"I Couponed Clipped Your Way Through School!"

I am going to have to start clipping coupons. Yes, it is true. The former J.Crew addict who went to the mall for her next fix has succumbed to the Big R - R.E.S.P.O.N.S.I.B.I.L.I.T.Y. Don't worry, ya'll, the Metamucil days are next, I'm sure of it.

Now, I have clipped coupons before, but not because I really really needed to. Well, the days of really really needing to are here. No, hubby and I aren't bound for homelessness or anything (God willing), but times are tough. Between fear of the swine flu and fear of the bill collectors, I don't know how we all get up in the morning.

My SIL is actually the one who brought couponing and my lack of it to my attention on Sunday when we visited and I found her on the back porch, going at the Spartanburg Herald with a zeal she usually reserves for a good glass of wine. She told me that her coupon clipping days had arrived and as she lovingly added to her pile of savings, I ran and yelled at hubby to go buy me a couple of newspapers, too. I didn't want to be left out of anything. When he arrived back home with the goods, I too went at the Herald with a gusto normally reserved for the clearance shoes at Macy's. I had a little pile of savings all my own and when we left that night, I left my savings at SIL's. So I'm a bit slow on the organization of my coupons. We all have to start somewhere. And I trust SIL - she won't get into my stash unless I give her the okay.

So friends, if you see around town hoarding newspapers, don't be alarmed - it's not my OCD acting up again. It's just a big dose of that other Big R - R.E.A.L.I.T.Y. And yeah, it bites.