I will pay you tomorrow for a hamburger today...

I think that this was the line that Wimpy said in the Popeye cartoons.

This is a very typical mindset that many Americans, including myself, have come to resemble.

My parents came to this country with me, my sister, my grandmother, $500 and not a word of English in 1980. We did not go on welfare or accept charity. My parents, who were both professionals (architect and engineer) in the former USSR, went to work doing what ever they needed to take care of us. Within 5 years, we bought a house. Both my sister and I were put through college - and emerged with no debt. Thanks to my families frugality, my parents emerged, after raising two children, with no credit card debt and were able to pay off their house in 20 years. And FYI, neither of my parents had "high-paying" jobs. They were simply FRUGAL. Few dinners out, saving where they could. They had enough for the essentials and 2 frugal vacations a year. And you know what...I really didn't feel like I was missing out.

So, why didn't I pay more attention and inherent their frugality?? I've been using the "Wimpy" way of spending recently and with this economy I have had a reality check.

So....I will try to save more. And be accountable here. Maybe I can change my habits and save more than I spend, make a dent in my debt and save enough for a contingency plan that doesn't involve my 401(k) plan (at least in its' current state).

Today I brought my lunch and spent no cash. Stay tuned for tomorrow...