I realized today that I probably only watch an hour of Television every five days. Yet, I still feel the need to purchase a new TV. Is that because the marketing of TVs is so good? Or because I have always been amazed by electronics and like bells and whistles? Who knows. I saw a commercial for a new TV the other day and I found it ironic that the advertisement for a 4k UHD TV was coming through a channel that still broadcasts in 480i. How are people supposed to know the level of picture quality when it is filtered through a resolution from decades ago? TVs continue to drop in price so it makes it more appealing to everyone. Technology for entertainment moves at breakneck speed. For less than $200 a person can get a TV so fancy it can learn your viewing habits. However, if you need to buy a pickup truck, you better have a six-figure income and what Dave Ramsey would call, "Sterling Credit."
I wonder sometimes why the value of trucks only continues to rise. I've been seeing a lot of new trucks across Texas and the first thought that always pops into my head is, "What are the payments like on that?" I do like trucks and sometimes I like to see what's new. What is being made? Big monthly payments, as it would seem. As of February 2020, the American light-duty pickup reached an all-time high with an average price of $51,700. I know there are usually a lot of incentives and rebates and deals offered that knock the price down a few thousand dollars. Yet even in most of those cases with interest, you're still paying over $48K. Not to mention the insurance. I spoke to someone last week that told me his truck payment was $1050 a month, and his house payment is $850 a month. This was surprising to me, but maybe I'm the one who is out of touch. We are in a time and location where people pay more to have a nice set of wheels to drive around than they do to have a place to live and raise a family. I mean it's a nice truck but you can't take a shower in it. I suppose if your income is high enough it's not a big deal. Still, $2000 in payments going out each month is more than many people have coming in monthly.
And there it is... whenever I think I want something like a new TV, all I have to do is take a little thought foray into American consumerism. Then I realize I don't need any of those things. A new TV is not going to make things better. It's just going to be another way to waste the time I should be using to learn to write better blogs. What I do need, is sleep. That will make things better. As the turtle said, "Good night, Ned."