BOGO's A sign of the economic times, frugalistas and recession redefined.

It seems that even plastic surgeons are experiencing tough times.

FOX "News"

I hardly need to comment on this "post consumer" world, consumer "sweetener" so I will blog about something else.

Current Factoids:

89 US Banks have been closed so far in the united States this year.

9.1 Million people working part time for economic reasons - like no jobs. (not considered unemployed). These individuals indicated that they were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.

16.8% unemployed or under- employed (highest figure ever)

We may already be out of the recession (I doubt it!) but I am pretty sure that my savings has not been restored to post 2007 levels, has yours? So my tendency will be to spend less, save more and be frugal.

There's a good word "frugal" M-W definition: characterized by or reflecting economy in the use of resources.

During my childhood "frugal" was always a complement, so when I say someone is frugal, I don't mean "cheap" I mean one who reflects on the economical use of resources. Thus should make sense to the "greenies" and I might be one, I have a wind turbine to make my electricity, and a car that gets 37 MPG, and I drive it less than 5000 miles per year and my flying has been reduced to a few trips per year, down from around 50 or more.

Wait there is more, in 2008 the Oxford Dictionary folks short listed the best new words in the English language and one was frugalista, defined as “a person who lives a frugal lifestyle but stays fashionable and healthy by swapping clothes, buying secondhand, growing own produce, etc.” This could become the nom de guerre of the “recession warrior" From NY Times on-line William Safire (thank you Bill)

But wait there is even more. Frugalista has been co-opted to mean a person who spends their hard earned money on new "less" expensive things. It no longer means what it did as recently as December of 2008.

Target Stores has a new advertising campaign for frugalistas, the ones who buy new stuff, not the ones, like my wife, who often shop "lightly worn" stores.

Now here is a revisionist definition. Recession: A short period in the business cycle when lots of people choose not to work and everyone stops to count their money.