Pinching Pennies

When I meet someone new in the US and tell them that I live in Spain, the usual reaction is "Oh, wow, how glamorous!" Those who actually know where Spain is (and that it isn't an extension of Mexico) tend to conjure up images of me lounging on the shores of the Mediterranean, flouncing around town in my ruffled flamenco dress, sipping wine at all hours of the day and night, and generally living the good life. Sadly, this picture is far from accurate. I hate to be a wet blanket and discourage potential tourists from visiting Spain, but if I replied truthfully I would say that my life here probably isn't all that different from what it might have been if I had settled somewhere Stateside. It's a whirlwind of school activities, diaper changes, laundry, housecleaning, and work, with the odd opportunity for socializing (usually with my in-laws). True, the approach to life is different here. Getting ahead professionally isn't always the top priority, and greater importance is attached to personal relationships. And when we have two cents to rub together, we try to get out and do something fun with friends or our kids rather than put them in a retirement fund (I don't think we'll ever be in a position to retire!). These are just some of the reasons why I can't envision myself ever going back to live in the US. But still, the day-to-day reality of my life in Spain is usually anything but glamorous. The difficulties imposed by the economic recession have turned me into what I swore I would never become: a thrifty house manager. Here are some of my favorite penny-pinching strategies:

Using cloth diapers. After searching in vain for a cloth diaper supplier in the Seville area, I admit that I took a short cut and asked my mother to send some items along. This makes for huge savings, as I can now stretch a pack of 30 disposable diapers (cost: 6 euros) to last an entire month. I only use them at night, as I find that baby gets too wet with the cloth variety to sleep comfortably, and when we are out and about. It makes for a bit of extra laundry, but I can handle 1 additional load every 5-6 days. I highly recommend Thirsties diaper covers and Snappi fasteners (much easier and less dangerous than safety pins).



Turning off the lights. As an American I tend to leave lights on all over the house. I'm not sure why we have this habit, but here in Spain children are raised to be very aware of the cost of electricity and turn off anything that's not in use at the moment, particularly lights. It's an uphill battle, but with some prodding from Manolo I'm becoming more power-conscious and hitting the light switch is slowly becoming second nature.

Buying meat and produce at the local market. As I do all of my grocery shopping for the week at one go, as opposed to buying each morning as most Spaniards do, the easiest thing would be to buy everything at the grocery store (my Mercadona, love it). But I've found that meat, vegetables and fruit are much cheaper at the market stalls, so I try to make time to swing by the marketplace on grocery day.


Buying our own spare parts. With two Hyundai Accents (94 and 05) that always seem to break down when we can least afford a mechanic, we've had to come up with ways of reducing the repair bills. We've found a reliable mechanic (a small miracle) who charges a reasonable hourly rate and is willing to install parts that we bring him instead of ordering directly from the manufacturer. Sometimes this isn't possible because certain parts have to be new for safety reasons, but in many cases we've been able to find parts in perfect working order at the local scrapyard for a fraction of what they would normally cost, and we've saved hundreds of euros. Desguace el Pingüino is our favorite scrapyard (I know, this smacks of trailer-park culture, but it can't be helped):


Legumes and pasta. I never knew there were so many different ways to prepare these staples until I sat down to figure out how I could cut back on monthly grocery costs. Spain has a rich tradition of potajes (stews) so I've taken notes on how my sisters-in-law prepare their garbanzos, beans and lentils, and I've scoured the internet for new recipes to spice up the menu. We now eat legumes and pasta several times a week and have less meat, which is probably good for our health and certainly great for our household economy. And I'm having fun discovering new dishes and experimenting in the kitchen.

My thrifty Scottish grandmother would be so proud of me... now if only I could convince Spaniards of the advantages of coupon clipping!