And besides, I'm a self-admitted cheapo (I think I've talked about this at length with Banana before) and much as I like shopping around, I hate parting with my money unnecessarily, and only sales and bargains make me truly happy. I don't (or at least, rarely) splurge because I can't bear to, and why spend a few hundred bucks on a top when you could buy 10 nice tops of decent quality with the same amount of money?
I'm not sure if this is the reason but it could be because I've always been on an allowance since I was a kid, and while I know I can always ask my parents for more money, I prefer not to. I enjoy being independent, or at least, as independent as having an allowance (technically still your parent's money) permits, which is why I cover almost all costs from my own pocket - dance classes, transport, school books, all the miscellaneous class stuff (photocopying funds ugh), food, shopping ... and I don't ever once recall being "broke" in my life.
I know there are lots of people with no regular allowance, just take money when you need it. And the rich kids whose allowance might as well not be called allowance anymore because it's almost infinite. Haha! Whatever makes you happy, but I'm definitely giving my kids a reasonable, regular allowance. It might seem annoying to the kids at first but I think it teaches them the value of money and the importance of saving, and I think ultimately you feel happier scrimping and saving and finally treating yourself to something you've been wanting to buy for ages, rather than to just being able to purchase it with a snap of your fingers.
And to end off with a happy picture: My homemade apple crumble sitting in the oven, nicely golden brown, cooling off and nearly ready to eat even as I type. (:
(Although in the picture you can't exactly tell that it's apple crumble.)
Yeah, I know my Engrish is atrocious in this entry but I can't quite be bothered (for once!) to be grammatically perfect today.