Day Four: A steal or a deal, the conundrum of coupons

The month of November is National Blog Posting Month.  This is my 5th year participating. This year, for thirty days, I'll be telling stories from some point in my life.  Enjoy!






Okay, so this isn't much of a story, but it's a long post.  Which might lead you to believe it's a story.  

Just go with it.

There are many things in my life that I have an aversion to.  Like, fish and all things aquatic, yellow cars, driving on the freeway, beans,  little kids who eat their boogers and people who just don't know when to stop talking.

One of my many aversions however often really bugs people and for me. Yes folks, I'm talking about coupons.

I don't use coupons, or qupons, depending on how you say it.  They make me feel....well...cheap.  Sort of like I'm stealing.  Now, I appreciate a deal as much as the next person but there is just something a little sneaky about someone who will buy 15 newspapers and go to 20 grocery stores to get a buy one get one free on a bar of soap and end up with 76 bars of soap by the time the day is out.

A few months ago I went to a coupon party to learn about how to make the newspaper and Tuesday mail ads work for me.  To save money.  To make my grocery bill only $50 a week instead of $150.  I really like the idea, but not the crate of folders involved.  To start the party, the presenter had each participant go around and talk about their families, their grocery habits and whether or not they use coupons.

My introduction went like this:
Hi, I'm Annie.  There are four people in my family.  We do the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace stuff and only use cash for all of our purchases.  I do not use coupons.

Outspoken person at the party said to me, "Why not?"

I replied, "Coupons make me feel cheap."

Person at the party, "Are you a snob?"

reply in my head, "Maybe, but so what?"

You see, I just can't do it.  I feel like I need to pay for food and toilet paper what the asking price is.  Now my sister, she'll shop around for weeks for a toilet brush and buy one at the dollar store on .88 cent Tuesday  because she thinks that $6 dollars for a toilet brush is too much money.  But me?  I just figure that I should pay what I'm told.

Now with all that being said, here's the conundrum I face.  When it comes to nearly everything except items at the grocery store or at Target, I'm always willing to jump on the deal bandwagon.  In fact, I'll wait for coupon codes for photo books, prints of pictures, clothes and every thing else so I don't have to pay full price. I live for free shipping.  I figure that all I wear are t-shirts and stretchy pants and that because I go though three t-shirts a day (thank you sons!) that I shouldn't have to pay $18 dollars for a t-shirt that is just going to get puked on, snotted on, or slimmed.

Ages ago when I was a teacher, there used to be this thing called the Eddie Bauer Outlet Sale at one of the local convention centers.  Boy oh boy did I save my money for that one.  I loved being told that even though I'd spent $200, I'd saved $300 on slacks, button down shirts, and dress shoes.  It was awesome.

And, though I'm very upset about it, my favorite place for t-shirts is officially out of business at the end of this week.  I discovered on vacation in St. George at the beginning of October that Shade Clothing was going out of business.  And guess what folks, I panicked like a chicken about to get it's head cut off.  Minus the quarterly trip to Old Navy for some throw aways, the staple of my wardrobe is the super long "modest" t-shirt.  This going out of business hit me hard in an emotional sort of way.  I have not however, let it stop me from taking advantage of the Shade loss.  In the last few weeks, I've bought enough t-shirts to last me the next three years.  Seriously.  And, if that wasn't enough, I drove 40 minutes out of my way today with two munchkins to go to the warehouse sale with a bunch of other desperate moms to buy up as many t-shirts in my size (and for other people my size) for ONE DOLLAR EACH.

The thrill of that sale?  Exhilarating.  I spent $31 dollars and got 31 shirts.

No wonder people hoard stuff.