Why the heck am I always talking about the refrigerator??

I have been pretty good so far this month. Haven't been spending on much, except chalking up my expenses on phonecalls and internet usage, all incurred while I was travelling in the US. The urge to buy stuff isn't that strong nor uncontrollable these days, maybe largely because I am still feeling the remnants of guilt from Christmas and Chinese New Year spendings.

Every now and then, I do see something I yearn to own, but I deter myself through various means - mainly by thinking of how unhappy the man would be if he found out, and of our (near-)future home. To stop myself altogether, I have stopped even window-shopping. A message to the cynics: this method really helps. I even stop hanging out at my favorite Borders... which is good cos I have stopped buying all those magazines since as well.

I was walking around in Bedok Town Central the other day when I passed by one of those neighborhood stores that sell (cheaper) electrical household appliances. The very first thing that caught my eye, naturally, was this huge, metallic, futuristic-looking refrigerator that, probably due to its size, was displayed right outside the store. I thought, Hmmm... very neat, something I could possibly use for my own home in future. And then, it suddenly struck me that the refrigerator is only but one of many household items that we'll need to buy for our house - what about the washing machine, the cooking stove, the baking oven (yes, I need a big one cos I'm intending to experiment with recipes), the air-conditioner, the television (plasma?)? And that's when I started to worry we might not have the money to buy them when the time comes. Ok, I can do without a dryer or a home theatre system for now, but I cannot imagine having to handwash all the clothes nor missing out on StarWorld and all the sports channels, or worse, my Ben & Jerry's and ice-cold Coke Light.

From that moment on, I stopped thinking about the boyfriend whenever I had the urge to purchase anything possibly impulsive. Instead, I keep telling myself: "If I buy this *insert item* now, I will not be able to buy my refrigerator." And let me tell you, this horrifying method does work.

So far, I have turned down an invitation to join a bunch of fun-loving friends at Bintan over the long Easter weekend, stopped myself from buying a Gwen Stefani CD and resisted the oh-so-cute! undies at Topshop. And I am considering skipping Attica (and possibly ruffling the feathers of some girlfriends) tonight, and for a few months as well.

Do I feel sorry for myself? No... I actually am proud of myself.

This really makes me wonder about the realities of life and the importance of money in this society. It is weird when the gah-men laments of the younger generation getting married later and procreating even later and yet makes it so damn tough (read: expensive) for us to buy a flat, get married, set up home and then to give birth.

Here's my estimated costs of 'starting a new life with your loved one':
- Getting ROM'ed: $620 (pair of rings + ROM fees)
- Buying a flat: $10 application fee + $60,000 downpayment (if you don't have enough CPF to cover, you're doggone here)
- Getting married: ha! at least $40,000 methinks
- Setting up home: $40,000 renovation + $10,000 furniture/appliances
- Giving birth: $2,000 check-up fees + $5,000 to give birth! (I should've studied to be a gynae!)

So, let's see... what do all these total up to?

So the gah-men says we are too caught up with career-building. Hmm, that's quite true. Because if we don't work our asses off while we are still young, we might not be able to buy that flat, get married and reproduce the next generation in time.

Oh, one more suggestion, if you would pay us to be members of SDU, that might help too.