It's interesting to see how different people view this, based on their age, perceptions and personal level of affluence.
I spent last night at my aunt and uncle's house and tried to bring up the topic. They have four cars (used to have five, one broke down over the holidays), 12 boats, three houses and have been on numerous vacations this year. My uncle casually mentioned that he almost bought a new scanner in the few weeks I'd borrowed his, just because he wanted to scan some things.
He sees this as the age of free things. He says cars, appliances, computer equipment and other such things are ubiquitous and cheap. Why not throw them away and buy new ones instead of trying to repair the old?
I thought this was extremely interesting. My uncle and my dad grew up in the same household, and had similar experiences of the world all the way through. My parents are relatively affluent, as well, but my dad DOES repair things, if they can be repaired effectively. He would never dream of accumulating 12 boats; he prefers to keep the money in the bank rather than buy a bunch of toys. My parents go on a vacation maybe once a year now, and my mother uses her salary from her part-time job to pay for them, rather than dipping into savings.
Hmmm ... maybe I should really cultivate this uncle
I am starting to get green around the gills just thinking of the affluent lifestyle I've described ... !!!!
you crack me up
