A Typical Day is Filled with Money Matters

by David@MoneyNing.com · 10 comments

Habits and actions greatly affect one’s wealth, but why listen to me talk about it when you can just see for yourself. Are we frugal or not? You be the judge.

Our Afternoon

1:30ish pm, at our apartment.
David: Let’s go look at houses today, honey.
Emma: Okay.


2:00 pm, while touring some brand new model homes.
David: These homes are nice.
Emma: Model homes are always nice.
David: I bet it will cost $100,000 to make a typical house look like this.
Emma: Maybe more, but it would be so nice.
David: Oh I want to live here. Maybe we can save up for it…

3:00 pm, inside the pharmacy.
Emma: We have a coupon for a $2 dollar off $10 stomach relief medicine, go take your pick.

3:05 pm, at the cash register.
Cashier: Oh your total is $8.62, it’s not enough for $10 so this coupon won’t apply.
David: Oh really? I thought it was over $10 already…
Emma: Maybe we will come back another time when we have enough.
David: Sorry for the inconvenience, but we will come back. (While I was talking, I was thinking “$2 is a big difference you know”)

Aside: $100,000 = $2 x 50,000. If you save $2 everyday, it will take 50,000 days (or roughly 137 years) to accumulate $100,000.

5:00 pm, at home.
Emma: Oh honey, we have a 20% off your order coupon from Big Lots (a chain discount store in our area). It’s only from 5 – 9 today, we should go.
David: Yeah, of course we will.

5:20 pm, after a 10 minute car ride.
David: Oh hmm. Not as many things as I thought we will get.
Emma: I know, but oh look here. Let’s get some paper towels. We can always use them.

5:45 pm, at the cash register.
Cashier: Your total is $33.85, but today, the 20% off brings it down to $27.08.
Emma: Oh I’ll pay with my credit card.

6:00 pm, at the parking lot.
Emma: It sure gets dark early these days.
David: Oh no. I should work on my website today, and it’s already night time.
Emma: In that case, let’s just grab a quick bite at El Pollo Loco (a fast food restaurant) tonight and head home. We have those $1 off coupons because we filled out the survey on the back of the receipt.

What’s Your Instant Reaction?

Mine can be summed up with these points…

  • You can spend time making a dollar or saving a dollar. How you get there is up to you.
  • It doesn’t matter how much you saved. One decision can equal years of savings.
  • Find a partner that you are compatible with. Otherwise, even the smallest events can turn into arguments.

Emma and I had a ton of fun that day trying to save a couple dollars. We also love to fill out those surveys from restaurants to get a discount on subsequent visits. It’s just the way we are, and we have fun because we are similar in many ways.

Money matters aren’t always numerical and logical. It could be confusing to try explaining your decisions to someone else without a long explanation. Do what motivates you to be financially free, and don’t let others tell you it’s a big waste of time.

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{ read the comments below or add one }

  • kenyantykoon says:

    i read a phrase that “it is not about the money, it is always about the money”. while i find it funny, i sometimes see that there is an element of truth in the statement. so o think that we should all make as much money as we can 🙂

  • Robert says:

    Here’s another: Do I go out for lunch and spend $10 or so, or eat rice in the lunchroom?

  • Justin says:

    Wow, sounds like a normal Saturday with my wifey.

    I gotta say though, its amazing how many money matters come up each day. From buying a small lunch at a fast food joint, getting groceries, buying a chew toy for the dog, paying utilities… yikes.

  • CD Rates Blog says:

    It sounds like you had a fun day which is probably the most important. One of my thoughts was the walk-away from the store. Did you actually save money when you take the gas used into account?

    When saving, you have to take everything into account to determine if you actually saved.

    Looking forward to the baby announcement news.

    cd :O)

    • MoneyNing says:

      I can see the gas money part, but at $2+ savings, it’s likely that we will save that much with gas since we will just go when we are on the way to some other place.

      As to the announcement, I can’t wait either. 🙂

  • CD Phi says:

    I think it’s great how in-sync you guys are finance-wise. And it’s great you both use coupons with such enthusiasm because that way you’ll know you’re saving most times.

  • Alcoholic Millionaire says:

    I’m all about saving money and using coupons. The one warning that I would add is that just because you have a coupon doesn’t mean that you should be making a purchase, or that it’s a good deal.

    To really make frugality work, use coupons and sales to only purchase items that you would have purchased anyways in your day to day life. Coupons are yet another means that corporations get us to splurge on items that we don’t really need. (ex. 50c off glade plug in, 10 years ago people would use a little lysol, or maybe bake some apples to make the house smell good)
    Coupons are advertisements. And Coupons make corporations big money. Why? because the profit margin is big enough to make up the difference.
    So use coupons, but be cautious about using them to justify unneeded spending.

  • Patrick says:

    Some of those money saving ideas are definitely more fun than practical. I know a dollar adds up, but is it really worth the time if it’s not fun?

    • MoneyNing says:

      If you dread saving, it will be quite difficult to do it on a regular basis. However, it’s worth the time, as it really adds up. It’s not necessarily the dollar amount, but the whole mindset of not being wasteful that ends up making a big difference.

  • Lakita says:

    It’s cute how you’ve turned saving money into a game. It’s evident that you both are on one accord and that’s why it works. Oh, and you’ve motivated me to start filling out those surveys on coupons. Thanks for that.

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