddies. However, unlike me they all have jobs which completely screw up their priorities ability to hang out with me in the middle of the day. What demands their company on a Monday afternoon? Free stuff of course. The Debt Free Divas are sponsoring the Capital One Café Savings Scavenger Hunt, a weeklong virtual event with daily tasks geared toward increasing savings. The grand prize is a $500 gift card (courtesy of #CapitalOne). I ain’t got no job and these Christmas presents don’t pay for themselves so…

There are also additional prizes like Mastercard gift cards, personal finance freebies, and more for completing the daily tasks. The scavenger hunt kicked off on December 2 and culminates on Dec. 9 with an in-person activity at the Capital One Café (didn’t even know those were a thing until now) in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood.

Help Wanted

Which brings me to why I need to hang out with someone like right now. The first daily prize winner will be chosen today and in order to be eligible the first task must be complete by 8p.m. CST. What is that task? An outing with a friend or loved one spending no more than $20.

So easy that I accomplished my mission an hour before I knew it was one of the scavenger hunt assignments. To get credit for gorging myself at the Indian buffet I needed to take a picture of me and my lunch companion and upload the receipt (which I of course left on the table).

Now I have to recreate the moment, which actually requires spending more money. 

Thus far none of the usual suspects are available to further my cause. I’m at the point of texting the people who I tell, “We should totally hang out!” but don’t really mean it. Hopefully someone will come through in the next 7 hours.

Forward Progress

Luckily, I’m already atop the points leaderboard (well tied for first) for completing the days 2 and 3 tasks. For day two I had to read Give Yourself a Raise in 21 Days (free download here), pick one of the twenty-one tips and perform a 15 second rap or poem about it. I chose the Day 10 tip: Shop at Discount Grocers. I thought it fitting since I am working on opening a discount grocery store myself. The video? Hopefully it never sees the light of day, but my MC skills are as potent as they were during my high school rap battles. Check these bars:

Now Whole Foods got that Amazon clout
But they still running wallets like Odell runs a route
I’mma pass on the grapes for $9.98
Them seedless joints are good but not $10 great
I got other options, what you ain’t know?
I’m gonna speed past the green and white and shop at Trader Joe’s

And for that I received 30 points.

Day three was a simple question that took less than one minute to find the answer. Add another 10 to my total.

The Road to Victory

I don’t know what the rest of the week will find me doing in the pursuit of the W. Some tasks are more involved than others but thus far all have been doable. The savings tips may not be earth shattering, but they are a good reminder to check in with my budget and continue to look for ways to save everyday.

I don’t know if there is still space to join, but if there is I welcome the competition.

Even if you can’t scavenge with me you can still attend the final event on December 9. Who knows, there may be more prize giveaways that day.

Now I must go and ask random strangers to hang out with me.

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