Back in '94, I picked up a copy of the first installment of 3 books, later made into what is known today as 'The Complete Tightwad Gazette.' Seems Ms. Dacyczyn had had huge success living a frugal life, and started a newsletter to share the good news. She got such a following that she was regularly featured in newspapers, magazines and on t.v., and soon publishers came knocking, asking if she'd put all her newsletters into book form.
Amy's dream was to have a large family and a pre-1900's New England farmhouse, on one income. Crazy thing was, she made her dream come true. In less than 7 years, on an annual income that never went above $30,000, she and her husband saved $49,000, made significant appliance, furniture and car purchases of $38,000, and were completely debt free. She got her house, and an eventual 6 kids!
I am not kidding. This is not a fiction book. In 959 pages, Amy spells out exactly how she made her dreams come true, and tells you that YOU can too.
It's not an easy life she outlines. Amy and her family do without a lot of the things average Americans believe are necessary for a happy life. They rarely go out to eat or buy new clothing, and they hang onto their vehicles until they run them into the ground. They make a large majority of their birthday and Christmas gifts, and they also buy a great deal second hand. They have a huge garden and grow a lot of their food, and do without convenience mixes. When they need something, they do a lot of research, wait for the best price, and save their money until the time is right.
Amy doesn't sugar coat anything. She's truthful to a fault, and she tells in her book about the outright nasty things people say to her. She's been accused of child abuse numerous times for buying her kids second hand clothes and NOT buying them potato chips. She recounts how one child insisted on store bought snacks for a while, and one daughter gave her a very hard time with her second hand wardrobe. Many people view her as too extreme for 'normal' American life...........but then you go back to how much money she saved, on such a small income.
I've had this book for 18 years now, and I find new things every time I read it. I just got it out again, and I'm going to read it cover to cover, because these are scary economic times. We have to make a change, y'all. With a staggering debt that we're leaving to our children, we can no longer fritter away money mindlessly. I don't follow every single one of Amy's suggestions (I don't recycle dryer lint), but many appeal to me.
Amy was able to retire from the newsletter back in the late 90's. Her husband had retired several years before, from the Navy. They paid off their house and were able to send all of their children to college (if they wished). Several developed a healthy love of spending, but all of them had instilled in them some of the best frugality lessons ever.
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