Attention World! This Is What Things Should Cost

💵 Check out the Investing Calculator! A family trip to the movies can easily cost $80 these days; it’s rough out there! Today we’re talking about the reality of inflation . . . but in a fun way, we promise. Next Steps: · 🎙️ Catch our episode Common Money Wasters the Average American Falls For. · 💵 Create a free budget and find more margin with EveryDollar. · 🍸 Follow Smart Money Happy Hour on TikTok: @smartmoneyhappyhour · 📱 Submit a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George! Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it. Connect With Our Sponsors: · Check out the FAIRWINDS Credit Union exclusive account bundle. · Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe. · Get 20% off with code SMARTMONEY at Cozy Earth. Today’s Happy Hour Special: 🍹 Peach Julep Recipe By: @Cocktails · 6 mint leaves · 2 tbsp. diced ripe peach · 1/2 tsp. simple syrup · 1 ounce peach puree · 1.5 ounces whisky · Fresh mint and peach slice for garnish Instructions: Put 6 mint leaves, 2 tbsp. diced ripe peach, and 1/2 tsp. simple syrup in a glass and muddle. Pour 1 ounce peach puree and 1.5 ounces whisky in glass. Add ice. Then stir. Garnish with fresh mint and a peach slice. Serve and enjoy! Explore More From Ramsey Network: 💰 George Kamel 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 📈 EntreLeadership Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:05George Kamel?

  A family trip to the movies can easily cost you 80 bucks these days. It is rough out there. So today we're talking about the reality of inflation, but in a fun way, we promise. And I can have $6 on my person and get a full meal.

• 0:17Rachel Cruze?

  You are choosing the life that you have. That is unbelievable.

• 0:20George Kamel?

  You sound like my therapist.

• 0:22Rachel Cruze?

  One of my greatest fears is being convicted of a crime that I didn't commit. What if?

• 0:32Rachel Cruze?

  Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz.

• 0:34George Kamel?

  I'm George Kamel.

• 0:36Rachel Cruze?

  And this is Smart Money Happy Hour. Cheers, George.

• 0:41George Kamel?

  Cheers.

• 0:44Rachel Cruze?

  Well, this is the show with two friends who happen to be money experts to talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money.

• 0:52George Kamel?

  And if you're wondering why we're snickering, we both just had a similar reaction to today's drink.

• 0:58Rachel Cruze?

  And I don't, it's like a very neutral reaction.

• 1:00George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 1:01Rachel Cruze?

  Very neutral.

• 1:03George Kamel?

  We're sipping on a peach julep, which in my head was very exciting.

• 1:07Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 1:07George Kamel?

  In my mouth, less so. So stick around to the end. We'll give you our full review, our full rating, and reveal the cost per glass. You don't want to miss that. All right, I've got a confession to make.

• 1:19Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, can't wait to hear it. What is it, George?

• 1:22George Kamel?

  I know that we're supposed to be like financial experts and all, but if I'm honest, my brain is still stuck in 2006 in a Panera with a $6 you pick two. You remember that? Do you remember those days?

• 1:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 1:34George Kamel?

  I was in high school. I'd go with my friends and I could have $6 on my person and get a full meal.

• 1:40Rachel Cruze?

  Or I could go to Chili's on the strip at the University of Tennessee and get chips and salsa, a club sandwich, and a molten cake. Get out of there for 12 bucks.

• 1:48George Kamel?

  How did we get here?

• 1:49Rachel Cruze?

  Genuinely. Now you go, and the sticker shock in life, it is so real.

• 1:54George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 1:55Rachel Cruze?

  You know, we talked about how we feel like when people say, oh, 20 years ago, we immediately go to like the 80s.

• 2:00George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 2:00Rachel Cruze?

  Like in our head.

• 2:01George Kamel?

  In my head, it's 1985.

• 2:02Rachel Cruze?

  That's how we feel with money still sometimes.

• 2:04George Kamel?

  Like things should cost what they cost 20 years ago.

• 2:07Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Okay, what are things that are worth the money though, would you say?

• 2:11George Kamel?

  Oh my gosh.

• 2:11Rachel Cruze?

  There's like a trend on social right now. I did one of these videos on Instagram.

• 2:14George Kamel?

  TSA Pre-Check is my go-to because I feel like people who don't have it live more miserable lives and they don't even know.

• 2:21Rachel Cruze?

  Do you have global entry for like international travel?

• 2:23George Kamel?

  I don't. I'm not a global traveler right now.

• 2:25Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's fair.

• 2:25George Kamel?

  So I don't go very far.

• 2:26Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 2:27George Kamel?

  I know you're always gallivanting the globe.

• 2:29Rachel Cruze?

  No, I don't have global entry and I'm not gallivanting the globe. But yeah, TSA Pre-Check is great.

• 2:36George Kamel?

  Oh, you know another one that people sleep on? YouTube Premium.

• 2:39Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 2:39George Kamel?

  Because I watch a lot of YouTube clips more than I watch streaming services, if that makes sense.

• 2:44Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 2:45George Kamel?

  So if you're not have to watch ads, I feel like I've just saved a lot of time. Like people watching this show right now on YouTube, probably about to watch an ad.

• 2:52Rachel Cruze?

  You know what? I'm not going to judge because I think, I think a good manicure and like a dip manicure that lasts like three to four weeks, totally worth it.

• 3:02George Kamel?

  But it costs, does it cost triple a normal one or no?

• 3:04Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, triple a normal with normal polish to dip? Maybe, I mean, double for sure. Yeah.

• 3:12George Kamel?

  Okay. You get what you pay for, is what you're saying.

• 3:15Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, but I think it's worth it for me.

• 3:17George Kamel?

  Term life insurance is another one that I think is, I know it sounds nerdy, but it's 100% worth the money.

• 3:22Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 3:22George Kamel?

  Like the trade-off of like, you pay $40 a month for the next 15 years

• 3:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 3:27George Kamel?

  to potentially have a million, something were to happen to you.

• 3:30Rachel Cruze?

  Totally worth it. I'd say the same with like professionals in my life when it comes to my money. Tax professionals, financial planner, a good real estate agent, like to me, that's worth it to me. Like they have an area of expertise. I'm going to end up making more at the end or not get put in jail for taxes.

• 3:46George Kamel?

  That's important for you.

• 3:47Rachel Cruze?

  We don't want tax fraud.

• 3:48George Kamel?

  I think you'd do great in jail, but I don't want you there.

• 3:51Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 3:51George Kamel?

  You'd make a lot of friends.

• 3:53Rachel Cruze?

  I could have a social club.

• 3:55George Kamel?

  Yeah. You'd start a book club that went viral somehow.

• 3:57Rachel Cruze?

  You know what's one of my greatest fears is being convicted of a crime that I didn't commit.

• 4:02George Kamel?

  Really?

• 4:03Rachel Cruze?

  And being put in jail. Yes.

• 4:04George Kamel?

  You think like you could get framed for something.

• 4:06Rachel Cruze?

  What if? Listen, there's some, there's some trials happening as we speak. And I'm like, oh my gosh, what if you're, what if I was innocent? Would you believe me, George, if I was on the stand and I looked at you and I was like, George Kamel, I swear to you, I did not do this. Even if Dave doesn't believe me, Winston doesn't believe me, my family's turned against me, George, are you a BFF that you would, do you would say?

• 4:30George Kamel?

  I am an ally. I believe women.

• 4:33Rachel Cruze?

  I believe women.

• 4:34George Kamel?

  I, no, but you are a truth teller, I feel like. Out of all people, I would.

• 4:38Rachel Cruze?

  And if I was like, George, I swear, you would believe me?

• 4:42George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 4:43Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, good.

• 4:43George Kamel?

  And even if you did it, who am I to question it? I don't have the evidence.

• 4:47Rachel Cruze?

  Absolutely not. Okay, good.

• 4:49George Kamel?

  Let the jury decide.

• 4:50Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, good. I'm glad, I'm glad we discussed that.

• 4:52George Kamel?

  If I was on the jury, it'd be a different story. I would create hate and dissension and go, I don't trust her. Something about her seems odd. One day she had short hair, now she has long hair. I don't know. Something off about her.

• 5:06Rachel Cruze?

  Her alibis.

• 5:07George Kamel?

  That would be fun.

• 5:07Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know. She changed her looks to get away with the crime. We don't know.

• 5:10George Kamel?

  That's my life goal, is to sway the entire jury. Just cause doubt. That's all you need.

• 5:16Rachel Cruze?

  Just reasonable doubt.

• 5:18George Kamel?

  That's a good, my last one would be a good coffee maker.

• 5:21Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 5:21George Kamel?

  Because you know how I feel about Keurig's.

• 5:23Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 5:23George Kamel?

  They should all be put in a landfill somewhere. And Keurig, the CEO of Keurig should go to jail. That's my.

• 5:28Rachel Cruze?

  No, I would visit them in jail.

• 5:30George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 5:31Rachel Cruze?

  That's, no, that's terrible.

• 5:32George Kamel?

  But a good coffee maker, great quality beans. I feel like that increases your quality of life.

• 5:37Rachel Cruze?

  That's fine.

• 5:38George Kamel?

  Sometimes the only joy I have in a day is a good cup of coffee.

• 5:41Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, good. Okay.

• 5:43George Kamel?

  Well, remember this one? The dollar menu at McDonald's.

• 5:45Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my.

• 5:46George Kamel?

  Or Taco Bell for that matter.

• 5:47Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, I know.

• 5:49George Kamel?

  Where you just knew, like I can get five things for $5 plus tax.

• 5:52Rachel Cruze?

  I went through Taco Bell the other day, not going to lie.

• 5:55George Kamel?

  Not cheap.

• 5:56Rachel Cruze?

  It was a little more pricey than I, again, I go back to that, my mindset and I'm like, how is a soft taco not like a $1.05?

• 6:03George Kamel?

  At least when it was a dollar, it was like, it's not good for me, but it's cheap. Now it's just like, it's kind of expensive and it's not good for me. We've lost like $2.59 for a taco?

• 6:13Rachel Cruze?

  I know, y'all. Why?

• 6:15George Kamel?

  That has nothing in it?

• 6:16Rachel Cruze?

  How is this happening? I know.

• 6:18George Kamel?

  Okay, well, how about this? If we're ever in charge, let's make a list of things that should cost $1, no explanation.

• 6:24Rachel Cruze?

  Hmm.

• 6:24George Kamel?

  Just vibes.

• 6:26Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 6:26George Kamel?

  Bottle of water, $1.

• 6:28Rachel Cruze?

  For sure.

• 6:28George Kamel?

  Mandate.

• 6:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. Any bottle of water. Yeah. What they sell at the airport now? You're paying like seven bucks a bottle.

• 6:36George Kamel?

  It's insane.

• 6:36Rachel Cruze?

  At the airport.

• 6:37George Kamel?

  Yeah. I think if it's, if it's purified water, it should be 75 cents.

• 6:41Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 6:41George Kamel?

  Spring water, $1.

• 6:43Rachel Cruze?

  Spring water, $1.

• 6:43George Kamel?

  Upcharge for the spring water. That's fair. You had to go to a spring to get that thing. It's not just glorified tap water.

• 6:49Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, so like the Fiji water bottles. What would you do?

• 6:52George Kamel?

  Oh, well Fiji's a premium brand. I think that's $1.25.

• 6:55Rachel Cruze?

  Okay. Dollar and a quarter.

• 6:56George Kamel?

  Yeah. So I have three tiers.

• 6:58Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 6:58George Kamel?

  I was just at the movie theaters this weekend.

• 7:00Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 7:01George Kamel?

  Guess how much the popcorn was? Starting price for a small popcorn?

• 7:06Rachel Cruze?

  Um, $9.99.

• 7:09George Kamel?

  $9.49 for a small.

• 7:11Rachel Cruze?

  Look at me.

• 7:11George Kamel?

  The medium, $10. The large, $10.49.

• 7:16Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, you go large.

• 7:16George Kamel?

  It's called price anchoring. So what did I do? You go large.

• 7:18Rachel Cruze?

  You go large? Yeah, you have to.

• 7:21George Kamel?

  Oh, that was for a drink. Sorry, not even, popcorn was more expensive.

• 7:23Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that was.

• 7:24George Kamel?

  The drink alone.

• 7:24Rachel Cruze?

  The drink was $10?

• 7:26George Kamel?

  Yes. And guess who wanted a drink?

• 7:29Rachel Cruze?

  Whitney.

• 7:29George Kamel?

  Whitney.

• 7:30Rachel Cruze?

  Good for you, Whitney.

• 7:32George Kamel?

  And guess what they serve at the movie theaters?

• 7:34Rachel Cruze?

  They do serve ices.

• 7:36George Kamel?

  Pepsi products.

• 7:37Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 7:38George Kamel?

  Monsters. I paid $11 for a Diet Pepsi?

• 7:41Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's, that's a.

• 7:43George Kamel?

  Egg on my face.

• 7:44Rachel Cruze?

  They should be in jail. Straight to jail.

• 7:45George Kamel?

  You should get to bring Coke products if you serve Pepsi. That should be a law too.

• 7:48Rachel Cruze?

  Amen. Okay, what would you pay for a license plate renewal? Stickers, like the stickers that go.

• 7:54George Kamel?

  Of the stickers?

• 7:56Rachel Cruze?

  I think it should be.

• 7:56George Kamel?

  They should be paying me.

• 7:57Rachel Cruze?

  I think.

• 7:58George Kamel?

  That's insane that we have to pay for those.

• 8:00Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, but I think to like $15, that's what it should be.

• 8:04George Kamel?

  Yeah, that feels fair.

• 8:05Rachel Cruze?

  For the stickers?

• 8:06George Kamel?

  For a renewal.

• 8:06Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 8:07George Kamel?

  But guess how much we pay because we have an electric vehicle? An extra $200.

• 8:11Rachel Cruze?

  We do?

• 8:13George Kamel?

  Clearly Winston pays the bills in this house. Yeah. There's a $200 electric vehicle fee because they're not getting our money through the gas tax.

• 8:20Rachel Cruze?

  Oh crap, George, what are we doing?

• 8:22George Kamel?

  So when you pump a gallon of gas, part of that price

• 8:25Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 8:25George Kamel?

  is gas tax that goes to the counties.

• 8:28Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, okay, but okay, I think about my minivan of what I fill up. I mean, that's like three tanks, so that's not terrible.

• 8:36George Kamel?

  I just think it negates the whole purpose of having an electric vehicle.

• 8:39Rachel Cruze?

  I think that's stupid.

• 8:39George Kamel?

  Is saving on gas. And yeah, I still have to pay 200 bucks a year for the privilege.

• 8:43Rachel Cruze?

  I genuinely didn't know that. Obviously Winston does. And he puts my tags out like I'm a child and he's like, put these stickers on your car.

• 8:49George Kamel?

  Oh, I put them on my, a real man puts it on his own wife's car. Okay? He doesn't want her to do it. It would never happen.

• 8:55Rachel Cruze?

  You know what? He may, and then he lays, you know what? Last time he did do that because he laid the registration in the passenger seat and he said, put it in the glove box.

• 9:02George Kamel?

  See, I put it in Whitney's glove box.

• 9:04Rachel Cruze?

  Do not throw away.

• 9:05George Kamel?

  Adjusted in her insurance, her registration, I put it in the glove box.

• 9:08Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, yep.

• 9:09George Kamel?

  So that if she ever gets pulled over, she's ready.

• 9:11Rachel Cruze?

  Ready to go. With some napkins probably and some wipes, some baby wipes in that glove compartment.

• 9:16George Kamel?

  Wow, that's a good one. Okay, candy bars and gum, like I think anything in checkout line should be a dollar.

• 9:21Rachel Cruze?

  50 cents. 50 cents.

• 9:24George Kamel?

  50 cents to a dollar for anything in the checkout line.

• 9:26Rachel Cruze?

  100%. Going back to like It's a Wonderful Life days, quarter. You know what I mean?

• 9:30George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 9:30Rachel Cruze?

  Like just, yeah.

• 9:31George Kamel?

  The checkout line's got out of control.

• 9:32Rachel Cruze?

  The candy, just, yeah.

• 9:35George Kamel?

  Trying to sell me a $6 chapstick at the checkout line?

• 9:37Rachel Cruze?

  Give me a candy bar for 75 cents like I used to get at the ballpark as a kid, you know?

• 9:44George Kamel?

  You went to the ballpark as a kid?

• 9:46Rachel Cruze?

  I played softball and you'd go get your Icy, your snow cones.

• 9:49George Kamel?

  I thought you were going to a real game. I thought you were talking like I went to a...

• 9:51Rachel Cruze?

  I did play a real game, George.

• 9:53George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 9:54Rachel Cruze?

  In elementary school. But no, you'd go get those little, you'd go get candy bars. It'd be like 75 cents. You gotta take, give them a dollar, you get a quarterback.

• 10:01George Kamel?

  You can go change back.

• 10:03Rachel Cruze?

  Let's bring back those days.

• 10:04George Kamel?

  Last one, I think parking should be free.

• 10:07Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Unless you're parking at a business downtown.

• 10:11George Kamel?

  I get fancy downtown places.

• 10:13Rachel Cruze?

  And they owned the lot. I'm okay with that because I'm like, they paid that real estate. But for street parking that the city owns, free.

• 10:20George Kamel?

  And like places where it used to be free and all of a sudden it's paid now. That makes me angry.

• 10:24Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 10:25George Kamel?

  That's capitalism at its worst. You're like, so you're telling me all this time you weren't making money off this lot and you were fine with it? And then you're like, wait, but what if we made money?

• 10:34Rachel Cruze?

  What if we could make some money?

• 10:35George Kamel?

  Every time someone parked here, then they went inside the store to give them more money.

• 10:40Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, it's true.

• 10:41George Kamel?

  It feels like highway robbery.

• 10:43Rachel Cruze?

  Terrible, terrible. I know. Yep. But unlike highway robbery, you know, a company is, does not do that. And they actually are so generous and so wonderful, it's Fairwin's Credit Union.

• 10:53George Kamel?

  No robberies here.

• 10:54Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, no. They are a bank. So we don't want them to be robbed.

• 10:58George Kamel?

  It's the opposite.

• 10:59Rachel Cruze?

  But they also are online, which is another great convenience.

• 11:02George Kamel?

  You can't rob an online bank, I realize.

• 11:03Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 11:04George Kamel?

  Every bank should be online.

• 11:05Rachel Cruze?

  They do have branches in Orlando where they originated from. But they also pair with credit unions all across the country that you can actually use the ATMs, which is what we love. But I love the ability to switch cash between the checking and the savings. Like it's so...

• 11:19George Kamel?

  Instant transfers.

• 11:20Rachel Cruze?

  They make it so easy.

• 11:21George Kamel?

  Because it's all connected.

• 11:22Rachel Cruze?

  And they are so for the baby steps. Like they want you to win with money. They're not just like peddling you debt, trying to like make more money off of you. They are on your team and on your side. And to have a bank do that, George? My gosh.

• 11:32George Kamel?

  It's just weird, which aligns perfectly with Ramsey. So we have the, you know, Dead is Normal Be Weir debit card. So we have a themed debit card that we launched with them. And we have a new one that says, "Live like no one else." It's a real conversation starter at checkout, which is what I'm always trying to do, is start a conversation. Nobody wants to talk to me. But hey, check it all out. Get the Smart Bundle. Go to fairwins.org/Ramsey or click the link in the description.

• 11:55Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, George, let's channel this energy into a game. You ready? Okay, we're gonna blind rank five items, five things, okay? And without knowing what comes next, we have to choose, should the item be, cost a dollar? $5, $10, $20, or $50?

• 12:12George Kamel?

  All right. One slot for each.

• 12:13Rachel Cruze?

  Should you take notes? I have terrible handwriting.

• 12:16George Kamel?

  You think yours is bad?

• 12:18Rachel Cruze?

  Shoot.

• 12:19George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 12:20Rachel Cruze?

  All right, I'll do it. You read the cards.

• 12:23George Kamel?

  All right.

• 12:23Rachel Cruze?

  And then I'll write. So we gotta blind, so look at them one at a time and we gotta decide where we would put this on the list.

• 12:28George Kamel?

  If we could reprice this, where would it land?

• 12:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 12:31George Kamel?

  1, 5, 10, 20, 50.

• 12:32Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 12:33George Kamel?

  Home internet slash smartphone service per month.

• 12:37Rachel Cruze?

  Um...

• 12:39George Kamel?

  If I had to reprice internet and smartphones, that's a very specific service. Internet and phone together? I think 50. It feels fair.

• 12:47Rachel Cruze?

  I was gonna say 20.

• 12:48George Kamel?

  For both though? Internet and phone? Because normally that's gonna cost you, like right now I'm paying between the two of those like 105 bucks. So I go, if it's half of that, I'd be really happy. But I'll concede. If you think it should be 20, you call the shots.

• 13:06Rachel Cruze?

  I feel like it should be 20.

• 13:07George Kamel?

  Okay. You, but I get, I get to play a card later on. You got this one. You pulled rank. Here we go. Number two, a movie ticket.

• 13:15Rachel Cruze?

  Five bucks.

• 13:16George Kamel?

  Five bucks. 100%.

• 13:17Rachel Cruze?

  100%.

• 13:19George Kamel?

  If it's 3D, $0.00. Why are we still doing 3D movies? Nobody asked for that.

• 13:24Rachel Cruze?

  Wait, hold on, I missed...

• 13:26George Kamel?

  You misspelled movie or ticket?

• 13:28Rachel Cruze?

  Ticket, I think.

• 13:29George Kamel?

  How'd you spell it? I'm so curious. Can you show us?

• 13:31Rachel Cruze?

  You know, I just already said, hold on.

• 13:33George Kamel?

  People want to see.

• 13:34Rachel Cruze?

  You know when you spell something and it looks weird? Is that right?

• 13:38George Kamel?

  Yeah, that's right. Your handwriting's not that bad, honestly.

• 13:41Rachel Cruze?

  Ticket.

• 13:42George Kamel?

  I like that you blend cursive and normal. What's normal writing called? Non-cursive?

• 13:49Rachel Cruze?

  Standard.

• 13:50George Kamel?

  Why am I losing my mind right now?

• 13:52Rachel Cruze?

  I do go in between each one.

• 13:56George Kamel?

  Cup of gas station coffee. That's very specific.

• 13:58Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, a dollar.

• 13:58George Kamel?

  Yeah, even less if possible.

• 14:01Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 14:01George Kamel?

  Gas station coffee generally is terrible. But if I had to pay, I think any cup of coffee should be a dollar. A drip coffee.

• 14:08Rachel Cruze?

  I totally agree. Totally agree.

• 14:11George Kamel?

  Ooh, haircut. You have a 15 slot? What's, what do you got left on there?

• 14:18Rachel Cruze?

  No, I got 1, 5, 10, 20. I have 10 and 50.

• 14:22George Kamel?

  10 and 50 left? Well, I mean, I feel like it has to sit in the 10 slot. It's not gonna be 50 if I could reprice a haircut. Maybe a women's cut.

• 14:31Rachel Cruze?

  I know, but my...

• 14:32George Kamel?

  Your hair's complicated.

• 14:34Rachel Cruze?

  But they just take, they just, they put so much effort in.

• 14:36George Kamel?

  It's like a spa experience for you. Okay, I would say for women, you can do 50 if you want.

• 14:41Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, but what do we do though?

• 14:42George Kamel?

  What if the next one's big? See, this would have been a perfect one for me to take the 20 slot and have left the internet and phone at 50.

• 14:49Rachel Cruze?

  I'd go 10. Haircuts. Because we will, we, the kids go to Great Clips. And I feel like it's not, it's not a bad price, like...

• 14:57George Kamel?

  Sure. You get what you pay for.

• 14:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. And if you're just getting a trim, okay.

• 15:02George Kamel?

  No shade to the good people at Great Clips.

• 15:04Rachel Cruze?

  No, we give them business.

• 15:08George Kamel?

  All right.

• 15:08Rachel Cruze?

  We go.

• 15:09George Kamel?

  So we have one slot, and now whatever's left has to be the $50 slot.

• 15:12Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, no. What is it?

• 15:15George Kamel?

  High school sports game.

• 15:17Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, no!

• 15:20George Kamel?

  $50? How good are these kids?

• 15:21Rachel Cruze?

  Shoot! You know what? It goes to the kids.

• 15:30George Kamel?

  How about this?

• 15:31Rachel Cruze?

  Actually, that's pretty terrible. That would be horrible.

• 15:35George Kamel?

  What if half went to teachers for supplies for their classrooms?

• 15:39Rachel Cruze?

  Amen, hell, amen.

• 15:40George Kamel?

  Now we're good people. I still think you biffed it. Internet and phone should have been at the 50 mark.

• 15:45Rachel Cruze?

  And then 20 would have been haircut and 10 would have been high school sports.

• 15:49George Kamel?

  That would have been more accurate.

• 15:50Rachel Cruze?

  George...

• 15:50George Kamel?

  But now we know.

• 15:51Rachel Cruze?

  I owe you on the next game we play together.

• 15:54George Kamel?

  That was fun.

• 15:54Rachel Cruze?

  That was good. Okay.

• 15:55George Kamel?

  It was a lot of work for very little payoff. Thank you, team, for doing all of that.

• 16:00Rachel Cruze?

  That was so good. Thank you.

• 16:01George Kamel?

  The team never gets thanked these days. They think we just come up with all this ourselves.

• 16:05Rachel Cruze?

  They're the hard workers. Oh, man.

• 16:08George Kamel?

  That was fun.

• 16:09Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 16:11George Kamel?

  Are there things that you refuse to pay for in general? Like I just feel like a high school sports game should be free. Like what are we really paying for? It's not like the kids are paid.

• 16:20Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and sell merch and sell snacks, like concessions.

• 16:24George Kamel?

  Concessions make sense.

• 16:25Rachel Cruze?

  Make your money there. I agree. I agree.

• 16:28George Kamel?

  Do you pay for, is that a thing? I've never been to a high school sports game.

• 16:32Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, you pay to get in.

• 16:33George Kamel?

  To the surprise of nobody.

• 16:34Rachel Cruze?

  You know what's crazy too is nowadays I hear that you have to, you have a ticket. Oh, no, this is true for even middle school, because they have a middle school soccer player.

• 16:47George Kamel?

  Amelia?

• 16:48Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 16:49George Kamel?

  You think she'll go pro?

• 16:50Rachel Cruze?

  Made the middle school team? No.

• 16:52George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 16:52Rachel Cruze?

  If she's watching it, you could, babe, if you want to.

• 16:54George Kamel?

  She definitely could. Like it'd be easy for her, but that may not be what she wants to do.

• 16:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I mean, we're not like in travel and stuff, you know what I mean?

• 17:01George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 17:01Rachel Cruze?

  But anyways, I'm so proud of her. But you, yeah, you, so you, we bought a season ticket, up to six tickets, for all of the, all of the middle school sports. So you can just like buy, does that make sense?

• 17:14George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 17:15Rachel Cruze?

  You buy a package.

• 17:17George Kamel?

  Just to make sure that your seat is locked in.

• 17:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, for all. So, so she can go to like a football game or she can use it to do volleyball. We can have up to six to go see her play soccer.

• 17:25George Kamel?

  Oh, fun.

• 17:26Rachel Cruze?

  And it's all free. But you pay for like the season pass. But what's crazy is, is it's all QR coded. So these kids that don't have phones yet, right, the big cellphone thing, they can't get into games because it can't be screenshotted. It has to come from the account. So it gets, it kind of...

• 17:42George Kamel?

  How do you get around that?

• 17:43Rachel Cruze?

  I know. I'm not sure yet. We have not crossed that bridge. But we will be problem solvers. We'll be problem solvers and figure it out. But they're all high-tech now.

• 17:51George Kamel?

  What happened to, like having a paper ticket?

• 17:52Rachel Cruze?

  That's what I'm saying. You know, you go and you give the cash and you walk in. I know, that's all gone. It's all like QR coded now.

• 17:58George Kamel?

  It's not that hard.

• 17:59Rachel Cruze?

  I know. It's pretty wild. Or, or a proof on phone that like you have the ticket.

• 18:03George Kamel?

  Yeah. Well, speaking of sporting event prices, here's a few stats that may shock you, they may not. Because you're clearly very sporty. From the year 2000 to the year 2025, year of our Lord, prices for admission to sporting events more than doubled, increasing by more than 123%.

• 18:19Rachel Cruze?

  Good night.

• 18:20George Kamel?

  That's, according to the...

• 18:21Rachel Cruze?

  Is that all sports?

• 18:22George Kamel?

  Bureau of Labor, I can't say it.

• 18:26George Kamel?

  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Are you okay?

• 18:29Rachel Cruze?

  I had the worst screw ups on this show and they keep it in because it's funny and Rachel's so relatable. Watching his place.

• 18:37George Kamel?

  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

• 18:39Rachel Cruze?

  Keep it. He goes.

• 18:41George Kamel?

  I do this thing where I have to like, hold my hands like Trump when I say something to focus.

• 18:45Rachel Cruze?

  Keep, keep in that cut of him trying. But you're like, statistics, George, that was the craziest face I've ever seen you make. And we're keeping it in the episode.

• 18:55George Kamel?

  Keep it all in. But that is wild. I'm glad that I didn't have to experience that because I've been to very few sporting events in my lifetime. And the ones I have been to, generally someone else was generous enough to invite me.

• 19:06Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah. And they had the ticket.

• 19:07George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 19:08Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that is nice.

• 19:09George Kamel?

  I don't know that I've ever, now that I'm thinking about it, that I've ever paid for a sporting event.

• 19:12Rachel Cruze?

  Surely. At some point in life, George.

• 19:16George Kamel?

  You'd be surprised.

• 19:17Rachel Cruze?

  You'd be surprised.

• 19:18George Kamel?

  I'm very, I'm well loved. People just want to invite me to things.

• 19:20Rachel Cruze?

  Well, if you're saving money on sports, George, you'll have enough to buy a Delete Me annual plan.

• 19:26George Kamel?

  I might get a few.

• 19:27Rachel Cruze?

  You should, for friends and family.

• 19:29George Kamel?

  That would be the gift that keeps on giving.

• 19:31Rachel Cruze?

  That actually would, because Delete Me actually goes in and removes your information from data broker sites. And it keeps, you know, the idea of scammers and spammers and all that at bay because our information is floating all over the internet. So again, to keep it off, especially those data broker sites is so important. That's where Delete Me steps in.

• 19:50George Kamel?

  And I love that they send you a regular report showing you what they've removed, how much time they've saved you. It's the real deal. Real data privacy experts behind the scenes all year long, saving you so much time and headache. And when everything's expensive, I like a promo code. So we got one for our listeners out there. You can get 20% off an annual plan at joindelete.me/smartmoney, or you can use the link in the description.

• 20:11Rachel Cruze?

  I'll be honest too, when you get that report in your inbox, it is one of the best feelings.

• 20:15George Kamel?

  I sleep better the night I get the report.

• 20:17Rachel Cruze?

  Genuinely, like when I see that, I always show Wince, I'm like, babe, look at this. So like, it is so, so helpful. That is one thing that we pay for that I don't regret. I love it. Okay, well, I will say, there's some good news to all of this. There's actually things today that are cheaper today than they used to be.

• 20:34George Kamel?

  That is true.

• 20:35Rachel Cruze?

  It is wonderful. We, we can.

• 20:36George Kamel?

  Advancements in technology have made it so.

• 20:38Rachel Cruze?

  We can gasp, yes. Okay, music.

• 20:40George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 20:41Rachel Cruze?

  It is cheaper. Do you remember you'd have to go to Sam and Goodies and buy the full CD?

• 20:45George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah, we had one called Strawberries. That was our Boston edition.

• 20:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, there was a store called Strawberry with clothing, but different one?

• 20:53George Kamel?

  This is Strawberries, plural.

• 20:54Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 20:55George Kamel?

  Don't know where the name came from, but that's where I went and got all my CDs.

• 20:57Rachel Cruze?

  Did you have a Sam and Goodies where y'all lived?

• 20:59George Kamel?

  I don't know that we had one.

• 21:00Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that was in the mall. And I remember, I.

• 21:03George Kamel?

  What albums were you buying back then?

• 21:04Rachel Cruze?

  I have a vivid memory, y'all. And I wish I knew, I could probably look it up, what year it was. I got a $100 bill from my grandparents, which was a lot. And I took, it took three Mariah Carey CDs. I bought Butterfly, Hero, and is it Music Box? All three, put it up, and I think I got like $9 back. Three CDs. Yes.

• 21:27George Kamel?

  How was that possible?

• 21:28Rachel Cruze?

  25 bucks a CD, I guess? It was a lot.

• 21:31George Kamel?

  You got ripped.

• 21:33Rachel Cruze?

  And taxes and all of it. But I remember that feeling and being like, ooh, I just spent all my money on three Mariah Carey CDs.

• 21:39George Kamel?

  And even when it went digital, I mean, you still had to pay for the album. iTunes was like a dollar per song, or you could buy the whole album for like 10 bucks.

• 21:45Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 21:46George Kamel?

  Now we have unlimited access to all of the music in the world for like $12.99.

• 21:50Rachel Cruze?

  I know. You know who I do feel bad though for is artists.

• 21:52George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah, they're getting pennies.

• 21:53Rachel Cruze?

  And we're here in Nashville, so you know, we're friends with some of them and it, it is, that is sad. Like, that's a hard, that's a hard business to be in these days.

• 22:01George Kamel?

  I can tell you this, as someone who actually has an album on Spotify, can I tell you how much I make every month? Because it's consistent. I consistently will make $10 to $13 per month.

• 22:12Rachel Cruze?

  Who's, who's buying it? That's actually more than I was thinking.

• 22:15George Kamel?

  First of all, rude.

• 22:19Rachel Cruze?

  Genuinely though, that's like.

• 22:20George Kamel?

  That's like streaming, a lot of streaming royalties.

• 22:23Rachel Cruze?

  Who, I mean, for real though, George, is it, you think it's like fans of Smart Money Happy are in your show and they're like, oh my gosh, George is also a musician?

• 22:30George Kamel?

  Well, I think here's what, can I be honest with you?

• 22:32Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 22:32George Kamel?

  So if you search George Kamel on Spotify or Apple Music, so if you're searching for my show on Spotify, for example, before you see the show, my music album shows up. So it says artist, George Kamel, right under podcast. So if you click there, 301 monthly listeners consistently.

• 22:50Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 22:51George Kamel?

  So they come back, they want more.

• 22:53Rachel Cruze?

  Look at that. George, I remember that CD.

• 22:57George Kamel?

  Take it back. How many listeners do you have a month?

• 22:59Rachel Cruze?

  On my music?

• 23:01George Kamel?

  Yeah. It was from 2012. So that's not bad.

• 23:04Rachel Cruze?

  That's impressive.

• 23:05George Kamel?

  For a guy who hasn't, you know, touched an instrument in 14 years.

• 23:08Rachel Cruze?

  Amen. Okay, well, that's one thing.

• 23:10George Kamel?

  That is tough.

• 23:10Rachel Cruze?

  Um, GPS navigation.

• 23:13George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 23:13Rachel Cruze?

  So do you remember, now it's like, you know, an app on your phone. Do you remember when the Garmin's came out? Oh my gosh, we thought we made it. You used to have to print out MapQuest.

• 23:22George Kamel?

  Yep.

• 23:23Rachel Cruze?

  With your written directions.

• 23:24George Kamel?

  That felt dangerous.

• 23:25Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, okay, you're flipping and flopping, you got your CD case, your Mariah Carey, trying to switch in and out.

• 23:30George Kamel?

  I remember like the Magellan maps my parents would buy.

• 23:33Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, yeah.

• 23:34George Kamel?

  Like Rand McNally, whatever. I mean, it was crazy that we'd open these maps in the passenger seat, blocking the driver's view. And be like, all right, I think we're on 95.

• 23:43Rachel Cruze?

  What highway to go on?

• 23:44George Kamel?

  Can you imagine like a Gen Z or Gen Alpha trying to figure out how those maps work?

• 23:48Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, no. They're very confusing. It, that's to honestly read a map.

• 23:52George Kamel?

  And to know where you are?

• 23:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, right?

• 23:55George Kamel?

  Nearly impossible.

• 23:55Rachel Cruze?

  Mile markers, that's what I always.

• 23:57George Kamel?

  And now forget Garmin, we've got, we've got it loaded up on Apple CarPlay. You got your, do you use Apple Maps or Google Maps? That tells me a lot about you.

• 24:04Rachel Cruze?

  Google Maps.

• 24:05George Kamel?

  That's a good woman right there.

• 24:06Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Who uses?

• 24:08George Kamel?

  Apple Maps is crazy.

• 24:09Rachel Cruze?

  I don't like it. And you know what I don't like either? Waze.

• 24:12George Kamel?

  Oh, not a Waze person.

• 24:13Rachel Cruze?

  No, it, uh-uh.

• 24:16George Kamel?

  It just feels like there's a lot going on.

• 24:17Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and I don't need like all the bubbles and all the people and the crowns. And everyone has a crown but me. And I'm like, why do you have a crown?

• 24:25George Kamel?

  Yeah, they're asking so much of you. They're like, hey, is there, can you check if there's a cop up there?

• 24:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and I'm like, this is, I, I'm busy.

• 24:31George Kamel?

  Hey, how much is the gas station you just, just leave me alone, let me get there.

• 24:34Rachel Cruze?

  Guys, just drive it.

• 24:35George Kamel?

  Stop asking me questions.

• 24:36Rachel Cruze?

  I'm just driving. No, I will say, if there's like a bad wreck, that's the time I will hop on. And I'm like, okay, let me just see. But yeah, Google, Google Maps.

• 24:45George Kamel?

  That's a good one.

• 24:45Rachel Cruze?

  It's the way to go.

• 24:46George Kamel?

  We're not paying for navigation, we're paying with our data that they're using.

• 24:49Rachel Cruze?

  That's right. Um, okay, encyclopedias and dictionaries are on here because.

• 24:54George Kamel?

  Remember the collection?

• 24:56Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I will say, guess who bought every child a set of?

• 25:04Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know. I'm tired.

• 25:06George Kamel?

  It's fine.

• 25:06Rachel Cruze?

  It's been a long day. Um, who bought a set of encyclopedias?

• 25:11George Kamel?

  You?

• 25:12Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 25:13George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 25:15Rachel Cruze?

  For Christmas, for my kids.

• 25:16George Kamel?

  Dave Ramsey.

• 25:17Rachel Cruze?

  Close.

• 25:18George Kamel?

  Sharon Ramsey.

• 25:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 25:20George Kamel?

  Sharon Ramsey bought her grandchildren.

• 25:22Rachel Cruze?

  We have encyclopedias, yes, that is now on our bookshelves for the kids. It's like children's encyclopedias.

• 25:28George Kamel?

  This is like post 2020.

• 25:29Rachel Cruze?

  No, this was this past Christmas, George, and she's like, this is good for you guys with books. She's big into books and all of it. And like, yeah, we have encyclopedias. I mean, not like the, not the kind that like your grandparents had.

• 25:41George Kamel?

  Yeah, I'm thinking the thick books.

• 25:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, no, no, it's like colored, like, um, and they're thinner, but it's like animals, geography, it's all these different like themes.

• 25:50George Kamel?

  Love it.

• 25:50Rachel Cruze?

  And big pictures, all of it, like, they're really beautiful, but full on set of kids encyclopedias, yep.

• 25:57George Kamel?

  They don't make them like they used to. Thank you, Sharon Ramsey.

• 25:59Rachel Cruze?

  You remember going to the, the school library and having to do research?

• 26:02George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 26:03Rachel Cruze?

  And you didn't have internet, like, we didn't have internet. You went and pulled off encyclopedias to look up science, like.

• 26:08George Kamel?

  Just flipping pages, trying to find a source for your bibliography that was due the next day.

• 26:12Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, I remember that in middle school.

• 26:14George Kamel?

  You remember bibliography, how awful that was? It took me just as long to write the paper as it did to like, form the bibliography by Chicago AP standards.

• 26:23Rachel Cruze?

  Taxes, taxes.

• 26:25George Kamel?

  It's crazy.

• 26:25Rachel Cruze?

  It's in a bibliography. It would have been better people, come on, public school.

• 26:29George Kamel?

  Got an A minus because I didn't do the bibliography right.

• 26:31Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that makes me so mad. So sorry for you.

• 26:34George Kamel?

  That's a good one. Now we have Google and AI, so we don't even need to.

• 26:37Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah, no.

• 26:37George Kamel?

  Ever own those anymore.

• 26:38Rachel Cruze?

  Never. Uh, phone calls.

• 26:41George Kamel?

  Oh, the per minute?

• 26:43Rachel Cruze?

  Man.

• 26:43George Kamel?

  And the per text?

• 26:44Rachel Cruze?

  And the, um, long distance, when we'd call my pap on Mamaw. And it was long distance.

• 26:49George Kamel?

  And forget international calls, are you kidding me?

• 26:51Rachel Cruze?

  Long distance.

• 26:52George Kamel?

  Straight to jail.

• 26:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, payphones.

• 26:55George Kamel?

  I miss that.

• 26:56Rachel Cruze?

  I do love a good payphone. The, the buttons always clicked right.

• 26:58George Kamel?

  Yeah, but then I thought, I'm probably going to get tetanus somehow.

• 27:01Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 27:01George Kamel?

  It just felt like we shouldn't be touching this.

• 27:04Rachel Cruze?

  Do you know what? Uh, Home Alone, that movie just feels, um, like a payphone to me.

• 27:08George Kamel?

  The whole thing.

• 27:10Rachel Cruze?

  Like when they're in the airport.

• 27:10George Kamel?

  It's giving payphone energy.

• 27:11Rachel Cruze?

  And they have their, um, the book, your book, uh, your contacts book.

• 27:16George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 27:16Rachel Cruze?

  Did your mom have a contact book?

• 27:17George Kamel?

  Yeah, a little rolodex.

• 27:19Rachel Cruze?

  And, yep.

• 27:20George Kamel?

  Simpler times, the old collect call.

• 27:23Rachel Cruze?

  Man, you gotta get a collect call from Rachel Cruz?

• 27:27George Kamel?

  She ain't paying for this call.

• 27:28Rachel Cruze?

  If I'm in jail, that's how I'm gonna have to call you, George.

• 27:30George Kamel?

  Oh my gosh. If you are calling me from prison, it tells me that everyone else in your life has abandoned you.

• 27:35Rachel Cruze?

  I'm saying, if everybody abandons me, George, you still have to be my friend.

• 27:38George Kamel?

  It depends on what you're in jail for.

• 27:40Rachel Cruze?

  No, no.

• 27:42George Kamel?

  Any reason.

• 27:43Rachel Cruze?

  Any reason.

• 27:44George Kamel?

  I'll bail you out.

• 27:44Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you.

• 27:45George Kamel?

  All right, the next one, photography.

• 27:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 27:49George Kamel?

  Like paying to like, take the roll of film.

• 27:52Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 27:52George Kamel?

  Over to the Walgreens, the CVS, get it developed.

• 27:55Rachel Cruze?

  Are you ready for this? I bought, because I thought I was a cool mom, Amelia, actually all my kids, but Amelia who's did the most, um, disposable cameras for, for the summer. So I'm like, take some, I had like six and I was like, I bought them off Amazon. And Amelia brought two of them to DC when we went on a trip this summer to DC. So I take them to Walgreens, George, to get them developed. Guess how long it takes now to get a, a disposable camera? Get your pictures back? Guess?

• 28:26George Kamel?

  I'm gonna go two weeks.

• 28:28Rachel Cruze?

  Nope.

• 28:30George Kamel?

  A month?

• 28:32Rachel Cruze?

  Well, go in weeks. That's what she told me.

• 28:34George Kamel?

  Three weeks.

• 28:35Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 28:35George Kamel?

  Four weeks.

• 28:36Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 28:37George Kamel?

  Six weeks.

• 28:38Rachel Cruze?

  Eh, no.

• 28:39George Kamel?

  Five? That's such a random amount of time.

• 28:41Rachel Cruze?

  Five weeks.

• 28:43George Kamel?

  Make it four or six.

• 28:44Rachel Cruze?

  They have to send it off. And she said there's only a couple of places now in the country that do it. So they have to send it off. Yes.

• 28:52George Kamel?

  That might be a business I start.

• 28:53Rachel Cruze?

  Is that a wild though?

• 28:54George Kamel?

  Start developing some cameras.

• 28:55Rachel Cruze?

  So I am paying for photography, apparently.

• 28:58George Kamel?

  Well, you know, Costco got rid of their, their photo area. So you gotta go to like Shutterfly now to do it and like mail things in. And then who's gonna do that? It's so much work.

• 29:06Rachel Cruze?

  Maybe I should have done that with the, with the disposable cameras.

• 29:09George Kamel?

  Yeah. There are companies where there's like an app and you can just upload your photo from your phone and they'll send them to you physically.

• 29:15Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 29:15George Kamel?

  That's fun.

• 29:16Rachel Cruze?

  I know, man. Photo album days.

• 29:19George Kamel?

  Remember our parents had pictures of us from our youth?

• 29:23Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 29:23George Kamel?

  Like, we're not gonna do that.

• 29:24Rachel Cruze?

  And like blurry, you know, they're not like good.

• 29:27George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 29:27Rachel Cruze?

  But there they are. I know.

• 29:29George Kamel?

  Some precious moments captured.

• 29:30Rachel Cruze?

  So sad.

• 29:31George Kamel?

  Now we have a thousand on our phone we'll never even look at.

• 29:33Rachel Cruze?

  No. And they're like eight of the same picture.

• 29:36George Kamel?

  Cause you had to get them right?

• 29:37Rachel Cruze?

  I'm so that, I'm terrible.

• 29:39George Kamel?

  Well, kids don't look at the camera, so it's hard to capture it.

• 29:42Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's true.

• 29:42George Kamel?

  Wow. Okay. Let's talk about fees. This is a big one. I think hotel parking, that should be an illegal fee.

• 29:51Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 29:52George Kamel?

  Like, I just did this. I am, I'm paying to stay at your hotel.

• 29:56Rachel Cruze?

  Illegal.

• 29:56George Kamel?

  Why am I paying to park in your lot on top of paying to stay at your hotel?

• 30:00Rachel Cruze?

  I agree. Um, checked bags on an airplane.

• 30:05George Kamel?

  That one.

• 30:05Rachel Cruze?

  You're paying for a ticket. Just put my bag under the, under the plane.

• 30:08George Kamel?

  I gotta share something with you, cause I shared this on Smart Money Happy Hour. I dogged Southwest. I said, that used to be a good airline. A pilot from Southwest in the lobby was like, hey, big fan. Wrote you a letter. And he heard me dog Southwest and was not pleased with it. But he was very nice. And so he gave me like a promo code for like money off my next flight. So pace to be the squeaky wheel is what I'm saying.

• 30:31Rachel Cruze?

  Southwest, you're terrible.

• 30:33George Kamel?

  But here's the problem.

• 30:34Rachel Cruze?

  I don't like you.

• 30:35George Kamel?

  When you charge. Southwest is so.

• 30:38Rachel Cruze?

  I won't fly you anymore.

• 30:41George Kamel?

  I'll just give you my promo code. You fly more than me. I got nowhere to go.

• 30:45Rachel Cruze?

  What if I get money on my next flight?

• 30:47George Kamel?

  But it was very kind of him, but it did make me think the checked bags on Southwest used to be free and it was like the best thing.

• 30:53Rachel Cruze?

  It was so good. They just like warmed our hearts.

• 30:55George Kamel?

  And they have to pay. No one checks a bag, so they all take carry on, which means nothing fits. Which means you have to check your bag anyways at the gate.

• 31:02Rachel Cruze?

  All of it. It's just not, it's not a good, not a good cycle.

• 31:06George Kamel?

  Not a fan.

• 31:07Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna go textbooks.

• 31:09George Kamel?

  Oh, that's a good one.

• 31:10Rachel Cruze?

  Remember in college, you're paying your tuition, you're paying for everything. And then in order to study the classes you're already paying for, you have to pay money on top of it.

• 31:19George Kamel?

  And you're not even reading the whole textbook. Like, they go through a couple of chapters.

• 31:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, get out of town.

• 31:23George Kamel?

  To pass a test and then the textbook is over and you sell it for like a fraction of what you paid for it.

• 31:28Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 31:28George Kamel?

  You know what's a real scam though, is professors write their own textbooks and then force you to use that textbook.

• 31:34Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 31:35George Kamel?

  That feels like double dipping.

• 31:36Rachel Cruze?

  Do they get a royalty from it?

• 31:37George Kamel?

  A hundred percent. I feel like that should be illegal.

• 31:40Rachel Cruze?

  They're gaming the system.

• 31:40George Kamel?

  Free self-serving.

• 31:41Rachel Cruze?

  They're gaming the system.

• 31:43George Kamel?

  It's like if Reese Witherspoon started writing books for her book club.

• 31:47Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 31:48George Kamel?

  And then you had to read that book.

• 31:49Rachel Cruze?

  Had to read the book. Um, all right, I'm gonna go something in the childcare arena.

• 31:56George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 31:57Rachel Cruze?

  So I'm thinking, um, making below a certain amount, single mom or single parent. I'll go single parent. Uh, like elements of all of that free.

• 32:09George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 32:10Rachel Cruze?

  But if you're making like a million bucks a year.

• 32:13George Kamel?

  You should pay more for, for daycare.

• 32:14Rachel Cruze?

  Not more, but like.

• 32:16George Kamel?

  Like a sliding scale?

• 32:18Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, for childcare. Cause I think there's an element that people have to have that to survive, to make money.

• 32:25George Kamel?

  True.

• 32:25Rachel Cruze?

  To go to their job, especially a single parent. That would be so hard. So, yeah.

• 32:31George Kamel?

  I do think there should be like, you know, some, a program or a grant that could help, help out those that

• 32:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 32:36George Kamel?

  Really like you look at their budget, like that's half of their income gone to daycare.

• 32:40Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 32:41George Kamel?

  But why not just make daycare part of the public education system to where it's free through taxes?

• 32:46Rachel Cruze?

  You could, but I would say depending on your area, just like public schools, which is tough. Is if you get in, if you don't live in a great area, cause you can't afford, like, are you okay dropping your baby? Like, I think there's elements of like, who gets the better not, you know what I mean?

• 32:59George Kamel?

  Yeah. Then it's like, well, the rich people pay for their fancy private daycares.

• 33:03Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So I'm like.

• 33:04George Kamel?

  Where the kids eat caviar. I don't know what they're doing at these daycares.

• 33:08Rachel Cruze?

  Caviar.

• 33:09George Kamel?

  Prosciutto?

• 33:10Rachel Cruze?

  I know. I don't have the answers, George. But as a mom, a working mom, something in that area. I don't know. We gotta figure it out.

• 33:18George Kamel?

  That's a tough one. Convenience fees is another one that bothers me. Cause I, I go to shows and things and like, what, what is this, what?

• 33:25Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, like after you buy a ticket?

• 33:26George Kamel?

  For the convenience of me doing all the work to make this checkout process happen for you?

• 33:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, silly.

• 33:30George Kamel?

  Nine dollars a ticket? It's crazy.

• 33:32Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Well, one thing that I will pay for that I don't think is illegal is anything from Cozy Earth.

• 33:38George Kamel?

  It should be a mandate.

• 33:39Rachel Cruze?

  It should be a mandate. Everyone should own something from Cozy Earth.

• 33:43George Kamel?

  You know what?

• 33:44Rachel Cruze?

  Sheets.

• 33:44George Kamel?

  If you go to jail, they should have a prison issue Cozy Earth set. You know what I mean?

• 33:50Rachel Cruze?

  Listen, it would make the joy more enjoyable.

• 33:53George Kamel?

  I can see you peddling Cozy Earth in prison.

• 33:56Rachel Cruze?

  Stop.

• 33:57George Kamel?

  That's your side hustle.

• 33:58Rachel Cruze?

  You'd be like, you can use our promo code and go to cozylearth.com/smartmoney. I would tell everybody. Regardless of who it is, I would tell everybody.

• 34:05George Kamel?

  We all deserve luxury quality in our lives.

• 34:09Rachel Cruze?

  For 20% off, use the promo.

• 34:11George Kamel?

  I like this.

• 34:11Rachel Cruze?

  But for real, the pajamas, the sheets, the robes, the athleisure, all of it. It's just, it is so quality.

• 34:18George Kamel?

  Don't forget the clogs. Love my lake house clogs.

• 34:21Rachel Cruze?

  Loves a clog.

• 34:22George Kamel?

  Didn't know I'd be a clog guy at this stage of life, but Cozy Earth, they changed that for me.

• 34:25Rachel Cruze?

  They change your life in so many ways.

• 34:27George Kamel?

  Thanks, Cozy Earth.

• 34:27Rachel Cruze?

  Thanks, Cozy Earth. Again.

• 34:29George Kamel?

  Check it out.

• 34:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Go to cozylearth.com/smartmoney. Use the promo code SMARTMONEY for 20% off. And if you use the post purchase survey, make sure to say that you heard about it here on Smart Money Happy Hour. All right. What do we think, George?

• 34:43George Kamel?

  Well.

• 34:43Rachel Cruze?

  Things are expensive. That's how I feel.

• 34:45George Kamel?

  I think if, if we don't laugh, we cry. And so sometimes you just gotta go, it do be expensive and take a laugh and then go budget. That's the next step. I think there's an element of just complaining about things is not productive. It feels good for the moment.

• 35:00Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 35:00George Kamel?

  But at some point we gotta go, yep, this sucks. What are we gonna do about it? And that's where just increasing the budget, trying to go make more money and get your core income up.

• 35:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 35:10George Kamel?

  To afford the life that you want.

• 35:12Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. And when you're thinking about long-term savings, you know, like a great high-yield savings account is awesome, but also making sure that you're investing for the future and making a higher rate of return so that you are beating inflation is big. Um, and when you run the numbers, even with investing, it's amazing. So we'll actually put a link down for our investing calculator for you to check out because it is incredible. When you look over the, the long haul of investing, what that can get you, because we never know, you know? When you're 65, we don't know what parking is gonna cost. So investing now and getting, getting money.

• 35:44George Kamel?

  Imagine what a sporting event's gonna cost when we're in our 60s?

• 35:47Rachel Cruze?

  It's gonna be wild.

• 35:47George Kamel?

  But I do love that. Like a dollar at the age of 20 invested is $73 at 65. So that's encouraging.

• 35:55Rachel Cruze?

  Look at that. Yes.

• 35:56George Kamel?

  That's the return you can make when you leave money sitting there to grow for you. And so there's a balance. You gotta invest for the future. You gotta live right now. And that's where the budget helps you figure all that out. Cause everything's a priority.

• 36:06Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 36:06George Kamel?

  The vacation, the car upgrade, the daycare, the food, the bills, but then also retirement and our future goals and saving up for the down payment. So all of that matters. And I just like that a budget is the way you actually accomplish it. So we'll drop a link to Every Dollar Budgeting app in the description as well, if you wanna check that out.

• 36:22Rachel Cruze?

  All right. Before we get to our guilty as charged segment, uh, let's share the details of the drink, George.

• 36:27George Kamel?

  Yeah. This is a peach julep. You did a lot better than I did.

• 36:30Rachel Cruze?

  I liked it.

• 36:31George Kamel?

  But I was busy carrying this episode, so I didn't have a lot of time to.

• 36:36Rachel Cruze?

  I'm not in jail now. I am here in prison.

• 36:39George Kamel?

  You were very busy. You did, you handled the board, which I appreciate. I'm trying to get an accurate read on this drink. I can't really tell what it's trying to be.

• 36:49Rachel Cruze?

  That's fair. It feels confused.

• 36:52George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 36:53Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, but I like it. I'm going nine out of 10 for me.

• 36:57George Kamel?

  What?

• 36:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Yeah.

• 36:59George Kamel?

  Cut back to her reaction at the start of the episode when she first took a sip.

• 37:05George Kamel?

  All right.

• 37:05Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I know.

• 37:07George Kamel?

  That was not a nine out of 10 face.

• 37:08Rachel Cruze?

  I'm happy.

• 37:09George Kamel?

  I'm gonna go four out of 10.

• 37:11Rachel Cruze?

  Wow, really?

• 37:13George Kamel?

  Here's the thing, I'm mainly tasting whiskey, which is not bad, but at that point, just let me just drink whiskey neat. But then it's kind of like muddied with the, it's got real peaches in it, which I appreciate, thank you, team. It's got simple syrup, peach puree, which I'm not getting a whole lot of, whiskey, and then some mint.

• 37:31Rachel Cruze?

  And it all sounds wonderful.

• 37:32George Kamel?

  I just wanted a little bit more of everything.

• 37:35Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 37:35George Kamel?

  And it just wasn't there for me today.

• 37:36Rachel Cruze?

  All right, that's fair.

• 37:38George Kamel?

  The cost is $2.26 per glass, which I think is worth it. I think if I made this at home, I could amplify it all.

• 37:45Rachel Cruze?

  You would always make it better, George.

• 37:47George Kamel?

  I do make a mean cocktail at home.

• 37:50Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 37:50George Kamel?

  That's my, my weekend thing, like Saturday night.

• 37:52Rachel Cruze?

  I remember when I came and saw Henry, you made...

• 37:55George Kamel?

  That's right, gin and tonics.

• 37:56Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, when you were like, I have this new fancy tonic. And I was like, Whitney, good if I stay?

• 38:02George Kamel?

  It was Empress Gin. It's purple, and when you add it to the tonic, it becomes sort of this nice blue hue. It's a really pretty...

• 38:10Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, yep. You do make great cocktails, George. Well done.

• 38:13George Kamel?

  Appreciate that. Get the recipe in the show notes. Give it a try this weekend if you're of age.

• 38:16Rachel Cruze?

  All right, now it's time for Guilty as Charged. And this is where we ask each other a guilty as charged question every week. And if we're guilty, we take a sip. All right, George, are you guilty of having any categories in your budget that 25-year-old you would be shocked by?

• 38:32George Kamel?

  Wow. Okay, so I'm thinking through my budget line items.

• 38:36Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna have to go to mine.

• 38:37George Kamel?

  There's a lot there.

• 38:38Rachel Cruze?

  That's funny.

• 38:38George Kamel?

  I'll give you the one that stands out to me, that I think 25-year-old George, any, any-year-old George would be upset by.

• 38:45Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 38:46George Kamel?

  Doggy daycare. I think we'd be like, hey dude, what happened, man? What happened?

• 38:51Rachel Cruze?

  That's fair.

• 38:52George Kamel?

  Who hurt you? But it's not only doggy daycare, it's that that line item is higher than my own daughter's Mother's Day Out program. Which means I'm paying more for someone to hang out with my dogs than my own child.

• 39:06Rachel Cruze?

  George, you are choosing, you are choosing the life that you have. That is unbelievable.

• 39:11George Kamel?

  You sound like my therapist.

• 39:12Rachel Cruze?

  That is unbelievable.

• 39:14George Kamel?

  But I think it's worth it.

• 39:16Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 39:17George Kamel?

  How about you?

• 39:19Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna go with just this month. Is that okay? Because this was one that changed.

• 39:23George Kamel?

  Was this a big month?

• 39:24Rachel Cruze?

  A 25-year-old you would be shocked. We're not thinking about... I paid for, uh, there's a, I'm not promoting the company, just in case, like, I don't know.

• 39:36George Kamel?

  Hashtag not a sponsor.

• 39:37Rachel Cruze?

  Not a sponsor, yeah, yeah. Function Health, have you heard of Function Health?

• 39:41George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 39:41Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I'm doing it.

• 39:42George Kamel?

  I've seen the ads for it.

• 39:43Rachel Cruze?

  And I fell, not fell for, it was good, I chose to, buy the like

• 39:49George Kamel?

  Full body?

• 39:50Rachel Cruze?

  No, the pre-cancerous screening, so they can like test your blood. All this, and I just thought, you know, if you have the capabilities of that, and I know it's like false positive, like all my medical friends are like, yeah, but make sure that, and I'm like, okay, I get it, I get it.

• 40:04George Kamel?

  The medical community at large is not a fan of these, it seems.

• 40:07Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know, I don't think so, but, um, but I did it, and it did cost more than maybe average, but I thought, if I'm gonna be spending money, and if I'm living like no one else, why would I not? Why would I not just see if something came up? Why would you not? Why would I not pay for it? But I think if I saw that 25-year-old me, it'd be like, Rachel, chill. Chill, you're fine. And I want to be like, no, 25-year-old Rachel, you gotta take care of yourself. You're about to be 40. And stuff starts changing. Stuff starts changing, you gotta, you gotta be on top of your health. And I just was not very health-conscious.

• 40:40George Kamel?

  That's amazing. I think when I first started at Ramsey, you were 25. That's weird to think about.

• 40:45Rachel Cruze?

  I probably was. And you would have been 25.

• 40:49George Kamel?

  I started in 2013, which puts you at 25.

• 40:52Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 40:53George Kamel?

  Game point match, I think is what they say.

• 40:57George Kamel?

  That's pretty good.

• 40:58Rachel Cruze?

  That's pretty crazy.

• 40:59George Kamel?

  But I think he'd be happily shocked by like how well I'm doing. He'd be like, man, good for you, dude.

• 41:04Rachel Cruze?

  I would say that too.

• 41:05George Kamel?

  Look at you.

• 41:06Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, I would agree with that.

• 41:07George Kamel?

  He'd be like, way to like delegate everything in your life to someone else. Way to get the lawn guy on payroll, you know?

• 41:14Rachel Cruze?

  Doggy daycare.

• 41:16George Kamel?

  Doggy daycare, why not? Let them socialize, let them... Why do they have to stay home their whole life? Why can't they see the world?

• 41:23Rachel Cruze?

  They should.

• 41:24George Kamel?

  And it's someone's house. They're not actually going to like a daycare. I want to make that very clear.

• 41:28Rachel Cruze?

  Well...

• 41:28George Kamel?

  They're just going to a neighbor's house.

• 41:30Rachel Cruze?

  Semantics. Tomato...

• 41:32George Kamel?

  It just, it sounds like they're going to a pet resort or something. It's not a pet resort.

• 41:38George Kamel?

  That's pretty good.

• 41:39Rachel Cruze?

  All right, well, if you have a great guilty as charged question for us, we love them. So DM us at Rachel Cruz and at George Kamel, and we screenshot them and text it to our producer, Jenna. So please do that. And if you enjoyed this episode, you're gonna love our next episode, Common Money Wasters, The Average American Falls For. We will link it for you. And make sure to subscribe so you don't miss an all-new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.