Being less wasteful

I love being frugal. Scoring a great deal on an item in a store gives me the nicest rush. I love even more when I get something for free! I have toyed with the idea of homesteading, and one day, I will get there. I just need to make time. My most recent hobby will be backpacking. My little trip to the mountains sort of lit a little fire in me and got me wanting to get out and experience something new. An interesting thing has happened since the backpacking bug bit: I have been trying to figure out ways to do more with less. Doesn't seem like that big of a revelation. A lot of people are having to do that these days, what with the economic crisis. We are having to cut back, but there is nothing wrong with that. I am learning to re-purpose and re-use, rather than just tossing junk out to go buy new junk. Every little bit helps.

My grandfather knew that. He was a dumpster diver back in the day. We all picked on him... now they have TV shows about these people! I'm not sure if I am ready to go that far, but the idea of doing more with less appeals to me more and more, given that we live paycheck to paycheck with almost no wiggle room. It's very stressful. It can be tough on the marriage, tough on the kids.... It would be nice to do things without spending money.