Borderline Necessities Keep Getting More Expensive

It's now close to $20, even at the rarely-found mom and pop shops, for what used to be called a "buzz cut". I'm constantly told it would be wiser to buy a set of clippers for roughly the same price, to use regularly to cut my own hair. As easy it might be, I don't have the confidence to do it myself, so I pay for someone to basically shave my head. 5 minutes in the chair, 20 bucks out of my wallet. They know you need it done, so you'll pay whatever. Thank goodness for coupons in the PennySaver!  At least the small, local shops are a bit more meticulous about it so you feel like you're getting  your money's worth. Of course--guilty pleasure alert--I admit I sometimes enjoy the company while getting my haircut.

Us guys can add razors to this list. I'm not into growing a beard or gouging my face in half because of dull or cheap razors or from overusing expensive ones. This is not a paid endorsement, but I subscribe to Dollar Shave Club. Trust me, it's worth it. I pay 8 dollars for 4 blades every two months, and they actually last--and work-- that long.

One of the few disadvantages of using a small, local bank is the fact that they don't have multiple branches--or ATMs. It's hard to go clear over to Hiawatha just to use my bank's machine when I need to get cash out. Most ATMs, if they're not affiliated with your bank, will charge you a fee. This was fine (kind of) when the fee was $1.00, but most of them are pulling upwards of 3 extra Washingtons out of your account now, to get your OWN money out. There's an ATM downtown I can use that doesn't do this, but I haven't found many others. With the rash of recent ATM skimmer fraud, it might be wiser to use your own bank, but it's not always convenient.

I need glasses. Need them. I have no choice. So why do I have to pay $200 for them? Before you say it, the '$60 or less' and 'buy one, get one free' offers are not what they are cracked up to be--pun completely intended. It's a matter of quality. Not to mention the cost of the exam I need to get just to "confirm" that I still need them.

It's not a necessity by the true definition, but come on. You need some entertainment in your life. And you'll pay for it when you need it, because you have no choice. At the movie theater, the concert hall, stadium or the bookstore. Don't be like me and let your place turn into a library--unless you want it to look like one--before you realize there's an actual library that has many of these things for free, and they won't clutter up your house because you just return them when you're finished.

It's weird how it's sometimes easier to spend money on something when it's a luxury item, as opposed to a work-related necessity. I see people raving about the latest Bose or Beats by Dre headphones they got for personal use at $200 a pop, but every 6 months when my Sennheisers that I use for work give out, I take pain in parting with the $30 a new pair of them will cost.

The internet, for a quality connection is insanely high-priced but has become a borderline, if not total necessity in most occupations and everyday life. What would we do without it? So we pay for it.