Oh! My buddy, Kristi, left one of the funniest comments, ever, after my last post. Eight hours after reading it, I am still chuckling at the oddest moments!
"Oh, Debra, at first I didn't get that you were walking around the farm yard in your imagination and had a real moment of consternation! Was this a Tib moment? Or just total dorkiness? (Then my surprise that the farm seemed to be in a whole other climate zone made the penny drop. Finally.)
I fear I have a too literal streak, but I'm working on my imagination, too! I am, I am!"
Oh my goodness... Can't you just see men in white coats chasing me with a big net while I walked all over someone else's yard? They'd catch me and then I'd have to write to you all from a whole other farm--the funny farm. :)
Thank-you, Kristi, for tickling me with your words this entire day.
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Do you remember extreme frugal lady, Amy Dacyczyn, and her Tightwad Gazette books from the 90's? Well, today I found a rare online interview with Amy, someone who pretty much vanished after writing her final book, The Complete Tightwad Gazette (which, being in a frugal mood, I ordered today from Abebooks.com).
Oh and here are blog posts celebrating Amy's books, if you're curious to see what she is about.
What a delight! For perhaps 15 years I'd dreamed of viewing the home she and her husband had saved up to buy for their family of 8--and in this interview--I finally saw it. Wow, how lovely to have long-held wishes granted on an average Tuesday winter afternoon.
Now, some of Amy's ideas from her Tightwad Gazette days were ultra-extreme, but her theme remained the same: Pay attention to the small ways you're wasting your hard-earned dollars. Have specific, meaningful goals for saving money rather than just desiring a bank balance to brag about.
In fact, here's an article she wrote in 1990 stating her own goals for being frugal. When she wrote that people told her:
"Nowadays, a family has to have two incomes to make ends meet." ...
... I recalled how folks told me that if I'd had more than one child, I would have had to go out and work. To which I'd reply, "And where's the Bible verse which says, 'If a woman has 2 or more children, it shall be impossible to survive unless she gets an outside job'?"
(Ever wonder why I'm not popular? Well, there you go. It's stuff like that.) :)
Any other fans of Amy's out there? If so, this 2010 interview/reunion will feel like a visit with a long lost friend and the frugal inspiration will feel priceless. Enjoy.
******
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Do you remember extreme frugal lady, Amy Dacyczyn, and her Tightwad Gazette books from the 90's? Well, today I found a rare online interview with Amy, someone who pretty much vanished after writing her final book, The Complete Tightwad Gazette (which, being in a frugal mood, I ordered today from Abebooks.com).
Oh and here are blog posts celebrating Amy's books, if you're curious to see what she is about.
What a delight! For perhaps 15 years I'd dreamed of viewing the home she and her husband had saved up to buy for their family of 8--and in this interview--I finally saw it. Wow, how lovely to have long-held wishes granted on an average Tuesday winter afternoon.
Now, some of Amy's ideas from her Tightwad Gazette days were ultra-extreme, but her theme remained the same: Pay attention to the small ways you're wasting your hard-earned dollars. Have specific, meaningful goals for saving money rather than just desiring a bank balance to brag about.
In fact, here's an article she wrote in 1990 stating her own goals for being frugal. When she wrote that people told her:
"Nowadays, a family has to have two incomes to make ends meet." ...
... I recalled how folks told me that if I'd had more than one child, I would have had to go out and work. To which I'd reply, "And where's the Bible verse which says, 'If a woman has 2 or more children, it shall be impossible to survive unless she gets an outside job'?"
(Ever wonder why I'm not popular? Well, there you go. It's stuff like that.) :)
Any other fans of Amy's out there? If so, this 2010 interview/reunion will feel like a visit with a long lost friend and the frugal inspiration will feel priceless. Enjoy.
******
7 comments:
I love Amy Dacyczyn! I had all 3 of her books for years but then I gave them away and bought The Complete Tightwad Gazette. Also I tried to watch her interviews on TV whenever she was on. I miss her! What a frugal genius.
Oh I forgot! I also used to get her monthly newsletter. Yeah, I'm a fan.
I recall reading her Tightwad Gazette newsletter years ago.
And how fun you got so many giggles from your friend's comment, and I am glad to hear the men in white coats were not needed (thus far).
Yes, definitely a fan of Amy's...wondered too what had happened to her...thanks for the link!! I THINK I gave her book to my daughter...but it might be in my small stash in the storage unit too...been awhile since we have been there. Eventually, once we have a better idea where we are headed, we will know what to keep and what to dispense with in our storage unit too. Patience in all things!
Elizabeth in VA
Totally loved Amy's attitude about frugality but never any stinginess. I still have a large notebook with all her newsletters and the books. They get loaned out a lot.I still review them off and on myself. She was a wonder. so humble but wise. She talked the talk and walked the walk. I just bought a used copy of her book for a friend two weeks ago. Sounds like we all knew about her!! Sarah
I read all her books many years ago and a friend and I shared her newsletter.
Thanks for posting the video.
I've been a huge fan of Amy Dacyczyn's since the nineties, when I discovered her first book. I had all three and read them more than once. I gave them to someone who needed them, and then bought the Complete Tightwad Gazette. I have read it so many times, I practically have some of it memorized.
I especially love the success stories at the back of the book. When need motivation, I reread those stories.
I saw that interview about a year ago. Amy's house is beautiful, and she is living her dream due to her frugality.
nancyr
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