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Back to school: Learn the ABCs of frugality

Posted Aug 01 2008, 07:53 PM by Karen Datko
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For every letter of the alphabet, Kelly at Almost Frugal has a matching frugal idea. Of course, "B" is for budgets, "L" is for leftovers, "V" is for vinegar (which has become our favorite cleaner), and "W" is for water, but not the bottled kind.

"J" is reserved for the notorious Joneses. "Sure, maybe your neighbors have a nice car and take a ton of long weekend trips, but how are they paying for it?" Kelly asks. "You don't know."

Kelly's well-written post, "The ABCs of frugality: 26 key frugal concepts," is a goldmine of thrifty-living ideas.

For instance, "D" is for diapers, but she's not talking about the usual use for the cloth variety. They're great for cleaning, "and the more you use them, the more absorbent they are," she says.

Some of the lesser-used letters in the alphabet caused Kelly to stretch a bit. "X" became "expensive," a word that is compatible with frugality. She says, "It's not necessarily a bad thing when something costs a lot of money, as long as you can afford it, buying it fits in with your goals, and it is a good value for the money."

"Y" is "why are you on this frugal journey" (know your motives). "Z" is "ZZZs." Getting enough rest is essential to good living. "Plus," Kelly says, "is there a more frugal activity than catching some ZZZs between your sheets?"

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Comments

 

Thanks for the mention and all the nice compliments! I'm glad you enjoyed the article, I really enjoyed writing it.

Kelly from Almost Frugal (Posted 08.02.08 1:37 AM ) Report Abuse

You forgot to mention pay cash for things never get a loan for anything ! If u cant afford to pay cash for something then save a little longer.Buy a used instead of a new car a year old car will save you thousands compaired to the price of a new car.Im waiting for the electric cars to come back on the market before i get a new to me car.Stop trying to keep up with the Jonses as they will be moving to an apartment soon as the bank reposses their house! Sell your oversized house and you may be able to buy a smaller repo property cash!!! i have many other tips. My ultimate point is live within your means times will be getting a lot harder. I foresee the banks jacking up their rates again soon as they did in the 1980s. that tought me to never get a loan or mortgage again.I bought a fixer upper house cash and drive a 20 year old 4 cylindar vehicle i have no bank account as i pay cash for whatever i want  so these economic times wont hurt me at all!!!

steve curry (Posted 08.02.08 12:24 PM ) Report Abuse

Kudos, Kelly! Very well-written!

The "B" for budgets CANNOT be over-emphasized. At the foundation of any good financial strategy is a good, well-structured budget (not too mention realistic!).

For my family and I, we've had more control over our money and more FREEDOM to live as a result of adhering to a budget that works.

http://www.financialnut.com - the goings and comings of our families experiences w/money!

Trevor (Posted 08.02.08 3:17 PM ) Report Abuse

Thank you for highlighting my article, out of all the 26 in Kelly's post, in this post here. I appreciate it! :)

Shanti @ Antishay.com (Posted 08.04.08 2:56 PM ) Report Abuse

Great post.  I would also mention R is for responsibility....as  it's YOUR responsibility to pay your way through life...not mine!  <http://creditmomblog.com>

CreditMom (Posted 08.05.08 1:09 PM ) Report Abuse

Just a remark on your 2nd paragraph about the Joneses.  Don't be too hard on them.  You said you don't know how they're paying for their new car and their week-end trips.  That's just it - YOU DON'T KNOW!! Maybe they paid cash for the new car and probably charge for trip expenses on their credit card which they pay in full every month so as not to pay interests on balances.  Using the credit card is a pure matter of convenience to them.  What can be wrong with that?  And for saying that they have to move to an apartment because their house will be repossessed?  Maybe you're wrong again.  They may have bought the house cash, hence no worry about mortgage  and high interest rates.

Don't get me wrong.  I am not against smart spending.  I often visit the page for tips and ideas and most of them are helpful,  But this keeping up with the Joneses strikes me as negative, sour graping, and passing harsh judgment on people who practice careful spending by paying cash for things that they enjoy .  I know the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses" is  basically saying not to be influenced by what others have which you can't afford.  But what about saving money until you can afford to pay for things you want so you can avoid getting deep in debt instead of harping against people who are able to enjoy life's pleasures, be they nice homes and week-end trips?  Sometimes extreme frugality is oppressive (re-using plastic bags over and over???) and hazardous to one's psyche and health.  Life is too fragile and short, people.  Enjoy it while you can!  

Kahi (Posted 08.05.08 1:14 PM ) Report Abuse

This was a good post and some great points. I did a similar one one the A to Z of personal finance ( www.savingtoinvest.com/.../a-to-z-of-good-personal-finance.html) and writing these type of lists does provide a good chance for some serious introspection into ones personal philosophies.

AndyS (Posted 08.05.08 2:11 PM ) Report Abuse

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