MickiSue
Level 2 Member
Matt wrote recently about how we sometimes think of the products of MS as play money--similar to the way some people think about their 401K's from previous employers, if you think about it.
But we've all pretty much learned to take a few extra steps to maximize our benefit from spending, manufactured or not. Sometimes, though, we can get so fixated on the points and the miles that we forget the actual dollars. Such was what nearly happened in my house this past week.
TLofML needed a new parka for the brutal winter that appears to be ahead. The last time he bought a true parka was at least 10 years ago, and it was too big for him. Some lucky soul got it from Goodwill, I'm sure.
He'd narrowed the competition down to the Marmot Greenland, and the Eddie Bauer Peak XV. Both were on sale, and, although the original price of the Marmot was much higher (of course!) the member's only sale at REI that ended today brought it down to within about $25 of the sale price of the Eddie Bauer. Decisions, decisions.
He's not the best at them. And when, today, he decided to just order them both, and take back to the local store whichever he liked less, neither had his size, anymore. GRRRRR.
So we did what we should have, in the first place. Obviously, the only place to get an Eddie Bauer jacket is Eddie Bauer. But googling the Marmot, I found a small retailer in Portland OR, that had the Marmot, in his size, for nearly $30 less than the REI sale price. And three day shipping was only $7. So, for $15 less than he'd have spent to get the parka, using TCB, and ground shipping, he's getting it in time for the next wave of real cold: the highs on T'giving and Friday are predicted to be in the low teens.
I'd love others to share stories about balancing desires for cashback/points/miles with simply doing one's due diligence when making purchases.
BTW: he wouldn't have gotten the year end credit for buying from REI. Sale items are excluded.
But we've all pretty much learned to take a few extra steps to maximize our benefit from spending, manufactured or not. Sometimes, though, we can get so fixated on the points and the miles that we forget the actual dollars. Such was what nearly happened in my house this past week.
TLofML needed a new parka for the brutal winter that appears to be ahead. The last time he bought a true parka was at least 10 years ago, and it was too big for him. Some lucky soul got it from Goodwill, I'm sure.
He'd narrowed the competition down to the Marmot Greenland, and the Eddie Bauer Peak XV. Both were on sale, and, although the original price of the Marmot was much higher (of course!) the member's only sale at REI that ended today brought it down to within about $25 of the sale price of the Eddie Bauer. Decisions, decisions.
He's not the best at them. And when, today, he decided to just order them both, and take back to the local store whichever he liked less, neither had his size, anymore. GRRRRR.
So we did what we should have, in the first place. Obviously, the only place to get an Eddie Bauer jacket is Eddie Bauer. But googling the Marmot, I found a small retailer in Portland OR, that had the Marmot, in his size, for nearly $30 less than the REI sale price. And three day shipping was only $7. So, for $15 less than he'd have spent to get the parka, using TCB, and ground shipping, he's getting it in time for the next wave of real cold: the highs on T'giving and Friday are predicted to be in the low teens.
I'd love others to share stories about balancing desires for cashback/points/miles with simply doing one's due diligence when making purchases.
BTW: he wouldn't have gotten the year end credit for buying from REI. Sale items are excluded.
