What does "PAKE" mean (pronounced "PaaK-E)

(Hawaii residents can skip this intro)
In hawaii this word is used to describe someone who is very cheap or tight with money. In Hawaii the local creole is pidgin english and "pake" or "chang" is used to describe a chinese person in general; just like the word "haole" is used to describe a caucasian person or "popolo" is used to describe an African American person. For those wondering where I am headed while discussing the sensitive subject of race, let me assure you that I am a "pake" and a "katonk" so I am allowed to take pot shots at my own race. So for those of you who are not from hawaii, I dont think you should go around calling people these words freely should you decide to come and visit, as a person could get offended.

(Intro for everyone )
It has been my experience that all races and types of people can be equally stingy, not just the Chinese. Example 1: while I was working for a Japanese owned company one of their air conditioners went out. Workers and customers alike were very hot, but it took them many weeks to get someone to fix it. Although one might expect that there would be significant discounts for employees, we only got 10% off which is like equivalant to a Macy's sale where you might get a discount, but you're not sure if its even worth it to buy anything in the first place. Most of the equipment there looked way past the point of their depreciation value. Example 2: My brother went to a local ice cream bar and ordered a decadent shave ice, the owner was obviously a Korean person as she spoke the language fluently and was listening to a Korean radio station. When he paid her he thought she was offering him an extra straw so he refused but she thought that he was saying to keep the change. When he tried to nicely explain that he had made a mistake and that they had a misunderstanding her whole demeanor turned sour and she acted like it was pure torture to return his change (that was rightfully his anyway). Also, watch any Korean drama and see how many times themes of money comes up. Now I know I am being critical, but for those of you that know me you will agree that I am also a big fat tightwad. I think that if they had a contest like instead of the Cherry Blossom Queen contest they had "The pake" contest where they crown the biggest cheapskate I would probably win hands down. My one complaint with all this scrooging in the world today is that everyone wants to save money, but a lot of people don't know how to do it with class, style and sophistication.


A clip from the Chinese Drama "Frugal Game"
displaying classic examples of penny pinching in the domestic arena