Oprah's Debt Diet IV

Do I get points deducted for turning this in late?  I Tivo'd Oprah last Friday.  My Fiancee saw me scheduling the Tivo, and surprised, asked, "Why are you taping Oprah?!"  Isn't it funny that we still call it "taping"?

So, here are some of my thoughts.  There were some shocking comments, and realizations, but which is attributed to whom, I can't keep track of.  I like that this episode seemed to focus on grocery shopping and reducing the food bill.  One of the most shocking comments that I heard was that one of the families (I think the Bradleys), used to go to four different drive thrus, get four different meals, and eat them in four different rooms.

During my childhood, and still today, the dining table was where our family always came together.  My Mother was a stay-at-home, and my Dad worked very hard (still does).  After school, I might be over at Russell's, playing Star Wars, or with Scott, playing tennis, but I was to be home for dinner.  The only exceptions were rare special occasions.  The idea of a family not coming together around a dinner table is rather sad to me.

It was fun to watch them trying to learn to cook for the first time.  I love to cook.  I'm not always frugal about it, but even splurging a little at the grocery store is likely cheaper than a regular night eating out.

At first, I thought the advisors were being to lenient with the families.  I suppose the most important factor is to get them to buy into the process.  These are not necessarily willing or open-minded clients.  Shopping, whether food, clothes, or crap they are not even aware of, is a way of life.  Perhaps even an addiction.  The Egglestein's "coming out" about their debt party was case in point.

Admittedly, the Widlund house cleaning is something that I should go through.  My Fiancee is very good at throwing things out, while I am the pack rat.  It's funny to me to watch her clean stuff out, and get all excited as she tosses another item in either the goodwill bag or the trash bag.  I dunno, not exciting to me.

We have all seen that there is no larger marketing giant than Oprah.  Her click-thru rate must be off the charts.  Everything she puts her name on becomes a best seller, whether a book, gadget or clothing item.  She has certainly played a small role in the consummerism of America.  This series makes sense.  Her audience is likely the very people who need to hear it.  Whether you agree with everything David Bach says, or how Glinda Bridgeforth organizes the bills, it is important to get people thinking about this stuff!  Make saving money cool!  Yea!

Comments

[Amanda]

We always, ALWAYS, had dinner together around the dining room table, and beyond being an important family experience, it is quite obviously way cheaper to feed a family of four by cooking at home than buying four separate drive-thru meals and eating them separately. Besides, in all the time it takes them to drive to all four fast food joints, order and pick up their food and drive home again, a homemade meal could have very likely been made!

[andria]

Just came across your info, LAMoneyguy. Intresting reading ...
* To Amanda , these days it costs more to cook at home,( been to a Whole foods or Central market lately ? ) than it does to fast food a meal for 4 - MC'D's = $10 for 4 w/the dollar menu's ! Note To all - with both parents working in a family, and the mom's & dad's both with career's - it is VERY difficult to sit at the table together - except on weekends. Very Sad that today everything costs more - not to mention the stress factors of life.

[Karen]

Oh, for Goodness sake! In the USA, we spend a significantly smaller percentage of our annual incomes on food than during the 1970's. Furthermore, what we save at McD's we end up spending on healthcare. There's no greater job security than being a cardiologist today.

And, please don't use the excuse that your busy life precludes dining together. Nobody holds a gun to your head and forces you to run your kids all over town to various activities. And, even if that is the case, you can use a cooler to pack healthy snack foods for evenings when time is short. That's what we do, and it works great.

I'm tired of hearing people whine about how they don't have time to take care of themselves and their families. What? Do you think fast food companies will do it for you? Surely, you can't be that naive. Take responsibility for your choices and stop making excuses.

[Susanna]

OK, so I am way late to the conversation (linked here via a chain of about 4 blogs from the Carnival of Personal Finance), but I just wanted to say that $10 for dinner for a family of 4 is not all that cheap. Navy bean soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for 4 people come to about $5. Beans and hamhocks are cheap and available at inexpensive grocery stores like Food Lion and Kroger.

Sure, we eat more expensive meals sometimes (organic chicken breasts, wild salmon) but this is offset by mixing in cheap, freeze-able meals like soup and spaghetti.