Regional Australia (New South Wales).
Petrol prices are the highest I’ve ever seen. I guess that’s true everywhere.
But also, on Weds when we went to Canberra we drove past two petrol stations with their signs turned off (suggesting they were completely out) — one in the city and one in the country. I’ve never seen that before. The country station was back on when we passed again a couple of hours later.
My current cats have Opinions (capital O) about what is or isn’t food. I tried giving them variety, at least in flavour. They don’t want it. The want one specific brand of fish-flavored wet food (in jelly, not gravy). They’ll eat some kinds of fish-flavored kibble if wet food isn’t available. Anything else, they have to be pretty desperate.
At least they both like the same stuff! But the lack of variety is 100% on them, not me.
(My previous cats would eat most things. These two are just weird.)
Some things are going to depend on your climate, so what has worked for me may not be a good fit for you.
That said, things I’ve had success with as a lazy gardener in a cool temperate climate:
Mostly those things have grown with little attention from me apart from water when it’s dry. Many of them can be grown easily from seed, which is cheaper than seedlings but takes longer.
Let a plant go to seed and you get more for free. Leeks, spring onions, radishes, leafy greens, parsley are very easy to do this with. Save a few Jerusalem artichoke tubers for next season’s crop. Let a couple of bean pods dry on the plant, save the beans and plant them next season.
If there is a community garden near you, that’s a great place to ask for advice about what grows well in your area. They may also be able to help you get started with seeds or cuttings.