Cheapskates, Tightwads, and Thrifty

Ann VanDeventer and frugality bloggers like Mama Mallory are getting all the credit these days for being cheapskates. Not that I’ve ever considered myself a tightwad, but I would like a little credit for being thrifty. Before we were green, we called it recycling, and before that we called it not wasting. For years, I’ve been adding a little water to the last of the ketchup bottle to get every drop and rolling up the toothpaste tube to get the last pea sized bit. You know, when you have to press your thumb really hard to get it to squish out of the hole. I’ve hardly ever used Tupperware. Yogurt, Cool Whip, and margarine tubs hold refrigerated left overs just as well. As for grocery bags, it’s needless to say that paper and plastic have a gillion uses. My favorite way to recycle the plastic ones is to line wastebaskets. It’s beyond me how Hefty and Glad could ever sell those little white bags!
Living in Montana and being thrifty go hand in hand. Bargain hunters search the Mountain Trader for everything from used studded tires to used goats. It’s commonly known that the dumpster stations in C-Falls are dubbed the mall. And it’s not uncommon to compare secondhand deals purchased from the Thrift Store. Although there is a lot of wealth in Montana, living here is not about the money. Everybody knows that employers don’t pay well and many people move on for better wages. So what’s it all about? It’s about the lifestyle. Wide open spaces, breathtaking scenery, shooting off your back porch, and the spirit of the west entice people from all walks of life to come here. A woman that my husband spoke to on a trail one day, shared the secret to making a million in Montana, “Come with two million and spend one”.

What does the picture have to do with this article, you ask? It’s just symbolic of Montana!

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