Frugal or Tight: Where's the Line?

Blogger J.D. Roth knew exactly when he crossed the line from frugal to cheap. His readers told him.

Roth, who writes the Get Rich Slowly blog, described his attempt to lower the cost of his favorite gourmet hot cocoa mix by using two tablespoons instead of the recommended three. Yes, the flavor suffered, he noted, but he saved 29 cents per cup.

Enough already, many of his regular readers responded.

'They said, 'J.D., you're on the edge. You're being cheap,' Roth said.

My editor has a theory that the tightest tightwads are converts like Roth who find frugality belatedly after driving their finances into the ground. My editor's idea is that FCs (frugality converts) are more likely to try weird or extreme stuff than us BFs (born frugals)." Read the entire article