Instant Gratification

It's not just us....it's widespread in today's society.

The new I-phone is out today.

People stood in line all over the world to get one.

Some people have been in line for days.

I stopped in AT&T today to see if they had any.

LOL.

what was i thinking???

but....I could order one..and have it within a week if I want to pay $15 to expedite....within two weeks if I don't.

and people stood in line for DAYS???

for a PHONE???

in a few weeks....I'll have one...and the guy who waited for days will have one...the only difference will be...I didn't wait in line for days.

It occurs to me, though, that we don't wait for ANYTHING...at least I never have (until recently, of course).

We don't stop til our credit cards are maxed.

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The price of fuel is through the roof.

In the seventies when we had an energy crisis....the increase in the price of fuel meant that my parents cut back elsewhere.

You know....

if gas cost $30 more per month...then we bought $30 less groceries, or clothes or SOMETHING.

most of us don't live that way today.

most of us could not say what our approximate incoming and outgoing funds are.

yeah...we know how much we make....but...how much we spend?

we don't really care....or....if we do....we care...but...we do it anyway.


We rarely say 'no...I can't afford it'...we just charge it!

I'm sure that that line of thinking....the fact that I thought and behaved that way even BEFORE I gambled....allowed me to accumulate so much debt due to gambling ....if I wanted something...I bought it.

and that mentality followed me right inside the casino.


I have a friend in recovery who has a '48 hour rule'.

I try to use it myself.

No impulse buying.

If I see something and I want it...EVEN if I can afford it....I wait 48 hours....if I still want it, it's mine.

Surprising how often I don't.

or is it REALLY that surprising?

How many times was I still paying for dresses or shoes or make up....long after I'd become disillusioned with the item?? LOL sometimes I was paying for things after they were discarded!

Yeah...life still has ups and downs....but...some of the 'downs' that I've experienced were of my own creation....

learning how to be responsible....to not make purchases on impulse....to live on a cash basis.....only buying what I can afford...

it isn't easy

at the moment that I WANT something...it feels yucky

but....LATER I feel good.....knowing I didn't want that thing after all...or....maybe I bought it..but I PAID for it too.

This is far more satisfying than the way I used to live.
For all of the reasons I've already mentioned....
plus

I'm taking back control.
just a little bit....

taking back control of ME.

and that's a good thing.