A while ago, my wife and I did what we do from time to time — ask if there’s another cost-saving opportunity we’ve overlooked. I don’t know about you, but the quest for fiscal prudence is generally at its highest in our household after some indulgent purchase. “Hey, look! We can compensate for this luxo-foobie by slashing costs here!” (Are we the only people who do this?)
The indulgence in question was an iPhone. My trooper wife had been braving modern civilization with a dumb phone. (Someone from the ’80s would have called a slim, foldable phone which sends text messages anything but dumb, but that’s a different subject.) It worked fine and was cheap, but, well, even it began to show signs of age. Cell phones not being fine wine, I decided to surprise her with an iPhone, to heck with the cost. She did not resist.
Soon, however, guilt replaced the excitement, prompting the aforementioned introspection.