Gadget Euphoria

Ahhh. Life is good. You know how I’ve talked about my fetish for electronics? Well, there is really no way around it. I love gadgets. I wish I could buy every new gadget that comes out but we all know that isn’t possible or even remotely intelligent.

So, why is life good? My company bought me a new cel phone. It’s a million times sexier than the free ones I buy for personal use, that’s for sure. With my new cel phone, I can text, take 2.0 megapixel photos, surf the web, use a bluetooth headset, sync it to my computer and just drool at the coolness factor I’m holding in my hand. I wonder if people will notice me now? Just kidding.

I have to admit, I’m really enjoying the new phone. The hardest part is going to be just using it for work. I’d love to use it all the time, but I can’t run up the bill on this thing, of course.

I think what I’m finding most enjoyable about this thing is that I get to go through the new gadget euphoria (that is sure to burn off quite quickly like it always does) but not pay for the privelege. The fact of the matter is, I needed a new work phone and this just happened to be one of the choices I could make. Good times. Good times.

We spent the weekend installing flooring at the lake house. My knees, back, feet and just about every other part of my body are very sore. The floor is looking great and when I calculate out what it’s costing me to put it in, my wallet is looking even better. I was able to buy the Harmonics flooring from Costco. I did some comparison shopping and found that Costco, by far, had the best deal. To top it off, they have a coupon coming out in March which will give me another $5 off per case. That’s going to add up to $200 back to me. I talked to the manager and asked him if they would refund the difference once the coupon does come out and he said, “no problem”. Just one more reason that I love Costco. After the coupons are applied, my total cost per square foot is going to be $1.39. You just can’t beat that for the level of quality.

To switch gears a bit, I’m still finding myself wondering what our economy is going to do. There is no question I’ve lost some confidence in it. Every time I spend any money I think to myself, “Is this money that I should be putting away for the days ahead? Am I going to need this money if the economy starts really getting ugly?”. We are starting to save a bit more money than we were before. I also realized that this month is a three payday month. Along with my annual bonus, that should give our emergency fund a big lift. As that account goes up, I find my financial anxiety goes down so I’m looking forward to socking a bit more away!