Frugal living
becomes a lifestyle that hits and is widely followed, especially by young
people. Simply put, frugal living is a frugal lifestyle that can save
every month. Anything that is the way of life of sparing in order to save can be applied by Menong's friends. Check it out!
Before
I got married, I never applied my financial bookkeeping. Consciously
not coming from the family, I am used to living a simple life and not
too ‘ngoyo’ to have something that I can’t reach. So actually, frugality
becomes my ninja path every month 😎. And it seems like saving should start to be used as a routine habit that is done.
The Marriage Deal
Before getting married, Zauji and I made some preliminary deals, including how household finances will be.
We
began inventorying sources of income and how to manage expenses each
month. My salary is personally used for regular expenses, while the
overtime honor that I sometimes get is allocated for savings. Zauji's
income itself is divided in two for business capital and adds savings
every month. And we agreed that Zauji was the one who managed the
finances of the two of us.
Deal!!
Pay Off The debt first
Do I have debt? This is one of the questions that Zauji used to ask me before the wedding first.
To
be honest, at that time I still had a debt installment to the bank that
I used to renovate my mother's house. Actually, I will not sully Zauji to
help pay off because the loan is used for my family's needs. But Zauji
said the repayment of debt is the responsibility of the husband, especially since the debt is a debt of installments to the bank.
Because
we intend to stay away from usury, we pray to be given the ease of
paying off installments. Biidznillah, somehow, even though at the beginning
of marriage our balance was almost zero, three months later we both
could pay off the remaining installments that were nominally more than
Rp. 50 million. Not to mention the debt to individuals, whose amount was
almost Rp. 50 million, which we paid off a year later.
Thankfully,
life feels easier because there is no longer a burden to pay
installments. Especially in the time of the pandemic, when the economic
sector is shaken, we can survive even when Zauji and the mother of
surgery are back and forth to enter the hospital at the same time.
The Best Al-S.
As a sandwich generation, we realize our duty is to take care of the needs of Mother and Mother Zauji as a form of birrul walidain (eligibility to parents). Whatever
the wishes of Mother and Mother Zauji, we never refused or limited them. For
our parents, this is the time for us to ‘slave’ and fulfill whatever
they want, whether for daily purposes or just having fun.
Not
only that, but Zauji also does not limit or eliminate our habits before
marriage, such as sharing with relatives in need. For us, the rizki and
achievements we get are all thanks to prayers from parents and family.
Buy something according to need
At
the beginning of the wedding, we were both still traveling with 'sidukun,' a 2008 Yamaha Vega R motorcycle that was bought in 2012. The
frame of the motor is full of duct tape, a speedometer that is no longer working, and the seat and shock breaker that
no longer feel soft. 'The shaman' accompanies us not only to
Bandung Raya but also to Tangerang, Bogor, Sukabumi, Purwakarta,
Cianjur, Subang, and Garut.
Many
ask why Zauji and I went everywhere just by motorcycle, including out
of the city that is quite far from the city of Bandung.
Meanwhile, the need to have a car does not become urgent. Until now we do not have our own house and are still going back and forth between the houses of Mother and Mother Zauji, who both do not have a car garage.
Especially with the condition of Zauji's eyes after retinal ablation surgery, of course Zauji can no longer drive a car safely. Ojol or renting a car becomes an option when we need a car to travel.
Early
in 2021, after the money was collected, we replaced the 'si shaman' with
a motormatic 110 cc second so that I could ride my own bike if Zauji
could not drive me. Why not a bike with a bigger, cooler cc? The answer
is because of my height; with the motor BEAT alone, my legs are still
tip-licking, let alone with a bigger and taller motor.
Item Seken
In
addition to Matic motorbikes, we also often buy second-hand items for us to
use, especially Zauji, who has long played at OLX (even since the era of
Kaskus and Good Stores). Surprisingly, we often get cheap goods
whose quality is not inferior to new goods. Surfing in OLX becomes
part of the way of saving life in order to save.
Just look, the HP Infinix
Seken that Zauji uses still has a warranty period left of 11 months
because the old owner was forced to sell his new HP because of the
desperate need. The Netbook Celeron Zauji was also obtained at a price of
Rp. 800,000 only (with minimalist conditions, of course).
I
also finally got a printer/scanner, the HP Deskjet Advantage 2677, only at a
price of Rp. 100 thousand with a normal 90% condition (only the rollers sometimes have to be pushed for the paper to slide out).
Use a promo or discount
Promos
or discounts are certainly attractive to anyone, including me. For
monthly shopping, I chose to shop at the BORMA Store, where the
price is relatively cheaper than other stores. Call it; the pasteurized
milk of the ULTRA brand is usually priced at Rp. 21 thousand; we can get
it at a price of Rp. 18 thousand only. It's bad, isn't it?
I
am also not pegged to a particular brand for all routine purposes
(herds, Odol, floor cleaners, cooking oil, socks, etc.). The best products
with promo or discount prices are the first choice.
We
sometimes find a store that sells its goods below normal prices. Like a
jacket of parachutism and a crushed shirt that I bought at a price of
Rp. 50 thousand. Since I’m not brand-minded, I don’t mind buying clothes, bags, or shoes that are not branded.
This
is one example of an outfit that I wear to the office (new, yes, not
thrifted or pre-loved): A gamis without sleeves, a kind of premium 40K jersey, a 20K hemp cotton blazer, 30K inner pants, a 12.5K rectangular motif
veil, 8K cut, 8K sleeve cuffs, a 5K brooch, SOKA 10K socks, and rubber material shoes I bought in the market for 35K.
What
about the end result of this frugal life? For us, savings are not to be
saved forever, just stacking treasures without any purpose. We are
currently saving to pay off the Hajj financing for our estimated departure in 2027. Even with the need for treatment of the mother and Zauji, who are still walking.
Although
we save a lot, it doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy what we’ve achieved.
Until now, Zaji never forbade me to buy anything I wanted and liked,
like clothes, jewelry, and more. At least every Saturday and Sunday we
try new culinary experiences. We even still often travel both short distances, such as Cianjur and Pangandaran, or long distances, such as Yogyakarta and Palembang.
Agreeing
to apply a frugal way of life in order to save does not mean refraining
from everything because using money for good is actually a part of the
form of gratitude to Allah SWT for the provision that He gives. It’s
just that, sort and choose which primary needs/additional
needs/additional needs. Congratulations on saving and saving. 😍
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