Yankee Thriftiness=Three Must Have Items

July 31, 2013

A telephone recording adapter (in-line tap). The phone jack connects to the wall socket while the phone being monitored is connected to the adapter’s socket. The audio plug connects to the recording device (computer, tape recorder, etc.). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Chicken wire (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

bailing twine (Photo credit: wmshc_kiwi)

I am the result of at least three generations of Yankee thriftiness. The rule growing up was repair it, wear it out, and use it up before buying anything new. This applied to every item in the household and on the farmstead. There were three items my family considered necessities for this task: duct tape, bailing twine, and chicken wire. Only if all three failed did we see about buying something new. Although I am grown up the habit remains. I have a small stash of bailing twine on hand, you never know when you will need to tie something up. I also know how to braid it together to make stronger pieces of rope. I don’t have any chicken wire, it is a little too bulky to store in my current living quarters. I do have a large roll of duct tape. In fact I availed myself of the duct tape this very morning. You know the little plastic toggle on the end of the phone jack line that hooks into the slot and keeps it connected? Well it broke off when I was switching it from the phone to the computer. The line kept sliding out of the slot causing me to lose my connection to the net. I considered the problem for a few minutes. I tried tying the jack in place first. No luck there was too much give in the string. Then I thought of my roll of duct tape. I cut off an inch-long piece and cut it in half the long way. I then taped the pieces over the end of the jack in an X pattern fastening it to the side of the computer. Problem solved! I now have a secure connection. Best of all the repair job took two minutes and cost me less than a penny. When the tape wears out it can easily be replaced. A new jack line would cost between three and five dollars for the length I need. Duct tape rules! Emily