now i know better

I remember learning in my Econ class in high school that "there ain't no such thing as a free lunch."

Yes- the whole deal that everything has a cost. Even if it's only an opportunity cost and not a monetary cost.

So being the pennypincher that I am, I drove 2 miles out of the way of my usual route home to get cheaper gas. It was a whole ten cents cheaper than my usual gas station and a whopping 20 cents cheaper than the one near my house. So, I go there, all excited about the great find, but as I was pulling out the nozzle, I noticed that the pricing on the stand was the same pricing as my regular gas station. I was astounded by this and I double-checked the actual sign to see if my eyes had deceived me. But no- it wasn't my eyes that deceived me, but those sneaky gas sharks. At the bottom of the sign, in small font, it read, "With Car Wash!" I felt so cheated! At that point, I was just going to leave the gas station without getting gas just to spite them, but then I realized that I might as well get gas since I drove out there anyway.

That reminds me also of this one time when I was purchasing movie tickets online ahead of time just to secure seats. But then as I was buying the tickets, I noticed a flashy little button that said "FREE TICKETS!" Of course, I fell for this little ploy. Stupid Fandango (or whatever that website was) convinced me that I could get my tickets para gratis if I only I tried out (not even purchased) one of their advertiser's offers. So, being the naive consumer that I was, I decided to check out ONlingo, this language-learning program (I've always been meaning to brush up on my Spanish). So my "free" trial kit came in the mail later on that week, and I discovered later (in the fine print) that if I kept the kit for more than 14 days, I would have to pay $150 (or I forgot the exact amount, but it was ridiculous). So, I called the place immediately and ended up mailing back the kit. Ultimately, the cost of shipping fees+time wasted+ stress > cost of movie ticket.

So people, don't fall for these tricks. If it sounds too good to be true, then it usually isn't. Oh and ladies- beware: always know that when a guy offers to pay for dinner, it isn't free. If he buys you an ipod or a pretty necklace, those aren't free either. Think twice before accepting! That is my 2 cents for the day. See... that wasn't free either.