The sages of antiquity liked to say that money is the root of all evil on earth. Some equally wise, but also witty guy in the 20th century added that the main problem is not so much money, but the lack of it. And today, when prices are rapidly rising, and money is depreciating just as quickly, this problem is only becoming more and more urgent.
Today, we have access to many things that our grandparents and even parents could only dream of… but they are available, as they say, just in theory. At the same time, the economic situation of many people sometimes forces them to refuse things that were completely ordinary before. So here’s the list of such things, according to folks online.
More info: Reddit
#1
Living alone. It’s almost worth going back to my ex just to save some money.
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#2
Cocktails at many bars or clubs- they’re in most cases over $10 and closer to $20, the drink is half ice so the alcohol is watered down, and the liquor used is usually a well liquor.
Image credits: Timely_Box6061
#3
Concerts! By the time all the extras and fees are applied they’re out of reach.
Image credits: lively-zoe
You can’t find many threads in the AskReddit community where the number of comments far exceeds the number of upvotes – and this thread, initiated a couple of months ago by the user u/sweetselene_, is definitely one of them. As of today, it has almost 500 upvotes and over 3.4k various comments, simply because the topic is incredibly relevant for many of us.
#4
Depends where you are, but here in Toronto, Canada owning a home is out of most people’s reach.
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#5
Everything… $50 is the new $20 and every time I leave my house, I spend at least $100 one way or another.
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#6
Thrifting has become crazy expensive. All of the thrift stores I used to go to have increased prices. On top of that garage sales are crazy, My favorite is pulling up to garage sales and see the owners have just printed out random listing from ebay. “No, I am not gonna pay $100 dollars for a microwave from 2010 because it sold for that on ebay 5 years ago”.
Image credits: RoseSkye_
Many commenters in the original thread say that some things that are considered completely ordinary in society are becoming almost unavailable to them today, for example, living alone (or vice versa – creating a family with children), attending concerts and shows, vacations in numerous distant places of interest, and housing. Affordable housing in particular is a true scourge of our time.
#7
Beauty luxuries.
Eyelashes, nails, hair color, etc.
I used to get a cut and highlights for around $80 – last quote was for $350!
When eyelash extensions first came out, I got a full set for $40+tip. Now they’re charging $200.
It’s way too expensive to have the beauty wants that are definitely not needs, the irony is that now that I can afford it, I no longer want it. There’s been so much peace in learning to accept and love my natural maintenance-free beauty.
I have some friends that do monthly spray tans, eyelashes, mani+pedi, botox, lips, hair cut/color, etc – easily spending around 2k/mo on just beauty maintenance – just insane to me.
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#8
Eating out. Stupid inflated prices with mandatory tips. Nah dang, I can make all that food at home and just have friends over.
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#9
Going to the movies. And don’t think about buying popcorn.
Image credits: Few_Albatross_7540
This is largely due to the growth of inflation and the decline in the real purchasing power of our salaries – after all, the rate of price growth often outpaces the growth of wages. Accordingly, while earlier, decades ago, the salary that the average American received allowed them to count on a certain set of material and non-material benefits, today this set is significantly reduced.
#10
Disney vacations.
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#11
Cable TV is no longer worth it. I got rid of it about 2 years ago.
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#12
Ordering delivery.. used to be same price as ordering in person with a small fee and tip per item.
Now most places have signed with a “service”, so they no longer do it themselves and now your have to go thru Door Dash or Uber Eats.. etc which add on additional fee’s, increased prices from menu price and larger tips expected for what in most cases amounts to worst service then back when restaurant or pizza joint did their own delivery.
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“The problem, in particular, is that after a relatively calm decade, when the world emerged from the economic crisis of 2008, there followed years of turbulence,” says Olga Kopylova, Ph.D., associate professor of economics at Odessa National Maritime University, to whom Bored Panda reached out for a comment here.
“First, it was the pandemic, which created serious risks for the global economy. Risks that have not existed for a very long time. Usually, economists expect a serious surge in business activity after the end of pandemic restrictions – but this time it didn’t happen.”
“And several years in a row with military and financial tension in the world put the world economy on the brink of a crisis. Even more serious than it was in 2008. And life in a crisis always brings significant problems for every member of society.”
#13
Camping. You have to reserve a year in advance and it costs half the price of a hotel. In Cali anyway.
Image credits: anon
#14
Fast food. Might as well get a decent burger from a local restaurant, ultimately might end up getting more food and spending less food.
The convenience isn’t worth the price anymore.
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#15
Car insurance.
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Be that as it may, all that remains for us is to try to save and spend wisely, and just live our lives. To live in the hope that stability will sooner or later return to this world, and decades from now we’ll tell our grandkids about today’s financial problems as just scary tales… But for now, please feel free to read these stories, and maybe share your own ideas in the comments below the list.
#16
Bloody olive oil.
Image credits: Mike_Ath
#17
Retirement.
Image credits: Optimal_Rise2402
#18
Skiing.
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#19
Streaming services. DoorDash.
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#20
Getting foods you want at the grocery store.
The last time I made a steak has been at least 3 months because I don’t want to buy them, and I for sure am not stealing it.
Image credits: anon
#21
… a family ??.
Image credits: ShatterNorms
#22
My f*****g body. I can’t tell you how much I’ve had to spend on this mf’er. Six brain surgeries are expensive.
Image credits: CallingDrDingle
#23
Vacation. We rented a house oceanfront in North Carolina in 2021. We checked the price for the same house in 2022 and it went up by $3,000 for the week. It wasn’t a fancy house AT ALL.
Image credits: DearApricot1003
#24
Soda. It wasn’t too long ago that you could get a case for $5. Now they run around $13-15.
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#25
Broadway shows.
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#26
Living in the UK. Even the basics are too expensive. If I could leave, I would.
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#27
Meat.
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#28
* Buying regular milk. Buying lattes at cafes. Buying a cup of coffee in general. I buy 6 month shelf stable boxed milk for $1.20. I use two boxes a week for my home made lattes for my partner and I. He needs more milk than I, I go through 1 box alone in 2 weeks. My lattes cost $0.75 or less.
* Funnel cakes. Pancake batter drizzled in hot oil. Cost $0.33 per funnel cake.
* Fried Oreo cookies. Oreo cookies dipped in pancake batter fried in hot oil. Cost $0.11 per fried oreo.
* Waffle House/IHOP cuz breakfast is the easiest meals to make. $2-5.
*Chinese Food: most meals they make don’t even take 30 minutes start to finish. General Tso: $4-6. Orange chicken $5-8. Sweet and Sour $4-6.
Once you teach yourself something, you realize how cheap it is to make it yourself.
Image credits: anon
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