Waste not, want not was Don Moberly’s mother’s favorite phrase.  Don, a sophomore in high school, did not come from a family of affluence, but is there a reasonable line to draw when it comes to trying to find ways to save money, is there any room for negotiation, or is a mother’s decision indeed the final word?

     Or, more to the point, is there any end to the humiliation parents can innocently inflict on their children, or is it indeed limitless as many adolescents believe? . . .

     Don awaited a rebuttal, but none came, and after a slight pause, continued, “So, you see, in the past nine and one-half years, our frugality has saved us in the neighborhood of $12.38.” . . .