Think Outside The Piggy Bank

how do you decide what X is worth?

In other words, how do you determine value? Take the pot on the left for example. I found it advertised on Kijiji, and immediately fell in love. But more than a hundred other viewers over the past month and a half did not fall in love. Or at least, not enough to want to pay the asking price of $40. That price was considered a steal by its owner, and frankly, I'm inclined to agree. The pot is huge (holds 26 cups while my biggest holds 16), and is ideal for making vast quantities of soup, which I do a lot. Of bigger value to me is the brand and colour (the Dutch BK line which no longer produces pots and pans in this lovely shade), and the idea of making savoury soups in this cheerful cauldron. I grew up on food made in pots like these, so definitely nostalgia factors in. But when I was asked by someone if I thought this pot was worth $40, I immediately replied absolutely. I don't even intend to haggle for it! And I guess that's what monetary value comes down to: whatever someone is willing to pay is what it's worth.

p.s. even though it's not Monday, I'm going to put this in the monday's $ question category because well, it's a question and it's about money ;)

update: Got the pot yesterday plus a smaller version for an additional $5, and am even more thrilled with them in person. They're clean, and you can tell that they're of really good quality. I'm gonna enjoy them for years I bet!

Monday's money question 7

What is your very first memory of money?

I'll let you think about that while I dig deep into my own memory bank.

My first memory? Well, I must have been about six, and I've never admitted this to anyone before, but I climbed onto a kitchen counter, stole a coin from a jar in the cupboard (nickel or dime probably), and bought some candy at the store down the block. Isn't that terrible? My first memory of money involves criminal activity! Makes you wonder how (or if) that affected my relationship with money at all, snort. How about you?

reward points

Are they worth it? I'm thinking more about store reward programs than the reward points earned with credit cards. Let's take the Shoppers Drug Mart (Canada's largest pharmacy chain) Shoppers Optimum Reward program as an example. When you rack up 7,000 points, you can save $10 on your next purchase. Sounds great, but in reality that means (if you don't end up earning extra bonus points along the way) that you've spent $700 to get the measly ten bucks. If you make it to the highest level of 75,000 points, you get rewarded with $150. But of course you've spent (again, without extra bonus points thrown in to help) a whopping $7,500! Now, it's true that if you would have spent that amount in that particular store anyway, then the reward is kinda nice (although still paltry), but I think the reward system entices you to spend more than you normally would. At least, it did with me a number of years ago. When I found myself deliberately buying things I didn't necessarily need (yes me, the frugal one!) just to get more points more quickly, I stopped using the Shoppers Optimum card and am glad I did.

Ha! Here's someone with a different take. Kathryn uses the reward system to much greater advantage, so perhaps I need to rethink my strategy.

moneymoon: marriage and money

After the Honeymoon comes the "Moneymoon".

This phrase was part of an ad I saw for a marriage and money seminar held by a local church last month. I didn't go, in part because I'm marriage-phobic, LOL, and because I hope I already have the common-sense approach to money matters that they promised. But I wish I had as I think it would have been interesting, and I'm curious as to what they advocated.

I'm assuming of course that they talked about the need for planning, budgeting, saving, avoiding or reducing debt, and how to distinguish between needs and wants. They probably covered the importance of talking about money (which can sometimes be even more awkward than talking about sex), and the difficulty that arises when one party is more of a "saver" and the other more of a "spender". Money is one of the biggest sources of conflict in relationships, and no wonder as it's often much more than just about money itself.

I'm hoping though that what they particularly stressed is the importance of women having access to their own account even if married. While I imagine that few contemporary relationships are still based on the sexist model of men being in charge of the finances, I'm sure that they still exist, and that's pretty scary. All women in any type of relationship need to have access to their own credit card, personal and joint accounts, bills, and knowledge of all financial and legal issues that pertain to the couple. Anything else is an invitation to a control and power imbalance, and potential financial abuse.

money quirk #1

Like many of you (well, at least SOME of you), I have my fair share of quirks. And because I'm fascinated with everything money (except perhaps for earning it -- that is more of a duty than a fascination, snort), my quirks also extend to the financial realm, so I thought that over time I'd share a few.

One of my money quirks is that I like my bills crispy. As in smooth, flat, new, without any wrinkles or creases. (Yes, I have seriously considered ironing, but luckily, I don't have an iron.) Trouble is, you rarely get those deliciously pristine bills, and even when you do, it's not as if you keep them for long. And why it makes a difference to me I'm not even sure, but I'm always disappointed when crumpled, crinkly bills are handed over. Still, it's not like I can ask, "Um, can I have mine crisp please?" when dealing with a clerk. Or can I? ;)

stre$$

It's been an odd week for me so far, and kind of a stressful one at that, although luckily it's had nothing to do with money or family as such. But is Maxine right? Certainly these days all you seem to hear about are the economic woes that are plaguing more than one country, and yet I'm starting to wonder if there isn't a bit of economic fear-mongering going on, especially here in Canada where things are set up differently than in the States. Also curious I thought was the sudden focus on the economy in the last part of the recent federal election, which seemed to me to coincide with the massive amount of media attention paid to the financial troubles next door. Okay, maybe I just wasn't paying attention before and I realize that most things have global implications these days, but I don't think an economic meltdown is here quite yet. Like I said, systems in this country are not the same as in the States. And, if your own personal finances are in order (as they should be), then there's no need to go into panic mode. Right?

update II

I liked how the article I mentioned in update I's post also emphasized the importance of being a good customer, because really, manners is a two-way street and as much as I might get annoyed with rude cashiers, theirs is a job I wouldn't want for myself on any terms. Being on my feet as well for most of my shifts I can tell you how tiring it is, and the term "retail feet" certainly got coined for good reason. I'm lucky too in that I still get to walk around a fair bit in my job, and am fairly sure that if I were stuck behind some cash machine with rude or condescending customers who don't care if they're loading 25 items onto an express lane or not, then I might not be all that polite either. So I make it a point of trying to be fairly pleasant if I can.

And to be honest I think that is something that the residents of the group home where I work on weekends reinforced for me as well. I was serving a meal one day when one of them asked me if anyone had ever told me how friendly I was, and I replied (indignantly almost because I DO have a reputation as an introverted curmudgeon to protect after all, snort) "No!" (which actually was the truth no matter how fairly nice a person I may consider myself to be), but it made me realize more fully how my interaction style can have a direct impact. From that day on I made a point to try to be cheerful and polite (without being friendly in that forced false kind of way) even when I have to reprimand them for something. And I think it's made a difference. Although even if it hadn't, everyone still deserves respect regardless of the situation.

But what I really meant to tell you before I started rambling on is that being friendly and polite can also pay off. A few weeks ago I was surprised to see that my Internet bill had gone up by two dollars. I couldn't really figure out why as I was on a contract that hadn't yet expired so I decided to find out what had happened. I called the company (who is also my telephone service provider) and politely explained why I was calling. It was a late Friday afternoon and at one point I said to the service rep that she must be looking forward to the weekend coming up and that somehow got us talking about our shifts and jobs in general. In the meantime she had spotted the problem and rectified the situation saying I'd get a credit for the difference and that my monthly Internet bill would continue at the same rate. I thanked her, wished her a good weekend, and went back to what I was doing. Well guess what? I got my MasterCard bill the other day and it looks like I got credit for the whole month instead of just the difference! All for doing what we should do anyway -- be polite and courteous to each other. So there you go. Being nice even pays cash sometimes. ;)

update I

Wouldn't you know it? As I was writing my last post, Monday's money question 4, an MSN personal finance article was floating around without my being aware of it. A shame really, as it talked about the same thing I was--rude cashiers! You can read it here, and discover four more ways customers get irritated. :)

money on the floor

It doesn't surprise me as much anymore given how often I've seen it now, but the first time I saw change on the floor of a person's house I was cleaning, it well, floored me. I'm not talking about a single nickel or dime here either, but almost $7 worth of quarters, nickels, dimes, loonies (Canadian $1 coin), toonies (Canadian $2 coin) and pennies. Now the pennies and nickels I could almost understand, but loonies and toonies? Are you kidding me? On the floor? I don't know about you, but you won't find a single coin on any floor in my house because as far as I'm concerned money belongs in wallets, piggy banks, or maybe even on a dresser, but not strewn everywhere!

So what did I do with the nearly $7 worth of change I found? Told the woman (yes, woman, and not some sloppy bachelor like you might expect) that any coins I find on the floor I pocket and consider a tip. I suppose it would have been nicer if I'd given the money back before I issued my warning, but I figured it was a good lesson to learn, and besides, that was a fair bit of change I didn't want to give back after picking it all up! Did said woman no longer leave money lying around after that? Nope. In fact, she let me go about six months after I started cleaning for her saying that she could no longer afford me. Hmmm. Too many tips?

Like I said, after so many times it doesn't shock me anymore, but it still leaves me puzzled. And what does leaving money around on the floor mean or symbolize? Laziness? Carelessness? No need for it?  What does it say about your relationship to money? Because it strikes me as rather disrespectful if you just fling it on the floor. And if you accept the notion that everything is energy, then I would think that how you treat money might reflect how it treats you.

Have a good weekend everyone!

how much money does any one person need?

I ask this after learning the other day that Oprah rakes in $260 million a year. A year! Frankly I think the only fitting word to describe that kind of money is obscene, because really, what on earth would any one person do with all that cash floating in year after year? But what personally galls me is that this apparently isn't enough as her website continues to collect revenue through advertising, thereby slowing down my old computer every time I happen to go there. Hello? I would argue that Oprah is probably the least person in the world in need of making even more money through ads. And please don't think that this is Oprah-bashing as such because I'd be leveling this criticism against anyone in that position. (I've been arguing for years for example that the type of salaries made by athletes and actors is beyond ridiculous and that if the money were capped at a reasonable rate it would maybe better indicate who is in their field for the love of their craft or sport.) Maybe it bothers me more because this is a woman who is supposed to about empowerment, betterment of oneself, and reaching out to others. And reach out she does in her charitable donations I'll admit, but still. I just can't get over the fact that $260 million just doesn't seem to quite cut it for her, and that having a finger in as many media pies as possible (is there anything this woman isn't involved in?) isn't enough either. What this also says to me is that it probably isn't money being sought after but power, and that my friend, scares me a little.

There, a bit of a rant for you on my first day back on the blog. Maybe I should have extended my mini-vacation? Snort.