Re-reading Tightwad Gazette

[Tightwad Kitty]

The Complete Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn is a great book to read and digest in parts as some parts don't apply to my lifestyle.

Anyone cares to comment on this book. I find the Math parts the most interesting and I find myself doing the Math’s on different things and coming up with new strategies all the time.

As I have no one to read with and discuss articles at random. I would like to start this tread on reading articles from Tightwad Gazette. I will not be rewriting any article, only quotes and article name, volume number and page number, from ‘The Complete Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn’ along with my views and comments on trying this strategy.

Once we start commenting on these articles, I think it would help if everyone repeated the (Article title in the book with Volume No & Page No) along with your comment. So that you can, add a comment on any topic or article from ‘The Tightwad Gazette’ at anytime down the track. So that anyone can follow the articles in question & answers at random also so that you can refer to the article at anytime if you need too!

Having said all that, would anyone care to comment on the article that they found helpful on saving money?

So anyone care to join me on re-reading of ‘Tightwad Gazette’ along with a discussion on articles.

I will comment on different Articles at random, every so often.

[Ima saver]

I use to get her newsletter, but hear that it is no longer available. I also get the cheapskate monthly which has been changed to debt proof living. It is by Mary Hunt. I would love to read tightwas gazette. Unfortunately, there are no bookstores in my area, so I will check the library.

[seaar2000]

They no longer sale her books in booktores. If you go to Amazon.com or half.com you will find her three volume book. Some of them have them for a discount. Don't follow all of her advice but she does make me feel motivated when I read or scan her book.

[Miz Pat]

I'd be interested in seeing your thoughts. One of the things about the gazette was realizing what your goal was. I never had kids, so the stuff about diapers and kid's wasn't what I needed, but I was struggling financially and the book really helped. I purchased a freezer for storing food ahead, which was a blessing, and I saved for a downpayment on a house. I'd say go for it.

[Tightwad Kitty]

Hi everyone
It took me 2-1/2 years to get my copy of “The Complete Tightwad Gazette” as I have never seen any other copy, I can’t tell you if the page numbers are the same or if the format is the different. That is why I have suggested that we put the Volume along with Article so if you have a different set of books to mine then you will be able to find the article in question!

The only problem I have with the book is the some of the titles of the articles. You find that I like to workout the strategy or formula that Amy is written about. I would like also to update any new ideas or ways that are now available that was not available when the article was written.

So any help on ideas or ways now available would be appreciated.

[Tightwad Kitty]

As it Easter in a few weeks , I look at ‘Easter Ideas’ Vol 1 (p163 CTG).

Here commercial Easter can start about 2nd January and Easter Hot Cross Buns are on sale here early February. I only buy marked down Easter Hot Cross Buns and put them into my freezer for Easter week. Another thrifty thing I do for this season, is making chocolate mould chocolates as gifts, buy melting cooking chocolate to put into the moulds. When I go into thrift shop or to garage sale I look for these moulds, I now have a good range of different moulds. Coloured eggs is thing I do at times. When my son was a young he didn’t like chocolate or sugar eggs so he got new box of Lego and block of his favourite chocolate.

TG - Quote ‘my final thought ….. focus on spiritual significance of the holiday’.

My thoughts - Do check on someone who is alone at this time of year, call or visit him or her.

[Lostsoul33]

[quote]I also get the cheapskate monthly which has been changed to debt proof living. It is by Mary Hunt.

Ima, is that through email? I would love to have the link for it if you don't mind.
I also wanted to tell you that I have been reading the Debt Proof Living book and it is very good. I reworked my budget this weekend by some of the things that she said. This is a wonderful book and is very easy to understand. Thanks for recommending it.

[cercis]

I've been re-reading it too.

I just got to the article about picky eating and, of course, it irritated the hell out of me. My mom made me eat those peas every night of my life and now I can't even stand the smell of peas. If I smell them, I need to throw up. I can't even eat at "The Black-eyed Pea" because just the name makes me so nauseated.

I do like her math figures. And I suspect that she doesn't have kids with texture issues or she would change her mind on the "picky" eating. If the mere touch of a food makes a child gag, then it isn't something they are doing on purpose (I say this as a "picky" adult).

[PrincessPerky]

On easter, I dont have the book and can't read her article, but I decided last year (my kids are young) to do a child share basket, I think it will continu to be garden stuff, they love the garden and it is the right time. I don't let them have alot of junk (the junk given by gmas is generally eaten by DH and I)

[Lostsoul33]

I don't feel so bad now when dh and I eat the kids candy that gramma gives them. The kids are just wired when they eat all of that junk. The grandparents give it to them and then they leave.

[Ima saver]

Lost soul, I get debt proof living (cheapskate monthly) but i get the newsletter by mail. I know you can get it by going on line. Their number is 1-800-550-3502. I ordered a copy of the book and loaned it a young woman going thru a divorce and financial problems. That has been over a year and she has not brought it back, so I have not gotten to read it. I guess I should get another one. I checked the library for the tightwad gazette and they did have one, but it was not there.

[Lostsoul33]

Thanks for the info Ima. I appreciate it and will check it out.

[Tightwad Kitty]

Originally Posted by cercis

I've been re-reading it too.

I just got to the article about picky eating and, of course, it irritated the hell out of me. My mom made me eat those peas every night of my life and now I can't even stand the smell of peas. If I smell them, I need to throw up. I can't even eat at "The Black-eyed Pea" because just the name makes me so nauseated.

I do like her math figures. And I suspect that she doesn't have kids with texture issues or she would change her mind on the "picky" eating. If the mere touch of a food makes a child gag, then it isn't something they are doing on purpose (I say this as a "picky" adult).

Hi Cercis I agree with you on the texture issues that cause projectile vomiting is best avoided if possible.

In my family both adults and children were picky eaters too! Today my son and his wife won’t eat onions or fish still. I eat very different from them as I like exotic fruits that I grow, and lentils and beans along seafood, very spicy foods from many different parts of the world that they will not eat at all.

War and Peas Vol 3 (p792 CTG)
Theme - food –‘overcoming picky eating’

TG – Quote – ‘Picky eating often results from one or all of these parental mistakes.’
(in brief)
1. The child has not been given enough limits. He dictates what is bought and when and how it served.
2. The child ‘s eating has become the entire focus of the meal.
3. One or both parents are picky eaters. (In my son’s case it was his grandfather that was the picky eater as he was raised in a four generations household.)

My thought on picky eaters.

Another problem, I see is ‘brand loyalty’ when you have to buy that ‘brand’ or two different brands for different members in the household. I see this is OK only if that person in question has a special diet issue.

I do think, 2 or 3 small to medium mouthful depending on age rule, unless the child has food intolerance to it, is the best method to try first. Another method would be to disguise the food in the dish by blending/ puree or any other method you can think of. Some foods are required taste and need to be induced very slowly.

My own required taste of unusual foods came from my mother’s father. As small child, my grandparents would put the food in a small bowl that had my favourite picture of old world horse and cart on it, if I wanted to see the picture then I had to eat the food on top of it. funny what you remember after fifty years.

[PrincessPerky]

I think the bowl is cute THe kids have a bird bowl that they do that with, not in response to picky eating, niether is really, but they eat faster to see the picture .

I think most issues can be overcome slowly, and I always recall my gagging son on yogurt when I come up with a new food someone doesn't like. He now eats yogurt every night, so I think exposure CAN work, but slow and easy.

In my family the GMas know DH and I eat the junk Now if I can only convince the IL that I like DARK chocolate!

[cercis]

Perky, some kids yes. Some kids no. I don't know how I could have been more exposed to peas. And they still make me run to the bathroom just from the scent.

My theory on picky eating is to ignore it. I make healthy foods, they eat what they want of it and are perfectly free to not eat anything they don't want to eat. Very little gets thrown away (I dont' make a lot of any one thing) and the kids are fed and healthy (even if DS1 mainly eats peanut butter).

I think with many kids making it a focus sets up food aversions that can be extremely difficult to overcome (I have a food aversion to pretzels that came from getting extremely ill after eating the whole bag - even today just thinking about eating them makes me nauseated). My theory is that if a food will taste good to you, the scent of that food will tempt and tantalize you. That's how we found out DS1 liked oats, we cooked them for dh and I and he asked for some because they smelled good.

[Tightwad Kitty]

‘Three Principles of Used Acquisition’ Vol 1 (p165 CTG)

The strategies use in this article are:-
‘putting out the word’
‘Trading up’ or as I refer to say ‘Up grading’ when I am giving things away.
‘temporary ownership’

On reading this article again, has made me think and look for new ways to ‘putting out the word’ since this article was written, as we are now more Global with computers and internet. (any ideas, help wanted here - top ten)

‘Trading up’, I use this strategy in small way. I often buy an item that that I need that may not be in very good condition as I would like, when I find one that is, I will upgrade or trading up and find a home or sell the one I bought earlier. This process may take years as I am only buying used goods in the first place.

‘Temporary ownership’ When my son was a baby, I was given some baby items and I bought some new and used goods also. When my son had grown out of them, I put adv. in the Trading Post here, sold it all for $100, cost for two years use was only $10 then. (Computers and Internet were not around then!)

[katwoman]

I don't have the book in front of me. While browsing in my local library I came across it and sat down to skim thru it (I did read the three volumes when they came out).

She was awesome then and she is still awesome! The thing I liked about her was how she broke everything down into units or cost per use, etc. She even gave different combinations of savings for comparison. If I remember correctly, she didn't even coupon!

Could you imagine how much more effective (silly word, given her accomplishments) she would have been if she had freecycle, freebies from the internet and coupons and rebates? Mindboggling!

And people still say it can't be done. Humpf!

[Tightwad Kitty]

Originally Posted by katwoman

I don't have the book in front of me. While browsing in my local library I came across it and sat down to skim thru it (I did read the three volumes when they came out).

She was awesome then and she is still awesome! The thing I liked about her was how she broke everything down into units or cost per use, etc. She even gave different combinations of savings for comparison. If I remember correctly, she didn't even coupon!

Could you imagine how much more effective (silly word, given her accomplishments) she would have been if she had freecycle, freebies from the internet and coupons and rebates? Mindboggling!

And people still say it can't be done. Humpf!

Yes, it's mindboggling when you think about it. Amy was not into coupons but don't know what she would have done with shopper dockets like, we have here in Australia. Our shopper dockets are on the back of our grocery dockets. They give you discounts in your local area for buy coffee and get one free, special car service offer, cut price holiday offer, theme park offer etc. I use these only 30% of the time.

[Tightwad Kitty]

“Use it or lose it.” Vol 2 (p441 CTG)
Theme – Scheduling Consumption – (a method to control what you own.)

TG – Quote – ‘If you lack control over any area of your life – be it, time, money, or other resources – design a system to manage it. Order will save you stress as well as money.’

I known that this article is on gardening produces as an illustration of making or working out a system so that you have control over, whatever you are having a problem with.

Many years ago I started making charts and systems to cope with any little problem, long before I ever read a ‘Tightwad Gazette’.

Start point:
Inventory of your storage area, be it your freezer, bulk pantry, cosmetic, or toiletry storage areas, would be a good place to start using this article. If you haven’t already done so!

Using what you have at hand is a good way to save money. Setting up your storage areas so that you can find anything under 5 minutes. Then you don’t have to go buy more because you cannot find it!

I know that I need to update inventory of my storage areas soon! They are now full!

[Firefly]

They don't have it at my library... I will have to go look for it on amazon.