Does your wallet look like mine? After a lovely Christmas with family and friends (and Sherlock Holmes and chipmunks), I have scanned my purse and found exactly one piece of lint. Couldn't even afford two!
But cast no worries upon my stubbly shadow... I'll get by. Because along with jujitsu, filleting and slow poisons, I possess the skill of the Shoestring. Not a member of this elite art? Allow me to enlighten you.
Can you fill to bursting three bags of groceries on a mere fifteen dollars? That's Shoestring, baby!
Can you squeeze an extra fifty miles out of a tank flashing the deadly empty warning? That's Shoestring, baby!
Can you pay bills, feed eleven pets, buy presents for nine nieces and nephews and still pay your physician copay without hitting the credit card? All from one paycheck? That's... you get the picture.
Momma's been doing it for years, layering the craft of creative shuffling with the talent of thrift. I learned at the feet of a master. Despite an empty account, a cleaned-out change jar and no further revenue for two weeks (darn you bi-weekly employers!) I am surprisingly comfortable. Because I spent wisely, I have food, gasoline and no impending bills. I have utilized every knotted rainbow Shoestring at my disposal. The trick is not to trip.
I am super-uber-comfy-ish. Which doesn't mean I won't hug the calendar on payday!
I hesitate to write this because I've never known the sort of crippling poverty a lot of people have suffered through, but as a first-class cheapskate, I quite enjoy the challenge of making ends meet. Nothing pleases me more than turning leftovers into a tasty meal or finding some use for a total piece of junk. That sounds like baloney, but I swear it's true. Glad to know there are others who've mastered the art of shoestring.
ReplyDeleteWelcome sister Shoestringer! I cannot complain about finances as many would salivate over my nearly empty wallet but being 'thrifty' (a nicer word than cheapstake, right?) has its rewards! Thanks so much for reading...
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