What's something you bought recently that was actually worth the money?

Discussion in 'General Chat' started by qwikad.com, Jun 11, 2026.

  1. #1
    I'm a big fan of Taylor guitars, but I recently got a Guild and I'm really loving it. Every time I buy a new guitar, it gives me fresh inspiration to keep playing and improving. What's one thing you've bought recently (small or big investment, doesn't matter) that you feel was absolutely worth the money?










     
    qwikad.com, Jun 11, 2026 IP
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  2. jrbiz

    jrbiz Acclaimed Member

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    #2
    Well, this was a few months ago, but I am still enjoying the deal I got...

    I have been reading the Boston Herald newspaper for many decades. It is a big part of my morning ritual. Since I live in RI, there was no delivery service, so I would go to a local store (drugstore, convenience store, etc.) and pay $4.50 during weekdays and $4.00 per copy on Sundays (I assume Sunday's newspaper was cheaper because they had more advertising.) One day, I was unable to find the newspaper anywhere (and drove around quite a bit to find one.) I finally decided to get a subscription, instead. So, I bought an Android tablet for $180 and signed up for the Herald's promotion which was a first year annual subscription for $5! An amazing deal, of course. Since I had been paying $31 per week for the hardcopy newspapers (plus gas), the tablet was paid off in those savings within 6 weeks and it has been a free ride ever since. Once the first year is over, I will be paying $5 per week to continue the subscription which is still a great deal. Not only am I saving a lot of money, but the Herald is now "delivered" to me every morning without fail (well, I did have a connectivity problem one day, but that was an isolated incident.)

    My only regret is that I did not do this years ago. :)
     
    jrbiz, Jun 12, 2026 at 4:49 AM IP
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  3. Spoiltdiva

    Spoiltdiva Acclaimed Member

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    #3
    Bamboo curtains, they look amazing. They give you 100% privacy while still letting in the light. You can look out between the slits but no one can look in. I have a lot of wood in my house, panelling and beams, floors, and they fit right in.
     
    Spoiltdiva, Jun 12, 2026 at 7:42 AM IP
  4. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    #4
    Not recently but I bought a thermal printer for my eBay biz. Best investment I have made for the business, printing address labels is now a painless process!
     
    dcristo, Jun 12, 2026 at 7:49 AM IP
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  5. qwikad.com

    qwikad.com Illustrious Member Affiliate Manager

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    #5
    I didn't know that. Is it because the state is too small or…?

    What is it about reading the news whether in print or online that makes it so special that you've kept doing it for years? I don't recall touching a newspaper in the last 20 years. :)


     
    qwikad.com, Jun 12, 2026 at 8:59 AM IP
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  6. qwikad.com

    qwikad.com Illustrious Member Affiliate Manager

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    #6
    Maybe I should suggest this to my wife. She sells vintage items and often needs a large number of price tags. She currently does them manually, so I'm wondering if printing them with a printer would be a good option.
     
    qwikad.com, Jun 12, 2026 at 9:02 AM IP
  7. jrbiz

    jrbiz Acclaimed Member

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    #7


    I live too far from Boston to have it delivered. Not enough business for them to have a delivery guy in my town. I can get the Providence Journal delivered to me, but that is not my newspaper.



    I suppose that reading a newspaper is a habit, more than anything. I subscribe to the website, so I have access to everything, including their standard web content formatting. However, I make the extra effort to get to their traditional newspaper (pdf-like) version that they also offer because that is how I am used to navigating their newspaper. It is much less convenient than their web formatted content, but it is what I am used to seeing and prefer.

    However, I do follow the news quite a bit. I was a political science major in college and politics have always been my spectator sport of choice. Some people watch sports games; I follow national and local politics. I started reading newspapers and newsmagazines (Time, Newsweek, National Review, etc.) in high school. In college, I started following Boston politics, as it is always highly active and interesting. When I moved to RI, I explored switching to following RI politics, but the news coverage was nowhere near as good as in Boston. Surprising, because RI is an extreme version of MA with more politics, corruption, etc., but the newspaper is disappointing. So, despite living in a different state and rarely going into Boston these days, I still follow Boston politics as my "local" interest. For national news, I follow a number of online news sites.
     
    jrbiz, Jun 12, 2026 at 11:30 AM IP
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  8. Dean_Saliba

    Dean_Saliba Notable Member

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    #8
    My Coros Pace 3 watch. as a keen runner it has been a game changer. it also means I don't have to run with my phone in my hand and risk it being smashed or stolen on the streets of London.
     
    Dean_Saliba, Jun 14, 2026 at 10:38 AM IP
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  9. qwikad.com

    qwikad.com Illustrious Member Affiliate Manager

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    #9
    Sounds like a great buy! It's so weird to hear that it can get "stolen on the streets of London," though. Do you mean you can get robbed? I live a pretty sheltered life here, I see men and women running with their smartphones in sports armbands all the time and there's very little concern.


     
    qwikad.com, Jun 14, 2026 at 2:02 PM IP
  10. Alish Fridmann

    Alish Fridmann Member

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    #10
    Sounds cliche, but a good office chair. My back immediately said `thank you.`
     
    Alish Fridmann, Jun 16, 2026 at 3:36 AM IP
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  11. Alish Fridmann

    Alish Fridmann Member

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    #11
    Yeah, they’re really awesome! I’ve read and watched so much about them, so my next purchase will definitely be those
     
    Alish Fridmann, Jun 16, 2026 at 3:38 AM IP
  12. qwikad.com

    qwikad.com Illustrious Member Affiliate Manager

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    #12
    Yeah, I'm due for a new office chair too. The problem is they never last. At first they look great, no squeaks or anything, but after about six months they start falling apart. Any brands you like? I saw a couple of good ones at IKEA. Not sure yet, but that could be my next office chair.


     
    qwikad.com, Jun 16, 2026 at 4:32 AM IP
  13. jrbiz

    jrbiz Acclaimed Member

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    #13


    After years of using a pretty lousy chair that I got for free, I realized that, given how much time I spend in it, I should get a quality chair. It is really hard to sit in a chair for a few minutes and determine if it will work for long sessions in the office. I tried quite a few chairs at Staples and picked one. I have been using it for a few years now and it is okay, but not great. Same thing happened with the easy chairs we use for watching TV in our living room. They are okay, but not great.
     
    jrbiz, Jun 16, 2026 at 5:29 AM IP