When you have to draw the line

Took the kids last weekend to see IronMan 2. I don't go to movies very often, so I was surprised when the cost for a family of four was $40. Last time I did the movies it was only $28. Some may shrug their shoulders and say, "Everything's going up." But that increase in cost was my tipping point. I was willing to spend $28 to take the kids to a movie because that left money in the budget for us to eat out. But at $40, the eating out was not an option. So the increase in ticket prices pushed me to the decision that I won't go to the movie theater again, I'll just wait until the movie comes out on DVD and rent or buy it then. The savings is huge. I can have ten of us watching from the comfort of my living room and include popcorn and drinks and not come close to $28, let alone $40. No matter how good the movie may be, or how comfy the seating, I just can't justify spending that much to see it. So the increase made me change my plans for the future.

See, I'm old enough to remember going to the movies for a quarter, and I'm not a senior citizen (yet). Like everyone else, I have to evaluate how much I can afford to spend to keep things comfortable. But the events of the last year have forced our family to make changes in our lifestyle. We consolidate trips to town and go less often. We turn off lights when we leave the room. We rarely eat out. We installed a switch upstairs for the water heater so we only heat the water during shower times in the evening and early morning. We planted a garden, and we check the sale circulars before going grocery shopping. This is just common sense behavior for times when the income drops and the prices rise. You have to wonder why this approach is completely missed by our government.