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Buy Now, Pay Later, Eventually Declare Bankruptcy

By Gloria Diaz

Check out Gloria's Blog — Edge of Gloria!

Fort Wayne Reader

2009-04-07

I went through my own financial meltdown a few months ago, so I look at the bailouts and stimulus packages with some mixed feelings. I don’t think CEO’s should be rewarded with bailouts. I’m sorry, but if you make five million a year and get a million dollars as a “bonus,” and you’re still broke, you are too dumb to deserve that kind of money.

Over the last spring and summer, I learned a few things. One, that I’m not middle class. Two, that I need to learn and accept that, and say no to middle class things. Three, never, ever assume that investing in education is a good thing and it will pay off in the long run.

I have to admit, I had a sense of entitlement too. Not like the CEOs did, but like middle class America did. It started when I was young. There I was, a college student, and I’d shelled out $75 for a pair of Ted Lapidus sunglasses. A friend of mine, who was even more label-conscious than I was, couldn’t believe that I’d paid that much. Never mind that he was fully supported by his grandparents and was reluctant to work for a living. Hopefully, he’s found a sugar daddy by now. Yeah, he was gay.

I don’t know where it started. I’m stupid about money, but when I bought my Geo years ago, I knew I wanted to have a car with low payments. I didn’t care how long I was paying on it, I just wanted something affordable so if I did quit my low-paying journalism job (please take note all you aspiring writers: most journalism jobs are low-paying) and went to something even less lucrative. I got a five-year loan with payments of $150 a month. It was probably the smartest thing I did. I still own that car. It’s not snazzy to look at, but it gets great mileage and it was paid off a long time ago.

But I see people nowadays who want all the conveniences of life NOW. I work with someone who shells out $500 to Verizon every month for various services. I know someone who lives in a house with 12 other people, yet has a gaming system, a big television set and about four iPods. People who are in their 40s and think they deserve the dream house. Or the expensive vehicles. Or the cable, music downloads, high-speed Internet, $4 coffees from Starbucks, convenience store foods, makeup that promises miracles, over priced clothes and shoes, video games, video game systems, designer purses, better cell phones, laptops and other stuff peddled to us 24/7 by Madison Avenue.

I’m still not smart about money, but I realized my world wouldn’t end if I stopped wearing makeup on a daily basis. I don’t own an iPod. Viewing a video on YouTube, even if it’s only four minutes long, requires that I do something else, like write this column, while my dial-up slowly chugs the images onto my screen. I made do with a 13-inch television (no cable) until my brother and sister-in-law loaned me a 19-inch. I’m in the process of saving for a bigger, nicer television. However, I feel guilty about that. Do I really NEED a new television? I’ve got a converter box and this TV on loan. And I could use my television fund to put money towards bills that I have. So I’m still kinda on the fence about that.

So sometimes I think it’s our own fault that we are in the financial mess we’re in. We don’t save, so everything we want goes on a credit card. We lose our jobs. We can’t make our credit card payments anymore. The credit card companies stop giving us credit. Whoops! Now what? We’re forced to save for what we want. Who’d have thought layaway would make a comeback?

I learned this summer what I should have learned a long time ago. I don’t browse in stores anymore to check out bargains. You can save even more money if you don’t look for ways to spend it. So that means trips to the dollar store are out. Trips to Target (though I love it dearly) are out, because if I go in there for one thing, I end up blowing $50. I’ve turned down the thermostat, a major concession for me. I’ve put off car repairs so I can save up the money for them.

I still eat out too much. I guess everyone has a vice.

But I’ve learned. There are things I can live without and will continue to live without. In the meantime, I’m trying to make saving money a fun thing. I haven’t taken up the sport of dumpster diving or gone on an all-ramen diet, but if I do, you’ll be sure to know about it. And leave those “Take a Penny” cups at the registers alone. Those are mine. ALL