Am I frugal or just cheap?
I was browsing the archives of I Will Teach you to Be Rich a couple days ago and came across a comparison of being frugal vs being cheap.
My thought for the night… am I frugal or just cheap? It really made me think a lot. I am not cheap when it comes to those around me and the examples of things like that in the post (I don’t split a check and then shortchange the tip — I’m a great tipper, and I hope my penny pinching isn’t affecting the broader network of people around me) but I’m not sure I think long term vs short term, and I’m not sure I know when to spend more for long term value. I don’t even always know how to figure out what a long term value is. ‘Tis why I spend too much time at Walmart.
I aspire to be frugal. I think my spouse might would say I’m cheap. Especially since this past Sunday when we went to the zoo and came to the duck feeding area I was helping my son pick up the spilled duck food on the ground under the dispensers and having him throw that to the ducks vs buying some from said dispensers. We were helping clean up! And he gets bored of it after throwing a few pieces anyway. That is my story. Seriously.
Maybe I am cheap. Can I be frugally cheap? Argh. How can such a cheap person be so in debt is beyond me. 
~J
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