Monday, July 18, 2011

THE LATTE FACTOR

There are small indulgences that we allow ourselves which over the years add up to big money. I call this the latte factor. That expensive cup of morning coffee, that cigarette habit, lottery tickets or stopping at the convenience store for milk instead of buying enough at the supermarket. It doesn't seem like much. It never does, but the cumulative effect is to put a big dent in the budget. These things exist to get money out of people. You may think you're treating yourself but you are actually keeping a whole class of people in business. The convenience store owner thrives on laziness. You pay heavily for convenience. And that trendy coffeeshop is laughing at the people who pay $5 for a cup of mudlike joe. I never spent money at expensive coffeeshops because I didn't like the coffee. I prefer American coffee to the dark and sludgy European roast. If you like the European roast spare your insides and drink it they way they do in Europe. Half coffee, half hot milk. Otherwise the stuff is frankly undrinkable. Bottomline the whole coffee thing is just a fad. People are very willing to overpay for stuff, if it looks cool. I'm not willing to join the mob. I like being an independant thinker. I guess that's why I'm a cheapskate. When everyone else was buying designer everything, I took a step back and bought second hand stuff. When my friends and family were looking for big houses, I was looking for the cheapest, smallest house I could buy. I have no regrets. I looked for a long time. Folks all around me were desperately buying while I stood still and waited for the right deal. Right now I am looking for a retirement place. I've been looking for a few months. The deals are dissappearing in some ways, but I don't care. I'm not going to let myself be gripped by hysteria. I'll buy when I find the right deal and not before.

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