Kate Hashimoto was picking up a few groceries at the Upper West Side Food Emporium when she ran into a friend.
這天凱特·橋本與她朋友相遇時(shí)，她正在上西街區(qū)的食品商場(chǎng)撿拾一些雜貨品。

“Hey Kate, you like wraps? Here’s a chicken wrap,’’ her pal said. “But be careful, it’s kind of wet.” They weren’t in the grocery aisle. They were in front of the store, digging through three overflowing trash bins.
“嘿凱特，你喜歡肉卷嗎？這有個(gè)雞肉卷，” 她朋友說(shuō)道。“但是小心，還有點(diǎn)濕?！?她們的對(duì)話(huà)并不是在什么雜貨店的走廊里。她們站在商店前，在三個(gè)漫出來(lái)的垃圾箱翻找著。

Hashimoto Dumpster-dives for all her food, doesn’t use toilet paper or do laundry, and hasn’t bought toiletries in 10 years. She doesn’t have to live this way — she’s an employed CPA.
10年來(lái)橋本一直都在垃圾箱里找食物，不用廁紙，不去洗衣店，也沒(méi)有買(mǎi)過(guò)任何化妝品。她其實(shí)并不需要這樣生活，她是一名有工作的注冊(cè)會(huì)計(jì)師。

“I’ve always been frugal, but it was when I was laid off in the dot-com crash that I became extreme,” Hashimoto explained.
“我一直都很節(jié)儉，但是如此極端的生活方式，卻是在被一家網(wǎng)絡(luò)公司解雇后才開(kāi)始的?！?橋本這樣解釋道。

“No job is guaranteed, so I live as if I could be fired at any time.” Manhattan, she said, is a gold mine for Dumpster divers.
“沒(méi)有哪個(gè)工作是鐵飯碗，所以我以這樣的方式過(guò)活，這樣就算是被解雇了我也有所準(zhǔn)備?！?她說(shuō)對(duì)于以撿垃圾為生的人們，曼哈頓是一座金礦。

“Consumers in wealthy areas expect their products to be perfect, so upscale stores throw out a lot of items that are still good.
“生活在富裕地區(qū)的人們，往往希望他們的一切生活用品保持完美，所以那些高檔的商店會(huì)把很多還很新的產(chǎn)品扔掉?！?

“New York can be the most expensive place to live, but it can also be the least expensive if you know how to work the system.” Hashimoto let The Post spend a day with her learning how to live way below your means.
“紐約可能是生活費(fèi)用最高的地方，但如果你知道怎么生活，所需要的費(fèi)用可能是最便宜的。” 橋本邀請(qǐng)記者用一天的時(shí)間和她學(xué)學(xué)如何像她一樣生活。

She lives in Harlem, where she bought a studio in 2010 and paid it off in nine months, but treks down to the Upper West Side three times a week for good, free food.
她住在紐約黑人居住集中的哈萊姆區(qū)。2010年她在那里買(mǎi)下了一個(gè)工作室，用了九個(gè)月就將貸款全部支付完畢.但是她每周會(huì)去三次上西區(qū)，撿一些免費(fèi)的用品和食物。

Her other money-saving methods include using soap to wash herself after using the toilet, taking surveys online to earn gift cards, participating in medical trials (she got free birth control for 5 years and took part in a herpes vaccine trial for cash), testing products for free samples, cutting her own hair, washing her clothes while she showers, and running to work to avoid using a MetroCard.
她還有許多其他省錢(qián)妙招，包括用肥皂不用廁紙，做一些網(wǎng)上的有獎(jiǎng)?wù){(diào)查賺些禮品卡，參與醫(yī)療實(shí)驗(yàn)（她免費(fèi)獲得可使用五年的避孕產(chǎn)品，參加一項(xiàng)皰疹疫苗試驗(yàn)還得到了現(xiàn)金獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)），產(chǎn)品體驗(yàn)的免費(fèi)樣品，自己理發(fā)，邊洗澡邊洗衣服，還有跑步上班以省下地鐵費(fèi)用。

“I was extremely angry about the latest round of subway fare hikes,” she said.
“我聽(tīng)到地鐵票漲價(jià)的消息時(shí)氣瘋了，”她說(shuō)。

Hashimoto does have her limits. Her furniture is a collection of found freebies — but she won’t take an old mattress for fear of bedbugs, and sleeps instead on used yoga mats.
橋本也有她的底線。她的家居都是免費(fèi)贈(zèng)品，但是她情愿睡在舊的瑜伽毯上，也不用舊的床墊，害怕會(huì)有螨蟲(chóng)。

And she won’t stay in a relationship for free meals.
而且她也不會(huì)免費(fèi)三餐而跟男人交往。

“I’ve been in a relationship where I stayed because I was getting freebies and gifts, but I got out of it,” she says. “It’s better to be single and Dumpster-diving than to be with someone you can’t stand.”
“我曾經(jīng)為了得到免費(fèi)贈(zèng)品而談了一個(gè)男朋友，但是我放棄了。” 她說(shuō)?！拔仪樵竼紊?，翻垃圾找食物，也不要和一個(gè)我無(wú)法忍受的人在一起?！?/div>

What Kate Spends Per Month:
凱特每個(gè)月的生活開(kāi)銷(xiāo)：

On food: $15
食物：15美元

On clothing: $0
衣服：0美元

On toiletries: $0.17 a month on toothpaste
梳妝用品：17美分買(mǎi)牙膏

condo: $237
公寓：237美元

She puts into savings: $4,000
儲(chǔ)蓄：4000美元

Into 401(k): $1,000
養(yǎng)老金：1000美元

Goal: $250,000 in savings by next year or so
目標(biāo)：明年存款25萬(wàn)美元