Friday, January 30, 2009

Friday evening.


I am fighting off a huge anxiety attack, or I should say rather, a series of minor anxiety attacks, because what have I done today? I have ordered, on credit, a new sofa, that will cost me 13 Euros a month to pay off over a period of 4 years. I can't believe I did it and I am still bamboozled by it myself. It was so easy to do, that the deed was done before I even realized what I was doing, but once the decision was made, I did not want to go back and undo it.

The idea came to me this morning when I was vacuuming the sofa and I saw the sorry state it was in and that no matter how well I vacuumed it, I could not make it look as nice as I wanted it to. I decided on the spur of the moment to see if the sofa that I had coveted since last summer was still available and it was. So there you go. It will be delivered Thursday next week.

Now you all know how I deal with big decisions in my life, right? I have upsets in my moods and this one is causing me some upset. I hardly know how to deal with the stress I feel from it. I have made a commitment and it is scaring me half to death and I am already thinking how I am going to fit 13 Euros into my budget. What am I not going to buy during the month that will make up for it?

I have to deal with this like an adult and make the best of it. I have made a decision and now I have to make a plan to make it work. There will be no crying over spilled milk. I will manage this.

I love the way I am reasoning this out in this post and using you as my sounding board. There are actually numerous ways I can save money during the month. Living frugally is not that hard to do and I can do it as well as the next person. I must keep courage and not let myself feel defeated ahead of time. Being overwhelmed prematurely is not the way to go about this.

Right, I think I've got my head on straighter now. Time to put on my pajamas and watch some television. I have a feeling I will be asleep in no time, considering how short my night was last night.

Have a good night.

Ciao...

9 comments:

Bev said...

I am sure your new sofa will give you much pleasure, so I'm sure it will be worth every Euro.

Once when I needed to save money I tried smoking pipe tobacco in roll ups (it is cheaper) but I don't suggest you do this.

I would look upon this as a challenge if it were me and I was feeling +ve.

Wisewebwoman said...

Irene:
Do you get a 48 hour clause to back out of a contract like this (we do here). Just asking: as 13E/mo for 4 years is a lot of money.
I know how tight money is for you every month soooo I don't want to see you more stressed than usual and cutting back on essentials.
Though: could you not re-cover the existing couch?
XO
WWW

Maggie May said...

Oh Irene....... I always wait & work out if I need an expensive thing or not and only make snap decisions like that on cheap little things.
It surely wasn't long since you had bought the last sofa or am I imagining that?
If you have had a change of heart, then try and cancel.
You could always give up smoking altogether and reward yourself with something good every so often with the money you have saved.
Take some deep breaths...... X

Bev said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
CC said...

Irene, I know exactly how you feel, I love the new home we are buying, but still have the same doubts you do with your sofa. Our current home is beautiful...so why am I spending $160.00 more a month for a new home. I think it is because we do so little for ourselves and we want to feel good about ourselves, our home, and our furniture. If you think the pavements can be made without to much disruption to your monthly budget, they keep it on order and enjoy the feeling of joy it gives you when it arrives. Life is too short to worry over every decision we make; sometime you just have to sit back and enjoy what your decisions bring to you and save the worry for the right time and reason; an illness, an injury, a loss of some kind.

I wish you the very best naps and leisure time on your new sofa…

Mean Mom said...

I'm a bit worried about this. It sounds as if there could be far reaching consequences from this decision and I don't want to you to suffer in months to come.

I don't know, of course, how difficult it will be for you to afford the extra money, each month, but I think it might be better if you tried to cancel. I know it's not popular these days, but why not wait and try to save whatever you can, each month? Then, buy one later, in the year. I have a feeling we will see more sales!

Cate Rose said...

Enjoy it, Irene. You should be comfortable and happy in your home environment. The money part will work out -- it always does. I say this as someone who's in debt, but following my muse and never been happier.

Irene said...

Bev - I know I will enjoy that sofa, even without resorting to pipe tobacco in my roll ups, hee, hee. I am seeing it as a challenge today and I thin I can take it on.

WWW - I am less stressed than I was yesterday and see all sorts of ways to save 13 Euros every month. I get my vacation money in May and can probably pay the whole thing off then.

Maggie - No, I haven't bought a new sofa lately. I've just wanted to very much. I've wanted this one since last summer. I just couldn't wait any longer.

CC - you are right, I can cry about it or laugh about it and I have decided to laugh about it. I hope you laugh about your new mortgage too.

Mean Mom - don't worry, I will still be able to do groceries and pay my bills. I just have to shop a little more carefully and not waste any money on frivolities. No new clothes for the empress. Not that she needs any.

Connie - thank you for your encouraging words. I will enjoy the sofa and care for it very well. I think I waited for it long enough. I seized the moment and am taking my chances. Like you said, it will all work out.

Babaloo said...

Once you work out how to fit it into your budget (and I'm sure you will) you should just enjoy it! Sure, it may have been better to work all this out before buying the sofa, but heck, 13 Euro a month isn't impossible. It's a lot of money if you add it all up but I guess the sofa will be worth it.
(Although WWW has a point, re-upholstering the old one might have been another solution. We did that once with an old sofa and it was as good as new afterwards!)