Comments on: Don’t be Mr. Cheap

By: F. Hart

F. Hart — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 01:34:09 +0000

Re: group checks: at one work lunch, a co-worker ordered a specialty entree (not on the menu, so $$) and an appetizer and I think a cocktail. We all put in money to cover what we had, and guess what? We were way short. It was this person’s $30 lunch that did it. The check had been taken back up so we couldn’t verify who had what, and the gal just sat there, waiting for everyone to cough up another $5. Just amazing gall. Finally we got the waitress to dig up the original check so we could figure it out and she finally had to pay her own share. But very uncomfortable in the meantime. All because she wanted to eat well on her co-workers’ dimes. Wow.
Re: extra drinks: I have a friend who ALWAYS orders a soda and coffee at meals. Never drinks more than a sip or two of the coffee. I can’t understand the compulsion to be charged $1-$2 for sips, but hey it’s her $$$.

By: F. Hart

F. Hart — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 01:25:35 +0000

All due respect, dlong, but the type of behavior described here probably doesn’t have anything to do with money trouble. This is about “putting one over” on others and thinking you’re much smarter than the dopes that split the bill evenly. No one is going to put one over on Mr. Cheap! He places no value on relationships, only money. He will never enjoy lunch with friends, only calculate the cost.
However, I know from my own behavior that worrying about money a lot can put you dangerously close to the cheap camp. I know I talk about the costs of things way too much, because I’m so preoccupied with it.

By: chaplin

chaplin — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:53:31 +0000

Cheap = taking advantage of others to save a buck. Its greedy and low class. No matter how broke someone is, what their situation is, that is no excuse for stealing from others.

Unfortunately, cheapness such as this has become a sport, and if someone could explain to me what circumstances it is acceptable, I’ll be happy to listen.

By: You know who you are, Mr. Cheap - Smart Spending

You know who you are, Mr. Cheap - Smart Spending — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:17:02 +0000

[...] that cheap and frugal are the same thing because of people like you,” explains S. Shugars in an open, excellent, take-no-prisoners letter to Mr. Cheap at Saving Advice. If you recognize yourself in the behavior the letter describes, you’ll know why [...]

By: The 156th Carnival of Personal Finance: Songs of Summer | Prime Time Money

The 156th Carnival of Personal Finance: Songs of Summer | Prime Time Money — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:00:21 +0000

[...] Shugars from Saving Advice presents Don’t be Mr. Cheap, and says, “There’s a difference between cheap and [...]

By: Heather

Heather — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 14:36:04 +0000

Wow who are you mad at?!
What an article, why don’t you vent in a personal diary or something.
I didn’t learn a thing.

By: Debbie Roberts

Debbie Roberts — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 13:51:28 +0000

Good article and amen on how the rest of the workers feel. We have potlucks about once a month and the people who either didn’t bring anything or brought something “easy” usually take a bunch of extra food to take home. By the time late lunch comes around, there’s little food left.

By: Miranda

Miranda — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 23:47:32 +0000

I’ve always thought that value and “least expensive” are two different things. Just because it costs less doesn’t mean you are getting the best value. And, as you say, being cheap is not the same as being frugal.

By: Ann

Ann — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 20:19:18 +0000

@ dlong
Fiction is often an effective forum for taking a stance to make points, teach, and expose.

Mr. Cheap is probably a culmination of several instances and activities and none so specific. Otherwise, this would not be an article on SavingAdvice/ pfadvice, but a letter to an actual person.

@ Main Post, Does Mr Cheap always carpool but never pay for gas or drive? Buggers always sticking us with the bill.

By: Jay Gatsby

Jay Gatsby — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:46:44 +0000

I agree, there is a difference between being frugal and being cheap. My parents passed along a great habit, which some might see as cheap, but I see as being frugal. When I stay in a nice hotel for work, I take the mini shampoo, conditioner and soap each day and put it in my suitcase (while using only one of each for the entire time I stay in the hotel). When I get home, I often have several bottles and bars to take the to gym or on trips where I’m using carry-on luggage. My parents would also keep the extra ketchup, mustard, salt and pepper packets that restaurants would enclose with our take-away orders and put them in the fridge for future road trips (on which we would take our own home-made sandwiches or make from ingredients bought from a grocery store in whatever town we were staying).

My wife things that I sometimes go a bit overboard with these and other money-saving practices, but I disagree. If I’ve paid for a night in a hotel, that includes the cost of toiletries that are placed in the room by the maid. The same goes for a meal that comes with condiments I don’t use. To each his or her own, but as long as you aren’t blatant about your money-saving tricks, you’re “frugal” and not “cheap” in my book.