Cheap Week

A few months ago, my wife and I were discussing various ways that we could modify our lifestyle or our habits to save additional money and cut back on our spending. As a result of that discussion, we came up with the idea to have a "Cheap Week". For one week, my wife and I engaged in a variety of money saving activities in an effort to reduce our electricity bill, our food bill and our overall living expenses. We established rules that had to be followed as well as a point system to track demerits and awards throughout the week. We decided against a cash prize for the winner as this would be counterproductive, but instead, settled on bragging rights for being the cheapest person.

We began with some moderate adjustments such as establishing time limits for showers and not running the sink while shaving or brushing our teeth. We lowered the thermostat on the hot water heater as well as the heat pump and broke out a few extra blankets for the bed. We scheduled activities such as going for walks or reading books that took the place of our normal television watching or recreational computer use which enabled us to unplug the computer, printer, modem, television, VCR and DVD player. Cooking was restricted to stove-top or gas grill cooking without using the microwave, toaster oven, toaster, coffee maker or oven. In addition, we limited ourselves to bag lunches (no fast food which also cut down on additional driving at lunch time) as well as no snacks from the vending machines. We elected to forgo the weekly trip to the video store and dusted off some board games that were in the closet instead. We drastically reduced our number of errands to one planned trip after work half way through the week. We also designated Wednesday as our laundry day as well as commiting to washing dishes by hand instead of using the dish washer.

The Sunday afternoon before Cheap Week began, we sat and clipped coupons for all of the items that we would purchase from the store. We agreed to buy only what we needed and we were awarded one bonus point for every $0.50 that we saved in coupons. The trip to the store was mildly depressing as we loaded the three small bags of groceries into the car. To add additional insult to injury, my wife managed to save $3.00 at the store so she was awarded 6 bonus points...already I was behind. I started to wonder if this was such a good idea. I spent that evening unplugging all of the extra electronic devices that we agreed that we wouldn't use and locating candles that we had stashed in various boxes and drawers. We finally went to sleep that night without the mind numbing sound of the television droning in the background and instead, I worked a few cross word puzzles by candlelight before turning in for the night.

The next morning I awoke and began preparing my breakfast of cold cereal and buttered bread (no toast). The instant coffee was bitter, murky, and lukewarm but considerably warmer than the three minutes of torture that I endured during my frigid shower. I managed to survive shaving out of a cup of warm water without cutting myself and after dressing in the dark, packed a sandwich and an apple in a brown paper bag (we were literally brown bagging it) and left for work. I called my wife an hour later and she seemed amazingly undaunted by the limitations that we self-imposed. I briefly wondered if she really only took a 5 minute shower and whether or not her bread was toasted but soon dismissed the idea when I heard the clank of dishes being hand washed in the sink.

Lunch time was a lonely time as all of my associates departed for their afternoon feasts. I sat in the vacant lunch room thumbing through a magazine as I ate my sandwich. I eyed my apple as the hum of the nearby vending machine taunted me with its' delectable snacks of salty goodness and sugar laced delights. I sized up the soda machine as I downed the last of the water in my reusable canister - I wasn't even allowed the pleasure of purchasing a fresh, chilled bottle of spring water. By the time I arrived home, I was slightly past grumpy but was greeted by my smiling wife. She informed me that she had spent the day pouring over her accounting books in preparation for an upcoming exam that she had. I was skeptical and quickly eyed the power chord to the television. I noted its' exact location so that I could check on this once again the following day to ensure that she wasn't going outside of the rules. While she was setting the dinner table, I ran a hand calmly over her laptop to see if I could detect a heat signature, but again, I found nothing. While she cooked spaghetti and sauce on the stove top, I inspected the countertop for any signs of toast crumbs and still, I found nothing. At that point, I questioned her directly inquiring about the length of her shower but she admitted nothing. I eyed her inquisitively searching for a flaw in her defense but eventually dismissed her as innocent.

I made a point that night to note the exact position of every electrical chord in the house. I laid a small piece of lint upon the heat pump thermostat and diligently cleaned the toaster so that its' abuse would be detectable. As I sat in bed that night mindlessly working my crossword puzzle, she seemed just a bit too content reading her magazine. How could she just sit there and thumb through the pages while I suffered so deeply. I tossed and turned that night until the alarm clock again woke me from my restless slumber. It was Tuesday and that meant that my wife had to attend an early class. I could monitor the length of her shower and ensure that she didn't cook up any toast for breakfast - then I could tell if she was as equally happy that evening if she was deprived of the same luxury as I was. After her brief shower, she dressed quickly and we simultaneously packed our lunches consisting of a sandwich and an apple as well as our respective decanters of mundane tap water. Amazing! She was completely undaunted by these sacrifices and yet I anguished over them.

We parted ways and I bid her good luck on her upcoming test. She smiled brightly and kissed me farewell. My day brightened when I arrived at work and found a quarter in the parking lot. This was half of a bonus point for me and perhaps I might be able to bargain a reprieve with my new found wealth. I proudly pocketed the coin, safeguarding it for future use in the evening while I dreamt of what extravagances that I might partake of with my treasure. At lunch, I called my wife who was in between classes. As she described her test, I heard the tell tale rustle of a plastic cellophane wrapper in the background. I stopped her mid sentence and exclaimed, "What was that....what was that noise I just heard? Are you eating a snack?" She explained that one of her friends had purchased a pack of pastries but didn't want to finish it so she gave it to my wife. "You're cheating!" I exclaimed in victory but this was short lived as she explained that the details of the agreement were that we wouldn't spend any money in the vending machines. Foiled in my attempt to overthrow this agreement, I acquiesced and continued to listen to the details of her test. She had done well and cited Cheap Week as beneficial in her ability to concentrate on her studies. It was then that I realized that perhaps I had planted the seed of a tree that I couldn't control.

My wife saw the misery upon my face as she entered the front door. I sat slumped on the couch reading a coupon for 20% off at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. She knew that I was at my limit and that soon the pressure would break me. I held up my quarter in a half smile and muttered, "I found this in the parking lot today...only 25 cents more and I earn a point." She took me by the hand and led me to the kitchen where she began to prepare dinner. It was a meal that she said that she had hoped to save until Thursday or Friday, but saw that I needed it that night. She cooked up hamburgers on the stove as she diced a small piece of onion. She sliced French fries into shoe strings and fried them as well. She sat me down at the table and served up two burgers wrapped in paper towel saying, "I know that this isn't McDonalds, but it's the closest that I could get". She then produced a sole can of generic cola that she had stashed away in the back of the refrigerator. I looked at her with a tear in my eye as I unwrapped my hamburger and took a bite. She was right, it wasn't McDonalds...it was even better.

That night we played a few rounds of parches by candle light and talked about our day. I did try to negotiate a reprieve of an additional 2 minutes on my shower for the quarter that I had found but settled on continuing my search for additional coins instead. We spent the next 5 days sticking to our plan and it turned out to be a lot more enjoyable than I thought it would be. We took walks and played cards by candlelight and read excerpts from books and magazines to each other. The most important thing that happened was something that we hadn't planned, we spent a lot more time talking and listening and appreciating the quiet time we had together. We successfully completed our week and celebrated it with a pizza and two rented movies that Sunday night. We abided by the rules with only a minor infraction of shower time or a vending machine purchase, but in the end, we did save a considerable amount of money. Most important, we afforded ourselves the opportunity to grow closer and appreciate the time that we have to spend together.