I\u2019m a cheapskate! I\u2019ve learned to live cheap! But, I\u2019m not stingy. Cheap and stingy are two different things. I\u2019m living the low life, a low-price life. It doesn\u2019t always work, not when the lowest price is junk and I have to repurchase it. So, sometimes I move up the price scale, it\u2019s been a lifetime of learning when to pay more. Long before I became an old coot.<\/p>\n
This is how I operate as a cheapskate. Take beer and wine for example. You can pay eight, nine or ten dollars for a glass of beer these days. Or, you can learn to like the cheap stuff. I only have two or three beers once a week or so; usually on a Friday, and with my wife. I don\u2019t ask for a beer by name. I ask, \u201cWhat is your cheapest beer?\u201d (As my wife sitting next to me cringes.)<\/p>\n
Same thing with wine. Years ago I drank more wine than beer, my favorite was Two-Buck-Chuck. A two-dollar bottle of wine sold only at Trader Joe\u2019s. None of their stores are in this area, but you can find something similar, just ask the liquor store clerk, \u201cWhat\u2019s you cheapest wine?\u201d <\/p>\n
It’s easy to learn to like cheap wine and beer, as it is to develop your palate for the high-priced stuff. The same is true for groceries. Store brands are easy to adapt; most of the time they are the same exact product as the name brand, just cheaper. Same thing with dining out; It\u2019s one of the best things about being an old coot. I can\u2019t eat the full portion they serve in a restaurant anymore. So, I split it with my wife and cut my cost in half. <\/p>\n
Now that I\u2019m 80, I employ a new cheapskate technique. I order from the children\u2019s menu. If I\u2019m told the children\u2019s menu is only for kids under 10 I play my 80 card. \u201cI\u2019m eighty, that\u2019s the same thing as being a little kid. Give me the same courtesy, please.\u201d Nine times out of ten it works. <\/p>\n
Buy plain old coffee. You can live without a ten-dollar double shot, mocha latte. Never buy a new car. Fix stuff yourself (if you can). Wash your own car; don\u2019t pay a car wash place. Mow your lawn. Rake it. It\u2019s great for your physical (and mental) health.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s it for today. If I go any farther, it will take two sheets of paper to print this out. Something a cheapskate like me tries to avoid. <\/p>\n