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You Didn’t Have to Buy That to Have Fun

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golf cart hot rod

We’ve got a several neighbors who have recently splashed out for new golf carts. Why? So they can ride around the neighborhood and just see what’s going on. Note that these purchases were made solely for neighborhood joyriding. We don’t live in a golf community. These people don’t play golf. These people are not mobility-challenged in any way. We don’t live in an area where you can commute to the store in a golf cart. And our neighborhood isn’t that big. (I know from my marathon training days that it’s a two mile loop, or basically one mile across.) It’s a classic case of one person bought a golf cart (the “cool” person in the neighborhood saw people using them at a campground and thought it would be fun to do at home) and the lemmings had to follow.

One day I was working in my flower bed by the road when one of these golf cart lemmings came by. They stopped to chat and show off the new toy. I just nodded when he said, “Yeah, it was expensive and it’ll take a while to pay off, but we really needed a way to get around the neighborhood with the kids and see what people were up to over the summer. And it’s great for taking the kids visiting!” I plastered a big, fake smile on my face and told him I hoped he had fun.

Inside I was thinking, “You can’t walk around the neighborhood? You can’t ride bikes? The kids can’t use their scooters? You had to pay probably north of $5,000 that you obviously can’t afford if you’re talking payments just to get around the neighborhood and have some fun? Dude, there are cheaper ways to have fun and get around.” And this is where people go wrong. They see one person doing something and decide that they have to do it, too.

I don’t know the person who started this neighborhood craze very well, so I don’t know if he could “afford” his cart or not. But I do know three of the lemmings well and I know that they had to put the carts on payments. Now, I don’t begrudge people having fun. By all means, have all the fun you want. But if something is obviously a “want” like a golf cart and you’re already squeaking by (or worse) financially, you need to find another way to have fun.

The good news is that there are plenty of other ways to have fun, many of them free or low cost. In this case, the family could walk around the neighborhood, or ride bikes or scooters. They’ll still be getting around the neighborhood, but doing it for free. Doing these things will help the families save even more money, because they’ll be getting exercise and avoiding many of the lifestyle diseases that ruin their health and cost money to treat.

They could also play tag, Frisbee, or hide and seek in the yard and let the neighborhood come to them. They could visit with other people who are out walking or on their carts. They could invite the neighbors over for a potluck barbecue once a month. They could organize a neighborhood fun day where everyone just comes out and talks and plays various games. There are plenty of ways to have fun and keep tabs on the neighbors without a golf cart.

Fun has to involve some common sense. You can’t just do whatever everyone else in the neighborhood is doing. You can’t get caught up in fads and crazes. You have to have the fun you can afford. Many times, the things we want and see others doing are not things we can afford. We have to learn to say no to ourselves and find other kinds of fun. Fortunately, there’s plenty of free fun to go around.

(Photo courtesy of Nathan Bittinger)

Stash and Think: Strange Ways to Save Money

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Sometimes, when you’re out and about, you see something that you think you just have to have. Maybe it’s a great skirt, or a DVD you can’t wait to get from the rental place. Whatever it is that you see, you buy it, bring it home and, often, experience regret later. You think, “Why did I buy that? I don’t need it.” Sometimes you realize that you
could have gotten the item for free or at least cheaper if you’d waited a week or so. Whatever the source of regret, it’s too late to do anything about it once you’ve removed the tags, worn the item, opened the box, or removed the shrink wrap. At that point you’re stuck with whatever it is you thought you had to have.

One way to avoid this regret is to practice a rule I call, “Stash and think.” Here’s how it works.

  • When you buy something (even something you order online) that isn’t an immediate need, bring whatever it is home and stash it. You can stash it in a closet, under the bed, or even in the trunk of your car.
  • Don’t remove the tags, don’t open the box, and don’t remove the shrink wrap. Keep the item in perfect return condition and keep the receipt.
  • Take some time (I use two weeks but you can go for longer or shorter) to think about your purchase. Do you need whatever you bought? Do you have another one like it? (How many pairs of khaki pants do you really need?) Do you really want it, or were you just shopping for the heck of it? Did you find (or remember) something else that you’d much rather have spent that money on?
  • While you’re thinking, look around to see if you can get the item cheaper. Does it go on clearance? Does it go on sale somewhere else? Can you get the book for free from the library? Can you rent that movie? Chances are that a little research can net your impulse item for a lower cost, if you decide that you still have to have it.

If, at the end of your stash and think period, you’ve decided that you don’t really want the item or you were able to find it for less, return the original item. Since you didn’t remove the tags or open the box, you should be able to return the item for a full refund. As long as you have your receipt you can even return items that have gone on clearance.

The trick to this is to not forget your stashed items to the point that you miss your return window. To help with this, keep the receipts in a place that’s clearly visible. Maybe you can pin them to the family cork board, or put them in an envelope that you keep by your computer. You can also set up reminders on your computer or cell phone to go off when you’re getting close to having to make a decision. However you do it, find a way to keep track so you don’t decide you no longer want something only to discover that it’s too late to return it.

The stash and think period gives you time to evaluate your purchase without incurring buyer’s remorse. If you regret your purchase, all you have to do is dig the item out of hiding, grab the receipt and head back to the store for a refund.