frugal doesn´t mean stingy!

@marguicha (214294)
Chile
April 26, 2009 5:56pm CST
Many people I know think that is they recycle or save they are showing that they are stingy. They will laugh at doing a makeup on leftovers to get a new dish, they will say that putting off a light when leaving the room saves so little it´s not worth it. I have proven to some of them that they are wrong by simply comparing electricity bills. What do you think? Do you think it´s worth to save on little things? Share
9 people like this
24 responses
• Canada
26 Apr 09
Hi there! Of course my friend saving money, and whatching your elctric bill( the enviroment.....) is worth it! I don't care who you are- whether you make a great deal of money, or are just scapping by or even if you are retired- you work hard for your money. Most people I know(us included) have to wise and frugal not only with money but our time- after all that money we earned cost us time away from home, family and loved ones.... Be well and happy;} Charlene
@marguicha (214294)
• Chile
29 Apr 09
I hate throwing things away, be it light in a room where there´s no one or a leftover food.
@schulzie (4061)
• United States
27 Apr 09
Yes, it is definitely worth it to be frugal and save money. When I save money on one thing then I have enough to buy something else that I would have not been able to afford to buy otherwise. I clip coupons and use them for items that I regularly buy. I won't use a coupon if the item is not something I use, but if it is something that I use then yes I always will use the coupon for it. Also, I do refunds when I see them and I shop the sales. I always look for online coupons when I shop online too like at Amazon.com, etc. It is not being stingy, but being thrifty. [i][b] Have a great day and happy myLotting!!![/b][/i]
@Wordplay (239)
• Canada
6 May 09
Frugal = Stingy? I'm shocked! Whatever happened to "waste not want not"? It sounds to me like these people are just trying to justify their own wasteful habits. It takes almost no effort to flick a light switch off. Remembering to do so is just a matter of habit. And as for dinner leftovers...well, what else do you do with them besides eat them? Throwing them out is such a terrible waste. I have been frugal long before frugality became cool. I have always lived on a limited income, and need to save cut corners in any way possible. All those little bits of savings do add up! But stingy? I beg to differ. If I have a few extra dollars to spare, I am happy to treat my friends to a coffee or a night out at the movies. And I always make sure my family has everything they need, and the occasional treat when we can afford it. That sure beats paying extra on my hydro bill! Frugality is a state of mind. It is about taking the extra effort to reduce waste, using only what you need and throwing away as little as possible. Once you start doing so, you benefit yourself as well as the environment. The feeling you get from doing so? Priceless.
@missybear (11391)
• United States
26 Apr 09
I try to save where ever I can. I turn everything of that doesn't need to be one, I buy the off brands at the grocery stores and I walk if I can to save bus fare. Every little bit helps now a days
@marguicha (214294)
• Chile
29 Apr 09
That´s the way to do it, missy
@Raven1 (577)
• Australia
28 Apr 09
I think it's wise to spend less money on consumer items wherever you can. If this means being frugal with silly things so that you'll always have enough money left over for the necessities in life - then how can that be stingy? I would personally prefer to have enough money to always provide a roof over my daughter's head that waste money on silly consumer items.
• India
6 May 09
Being frugal is not stingy. I completely agree. The way we are consuming resources at an alarming pace sometime in the future very soon we will run out of all the resources. So I will say being frugal is being prudent. It always helps if you have the habit of saving ..... whatever be it. You switch off electric appliances when you leave you home you help yourself and the world. You save a little on the energy bill and you along with it you save a little bit of the raw materials that was needed to produce the energy. Well it may seem very little if you see that you energy bill has reduced by $5 for the month but when the save amount is save by billions of people it will be worth $5 billion. Enough to bail out one of the small banks in Wall Street. ha ha ...
@KrauseHome (36449)
• United States
27 Apr 09
Well, there are often those who will never seem to agree with others when it comes to saving a little $$, and feel that that is not of their worries, and to let someone else do so. But then they are also the first to complain about everything as well. For me, there are times that being Frugal especially in todays Economy is something we all must do. Maybe you might not see the results right away but in the end it is truly worth it all for sure.
@ebsharer (5515)
• United States
27 Apr 09
I save on every thing I can. When I plan dinner I plan it for 2 meals - dinner that night and lunch the next. For the extra buck it is usually worth it. As for electricity bills - I use the energy effeciant bulbs and it helps tremendously! I saved $30 bucks the first month I used them. I was absoulty amazed! I reuse anything I can. I'd much rather use some thing twice then throw it away. In fact just last week I was at a store called Old Time Pottery and I bought a few glass items they wrapped it all in paper ... a lot of paper. So I put the very large pieces of paper on my daughters table and let her color all over them. She loved it and and I was happy to have the paper. Now I have a "master piece" on my wall. I turn the water off when I brush my teeth some thing I am still trying to teach my 33 year old husband to do. I turn off lights when I am not in the room and turn the ac up during the day when no one is home. When I have errans to run I do it all at once and try to stop at as little stores as possiable. It may not matter that you saved 3 bucks on an electric bill this month but when you add up all that you saved in a month becuase of cutting corners and buying cheaper or reusing it adds up to an awesome amount of savings!
@cher913 (25782)
• Canada
27 Apr 09
i think for some people it does. i have an aunt who was quite wealthy but grew up during the depression and she was very stingy about spending any sort of money. i think it is a learned behaviour and depends on the person.
@di1159 (1580)
• United States
27 Apr 09
These days saving is a must for most of us. Hopefully, it will become a habit we can pass down to our children and help them get a jump start on conservation. Every little bit helps!
@SomeCowgirl (32191)
• United States
27 Apr 09
Every little bit helps, it helps to save money and to save the environment. Those who don't do the little things are missing out on big savings, and a big rewarding feeling. That's really all I have to say about it. Maybe those friends you've proven the savings to will do the same, and save money too. Living lavishly can be done without using electricity, etc, or wasting money. Stingy to me is a good thing.
• Lubbock, Texas
27 Apr 09
A penny is the first step to a million dollars! If you save one penny here and two there eventually it adds up. When I first retired 2 years ago, I thought I'd cut my budget as far as I could cut it and was wondering how I was going to make ends meet. I've always been frugal when it comes to food, so very little ever got thrown out, but I've learned to be even more frugal in that area, I've unplugged all appliances that aren't constantly in use, turn my computer off and turn the power strip off at night, you know, just the little penny saving things, and each month I find that I'm saving more. Saving money isn't being stingy. Especially when the savings is in energy and filling up the local landfill. Saving energy and recycling things instead of throwing them away goes way beyond my bank account. It's a way to reduce my carbon footprint on the planet. One person's contribution there is like the penny you save on energy bills, they add up!
@deejean06 (1952)
• United States
27 Apr 09
Hi marguicha...I think you are completely correct - just because you are frugal does not mean you are stingy! Of course it's worth it to have savings on those little things - they add up and then you can use that savings to buy other things! Keep doing exactly what you are doing and never mind those people!
• China
27 Apr 09
Frugal doesn't mean stingy,saying that good! I also agree with your point of view,in real life,I do so,especially when you have a home of their own time,it's obviously necessary,from the little things in life,add up!
• India
27 Apr 09
Yes, its definitely worth every penny saved. No food is thrown in my house until and unless its rotten of course. Regarding raw fruits and veggies, even if one part has dried up or becoming bad, I would just chop off that part and use the rest. I would always switch off fans and lights if I am not in that room. Yes, of course if I am going to the kitchen time and again to stir a dish that’s cooking, I don’t repeatedly switch off the lights of the bed room or sitting room. Even my son’s old school copies of previous year…if they have pages, I would keep them for rough work. Since its my penny I am saving and not asking from anybody, I don’t really care if I am thought of as stingy
@silverglint (2000)
• Philippines
27 Apr 09
Small savings can add up to be a lot, just like small wastage can cost a person a lot. I take pride in knowing that I am recycling and saving whenever I can. Those people who are laughing have yet to experience hardships in life before they realize the value of being frugal. I try to put whatever amount I am able to save in a coin bank, and whenever I count the money that I am able to save, it has proven to be many times that saving little a day is a big amount of savings after a few months.
• Philippines
27 Apr 09
I don everything to lessen our family's expenses. Just like you, I am doing my best to cut down my electric cost by putting off the lights in our bedrooms when no one is inside, I don't iron our clothes which we use in the house, I use the aircon at night only and don't use much of our electrical appliances. With these, I have cut down some cost on my electricity.
@catdla1 (6005)
• United States
27 Apr 09
Absolutely it's worth saving on little things. Over time it does save substantially. And, in this house all leftovers are either incorporated into another meal, or my son likes it when I freeze them. When we get about 10 or 15 small frozen containers, we have a family 'smorgas board' night. When my son gets home from work and sees this he always says, "Oh good!!". I think it's his favorite meal night and effortless on my part.
@ada547612 (203)
• China
27 Apr 09
Not worth it, this is not the problem of electricity, I think every day should be eating fresh vegetables, this is conducive to health. Save leftovers, not only a waste of electricity, and is not conducive to health, what if there is disease, then the cost of medical treatment and electricity can not be compared. You say that?
• Philippines
27 Apr 09
Sad to say but it is true, we need to recycle food just to save money. Left over food is put inside the fridge and it is not bad to eat it again as long as it is not spoiled. In electricity, we do turn our ref off for some time and then turn it again. Even for two hours is good to save something out of nothing. You may not feel it, but for us we do. I may have been so wasteful before but since i moved here to where the less fortunate people are, i consider to save more and stretch our money. I may not have new dress every month or new shoes or bags like i used to do when i was single. But now i do think twice before buying and save penny because this is now the reality i am living, i hate it, but i can't do anything about it.