DelBloggolo: FRUGALITY AND LOVE

Monday, January 26, 2015

FRUGALITY AND LOVE

Three engineers and three accountants were all taking a business trip together by train. The accountants each bought a ticket, then watched as the engineers pooled their money and bought a single ticket. The accountants wanted to know how they were all going to travel with just one ticket. The engineers smiled, and one of them said, “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

When they boarded the train, the three engineers all crammed themselves into one bathroom and shut the door. When the conductor came around, he knocked on the bathroom door and said, “Ticket, please.” One arm shot out of the bathroom handing the ticket to the conductor.

On the return trip, the accountants thought they would try the same trick. They pooled their money and bought only one ticket. They watched and noticed that the engineers didn’t buy a ticket at all. One accountant asked, “How do you guys think you’ll manage to ride the train without any tickets?’ The engineers smiled, and one of them said, “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

On the train, the three accountants cram into one restroom, and the three engineers all fit into another one. Shortly after, one of the engineers leaves his restroom and goes to the room that the accountants are in. He knocks and says, “Ticket, please.”

Dear Readers:

The special and lovely Ava

Today I wish to introduce you to two special people who I think are special because they leave something good behind wherever they go. She is special because she is a child and that would be enough for anyone of us to know. She is so special that recently on Facebook, her grandpa wrote about her and just how special she is. Her grandpa is a Paisano of mine from the old neighborhood in Brooklyn, and posted the following:

“The inspiration for this post came from my frugal granddaughter Ava, who likes saving her money and not buying things she doesn’t need...truly a rare quality in a child of the new millennium. She is not demanding every second that her parents buy her this or that; she truly appreciates what she already has. For example, my daughter was looking at new winter jackets, but Ava nixed them as too expensive. She was perfectly happy to wear a hand-me-down from a friend with an older daughter who has given Ava so many nice clothes.

I don't think I saw a twenty-dollar bill until my first job. People gave kids two dollars in an envelope for Communion or Confirmation and you were overjoyed to see that much money in one place. People actually carried change around in their purses or pockets and used it to make purchases. My Dad carried three pounds worth of loose change in his suit jacket pocket. In tough times I would sneak a dime to supplement my allowance. Luxuries were rare for us but not unknown.

Grandpa Jim

One year when my baseball career still showed promise, my parents bought me a Rawlings baseball glove that cost $60 at Davega’s Sporting Goods. I was thrilled of course, but looking back, I now realize it probably represented a week's pay for my Dad. Thrift has become a scarce virtue in the modern era. Few people bother to save up for a significant purchase; they just whip out a credit card that isn't yet maxed out and, like Scarlett O'Hara, worry about the consequences tomorrow.

So my dear Ava, your practical and sensible approach to spending money gives Grandpa hope that your generation will somehow avoid bankrupting the country before my Social Security runs out. Thank you, sweetheart.”