Thursday, July 5, 2012

Think of it as a captain’s log, only instead of stardate, I’m using packets of oatmeal to mark time. Current count: 91, which puts me firmly in double-digits territory and a good clip ahead of where we last convened. If it feels like the rate of consumption has increased, it certainly isn’t because the oats have gotten any tastier, nor have they gotten any fresher.

I’m chalking it up to frugality, and while I can’t predict the sustainability of this current bout of austerity, I’m enjoying it. There’s something freeing about being able to resist a purchase, be it a breakfast sandwich or a Blu-ray disc. By no means has my self-control increased. One reason for why I’m spending less is accessibility–there’s no longer a convenient way for me to procure a sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich in the morning, for instance, and so I turn to oatmeal. I’ve also been more conscientious of what I already own. Why reach for a new Xbox game, in other words, when I have so many unfinished ones?

In the spirit of frugality–and to cap off this week’s movie talk–let me save you 10 bucks. I caught a matinee showing of The Amazing Spider-Man yesterday with high hopes. It sounded great on paper: the director of (500) Days of Summer, updated special effects, Alvin Sargent. But no! No. Consider how in one scene, Spider-Man plays a game on his smartphone. And suddenly, at that very moment, I didn’t feel so bad for Uncle Ben anymore, because he only had to live through half the movie.