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Gender: Male
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About Me

I'm AARP's expert for the Savings Challenge. I spent 24 years managing national nonprofit organizations in Washington, DC before I officially became "The Ultimate Cheapskate" in 2004. I'm now an author, freelance writer, public speaker, and occasional "media personality" (whatever the heck that means). I was first dubbed "The Ultimate Cheapskate" by Matt Lauer on the NBC Today Show, where I sometimes report on, well, cheap stuff.

My first book, "The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches", came out in January 2008, and my second book, "The Cheapskate Next Door", is due to be released in May 2010. According to my publisher, I write "an offbeat blend of original humor and practical advice for living a better life by spending and consuming less."

I'm originally from rural Ohio - the cradle of cheapskate civilization - but for the past 25 years I've lived in Accokeek, Maryland with my long-suffering wife, Denise, and my beloved compost pile, Gomer.



Interests:
Pinching pennies ... but having fun while doing it.

I also like to travel (on the cheap, of course), bicycle, garden, hike, cook, canoe/kayak, watch movies, fish, read, write, and work with my hands, particularly home remodeling projects.

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My Journals (2)

 

True story: Last weekend we traveled to Columbus, Ohio on family matters, and we stayed at a modestly priced hotel, the name of which I will withhold to protect all involved. It turned out that the hotel had an indoor swimming pool, and, of course, I hadn’t packed a swimsuit. (My wife: “Jeff, how many times did I tell you to pack your swim trunks?!” I discovered years ago in our marriage that that’s the type of question you don’t answer.)

At any rate, the young lady at the reception desk helpfully mentioned that there was a department store nearby where I could buy a swimsuit.  She could no doubt see me grimace at the thought. 
 
Then, as if I was channeling my Inner Miser: “You don’t by any chance have one in my size in your lost and found, do you?” I asked, half jokingly (well, maybe 10% jokingly).   My wife gasped.
 
“Well, actually,” the receptionist said, “we’re just getting ready to throw out a bunch of lost and find items that have been here for over a year. Let me check.” She returned with a neatly fold pair of swim trunks in my size, just one shade of burgundy lighter than my wife’s face. “Keep them when you’re through with them,” the receptionist said with a smile. 
 
“Do you have anything else back there in my size?” I asked, as my wife interrupted the conversation to request that our reservation for a king sized bed be changed to two doubles.  
 
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Added: November 17, 2009
Views: 87 | Comments: 2 | Bookmarks: 0
rn222 says:

Went to look at your web site , very interested in joining up with some environmental groups, have to look around in our area here in Wilson/Buffalo. Now that I retired just 2wks ago ,I have time to get into things. I was a nurse for 37 years at a Psychiatric hospital , shouldn't say was ,I am a Nurse . Trying to go green !!!!
Posted: November 16, 2009 12:39AM EST
JeffYeager says:

Thanks rn222. Yes, I have a weekly blog on the environmental website www.TheDailyGreen.com where I talk about how spending less is the real key to saving the planet (as opposed to buying expense "green" products)
Posted: November 16, 2009 4:34PM EST
Cpatten says:

Thanks for the 'invite' - am about to click accept button. Hoosiers outdo Buckeyes on cheap any day! Make from scratch, make over, make do, or do without. Am beyond the freezing, canning and preserving I did for my young family and enjoying (?) old age (insert a snicker here, please). Now, must get off the infernal machine and finish cleaning up the cranberry juice I spilled on carpet. OY!
Posted: November 15, 2009 11:16AM EST
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