One Nice Thing Is Never One Nice Thing (feat. my shirts)

Don't get me wrong, I love nice things.

I'd argue I probably love them more than the next person. I'm into selvedge denim. I'm into loopwheeled tees. I also think that an expensive teapot is a reasonable thing to have opinions about. We all have our niche intrests and hobbies that we dont mind splurging on.

A lot of "buy it for life" advice assumes you have the money to front load the better option, and that's not always true. I'm just the type of person who would rather buy one nice thing that lasts for years than buy the cheaper version five times.

Some things are worth paying more for. But that advice assumes you can front load the better option, and not everyone can. I've been on the other side of that, and I don't take being off it for granted. Sometimes the cheaper thing is the responsible one.

The issue isn't nice things, but what happens after you buy one nice thing.

Sometimes that first purchase changes your brain a little, I know it does to mine at least. You stop thinking, "Do I need this?" and start thinking, "Well, if I'm already taking this seriously, I might as well get the best, long lasting version." And so the trouble begins.

Running

I've mentioned this before, but running is fundamentally a cheap hobby.

The trails and roads are free and you have the two feet you were born with. It's as simple as going outside and running.

But then the nice to haves start creeping up.

It's hot in Austin, so I need a running vest. That's another $100.

I need to track my training because pace matters and I want to finish the marathon. That's a $250 watch.

My regular clothes aren't breathable enough, so I need running clothes. But I don't want the cheap ones to fall apart after a year, so maybe I should get better ones. That's another $150.

Then running shoes. I can't get injured now. That's another $200.

You can see how fast this gets stupid.

The funny part is that each individual purchase can sound reasonable. The vest actually has been great. It's hot, I sweat a lot, and carrying water makes running feel way less miserable. I don't regret it one bit.

But did I really need new running clothes right away? Did I need top of the line shoes immediately? No I didn't.

The problem wasn't the vest, it was that the vest put me in this spending mode.

Once I made one justified purchase, the next one was easier to pull the trigger. Then the next one felt easier after that. The category changed from "running is something I do" to "running is something I need gear for."

The good version: My T-shirts

I love T-shirts. Really good plain T-shirts.

A lot of the ones I like are loopwheeled. They're knit on old circular machines, some over a century old, that run slow and at almost no tension, which makes the fabric denser and softer than the mass produced stuff. A lot of it comes off the machine as a tube, so there are no side seams. Yes, it's a stupid amount of money for a plain white tee. And yes, there's a real difference in how it wears. Look below at the hole in an Abercrombe shirt I have owned for 6 months.

I got my first Merz b. Schwanen shirt in 2021. I still have it. I still wear it and still no holes

. It's not one of those purchases where I look back and wonder what I was thinking.

But the important part is that I didn't immediately buy five more. I bought one.

Another year went by before I bought another. Then another batch after that. In between, I actually figured out what I liked: the weight, the fit, which colors I kept reaching for. The time between shirts was the whole point. So by the time I was ready to buy the next shirt, I already knew what I wanted.

That's my good version of buying nice things. Enough time passed between the excitement and the purchase that I knew whether I wanted it.

One nice thing can change your standards

Buying one nice thing can be great. But it can also ruin your tolerance for normal things unfortunately.

You buy one good shirt and the rest of the drawer starts to look sad. You get a nice keyboard and your old one suddenly bugs you in a way it didn't last week. The good version doesn't just sit next to the normal versions. It makes them worse.

That doesn't mean you should never upgrade. Some upgrades are worth it. Some are just quality of life.

But if every upgrade triggers the next one, that could be a red flag to look out for.

Before I go for a run

Nice things are, well, nice. Worth it a lot of the time. But there are a few red flags I watch for now, and I'd encourage you to do the same.

I love my shirts. I know I'm kind of a freak about it, lol. But we all have our thing.

If you notice the pattern starting to run you instead of the other way around, try some of what I mentioned. Take breaks. Give it more time. Weigh the long term. Mostly, just keep an eye on yourself. Self control is hard, but noticing the pattern is the first step to actually changing it.

The Chirpin card will help with this once we launch. Until then, you don't need us to start watching your own habits a little more closely.

Anyway, I'm off for a run around Lady Bird Lake, and for once I think I've got all the gear I need for a good while. Thanks for reading!