Dear Legislature,
After reading an article in the Economist about a debate on food prices, and poking fun at the comment of one legislature, I just can’t wrap my brain around why you would need more than $50 USD to buy a meal. Then I thought,
“Perhaps, I am wrong in my assessment. Perhaps, these legislators need to eat a lot. Perhaps, they like to drink wine with their meals.”
Whichever way I thought about it, it still did not make sense. So, now, I have created a list of suggestions- based entirely on assumptions of what I think you are eating, or like to eat- to help you cut down the cost of your meals.
- Do you really need a glass of wine with your meal?
- Instead of going out for lunch or dinner, try meeting sometime for drinks or coffee.
- Pass on the four/five-star restaurant when it is offered.
- Breakfast is sometimes more affordable
- If you know there is a spending limit, insist on paying for anything over the limit.
- Skip desert
- Go to a buffet
- Suggest to your host that you make it a potluck, and insist on bringing something.
- Some restaurants have large servings, perhaps you can split a plate
- When you go out to eat, and you know someone else is paying for your meal, ask yourself, “How much would I want to spend on a meal and what can I afford to spend if I had to pay for my meal and for my friends’ meal?”
- Every now and then, eat at Taco Bell.
Though the list is not comprehensive, I will try to update it when new ideas come to mind. If you have one that I haven’t thought of, please let me know and I will add it to this list.
Sincerely,
A Concerned Citizen
—
Also known as: Constituent
Better known as: Voter
Sometimes remembered- but especially during election years- as: The Guy Whose $50 You’re Spending
LOVE it. Note: Checked your spelling – “the Guy Whose $50 You’re Spending.”
Thanks, Old Lady. Correction made. Give the grandkids a hug for me. Miss you all!
In regards to “how much should I spend if someone is paying for my meal” I usually address this by seeing what the payer is ordering. I then make sure that I do not exceed what they spend on the meal. I think it is a simple rule of thumb and makes for good “filler” conversation.
I think it would be a good idea to implement some sort of “give back.” Let them spend however much money on the meal. For every dollar they spend on a meal, they must take 40% out of their own pocket and donate it to a charitable fund, or pump it into a universal health care program. So for example, a pair of politicos spend $500 on a meal. They must then take $200 out of their own paycheck and donate it.
Miss you friend! You’re missing some SICK SICK SICK dancing by APIAs on America’s Best Dance Crew!! It’s totally rigged, but catch on you tube Jabbawockeez and Kaba Modern. It’s like the dance groups we watched at MAASU at UMich, only 100xs better!!!