by Joe Kirkpatrick

I've got gas!  No, not the kind you are thinking  of.  I've got gas in the tank of my car.  The problem is that tank of  gas cost me all most double what it did back in April.  Luckily, Elaine and I both work within two miles of our home. With Wal-Mart and the mall just a little more than a mile  away,  the effect on us is not as  great as the effect on most of you.  The sad thing is it looks like high gas prices are here to stay, so short of getting a big raise at work, just how do you intend to pay the difference?

I only took one economics class in my life, and made a "D" in it, so I don't consider myself a great economist.  However, I do have enough sense to know if your pay doesn't increase, and your expenses do increase, you have to make some cuts somewhere.  That is what we are going to talk about  today.

Those of you who read my column regularly know my feelings about smoking.  If you smoke a pack a day of name brand cigarettes and quit, you are going to instantly have almost $100 extra per month.  See- solving your increased gas price  dilemma was easy!  Now, for you non-smokers, it's a bit tougher, but not really that hard.

I have found a very simple thing in life concerning finances:  It's not how much

you make, it's how wisely you spend and manage what you make.  Next to smoking, probably the  biggest waste of money is eating out.  Sure, eating out is great, but IT IS MORE EXPENSIVE than preparing and eating the same thing at home.  Skip  eating out 3 or 4 times a month, and you will have saved your extra $100.  If you are a smoker and skip eating out 3 to 4 times a month, plus quit smoking to boot, you just found an extra $200 per  month!

The next big expenditure which  you can trim is the expense of at least some of your clothing.  I have found if I buy a pair of new  Docker pants and a Ralph Lauren Polo dress shirt, I can easily spend $100-$120.  The bad thing is,  invariably, after I have worn it 3 or 4 times, I either get a tear, or a grease spot on it.  Years ago, I started  going to thrift and re-sale stores to buy as much of my clothing as I can.  Friday night, we were spending the  weekend in Murfreesboro, and went to an up-scale re-sale shop named "Phase II."  I bought a like new Ralph Lauren Polo dress shirt and a like new pair of  Docker Khakis pants for $24 combined.  On one outfit, I saved $100!

In  Cleveland, there are a number of thrift and re-sale stores to shop in. The difference in a thrift store and a  resale store is that generally a thrift store is non-profit and has all of the goods it sales donated, while most re-sale stores take goods in on consignment, and when the article sells, the money is split between the person who left it to  be sold and the store.    My favorite thrift store is Community  Thrift, located on the south end of town where Ocoee and Broad come back  together across from the main fire hall.  They have a very clean and well  maintained store, and the manager hand picks everything that goes on the racks.  It is not as big as Goodwill or  Salvation Army thrift stores, allowing them to sort though and put out generally better quality merchandise.  Two  weeks ago, I bought a used but like new Izod knit golf shirt there for $4 - a  savings of about $30 - $35 over new.  Community Thrift just completed their first year, and they donated over $30,000 in clothing certificates to the less fortunate during the past  year.

As far as re-sale shops, I like  Twice Around Fashions on Wildwood Avenue, a couple of blocks south of Wildwood  Market.  Loretta O'Daniel is Cleveland's "Grand Dame" of re-sale,  having been in business for 20 years now.  Twice Around Fashions is always packed to the gills with good quality "slightly used" clothing, but Loretta also buys close-outs and offers them at  tremendous savings.  A few years ago for instance, she bought the inventory from Kay's Shoe Barn when it closed, and offered those shoes at less than half price.

She also sometimes buys left over "event" shirts as well.  An event shirt, for instance, is where they have a sponsored golf tournament, and sell up-scale knit golf shirts with the tournament name on them for usually $25-$35.  Loretta buys the ones they  don't sell, and sells them brand new at Twice Around Fashions for $4.

Even though these two are my favorites, it pays to shop them all frequently as their selection changes weekly.  The thrift stores in Cleveland are Community Thrift,  Goodwill, Salvation Army, and Habitat for Humanity.  I might add that Habitat has building materials, furniture and appliances at great deals!  Re-sale consignment stores in Cleveland are Centsible Chic,  Clothesline, Gifts and More, McDonald Trading Post, Prior Attire, and Twice  Around Fashions.  The addresses for all of these can be found in the BellSouth yellow pages under "consignment" or "thrift" stores.
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