False economies

Jennifer suggested I write a post one of the ways I tried to save money back when we were dating. But first, a little background.

Back in 1997, I was living in a small..."apartment." It was actually a tiny mobile home in the backyard of another mobile home. My apartment was about 250 sq ft. It had enough room for a full size bed, a two-person table, a tiny kitchen, and a tiny bathroom, which didn't even have a door. But, the apartment came furnished (bed, table, some kitchen utensils, etc), with utilities, for about $300/mo.

I lived there without a TV. And I didn't have a phone. I would walk to the gas station, which was one mobile home away, so I could use the pay phone.

Anyway, one of the ways I tried to save money was by getting the most for my money when it came to garbage bags. That meant buying 30gal bags. After all, why would I spend money on small 13gal bags when I can get the giant 30gal bags for about the same price.

Well, you can probably imagine how long it would take a single guy to fill a 30gal bag. So, there were occasions when the apartment would stink pretty bad 30gal of rotting trash stinks up 250 sq ft quite easily.

So, in my attempt to live super-frugally, I ended up living like Oscar the Grouch.

There is such a thing as a false economy. Cheaper up-front costs don't always equate with long-term satisfaction.