Tightwads Unite! Your Ranks Are Growing Daily

While the economic “crisis” may have passed from the front pages, the troubles continue for many families. Unemployment, underemployment, rising prices and the onset of winter (and the costs of heat) are making everyone take a new look at their finances—and the discretionary things we USED to spend money for-without thinking about it at all.

Grabbing a cup of coffee each day was sort of like breathing for me—I just did it. Stopping by my favorite place and picking up a piping hot java was a daily treat. Now, I save a couple of bucks by going about half as often. When dining, the appetizer may go away—or the dessert (which is just as well)—just to save on the bill. It’s unfortunate that a couple of waitresses I have spoken with say the crunch has shown up in their tips. And I don’t mean fewer dollars because the bill is lower. Instead, fewer dollars because people who used to tip 15% are now doing 10%---or lower. That is just unfair to others who are having the same struggles. We need to keep that in mind!

In our quest to pinch pennies, I think that it’s important to strike a balance between the pain that we can easily withstand, the pain that hurts a little—and those things that really make us happy. So much of the belt-tightening can be done without any perceptible strain on our lifestyle. The next level will cause a little pain, but it is a reminder that we need to sustain a little short-term pain in order to avoid the long-term variety. I think that we still need to celebrate a significant life event with a dinner out. Gifts to loved ones are important, too. We still need to LIVE-and we still need to keep things in perspective.

I’m sure that things looked bleak during the Great Depression—and maybe back then, the view was that we would NEVER recover. Well, we did. We need to realize that while the bottom this time around has not likely been reached yet, it WILL come—and then, too, the REBOUND.

Everything is cyclical…and this too shall pass!

Tighten your belt—don’t SELL it on eBay!