Am I Penny Wise or Pound Foolish

Ok, so it should be cent wise or euro foolish, but it doesn't sound as good.  I was interviewed by Conor Pope of the Irish Times last week about our disposable income, commonly known as "too much month at the end of the money".  Our finances have changed over the years, from spending everything I earned, and a little bit more in my 20's when I lived from loan to loan.  Then we moved into saving as much as humanly possible for a house deposit (and to clear off the credit card debt and bank loans). That was the time of working two jobs to pay off the debt, resulting in a very grumpy and exhausted me.

When I started writing as Babaduck, it was at a time when I had just lost my job and work was very scarce and we entered a very rocky financial phase for almost a year - more about it here.  This basically changed how I saw money and turned me into a bit of a penny pincher.  I do love a good bargain and have no shame in rooting through reduced to clear bins.

Photograph by Alan Betson

The finished article appeared in the Irish Times Pricewatch column today and apparently there's even more things I can do to help improve our financial situation including being more tax effective for things like pensions and life assurance, and save money on health insurance when it comes up for renewal.  I was also astounded when I saw the size of the photograph - you can't miss me!

Do you think you're penny wise or pound foolish?  I'd love to hear your stories and perhaps pick up some tips... tell all below.