Thursday, July 24, 2008

The Ethics of Frugality - My Take

Since the last post didn't gather enough votes for survey, I am not going to derive any results from your comments. However this is how I feel about them.

>> 1) Printing personal stuff on the office printer

Well this is a moral grey area. But I do tend to print out air tickets, maps etc. But using it for anything more than 10 pages is cheap.

>> 2) Taking office stationery or pens home

Again cheap. But I am guilty of having some office pens, post it notes etc in my bag. This in itself is cheap, but taking thinks like staplers is really super cheap.

>> 3) Buying clothes at Walmart or thrift/second hand clothing stores

No. I could never do this. Walmart clothes are cheap, but they look and feel cheap too. I have heard horror stories of people returning clothes after wearing them and I really don't know if Walmart just places them back on the shelves.

>> 4) Driving without the ac on on a hot day to save gas

Well, this isn't ethically wrong and in fact anything to save gas is a good thing. But again, I don't think I could do this, coz I am a brat and I love my comforts :-)

>> 5) Taking home sugar or ketchup packets, tissues, plastic cutlery etc home from a fast food joint.

Cheap! But I have been guilty of this a couple of times. Sometimes when I am on a long road trip, I do take tissues to the car. And once when we ran out of sugar at home, I took some sugar packets from the campus coffee shop. (In my defense I don't have a car and the nearest supermarket is 2 miles away)

>> 6) Tipping less than 15% or even not tipping

Super duper cheap. But I have noticed a lot of desis doing this. 15% is the minimum tip to leave. It is not a generous tip, but it's a decent one. 20% is righteous. I tip between 15-20% on all times. As should you all. Waiters really depend on the tip for survival, they are paid minimum wage or even lesser in most establishments.

>> 7) Sharing a refill drink

Ewww again. This is so not cool.

>> 8) Sneaking soda and snacks into the movie theatre

Well this isn't very cool either, but I have been guilty of this a couple of times and would really like to do more of this. But these people charge $4 for a small glass of soda. $4 can buy a 12 can pack at the grocery store. I mean I pay $6 for my movie ticket! Move theatre popcorn is of course sacrosanct. Everyone knows a movie is not a movie without popcorn!

>> 9) Insist on separate checks when going out on a group

Well, I guess there is nothing wrong in doing this. I have borne the brunt of this many times (being the vegtarian, non drinker of the group). But I never feel like asking for separate checks. Of course I will happily take advantage if someone else suggests them :-)

>> 10) Cutting coupons and shopping at 3 different stores for monthly groceries

A smart, wise move! I don't do this right now, but I certainly hope to do this once I am married and have my own home. (Imagine me wearing an apron and cutting aprons. I feel all housewife-y :-) )

So there you go gentle readers. I've done my part. You guys go and have a fun weekend.

6 comments:

Sandeep said...

Sodas in movie theaters.holy crap yeah!!....They do overcharge.absolutely nothing wrong in sneaking in your own. I See it as my way of getting back at 'em!!

And i thought you were gonna blog about something else.but thats ok.
lemme expect that in your post weekend blog!

Juggernaut said...

you are cheap

Jinguchakka said...

yo dude!
:-)

Jinguchakka said...

Ma'am, I am waiting for your next post.
Blog na!!

Unknown said...

umm, what abt refilling your water bottles out of a fountain at the airport..lol. i do that;) coz it sucks to pay for water..

Unknown said...
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