Savings vs. charging

This is not directed to people on minimum wage. And people who are still paying off student loans taking a large part of their income. It is directed to those that live paycheck to paycheck whose income should cover their expenses and then some. It is directed to those who have charged things they don't need, duplicate things they have, and not saved.

I am also not saying don't ever buy anything. I am saying save and buy wisely.

Many of them are in trouble when the paycheck stops. They have no back up plan but plenty of debt from purchases that were probably not necessary and relegated to some closet or storage area if not thrown out.

I come from a family of savers. My grandmother didn't believe you buy anything until you had the money for it. You also saved for a rainy day, according to her. Thus if we needed a new water heater, the money would be there.

My father was a saver. Ten percent of any paycheck went into the savings account. Because he was a salesman on commission only it could be as little as $3 or as much as $300. In the 1950s and 60s $300 was a lot of money. He always had money for emergencies. And he had money for some fun things too.

As a kid I had a bank account with my own savings book that recorded my small deposits, seldom over a dollar.

As a single mom, money was often tight. There was a period that my disposable income was 25 cents daily, the price of a can of coke. It should have gone into savings, but it didn't always.

As my salary improved money was looser, but I never gave into the habit of not charging things with the exception of my American Express and that had to be paid off each month.

I was lucky by living with another couple for years so my expenses were far less than if I lived alone. Eventually my daughter and I did live alone, but again, I tried to save. At one point I had a Coke bottle bank that came to my waist. I put my change at the end of the day in it. The amount quickly added up to four figures.

There was one time I did end up in debt when I couldn't work normally and my mother was dying of cancer. By the time I moved to Europe, I was in debt and I limited my purchases until I had the cash. At the time I was selling computer services. I lived on my salary and saved all my commissions with the money that didn't go to paying down the debt.

One big saving was not having a car. It wasn't necessary. What I saved allowed me to buy a small apartment in cash. The retirement studio I bought was also paid for in cash. I thought in retirement I would be able to live on about $600 a month. I still could without pensions but fortunately I don't have to. It would be tight. My Nest, as I call it, is adorable and has absolutely everything I need to be comfortable. I have tried not have one extra thing in it.

When I married, we did move to a large place. We bought our furniture that we really like in a recycling shop. They refurnish donations giving work to people who need it, a win-win. We only buy what we love. Nothing ever went on a charge card.

I slapped a good percent of my Swiss salary which was ridiculously high and after years of being underpaid, into savings. I felt it was the universe adjusting itself. It also allowed me to save.

I put five Swiss franc pieces (about $4) in a bank and that paid for my Masters Degree at Glamorgan University in Wales. It was not an expensive program. I needed the money as well for the nine trips required to the campus. EasyJet started with cheap air fares a few weeks after I graduated.

It didn't take too much convincing for Rick to buy our saving pig (photo) for our change. The store owner made us promise to use the plug to open it and not break it open. Rick is slowly converting over to the spending prudently mentality.

That doesn't mean I never spend money. By being frugal there's money for trips anywhere in the world, and we've been to almost every European country, the U.S. and Canada. If the pandemic ends we will travel again. We eat out and attend events from concerts to plays.

It means that I could buy my husband handmade hickory golf clubs for his passion (other than me). It means we don't have to worry about money because our outgo is always less than our projected income stable with pensions and variable from clients.

I may sound sanctimonious. Yup, I definitely do. Blame it on my grandmother.