When I first heard about "Extreme Cheapskates" I was waiting for this show anxiously thinking I would learn a lot on how to save money but, being honest, the show is extreme... but extremely obnoxious most of the times. Yes, I would go to some extremes when it comes to save money, as reusing take out containers or pick up stuff in good conditions I find in my way, but not to the extreme of dive into a dumpster for real, or do many of those things people in that show do. I try to save as much as possible, but also to indulge myself when necessary; if it comes for free or really cheap and it's good quality, or an item in good conditions, I will be happy to take it, but if not, I prefer to pay for it, certainly doing price comparison for the best deal though.
I believe that although it is very important to be careful with money, life is for living, and some people spend so long "saving" that they miss out on the best years of their life. So while I will be careful, and won't make stupid purchases, I will try not to miss out on experiences either. So I will get good deals on things rather than missing them out completely.
I've seen that show and they really weren't kidding when they labelled it extreme. I don't think I'd ever go as far as the people featured in that show but I have to admit that some tactics have been useful and I do employ some of my own ones that probably many would consider to be extreme as well so I can definitely sympathize. I like to reuse paper towels, for example, so I try to set aside any that I use to wipe my hands clean and later on I use them to dry off the table after spraying some water.
Normally, I save a lot on gas by only traveling around 13 - 20 miles a day. Generally speaking, it only takes 2 USD in gasoline, one gallon. However, it's been noted that keeping your tank near empty isn't good for the engine. Anyhow, another way I save money is by trying to eat less for dinner as opposed to breakfast.
I do like saving money but the methods used on that show by those people are just too extreme for me. Money is to live well and if you have it why not live comfortably and not think that it is always good to save if it means having to do things that can affect us. We can save money by reusing certain things and also save on water and electricity by turning them off when not needed. Using coupons or finding the best deals is great but having to eat from dumpster that is just something else. We have to save the safe way.
Poor people live everywhere but the problem is some if not all are not compelling themselves to save for the reason that they couldn't afford to do it for in fact they need money. Why they have to save? That is the wrong notion or misconception of those least privilege individuals. And for a regular income earner people, they couldn't save money for the rainy days. They only oblige themselves to save money when they have a project or home appliances to purchase. That's the reality.
I do recycle things like plastic containers and used boxes for storage, leftovers so we could still have it the next day and other stuff that can be recycled. I don't think I've done any extreme things just to save money. But I do save money, I just manage our finances properly. Only buy things that we need, well we also buy things that we want but once in a while. We make sure to spend less than we earn so we can save for later, invest and re-roll the money
There was a time I was bent on saving money wanted to pursue higher studies abroad, but when I couldn't secure the study visa I hated what I did denying myself some enjoyment because I was pursuing a goal. These days I hardly save money, instead I'd invest the money but before that I'll make sure to have taken good care of myself financially.
I believe that the extent that people go to save money depends on the reason why they are saving money. I don't believe that you have to necessarily give up on some basic comforts just to save money. For instance, the example you gave from that TLC show seems absurd. It's hard to believe that a family uses the same bath water for all its members, but then again, if the family was really struggling this wouldn't be alarming, it would be a necessity. Like I said, it all depends on the reason you're saving money. If you can afford to have all your family members take separate showers then there's no need to sacrifice basic hygiene, but the lines become blurred when you can't afford it. Personally, I did the same thing you did and got moving boxes from stores and UPS was also super helpful with this by giving me some old moving boxes. There are ways to save money without sacrificing anything other than your pride. Shopping at goodwill rather than at name brand stores, walking short distances rather than having to waste gas, using coupons for groceries etc. There are many ways to save money, but I think the methods you use vary with whatever situation you are facing.
I have seen this show a few times and some of the lengths people go to save money grosses me out. There was one episode in which a guy bought a goat head to eat for $7. I wondered why he did this because you can purchase a real cut of meat for about the same price or even cheaper. I am all about bargain shopping and doing things like turning off lights at home to save money, but would never go to extremes like reusing paper towels and such. I would still like to live a life I can look forward to living.
I’m not a cheapskate although I love to save not much for the amount but for the feeling that I have saved. Like in the market, when the vendor would give me a good discount, I would feel great after buying when in fact the discount was just a few cents. On the contrary, when I would ask a discount and the vendor wouldn’t budge, I tend to go to another store because I feel bad when I only ask a lower price if I think I deserve it.
I'm in that situation right now. Our kitchen has been stripped away from us (we had a small room fire and they took almost everything out of the house because of it) - totally unnecessary if you ask me ....but money is tight because we have to get all of our food from restaurants since we can't prepare anything...and that gets so expensive. I have a mini-fridge, but that can only hold so much, and NO FREEZER...so no frozen meals. The best I can do for now is to buy those Lunchables for about a dollar each and keep them in my fridge. I'm basically eating the same cheap, boring meals over and over again until this crisis is over. When I get a little more money, maybe then I can go back to a restaurant and get a decent meal. Oh, and yesterday...I washed clothes by hand in a hotel sink and then used their dryer only so I wouldn't have to pay the extra $4.00 charge to use the washing machine as well. Difficult task, not as easy as they made it look in the old days.
