I think I have finally broken through a case of what I call "spender's block". Think of it as "writer's block" but instead of not being able to write, you're not able to spend money.
For months I have been wearing the same UNCOMFORTABLE shoes to work. They are awful. The toes are so narrow that I feel like I am doing permanent damage to my feet by wearing them by disfiguring them into an un-foot like shape. I keep wearing them because I don't want to spend the money to buy new shoes. I know I have to buy them eventually; I've looked at Target for cheap shoes that were comfortable from time to time but never find anything. Finally, yesterday I figured that since I had that $2.00 gift certificate to Mervyn's that I should try to look there.
I looked and looked for shoes that I thought were both stylish (because I am oh so stylish) and comfortable. There were these hideous looking shoes that I tried on that felt so good that I almost bought them despite the fact that I would look like I was 80 years old wearing them. There were also these shoes that were so-so but I couldn't bring myself to buy shoes that were so-so because I knew I would be wanting to buy another pair in a couple of months becauase I hated the so-so shoes.
So I crossed shoes off of my list and thought that perhaps I could spend my $2.00 on something for the new apartment. I looked at towels. I looked at dishes. I looked at appliances. But I just couldn't buy anything. The thing about Mervyn's that bugs me is that all of their prices are jacked up and then they say that everything is 40% off so that you feel like you are getting some fabulous deal. I wasn't going to play that game. In my head I kept thinking, I could probably get that at Target for cheaper. So, before I made any RASH decisions with my $2.00 I decided that I would think about it and shop around first.
So when I got home I went to Target to compare prices on things like dishes, pots and pans, silverware, etc. It got to be so frustrating because almost none of the products had all good/average reviews. It seemed inevitable that each product had a comment like "i put these in the dishwasher and they fell apart" or "this blowdryer burnt my hair and I found clumps of hair on the bathroom floor". Yikes! Sometimes I think that product reviews really help but at the same time makes it soooo much more difficult to choose.
So what do I do? Instead of making a decision, I head on over to Amazon to see what they have. Even more choices! And to make things even more complicated, Amazon is offering $25 off when you spend $125 in their Kitchen & Houseware or Bed & Bath departments. I could easily do that in this whole moving process (not that I want to).
What is a girl to do? Who knew that buying cutlery could be such a process. Why can't I just muster the courage to buy a toaster?
The good news is is that I at least found a cute, comfortable pair of shoes today. Bad news is that they cost $75. I'm o.k. with it though because shoes are the one thing that I would prefer to spend a little bit more on so that I know that they will be comfortable and will last longer (crossing my fingers on that one). Also, when I got home my neighbor had dropped off a nice toaster and some silverware that they no longer need. So maybe spender's block was a good thing!
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Spending Block
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4 comments:
TWO dollars...
Wow, you got it bad...you must REALLY want to be out of debt...
what a "wierdo"
(i have spender's block also..i will pick up and put back the same junk 2 or 3 times...i have cancelled the last SEVEN items I have ordered from internet stores...i just HATE spending the money)
keep up the great work, and fight the good debt fight
ncnblog
I've noticed that whenever I have a giftcard, I find it much harder to buy something,,, my husband says that it is because I want to buy the "perfect" item in the store and that is why nothing satisfies me, I think so too. A gift card is extra money something that is given so I guess that is why you never find the right thing to spend it on....dunno just something to think about, perhaps that is why you couldn't get yourself to spend the $2 ; ) Love your postings, when you wrote about looking like an 80 year old if you bought the shoes, you made me laugh not bad for a Wednesday morning. ; )
This is interesting. I hadn't heard of this before.
Debt free == Freedom.
It feels so good.
Work hard towards it.
Enjoying something (shoe or otherwise) that you know you do not owe (into any credit card, for example) is so good.
However, to know you have enough money to cover future expenses for the rest of your life... that is divine.
I am not there yet... But I have enough to cover from 45 and onward. Just have to find a way of covering the next 15 years :)
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