Mustachian things you do that "ordinary people" think are strange...

[Better Late Than Never]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).

Hitting a bird or other animal is not covered under "collision" coverage but is covered under "other than collision" coverage, also known as "comprehensive" coverage. Many people carry other than collision coverage but not collision coverage on older cars, so if you have other than collision coverage, you may have coverage, depending on your deductible.

[ketchup]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).

Hitting a bird or other animal is not covered under "collision" coverage but is covered under "other than collision" coverage, also known as "comprehensive" coverage. Many people carry other than collision coverage but not collision coverage on older cars, so if you have other than collision coverage, you may have coverage, depending on your deductible.

I'm not paying for comprehensive insurance.  But according to State Farm's website, I have comprehensive with a deductible of $99,999,999.  So I'll just pay that and have it all taken care of.

[Arktinkerer]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).

Hitting a bird or other animal is not covered under "collision" coverage but is covered under "other than collision" coverage, also known as "comprehensive" coverage. Many people carry other than collision coverage but not collision coverage on older cars, so if you have other than collision coverage, you may have coverage, depending on your deductible.

I'm not paying for comprehensive insurance.  But according to State Farm's website, I have comprehensive with a deductible of $99,999,999.  So I'll just pay that and have it all taken care of.

I'm shocked you hit a deer at 60MPH and had so little damage!  That would total some smaller cars and often is a major accident because the deer comes thru the windshield!  Did you just clip the deer with the corner of the car?

[Pooperman]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).

Hitting a bird or other animal is not covered under "collision" coverage but is covered under "other than collision" coverage, also known as "comprehensive" coverage. Many people carry other than collision coverage but not collision coverage on older cars, so if you have other than collision coverage, you may have coverage, depending on your deductible.

I'm not paying for comprehensive insurance.  But according to State Farm's website, I have comprehensive with a deductible of $99,999,999.  So I'll just pay that and have it all taken care of.

I'm shocked you hit a deer at 60MPH and had so little damage!  That would total some smaller cars and often is a major accident because the deer comes thru the windshield!  Did you just clip the deer with the corner of the car?

Oh deer.

But seriously, from the description of the damage, my throught was that the headlight area is what hit the deer and the deer then smacked into the door and shattered the window (plus doing whatever other damage happened).

[ketchup]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).

Hitting a bird or other animal is not covered under "collision" coverage but is covered under "other than collision" coverage, also known as "comprehensive" coverage. Many people carry other than collision coverage but not collision coverage on older cars, so if you have other than collision coverage, you may have coverage, depending on your deductible.

I'm not paying for comprehensive insurance.  But according to State Farm's website, I have comprehensive with a deductible of $99,999,999.  So I'll just pay that and have it all taken care of.

I'm shocked you hit a deer at 60MPH and had so little damage!  That would total some smaller cars and often is a major accident because the deer comes thru the windshield!  Did you just clip the deer with the corner of the car?

It probably was pretty close to a "least-bad case" scenario of hitting a deer.  I was driving the big tank-like car (1992 Buick Roadmaster) instead of my small tin-can car (1999 Metro).  It hit the headlight first head-on, then bounced from the quarter panel to the driver's door, crunching the door and shattering its glass (still latches closed normally though surprisingly).

The damage (crunched door not super-visible):
(Clickable thumbnail)

Oh deer.

But seriously, from the description of the damage, my throught was that the headlight area is what hit the deer and the deer then smacked into the door and shattered the window (plus doing whatever other damage happened).

Yep, nearly exactly correct!

[Inevitable]

I never buy bottled water, just use my own reusable water bottle (this seems totally normal to me and just common sense, but I have so many coworkers who bring bottles of Perrier or go through 1-2 bottles of spring water a day. The tap/drinking fountain water in the office is completely safe...we even have a community Brita pitcher in our work fridge...I will simply never understand this.)

If I lived in a place with nasty-tasting tap water (such as Southern California), I'd have to find a source for decent water in returnable 5-gallon jugs. Buying individual bottles is so wasteful, and where I live it's unnecessary--we have perfectly clean, safe, good-tasting tap water here.

But I refuse to keep buying reusable water bottles, only to lose them. My solution? At one of my volunteer gigs, there's a lost and found. I'm always pawing through it to see what's in there. If I see something I'm interested in, I give it a full month before claiming it for myself, figuring that if the item was that important to somebody, they would have come for it by then. And that's where all my stainless water bottles and coffee mugs come from.

What amazes me is how squeamish other people are about using someone else's water bottle. Somehow, the bottles still have cooties even after a thorough washing in hot water. I swear, I could autoclave the damned things and people would still not want to use them--and these are the same people who have no problem shopping at thrift stores, or using common mugs and dishes from the office break room. It's just...strange. But it means I'm never without a water bottle, so I guess I'm cool with it.

I always drink tap water, but every now and then we do buy a 30 or 32 pack (I can't ever remember) pack of bottled water from Sam's Club.  This water lasts a very long time in our house since we just grab a bottle on occasion while running out the door (we do not prepare well like most of you, so a refillable bottle would never work lol).  If we have guests over they always go for the bottled water if they notice it, even after watching me drink our tap water.  It's almost as if they think the tap water is tainted somehow.

[kewper]

What is the benefit to disabling one that is already taking up space?


I HATE my fridge. It is a side by side. I want my bottom freezer again so bad, but this one came with the house and i'm not replacing something that works perfectly well.  I do like the water dispenser in the door, but I'd rather have the nice set up instead of that.

Mine is side by side too with a broken ice maker.  I hate it.  I shove things in the ice hopper and exit chute like bread etc.  I also hate it because it's not a full-sized fridge (it's short--not sure what the previous homeowners were thinking).   I just got a chest freezer for free!!! though so I can freeze to my heart's content.

_{edited for spelling error.}

[russianswinga]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.

Did you at least take the carcass home and grill the venison on the bbq? ;)

[justajane]

What is the benefit to disabling one that is already taking up space?


I HATE my fridge. It is a side by side. I want my bottom freezer again so bad, but this one came with the house and i'm not replacing something that works perfectly well.  I do like the water dispenser in the door, but I'd rather have the nice set up instead of that.

Mine is side by side too with a broken ice maker.  I hate it.  I shove things in the ice hopper and exit chute like bread etc.  I also hate it because it's not a full-sized fridge (it's short--not sure what the previous homeowners were thinking).   I just got a chest freezer for free!!! though so I can freeze to my heart's content.

_{edited for spelling error.}

From what I understand, ice makers use a fair amount of energy when they are on. 
http://lifehacker.com/5792410/save-some-serious-energy-and-money-by-turning-off-your-ice-maker

[whydavid]

Lots of very creative ideas in this thread.

The things we do that turn the most heads are not at all creative or unique:

Drive the speed limit (not hypermiling, per se, though we do try to avoid needing the brakes)
Do our own home maintenance (last 6 weekends were spent prepping/painting the exterior of our 2-story house; the rubber-necking from drivers-by was amazing)
Bring my lunch to work...and get by with a snack of almonds from my emergency supply in my desk on those rare days where I forget to bring something
     Corollary: I drink the company-provided free coffee instead of bringing my own K-cups to use in the Keurig someone brought in, or paying $2 per cup from the coffee stand

Participating in (and later becoming an unintentional evangelist for) the company high-deductible health plan has been another head-turner, but mostly in a good way.  When I help people do the math, and they realize the high-deductible plan premium + $4000 deductible - $1200 company contribution is significantly less than the comprehensive plan premium alone, their jaws drop.  I say "unintentional evangelist" because I've never sought anyone out to explain this; it came up in conversation once, spread like wildfire, and ever since then folks have sought me out to learn more.

[infogoon]

     Corollary: I drink the company-provided free coffee instead of bringing my own K-cups to use in the Keurig someone brought in, or paying $2 per cup from the coffee stand

It shocks me how rare this is. I've been asked more than once "how can you drink that?" by someone with a Tim Horton's cup in their hand.

Sorry, Canada, but Tim Horton's coffee isn't that great, either.

[Threshkin]

I hit a deer the other night with my car at 60mph.  I'm fine.  My girlfriend is fine.  The car is mostly fine.  Needs a new front driver's door (and window), new left headlight, and "could use" a new front quarter panel to look 100% again, but it still drives 100% as-is.

People seem shocked that a) I don't have collision insurance, b) that I'm fixing the car instead of replacing it, and c) that I'm still driving it as-is until I can fix it this weekend with junkyard parts (and constantly checking the weather forecast for rain).  It's still a fine car, and still drives just fine.  It's an old body-on-frame tank of a car, and there is absolutely no reason not to fix it.  People love excuses to buy new things, and I just don't get it.  If I had hit the deer differently and ended up with a cracked radiator or actual structural/mechanical problem of some kind I could kind of see it, but dumping the car for this would have been asinine.  The airbags didn't even go off.

Side note: automotive glass is made with some sort of excellent engineering wizardry.  The driver's front window half a foot from my face completely shattered into a million pieces, but none of them hit us at all.  All the shards ended up either outside the car, or inside the car between the seat and the door.  Magical.

When this story started, I expected it to end with "and then we ate the deer".

(as in getting accidental free deer meat was your strange mustachian thing)

No, sadly.  We were five hours from home; if we had been closer I would have definitely considered it.

I think the "driving a car after it has cosmetic damage" thing is one of the most difficult things for a "middle-class" person to deal with.  I had a car for a long time ('95 Geo Prizm) that had been partially crushed in the middle (a truck didn't see me and pushed me into a light pole -- it was a little like taking the car and crushing it a bit in the middle like a pop can).  The frame was okay but the car was totaled.  It still drove completely fine.  I pocketed the insurance money and just kept driving it for years.  Not gonna lie, I was a little embarrassed by it at first, but hey, the car still ran, it seemed fairly ridiculous to replace it just because it wasn't pretty.  And I kept driving that sucker up until my mom died and left me her car, at which time I donated the Prizm.

I had an old Toyota with faded red paint.  I needed to replace the hood and right front quarter panel but the only junk yard parts I could find were baby blue.  The car worked fine but it sure looked funny!

[Daisy]

We disabled our ice maker in our freezer, and when we buy a new one, we will buy one without an ice maker. They are hard to find. People find this strange,  but ice makers take up so much space that could be better used.

I've turned mine off too. The freezer I have in the new place has the ice fall into the same bottom container (with a movable plastic peice to section it off) as the rest of the freezer. But I need that space for my large amount of pre-cooked frozen meals!

[lauranay16]

I color and cut my own hair as well as that of my kids. I NEVER get my nails done. All my friends think its weird but, I think its weird to pay good money for fake nails and things you can do yourself like hair color.

[Hank Sinatra]

Don't have debt.

Owned my previous car for 20 years

Cut my own hair.

Never eat out  (I have some medically related dietary restrictions that makes it just too much of a pain in the ass to eat out. I am not otherwise a hard-ass mustachian about eating out. I only ate out for job related reasons in the old days anyway)

Don't have cable

Own just a regular cell phone, no modern do-it-all hand-held machines. No notebooks or any Apple crapple.

Don't own a microwave oven either. People have thought I was crazy for that since the 80's

I mow the lawn with an old fashioned reel mower.

I shovel snow with a shovel. No snow blower. (I do have a snow pusher for heavy snow falls though)

[Hedge_87]

We disabled our ice maker in our freezer, and when we buy a new one, we will buy one without an ice maker. They are hard to find. People find this strange,  but ice makers take up so much space that could be better used.

I've turned mine off too. The freezer I have in the new place has the ice fall into the same bottom container (with a movable plastic peice to section it off) as the rest of the freezer. But I need that space for my large amount of pre-cooked frozen meals!

Idk.... we have an ice maker and it is bad ass. I love having ice on demand and not having to mess with refilling trays. but we also have a deep freezer (we buy bucket calves! fryer chickens! and pigs feed them out ourself and butcher them ourself)

[2lazy2retire]

Not having growing up in the US - a lot of the stuff we consider normal our neighbors may consider odd

1/ Hang our clothes out to dry
2/ Mow the lawn ( ourselves)
3/ Never had a cleaner
4/ Rarely eat out
5/ No cable
6/ Run to work
7/ Not a fan of tipping
8/ Happy to pay my taxes ( there is a better word than happy , but..)

[Villanelle]

The one that raises the most eyebrows is my car.  It's a 2000 Toyota Echo.  We live in Germany and the thing for Americans to do here is to by a new Mercedes to drive here and take back to the States with them.  "Everyone" does it.  Menawhile, I have a 15 year old car, which I plan to keep for at least another year, and would definitely keep longer if we weren't moving to Japan.  (We can store it for free-to-us while in Japan, so we may do that, meaning it would be about 19 years old when I started driving it again.)

DH's peers almost invariably have really fancy cars--the aforementioned Mercedes, Volvo SUVs ("you can pick it up in Sweden at the factory and they will pay for your plane ticket up there, so it's like a free vacation"--free, other than the $40k you just spent on a  car, you mean.), Porshe SUVs, etc.  My 15 year old car, which was cheap even when it was new, does not fit in.  I recently had someone tell me they didn't even know cars with manual windows were still around.  Oh, the humanity!  I have to move my arm in order to roll down my window!  I also have to lean across the car in order to unlock the opposite side door!   

[CommonCents]

What is the benefit to disabling one that is already taking up space?


I HATE my fridge. It is a side by side. I want my bottom freezer again so bad, but this one came with the house and i'm not replacing something that works perfectly well.  I do like the water dispenser in the door, but I'd rather have the nice set up instead of that.

Mine is side by side too with a broken ice maker.  I hate it.  I shove things in the ice hopper and exit chute like bread etc.  I also hate it because it's not a full-sized fridge (it's short--not sure what the previous homeowners were thinking).   I just got a chest freezer for free!!! though so I can freeze to my heart's content.

_{edited for spelling error.}

From what I understand, ice makers use a fair amount of energy when they are on. 
http://lifehacker.com/5792410/save-some-serious-energy-and-money-by-turning-off-your-ice-maker

I hate mine too!  It's 24 or 28 years old, and likely an energy sucker.  But - because of the way our kitchen is built we can: 1) replace the fridge with a crazy expensive model that will fit the space or 2) renovate the kitchen so there is space for a proper fridge.  We don't care for either option, so right now we're doing nothing.

[Goldielocks]

One thing that drives me nuts is when my son tells his friends he can't go swimming (or to the movies, or the mall, or lately the "Halloween Store") because he doesn't have any money and they (usually the parents...not the kid) offer to pay his way. My son has plenty of opportunities to earn money...and when he wants something bad enough...he does. I don't like it when they (the parents) pop off with "Well, it's only $10.00...we'll cover it" like we can't afford to give our poor kid an allowance, when the fact is we're trying desperately to teach him not to be a mindless consumer and learn the value of earning his own spending money. I want to rant and rave and point out the fact they are not doing their own kids any favors by spoiling the shit out of them. We've won the battle with him (He'll usually decline on his own if he doesn't have the money or better yet...doesn't want to spend the money he does have on XYZ activity). But still we get annoyed at the rolled eyes from the parents. They already think we're terrible because we don't provide him with an iPhone with unlimited text and data! Sheesh!

I wonder if anyone has some sort of solution this problem.  I ran into this couple times and wasn't sure if I should've repaid the other parent or reciprocate and invite their kid to something and cover the cost?
It felt awkward, especially since I wasn't planning on taking my kid out for anything, and certainly wasn't planning on paying for another kids to boot.

I ended up thanking the other parent and doing nothing.  Not the best solution, but I didn't have a better one.

I have been on both sides.   

What happens when I pay, is this -- I don't take my son to paid events too much, and if I plan a vacation day or something for a treat for the kids, it is so much nicer if they can have a friend (or two) along.  Sometimes it is a group activity as a present for a birthday, but not a party per se.  (We have family only parties) I am usually just very very happy to have a guest along, to make it more fun.   I plan the cost into the expense.

When others treat my son -- I do reciprocate, but usually with asking the other kid along when we arrange bike transport to the "free" BMX park, or the beach (where I bring snacks), or a day trip somewhere, or if my husband is building something neat in the shop that the kids can help out on.

It really is just "$10" to the other parent, and soon forgotten, so don't feel you have to spend $$'s to reciprocate.  Just say thank-you and do something nice like a return invitation, or offer to pickup their kid for a school activity, or, well, anything.

[mm1970]

One thing that drives me nuts is when my son tells his friends he can't go swimming (or to the movies, or the mall, or lately the "Halloween Store") because he doesn't have any money and they (usually the parents...not the kid) offer to pay his way. My son has plenty of opportunities to earn money...and when he wants something bad enough...he does. I don't like it when they (the parents) pop off with "Well, it's only $10.00...we'll cover it" like we can't afford to give our poor kid an allowance, when the fact is we're trying desperately to teach him not to be a mindless consumer and learn the value of earning his own spending money. I want to rant and rave and point out the fact they are not doing their own kids any favors by spoiling the shit out of them. We've won the battle with him (He'll usually decline on his own if he doesn't have the money or better yet...doesn't want to spend the money he does have on XYZ activity). But still we get annoyed at the rolled eyes from the parents. They already think we're terrible because we don't provide him with an iPhone with unlimited text and data! Sheesh!

I wonder if anyone has some sort of solution this problem.  I ran into this couple times and wasn't sure if I should've repaid the other parent or reciprocate and invite their kid to something and cover the cost?
It felt awkward, especially since I wasn't planning on taking my kid out for anything, and certainly wasn't planning on paying for another kids to boot.

I ended up thanking the other parent and doing nothing.  Not the best solution, but I didn't have a better one.

I have been on both sides.   

What happens when I pay, is this -- I don't take my son to paid events too much, and if I plan a vacation day or something for a treat for the kids, it is so much nicer if they can have a friend (or two) along.  Sometimes it is a group activity as a present for a birthday, but not a party per se.  (We have family only parties) I am usually just very very happy to have a guest along, to make it more fun.   I plan the cost into the expense.

When others treat my son -- I do reciprocate, but usually with asking the other kid along when we arrange bike transport to the "free" BMX park, or the beach (where I bring snacks), or a day trip somewhere, or if my husband is building something neat in the shop that the kids can help out on.

It really is just "$10" to the other parent, and soon forgotten, so don't feel you have to spend $$'s to reciprocate.  Just say thank-you and do something nice like a return invitation, or offer to pickup their kid for a school activity, or, well, anything.

Pretty much this.  My son has a bunch of friends, some with more money than us and some with less.

On occasion, we will go somewhere fun for lunch or dinner (we don't go out much) with my toddler's kiddie friends.  This bores the 9 year old to tears.  So we will invite a friend to keep him company and pay for his dinner.  We do this maybe 3x a year, and it costs us maybe $10.  But it is TOTALLY worth the $10 to avoid the whining.

[Daisy]

The one that raises the most eyebrows is my car.  It's a 2000 Toyota Echo.  We live in Germany and the thing for Americans to do here is to by a new Mercedes to drive here and take back to the States with them.  "Everyone" does it.  Menawhile, I have a 15 year old car, which I plan to keep for at least another year, and would definitely keep longer if we weren't moving to Japan.  (We can store it for free-to-us while in Japan, so we may do that, meaning it would be about 19 years old when I started driving it again.)

DH's peers almost invariably have really fancy cars--the aforementioned Mercedes, Volvo SUVs ("you can pick it up in Sweden at the factory and they will pay for your plane ticket up there, so it's like a free vacation"--free, other than the $40k you just spent on a  car, you mean.), Porshe SUVs, etc.  My 15 year old car, which was cheap even when it was new, does not fit in.  I recently had someone tell me they didn't even know cars with manual windows were still around.  Oh, the humanity!  I have to move my arm in order to roll down my window!  I also have to lean across the car in order to unlock the opposite side door!

Along those lines, I always find it funny when people drive to attend an athletic event, such as a long bike ride, and keep driving around to find the closest spot. Sometimes they even pay for parking to get this spot. Then they find it weird if I park almost a mile away and walk or ride it in to the start. For goodness sake, you're about to ride 50 miles, what's a little walk or extra 0.5 mile to you?

Same thing if I park 0.7 miles away (I've checked the distance when someone said it was "too far to park") instead of paying for valet or paid parking when going to a restaurant in a busy area that only has paid car garages. I have a few spots around town where there supposedly only paid parking. I know where to park and walk in a half mile or so to avoid paying for parking. It seems like almost every popular area in my urban city is like this now and you have to pay for parking everywhere, so I have my tricks to avoid that.

[Jerusha]

Growing up in a very dry place, we had to be very conscious of our water use.  Care had to be taken that the water in our rainwater tanks didn't run out during our long hot summers.  A bath was a bucket, quarter filled with water and a flannel to dunk and wipe yourself with.  Now I live in relative luxury with access to ample mains water, but I still bring out the bucket to cut down my shower/baths to 1 per week.

[earlyFI]

Never watch TV

Take the bus to work

Buy new and used brand name clothing at a local thrift store

No debt.

My colleagues think I am a freak, and like to tease me.  But since I only have 89 days until I retire and they have 20 years...I don't really care what they think. ;)

[Squirrel away]

My colleagues think I am a freak, and like to tease me.  But since I only have 89 days until I retire and they have 20 years...I don't really care what they think. ;)

Haha, classic!:)

[LennStar]

- my wife doesn't drink (what? Why not? Are you Muslim?) they really don't get that some people just don't like alcohol.

- when I had to buy a cell phone for work, I bought a 20$ Nokia basic phone. My dumbass boss asked me how I was going to get laid with that piece of sh*t. I was already engaged btw. What a b*tch.

I do not drink alcohol, too, for the simple reasons that I dont think its a good idea to drug your brain cells to death. But even if that would not so - the few times I tried to drink it was just "bah, its poison, and so it tastes!"

cellphone answer: Oh, I am getting laid easily. After all we both dont have to worry about damaging expensive toys.

[Villanelle]

My wife and I live in Dubai. Probably the most unmustashian city in the world. Just to give you an idea:
Dubai has this crazy thing called Friday brunches which is an all you can eat and drink event at the hotels here happening every week. It is usually very very high level and fancy. We are talking up to 200$ per person for 3 hours of carnage. People get uber-dressed up similar to British horse races. An hour into the brunch, people start going wild. People take a dip in the lobby fountain, dance on the tables or beat or shout at the poor staff. The hotels always increase security staff to account for this wild pack. This plus the total disrespect for people, disrespect for local culture and the incredible waste of food is a reason I don't like this. I was twice invited but would NEVER go again! Even for free! And people believe I am weird.

Other things my peers believe my wife and I are weird for:

- my wife doesn't drink (what? Why not? Are you Muslim?) they really don't get that some people just don't like alcohol.
- I talk about "weird investment stuff" like ETF and S&P500 - it's like witchcraft to them.
- we use our credit card for means of payment and not to borrow money
- we drive a Dacia Duster and have no debt on it (wife is Romanian so people think it's a home bias - it's not)
- we NEVER go to Costa or Starbucks, don't eat out lunches.
- we covered our south facing windows with white curtains from the outside to repel sunlight. Saves us half our AC bill (again, we live in Dubai with 130F summers)
- when I had to buy a cell phone for work, I bought a 20$ Nokia basic phone. My dumbass boss asked me how I was going to get laid with that piece of sh*t. I was already engaged btw. What a b*tch.

People seem absolutely stunned if I tell them I've never carried a CC balance.  (Actually once when I was an irresponsible college student I did pay the bill a few days late because I forgot about it, and I ended up paying a couple bucks in interest.) It's not something I mention often, but on the rare occasion is has come up, people are amazed, as though I've created cold fusion in my garage or something.  I was raised that you simply *don't* ever carry a balance, no matter what, so it wasn't really even like I made a conscious choice.  It was just obvious.  It's like robbing a bank--I never made a conscious decision not to do that, either.  It was just obviously not something I'd ever consider. 

[Pooperman]

My wife and I live in Dubai. Probably the most unmustashian city in the world. Just to give you an idea:
Dubai has this crazy thing called Friday brunches which is an all you can eat and drink event at the hotels here happening every week. It is usually very very high level and fancy. We are talking up to 200$ per person for 3 hours of carnage. People get uber-dressed up similar to British horse races. An hour into the brunch, people start going wild. People take a dip in the lobby fountain, dance on the tables or beat or shout at the poor staff. The hotels always increase security staff to account for this wild pack. This plus the total disrespect for people, disrespect for local culture and the incredible waste of food is a reason I don't like this. I was twice invited but would NEVER go again! Even for free! And people believe I am weird.

Other things my peers believe my wife and I are weird for:

- my wife doesn't drink (what? Why not? Are you Muslim?) they really don't get that some people just don't like alcohol.
- I talk about "weird investment stuff" like ETF and S&P500 - it's like witchcraft to them.
- we use our credit card for means of payment and not to borrow money
- we drive a Dacia Duster and have no debt on it (wife is Romanian so people think it's a home bias - it's not)
- we NEVER go to Costa or Starbucks, don't eat out lunches.
- we covered our south facing windows with white curtains from the outside to repel sunlight. Saves us half our AC bill (again, we live in Dubai with 130F summers)
- when I had to buy a cell phone for work, I bought a 20$ Nokia basic phone. My dumbass boss asked me how I was going to get laid with that piece of sh*t. I was already engaged btw. What a b*tch.

People seem absolutely stunned if I tell them I've never carried a CC balance.  (Actually once when I was an irresponsible college student I did pay the bill a few days late because I forgot about it, and I ended up paying a couple bucks in interest.) It's not something I mention often, but on the rare occasion is has come up, people are amazed, as though I've created cold fusion in my garage or something.  I was raised that you simply *don't* ever carry a balance, no matter what, so it wasn't really even like I made a conscious choice.  It was just obvious.  It's like robbing a bank--I never made a conscious decision not to do that, either.  It was just obviously not something I'd ever consider.

Very true. I was taught the same thing. I always thought that was what everyone did, too. I was also taught to bring my own lunch. I was taught about investing. I say I lucked out :D.

[Owl Operator]

I DIY'd my own Soylent and have been using that as my body's fuel source for just under a year now. No negative side effects... unless you count the many side eye looks, and the judgement of my coworkers- but my Grocery bill $130/ month.

[meg_shannon]

After our daughter was born, I became a SAHP. I figured it was my new "job" to make our home life smooth and frugal. So I've pretty much tried to optimize to save as much money as possible with the least amount of time. Let's see how we're "strange:"
1) We do our own car maintenance - though this usually falls to my spouse because I get a anxious under cars/small spaces
2) We drive old cars and hope to get rid of one next year
3) We rarely go out to eat, instead we have people over for family dinners (way more casual than a dinner party and there are little kids/babies present too)
4) I have never bought any new clothing/shoes/toys for our kid. There are amazing thrift stores around here.

So not too strange, I'm sure we'll be more strange once we buy a house and can start optimizing it and gardening.

[Cougar]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

[fb132]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I agree, I have 3 jeans and I simply rotate them and they all look alike so why the need to buy more?

[Sam E]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I always keep around enough of each type of clothing item to fill one load in the washing machine. It lets me go weeks between laundry loads.

[latetotheparty1977]

I DIY'd my own Soylent and have been using that as my body's fuel source for just under a year now. No negative side effects... unless you count the many side eye looks, and the judgement of my coworkers- but my Grocery bill $130/ month.

I'd be curious as to what this involves.

[I'm a red panda]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I'm a woman and I do this except I get through the work week on 1 pair of pants though. If I spill something on them, then I switch to a skirt for a day to get the pants washed.  But same shoes every single day.

Pants don't get dirty at work.

[frugalnacho]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I'm a woman and I do this except I get through the work week on 1 pair of pants though. If I spill something on them, then I switch to a skirt for a day to get the pants washed.  But same shoes every single day.

Pants don't get dirty at work.

Depends entirely on your job.  Mine often do.  I still wear them for like 2-3 weeks anyway.

[FrugalShrew]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I'm a woman and I do this except I get through the work week on 1 pair of pants though. If I spill something on them, then I switch to a skirt for a day to get the pants washed.  But same shoes every single day.

Pants don't get dirty at work.

As another woman, I'm down to 1 color of pants, 1 pair of shoes, and 1 color of socks. I just switched to that system this fall, and it's been amazing.

[Hedge_87]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I'm a woman and I do this except I get through the work week on 1 pair of pants though. If I spill something on them, then I switch to a skirt for a day to get the pants washed.  But same shoes every single day.

Pants don't get dirty at work.

Depends entirely on your job.  Mine often do.  I still wear them for like 2-3 weeks anyway.

I get uniforms at work 13 pairs of jeans and 13 pairs of long sleeve shirts (work in a position that requires FR clothing). They are laundered for work days I just need socks underwear and a t-shirt. Saves a lot of money on clothes. I also do a lot of stuff on the weekend that requires "work clothes" so I just wear my company jeans and an old t-shirt so I don't ruin my good pair of jeans. I have only one pair and it's ~ 5 years old still looks brand new. In the summer however I live in cargo shorts anytime I'm not on the job. For some reason I get made fun of about this when coworkers see this

[Latwell]

 I wear the same shoes and same two pairs of pants to work every day.

 most people would say that's strange, but for men; who notices what pants and shoes you wear ? noboby. so why have $1,000 worth of them when $100 is all you need.

I work for a very small firm and my boss is old school. He believes wearing a suit makes you look smarter (and I won't disagree with the difference in respect people give you). However, all the guys from my office only start off with their suit jacket and take it off when they sit down. Then they go to leave and they put the jacket on until they get to their car.

I have two interns that I was giving a little orientation to the other day. When we got to the dress code part, I explained exactly what I mentioned before. I then tell them to save their money and just use the same jacket every day for those walk-ins and walk-outs. The one intern literally sighed of relief when I said that because he literally only had one jacket.

[moneyandmillennials]

I'm a girl but not your typical fashion girl.  I wear the same clothes every week, regular neutral colors. I color my own hair, minimum makeup.

I know a lot of girls who like to shop, buying all kinds of expensive items or just lots of cheap, cute items.  Or they spend tons on eyelash extensions, manicures, hair cuts, etc.

My whole take is that we've known each other for years, whether you have on the latest trends or not, my perspective on you won't change (i.e.  I won't think of you any prettier or uglier than you already are).

[HenryDavid]

Track our monthly usage of electricity, heating gas and water.

Our electricity and water consumption are 50% of the average in our city. Heat is 70%--gotta work on that.

[nobodyspecial]

I then tell them to save their money and just use the same jacket every day for those walk-ins and walk-outs.

You need an extra suit jacket to leave on the back of your chair when you leave  - so the boss thinks you are working late.

[TVRodriguez]

Some things that come to mind. . .
- wear the same black pumps to work every day
- use baking soda instead of shampoo
- make my own bread and apple chips
- spend about $500/mo on food for family of 5
- don't go out to dinner often (once every 2 or 3 months)
- drive old paid for non luxury cars
- don't color my hair anymore
- DH cuts all our hair
- don't get manicure pedicures
- do my own taxes and taxes for both our businesses
- have all three kids share a bedroom
- don't have cable or satellite TV (since 2010?)
- don't hire outside handy people, DH does it instead
- don't have a "master bedroom with attached bathroom," instead share bathroom with kids
- don't have a mortgage anymore
- put "extra" money to retirement instead of planning an extra trip or otherwise spending it
- don't have a tv bigger than 32 inches
- two working professional parents and never had a nanny or family around to help
- my professional work clothes are from Ross mostly
- DH gets his professional work clothes on ebay for cheap
- don't dry clean anything

[Tigerpine]

-Unplug everything (except oven and fridge) when I leave the apartment.
-Only have my alarm clock plugged when when I sleep.
-When it gets cold, instead of turning on the heat, I sleep with a cap on my head.
-Dry my clothes on a clothes horse
-Don't want to participate in the office Kuerig.  Pods cost too much and create too much trash.
-Avoid turning on the AC during the summer, and when I do, I set the temp to 84 degrees F.
-The idea of car payments is anathema to me.

[dalegendman]

-Walk/bike/public transportation instead of driving
-Bring lunch to work
-Budget/track spending
-Don't drink often, have one or two drinks when I do instead of getting hammered

[Tom Bri]

I live in small town flyover, so lots of people around here at least remember how to be frugal, because their parents or grandparents did it. And lots of people do these sorts of things still.
Not being in debt, no mortgage, no car, no nothing surprises people, though we really don't talk about it much. By the way, my real estate agent didn't bat an eye when I told him we would pay cash. It happens around here more than other areas, I suspect. Houses are quite cheap in small towns.
People love their trucks around here. Lots of the high school boys (and more than a few girls) drive huge trucks to school. People are surprised when I tell them I never owned a car until I was 42.

[Sareybox]

- I cut my own hair, my husband's & my children's
- make my own toothpaste, deodorant and hand soap / shower gel
- I don't use shampoo or conditioner
- wash clothes with soap nuts
- our 14 year old car has some 3 year old dents with Duct tape to protect it from water
- I wash my face with just hot water
- I almost never wear make up and if I do I use free samples
- if I do need to buy something I always get it second hand if possible
- all our holidays (vacations) are in our camper van
- I grow my own lettuce on the window sill
- I use bicarbonate of soda & vinagar for most cleaning
- I walk to work come rain or shine
- I bulk make lunch & freeze it & microwave at work
- we don't have a microwave at home
- we heat our home with free wood
- my husband brews his own beer
- no cable etc so no live TV so no TV licence (UK thing)
- I pay our home & car insurance annually which is much cheaper than monthly
- I make my own Yoghurt
- I only eat 2 meals a day
- we Co slept & I breastfed my twins
- we have fiscal fasts twice a year (spend nothing unless absolutely necessary for a month - helps clear out the pantry and exercises the old frugality muscle)
- buy dry goods in bulk with my mum & sister (our own mini co-op)
- only buy fresh food we'll eat that week (cuts down food waste)
- share baths(!)
- use a menstrual cup instead of tampons
- use the bike trailer for the weekly food shop
- swap clothes with friends
- swap labour with family (electrical work for carpentry etc)


 

[Cottonswab]

1. I live in a friend's garage
2. I do not own a mattress, sheets, blankets, or a pillow
3. I don't have a refrigerator
4. I lived for 7 years without a personal laptop or desktop computer
4. I do not have any purpose built cooking equipment or utensils other than a titanium spork, a titanium cup, and an MSR reactor integrated stove and pot.
5. Everything I own can fit into a Toyota Prius
6. I never sleep in a hotel, when I can sleep in a car or campground instead.
7. I refuse to buy or receive gifts for holidays
8. I refused freely offered things where there is typically an eventual expectation of reciprocation (like a round of drinks at a bar)
9. My preferred means of traveling long distances over land is hiking or hitch-hiking.

[Bertram]

That's way, way, waaaay beyond being "just" Mustachian.

Just like I would say the Bear Gryll method of keeping hydrated without paying for drinks is waaaay beyond mustachian (although you could try to sell it in that angle: "Monthly budget running low? Better drink my own bodily fluids").

Not arguing against any of the actions specifically, but for all of those I'd say you gotta be doing it for reasons other than Financial Independence, too (even if it does also help with that goal).

[Parizade]

This entire thread was enjoyable and enlightening, but 2 posts really stuck out for me:

Perhaps the most significant is that I'm constantly trying to improve while being genuinely happy in my life and optimistic about the future. If you have nothing to complain about, people find that weird.

I give money freely. I belong to a fraternal organization. It does a lot of charitable work. Sometimes there is a special plea for an extra $x to finish off the Christmas basket funding or send supplies to the local Veterans hospital. I can chip in without a second thought.

For me this is what it all boils down to. Most "normal" people look at the mustachian lifestyle and see only a bleak existence of deprivation. They wonder why anyone would want to live that way.

I look at mustachian living and see liberation from the bleak existence of "abundance" poverty.

I am free to pursue self actualization without risk, and I am free to lend a hand to friends and family in need. What could be better than this?