Pocket Frugality
Walking into the restaurant, my heart sank. The music would not be to our taste and the animated atmosphere not conducive to heartfelt communication. Driving Friend to the airport, a nice coupon in my purse, the original plan had been to eat at a quiet place. Morning errands had taken longer than planned and another spot to have lunch was needed so the airplane would not be missed.
Knowing there was no other alternative, we sought out a booth and decided to make the best of these new circumstances. A special lunch, well within my budget, had been my plan. Perusing the menu, my frugal senses began to throb. The coupon in my purse would not be honored in this establishment and I quickly ascertained my little budget would now not suffice.
Choosing to put my frugality in my pocket, I made a decision to cheerfully bear the consequences of this secondary option. Some other budget could be “pinched” and I went on to enjoy this precious time. Hearts were shared, some misunderstandings cleared up and my frugal thoughts kept in check as I left the restaurant with no regrets.
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My feet sinking into the wet soil, I wondered what the cause might be. Knowing no rain had fallen in recent days, panic set in. My assumptions were correct. Hose was running!
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Answering the phone, Husband’s voice came through in a excited mode. On a whim, he had entered a contest and actually won a night’s stay in a hotel! My thoughts began to race. Earlier in the day, I had been trying to figure out how to give a special gift to someone. Gift budget had left me with few alternatives and this news seemed like the perfect answer. As Husband began to share his plans for this winning, I again put my frugal thoughts in pocket and chose not to mention my idea!
Finding the balance in the frugal life can be a never ending process for me. Certainly not encouraging people to live outside their means, there are still times when choices can be, or need to be made that don’t always seem as frugal as originally desired, but still have to be cheerfully accepted.
When do you pocket your frugal thoughts?
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5 Responses to “Pocket Frugality”
June 17th, 2010 at 8:05 am
hmmm recently its when carseats went on sale – This was their last sale of the year – and they always have the best sale on carseats – and knowing my son was going to out grow his soon we went ahead and got it and waited to put money into savings – my husband said since it was for safety and not just something we didnt need it was ok. and I tend to agree
June 17th, 2010 at 8:36 am
Sometimes the most important consideraton should not be money. I think really frugal people can forget that and miss out on some real joy in life.
June 17th, 2010 at 10:51 am
I have learned this lesson when I’m out with my husband. Often, I prefer the more frugal choice, but he doesn’t. I’ve realized that just because my way is cheaper doesn’t mean my way is better, and my opinions shouldn’t always trump his – especially if he is trying to treat me to his perception of The Best.
June 17th, 2010 at 3:27 pm
I did this when we recently went to a sporting event, we have season tickets because this is both frugal and supportive of the new team(frugal because we attend every game and this gives us a discounted rate) only to find out after getting there and going to the pre event party that our season ticket would not be accepted, we would have to buy tickets at full price. I looked at my husband and my children and I wrote the check. My impulse was to just go home and watch the game via the internet, but that would not have been the best choice for my family, we went and cheered and it was a very lightly attended game so our funds went to a good cause of supporting this team.
June 19th, 2010 at 8:49 am
I am frugal and will splunge to enjoy and realize my way is not the best way. My mom is the opposite. In almost every conversation, she someone brings money into it. It’s frustrating, stressful (becuase if she pays for soemthing, you know it forever) and takes the joy and pleasure out of almost everything. She questions almost everything I do and if I have money to do it. I am 40 years old, I can figure it out.
She has tons of money so not having it is not the issue. It was been a huge determint to our relationship and she still doesn’t get it. It’s beyond difficult….
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