Frugal is Becoming Fashionable...

AGAIN!


Just as most things do, the idea of being frugal is once again becoming fashionable. In the mid-nineties, it seemed that people started forgetting - no, not forgetting, but considering passe - the thrifty old adage: Use it up, Wear it out, Make it do, Or do without." The new consumer banner, waving more and more freely as we moved through the early 2000's, certainly seemed to become: I want it all, and I want it now! But now it's time to rein in that debt-fueled abandon.

And therein lie serious problems: Some folks don't know or have forgotten how to say "no" to themselves, they don't know either the large or little ways to live economically, and all the traditional back-ups for dealing with both personal and more global downturns in the economy have been pushed to the limit already. What to do, what to do...

We'll all be inundated with thrifty tips in the coming months, most nothing new, many just common sense, and some requiring real effort, self-denial, a re-thinking of what it means to live within your means.

In the coming days, we're gong to look at the broader issues of the current family financial challenges, and tomorrow we'll start with some words, just words, and what they mean to you, what images they conjure. Saving money has to start with mind-set. So, that's what we'll explore first.

Mary