Do you do weird things to save money that you know you couldn't get away with if you were not single?  I am only a part time singleton, since my son is at his dads for visitation sometimes and my SO is stationed in another state right now.  I find myself doing totally obserd things to save a buck. I find myself skipping meals to save money, like breakfast on weekdays and sometimes dinner if I'm super lazy. Or, I'll find the cheapest most nutritionally devoid food for a meal, like, top ramen at $5 a case and eat that for a week straight.  I also don't turn on any lights in the house when I'm alone, I'll light a candle to read by if its dark or sit in the dark and listen to a audiobook on my ipod.  I also found that my fridge and freezer in my kitchen were so empty that I put the frozen stuff in the big freezer decided I don't need to buy new parishables and unplugged the whole unit. Sure, I miss milk and butter...but I'm saving on electicity!  Nothing except the deep freeze is plugged in at my house at the moment.  most of the stuff is on power strips anyways, but everything is unplugged so I'm not drawing energy to support electric vampirism.  Am I weird, or is this acceptable frugal behavior?

frugal_alaskan:

I find myself skipping meals to save money, like breakfast on weekdays and sometimes dinner if I'm super lazy

I do this too sometimes... so not alone there.

frugal_alaskan:

I also found that my fridge and freezer in my kitchen were so empty that I put the frozen stuff in the big freezer decided I don't need to buy new parishables and unplugged the whole unit. Sure, I miss milk and butter...but I'm saving on electicity!  Nothing except the deep freeze is plugged in at my house at the moment. 

I remember reading, I think in the Tightwad Gazette, of a person that did that too so, I think that is good. I personally couldn't do that but if you can, go for it!

frugal_alaskan:

Am I weird, or is this acceptable frugal behavior?

Who's to say whats acceptable or not?

I do some things that may seem strange to others, but they work for me. I wash dishes once a day and sometimes not that often, to save on water and dish soap. I have sat in the dark, too. With a couple of candles I can read or knit. I have some kerosene lamps, so when I want to do it up right, I light them.  I do things like decide to never buy toothpaste. I use free samples until they're gone (I can get a lot of brushings from a tiny sample tube), then I use baking soda until I can get another freebie. I limit how many times a year I can buy shampoo, and make do until then. Just some challenges that make it a little more fun for me to save money that I couldn't get away with if someone else was here. 

I have a kerosene lamp too, I should actually use it sometime.  Although, I'm afraid I'll burn my house down! 

I also minimize the number of times I do dishes so I don't have to pay to heat so much water.  If I'm alone I'll just cold rinse the dishes right after I use them and wipe them off really well.  If my son's around and I actually have to cook meals I do dishes once every two days.  We eat things like sandwiches off of napkins and soup straight out of the pot so as not to use so many dishes.  Thats not only because I'm frugal with hot water and dish soap but because I'd rather use my time doing something fun than doing the dishes, especially when my son is around.   

I use baking soda in conjunction with my tooth paste instead of paying more for fancy whitening toothpaste.  My teeth are very white *grins* thats an old trick my grandma taught me when I was in high school and begging for a trip to the dentist to have my teeth bleached.  I'm almost thrity and I've never had my teeth bleached and people always compliment me on how white they are. 

Pat:

Who's to say whats acceptable or not?

When you are a parent there are lots of people who tell you what is acceptable or not.  In the winter when my son is not around I keep the hosue just warm enough so the pipes don't freeze and wear extra clothes.  If I did that when he was here I'd probably be hauled off and he'd be taken away from me.  When he's around in the winter our house is downright muggy. 

Our very own government has agencies set up to try and tell us what is acceptable or not, agencies like the department of children's services, which lately and depending on the case worker will take your kids away from you if you don't dress them in brand new name brand clothing and feed them pre-packaged, nutritionally void name brand foods.  As a children's advocate I once heard a case worker tell a mom that store bought bread is better then home made bread because you can read the nutrition information on the store bought bread and on the homemade bread you don't know what a serving size is.  Ya, that actually came out of a case workers mouth. 

so, there are plenty of people out there to tell us what is acceptable or not.  And if you are poor and under their radar you are probably 100 times more likely to be told your behavior is unacceptable, even if its not. 

frugal_alaskan:

so, there are plenty of people out there to tell us what is acceptable or not.  And if you are poor and under their radar you are probably 100 times more likely to be told your behavior is unacceptable, even if its not. 

Yes, you're right. I was thinking only in terms of what's socially acceptable by our peers. The welfare system, along with other government meddling into our affairs is a different thing to deal with.  

Lol, well, my peers think I'm freakin nuts!  But none of them have managed ot get out from under their credit card debt long enough to buy a house and save money because they are too busy eating sushi and drinking sake while wearing Abercrombie and carrying Prada bags...

In another ten years I'll be buying a second home and have this one as an income property and they can rent from me..then I'll eat sushi and carry a second hand "vintage" prada bag...lmao!

Sounds like a plan! LOL

Please, please be careful about skipping meals, eating nutrionally devoid foods for periods of time, and going without staples such as milk.  Even young, healthy people can "frugal" themselves into a state of malnutrition and ill health.  I know, because I did it.  I ended up with nutritional deficiencies and pneumonia.  I was in the hospital for 5 days.  Believe me, the medical bills associated with this were anything but frugal.

 I am all for saving money, but not if it is going to cost you more in the long run.  This includes, not burning down the house because you drifted off while a candle was burning, which is what happened to some neighbors of mine during a power outage.

 Be frugal, but please be healthy and safe!

 AquaMom

I guess after reading how frugal you guys can be, maybe I don't quite fit the category.  I made up my mind after my divorce 18 years ago that I could live well, live below my means, save money for retirement and not have to deprive myself, and not having kids has made that easier, of course.  I also decided I'd never marry again, have resisted it several times over the years and finally have peace of mind about it.   I don't ever again want to tie up my finances with anybody, thanks anyway.   I keep the fridge stocked and wouldn't dream of unplugging it unless it was really an absolute necessity and so far, it hasn't been.  I can understand how medical bills could cause problems with finances but knock wood, I'm okay that way.    I routinely cook a variety of things from soup to nuts as though I had a family to feed because I enjoy cooking anyway, and little, if anything, goes to waste.  And, by God, if I want butter and the expensive bread I like, I sure go ahead and buy it.   I use the crockpot often and don't mind leftovers in the least.  I do get lazy and don't cook everyday and might hit a Taco Bell once in a great while but that's about the extent of my eating out.   I work from my home in the evenings so of course don't keep lights or TV on in the front of the house when not using them.  Maybe it's MY behavior that's weird as a single, ha-ha.  I don't have a car anymore, which all my friends and family think is totally weird, how's that?  I don't spend much of anything on entertainment, I'm a real tightwad there, and I haven't bought anything new furniture-wise or housewears for years.  I think it's what makes you feel okay about yourself.  I don't want anybody feeling sorry for me, maybe that's what my motivation is.  I think single or no, you need to make your house/condo/mobile home your HOME.  You're worth it.  Just my 2 cents. 

cindyoh:

I guess after reading how frugal you guys can be, maybe I don't quite fit the category. 

But you do fit the category... you don't own a car? How frugal is that??

I buy butter, too. As a matter of fact, I make butter from whole, raw, organic milk that I pay a good price for. Being frugal means saving in areas that aren't important so we can spend in areas that are. That's not deprivation, that's selective spending - in other words, making your money do what you want it to.