The Gentle Chapter

Expensive Purchases (DP#71)

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Besides my Chevy Sonic Lucille, the most expensive purchase I have ever made was my Asus Nitro 5 gaming laptop. Even though it was several year ago, it cost a little over $1,000. It was one of those purchases that you regret heavily at first since man, that is a crap ton of money! However, as time goes on, you see why it was so expensive lol I bought it obviously for gaming, but it also served a dual purpose for my school laptop. In hindsight, it was probably not the brightest decision to lug that thing around a college campus, but it never got broken or stolen! It lasted a good several years before I had a problem with the charging port and the bracket that allows the screen to open and close, broke so I could not close it or else the battery bar thing would pop out and there would be exposed wires lol

Besides the laptop, we spent roughly $400 on our mountain bikes, a couple hundred on my electric scooter that I also used for college, I bought my husband some Oakley’s and a Fossil watch at one point and a JBL portable speaker for traveling.

Other than material things, I have spent the most on road trips and vacations by far. Adding together the gas to get there and back, food, accommodations, fun experiences, etc. that adds up REAL QUICK.

It may seem like I made some poor financial decisions and uh………..Yes! I did! A lot of these purchases were made before I had to file for bankruptcy a few years ago so they were not the brightest.

Nowadays, I have gotten better with allocating an appropriate amount of money for the purchases I make. I no longer go on gut instinct and desire when we are shopping. There are certain things I am willing to pay more for including shoes, appliances, other things you do not want to crap out on you for a long while.

19 responses to “Expensive Purchases (DP#71)”

  1. observationblogger Avatar
    observationblogger

    I reckon I spend less on’ things’ now and more on ‘experiences’. If you get my drift.

    Reply
    1. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
      Ashley Kittrell

      Absolutely! I think that is the best way to live honestly. After all, if you have everything you think you want and need in your house, why explore? Why leave the house ever again?

      Reply
      1. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        Excellent point, Ashley. I’m proud that my studio apartment reflects my minimalist and frugal lifestyle. Life’s too short. You have to get out of the house.

      2. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Plus, you get sick when you never get fresh air or the vitamins from the sun. I love studio apartments as long as they are not being used as overflow storage lol, I have seen some stuff. Being efficient and clean with your space is key!

      3. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        That reminds me – I’m out of Vitamin D3, lol.
        Most of my sun exposure comes from walking to the bus stop in the morning and back in the afternoon. Being near the equator, the sun here packs some serious punch, so I have to be careful with my sensitive skin. How about you – do you get much sun?

      4. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        I understand that completely! We have scorching sun exposure here as well. My husband and I both have pasty white skin, so we turn crispy real fast. My in-laws started calling us Mr. and Mrs. Krabs lol Even on road trips, our arms that we simply put on the windows, will start to get sunburned. We have to carry sunscreen with us anytime we are out, particularly by the water. We have been spending a bit more time outside now that the weather is getting cooler though but we still got to watch it as skin cancer does run in both of our families.

      5. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        Mr. and Mrs. Krabs, lol.
        It seems you, your husband, and I are all in the same scorching, sun-drenched boat — constantly having to stay vigilant about exposure. My family has a history with skin cancer too, including my younger brother, who only recently had some serious lesions removed.

      6. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Oh yeah. I remember this one really bad sunburn I got when we went to the beach. My nose was peeling for a good almost month after. It looked like a chemical burn or something. That is scary about your brother, but I am glad he was able to get the places removed.

      7. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        Oh wow — looked like a chemical burn, huh? As you know, in the coming decades it’s important to have that nose checked occasionally, especially if you notice any changes in the skin there. Don’t worry — we fair-skinned chaps have all had our share of nasty sunburns, but yours sounds like a real doozy. lol

      8. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Oh yeah, I try to keep a good eye on my skin. At this time of the year when it is starting to get colder, it becomes quite dry unfortunately. Lol it was the worst sunburn I have ever had for sure. Being on my nose, every time I showed too much emotion, or ate too fast, it would hurt. Absolutely miserable.

      9. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Lol thank you. The stress has been affecting my skin more than the weather at this point but yes, I do have some pretty good moisturizer!

      10. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        There is no stress. It’s just your perspective playing games.

      11. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        It’s the feeling of oh crap, my life is about to change drastically and permanently that is causing the stress. This is the most out of my comfort zone I have ever been, so my mind is struggling to handle it at times which causes flare ups.

      12. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        Yes, it’s a huge change, and your apprehension is completely understandable. But try to see it as a healthy challenge – something you’ll look back on decades from now and tell your family about, a time when you were pushed outside your comfort zone. Focus on what’s within your control and take action. It’s all in the doing. Don’t let overthinking weigh you down or interfere with simply moving forward. I’ll shut up now lol

      13. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Most of the time, I can see the positives for sure like being able to explore more freely as well as having our own space finally. It is the bad days in which all I can see are the hurdles and the what-ifs. There are so many things that could go wrong, and those fears are what I am struggling with. Plus, the amount of money that we will be dropping on the RV, kind of makes me nauseous because of past financial issues. It just puts me on edge a bit. I just want to be out already and over everything as well lol

      14. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        I even felt flustered just reading everything you wrote. I hope you’re able to compartmentalise it and tackle each challenge as it comes — ride each wave as it rolls in, rather than bracing for a tsunami.

      15. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        I dont mean to stress you out lol That is how I am getting through the days for sure, figuring out what steps we can go ahead and complete before we even leave first. It does feel a bit like preparing for a storm so I like the tsunami reference.

      16. observationblogger Avatar
        observationblogger

        Well you are in my thoughts as you make this big transition. I’m just hoping the best for you as you ride ’em in.

      17. Ashley Kittrell Avatar
        Ashley Kittrell

        Thank you so much!

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● About Me

Hello! I am Ashley and I simply love to read, and hope you do to!
I am currently 28 years old and living in the state of Texas, USA.

My favorite genres to read and review include romance, fantasy, mystery, and many subgenres of those as long as it is clean. I mainly get my books from my Kindle Unlimited membership, but I also found myself checking out library books on Libby as well.

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