Friday, January 20, 2012

Lessons from a Tightwad - When a Bargain isn't a Bargain

Whether you accept other people's description of me (tightwad) or my own (frugal), you can see why I was so thrilled with my solution to the annual dilemma of what to get the partner in parenthood for Christmas. I had scored an HD video camera for $44 that sells online for three times that and, oops, she had wanted one last year and I forgot.

She was thrilled to tears that I had remembered and I was thinking, "Wow, for 44 bucks I've redeemed myself and pulled off a small miracle!" It was a great day and I was feeling mighty smug about myself, that is, until a few days later she started using the camera.


Then I found out her computer doesn't have enough disk space and is so slow it can't even display HD video so, ka-ching,  a new computer! 
Then I discovered the new computer needs a special cable to connect to the old monitor. Ka-ching! Of course, it needs expensive blank discs for recording all those HD home videos onto Blu-Ray. Ka-ching!

OK, so at least I've still got the old printer that 
uses $2 ink cartridges, right? Well, it turns out the old printer  isn't compatible with Windows 7 so that had to be replaced too and, of course, the new ink cartridges are far more than $2. Ka-ching, ka-ching!

Next year for Christmas, I think I'll just get her a box of chocolates.

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