The complete tightwad gazette - update on author Amy D's life through an interview.

FZwanab

http://74.125.39.104/search?q=cache:BU5qqU--x-8J:www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/05/14/an-interview-with-amy-dacyczyn-the-author-of-the-tightwad-gazette/+photo+of+amy+dacyczyn&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=ie&client=firefox-a

I know from the OldStyle board that lots of us are big fans of The Complete Tightwad Gazette. The above is a link as to how Amy(the author) is doing these days. I am sure some of you will find it of interest.

elona

Thanks FZ

I really enjoyed the article.

The rest of the site is interesting too and one of the suggestions is that you learn one new thing every day.

Learning to bake my own rolls and bread for instance is saving me money.

Using my slow cooker for soups etc is saving on electricity and hassle.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

I now have a copy, The Complete Edition but am dismayed at the Family and US based emphasis. How do OS (I am browsing whole site and trying to suss it out) overcome this, bar googling and interpreting.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

Old Style Lifestyle I use:
Slow Cooker for cooking not exclusively but a lot.
Breadmaker invaluable for making bread. Ready made and Homemade bread way I do things.
I don't want to write myself off as completely having no money saving skills or OS skills only I have an awful lot to learn from this site to do it my way which people might find offensive, or extravagant as I don 't fit into their way of budgeting. I live and let live and take advice which is helpful. Many ways to skin a cat/save money many styles not one size fits all.

nobodyspecial

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver wrote: »

Old Style Lifestyle I use:
Slow Cooker for cooking not exclusively but a lot.
Breadmaker invaluable for making bread. Ready made and Homemade bread way I do things.
I don't want to write myself off as completely having no money saving skills or OS skills only I have an awful lot to learn from this site to do it my way which people might find offensive, or extravagant as I don 't fit into their way of budgeting. I live and let live and take advice which is helpful. Many ways to skin a cat/save money many styles not one size fits all.

Totally agree You should take the bits that suit and leave the rest There are very few diehards who are totally inflexible, they're best read and forgotten :rotfl::cool: Good luck with your OS learning, I bet you have many useful tips yourself ( from a lurker more than a poster )

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

nobodyspecial wrote: »

Totally agree You should take the bits that suit and leave the rest There are very few diehards who are totally inflexible, they're best read and forgotten :rotfl::cool: Good luck with your OS learning, I bet you have many useful tips yourself ( from a lurker more than a poster )

Personal Finance and Lifestyle are such personal things and can be offensive if you admit to having to depend on certain things. Bankers never seem to get the ire and punishment they deserve and we are all aware of how they are swearwording us all up, Big Businesses don't get it just the poor.
Best to manage things so you get to be a MSE but in your lifestyle where you self preserve as well to help save money.

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

How does everyone deal with US emphasis. The family dimension makes me difficult to interpret as a single.

Hovel_lady

FZwanab wrote: »

http://74.125.39.104/search?q=cache:BU5qqU--x-8J:www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/05/14/an-interview-with-amy-dacyczyn-the-author-of-the-tightwad-gazette/+photo+of+amy+dacyczyn&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=ie&client=firefox-a

I know from the OldStyle board that lots of us are big fans of The Complete Tightwad Gazette. The above is a link as to how Amy(the author) is doing these days. I am sure some of you will find it of interest.

Thanks for this, very interesting :T

spiddy100

Personally I've found the TG more of an inspirational book than a practical how-to. Lots of the things she talks about don't translate directly to the UK - you can't get the ingredients for her recipes, we don't have neighbourhood yard sales etc etc. But I love the way she talks about her reasons for living frugally and how she thinks things through. I think you can take her way of thinking about things and look at your life through new eyes. We have different opportunities here as well as different food on our shelves, different shops etc, but I think her philosophy is still really relevent.

lizzyb1812

I agree that the book is valuable as an inspirational tool. It's bound to be US and family based as it is about an American family!

No "yard sales" - no we have all our local yard sales in one place callled a car boot sale. Thrift shops = charity shops. There are a lot of books/sites that are US based - don't laboriously "translate" from US to English - you'll gradually get the lingo and will understand US.

Buying and cooking in bulk works for singles - I am one. Meal planning works for singles, so does budgetting, padding out expensive ingredients with cheaper ones, etc

Old Style isn't about doing things only in the way our grannies would have - it's about a philosophy of being independent, creative, of embracing thrift, not resenting having to do it. The Tightwad Gazette is about exactly this sort of attitude - the author even says somewhere that it's not about her showing you what to cook/do but how to go about it yourself. She's also clearly aware that each of us has to do what we are comfortable with.

Lots of OS'ers don't need to be thrifty/OS but do it anyway for the rewards. Lots of them use breadmakers/processors/blenders/the occasional ready meal. Some want to be thrifty and some need to be - but they embrace it as a challenge, not a chore.

Sorry, have waffled on, but the Gazette has been a HUGE inspiration for me, single and English though I am.

Seakay

Old Style doesn't have to mean pre electronic age - for a start we are all here communicating via a website! There is no shame in using gadgets and time saving devices, in fact it would be wasteful and against the spirit of our forum if you got rid of items which you already own and use regularly.
There are many threads on OS but generally we are about making the most of what we have. Some people are vegetarian, some only buy organic and free range, some buy from the cheapest ranges available. The point is to make the savings necessary to enable you to spend money where you think it is important to do so. We aren't a cult - we are a self help group with many different sub groups!