Frugality: How Far Would You Go?
I often wonder about how far I or other people would go to be frugal and save money. One forum I visit has a thread on toilet paper.
Here is where I think we are crossing the line. There are folks out there proposing towels as opposed toilet paper. In my mind this is the point of ridiculousness. I always look at frugality as a way to allow for quality in my life despite the fact that divorce has severely impacted my budget. Frugality allows me to have my toilet paper of choice.
Some things I have given up:
- Paper towels for every job
- Land line phone
- Brand new autos (My last was my last!)
- Unlimited meals out
- Unlimited alcohol
- Unlimited wardrobe
Some things I won't give up:
- Toilet paper
- Decent food
- Decent alcohol
- My time with family so I can earn money to pay for "stuff"
I think you get these idea. Quality over quantity-- frugality is selective, not .
How far would you go in the name of frugality?
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Categories: Personal Finance,Frugality,Personal Philosophy
Tags: Personal Finance Frugal Frugality Personal Philosophy
A friend of mine would call this "pole vaulting over mouse turds." In other words, making a big deal out of small stuff. If you're going to save money, you need to focus on the "big chunks", the "heavy hitters", not the small stuff.
Here is a quote from my site that sums it up pretty well:
"Reduce expenses where you spend the most. If you are trying to save money, don’t expect to save much by reusing kitchen storage bags. You need to focus on your largest expenditures and hack those down to a modest size. Focus on housing, transportation and food. These are the three largest factors in your cost of living - about 65% of what you spend. These are the areas of personal finance where you are most likely to identify ways to make a significant change in the amount of money you spend versus the amount available to save."
We have to keep things in perspective. You can only save serious money where you're spending serious money. If you're recommending the use of towels instead of toilet paper, perhaps this is a sign that the wellspring of ideas is running dry. I think what we're all looking for are serious ideas that offer meaningful ways to save dollars, not pennies.
Clair
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Clair, I think you know where this thread about TP came from-- it is a forum you read. I didn't check lately, but I am sure the thread is still there. I won't mention the forum's name.
It also reminded me of The Tightwad Gazette (which I generally love) and washing tin foil . . . not worth it! My time has more value than that.
Quality of life needs to be incorporated in decisions about frugality, as well as return on investment (time and money spent) as you are pointing out.
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I have given up, generally, alcohol. I only have two or three drinks a month, and never in a bar. I’ve never been too heavy on clothes. Prefer not to have a cell phone. I’ve given up the second land line.
But big things keep popping up! My lawn mower just went kaput, and the replacement part is $179! Daughters are going to French camp. It’s almost like a year of college. Computer went down; I couldn’t get it started so I took it to a shop.
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Funny about the alcohol, when I was single I used to have a 12 pack in my fridge for more than a month sometimes. But my wife and I sit in our backyard on weekends and share a beer, wine, or gin and tonics as I cook on the grill. Now the 12 packs disappear in about two weeks.
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