Cheap, Cheap

While I was making dinner this evening, I decided to turn on the telly and see what I had recorded on the DVR while I was dogsitting. I have previously admitted to having an inexplicable attraction to shows that I call train-wrecks. Case in point, the shows about hoarding. I guess you could call it a horrified fascination. The wanna-be psychologist in me wonders how these things happen.

So, for some reason I had decided to record a few episodes of a show about cheapskates. I am not a cheapskate. I try to save on expenses wherever possible, but I do not think it is necessary to live a life of extreme deprivation just for funzies. I was stunned to see some of the things people will do to satisfy their money-saving obsession.

What could be so awful, you ask? For starters, two words:  toilet tissue. One of the two men on the episode I watched does not believe in buying toilet paper. His friend asked to use the facilities and asked where the t.p. was. He showed her a kitchen-sink sprayer attachment that he has rigged to the toilet tank. She decided to wait until she went home. I support her decision;  I like to air-dry my dishes, but air-drying in the loo is not cool.

Oh! There was another fellow who has a clothesline in his kitchen so that he can wash and reuse his paper towels. And dental floss, which he got free from the dentist. Did I mention the coffee singles that he hangs to dry so that he can make five cups from one teabag-type thingie before using it to wash his windows? His wife wanted him to take her out on a monthly date night, so he took her to a matinee at the movie theater. After eating the banana he had made her carry in her purse, he excused himself to throw away the banana peel. Then he dug through the trash can and pulled out a drink and popcorn container. Yes, he went to the restroom and rinsed out the drink cup, and asked for his free refills at the concession stand. And his wife was so thrilled he had gotten her popcorn and a soda! Ick! I wonder what her reaction was when she saw it on tv!

Trent sometimes lovingly teases me about my efforts to save money, but I don't think he will ever have to worry about me getting super cheap. So Trent, I promise you this: I will always want to have toilet paper. I will not ask you to launder paper towels. And when we go to the movies, I will not get your drink out of the trash.