Too Frugal

[Deleted]

Sometimes people that are too cheap get on my nerves.

Examples:

Someone at work refuses to use pens purchased by the company. Instead he will take "free" ones from the bank, acting proud because he is saving the company money (by bragging about it). Sorry . . . . pens don't cost that much.

Someone else at work won't use the page-marker post-its. Instead she will take a small post-it and cut it. Same person won't use fun colored post-its. Wants the plain cheap yellow ones. They cost the same when there is a sale!!

Friend is having a home sales party. She is going nuts to get the most free things she can. Greedy?!

Sisters want all of my hand-me-downs. They question why I am getting rid of things. Why do I have to explain?

I am not a big spender, but some people need to relax and enjoy life a little instead of being worried about pinching every penny.

Are you one of the irritating penny-pinchers? Or are you irritated by them?

[busymom]

I used to do the purchasing of office supplies at a company I worked for. Tell Mr. Frugal there are better ways to save the company money.

BTW, I guess it hasn't occurred to him that it's costing the bank every time he takes one of their pens.

Tell your sisters that your hand-me-downs went into the garbage, due to wear & tear. 

[toomuchreality]

Apr 13, 2014 8:12:40 GMT -5 @bluester said:

Sometimes people that are too cheap get on my nerves.

Examples:

Someone at work refuses to use pens purchased by the company. Instead he will take "free" ones from the bank, acting proud because he is saving the company money (by bragging about it). Sorry . . . . pens don't cost that much.

Someone else at work won't use the page-marker post-its. Instead she will take a small post-it and cut it. Same person won't use fun colored post-its. Wants the plain cheap yellow ones. They cost the same when there is a sale!!

Friend is having a home sales party. She is going nuts to get the most free things she can. Greedy?!

Sisters want all of my hand-me-downs. They question why I am getting rid of things. Why do I have to explain?

I am not a big spender, but some people need to relax and enjoy life a little instead of being worried about pinching every penny.

Are you one of the irritating penny-pinchers? Or are you irritated by them?

When people take the free pens, I always wonder if they think about the cost, to the person/establishment from which they took it. (You notice that the guy doesn't buy a pen and bring/use it at work. )

How much company time is spent cutting up post-its. Enough to cover the cost of using the pre-cut ones?  I love colored things... Things that aren't BORING.

Why not get all you can, for hosting a home sales party? As long as you aren't imposing on others, in order to do so, that is. I figure the sales people don't have to pay to rent or lease a building, plus they get contacts/sales.

I love giving things I don't want or need any more, away. Usually I offer the reason for giving it, when I ask if they want it. Generally I say something generic, like "I don't want/use/need this any more", or I have so much stuff". If/when people ask the reason why, I repeat the same thing to them. Most of the time, I think they just want to be reassured, it's okay to take it, or to verify there isn't a problem with the item.
I learned in therapy, you don't HAVE to give a reason. It's up to you, if you give one or not. Of course it's up to the other person how they respond to your information- or lack there of.

I'd say I fall somewhere in the middle. Definitely not a penny pincher, unless I have to be, to make it until pay day.

Personally, I hate people that expect you to do, or give them things, even more.

[Deleted]

Another coworker of mine will go to the Dollar Store on company time to get cheap things for the office (coffee filters, paper plates, etc.). I cannot get it through her head that is costs the company money when she is there. She thinks she is doing a big favor. Ugh! 

[Shooby]

I think frugal is about being wise with your money so that your money works for you in ways that truly enhance your life. Whereas "cheap" is more about being stingy, ungrateful, or caring.    Although sometimes the two intersect and we label one as the other when that may or may not be the case.

    Case in point, we know a couple that we see a lot and we will sometimes go out to eat. They don't "believe" in tipping and often will not tip or leave a very low tip. I would label that as "cheap" . I mean, they can do whatever they want, but they are choosing to not fairly compensate someone who is working hard, in my opinion.

On the other hand, buying things used or not spending your money the way other people might in terms of other things may be frugal. I do think we need to be careful on how we label people.
But, yes, the "look at me take advantage of someone and get something for free" is annoying.

[lazysundays]

I fall on the less frugal side. The thing I am super frugal on is refusing to pay full price for kid clothes. I bought eBay hand me downs when they were younger now, but now that they are older buying hand me downs means looking ragged. Now I am constantly looking for clearance or super sale deals. Even Xmas clothes for niece and nephew had to be great sale items.
Otherwise, always buy brand names for food and household items when they are on sale. I buy everything from one store so don't care if it's the lowest price around.

[Deleted]

Ok, I confess!  I cut the post-its up.  I also take any handouts that I made too many of (we are transitioning to Ipads so you can never tell exactly how many to make) and cut them up.  I take my laser toner cartridges out several times near the end and shake them before reinserting them.  I get free copy paper all the time from Staples rebates programs.  I don't "steal" pens (because that's what the guy is doing), but I do pick them off the floor in the hall.

You consider the office worker cheap because the "business" pays for the office supplies.  We receive a set amount to buy our own.  What I save on the post-its or the toner pays for something else.  Money is finite . . . not just for schools but for any business. 

So I don't see what these guys are doing as being cheap to the point of being irritating.  I'd be irritated if they talked about it much, though. "I didn't have to spend any money on clothes this season because I just wore Bluester's hand-me-downs.  She sure does throw away some really good stuff"  implies you waste too much.  That would irritate me.

By the way, I like the cheap yellow post-its, too, but not because they are cheap.  Yellow is the ultimate background for being able to see what is written on something.  Try to read something written in blue ink on a neon blue post-it.  It doesn't work so well. 

[lazysundays]

Susana- I think that's exactly what makes them annoying. Whether too cheap or spending stupidly, they are just annoying bc they talk about it too much, just like that coworker that talks about nothing but her kids is annoying. Stop bragging about stuff. I'm tired of listening to you.

[Sharon]

I have a co-workers who was gripping about the cost of buying their son a suit.  He is in his 3rd year of college and is on track to graduate next year.  The suit was purchased for an upcoming interview for an internship position.  Co-worker thought that was a waste of money and that son could wear his old suit since he never wears it.  Come to find out this suit is over 10 years old.  I also know that son is at least 2" taller than Dad.

It isn't that they couldn't afford it.  Dad could see no reason to spend that money when he had this old suit hanging in his closet.  

[sunshinegal1981]

Agreed... some people take frugality to new and absurd depths of pound-foolishness.

However, many people want to lessen their carbon footprint; their frugality is largely driven by a desire to decrease their impact on the environment.  I'm not the most tree-huggy person out there, but I get this. (Why are you tossing perfectly good XYZ into the landfill when Nancy down the street would be perfectly happy to get some use out of it?)

I'm trying to think of examples from my own life. Hmmmm. Well, DH and I almost never buy things like dustcloths or cleaning rags. We just cut up old t-shirts that would've been thrown out anyway. I had a sweatshirt that finally bit the dust a few weeks ago (holes, perma-stains, and it lost it's stretch completely), so I cut it up into squares that I now use as makeup removal cloths. I'm sure someone who sees the box of sweatshirt squares in my bathroom would think I'm loony, but I figure: why toss the sweatshirt and then go spend $3.99 on makeup removal pads?  *shrug*. It's not enough savings to change my life, but I didn't go out of my way, either.

[Otto the Orange]

how come they haven't started re-washing baggies yet? They are obviously NOT frugal enough......

[sunshinegal1981]

My husband re-washes ziplock baggies, but I find it too annoying when something greasy has been in them, so I toss them out behind his back.    

We do reuse yogurt containers though. They're perfect for freezing meals in! 

[Nazgul Girl]

  The truly frugal don't actually buy zip-lock bags.   They wash out carrot bags and reuse those, using twist ties from bread bags to close them.   ( They also use bread bags, of course. )   Don't you people know anything ?   Geeze.

[NancysSummerSip]

Hey, no picking on us baggie-washers! I don't bother with the greasy ones, or the ones that have contained any raw animal protein. The point of washing and reusing those is more to keep them out of landfills; saving money is actually secondary.

I always like Donna Freedman's philosophy (she is an original MSN board member, and does post on Smart Spending every so often, but also does her own thing on her Surviving and Thriving blog). She says, "Save where you can so you can spend where you want."

I have no problem with frugal, so long as it has an end purpose. Just being a cheapskate to prove you can has no value. I'll do what I can to save, with the intention of using that saved money for something else.

[Shooby]

There is a time/benefit/cost factor. How much time to wash baggies, have them sitting out to dry, etc vs just tossing and buy new? I don't mind doing some frugal things if it makes sense in terms of time, effort and cost. If not, then I dont'. There are things I don't want to be frugal about. I dont' want to change the oil in my car or do certain tasks. I could learn but I simply do not want too. I don't want to can vegetables. I dont' even want to grow a veggie garden. Gardening is not my thing. I have an apple tree but I am not going to peel a 100 tiny green apples to make applesauce when I can buy a jar for $2.

[Nazgul Girl]

  I feel that the possibility of bacteria lingering in used baggies, even if washed,  is of greater concern to me than just buying a box of new ones every so often at the dollar store.  On the other hand, we don't go through too many baggies.  

[Deleted]

Lol.  We have gone from cutting up post-its to washing baggies. 

I wash baggies, by the way, but it depends on what was in it.  I put baggies in my freezer where I have individually wrapped in Saran wrap or whatever certain items like chicken breast.  I double wrap them in the plastic wrap.  Then I put them in a freezer bag.

I wash the freezer bag out when it is empty and start again.

I'm not only still alive, but I haven't gotten sick yet from this process.  So I'll just keep on keeping on. 

[NoNamePerson]

Mr. Pen is probably getting pens from the bank to cover up the fact that he is stealing company pens and taking them home. I know, ever the jaded one here            

[weltschmerz]

Apr 13, 2014 10:55:01 GMT -5 sunshinegal1981 said:

Agreed... some people take frugality to new and absurd depths of pound-foolishness.

However, many people want to lessen their carbon footprint; their frugality is largely driven by a desire to decrease their impact on the environment.  I'm not the most tree-huggy person out there, but I get this. (Why are you tossing perfectly good XYZ into the landfill when Nancy down the street would be perfectly happy to get some use out of it?)

I'm trying to think of examples from my own life. Hmmmm. Well, DH and I almost never buy things like dustcloths or cleaning rags. We just cut up old t-shirts that would've been thrown out anyway. I had a sweatshirt that finally bit the dust a few weeks ago (holes, perma-stains, and it lost it's stretch completely), so I cut it up into squares that I now use as makeup removal cloths. I'm sure someone who sees the box of sweatshirt squares in my bathroom would think I'm loony, but I figure: why toss the sweatshirt and then go spend $3.99 on makeup removal pads?  *shrug*. It's not enough savings to change my life, but I didn't go out of my way, either.

That would be me. It has nothing to do with being frugal, and everything to do with sustainability and lessening my carbon footprint.
Reduce
Reuse
Recycle

[ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ]

so I cut it up into squares that I now use as makeup removal cloths. I'm sure someone who sees the box of sweatshirt squares in my bathroom would think I'm loony, but I figure: why toss the sweatshirt and then go spend $3.99 on makeup removal pads? *shrug*. It's not enough savings to change my life, but I didn't go out of my way, either.

The added bonus is those squares are washable/re-usable.

I chopped up a pair of soft fleece sweatpants that had suffered a few spark burns from sitting near the bonfire outside a couple of summers ago.

I cut them up into squares (6-8"), hemmed them to prevent fraying/wearing at the edges, and use them as dusting cloths - they're soft, and won't scratch furniture, counters, or glass, didn't cost me anything, and I can launder/re-use them for cleaning/dusting/polishing/oiling.

[moneymaven]

I use old holey socks for cleaning. I wash them and as I see holes, I place them in my cleaning basket, use them to clean whatever then throw them out. The only cleaning clothes I buy are for the constant kitchen wipe down throughout the day.

[moneymaven]

As for the wash and reuse baggy people, have you ever heard of Tupperware?

[ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ]

I turn baggies inside-out, then wash/sanitize the interior - and let them air-dry. then I flip them back to their original shape. I don't necessarily have to use them to store "food". I can store crafting supplies, use them to hold thread bobbins, Q-Tips, bandages, little packets for emergency kits, etc. I use the sandwich sized, as well as the larger sized for storing things.

Waste not, want not, as the saying goes. There's thousands of uses for the bags - even if they've been previously used for food. As long as they're not "disgusting", and only held a sandwich or something similar, they can be cleaned & recycled for other use that doesn't include re-use with consumables.

[Deleted]

Apr 13, 2014 22:20:23 GMT -5 moneymaven said:

As for the wash and reuse baggy people, have you ever heard of Tupperware?

Let's see . . . $10 for a piece of plastic with a lid or 10 cents for a baggy.

I'll get back to you on that one.

[973beachbum]

The way people react to washing a ziplock bag confuses me.  While I won't wash a ziplock that had raw meat in it, I can't see how washing it out after it did, is any different that having raw meat on a cutting board or dish and then washing it out.

Do the people who think it is so unsanitary to wash out a ziplock throw out all their dishes after they put raw meat on them?

[resolution]

You guys are making me feel bad that my employer paid to ship a box of pens to my house for me.

My MIL washes baggies and has a little clothes line above the sink to hang them to dry. She keeps veggies from the garden in them.  When we visit I always wash them.

[midjd]

There is a lunch place nearby where you can get a TON of spaghetti and marinara sauce (plus breadstick!) for $4 and change. And it comes in a handy round dishwasher-safe container. Between that and a 20-piece set of glass Pyrex we got for Christmas a while back, I haven't had to pay for storage containers for years.

The only time we use baggies is when thawing out a dead mouse to feed our snake. Not sure we want to reuse those, even after washing them.

[Peace77]

Apr 14, 2014 8:47:07 GMT -5 midjd said:

There is a lunch place nearby where you can get a TON of spaghetti and marinara sauce (plus breadstick!) for $4 and change. And it comes in a handy round dishwasher-safe container. Between that and a 20-piece set of glass Pyrex we got for Christmas a while back, I haven't had to pay for storage containers for years.

The only time we use baggies is when thawing out a dead mouse to feed our snake. Not sure we want to reuse those, even after washing them.

No, I wouldn't want to re-use the baggie that had the dead mouse in it either.   Yuck!

[alabamagal]

I once saw someone suggest that you charge your cell phone at work to save money on electricity. That will maybe save you $0.12 a year! 

When DH has a business, he had one really obnoxious customer who rode a scooter and would plug into his electrical outlet while she was in the store. He got so mad at her (really more due to her personality) that he hired an electrician for ~$100 to put a switch inside so he could cut the power to the switch.  I looked up online and it costs ~$0.20 for a full battery charge, so he actually lost money on the deal.

[donnafreedman]

Let's see . . . $10 for a piece of plastic with a lid or 10 cents for a baggy.
I'll get back to you on that one.

I don't know how much Tupperware costs because I've hardly ever bought any. Inherited some from mom and sister, got a couple pieces free at yard sales.
However....It's like the "carbon footprint" people said. I'd rather use the same container over and over (including carrying sandwiches for lunch) than use and toss multiple bags.
However, I am definitely in the "cheap vs. frugal" camp. Cheapness affects quality of life -- yours and/or someone else's. Frugality enhances it. 
And what some people think of as "money-saving" behavior really isn't, either in the short or long term:
donnafreedman.com/2013/03/04/beware-false-economies/