Budgeting and Indulgence

The past few days I've been searching around online for deals on designer jeans and have found myself really bewildered. On one hand, there are some remarkable bargains listed for used jeans if you do your homework. On the other hand, the prices I see for brand new jeans are astronomical. For real? That kind of dough for a pair of jeans? There are so many different things that I think of that I could spend that kind of paper on before I even think about designer jeans, or even clothes in general, for that matter.

Now, I'm not the sort of woman that expects to look like a glamorous movie star after shopping at the thrift store. I'm reasonable. I understand that in order to look unbelievable, you're normally going to have to pay a little bit. That is fine with this chick. But just like I'm sure the rest of you do, I have my boundaries. And my shopping budget for a pair of jeans definitely is nowhere close to $300 (or whatever).

Who can justify these crazy prices?

I guess all humans are guilty of having things we drop a little more dough than other folks perhaps do. It just depends on your priorities. For this shy shopper, I enjoy eating out at high-end restaurants. I realize it's only an experience and you cannot take anything away from it (with the exception of stomach pains), but to me it's totally worth it. It's simply one of the few things I enjoy a great deal, and I do not have a problem paying a premium for a quality meal.

Back in college I had a roomate that would usually spend $200 (plus tip) each and every single time she got her hair done, which she did once a month. To me, that is nuts. To her, it was a simple necessity that absolutely could not be compromised.

Yet another friend of mine hated washing dishes so incredibly much that she would actually toss them out after they got dirty and then go buy brand new. That probably seems foolish to reasonable people, but in her mind it seemed perfectly reasonable. Of course, they weren't pricey fine china, but still! Evidently she had never heard of paper plates! The ironic part of that story is that I totally recall having this exact chat with her one time about how silly it is that some people spend such ridiculous sums of cash for denim.