Expensive is Relative
I’m here to advocate for you paying $9 for a double-scoop of ice cream. I’m here to tell you that the $17 meal at your favorite restaurant is a better option than the $7 meal at the fast-food joint around the corner.
I’m also not crazy. I don't have all the money in the world, nor do I splurge on expensive desserts and meals every day of the week... or even once a week for that matter. I truly do love to bake my own desserts and cook my own meals, which makes it quite easy to save money on not going out often.
The other day at the grocery store, I was in between two different ice cream brands: one I didn’t like that much that was on sale and one that I really liked that cost $2 more. My indecisiveness was voiced to my dad as I shuffled between my options and came close to landing on the brand that I didn’t even like that much. He asked why I chose the one I don’t love and my response was that my favorite was more expensive and I honestly just wanted some ice cream. He asked, “Is it really expensive if you actually like it?” and I haven’t stopped thinking about this interaction since.
Yesterday while in LA with my dearest pal from Pennsylvania was visiting, we were caught between two ice cream shops: one that had an extremely limited amount of okay flavors and another that had an abundance of options for about double the price. We decided on spending nearly $10 on a few scoops of ice cream each. Let me tell you… we enjoyed every last bit of that ice cream and I regret to say I got a double instead of a triple scoop. It was honestly the best vegan mint chip & cookie dough ice cream I’ve ever had.
What in the world justifies spending so much money on food, you ask? Well, I’d like to rebuttal with asking what in the world tells you you’re not worth a fancy treat or meal? Not because you worked a lot this week, not because you got a good grade on your paper, not because you went to the gym today, but simply because you are worth it. You are worth spending money on your favorite things here and there based on the fact that you’re worth it.
By no means am I telling you to drop all of your money every week on the most expensive foods that suit your fancy. I think that finding love in cooking your own meals at home from scratch and in turn saving money is a really good skill to grow. However, I do think that when you do buy something you don’t usually get, whether it be ice cream or a meal from your favorite restaurant, I think it’s important to choose the thing that's really going to satisfy you.
If you’re going to buy a pint of ice cream anyway, get the good stuff. You’re going to taste the quality whereas buying the option that isn’t that great is going to leave you unsatisfied, wishing you didn’t spend money at all, and still wanting the stuff you actually wanted in the first place.
You are worth the apples that cost 20 cents more to the pound because you like those ones better. You’re worth buying organic sweet potatoes and carrots because your health is important and you should avoid consuming all the pesticides that are on and in the conventional stuff. You’re worth a $9 double scoop of ice cream because one of your friends is visiting from across the country. You’re worth honoring your cravings and wants simply because you are worth it. You deserve the good stuff, I promise.
