This Is This

I was in Marks & Spencer the other day (NB: not Marks & SpencerS, not Mark & Spencer - I’ve been in neither; it’s: Marks & Spencer) and I bought a triple berry muffin on my debit card for seventy nine pence.

It’s not a lot for a plastic purchase, but I find I spend less if I put everything on the card. It saves me having to break bills which leads to carrying around change which leads to impulse buying which leads to stuff I don’t really need which leads to having less money to buy the stuff I really need. I also find that using a card instead of cash is still spending money, but it’s spending it mindfully.

It’s money dharma. The only constant is change, particularly loose change.

Aaaaaaanyway - a lot of the time when you use the card these days, the person at the till asks you if you want cash anyway.

:)

So I’m standing there in Marks & Spencer with my triple berry muffin and I’m paying with the card and the lady asks me:

“Do you want any cashback?”

Just this once, I checked my wallet because I would need some cash later to buy food for my cats from a place that may not take cards. I noticed I already had a ten pound note in there that I didn’t know about.

“No thanks,” I said, “I’ll have my card back. I have cash.”

Cashier: “Cashback?”

Me: “No, card back.”

Cashier: “With no cashback?”

Me: “Yes.”

Cashier: “Yes?”

Me: “No. No cashback. I have cash, but I need my card back and I’ll pay in cash.”

It went on like this for some time, my triple berry muffin sitting forlornly between us in a state of transaction purgatory, ‘twixt Mark and Spencer.

Convenience, eh? Can’t beat it. They can bake fresh muffins in a pants store but our lives have never been more complicated. I’d happily trade in those two extra berries for an easier life.

Also on This Is This
Me: “Where are you?”
Her: “In kitchenware. Where are you?”
Me: “I’m in pants, but I’m nearly done.”
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This entry was posted on Friday, March 24th, 2006 at 9:25 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed, or leave a comment yourself.