Friday, April 23, 2010

Coupons and Dates

My friend Jeff is part of a blogger brawl. You should all vote for him here! He is hilarious and an amazing writer and just deserves it...so vote!

In his blog, he says this: "Just one more question to verify: Is it rude to use a coupon on a date? Jeff says yes. New Era says not at all! What? You mean, not only am I lacking in dating expertise, I've also missed out on chances to save money all these years? Good grief."

This set off a spark of electrical thought-currents in my mind. Would you believe me if I said that I had one long-term boyfriend whom I would not go out to eat with unless we had a coupon? I was the culprit all the way. Even now, I jump in with suggestions on where we should eat on dates based on where I have a coupon, although this is not the lone determining factor these days.
Does using a coupon make me think a man is cheap or poor or thinks I am not good enough for full-price? NO! Coupon-usage makes me think how smart and economical this young man must be. How he is saving his money for our long and fruitful life together.
I have other friends who have shared with me they do find it unappealing when a man uses a coupon on a date.
To coupon or not to coupon? That is the question.

5 comments:

j said...

I would never use a coupon on a first date, and probably not for at least a few dates after that. Once I feel like I'm no longer in danger of being "coupon guy", I'd be happy to use a coupon, though certainly not to the point of it determining where I want to eat.

jeff said...

Thanks for the free publicity Riss!

I use coupons a lot for personal grocery shopping and fast food selection. It helps me make up my mind, try a variety of places and foods (though most are admittedly unhealthy), and get a lot of food for less money.

I echo the previous comment, though, about refraining from coupons for the first few dates. Gift cards are a completely different story though. I use them without any shame.

Kristie said...

Ya, if he uses a coupon on the first few dates, it makes me feel like he had to use the coupon. I'd prefer the guy to be more thoughtful. A guy once used a coupon on me for the first date. I was not impressed. After 3 dates though, I'd say you're golden.

Jenny said...

no no no, I'm coupon all the way. Call me cheap -- er, actually don't. Call me frugal. Ok, first date? Maybe not I guess. Definitely debatable -- thus the blog post. But I wouldn't be offended if someone pulled out a coupon. This guy doesn't know if there'll be a second date or not. BYU just came out with something that said how much money is spent on first dates that don't turn into second dates. It's not a pretty number folks. Guys, and girls alike, need to think about their long term investments here, and sometimes the individuals of the opposite sex don't turn out to be such a good long term investment -- savings, retirement, the good 'ole 401K. Those are more reliable than a first date, wouldn't you say? And if there is a 2nd, 3rd+ date, well all the more mula to put into that 401K for your future with the lovely beauty. Some of this I say in jest, but really, when I was in the dating scene, I never felt unappreciated with a coupon, especially if we were doing something more expensive. The way I was treated on the date was much more revealing to me of the man than how much money he spent -- though, I understand some feel like the money is a reflection of how you are treated. We can agree to disagree on this point. But, please, buy your movie tickets at the grocery store, get a deal on the food, and live happily ever after. That's what we did.:)

Jon said...

I'm a coupon guy. I use them on about a third of all my dates. Yes, several of them are first dates. It has nothing to do with me being stingy, or how I feel about the girl I'm taking out--the fact that I'm taking her out means I'm interested, hello! But when you can save money, why not? Besides, if a girl is ever put off by the fact I used a coupon on the date, I'm likely to be less interested in her. After all, I don't want anyone who's high maintenance.