I realized today that at some point within the last few years I'd crossed an imaginary threshhold. Now that I've passed through it, it's possible for me to look back and discover something about myself that I hadn't known before, but which has no doubt always been true.
The threshhold involved leaving the economic state where my wants constantly exceeded available money and entering the state where available money frequently exceeds my wants. Or to put it simply, I'm not always broke anymore.
Now that I can afford to buy pretty much whatever I want, I find myself still wanting things but not getting them. I'm not trying to point out that some things in life can't be bought, or that there's more to life than money, or any of the other common truisms. I simply mean that there's stuff out there that I want, can easily afford to buy, and yet don't.
So... why not?
Some other reasons besides money could be coming into play. I live in a small apartment, which is already filled with stuff. Maybe it's just that I don't really want the stuff I think I want. It'd take up too much room, and leave me too crowded. I want the item, but I don't want more crowding, so in the end I don't really want it after all.
That might be true for some big stuff, but -- that doesn't apply to really small stuff, especially really small stuff that fits inside of stuff I already have. Computer parts, for example.
There, an entirely different reason is at work. It turns out that I don't, and this is pretty obvious really, that I don't just see something I want, make sure I have enough money, and then buy it. Instead, I see something I want, make sure I have enough money, make sure I think it's worth the money, and then buy it. That extra step is important.
I'm sure you're all rolling your eyes at this point, if you've even read this far that is, but I swear this is interesting stuff! This means that I could already be well on my way towards being like everyone's ancient grandparent who bitches about how much stuff costs and never prys open his moth-ridden wallet to actually buy anything. I've already built a mental database of how much stuff is "worth" and as inflation pushes the prices of everything up, I'm going to be left with less and less stuff that I think is cheap enough to be "worth" buying. I'm only 25, and I've already got the spending habits of a geriatric old man.
This calls for a mid-life crisis! Where's my credit card?
The threshhold involved leaving the economic state where my wants constantly exceeded available money and entering the state where available money frequently exceeds my wants. Or to put it simply, I'm not always broke anymore.
Now that I can afford to buy pretty much whatever I want, I find myself still wanting things but not getting them. I'm not trying to point out that some things in life can't be bought, or that there's more to life than money, or any of the other common truisms. I simply mean that there's stuff out there that I want, can easily afford to buy, and yet don't.
So... why not?
Some other reasons besides money could be coming into play. I live in a small apartment, which is already filled with stuff. Maybe it's just that I don't really want the stuff I think I want. It'd take up too much room, and leave me too crowded. I want the item, but I don't want more crowding, so in the end I don't really want it after all.
That might be true for some big stuff, but -- that doesn't apply to really small stuff, especially really small stuff that fits inside of stuff I already have. Computer parts, for example.
There, an entirely different reason is at work. It turns out that I don't, and this is pretty obvious really, that I don't just see something I want, make sure I have enough money, and then buy it. Instead, I see something I want, make sure I have enough money, make sure I think it's worth the money, and then buy it. That extra step is important.
I'm sure you're all rolling your eyes at this point, if you've even read this far that is, but I swear this is interesting stuff! This means that I could already be well on my way towards being like everyone's ancient grandparent who bitches about how much stuff costs and never prys open his moth-ridden wallet to actually buy anything. I've already built a mental database of how much stuff is "worth" and as inflation pushes the prices of everything up, I'm going to be left with less and less stuff that I think is cheap enough to be "worth" buying. I'm only 25, and I've already got the spending habits of a geriatric old man.
This calls for a mid-life crisis! Where's my credit card?
posted by Dan at 9:42 PM
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