Cheapskate stories

[Hillia]

I don't reuse ziplocks if they've had raw meat in them.  Sandwiches, vegetables, cookies, chips, sure, but I don't trust that I can get them clean enough to be safe after storing raw meat.  Maybe running them through the dishwasher would help, but unlike a plastic food container, a bag has little corners and crevices that I worry won't get clean enough.

[Thipu1]

If a ziplock bag has a residue in it we just dump it.  Ones that contained dry food we will wash, turn inside out and reuse.

Often, we use the bags for non-food items. When we travel, I like to package a set of earrings and a necklace together in one of these bags.  Getting ready for an event is so much easier when each set is in it's own bag in a larger jewelry bag. 

 

[Shea]

My mom reuses ziplock bags all the time. They are really not meant to be washed, and so often have a film of leftover food clinging to the inside.

I do that too, and (no disrespect to your mother) if they have bits of food still inside she's just not washing them thoroughly enough. I give them a good wash inside and out with dish soap, then hang them out to air dry. They're clean and can be used a couple dozen times before they tear and have to be thrown away. I do it less to be frugal (although that's a plus) and more in an effort to be green.

My mom does clean hers thoroughly and there are no bits of food, but there is a film that seems to never go away. So if she was marinading something in a chipotle marinade, for example, there would be a red, greasy film that smells vaguely of chipotle that no amount of washing can remove.

Those types of bags I won't reuse; anthying that had any kind of sauce, or meat or anything that could possibly harbor germs, I toss. Others, say if i open a loaf of bread not in a bag, and put it in the ziploc, when its gone, I'll reuse that for anotehr round.

Oh yes, me too. Nothing that's gone bad, no meat, nothing oily. I mostly use mine to carry veggies and fruit to work for lunch, sometimes things like crackers or bread. So they're not hard to clean.

[Jocelyn]

I remember catching a neighbor who stole my newspapers way back in the day when I lived in an apartment bldg where you had to walk down a long hallway.  I suspected it was the guy living across me.  (A friend said I should have put out an old newspaper with a nasty note inside) but I decided to try to catch him in the act.  I got up really early and just waited at the door, looking out the peephole.  Sure enough, at about 5:45am I heard the carrier toss my Sunday paper on the floor in the hall.  Then I saw the guy across the hall very quietly come out, look to the left and right, and bend down.  I yanked my door open, grabbed my paper, and he turned all shades of red.    Just like your ex, OP, he was a cheapskate AND also a thief.

My parents had a neighborhood thief. They lived across the street from the house that was 2 doors down from my parents; my parents were good friends with that neighbor. The good neighbor started rolling up old papers and putting them in his yard after picking up the recently delivered paper. That only prompted the thief to come down the street to my parents' yard. One snowy Sunday morning, Dad got up to see footprints coming from and returning to, the thief's house, and a big dent where the paper had been thrown into our yard. It had snowed substantially after the delivery, and Dad called the cops, asking them to approach the house from the north. When the cops got there, the footprints were still unobstructed by traffic, and the cops went to the thief's house and found him reading the Sunday paper. He claimed he'd gone out and bought it...but the snow evidence showed he hadn't had a car out that day.
The next summer, some plants disappeared off my parents' porch. They called the cops again. The same officer responded (he was a guy I'd gone to high school with) and he just went down to the thief's house and told them to pony up. Oh, no, these were THEIR plants- they'd just happened to buy plants of the exact same kind as had been stolen, what a coincidence. The cop pointed out that it was an even greater coincidence that the plants happened to be in the same kinds of hand-thrown pots as had been stolen. Pots that had left marks on our porch documenting their unusual shapes and sizes. Pots that happened to have the name of the potter (my sister) and the date on their bottoms. Yes, they tried to claim that they had found a potter with the same last name, who just had happened to make pots the same size and shape 25 years ago, and they had just now found those pots for sale. And our pots and plants just happened to go missing the very weekend they bought theirs. What a coincidence.

[GreenEyedHawk]

^^ It certainly does strain credulity LOL

[Emmy]

The stories about people being cheap because they think the prices are too high reminds me of me. I wear lots of T-shirts because they're cheap, cheaper than nice shirts. I have money in the monthly budget that's supposed to go toward my clothes but I never spend it. When I do go clothes shopping I usually come home with nothing. $10 for a plain T-shirt? $40 for jeans? No thanks. I saw a pair of shorts online for $50 the other day, and I can't even fathom shopping at a place like Anthropologie, where a shirt can be close to $100.

 

I don't consider this to be cheap, but frugal. You aren't inconveniencing anyone or making anyone go without, or impacting anyone else because certain items cost more than you choose to pay for them. And unless you constantly badmouth people who are willing to pay that much for things, then you're fine.

I’m cheap about certain things as well; while I work in a store where a t-shirt can be $30 or more, pants over $100, and so on.  I get a nice discount, even on the sale stuff. And when I didn’t work there, I waited for sales as well. Certain things, yes, I will pay more for since I’m a firm believer in “you get what you pay for” regarding some things.  But others, nope, I go as cheap as I can.

My friend's DH however, I posted about him upthread. he wont get a haircut unless he has a coupon, and its only $10 to begin with. She also told me he wears his undies until they are literally falling apart, in spite of the fact he buys the cheapest he can.

I'm the same way.  I refuse to pay $$$$ for clothes.  I am a regular at thrift and consignment shops and have shopped on e-bay because I can get great stuff for a fraction of the cost and the thrill of the hunt is fun for me too.  I am also too cheap to pay full price for clothes for my daughters who are young and will grow out of them in a few months (although I do splurge on shoes because they can be hard to fit).  Soon after DD1 was born, I realized yard sales were a great place for kids toys and will buy nearly all of them there. 

[SheltieMom]

The stories about people being cheap because they think the prices are too high reminds me of me. I wear lots of T-shirts because they're cheap, cheaper than nice shirts. I have money in the monthly budget that's supposed to go toward my clothes but I never spend it. When I do go clothes shopping I usually come home with nothing. $10 for a plain T-shirt? $40 for jeans? No thanks. I saw a pair of shorts online for $50 the other day, and I can't even fathom shopping at a place like Anthropologie, where a shirt can be close to $100.

 

I don't consider this to be cheap, but frugal. You aren't inconveniencing anyone or making anyone go without, or impacting anyone else because certain items cost more than you choose to pay for them. And unless you constantly badmouth people who are willing to pay that much for things, then you're fine.

I’m cheap about certain things as well; while I work in a store where a t-shirt can be $30 or more, pants over $100, and so on.  I get a nice discount, even on the sale stuff. And when I didn’t work there, I waited for sales as well. Certain things, yes, I will pay more for since I’m a firm believer in “you get what you pay for” regarding some things.  But others, nope, I go as cheap as I can.

My friend's DH however, I posted about him upthread. he wont get a haircut unless he has a coupon, and its only $10 to begin with. She also told me he wears his undies until they are literally falling apart, in spite of the fact he buys the cheapest he can.

I'm the same way.  I refuse to pay $$$$ for clothes.  I am a regular at thrift and consignment shops and have shopped on e-bay because I can get great stuff for a fraction of the cost and the thrill of the hunt is fun for me too.  I am also too cheap to pay full price for clothes for my daughters who are young and will grow out of them in a few months (although I do splurge on shoes because they can be hard to fit).  Soon after DD1 was born, I realized yard sales were a great place for kids toys and will buy nearly all of them there.

I'm very much a bargain shopper for clothes, for myself, and my foster babies. (Although I've got way too much baby stuff-just ask DH!) My favorite place to shop for kids' stuff is Just Between Friends consignment sales. You might look and see if there's one in your area.
http://www.jbfsale.com/home.jsp

[nuit93]

The stories about people being cheap because they think the prices are too high reminds me of me. I wear lots of T-shirts because they're cheap, cheaper than nice shirts. I have money in the monthly budget that's supposed to go toward my clothes but I never spend it. When I do go clothes shopping I usually come home with nothing. $10 for a plain T-shirt? $40 for jeans? No thanks. I saw a pair of shorts online for $50 the other day, and I can't even fathom shopping at a place like Anthropologie, where a shirt can be close to $100.

 

I don't consider this to be cheap, but frugal. You aren't inconveniencing anyone or making anyone go without, or impacting anyone else because certain items cost more than you choose to pay for them. And unless you constantly badmouth people who are willing to pay that much for things, then you're fine.

I’m cheap about certain things as well; while I work in a store where a t-shirt can be $30 or more, pants over $100, and so on.  I get a nice discount, even on the sale stuff. And when I didn’t work there, I waited for sales as well. Certain things, yes, I will pay more for since I’m a firm believer in “you get what you pay for” regarding some things.  But others, nope, I go as cheap as I can.

My friend's DH however, I posted about him upthread. he wont get a haircut unless he has a coupon, and its only $10 to begin with. She also told me he wears his undies until they are literally falling apart, in spite of the fact he buys the cheapest he can.

I'm the same way.  I refuse to pay $$$$ for clothes.  I am a regular at thrift and consignment shops and have shopped on e-bay because I can get great stuff for a fraction of the cost and the thrill of the hunt is fun for me too.  I am also too cheap to pay full price for clothes for my daughters who are young and will grow out of them in a few months (although I do splurge on shoes because they can be hard to fit).  Soon after DD1 was born, I realized yard sales were a great place for kids toys and will buy nearly all of them there.

I don't mind paying full price/bigger bucks for union-made or locally-made/fair trade clothing.  I won't pay big bucks for something I know was made in the same factory or sweatshop as the cheaper labels.  Besides, I can get a lot of stuff wholesale through work

[snowflake]

There was once upon a time that I made a little more than $2000/mo in an expensive city.  I didn't require assistance but it ws tight.  My dad always used to rag on me.  "What can you possibly spend thosands of dollars a month on?"  You should save half of it.  My take home pay was 1600, my rent was 600.  (OK this was 15 years ago.)  He responded by telling me I only needed a couple hundred for food, utilities, and stuff like that.  Ironically, he was running up lots of cc debt at the time when he and my mom had over 6 figures in income.  I pointed this out and he told me that I didn't have a mortgage.  His mortgage was 5% of their income.

Yep, the "one way" cheapskatism.

[Elfmama]

The stories about people being cheap because they think the prices are too high reminds me of me. I wear lots of T-shirts because they're cheap, cheaper than nice shirts. I have money in the monthly budget that's supposed to go toward my clothes but I never spend it. When I do go clothes shopping I usually come home with nothing. $10 for a plain T-shirt? $40 for jeans? No thanks. I saw a pair of shorts online for $50 the other day, and I can't even fathom shopping at a place like Anthropologie, where a shirt can be close to $100.

 

I don't consider this to be cheap, but frugal. You aren't inconveniencing anyone or making anyone go without, or impacting anyone else because certain items cost more than you choose to pay for them. And unless you constantly badmouth people who are willing to pay that much for things, then you're fine.

I’m cheap about certain things as well; while I work in a store where a t-shirt can be $30 or more, pants over $100, and so on.  I get a nice discount, even on the sale stuff. And when I didn’t work there, I waited for sales as well. Certain things, yes, I will pay more for since I’m a firm believer in “you get what you pay for” regarding some things.  But others, nope, I go as cheap as I can.

My friend's DH however, I posted about him upthread. he wont get a haircut unless he has a coupon, and its only $10 to begin with. She also told me he wears his undies until they are literally falling apart, in spite of the fact he buys the cheapest he can.

I'm the same way.  I refuse to pay $$$$ for clothes.  I am a regular at thrift and consignment shops and have shopped on e-bay because I can get great stuff for a fraction of the cost and the thrill of the hunt is fun for me too.  I am also too cheap to pay full price for clothes for my daughters who are young and will grow out of them in a few months (although I do splurge on shoes because they can be hard to fit).  Soon after DD1 was born, I realized yard sales were a great place for kids toys and will buy nearly all of them there.

I don't mind paying full price/bigger bucks for union-made or locally-made/fair trade clothing.  I won't pay big bucks for something I know was made in the same factory or sweatshop as the cheaper labels.  Besides, I can get a lot of stuff wholesale through work

When DD1 went into high school, she wanted the same kind of designer jeans that some of the other kids had.  Jeans that cost $60, when my budget for new school clothes for two kids was $150.   She nagged and whined and was just generally so obnoxious that I finally snapped.  I went to the credit union and pulled out $150 in cash, handed her $75, and told her that this was all we could afford.  She could spend it however she wished.  Get the jeans, and no other new clothes, if that was what she wanted.

And you know what?  She looked at that money, more than she'd ever held in her hands before, and the state of her wardrobe, and stopped nagging about those jeans.     She asked to be taken to the three different thrift shops in the area, and got several new-to-her skirts, blouses, and sweaters.  And yes, even designer jeans. 

[CrazyDaffodilLady]

I took five nieces and nephews on a 2-day trip to a theme park.  I knew from experience that I'd be hounded with unending requests for snacks and souvenirs, so I gave each of the kids $20 per day and told them that I'd pay for regular meals, but they were expected to pay for optional items with the money.  Not one of them spent a dime of it.  They even chose to drink from water fountains rather than buy soft drinks.  They became major cheapskates when their own money was at stake.

[jedikaiti]

LOL... I was the opposite, I was a total cheapskate when I was spending someone else's money (albeit on a budget).

When I was a kid, one of the department stores had a special section set up for kids to do Christmas shopping. The parents could provide a list of who they had to buy for, and a total budget and payment method. A store clerk would take each child into the section, help them shop, and if there was a credit card for payment, run the receipt out for the parents signature.

I was given a budget of $50. I spent $26.

Of course, I was also the child who refused to spend any dollar denomination higher than $2. $2 and $1 and change I would spend. Anything higer was sacrosanct and stayed in the piggy bank until it went to the bank. No idea where I got that from.

[kherbert05]

I took five nieces and nephews on a 2-day trip to a theme park.  I knew from experience that I'd be hounded with unending requests for snacks and souvenirs, so I gave each of the kids $20 per day and told them that I'd pay for regular meals, but they were expected to pay for optional items with the money.  Not one of them spent a dime of it.  They even chose to drink from water fountains rather than buy soft drinks.  They became major cheapskates when their own money was at stake.

I do the same with my nieces and nephew. ON met me when she was 7 or so (Sister's stepdaughter) to be blunt she was used to Mom's family and Dad's family trying to out bid each other for her affection. After our first outing had a bunch of "get me this" followed by amazement at the word no (no tantrum just wow you said that and meant it.), I sat down with her and explained I was a poor teacher. I started giving her a budget. I paid admission, lunch, and in some cases bottled water (If the fountains were yuck). Then she had $10 - $20 spending money.

I more than once I've had the kids go look at the gift shop and come back and announce everything was overpriced. Then an adult standing nearby, dealing with "But I want it" whines pick their jaws up and ask how do you do that. Now I will often treat them to books (from a book store or amazon not the gift shop) or the panning for gold/crack open a geo things because it is about the experience not a piece of plastic junk that is going to beak before we get on 610.

[kherbert05]

LOL... I was the opposite, I was a total cheapskate when I was spending someone else's money (albeit on a budget).

When I was a kid, one of the department stores had a special section set up for kids to do Christmas shopping. The parents could provide a list of who they had to buy for, and a total budget and payment method. A store clerk would take each child into the section, help them shop, and if there was a credit card for payment, run the receipt out for the parents signature.

I was given a budget of $50. I spent $26.

Of course, I was also the child who refused to spend any dollar denomination higher than $2. $2 and $1 and change I would spend. Anything higer was sacrosanct and stayed in the piggy bank until it went to the bank. No idea where I got that from.

I remember when Palais Royal used to open only for kids one Saturday between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It gave Sis and I good experience choosing presents for people. One year I bought some earrings for Cousin C and had them wrapped at the store. When she opened up the package it was empty. I think she really thought I did it on purpose (we butted heads regularly). Mom and Aunt explained to her the store had wrapped the package and must have lost the earrings. I was really upset because they were "perfect earrings" for Cousin. Mom took us to Palais Royal that week. When she explained to customer service what had happened the Manager came out - escorted us around the store. I found the same type of earrings. Not only did we get those - he insisted that all three of us (Cousin C, Sis, and me) pick out another set of earrings each because Christmas surprise was ruined.

[Piratelvr1121]

I took five nieces and nephews on a 2-day trip to a theme park.  I knew from experience that I'd be hounded with unending requests for snacks and souvenirs, so I gave each of the kids $20 per day and told them that I'd pay for regular meals, but they were expected to pay for optional items with the money.  Not one of them spent a dime of it.  They even chose to drink from water fountains rather than buy soft drinks.  They became major cheapskates when their own money was at stake.

I do the same with my nieces and nephew. ON met me when she was 7 or so (Sister's stepdaughter) to be blunt she was used to Mom's family and Dad's family trying to out bid each other for her affection. After our first outing had a bunch of "get me this" followed by amazement at the word no (no tantrum just wow you said that and meant it.), I sat down with her and explained I was a poor teacher. I started giving her a budget. I paid admission, lunch, and in some cases bottled water (If the fountains were yuck). Then she had $10 - $20 spending money.

I more than once I've had the kids go look at the gift shop and come back and announce everything was overpriced. Then an adult standing nearby, dealing with "But I want it" whines pick their jaws up and ask how do you do that. Now I will often treat them to books (from a book store or amazon not the gift shop) or the panning for gold/crack open a geo things because it is about the experience not a piece of plastic junk that is going to beak before we get on 610.

When we went to Assateague/Ocean City, my MIL gave each of the older 2 $20 to buy their own souvenirs.  I wish I could say that stopped the middle pirate from buying junk, but it didn't.  However my oldest did listen to the advice of his "auntie" (bff) who works in retail and gave them both some tips on buying souvenirs.  As in, don't waste money on overpriced junk you could easily find someplace else back home.  Well the oldest bought a dolphin shaped keychain that said Ocean City, MD and had sand in it, a travel coffee mug that also said Ocean City on it, and something else that escapes me at the moment.   The younger child bought a toy plastic boat, a plastic fan, and a kite.  The kite I believe actually lasted and was a practical purchase for the beach, but the boat and the fan both broke.