My absolute favorite things are the living and breathing things in my life; Chrissy, my kids, grandkids, friends, and even Sophie the wondercat. But this article is about the inanimate objects that make me happy, without breaking the bank.

Our house, at 1900 square feet, is neither tiny nor large. It is nice, easy to clean and big enough to host my favorite living things. We live on plat three. Plat four is under construction. Last week we took a drive to the new section. We thought we would check out the new model home. It was very nice. It was bigger than ours. It had many amenities that our house doesn’t. It cost nearly twice what we paid two years ago. We like our house. It’s enough.

I like music. I’ve written about my vinyl resting place; the room that houses my records, CDs, and of course, the equipment that brings them to life. I kept my 40 year old amplifier until it was too costly to repair. A new integrated amp from the same manufacturer sells for $7000. My new one, from a different manufacturer, cost a fraction of that, and it sounds great. I would get no additional enjoyment from the expensive stuff. I have had my speakers since they were built in 1977, in Hope Arkansas. No need for new speakers, these still sound great.

Wrist watches are a status symbol for many. While lunching with an old friend the other day, I noticed a Rolex on his arm. I remember many years ago, he showed me a knock-off Rolex, so I have no idea if this watch was real. Even if that one was the real deal, I’ll always suspect a forgery. I did not acknowledge it.

I like watches too, but not to impress, I have several. My favorite is a 1970s vintage automatic Omega that my dad received when he retired from Jeep. Dad never wore it, and it still has the original leather watch band. It brings to mind memories of Dad. I only wear it when I get dressed up, which is not very often.

There was a saying made popular in World War II, “you don’t know shit from shinola”. Shinola was shoe polish made in Detroit around 1900. You can probably understand the adage without further explanation. Around 2011, a Texas billionaire got the idea to build something in a struggling American city. He decided on Detroit partly because it was struggling, and partly because the Shinola name made for a good story. In 2013 the first Shinola watch was produced in Detroit, by Detroiters, who were trained by Swiss watch makers, using some Swiss components. They are very well made. They sell for a tiny fraction of a Rolex. My city, Toledo, is practically a suburb of Detroit so it’s sort of personal for me. I own a couple Shinolas, not because of status, but because of the story, the proximity to my home town, and of course, because I like watches.

I drive an Equinox. My friend drives a Lexus SUV. I have driven his Lexus. It is definitely a nicer car than my Chevy. Is it twice as nice, as the price would indicate? Not to me.

I wear blue jeans. I can’t understand paying more for pants with pre-ripped knees; if that makes me old, so be it. I don’t buy Levis anymore, I discovered I can buy jeans from Costco or Kohls that fit well and look fine for a fraction of the price.

I’m at a point in my life where I could reach deeper into the piggy bank to buy more expensive things, however, I don’t believe spending more would provide additional satisfaction.

Understanding the point of diminishing returns not only keeps our retirement secure, it also helped to get us here in the first place.

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