Keepin' Up With the Jones' . . . Hell No!
They are in foreclosure! People may finally be realizing that living to keep up with the Jones' may be a street that you shouldn't go down. Frankly, I don't give a damn what the Jones' have or don't have.
I am reminded of all of this because I just had to explain (yet again) to my son that times are tough and that many people will start living more like we do . . . frugally. He asks why I don't just pay someone to cut and deliver our firewood (That's his mother talking . . . furthermore, he and my stepson weren't too keen on helping me process wood yesterday). I explained that we have plenty of wood, we process our own, and that we don't blow money on something we can do ourselves.
We offset our oil bill with firewood, our grocery bill with a garden, and our home and auto repairs with DIY projects. We eat home cooked meals at home and don't blow money frivolously.
Teaching our kids about frugality is hard, because so many people in their lives aren't members of the Frugal Homestead . . . it's an ongoing, uphill battle.
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Categories: Consumerism, Personal Finance, Self Sufficiency, Frugality, Personal Philosophy
Tags: Personal Finance Personal Philosophy Self Sufficiency Affluenza Frugal Frugality Consumerism
You said something that deserves more exploration: “Teaching our kids about frugality is hard, because so many people in their lives aren't members of the Frugal Homestead . . . it's an ongoing, uphill battle.”
I considered homeschooling as a way to deal with some of this, but that is such a large responsibility, and the public school is already organized to do it, and the people there are specifically trained, and I’m already paying them (thru taxes) etc. So the kids are exposed to peers who have all kinds of ideas, and philosophies from their parents. And then there are the teachers, who are in charge of our kids’ intellectual development, but again, whose philosophies are all over the map.
And we have the dear spouse, who may be only partly on board the frugality-efficiency train.
Let’s expand this one.
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When you think about it-- every parent is homeschooling their kids. The question is do they do it passively (most do it this way) or actively? We try to teach our kids our values, beliefs, and approaches. My kids will be more self sufficient, because they see and hear how I do it. They don't always realize the lesson is happening. The problem I face with my kids is I have an ex who sees the world differently . . .
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This has to be frustrating. Sometimes I think the best answer is: "I'm in charge of my money, and you're in charge of yours. When you have a place of your own, you can order the firewood, go out to eat, or even have the Schwan Man deliver. It will be all up to you. It will be your choice. The finances of this house are up to me. It's my choice, and these are my choices. And, that's it."
Years ago I lived on top of a mountain on 50 acres of beautiful ancient oaks and grassland. My 13 year old step son could fish, swim, shoot guns, hike, explore, camp out or whatever you can do in your own private park. Anyway, he complained a lot about having nothing to do. When I would name all the things that there were to do, he would say he didn't want to do those things.
When I asked what he wanted to do, he would respond: "I want to do something that costs money." What a great response. So, I simply asked him "How much money do you have to spend?" And, that usually ended the complaints and generated interest in things that cost him nothing. Or, it focused his attention on earning money. Either way, he got the message.
Clair
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