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(From Chicago Tribune 2/24/89  (and others))

And How Cheap Are You?

Some HMOs might want to sign up for this: A Tightwad Contest in Oakland
has been won by a retired welder who separates two-ply toilet paper to save
money.  "It's no trouble at all; it just takes a little practice," said Luis
Torres, 64, who won top honors in a "How Cheap Are You?" contest sponsored
by the Oakland Tribune.  He also buys generic groceries and day-old baked
goods, reuses plastic bags and never tosses out soap slivers.  "I always
did things to save money," said Torres, who attributes his frugal ways to
growing up with 14 siblings.  Runners-up included a Berkeley couple who said
they save dental floss on a bathroom hook for reuse, and a Richmond man who
claimed he refreezes used ice cubes. (One couple siad they collect 2-for-1
coupons to restaurants and then invite another couple.  "We make them pay
for their half, and we dine free," they wrote.)  And from Elmer Hurren in
El Cerrito came this admission:  When his vacuum cleaner bag fills, Hurren cuts
one end, empties it and sews it up for reuse.  Saves bags, he said, "and
sometimes I find a penny in the dust."

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