Necessities and Luxuries by Dr. Juan Harrison

Necessities and Luxuries 

Sometimes if I’m lucky after taking up the offering in the main service, I get to stop by the donut and drink stand in the hallway from the lobby.  If the teenagers hadn’t gotten them all, if I get a donut and a glass of orange juice, it makes it a special treat.  Usually the dispenser is empty as I tilt the container back to get the last few watery drops of that delicious concoction.  Friends of mine used to buy the natural kind at the Market Fresh for $10 a gallon.

I guess it’s what you value.  In a café I normally don’t order a glass for breakfast since I might need a small loan.  Growing up poor it always has seemed like a luxury to me.  Maybe that’s why it tastes so good since I taste it so rarely.

I marvel at the folks who routinely run through the drive thru at the coffee shop where a drink can run over $5 with a tip.  It’s probably so routine that they don’t think about it.  My decisions at lunch often come down to $1.83 for the small plain burger or $2.26 with all the veggies.  No fries.  Should hold me to supper.

I reckon people feel they’ve worked hard and deserve a treat or pick-me-up to reward themselves for getting up and going to work.  Most of us live quiet lives of desperation, so why not give ourselves a little reward for fighting the good fight one more day.  What worries me is what happens as cards are maxed out or bank accounts are running too close to risk running over.  Can people’s egos and psyches handle the loss of something we once classified as a necessity and now it falls into the luxury category.

I have friends whose wives will go down with the ship if they don’t get the pedicure or nails done.  There are any number of things that people have built into their life routines.  Maids, yardmen, food deliveries are built into many people’s lives.  What if it comes down to having to make some choices about things to eliminate from our spending habits.  By now heads are exploding as people say that they couldn’t do without this or that.  How will people be able to stand each other at work as our attitudes sour during the withdrawal period.

Many financial people are saying we’re staring a recession in the face.  National credit card debt is at an all -time high.  Many interest rates are hitting 25% and higher.  Where will it end.  I think I’m beginning to hear a few faint wails and groans as we watch people begin the process of separating necessities and luxuries.  Men, the question of chocolate is a tough one.  You may not like your wife when she’s hungry for something sweet.

By Dr. Juan Harrison