The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

The student news site of El Camino College

El Camino College The Union

Cheap Date? or Frugal Spending?

Everyone has had that “one date”. You all know what I am talking about. That date in which every situation that could go wrong does. When it’s closing time and the check comes to the table, you just want to get out of there.

You see the total of the bill and think to yourself that it is a bit pricy, but wait, you forgot you had a coupon that takes 50 percent off. You being your frugal self is ecstatic.

But your date gives you that look across the table. That “I can’t believe he is using a coupon” look. She bites her tongue and it’s too late, she labeled you as the cheap date.

But what can you do about it? We are living in tough economic times, we need to stretch our dollar as far as possible. But the question we asked the student body is if we “stretch the dollar during the date.”

I went around asking students both male and female how they feel about guys using coupons on dates and the results varied from both sides of the spectrum.

There were commonalities among the girls and guys that concurred using a coupon was cheap and tacky.

“It is cheap, I don’t use coupons,” Hamoun Dolatshahi, 21, communications major said.

When interviewing some of the guys who were anti coupon, they all had the same consensus; girls don’t like cheap guys.

“If you use a coupon on a date don’t expect to get the cookie,” Chase Adrian, 20, music major, said.

Certain girls felt the same way as the men because of the dating standard that society has set up today.

“That’s cheap because you guys would expect me to go all out,” Vannessa Joseph, 19, undeclared major, said.

On the other hand, the pro coupon students all agreed that we live in a tough time and every dollar must be spent wisely. They understand college students don’t have a lot of money especially if you are performing a juggling act between school and work.

“The economy is messed up, I don’t feel like I am being cheap, I am just a baller on a budget,” Joseph Taylor, 22, automotive tech major, said.

The women’s perspective on the pro coupon was very understanding towards our male demographic. The pro coupon girls agreed that the intention of the man on the date was the only that really mattered.

“The impression of the guy and his intentions are really what’s the most important,” Cheyenne Barry, 18, American sign language major, said.

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