by Stacey Mcclure

Created on: November 13, 2009   Last Updated: November 15, 2009

I am a little confused by the question. A person could take this one of two ways. First, if the question is multiple choice, I would have to answer "Frugal". On the other hand, if the asker is insinuating that "frugal" and "cheap" are the same thing, then I don't think the question makes sense.

Take a look at the two terms defined:

frugal [froo-guhl]

-adjective

thrifty

1. characterized by thriftiness and avoidance of waste

2. economical in use or expenditure; prudently saving or sparing; not wasteful: a frugal manager.

3. entailing little expense; requiring few resources; meager; scanty: a frugal meal.

Cheap [cheep]

-adjective

stingy

1. stingy or unwilling to give freely

2. miserly: He's too cheap to buy his own brother a cup of coffee.

As you can see, frugal and cheap have two completely different meanings.

When I was growing up, it was not unusual for us to eat oatmeal for dinner. It was delicious and nutritious and it filled all of our bellies. Until I was an adult, I did not know that macaroni and cheese was a side dish. When my mother went grocery shopping, she bought 10 loaves of bread at a time. The milkman delivered 4 gallons of milk at least twice a week. I ate peanut butter and jelly for lunch every day my entire childhood. None of us starved to death and we were all happy, healthy children.

Did I consider my parents to be cheap? I don't think so. I grew up in a family with 8 siblings and my parents. My Grandmother also lived with us for a long time, so that would be 12 people living together. My Father worked no less than 60 hours a week, most of the time 6 or 7 days a week. No one else in our household worked (at least not when we were young).

My frugal roots have helped me tremendously in my adult life. It really bothers me to waste or to see others wasting. I think that people should take a good look at what they have and what they buy and figure out a way to curb their wasting. I hear so many people complaining that they don't have any money, yet, when they go grocery shopping, they just grab things off the shelf with no consideration given to the cost. We live in an "instant gratification" society and I don't feel sorry for these types of people.

I will admit that some do consider me to be "cheap", obviously because they don't understand the meaning of the word. I am a very giving person, and I WOULD buy my brother a cup of coffee! I just refuse to spend my family's money on over-priced or unneeded items. So, if comparison shopping to stretch every one of our hard-earned dollars, and sometimes doing without classifies me as "cheap", then so be it. I know that I am "frugal" and not "cheap". It makes me proud to raise my children this way and I know it makes my husband happy to be able to feed our family on less than 12 dollars a day!

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