We're having to cut back -way, way back- but we're not homeless or hungry or lacking in anything really. We just have less than we're used to. Perspective is important.
Regarding cable: As we decided to drop the $20 a month cable package that gave us better access to world soccer games, we realized that we were able to keep some cable channels so we could better follow news, election coverage, and sports. Then we realized that we don't actually need cable for news and election coverage because we get BBC, Google News, and other alerts on our phones that keep us updated. We'll miss the sports on cable, but them's the breaks. We have decided to cut that cord completely, though right now we've just cut back to basic cable since they were going to charge us more for internet access alone than for this package. Isn't that nuts? Right now we're researching our internet options. This just shouldn't be so complicated.
Regarding utilities: We have a two-story townhouse with a single central unit for heating and cooling, which makes it hard to set the thermostat so that it's comfortable both upstairs and down. We're testing how warm we can keep the house so we save money but can still sleep, and we're using 72 as our night setting and 78 during the day. So far, so good. It's amazing how much difference a box fan makes.
Eating out: We're cutting back eating out to once a month, but that still means we're able to eat out once a month. Our July restaurant was the Route 64 Diner in Bolivar, TN. This month is my baptismal anniversary, and I'm still deciding where I want to go for that. It'll probably be one of the local pizza places we've been meaning to try.
The concept of frugality means we have enough so that cutting back is an option.
from The Atlantic:
Frugality is about appreciating simple pleasures and generally easing up in a society that encourages materialism and competitiveness.I guess in trying to cut back because we have to unless we want to live on borrowed money we're not really living frugally in the sense some people mean it.
...individuals’ frugality at the margins -one fewer latte here or there- matters less as the basic costs of living march ever higher. With that in mind, Ben Franklin comes off as a little naive when he wrote, “Beware of little expenses; A small leak will sink a great ship.” Small costs do add up, but they rarely amount to anything close to the big ones.
A lot also depends on the economic conditions people find themselves in. The U.S.’s median household income has been stagnant -even a recent uptick couldn’t bring the figure up to where it was back in 1999, after adjusting for inflation. And even moving up the earnings spectrum, families are feeling squeezed as they pour their time and money into housing and education -their best shot at providing their children with long-term financial security in an economy that can be cruel to the less-educated. In other words, pinching pennies is of limited value when there aren’t enough pennies to pinch in the first place.
Living a pared-down lifestyle necessarily means having a lifestyle to pare down.
U.S. News and World Report illustrates this when they say,
Being frugal actually allows consumers to spend money on what they truly value while saving on the things they don't.We're cutting back on things we want because we just don't have the money any more. There's a difference between that and getting rid of expenses so you can afford other things you'd rather have. We're cutting back to avoid debt. That article assumes you have the money but have decided to re-allocate it. That's not what's going on with us.
The Simple Dollar talks about frugality being motivated by choice or necessity:
sometimes frugality is a choice and sometimes it isn’t, but knowing how to do it well is helpful in both situations.TreeHugger agrees with The Simple Dollar:
All I can say is this: a lot of the best strategies I’ve used to help myself stay afloat and get ahead in life worked (in some form) whether I was dirt poor or doing well. The big difference was in the results – sometimes it was needed to keep us afloat; other times it was useful to help us get ahead.
The core skillset and mindset of getting the most bang for the buck for everything and knowing how to cut corners has been helpful whether or not we were struggling to survive until the next paycheck or we were trying to stretch a moderate income to cover a lot of bills or we were trying to overcome a big pile of debt on a decent income or we were leveraging ourselves toward complete financial independence and early income on a debt-free life with a solid income. The same strategies worked.
I’m not going to pretend that frugal tactics are a magical wand that fixes all financial problems in individual lives or in society. It’s not.
Instead, think of frugality as a basic tool. It’s a claw hammer or a flat screwdriver. It’s something that can be used in a lot of different situations. Sure, some people will have much better tools for some jobs, but the reality is that frugality is an effective tool in a lot of situations. Like a flat-head screwdriver can open a bucket of paint or repair a bike or install a thermostat, frugality can step up whether you’re struggling to afford a basic grocery list or you’re just trying to figure out how to take the edge off of your $200,000 a year lifestyle.
In both cases, the principle is the same.
regardless of where you're at financially, frugal strategies always have a place.The reason for the frugality isn't as important as the commitment to it. I'm grateful I've never been used to fine dining, designer clothes, and expensive vacations. I'm grateful that, though I'm missing some things, I'm enjoying what I have. I'm grateful we are debt free and have simple tastes. I can laugh at my first world problems, knowing how much worse off I could be. We have enough so that cutting back solves our financial issue without causing actual deprivation, and that's a blessing.
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So any people feel they need it all. I guess it's a matter of what you prioritize. I do without many things to save money for travel which I love. There's libraries for books so reading doesn't have to be given up. Eating out is a tough one I agree. And I got rid of my land line last year but now I am paying just as much just for internet as I did for internet and phone. I'm with you. There has to be a better option. It's tough but you know many people have cut back for various reasons so you are not alone! Hugs-Erika
ReplyDeletePriorities, yes! That's key. I do wish these companies would be reasonable in their internet plans. It's helpful knowing how many people are in the same boat as I am and have the same goals :)
DeleteBrilliant post. I think your long term goal of not being in debt is golden. We live in an age of more of anything/everything is better & we aren't happier, that is evident in the daily news. I think the ultimate sign of a society gone off the rails is the the need to have the latest jeans, which we are told & believe is fashion, are ripped & at the price of $150/pr! My Gran always told us "want isn't need" & I know this is a message that sunk in. I question most purchases as do I need or do I want? TreeHugger makes a good observation about frugal strategies, my Gran would approve (col).
ReplyDeleteDebt's a killer. Interest just keeps building, and you end up paying so much more for whatever it was you bought. "Want isn't need" is a mantra for the ages. I mean, I _want_ a lot of things lol but doing without them isn't a sacrifice.
DeleteWe are now moving into retirment so re-evaluating necessary and nicety will be important. Staying out of debt is a very good thing.
ReplyDeleteNew stages of life require new thinking. Having things paid for _before_ retirement will make more available _during_ retirement. At least that's our hope.
DeleteI've been frugal all my life. I was raised by grandparents who grew up in the depression. Times were hard and I learned frugality from them. They treated modern day like it was still the depression, so that's how I was raised. My grandmother made all my clothes when I was young. Today that would be nearly impossible, especially if you have seen the cost of fabric today. Let alone patterns and thread. Buttons are out of sight, too.
ReplyDeleteI still have clothes I got in high school. I don't wear them often, but I still do on occasion. I used to be a shoes horse, now I own two pair of Rebok, one black, one white. I don't own a cell phone (I KNOW people think I'm crazy, but I don't need one). My landline and internet are on the same bill. The taxes on the two are killers.
I am a mixed media artist and allow myself $60.00/year for supplies. This year, I've only spent about $20.00 for art supplies, and most of it was on a birthday gift for my friend Kathy.
On 9/11 (2001), I went to the bank to refinance my home. While there, the bank shut down their computers for several days. But the thing that got me was when the loan officer asked me what my monthly debt was and I told him, gas, electricity, etc and he said those were utilities and didn't count as debt. I hated to tell him, they were the biggest debt I had. Thankfully, with new and better financing, I was able to pay my house off in 2005 and I've been debt free (albeit not utility debt free) since. I really LOVED your post and how others have responded to the same problem you face. Being DEBT free is not an option if you pay utilities, but being debt free of financed debt should be the only way to live, in my humble opinion.
My parents grew up during the Depression, and Mother made almost all my clothes when I was young. We lived with "waste not, want not". Mother used to say she didn't drink coffee with sugar because sugar was rationed when she started drinking coffee. The stories they told were a picture of how hard life could be.
DeleteI must say I don't define utility payments as debts. They are payments for services or products. A debt is an amount owed that you're making payments on, not a monthly payment billed for a service. In that same way groceries aren't a debt just because it's a regularly occurring expense. Also in that same way, property taxes aren't a debt but the price of living in a certain place. When that expense comes due we pay it; but that's not debt, that's an expense. Expenses and debt are entirely different things.
We never eat out-that's healthier for sure and saves lots of money.
ReplyDeleteour internet and tv is satelite only options we have living so rural-and it is very expensive-no choice though, no wifi here so no streaming, no smart phones etc. I got a really good price on the directv for about 6 months-at the end of that period I will be cutting that back to the very basics and two movie channels for hubs, and a package with hallmark channels for me.
we splurge a little on the tv just because we are old now ha ha never go out to eat etc. the library here is not that great so I do splurge and buy books for my vogyage kindle-I buy them online and the 3G puts them on my kindle.
I used to can freeze dry just about all of our food-I don't that now-mostly do to the poor gardening situation here-and we have really cut back on eating now too I will be 70 next years and hubs is mud 70s now so we don't need as much food any more.
I grew up being frugal the way I was taught too-there are always ways we can cut back to buy things we want we have been debt free from and kind of loans for some time now-I use the credit cards to get cash back but they are always paid in full every month-only way to have piece of mind for us
good post Kathy
We're in the city, so we get decent TV reception of local channels with an antenna. Cable has been fun, but I won't miss it until another Olympics comes. I do miss eating out at new places, but not much else. Patio gardening has never given me enough of anything to make a difference on our grocery bill. We also use a credit card that we pay off monthly. That's so much easier than checks or cash, and we just try to keep an eye on what we spend. I find I don't eat as much now myself, probably because I'm getting older. I agree there are always painless ways to cut back.
DeleteWhen funds are limited it makes you really think about what you truly need and prioritize what you want. You appreciate things more, I think. Oh, and there are so many things you can do for very little or with what you already have. Wonderful post! :)
ReplyDeletePrioritizing, yes, exactly. So many things are things I'd like to do but not at all necessary. There's so much I have and have access to as it is. I can appreciate it more :)
DeleteIt's a matter of priorities, to live the life I want too I need to be frugal too 😁. It was difficult to adjust at first as I was use to buying what I wanted when I wanted it but with time it becomes routine and part of your mindset so it's easier. We have a budget for eating out and café visits each month and stick to it, we plan menus for food shopping, we closely manage and plan our spending and expenses, we go to free events and still have loads of fun and happiness in our lives 😁. It sounds like you are doing a great job too! Have a great day! J 😊 x
ReplyDeleteYour way is exactly our goal, to plan and manage and take advantage of free opportunities. I seem to have a lot of company on my journey :)
DeleteAn interesting post. We had to cut back for a bit earlier this year when Mr Craftytrog was made redundant. It wasn't too difficult as we don't eat out very much and we prefer a fairly simple life anyway. Fortunately he found another job within a couple of months, so all good now.
ReplyDeleteWe prefer a simple life, too, and that has made a lot of this easier. The eating out cutback has been the hardest thing, but I've been more intentional about fixing food here at home.
Delete