2008 Woodie Awards
Save Money Productively
Lynae Cook
Issue date: 9/19/07 Section: Opinion
While jogging along at 7.5 mph at a one-inch incline after recently paying a $403 ticket fine that sparked my sudden interest in budgeting, it occurred to me that I could easily be doing this elsewhere for free.
The gym, I will admit, does have a great atmosphere, and can be very handy in inspiring a person to go the extra mile or bump up the repetitions. But when looked at objectively, it is just not logical. We all have our excuses as to why we can't do this without the gym. Mine is that it helps me avoid the sun, which is true, but how hard would it be for me to just arrange to run early in the morning or late at night?
The issue of safety arises, but I'm pretty sure I'll survive just as I did in the years prior to acquiring access to the Meridian Sports Club.
Seeing as I still had another 10 minutes at this pace, I began to analyze the other things I spend my time, energy and money doing, only to realize that the typical college life is full of irrational and illogical behavior.
Many of our lives include late nights, early mornings, jobs that aren't all that satisfying, weekends away and driving more than is probably necessary.
And then, thanks to an old friend's talk of accounting, I had the dreadful thought of "Why? What is our asset?" What do we gain from all this consumption?
Just considering the last three months, my first time truly living out of my parent's jurisdiction, I have partaken in an unmentionable amount of irrational behavior.
I have gone down to San Diego just to go out with a friend, driven up to San Francisco for a concert, weeks at a time sleeping only a few hours here and there, taken 14 units and still working 35 hours a week, and last but not least, paying for a gym membership.
But unlike my accountant friend, I thought that yes, it was worth it.
I will concede that I've spent quite a bit of my hard-earned money, and I've enjoyed every minute of it. I've been living my life, and so have the people I've been spending time with.
Consequently, my funds have decreased a bit due to my lifestyle as well as with the help of insurance rates and a car accident, causing me to evaluate my decisions and their effects.
That's when my gym epiphany hit me and I realized while, sure, I may have made some irrational investments that I can't take back, I can change some things around, not only for my budget's benefit, but also for the benefit of others.
Hopefully soon I will implement my plan and begin carpooling more often, and go back to riding a board with four wheels rather than a vehicle on four wheels to places within two miles of wherever I am.
Honestly, hypocrisy will probably begin again tomorrow when I start work at 5:15 a.m. But hopefully I will, as will others, begin to lessen our pointless consumption, rather painlessly, all while helping out our ozone layer and lessening our need for gyms that charge excessive amounts of money to help us run.
The gym, I will admit, does have a great atmosphere, and can be very handy in inspiring a person to go the extra mile or bump up the repetitions. But when looked at objectively, it is just not logical. We all have our excuses as to why we can't do this without the gym. Mine is that it helps me avoid the sun, which is true, but how hard would it be for me to just arrange to run early in the morning or late at night?
The issue of safety arises, but I'm pretty sure I'll survive just as I did in the years prior to acquiring access to the Meridian Sports Club.
Seeing as I still had another 10 minutes at this pace, I began to analyze the other things I spend my time, energy and money doing, only to realize that the typical college life is full of irrational and illogical behavior.
Many of our lives include late nights, early mornings, jobs that aren't all that satisfying, weekends away and driving more than is probably necessary.
And then, thanks to an old friend's talk of accounting, I had the dreadful thought of "Why? What is our asset?" What do we gain from all this consumption?
Just considering the last three months, my first time truly living out of my parent's jurisdiction, I have partaken in an unmentionable amount of irrational behavior.
I have gone down to San Diego just to go out with a friend, driven up to San Francisco for a concert, weeks at a time sleeping only a few hours here and there, taken 14 units and still working 35 hours a week, and last but not least, paying for a gym membership.
But unlike my accountant friend, I thought that yes, it was worth it.
I will concede that I've spent quite a bit of my hard-earned money, and I've enjoyed every minute of it. I've been living my life, and so have the people I've been spending time with.
Consequently, my funds have decreased a bit due to my lifestyle as well as with the help of insurance rates and a car accident, causing me to evaluate my decisions and their effects.
That's when my gym epiphany hit me and I realized while, sure, I may have made some irrational investments that I can't take back, I can change some things around, not only for my budget's benefit, but also for the benefit of others.
Hopefully soon I will implement my plan and begin carpooling more often, and go back to riding a board with four wheels rather than a vehicle on four wheels to places within two miles of wherever I am.
Honestly, hypocrisy will probably begin again tomorrow when I start work at 5:15 a.m. But hopefully I will, as will others, begin to lessen our pointless consumption, rather painlessly, all while helping out our ozone layer and lessening our need for gyms that charge excessive amounts of money to help us run.
Be the first to comment on this story