Hope our switch to a new server hasn’t caused you any problems. I thought this issue I’d answer a few of the most common questions I’ve received from both you as readers and students I’ve taught at the local community college. One note: www.BabyMint.com has discontinued its sign-on bonus. Its a very good program well worth the it even without a sign-on bonus. I just got off the phone with their business manager, and they are extending their services to retirement benefits too. Join now and sign up for emails on the upcoming retirement programs.

So on to the questions.

Question: How can Frugal Living ever work?

Answer:
It come down to a question of "value for your dollar." How do you want to spend your dollar? For example: Do you want to spend several extra dollars a week on electric because you are too lazy to remember to shut off lights and lower the heat in unused rooms, or take the time -- and have that extra money to save for Xmas gifts? Its a small amount of money, but it adds up over time. To make the math easy, let us say you save a dollar a day. In a year that’s $365. In reality once you are attuned to careful use of resources, you’ll save much more. So would you rather give your hard earned money to a mega-utility company, or use your money to buy Xmas Gifts? If you look at some back articles on lowering heating costs, you’ll save much more than a dollar a day!

Question: Aren’t you some sort of Eco -Nut who believes this stuff?

Answer:
Well yes, I am sort of a tree hugging Eco-nut. Part of the reason we as a family practice frugal living is that it is fundamentally ecological. People who practice good stewardship of resources, recycle, and get multiple uses from every item -- help the earth, and the economy. For people new to the concept, you can check out www.care2.com which will give you more ideas on ecological living . As for my personal philosophy, religiously I’m a Universalist (somehow I just can’t see Ghandi or Buddha toasting their toes in the hot place because they aren’t the right religion). I’m in my forties, so my influences are books like Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful or Helen and Scott Nearing’s Living the Good Life and Frances Moore-Lappe’s< a href=" http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0345321200/fibernewsfiberar "> Diet for a Small Planet. We lived for years on ARMY pay. The writer of The Tightwad Gazette lived for years on NAVY pay. Its very possible to do so on even those limited resources.

But you don’t have to be a eco-nut like me to practice frugal living principles. Most of my readers are middle class people who are having financial troubles due to downsizing. It will work fine for anyone who needs to save some money, for whatever reason. Go to it!

Question: For lots of reasons we are in real financial trouble. Can you help us?

Answer:
Sure. In the long run frugal living will reduce your debt and get you into a saving position. However, if by "real trouble" you mean phone calls from creditors, you should check out the Debt Consolidation resources listed on the site over on the left tool bar.. It will give you some financial stability and peace to build from.

For more ideas Check out these Frugal Living Books!
Complete Tightwad Gazzette
The Complete Tightwad Gazzette

Declare Your Finanacial Independence
Declare Your Financial Independence

Complete Cheapskate
Mary Hunt's Complete Cheapskate

Miserly Moms
Miserly Moms

You Can Afford to Stay Home With your Kids
You can Afford to stay Home WIth your Kids