Living Frugally...one man's story (wood, designer, clothes, coupons)

[Tightwad]

Some of the under 50 year old members may enjoy this story.

An important line from the story.....

"The toughest thing is not giving a hoot what other people buy"

The rest of the story is here..............
Living Frugally

[MissNM]

Originally Posted by Tightwad

"The toughest thing is not giving a hoot what other people buy"

Boy - isn't that the truth!

We've cut back significantly, but my husband still likes his "stuff." The catch is - he brags about how little he spends for things. He buys everything on ebay or Amazon. Sunglasses, clothes, cars - you name it. He shops long and hard and always takes shipping into account.

I'm the same way - I use coupons, the discount cards, and shop using flyers. We still eat ribeyes, but at 2.99 a pound. I just bought a whole season's worth of new clothes for less than $200. And I look like a million bucks. At least that's what my husband says - he knows the way to a woman's bed . . . I mean, heart.

But I don't need an XBox, or a plasma TV, or 400 pairs of shoes. We still buy . . . but not to impress. Everyone considers me to be pretty frugal. In fact, my SIL bought me a designer purse. She was so concerned that I'd think she'd spent too much that she called to let me know it was a fake!

[Tightwad]

Don't forget the huge second tier market of used or refurbished items. There is real money to be saved there. I take pride in being known as a "bottom feeder" retails term for folks who know about, and use this second tier of product.

I have a policy that "No one has to pay retail if they work at it"

[wheelsup]

I used to be frugal until I realized he who dies with the most toys wins. We're shopping for a 46" or 52" LCD/Plasma soon, and I'm probably going to buy surround sound and an Xbox soon after. This just after buying a new shotgun and laptop. Just doing our part to stimulate the economy.

[Tightwad]

Originally Posted by wheelsup

I used to be frugal until I realized he who dies with the most toys wins. We're shopping for a 46" or 52" LCD/Plasma soon, and I'm probably going to buy surround sound and an Xbox soon after. This just after buying a new shotgun and laptop. Just doing our part to stimulate the economy.

Each to his/her own! But ya still don't have to pay full price if ya work at it!

[wheelsup]

Originally Posted by Tightwad

Each to his/her own! But ya still don't have to pay full price if ya work at it!

I got a good deal on the shotgun by buying online and having it shipped to a pawn shop. Laptop was on sale too .

[Traderx]

Originally Posted by wheelsup

I used to be frugal until I realized he who dies with the most toys wins. We're shopping for a 46" or 52" LCD/Plasma soon, and I'm probably going to buy surround sound and an Xbox soon after. This just after buying a new shotgun and laptop. Just doing our part to stimulate the economy.

LOL! Thats the American Spirit!

I once bought a 60" plasma on the spur of the moment. I get home and my wife says why did you buy that? I said because if I bought the 70" we would have needed to tear down a wall and expand the family room so I went the cheap route..LOL!

[user_id]

Speaking of TVs....I still have the old CRTs. I think I will upgrade both if I see any good deals this holiday season. Did not realize how cheap blue-ray players got either, selling them at Costco for $150.

In terms of the article, I found this line funny:

"Oh, yes, I spend several thousand dollars a year on vitamins and food supplements for my wife and me because, hey, we're worth it, and, yep, we are never sick."

I guess part of being frugal is spending thousands annually on health gimmicks. I'm not even sure how one would manage to spend several thousand dollars a year on this crap unless it was the overpriced Hollywood wonder cure type.

[wheelsup]

Originally Posted by user_id

In terms of the article, I found this line funny:

"Oh, yes, I spend several thousand dollars a year on vitamins and food supplements for my wife and me because, hey, we're worth it, and, yep, we are never sick."

I guess part of being frugal is spending thousands annually on health gimmicks. I'm not even sure how one would manage to spend several thousand dollars a year on this crap unless it was the overpriced Hollywood wonder cure type.

Something to consider

Kurzweil's Quest For Eternal Youth Sets Group Abuzz (washingtonpost.com)

[formercalifornian]

Originally Posted by MissNM

We've cut back significantly, but my husband still likes his "stuff." The catch is - he brags about how little he spends for things.

It strikes me that "keeping up with the Jones family" comes in many different flavors. Right now, we Americans seem to be trying to impress with how little we spend, rather than how much. But, the story is the same: we're still eager to impress.