Selfsufficientish.com

Thrifty living for the self sufficient types
This lady is certainly not your average thrifty type but she does her best to be self sufficient with what she has or finds before she buys. She's still going on despite the time since the article in the paper (click on home if it sticks on a December message).

So - is this self sufficiency, thrifty or someone who really just is a bit different?

In answer to your question, I think it's the last - maybe brought on by periods real hardship.

I don't know if it's thrifty, or just mean. Don't encourage friends to come round or if they do bring their own teabags. I wonder how many invites she gets to theirs.

There are undoubtedly some very good ideas in there, if you're absolutely broke, and some that might apply to everyone, but as a whole lifestyle choice I'm not so sure.

I suspect that some of the attitude is bought on by being a retired truck driver - that has never been a social lifestyle and I think she did it for some 30 years.

I seem to do most of the things she does already - but I still spend a lot more money. I don't even have a fridge; and why spend £200 or whatever on a new one - you could probably get one for free or a lot less through freecycle. Actually, just the rent on my house is far more than the £2400 she says she spends all year, and it's council... And I won't go to the lengths of asking friends to bring their own teabags - I even buy milk if I know a friend is coming, and I don't use it myself!

I suppose if she doesn't drink tea herself, it would be unreasonable for her to stock them in case of visitors. The article didn't read like that though - just anything to save a penny or two. Mind, that could just be the journalistic slant!

The journalistic slant ignores the fact that she has internet access, owns a house, does have a car.

She is very thrifty, but it has the slight feel of a hobby in the very rigorous way it's implemented, if that makes sense.

There are some tips on the blog that are just a bit odd - for example, the one about ditching clock radios, which have an incredibly low power drain from the LED segment.

Some similarities I note with my Mum, who ruthlessly hunts down yellow label food regardless of whether she wants to eat it or not :D

A former colleague of mine used to buy anything yellow label - and then bring it in to work and distribute it to all and sundry, whether they wanted it or not! :)