I noticed a theme this week in both the blog posts I read as well as the comments to my posts this week. Matt at Mom and Dad Money wrote an article called Bad for the Budget, Good for the Soul. In the post he highlights examples where he splurged on certain items or adventures but is happy with the results. It reminds me of a post I wrote about traveling. The common theme is to be responsible and mindful of your budget and what you spend, but don’t go overboard and miss out on life.
This week, I wrote a reaction to Steven Spielberg and George Lucas predicting less creative movies and higher prices in which I state I hope it does happen and people abandon movies altogether. There were a few comments from folks defending the movie industry and stating that going to the movies is part of their entertainment budget. Similarly, I wrote about my considerations for getting a pet and many people commented that the price of obtaining and caring for a pet paled in comparison to the benefits of having one.
So what is my takeaway from this week? We all value different things and, therefore, are willing to pay certain prices for those things. For me, I will spend more for travel. Others may see more benefit in spending on pets, cars, entertainment or other things. No choice is wrong, but if we go into debt or do not budget appropriately, then our plan of obtaining the item or experience might need to be examined.
In this personal finance community, we seem to have to defend any and all purchases, but I don’t think that is such a bad thing. It keeps us on top of our game and when we do decide to make a purchase, helps us remember the value of it.
In Other News
I finally got a picture from my side gig as a character for children’s parties. I am on the left as Prince Eric from The Little Mermaid. Unfortunately, the party from last weekend where I could have been Spiderman was cancelled. It is a really fun gig and there should be plenty more this summer.Thriftgenuity made the top 100 finance blogs at Technorati.
Next week, Matt from Mom and Dad Money will trade blogs and share some wisdom with each other’s readers for our Monday post.
Have a great weekend everyone!