There's nothing better than a free lunch, or a free prize or a free sample. My bathroom is full of hotel soaps and samples I've gotten over the years, and I've spent the last few months trying to use them all up before I'm allowed to go buy new things. It's working pretty well, actually, and I'm sure I'm saving some money, even if I can't exactly track it.
I had a thought though the other day when I was doing some online shopping for a new bag: The things you own often cost you money in ways you couldn't really predict when buying them.
For example. A co-worker of mine drives a Smart Car. Smart Cars are great because they get excellent gas mileage and you can park them practically anywhere. One big drawback, however, that I only learned about recently is that apparently Smart Car was acquired by Mercedes Benz a little while back. That means, when my co-worker recently had to buy snow tires for his car, the sticker price was significantly higher because he had to buy them from Mercedes. Also, most people who own Smart Cars must not live in places where you need snow tires, because he had to special order them, which also cost extra.
At least he saves money on gas, but I frequently envy Smart Car owners assuming that their car costs must be lower than mine--perhaps not so.
Similarly, when I started my job, work gave me an iPad. The boss wants us to comfortable with them, so everyone is given one when they start. It's a nice little bonus, and I really appreciate it since I would never have bought one myself. I took mine, brought it home, and used it to play a lot of games on or to watch tv on while I was falling asleep. I never brought it back to work because my purse was too small to hold it. Turns out that work kind of doesn't like it when they give you an iPad and you never actually have it when you need it.
So I had to buy a new bag.
Sure, you're thinking well, you didn't have to, you can just carry the thing (lazy dumbass). But I honestly was so worried that I'd either drop it, set it down and forget about it, or have it stolen that I just never took it anywhere. Whenever I had it with me, I was just so on edge all the time. Also, there were plenty of times I intended to bring it to work and I just forgot to grab it on my way out the door. There was also the time I was juggling purse, iPad, recycling, lunch box and lunchtime reading material when I almost threw the iPad in the outside recycle bin. First world problems, for sure, but it became a bit of a real problem.
Because I'm super picky about bags, it took me months to find one that I would actually like to carry with or without iPad, and it took me even longer after finding one to actually pull the trigger and make the purchase. I am glad I have it, and I now bring the iPad to work every day, which is pretty handy, but it's also rather annoying that I had to spend $40 on a new purse when my old one works fine (though it's kind of falling apart). However, I am ultimately pleased with my decision--more than I thought I would be.
Have you encountered some hidden unexpected extras with purchases?
I had a thought though the other day when I was doing some online shopping for a new bag: The things you own often cost you money in ways you couldn't really predict when buying them.
At least he saves money on gas, but I frequently envy Smart Car owners assuming that their car costs must be lower than mine--perhaps not so.
Similarly, when I started my job, work gave me an iPad. The boss wants us to comfortable with them, so everyone is given one when they start. It's a nice little bonus, and I really appreciate it since I would never have bought one myself. I took mine, brought it home, and used it to play a lot of games on or to watch tv on while I was falling asleep. I never brought it back to work because my purse was too small to hold it. Turns out that work kind of doesn't like it when they give you an iPad and you never actually have it when you need it.
Sure, you're thinking well, you didn't have to, you can just carry the thing (lazy dumbass). But I honestly was so worried that I'd either drop it, set it down and forget about it, or have it stolen that I just never took it anywhere. Whenever I had it with me, I was just so on edge all the time. Also, there were plenty of times I intended to bring it to work and I just forgot to grab it on my way out the door. There was also the time I was juggling purse, iPad, recycling, lunch box and lunchtime reading material when I almost threw the iPad in the outside recycle bin. First world problems, for sure, but it became a bit of a real problem.
Because I'm super picky about bags, it took me months to find one that I would actually like to carry with or without iPad, and it took me even longer after finding one to actually pull the trigger and make the purchase. I am glad I have it, and I now bring the iPad to work every day, which is pretty handy, but it's also rather annoying that I had to spend $40 on a new purse when my old one works fine (though it's kind of falling apart). However, I am ultimately pleased with my decision--more than I thought I would be.
Have you encountered some hidden unexpected extras with purchases?
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