Don’t forget the value of your time. If you have a paying job, you might consider the value of your non-work time to be the same as that of your work time when considering whether to repair or replace. It might take you x amount of time to repair something, but the dollar value of your time might be more than the the cost to buy a new one. It depends on your priorities. Even if you do not work outside the home–say you are a stay-at-home mom–you might think that spending an hour reading to your kids is more worthwhile than spending that hour repairing torn clothes or curtains.

I make a good salary but also sometimes work long hours (not my choice), so I personally often choose time over money. Am I going to spend 2 hours repairing a blouse that I can replace with an hour’s worth of salary? Probably not, unless it’s a favorite item. I might feel different about it if I were in a household with someone who didn’t work, if I were a housewife or retiree, or married to one.

Some things are not repairable. also. Electronics, for instance, are usually not. And things made out of plastic often aren’t either.

Don’t be nostalgic and assume that our 19th-century ancestors bought their land. Remember homesteading…when the government GAVE land to (white) people after first stealing it from the Indians.

When times are tough it is easy to romanticize the past. Don’t forget that in “Little House” days and other times past people died of infectious diseases which can be cured or prevented today, and lots of women died in childbirth.

Don’t get me wrong; I am NOT anti-frugal. I wrap small gifts in pages of old scenic calendars, make grocery lists on the back of junk mail, turn out lights, go to the bargain matinees, take mass transit, etc. I just wanted to remind people that we can get wrapped up in a false nostalgia about our past and also that the cheapest alternative is not necessarily the best.

With that said it is nice to hear about people starting community gardens and such. The more self sufficient you are the better off you are.

People tend buy beyond their means and stay stuck in the machine. The more tightly you are attached to the machine the worse recessions and other economic down turns will affect you.

Surviving A Recession’s last blog post..5 Steps To Prepare For A Recession

I offer a website I found several months back about a small town in Texas and some of their history during the Depression that was uncovered and very worth a look at.

http://freepages.genealogy.roo.....s/1934.htm

if that doesnt work you can search on google with texas across the fence fdr depression and it will come up near the top and is called “Depression 1934″ – gives some history of a cannery set up with federal money that returned one half what was brought to it canned and kept the other half for distribution or sale and gave jobs to the residence of the city.

That is what we need to do – set up organizations and take care of our community and help and exchange with other communities. To entertain our selves with local talent and occasional outsiders like the Big Band era where bands traveled around on buses and played in school gyms with set up table and candles and a turning mirror ball….which i used to laugh at when i was young but now realize what they ment to the communities……..

My mom took bedsheets that were too worn to be used on the bed and cut out the good portions, hemmed them and used them as kitchen towels, dust or cleaning cloths. When a bath towel became frayed, she cut off the frayed portion, hemmed it, and it went back into service. When towels were beyond reuse as towels, they were turned into cleaning cloths, or they went to my father, who used them for grease rags in his auto repair shop.

Clothing was never thrown away; it was mended, given to others if it was too small, or turned into grease rags if it was beyond mending. When an article of clothing was condemmed to the “grease rag” stage, all buttons were carefully removed and stashed in Mom’s “button can” to be reused on future articles of clothing.

If mom caught you tossing a piece of aluminum foil or a plastic bag that had been used only once, her wrath was upon you. She took each sheet of foil, smoothed it out and folded it neatly for re-use. The same was true for plastic bags.

When my dad serviced our car, the old fan belt and air filter were stashed in the trunk as “backups” in case we had a breakdown on the road. He also salvaged every nut, bolt and screw from repair jobs, which went into his supply bin for re-use on future jobs.

All of these things were pretty frustrating to me as a child, but when I look back, I realize that they did make me a better person.

Even though I’m financially independent, I think twice before I actually make a purchase, regardless of the price.. (Even if an item is “on sale” or “clearance priced”, it is still wasted money if you rarely use the item.)

I don’t toss clothing; instead, I give it to a local shelter for abused families. While this isn’t saving me any money, it is providing help to others who need it.

Instead of tossing bottles, jars, paper and plastic into the trash can, I send them to the recycling center. Again, this doesn’t save me money, but it does contribute to saving the environment.

There are some things my parents did that I don’t, but I try to do what I can to live frugally and help other people and our environment.

I do find it ironic that, not that long ago, careful spending and re-using items was often called “cheap.” But now, in light of the current economic state, these same practices are considered “frugal” and “necessary to survive.”

Borgz’s last blog post..WWE 2009 No Way Out Official Theme Song

I understand that some people need things such as cell phones and internet connections to do their jobs which pays for the needs. But, by and large,(and with the exception of certain medicines) how can something that didn’t even exist 30 or so years ago be a true need?

Now, I don’t think there is anything wrong with having some of the wants. I have quite a few of them myself. It just seems silly, and limiting. To label them as needs.

My favorite quote is an old aboriginal saying: “The more you know, the less you need.”

http://whatmimiread.blogspot.c.....rself.html

ScrapperMom’s last blog post..Fix, Don’t Pitch