Tag: live cheap

10 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Save Money

In light of how many people I see on a daily basis who refuse to save money, I started asking myself why this was a thing. To me, it makes perfect sense to live beneath my means but in my world I am in the minority.

I thought I’d brainstorm to determine if perhaps my path was the wrong one.

  1. Treasure Hunts are fun! It’s a wonderful feeling to find loose change in your couch cushions or beneath the seat of your car when you need to buy a roll of bathroom tissue to make it to payday.
  2. Late fees and overdraft charges are a normal part of life. Why try to fight them? Just pay the money and move on. You can always eat beans or charge your grocery bill as you recoup the losses.
  3. GoFundMe Pages are in style. Who doesn’t like having their very own GoFundMe page to finance a move or to pay their bills when they lose their job or get hurt? It’s a badge of honor to crowdfund in this day and age.
  4. The Government will always be there to help if you really need it. All you have to do is ask and they will deliver. This safety net is a wonderful thing.
  5. It is fun to apply for food and financial assistance. Government agencies are always delighted to help anyone who applies for help. They make it so easy. You provide your bank account records, pay stubs for the past few months, information about everyone living with you, and statements from all of your neighbors to prove that you’re not housing a secret millionaire at your home and poof! Money just starts rolling in.
  6. You learn how to survive on less sleep. It’s a good thing to toss and turn when you receive a shutoff notice on your heating bill in the dead of winter. Who cares if you have to go to work in the morning? You can use that extra time to binge-watch your favorite show or go hang out with your sweetheart.
  7. You have something in common with all of your friends. Since everyone around you stays broke as well, you can all commiserate on how expensive life is. It’s lonely being the only one with money in your circle of friends and they tend to get upset if you point it out.
  8. It’s less work. Instead of wasting your time trying to stretch your dollars you can veg out in front of the television every evening and enjoy your life instead.
  9. It’s so enjoyable to one-up your friends. Want to make them jealous? Buy the latest and greatest phone that just hit the market and show it off. Get the lastest mega-package from your cable company so you can brag about watching all the hit shows. Cruise to work in a brand-new car and brag about those low monthly payments. Move into a nice big house in a great neighborhood so you can make fun of your friends who are stuck in the ‘hood. Watch their faces color with shame because they’re not as successful as you are. The ones with the most toys wins!
  10. You only live once. If you take it with you, your kids will fight over the money you left behind anyway. Why not eliminate the drama and die broke? You’re the one who busted your ass to make the money so you should be the only one who gets to enjoy it!

Did I miss anything? Share it in the comments below.

Rock Bottom

I do believe I have now officially hit rock bottom as far as expenses go. With my daughter as my official roommate, she splits half of the household expenses with me. Here is a breakdown:

Rent: $250 a month
Electric: $50 avg. in summer
Water/Sewage/Trash: $39.88
Internet: $30.59

Total: $370.47

My Half: $185.24

As usual, I am not including the amount we spend on food. We buy in bulk during sales and stock-up periods and then don’t purchase much of anything for quite some time until we use up what we have. On top of that my daughter now takes turns with the grocery expense; I have no idea how much she spends when she pays for groceries on her own.

I’m not going to calculate how much our bills go up in winter at the moment because, let’s face it; they are half of what I was paying previously. Even worse, I know that they will go up once the kid moves out.

I still don’t own a car. I walk to work, the store, and order online when it makes financial and physical sense. I currently use Google Voice for my phone, though my daughter has a cell phone that she pays for herself. If I went with her route I would pay $50 a month for phone service.

I know of no one else on the Internet who lives on less than I do unless they happen to be homeless. I rent a home, I have basic utilities, I never go hungry and I have money left for small extras every month. I am able to live comfortably on the $600 a month I earn in my public job, which now allows me to save every penny of my book royalties to invest in my future.

Let’s face it: there’s only so low you can go on your monthly expenses before you negatively affect your quality of living. I have no desire to go any lower than I already have. That said, I’ve no intention of going on a spending spree and buying everything in sight. I am taking advantage of my current situation to put money away to regain my financial freedom.

Out of curiosity, if you happen to know of another frugality writer who lives on less than I do, please point me in their direction. I’d love to learn their secrets.