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Let’s see if I get this straight. “Being frugal doesn’t mean being stingy, miserly or downright cheap.” I just read that gem in a Star Tribune article titled Frugal Living Isn’t the Same as Being Cheap. As a cheap and frugal person, I was completely offended. I'm sorry, but some frugal people are having an identity crisis and are taking 'cheap shots', or should I say 'frugal shots', at a whole host of people that are their natural allies in the struggle against wasteful consumption.
I wonder how long you’d keep your job in the marketing department if you tried this pitch “we have the frugalest prices in town.” If you’re dying to pick up a pink slip, suggest this slogan to your sales department, “If you can get it frugaler anywhere else, we'll pay you 120% of the difference.”
How the hell are you supposed to be frugal if you’re not on the hunt for the cheapest prices? ‘Frugal’ and ‘Frugalest’ aren’t even American words – even the English aren’t quirky enough to have it in their vocabulary.
American has one big hang-up about the 'cheap' word. Believe me, the people who figure out how to use the same chicken for four separate meals don't buy free range organic birds at Whole Foods. The reason I’m downright cheap is because it just happens to be the only way to be downright frugal. Capice? Really, how exactly am I supposed to have a minimalist lifestyle without being a bit of a militant when it comes to getting everything at the best possible price?
Tell me again how the Chinese managed to take control of 90% of the shelf space at Walmart? Because there’s a whole population of cheap Americans who go to great lengths to save a buck – even at the cost of American jobs. But before you stop any of them in the isle and call them ‘cheap,’ make sure you have good medical coverage. Let me try to make this simple. If you shop for your clothing at Walmart, you might just be cheap. If you don't have a hangup about picking up something at a second hand store - you might just be cheap. If I see you making a sweater out of chicken feathers or shopping at a thrift store and you try to pass yourself off as a frugal environmentalist - you're still cheap.
A rose by any other name is still a rose. And living a frugal life by any other name still makes you a cheapster. Being frugal is about not wasting anything. And the thing that we should all attempt to waste less of is the greenback, especially since it's already worth next to nothing.
So let’s stop dodging the scarlet letter. While all frugal people tend to be cheap, not all cheap people are frugal. One of the ways many Americans manage to enjoy lifestyles above their pay grade is that they learn how to live sensibly and stretch a buck. Call them cheap if you must but study them well because they're the Americans most likely to live the dream.
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