What Does Money Mean to Me?

In this world, there are millionaires. There are also people who are not millionaires, but who do earn enough to afford a comfortable life that is peppered with occasional oversea vacations and large purchases. Then there are those whose lives are not as well off as the former, but they are satisfied, supposedly accustomed to the never-demand-too-much mindset. And that’s not forgetting that there are also people who lead frugal lives, sometimes hardly earning enough to make ends meet. Where am I? I am somewhere between the second and third category of people. I have never really gone overseas before, but I can’t claim to be dissatisfied with my life because I (as well as my parents) am still able to afford some luxuries in life. Examples of luxuries include the 42-inch LG LCD TV in the living room (which er … … I persuaded my parents to buy, and which probably is also the single piece of item in my home that I am most proud of) and the Xbox 360 and DS I bought with my personal cash.

I don’t have any branded garment in my wardrobe, save for a piece of Levi's shirt, jeans, and an Adidas shirt. There are 2 more Adidas shirts but those are given by others. Often, I found myself looking at those expensive (and beautiful) garments in department stores, but I can’t really afford to buy them because funds are limited. Neither can I afford the many toy robots that I would wish to collect if I have the financial muscle. So what does money mean to me? What are the times when I splurge and what are the times when I save my money? Am I a spendthrift or miser?

Truth be told, I am both; I am a spendthrift, but I am a miser as well. Being a food lover, you would seldom see me scrimping on food costs. In fact, I am willing to pay good money for good food – well, as long as the food is not too atrociously expensive. My parents often demurred at my eating habits, but hey, who can resist good food?

Some people mistake me for being a spendthrift because as a (now semi-withdrawn) gamer, I tend to spend much on games and consoles (like my Xbox 360 and DS; I still want to buy a PSP Slim and Lite!). As a tech geek, I also have a habit of buying IT products. But I would rather consider myself as a miser (well, a half-miser) in this aspect. You see, while I buy the aforementioned, I do not purchase items that I do not use. And I NEVER buy games, console and other gadgets at SRP (standard retail price); I always search around for the best bargains and if possible, buy second-hand products. I go to forums to look for sales, check out eBay and comb through the websites of several retailers to see which one is selling a particular product at the most affordable and the most justified price. If required, I would also plan my purchase weeks in advance and go down personally to different shops to check out the prices and compare before making the final decision. Yeah, it’s all quite troublesome, but I have saved hundreds, so what’s there to stop me from doing those? I know people who would just walk into a single store without prior comparison and come out with the product that they want – without knowing that they have paid for an overpriced product (perhaps cheated) and that they can get a MUCH MUCH better deal elsewhere. For instance, I discovered that my former secondary school classmate bought a PSP Slim and Lite for $500. Seriously, WTF! I can guarantee you that he had been cheated. With $500, you can buy an Xbox 360.

So yeah, I may appear as a spendthrift (pss. I have admitted to others that I am a spendthrift too), but hey, I am actually a part spendthrift and part half-miser at heart. Hm, I can already picture my food costs escalating in the future when I begin life as a working adult. Signing out. Anyway, new poems ‘Afternoon Tree’ and ‘Eyes and Smile’ are in the works. Look out for them soon!