My inheritance...

I've been reminded of things I learned from my parents.

Yesterday, Steve was complaining that his sink was slow. I googled "slow bathroom sink" and found a video clip. I followed the instructions and was so thrilled to pull my pipes apart using wrenches in our toolkit. I found hairballs and black sludge. Steve was grossed out, but I thought it was great. All that junk that wouldn't be slowing down the drain. I felt like a little "Dad". Dad was so self-reliant and could fix anything. I don't have his fix-it skills, but I do have the satisfaction.

Before Christmas, I was in a meeting with the provost. She was so good - asking our opinions and really listening. I've known her for a while so I wasn't surprised, but after the meeting was over, the woman next to me expressed her amazement. Thinking of my mom,I passed the comment along to the provost in an email. Mom used to always say, "If you hear a compliment, pass it on. It is like a double compliment. One person said it, and you agreEd or you wouldn't have passed it on."

The provost thanked me for my note. Several weeks later, I saw the provost as I was leaving the public library. The first thing she said to me was, "Thanks for that note. It made my day."

Thanks,mom and dad.

And there's more. From both my folks I learned to use what you have and appreciate a sale. Mom used to read the ads, make her shopping list, and go to several stores to get the best price on everything. She would have loved "Price matching" and "grocery Smarts". Actually, she didn't need them. She knew a good price when she saw one without needing someone to tell her it was an "extreme" deal. She knew how to make a dollar go far, even when she didn't need to. It was kind of a like a stewardship over the resources that she had been given.

Dad kept all kinds of things "in case he ever needed them". Screws, nails, plumbing supplies, sections of hose, wood, wire... you name it, he saved and filed it for future use.

It is almost like a game with me. Discovering eggs that are near their expiration date, you think of something you can make to use them up. It just seems unappreciative to let them go to waste.

In the past six months, in addition to the pipe cleaning, I've replaced the regulator on our barbecue grill, cleaned out the regulator on the Cache cooker so it works, and replaced the wheels on the sliding glass door screen. These tasks are new to me. I always just assumed the man of the house would do such repairs, even though Steve has never shown much interest. I've finally decided that I can do such things. It is liberating.

I think being frugal is part of my heritage. "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without." Having parents who grew up in the depression, being frugal is a virtue.