common sense

All the daytime talk shows these days are talking about how to deal with the financial crisis. I am so tired of hearing about the "secrets" to saving money - using cash, not buying a car every two or three years, using coupons, shopping sales - the list goes on and on. I guess since I've done these things my entire adult life and was raised by parents who did the same, I just thought these things were common sense. I guess they're not, otherwise the country wouldn't be in this mess. As my wise economics professor said, "Economics isn't hard. If you can't pay, you can't have." I think it's so funny when I pay with cash at the grocery store, and the cashier acts like he or she has never made change. The other day on Oprah, they showed a lady doing the envelope system like it was some new, radical concept. Hello? I remember my parents giving me $10 out of the gas money envelope when I was a teenager. (That usually filled up the car - yes, I'm old.)

People try to make finances so difficult, and it's really pretty simple: if you can't pay cash for it, don't buy it. I don't drive the fanciest or newest van in Brentwood, but I love driving it because we paid CASH for it. If it wasn't paid for, I wouldn't enjoy driving it.

That's all I have to say about that.