I finally updated the spreadsheet I keep to track my orders and spending. Almost gave myself a heart attack when I saw what I've spent the last two months thanks to you bad influences. Once thing I've learned is that I have far less self control than I figured I had. Either that or I'm just a whole lot better at kidding myself than I thought.
"Hey, it's just this one thing"..."Ooooh, I need a couple of these"..."ehh, it's only a couple items"...etc...
Nearly crapped myself when I saw I had spent $274 in May and $189 so far in June. *GASP!*
Yeah, it can add up. You just have to pace yourself. Even budget lights get awfully expensive when buying in quantities. Plus there are start-up costs like chargers and tools and always batteries, even if they are rechargeable.
For me - I've spent 7 digits (If one includes the pennies, 5 if you don't) in HK / China in the last 6 years. And don't regret more than a couple of tens of dollars of it.
I want more stuff, I will be honest…I do. It is fun and just plain cool. Do I need it, not really. What stops me is lack of money. I live on a fixed income so playing is controlled by the lack of money. Being broke can be a good thing sometimes. LOL
Almost all of the time. The last two years I've had a 25% pay cut among other things. And I could barely cope financially before the pay cut. It does teach you what really matters.
I still like my budget lights (non-budget lights are completely out of the question just now) but I pay a lot more attention to the opinions of the people who have one of what I'm interested in than I used to.
I may not agree with them, but I certainly can't afford to get all of the lights that interest me to find out for myself.
I thought I was the only one that kept track of what he spends in an excel spreadsheet. lol I started my spreadsheet around the middle of January this year. It's all flashlight, battery and knife related stuff (100% knives since March) and my total was $1041.86 but at least it wasn't as much as what JohnnyMac spends per month.....whew! I do think you need an intervention there JohnnyMac.
I don't think I want to know what I spend on liquor and beer every month.
Even if we do have different amounts of dispensable income, i am glad to see that i can justify my spending based on what others spend on budget lights, accessories and knives :)
what am I in for , Im like you guys on a tight budget an unemployed to-boot , Ive arlready purchased 4 x sk68 clones 2 x black cats lookin to buy more feel like I just gotta have a UniqueFire AA-S1 & UltraFire WF-606A and Im a newb ..Had similar addictions before yep you guessed it Knives ...lol...for years I been buyin em finaly got it under control last year after convincing myself less is more right
Don't think I have that kind of disposable income - I don't. That's why I'm so shocked my sweetie hasn't smacked me upside the head. She sees each purchase the following morning when she checks the bank account each day. I guess the $900 oil bill each month over the winter months is still fresh on her mind. It makes my addiction look cheap compared to the furnace's!
There is a lot to be said for lots of regular small orders. That way the spend doesn't stand out like a sore thumb to SWMBO or customs.... Come to think of it I'm not sure which I'd be more worried about finding out.......
