9 Products and Activities Popularized by the Great Depression

The Great Depression popularized many products and activities that are still engrained in American culture today. In general, activities that consumed hours of time for a nominal cost and allowed the participants to escape from the reality of the times were the ones that gained in popularity. And products that provided a way to stretch [...]

Frugal Lessons from People Who Survived the Great Depression

Have you ever met someone who was alive during the Great Depression? They are changed people. The Great Depression left a great impression on their thoughts, their styles, and their habits. Many of them hoard money, become pack rats, and in general have trouble parting with anything that may possibly be of use down the [...]

Taking the Personal out of Personal Finances: Has America Gone Too Far with Sharing Numbers?

I’ve had several uncomfortable run-ins with people wanting me to disclose my personal financial information. When I graduated college both my mother and my father separately pressured me to release my new salary information. I know they were just super-excited and wanted a mathematical vote of confidence that they had not screwed me up, but [...]

Financially Unfaithful

Bargaineering wrote an article called Should Married Couples Combine Finances. As you can imagine, people were very passionate in their comments to this question, and reading others’ comments started me thinking about discretions in my own financial past. When I was around twelve, my mother took money from me, my brother, and my sister. We each [...]

Our Money Sink and Why We Choose to Keep It

We have something in our household that is literally just taking up space. It doesn’t produce anything, it doesn’t earn us money and it doesn’t save us money. In fact, it does quite the opposite; it costs us money. Without it, our electricity bill would most likely be $10 less per month (that is an [...]

That Most Overpriced of Foods: The Hot Dog

With July 4th quickly approaching, I thought it would be fun to write an article about a food pivotal to any picnic, party, or barbecue: the hot dog. It’s a simple, great-tasting finger food enjoyed by kids and adults alike, and relatively cheap. What could be more American than the hot dog? I know: taking [...]

Financial Limits and Boundaries Breed Creativity, Not Deprivation

Budgets can feel limiting, tight, and claustrophobic, especially when you’ve hit your budget wall and there are still things on your To Do or Want list. Most people that I speak with look down upon budgets for this very reason, either stating that something always comes up during the month to thwart even their greatest [...]

Letter from a Spoiled Consumer

May 31, 2010 Author’s Note: It’s Memorial Day Weekend, which is particularly known for its crazy great deals, so I thought it would be fun to publish this letter. Happy Memorial Day! Dear Retailers and Manufacturers,             You have spoiled me beyond belief. So much so, in fact, that I can never envision myself going [...]

Annuals vs. Perennials: Where Would You Like to be One Year from Now?

I am in a greenhouse surrounded by pots of gorgeous blooming flowers stacked tightly against one another such that when I look ahead of me, all I can see is one long burst of color and energy. Spring has announced itself in Pennsylvania, coaxing the growth of plants from barren soil, the opening of blooms [...]

“Bahumbug”, or Rather “Throw it Over the Fence”: My Grandfather Scrooge

My grandfather was a simple man—simple, not unintelligent. He grew up on the same farm we did in Pennsylvania. Even though he was just a toddler during the Great Depression, those years had a huge impact on his life, and he often warned me—while washing his dishes using dish soap (he deemed this wasteful), or [...]

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