Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Random thoughts on last night and the true purpose behind Thrift/Frugality

I was a good girl and a bad girl last night. We wanted a treat for our "date night", which is really more of a "Granny Night" since we don't really do what people are supposed to do on "date night"... ie. not talk about how wonderful our son is, not buy groceries, not clean our living space, and so on. So, as our "date night" indulgence, we got dessert at Outback amidst our quick asian market grocery errands. The price was low... since all we got were desserts... and we felt suitably spoiled. I do have to note, however, that I have no desire to repeat this. I can't help but think, "Hmm... we could have made the gluten free brownie at home... we had icecream, chocolate chips, and whipped cream, as well as some fruit. That would have saved us *fill in the blank* dollars." But really, it's not bad to treat yourself on occasion when you've been good, and I still made dinner (after) for us to enjoy, which saved us a bit more too.

The rest of the evening was spent getting some ingredients for some meals this week, working on our Alice in Wonderland commission (which is on my Sew Mankycat blog), and cooking dinner. This was a far cry from all the things I had hoped to get done... but one of my problems is planning too much for what small bit of free time I actually have.

Anyways, I was a good girl though. I resisted the temptation to buy a Dunkin Donuts coffee because I knew my husband could make me some at home (and because I had some limeade in the fridge), I resisted the temptation to pick up some snacks at Crown Palace asian market because I knew I would be making dinner soon (and my husband was really looking forward to the desserts we were going to get), didn't get an appetizer or entree or salad at Outback to go with my dessert (for the same reasons), I didn't stop to check out bicycles (though that is in the near future, I'm thinking), didn't buy soda, didn't go on Ebay to look at some of the bento stuff that JB and I are toying with the idea of buying (more thought needed), or any of the other temptations that cropped up. I knew I just felt like spending money, and that's not a good reason to do so. I did, however, buy extra rice cakes and fish cakes... but I am making meals with those and it's good to have extra so I don't have to make the trip out too soon.

One hard thing to accept is that, like any other lifestyle change, being thrifty or becoming frugal takes many steps, both large and small. It doesn't serve any purpose to beat yourself up for spending a few extra cents because you didn't know the best price for gas was around the corner or because you decided to get your nappa cabbage at Shoprite rather than Wegmans (though the best price is at Crown Palace and HMart... korean markets typically have certain produce for amazing prices). You also have to consider that worrying like that will also eat away at you in the form of stress. Just take the lesson and try to remember for next time. Besides, how much more would it actually cost to go to that other gas station or to two stores for produce rather than one? $0.10? $1.00? $5.00? Extra gas and 'wear and tear' on your car? Extra time that you could use in other aspects of your life? What's the point of working your tush off to save $2.00, but taking away how many hours of your time away from your family? That just doesn't sound too balanced or prudent to me.

Thriftiness and frugality takes more into account than just nickles and dimes. It's also an attempt to look at the big picture. To get the most out of your life, money, and time as you can.

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