Frugal: Where do you draw the line?

[Ima saver]

I buy expensive food for my dog, but it is the only dog food she will eat!

[pearlieq]

I won't do anything in the name of "frugality" that takes away from other people (stiffing a waitress on their tip, taking tons and tons of supplies from restaurants, cheaping out on friends in terms of handling the check/gifts/etc.).

I won't give up organic milk or meats, and I won't stay in scary no-tell motels to save a buck.

Otherwise, most other things are negotiable.

[LuxLiving]

MUST have my vornado fan blowing on me at night! MUST have my Hellman's Mayo! MUST have real cheese slices - no plastic cheese for me!! Most everything else is negotiable.

-LuxLiving Frugalis
http://LuxLivingFrugalis.blogspot.com

P.S. Oh yeah, I don't drive cars w/o airconditioners in them.

[rob62521]

Originally Posted by BCHGRL

Being cheap means slighting others in the name of being "frugal." My single, multi-millionaire uncle is so proud of how frugal he is, and he thinks it is hilarious to give family members cheap gifts like craker jacks or a big hershey's kiss for Christmas. I would rather not get anything then get something so ridiculously cheap and have to act excited about it. It is not like we have a big family either, I am his only niece.

My sil was always buying cheap gifts -- they made far more money than we did and were always begging stuff off of mil. One year she bought a pair for plaid boxer shorts for my hubby at Dollar General. That was his only Christmas gift from them. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Dollar General. My husband doesn't wear boxers and buying a pair of underwear seemed a bit cheap and crass. We always bought them nice things. Finally, one year when I was going to grad school and money was tight, I just suggested we not exchange gifts anymore. My husband was relieved because he said she always bought cheap junk. She has tried to reinstate the gift exchange and I've been adamant about not wanting to. I spend time choosing gifts for people I think they will like and would hope others do the same. I didn't feel she took the time to do that -- just wanted something on hand so she could get something back which isn't what gift giving is really about. So am I frugal -- yes. Cheap, I don't think so.

[rob62521]

[quote=pearlieq]I won't do anything in the name of "frugality" that takes away from other people (stiffing a waitress on their tip, taking tons and tons of supplies from restaurants, cheaping out on friends in terms of handling the check/gifts/etc.).QUOTE]

You sound like a considerate person! I've read article about waitresses complaining about folks who they know have the money, but won't leave a tip when the service is good. They leave something that looks like a folded $20 bill, but it actually is a business card on the other side. That is just plain cruel.

[rob62521]

There are a few things I don't negotiate on anymore...

Decent tp
air conditioning at home-- I have asthma and allergies and besides the comfort, it is a health issue
good kitchen knives -- less dangerous than a cheap, dull one
decent panty hose -- I don't wear them a lot, but I remember the cheap ones. They never fit right and I felt like one leg never the right size. The cheap ones either had to be pulled up all the time because they were too loose, or felt like they cut off my circulation. I don't buy the most expensive, but decent ones

[Ima saver]

I buy expensive dog food for my dog. After 6 years, I finally found something she will eat and that is benefial. It is $1.66 per tub, but she is worth a million dollars to me!

[funnyvalentine]

RE: the treatment of waitresses and other service people in the name of being cheap. I highly, highly recommend a book called, "Nickled and Dimed". The author went "undercover" as a worker making 6-7. an hour (a maid service, waiter, nursing home dining hall worker) and found out how hard it is to live on those wages AND how awful those workers are treated. This book should be recommended reading for all of us, especially those who think stiffing a waiter is an appropriate way of expressing their dissatisfaction with the way their meal was prepared. It is really, really startling.

[Ima saver]

I saw that on tv, and they really had it tough. I use to be a waitress; I wonder how many people would work really hard for $20 a day in tips. On Sundays, we made $11-12 and the place was mobbed, standing in line out the door. (that is not an hour, that is for the entire shift)

[funnyvalentine]

the way the maid service maids are treated is even worse. They work with toxic chemicals, have to pack their equiptment and unload it on their own time, and get paid nothing. On top of it, they are basically invisible people; the clients largely never thank them or tip them at all....

it's gross, really.....

Originally Posted by Ima saver

I saw that on tv, and they really had it tough. I use to be a waitress; I wonder how many people would work really hard for $20 a day in tips. On Sundays, we made $11-12 and the place was mobbed, standing in line out the door. (that is not an hour, that is for the entire shift)

[rob62521]

Originally Posted by funnyvalentine

RE: the treatment of waitresses and other service people in the name of being cheap. I highly, highly recommend a book called, "Nickled and Dimed". The author went "undercover" as a worker making 6-7. an hour (a maid service, waiter, nursing home dining hall worker) and found out how hard it is to live on those wages AND how awful those workers are treated. This book should be recommended reading for all of us, especially those who think stiffing a waiter is an appropriate way of expressing their dissatisfaction with the way their meal was prepared. It is really, really startling.

That book is excellent!

[Koppur]

I buy Purina brand cat food for my babies. I won't switch to a generic form of my meds if it doesn't work EXACTLY the same just to save some money. I won't get rid of my cable or internet. I won't buy used clothes (grosses me out). I won't give up my book habit (don't like libraries, but I love used bookstores). I won't stiff waitresses or other service people (food delivery people, DnD counter people, etc), and I won't cut back on x-mas gifts for my family and friends.

Other things, always up for discussion.

[cicy33]

my dog must have Nutro brand or at least a brand that doesn't have by products. she smells something awful when we feed her cheaper brands. took us a year to figure out what the problem was. periodically we try the cheaper brands but I keep having to come back to the nutro so I give up and will just use it only from now on.

[Ima saver]

I won't give up Hood low carb choc. milk. It cost s $3.50 but I love the taste!