Thursday, February 28, 2013

The Frugal Hoosier... or something like that



If you are a fan of the TV show, The Middle, you know the Frugal Hoosier.  The Frugal Hoosier is the scratch and dent grocery Frankie Heck shops at.  (I loooove The Middle!)  I laughed so hard the first time it was mentioned in the show.  Bargains is our local version of the Frugal Hoosier.


    Twenty years ago, I would not even buy generic spaghetti sauce. The thought of eating it made me gag.  Flash forward two decades and five kids later, and now, I buy generic stuff all the time, and I love shopping at Bargains.  In fact, I get a little giddy as I fire up the mini-van and head out for my monthly shopping trip there.  It's true; there is a slight odor, and some items are a bit grimy.  (I never leave there without giving my hands a thorough dowsing of hand sanitizer.)  But, oh, what wonderful treasures I find!  Kashi cereal for $1.89 a box, Power Bars at 10 for a $1, Pepperidge Farm bread for $1.35 a loaf...the list goes on.  It's amazing. 

 Part of the fun is that I usually go with good friends.  We head out early on a Saturday and make it a girl's day.    We laugh and take turns hunting out the bargains.   I love doing life with these gals.  Most of us are stay-at-home moms, trying to stretch one income to cover all the needs of our large families.   When other ladies are heading over to the mall to freshen up their wardrobe, we are digging through boxes of canned goods looking for the ones with the fewest dents... and having fun doing it.  We know this is just a season, and we all feel so blessed to be home with our kids as they grow.  One day I may go back to shopping at a nice clean grocery store and start buying Prego again.  Then I will come home and join my friends for a cup of tea.   We will sit on my porch and reminisce  about the good old days when our homes where wild with children and we had Saturday excursions to Bargains.

   
*If I have sold you on Bargains, here is a place to go for more info.
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3 comments:

  1. SJMNovember 16, 2015 at 9:28 AM

    Just sitting here thinking about my favorite show "The Middle" and wondering if there is such a store as the 'Frugal Hoosier'. The shopping trips they have taken there are some of the funniest moments on the shows and Frankie's mentions of Frugal Hoosier food at home crack me up. That search brought me to your website and I have enjoyed reading this entry about your shopping trips to Bargains. It does sound a lot like the Frugal Hoosier! I like your writing style and in particular the phrase in regards to shopping cheap, "We know this is just a season.." That really struck me about bargain shopping and living on the cheap as many of us have to do. Perhaps it will be for just a season. I would like to think that many of the hard spots in life are for 'just a season'. Thank you, very much, for sharing your thoughts and giving me something that I enjoyed and will be thinking about. I will be reading more of your website.

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  2. PlumkinMarch 23, 2016 at 7:08 AM

    I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on the Frugal Hoosier..so funny. I am in Love with this show and all those crazy kids!! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for giving me something to think about. To enjoy each "season" as it comes is really what we should all strive to do. 😊

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  3. Trophy GrandmaJuly 13, 2017 at 10:31 AM

    I also enjoy The Middle and being from Wales it took me all this time to fathom out that it's the 'Frugal Hoosier' and not 'The Frugal Loser' - either way, hilarious!

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