Dave's New Column

Advice for Congress: Call My Mom

Contributed by: David LeSueur on 2/10/2009

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Our economy is hurting so we are going to borrow almost a trillion dollars to "stimulate" it. I suppose that might make sense on a macroeconomic level, but it flies in the face of two economic principles my parents taught me: don't spend money if you don't have it, and don't buy something if you don't need it.

Congress could learn from the example of our family freezer. In 1964 I was 14, my 2 brothers were 12 and 4 and my sister was 9. My parents had planned a six week vacation (my father was a high school history teacher) for us to drive from Burbank, California across the country to see the New York World's Fair. But my mom also wanted to buy a freezer so Dad told her that if she could spend less than what they had budgeted for the vacation, she could use the savings to buy a freezer.

To save money on lodging we stayed as much as possible with friends and family. When necessary, we rented a room at Motel 6. In those days the "6" was in the name because rooms were $6 per night. The "6" also signified how many people we put in a room. Unfortunately the "6" did not stand for how many of us slept in a bed. Since there were only two double beds my youngest brother always slept on the floor and the other three kids rotated sleeping on the floor with him.

Mom saved money on food by fixing us cold cereal in the morning and making us sandwiches for lunch. Occasionally Mom and Dad would splurge by eating out for breakfast. The kids still ate cold cereal in the car but Dad bought us donuts on those days to make us feel special too.

It was a great trip and we stayed under budget so Mom bought a freezer for $100. They still had it in 1974 and in 1984 and in 1994 and in 2004. Mom didn't replace it because it still worked - except that the interior light no longer came on when you opened the door. That freezer lasted longer than most marriages, but it had two significant problems. First, it had to be defrosted, which was an all day chore. I remember some months when the freezer had more frost than food in it. And even worse, it used a lot of electricity.

You may have heard of CERN, an international physics laboratory in Sweden. It contains an enormously powerful particle accelerator capable of smashing subatomic particles together, reproducing the energies that existed a fraction of a second after the big bang. The experiment was scheduled for last Fall but was postponed for undisclosed reasons. Well , I can now tell you the real reason was Mom's freezer. It was so inefficient that there was a huge electromagnetic field above my parent's house. Scientists were afraid that the particles colliding would create a black hole above the freezer that might swallow up their house and the entire city of San Clemente.

Last Christmas, Mom bought herself a new freezer after 44 years. She only started thinking about it because the power company offered her a $35 rebate if she would buy a more energy efficient model. She had decided against buying a new one ("The old one still works!" she said) until Dad pointed out that $35 was enough to buy them each six meals at Taco Bell. Keeping a freezer that long is very unusual in our culture of instant gratification and "I want it all and I want it right now."

If your kids are complaining about having to wait until their birthdays to get a new cell phone, or if you are considering borrowing money on your 5 th credit card, I suggest you visit my mom to gain a little perspective. She will be excited to show you her new freezer that she waited 44 years to buy. And if you are really nice, she will show you how the light comes on when you open the door.

David LeSueur lives in Littleton with his wife Mary. He can't think of anything he has owned for 44 years.

Thanks Dave to both you and your mom for much needed financial advice! cp