Today as I was standing at the counter at CVS and I saw the total $39.95 flash across the screen. I kinda freaked out a little. "I don't have that much money!". Ok, well I did but I didn't want to have to dip into something other than the grocery fund to buy this stuff. I've been here before, with this freaking out and having to remind myself that the total won't be near that after all the coupons are run through. Even so, you can't help but freak out a little and wonder "Was my math right?" "What if it's more than I expected?".
Some weeks I'm much better at the pre-trip math than others. Sometimes it's hard to know how much something will run if you don't buy it every day and you can't count on the online prices because the prices in the stores are different. Sometimes you end up seeing a great deal you didn't plan on and throwing it in. It really doesn't matter how good I am at the math, I think it's a bit of a rush, similar to what you might get gambling; actually I think it's exactly the same as when I play a hand of poker and make a big bet. I'm hoping it pays off. To me it feels exactly the same. My heart beats faster, I may sweat a little, I'm hoping my anxiety doesn't show but most of all I'm hoping my gamble pays off and I get what I wanted in the end. Usually, I do... ok most of the time. I have to say that the outcome is much more predictable with couponing than poker.
I don't know if I'll ever get over this feeling at the register. In some ways I hope I do, in other ways the rush feels kind of good and makes knowing that you got that great deal feel all the better. When you watch a total drop from $39.95 down to $4.33, how can you NOT feel good! The folks who don't coupon, really don't know what they are missing. That said, I can also understand how some folks can get addicted to that feeling and turn into the "extreme couponers" that just live for the deal. Once you get one great deal, you really do want to find another one and it does become really hard to buy things without getting a deal.
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