Since last Thursday, I’ve been under the weather. I have what I think may be a sinus infection. This past weekend when I was visiting family, I couldn’t fall asleep and my mom thought I needed to go to the emergency room. I thought about the fact that the only thing the doctors would probably do is give me a prescription for an antibiotic and send me home. I really don’t like taking antibiotics, so I decided I would keep taking the over the counter medication I was taking and tough it out.

I’m still sick.

I did talk with my neighbor who is a pediatrician and she seems to think that I’ll be fine with doing what I’m doing. I just wish it would go away! Sinus problems are not fun.

When I first started feeling bad, my husband told me to go to the doctor. Any time I complain about feeling tired, nauseated, hurt, etc. he always tells me to do so. If I went to the doctor every time something small was wrong, I’d be in the doctor’s office every other day!

Another reason I didn’t end up going to the emergency room while I was in Michigan (besides the fact I didn’t think it was an emergency) was that it was out of network. I told my hubby that and he thought it was silly to put money before my health. I was just trying to weigh out my options, you know?

Mr. Money and I are on totally different ends of the spectrum when it comes to visiting the doctor. I don’t like going at all unless it’s absolutely necessary. Like I said before, he’s urging me at a sniffle to make a trip to see the doc.

What do you do- do you try to tough it out or do you go to the doctor and see what can be done?

Picture this: Mr. Money sits down, ready to get a haircut from his talented frugal wife (me), and out comes the camera.

“…what are you doing with that?!” He asks.

“I want to take a picture of you, honey.” I reply.

“Why?! You aren’t going to bl… you’re going to blog about this, aren’t you?”

“Do you really think that I would- ok, yeah.  I am going to blog about it and I need a before and after picture.”

[blank stare from Mr. Money]

Without further ado, I present to you, my husband, victim recipient of a $0 haircut, done by me!

Here’s what he looked like before, rocking the skater/punk/too long hair:

And here’s what he looked like after:

I’ve been cutting his hair for a few years now, and I’m pretty proud at how good I’ve gotten.  I can only imagine how much money we’ve saved on haircuts over the years!

What’s your preferred method of haircut: at home or by a professional?

I was thinking the other day about the many different terms there are for being frugal. I was trying to distinguish between the nice ones and the not so nice ones. Here’s the list I came up with:

Nice

-Frugal
-Thrifty
-Conscientious
-Economical
-Preserving
-Prudent
-Bargain Shopper
-Frugalite

Not so nice

-Cheapskate
-Tightwad
-Stingy
-Tight
-Cheap
-Miser
-Money grubber
-Scrooge
-Penny-pincher

What are some frugal terms that I may have missed? Have you been called any of these?

image from imlovememphis

Sometimes I go from one extreme to another when it comes to money. I worry about us spending too much, and then sometimes I worry we’re not enjoying life enough because we’re being too thrifty. I don’t want to be cheap.

This weekend I spent the day with my friend.  We did a lot of things that didn’t cost money (attended a craft show, a free knitting class, and came back to my house to knit), but we also did spend a little money.  We bought yarn, had amazing chai tea, and went out to dinner.  And you know what?  I enjoyed every second of it, and it was worth every penny we spent.

Sometimes after we spend money I get nervous.  I feel like I shouldn’t have done that.  It’s ridiculous sometimes, and I worry even after we buy groceries! On the other hand, I don’t have a problem with us spending $20 on dinner out. It’s the $100 or so on groceries that makes me nervous, even though that food will make enough meals to last us over a week.  I don’t understand my logic either.

I’m going to do myself a favor. I’m going to relax a little and loosen the reins on our spending.  I’m not going to go crazy and buy anything that we don’t need, but I’m not going to fret over every penny we spend.  If I want a $4 chai tea once a month, I’m going to get it and enjoy it. Everything in moderation.

Do you beat yourself up about spending money sometimes?

Yesterday I spent a fair amount of time at thrift stores in the Ann Arbor area with my mom. There were a few interesting things that happened. As soon as we pulled up to the Salvation Army thrift store, we noticed the parking lot was FULL. My mom exclaimed “what, are they giving something away?!” I knew that wasn’t the case, but as this is pretty much my favorite thrift store ever I wanted to brave the crowds and go in anyway.

I wasn’t looking for much, just a pair of jeans or two, and luckily I found a pair that fit well. My mom found herself a pair, and we made our way up to the line. The line was seriously like 8 people long when we got in it. It was the longest line I’ve ever seen for a thrift store! We did wait in line, and when we checked out it was worth it. I got a pair of jeans for $3.99 plus half off of that, and my mom got hers for $5.99 plus half off (yellow tags and women’s jeans were half off.)

I almost felt guilty shopping at the thrift store. I can “afford” to shop for new clothes if I want to, and am I hurting all these other people that may need the clothes worse than me? I don’t know why, but that thought hit me when I was in there searching for deals with so many other people.

Have you ever felt guilty shopping at thrift stores?

Let me tell you a story. Last Christmas, when we were up in Michigan visiting my family, my 50 year old uncle had a bag of clothes and miscellaneous items that he was getting rid of. Obviously we are totally into hand-me-downs, so imagine my delight when we received this large garbage bag full of stuff. Even though it was all stuff for my sweet hubby, I was still excited. Hiding at the bottom of the bag was this pair of shoes.

A lovely pair of dress shoes! Of course, they aren’t perfect, but they are still in good shape. Keep in mind, Mr. Money is a chef, so he really doesn’t dress up. It’s kitchen clogs and chef coats for him every day.

“I don’t think I really need a pair of dress shoes. I think I’ll pass on these.” He said.

“I think you should take them. They’re free, and you never know when you’ll need a pair of dress shoes. Better safe than sorry.” I rebutted.

We ended up taking the shoes. Fast forward to a few days ago when he had to go downtown to some leadership conference for work. Those shoes came in handy.

About 1 PM on the day that he was downtown, he gave me a call to see how my day was going and to fill me in on the event.

“So… I’m in the conference center, walking around looking for something to eat, when I realize I step on a piece of rubber, kick it out of the way, and keep walking. (I’m thinking wtf, why are people just dropping pieces of rubber?) A few feet later I step on another piece of rubber. This time I’m like what the heck? What is going on? Where’s all this rubber coming from?? And then I look down, pick my foot up, and realize that my shoes are literally falling apart as I walk.” Now I’m picturing him wandering downtown barefoot, in a crowd of people. The thought makes me chuckle. Then laugh a little harder. At this point I’m laughing audibly. I’m waiting for him to get mad at me for making him take these shoes.

“Um, do you think you could bring my chef shoes to work after the conference?”

Of course I obliged, told him to call me when he was on his way, and told him to not throw the shoes away so that I could see them. When I saw them in person I think I laughed harder than when he told me on the phone. Sometimes it doesn’t pay to be too frugal. And sometimes your spouse suffers at the expense of your frugality.

Anyone need a pair of shoes?

Here’s this week’s Cheap or Frugal? Question:

 Is it cheap or frugal to air dry ALL of your laundry year-round, even in winter?  Of course, in inclement weather it would be done indoors, on drying racks or on a line somewhere in the house.

It’s Cheap or Frugal Saturday!

Last week’s question ended up with 58% voting frugal, and 42% cheap. Frugal it is!

This week’s question is:

You’ve heard the term “if it’s yellow, let it mellow; if it’s brown, flush it down.” If you don’t know what it’s about, I will give you one clue: toilet.

What do you think, is this act cheap or frugal?

Cheap or Frugal?
	Cheap!
	Frugal!

It’s Saturday again, and with the success of last week’s Cheap or Frugal, I decided I would pose another question for your inquisitive minds.

Last week’s question was:

When this couple goes out to eat at a restaurant (fast food, sit down, basically any), they only order one drink and share it.

Unbelievably, this question scored exactly 50/50!  There were 46 votes total, and half of you thought it was cheap and half thought it was frugal.

Here’s this week’s question:

Whenever I bring home a drink that has a straw, I wash the straw and reuse it.  I can’t stand to throw it in the garbage, and now I don’t have to buy straws.  

Am I being cheap or frugal? Vote now!

I’ve decided I’m going to try a fun little game called “Cheap or Frugal?” that you all can play.  It’s easy, quick, and hopefully tons of fun.  I’m going to pose the age-old question “is this cheap or frugal?” and allow you to decide.  Depending on the popularity, this may be a new feature at the Ultimate Money Blog.

Here’s the first round:

When this couple goes out to eat at a restaurant (fast food, sit down, basically any), they only order one drink and share it. VOTE NOW!

I’m interested to see your opinion. If you have a question you’d like to have spotlighted here, please comment, or email me at ultimatemoneyblogATgmail.com.