Pod Insights Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel Pros and Cons of Shopping in 2005 (Should We Go Back?) About this episode 💸 Want to see how fast you can pay off your house? Use our FREE Mortgage Payoff Calculator.
Claire’s, Sbarro, Great American Cookies—can we go back to ’90s mall culture? In today’s episode, George and Rachel are taking a nostalgic trip down memory lane to weigh the pros and cons of shopping in 2005 vs. 2025.
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Today’s Happy Hour Special: 🍹 Enzoni
Recipe: @deadendwest
1 ounce gin
1 ounce Campari
1/2 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce lemon juice
5 grapes
Instructions: Add ingredients to a shaking tin. Muddle grapes. Add ice and shake. Fine strain into rocks glass of ice. Garnish with a grape.
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Transcript Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.
0:05 George Kamel? Do you ever just want to teleport back to a Sabaro in the mall food court and live your best life? Well, today, it's throwback shopping versus modern day swiping.
0:12 Rachel Cruze? I think they were probably happy I quit, too. I think I took a lot of time off.
0:15 George Kamel? You were not a great mall employee?
0:16 Rachel Cruze? I don't know if I was. Ah, this is me, George.
0:18 George Kamel? Because who knows what the future holds?
0:20 Rachel Cruze? You never know.
0:21 George Kamel? What if Blockbuster comes back?
0:27 Rachel Cruze? Hey, guys, I'm Rachel Cruze.
0:29 George Kamel? I'm George Kamel.
0:31 Rachel Cruze? And this is
0:32 George Kamel? Smart Money Happy Hour.
0:39 Rachel Cruze? Well, this is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money.
0:46 George Kamel? And before we get to the throwback, let's bring it to present day. Talk about what we're sipping on.
0:50 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
0:51 George Kamel? This is the Enzoni, which sounds very Italian and makes me also want pizza.
0:55 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, it's Sabaro.
0:58 George Kamel? It's all clicking.
0:59 Rachel Cruze? Unbelievable.
1:00 George Kamel? This is a new conspiracy theory.
1:01 Rachel Cruze? Wasn't that a great? That was a great pizza stop.
1:03 George Kamel? In the mall?
1:04 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
1:05 George Kamel? It hit.
1:06 Rachel Cruze? I mean, it hit the
1:07 George Kamel? It took me back to Italy.
1:08 Rachel Cruze? A thin crust. It took me back to Italy.
1:10 George Kamel? Like Michael Scott in The Office, when he goes to Italy and finds a Sabaro? The best.
1:15 Rachel Cruze? Or you're in New York and it's like the one in Times Square?
1:18 George Kamel? Yes.
1:19 Rachel Cruze? And you're like, no, don't go to that one. But, oh, so good.
1:21 George Kamel? That one's not authentic.
1:22 Rachel Cruze? So good.
1:23 George Kamel? Anyways, we'll give you the rating and reveal the cost per glass on the Enzoni at the end of the episode. Stick around for that. All right, nostalgia is, as the kids say, popping off right now.
1:32 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, I feel like it is everywhere. There's some of my favorite reels that come up are, they're like, women my age, they're like, usually like in their, I feel like, late 30s, maybe early 40s. And they have items and dress up like it's like 2005 or 2004.
1:47 George Kamel? Oh, yeah.
1:48 Rachel Cruze? Like their style and stuff. Oh, and it just makes me so happy. Because it's like, that was us. Like, that's like what exactly
1:54 George Kamel? Is it because we're not happy in the current chaos? That is America?
1:58 Rachel Cruze? No, surely not.
2:00 George Kamel? Do we pine for a simpler time? Is that what's going on here?
2:03 Rachel Cruze? I do wonder if we do. We introduced my kids to Sandlot, the movie.
2:07 George Kamel? Oh, how did that go?
2:08 Rachel Cruze? Great, they watched the whole thing.
2:09 George Kamel? It holds up.
2:10 Rachel Cruze? They laughed, there's a lot of cussing in it. So every time there was a cuss word, my kids were like, huh huh. And I was like, ugh. Um, but it's really funny and, and, and they were like, Mom, Caroline said, Mom, I want a neighborhood like that. And we live in a great neighborhood with kids everywhere, but it's not like that. Like it's no Sandlot neighborhood, you know, it's just like, there is something about it. And again, I know that wasn't 2005. That was like, based in like the 60s. But I don't know, George, maybe we all crave, maybe we all have a little craving of a little.
2:41 George Kamel? I wonder if every generation feels that way. It's like their era growing up was the best.
2:45 Rachel Cruze? I do, because people that grew up in the 80s, like were like little kids in the 80s and loved the 80s. People in the 90s loved the 90s. Like I feel like everyone loved their like area.
2:55 George Kamel? But I wonder if kids of, of the 2000s will feel the same way.
2:59 Rachel Cruze? Like 2010-ish?
3:00 George Kamel? Will like Gen Z and Gen Alpha look back at this time and be like, oh, simpler times with ChatGPT when it didn't take over the world, you know? I don't know, like what's gonna be their version of this?
3:09 Rachel Cruze? I know, that's a great, that's a great question. I don't know.
3:12 George Kamel? Like I miss when the computers weren't implanted into our brains. We had to look at it with our hands, it was crazy.
3:17 Rachel Cruze? Do not put a computer in my brain, don't do that. Conspiracy, Rachel, it's gonna, I don't like that.
3:22 George Kamel? But it's true, every generation wishes it was 20 years ago. And I do think there is a, there's a simplicity to our former lives when we were kids.
3:29 Rachel Cruze? Yes, and when we talk about money and buying and shopping and that all kind of plays in. So there's some pros and cons to, I don't know, we could say two decades ago?
3:40 George Kamel? Yeah.
3:41 Rachel Cruze? Let's go back to 2005.
3:42 George Kamel? Mall culture. When Hot Topic was at its peak, Claire's was where we all met up. It was the meetup spot.
3:49 Rachel Cruze? So good, great American cookie.
3:53 George Kamel? This is a true story. One of our first dates, Whitney and I went to the mall. I didn't, I was not convinced she had a true gluten allergy. And she said, she said, hold my beer. She went to, she went to Sabaro, ordered a slice. They were heating it up, runs across to Great American Cookie Co. Gets a double doozy.
4:10 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
4:11 George Kamel? Gets back to her pizza, eats both, immediate Kardashian lips. She swelled up like a blowfish.
4:17 Rachel Cruze? Why did she do that?
4:18 George Kamel? I think to prove it to me, she was so fed up with me saying, oh, you can have a little bit of gluten though. I mean, how many times have you heard that one?
4:25 Rachel Cruze? George, terrible.
4:27 George Kamel? She proved it that night.
4:28 Rachel Cruze? Oh my gosh.
4:29 George Kamel? But Sabaro and Great American Cookie Co. where her goat, she knew exactly what she was doing.
4:34 Rachel Cruze? She knew, she said, I'm gonna get to the heart of all this.
4:35 George Kamel? I think she liked it.
4:36 Rachel Cruze? I think she wanted, wanted to prove it. I know, but yeah, those were good times. Mall culture was a great culture.
4:43 George Kamel? Yep.
4:44 Rachel Cruze? I love it.
4:44 George Kamel? The times have changed.
4:45 Rachel Cruze? Christmas time?
4:46 George Kamel? The mall at Christmas was something special.
4:48 Rachel Cruze? Oh my gosh, it just like gives you butterflies.
4:50 George Kamel? Now it's depressing. Have you been to a mall lately?
4:52 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, uh, not lately. We went, um, it was probably six months ago or so. And it was kind of the bougie mall.
5:01 George Kamel? Oh, yeah.
5:02 Rachel Cruze? In Nashville.
5:02 George Kamel? Different vibes there.
5:03 Rachel Cruze? I think a little different vibes, but it was still like, who goes to the mall?
5:07 George Kamel? You ever wonder how these stores are staying open?
5:09 Rachel Cruze? A little bit, do you think it's a conspiracy?
5:10 George Kamel? Especially the weird ones from like, I've never seen someone step foot in this store.
5:14 Rachel Cruze? Yes, I know. And now that everyone like doesn't like scented candles, like how's Yankee Candle still like a thing? You know what I mean? Like, I don't know. How's it still happening?
5:21 George Kamel? Some new conspiracy theories there. Well, we're gonna talk about some drastic changes in spending trends over the last couple of decades. And here's the question, are we really missing out with the way consumerism has evolved? We're gonna talk about the pros and cons of 2025 and 2005. So the 20 year span, so grab your Bermuda shorts from Hollister. Let's get into it.
5:40 Rachel Cruze? Let's do it. All right, 2005 pros. You ready for this?
5:45 George Kamel? Okay.
5:45 Rachel Cruze? We're gonna think like T9. You're gonna do T9 on your Nokia cellphone.
5:49 George Kamel? Playing Snake on the Nokia, nothing like it.
5:51 Rachel Cruze? Nothing like it, wonderful. Is that it was a social event to go to the mall. You know, you had the food court, what we were talking about, it was like really the place to be.
6:01 George Kamel? The world was your oyster, Sarko Japan at your disposal.
6:04 Rachel Cruze? Just right there, all the samples, you know. But, um, but yeah, there was something about the hangout of the mall specifically. Maybe you bought something, maybe you didn't, but it was like a social thing.
6:14 George Kamel? Yeah, and you had the in-person advantage, so that was a pro. You got to see and try things on in-store. Now we just stare at a screen and squint and hope that things fit.
6:23 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
6:23 George Kamel? And we're like, well, we'll just return it. And that becomes a hassle in and of itself. To order a bunch of stuff, knowing you gotta go return it later.
6:30 Rachel Cruze? Yep.
6:30 George Kamel? That can be exhausting.
6:31 Rachel Cruze? Yep. Um, I'll say this, it was an active time, especially when you were shopping, you know? You actually had to move.
6:38 George Kamel? You had to walk.
6:38 Rachel Cruze? I mean, and there's the mall walkers, right?
6:41 George Kamel? Love a mall walker.
6:42 Rachel Cruze? There is, there's some exercise there.
6:43 George Kamel? You worked at a mall, right?
6:46 Rachel Cruze? Uh, I did, yes.
6:47 George Kamel? Did you see the mall walkers?
6:48 Rachel Cruze? Uh, no, because I was tucked in a department store.
6:51 George Kamel? Oh.
6:52 Rachel Cruze? Within a department, it was like a, it was like a little, um, store within a department store.
6:57 George Kamel? Yeah.
6:58 Rachel Cruze? So I wasn't like in the.
7:00 George Kamel? Milling about with the people.
7:02 Rachel Cruze? And just remember, I worked there for about six months. It wasn't a long stint for Rachel.
7:05 George Kamel? Sure. That's fair.
7:07 Rachel Cruze? I realized, mm, I can make more babysitting. I think I'm gonna leave and quit.
7:12 George Kamel? Yeah, I mean, you were just, that's economics, that's capitalism.
7:14 Rachel Cruze? I think they were probably happy I quit too. I think I took a lot of time off.
7:17 George Kamel? You were not a great mall employee?
7:18 Rachel Cruze? I don't know if I was a great mall employee at 16.
7:21 George Kamel? Did you get a mall discount? That was one of my favorite things about working at the mall, is you had like a discount at different places.
7:27 Rachel Cruze? No, I don't think so. How did you get a discount at different places, not just the store you worked?
7:31 George Kamel? Because you were, if you were a mall employee, certain stores would discount the food, for example, the food court. They'd give you a 10 or 20% off if you were a mall employee.
7:39 Rachel Cruze? Oh, nope, we didn't have that in Tennessee.
7:40 George Kamel? It's one of the perks.
7:41 Rachel Cruze? There must be a Massachusetts thing.
7:43 George Kamel? One of the many perks of working at the Apple Store circa 2009.
7:46 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, there you go, yeah, go back 2005, that's where we're at.
7:48 George Kamel? That's close.
7:49 Rachel Cruze? Um, okay, how about this, less decision fatigue. You got the Gap store.
7:55 George Kamel? Whatever you see on the rack is what you got.
7:57 Rachel Cruze? It's what you got.
7:58 George Kamel? They don't have your size, kick rocks and pound sand, keep moving. Get out of there.
8:02 Rachel Cruze? Get out of here. They may ship it to you, if that was the case. But yeah, what you had was there. That was it. That was it.
8:08 George Kamel? I like that.
8:09 Rachel Cruze? And so, there's something about, like, I even went on Loft, Ann Taylor Loft.
8:13 George Kamel? Like, to the website?
8:14 Rachel Cruze? Yeah. And I think I typed in, like, dresses or something. And it was like 58 pages.
8:19 George Kamel? Oh, my goodness.
8:20 Rachel Cruze? And you're just like, that is like, I mean, probably a fat-
8:22 George Kamel? It's a part-time job, just to click the filter button and try to filter it all down.
8:25 Rachel Cruze? And you're like, man. So it is kind of nice, the simplicity of it. I liked.
8:29 George Kamel? And just to see it in person is a much better gauge than to see something online.
8:33 Rachel Cruze? Yes, for sure.
8:34 George Kamel? Because then you're trying to find photos of people actually wearing it, like, in the reviews, to see how it actually looks on a person.
8:39 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, it's convenient, the online shopping. We'll talk about that later. But like, man, there was just nothing about, yeah, all the decision fatigue is gone. You got what you got.
8:48 George Kamel? Less overspending, less overconsumption. Next on the list, physical payment only.
8:54 Rachel Cruze? Bam.
8:55 George Kamel? No phone waving, cash, check, or card. Pick your poison.
8:58 Rachel Cruze? 100%. I even remember before cards. Because they would chink, chink, like, if you had a card.
9:04 George Kamel? Oh, back in those days.
9:06 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, I remember when it was like, literally, you just carried cash everywhere. That's all you did. And maybe if you were fancy. I had a card in 2005, because I had a checking, a teen checking account. So I would have had a debit card at that point. But before that, I mean, even my parents, like, I just remember everyone using cash all the time.
9:23 George Kamel? Yeah, it was very normal.
9:24 Rachel Cruze? Very normal. Now, we don't have cash on us ever.
9:26 George Kamel? No, they freak out if you use cash. They're like, uh, uh.
9:29 Rachel Cruze? I don't want that. Don't touch that.
9:30 George Kamel? I can't count change. I have to get a special marker to make sure this isn't counterfeit.
9:33 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
9:34 George Kamel? That's kind of the vibe now, when I use cash.
9:36 Rachel Cruze? Totally.
9:37 George Kamel? Next on the pros, a catalog.
9:41 George Kamel? The original Amazon.
9:42 Rachel Cruze? Love a catalog. Delia's, that was my favorite. Yeah, that was a girl catalog. And they never had a store. I think they may have eventually came up with a storefront. But not, oh, and you would just circle what you wanted? That felt like an endless, wonderful time.
9:59 George Kamel? Yeah. Did you ever get what you wanted, once you circled it? How did that work?
10:02 Rachel Cruze? Sometimes.
10:03 George Kamel? You go to mom and dad and say, here's...
10:04 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, well, Delia's was the first on, quote-unquote, "online." No, it was not online. It was a catalog, and you had to, like, fill out a form and mail it in.
10:12 George Kamel? Yeah, see, that's effort.
10:13 Rachel Cruze? That's how you did the...
10:14 George Kamel? You had to really want it.
10:15 Rachel Cruze? That's how you did the order, it was crazy. But Limited 2 would give out catalogs, Toys R Us would give out catalogs for toys.
10:21 George Kamel? Love the Toys R Us.
10:23 Rachel Cruze? All of it, yeah. How did you, you like catalogs?
10:25 George Kamel? I loved it. Because it was like a book, but with just pictures.
10:28 Rachel Cruze? I know, so fun.
10:29 George Kamel? Way better. I don't remember if I got every, all of it. But part of the joy was just circling stuff. It didn't really matter if I got it all.
10:36 Rachel Cruze? Right, but you just kind of felt like you were shopping.
10:38 George Kamel? Yes.
10:39 Rachel Cruze? I know.
10:40 George Kamel? It's kind of like adding to Cart Now on Amazon.
10:42 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
10:43 George Kamel? You know?
10:43 Rachel Cruze? Just feels like it. All right, George, let's head to the cons.
10:46 George Kamel? Let's.
10:47 Rachel Cruze? Of 2005. The things that were not great. Uh, one thing that wasn't great is that there were no online banks or credit unions.
10:55 George Kamel? Just brick and mortar, two of my least favorite words. I don't like brick, I don't like mortar.
10:59 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, get it out of here. Yeah, but Fairwinds Credit Union is an incredible place to keep your money, you guys. They are a credit union, not this massive big bank where you get lost and you're just a number, and they nickel and dime you to death. Like, no, Fairwinds does not do that. They care about you, the person, and they're actually really big Ramsey fans.
11:22 George Kamel? Yes.
11:23 Rachel Cruze? Which we love. And so when you go and you actually bank with Fairwinds, they're going to guide you along the Ramsey Plan. Like, they want you to win, they want you to get out of debt and have an emergency fund. Like, this is stuff that most banks don't care about, but Fairwinds does.
11:36 George Kamel? And the best part about a credit union, it's owned by the members, not by Wall Street. And so with all the savings, they pass it on to the members with lower fees, better terms, you name it. So if you want to go check them out, go to fairwins.org/Ramsey and win on the Ramsey Plan by doing it.
11:51 Rachel Cruze? Yep, it's incredible. You guys, make sure to check them out, they're fantastic.
11:55 George Kamel? All right, next con for 2005, more effort.
11:59 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
11:59 George Kamel? That's true. I don't think we minded back then, we didn't have anything else to do, other than put effort into going places. But, you know, you had to hitch a ride, block out an afternoon, it was a whole experience.
12:09 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, the traffic. The mall traffic. Christmas traffic was cra- it still is crazy.
12:16 George Kamel? Yeah.
12:17 Rachel Cruze? I feel like even still today, but it was like another level then.
12:20 George Kamel? That was part of the fun, back then.
12:22 Rachel Cruze? It was.
12:23 George Kamel? Now we dread it. And now you just buy your toilet paper on Amazon from a cubicle. Get everything Instacarted during the leave your house. But more effort, that's a true con for some people, I get it.
12:34 Rachel Cruze? Um, also fewer options. So while it is nice that you just have what you have and you know, you don't have like decision fatigue. You don't always get exactly what you want and it is kinda nice that if you have the money to buy something. Nowadays, you can pretty much get whatever you want. Like my girls, I remember they would ask for the craziest stuff for Christmas. It would be like, we want, I want a llama that has a scarf on it and it's a pillow. And you're like, what? And you can like literally type it into Google and there it is. Someone's made a llama with a scarf and it's a pillow. And you're like, there you go. So it is pretty crazy that you can kinda get what you want.
13:09 George Kamel? Etsy has gone too far.
13:11 Rachel Cruze? Isn't that why?
13:12 George Kamel? We've just gone too far.
13:13 Rachel Cruze? I'm serious.
13:13 George Kamel? Wow. So I guess we just love the comfort and ease of having exactly what we want, what we need at our fingertips. So that's part of it, that's a con, fewer options.
13:21 Rachel Cruze? Yep.
13:22 George Kamel? Then you've got trial and error. We didn't have reviews. There was no like, well, this is rated 4.6 stars with 4,000 reviews. You just hoped. There's no influencers who swore by it.
13:32 Rachel Cruze? Yep.
13:32 George Kamel? It's just you with a hope and a prayer.
13:34 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, and it's not always great because you could buy something crappy and not know it. Until you've used it and you're like, oh, this wasn't a great purchase. Where nowadays, people are like, do it or don't do it, you know?
13:44 George Kamel? Yeah, I don't remember the return policies back then. Were they generous? Would you like just take stuff back if it didn't work?
13:49 Rachel Cruze? It's a good question. I feel like they were 90 day, 60 day, 90 day. I think it was pretty average.
13:53 George Kamel? Yeah, but you still had to go through more of a process.
13:55 Rachel Cruze? Yep.
13:56 George Kamel? Trial and error there, even though now I don't know if I can trust reviews.
13:59 Rachel Cruze? Okay, is it true though that companies will like go on other companies, competing companies?
14:05 George Kamel? Oh.
14:05 Rachel Cruze? Reviews at like restaurants and stuff and like bash them and give them low stars?
14:08 George Kamel? Yeah, I could see that happening.
14:09 Rachel Cruze? That'd be terrible.
14:10 George Kamel? And people, I mean Yelp, you basically have to like, you pay them like a mafia bribery fee to like, kind of hide the bad reviews and keep the good ones and...
14:18 Rachel Cruze? I didn't know that!
14:19 George Kamel? That, it's all about money.
14:21 Rachel Cruze? Okay, so would you not use Yelp?
14:22 George Kamel? I don't, let's, I'll put it this way, Yelp is only one place I go to check.
14:26 Rachel Cruze? Okay, so you've spread out them...
14:27 George Kamel? So I have to vet it against Google reviews and Yelp and other places to get a full vibe.
14:32 Rachel Cruze? Okay, okay.
14:33 George Kamel? And then some places you realize, they're only gonna leave a review if they had a bad experience.
14:37 Rachel Cruze? I know.
14:37 George Kamel? If it's like a service-based business.
14:39 Rachel Cruze? Totally, totally, that makes sense.
14:40 George Kamel? So it's hard to trust anything these days, and back in the day, I don't, I didn't have as many trust issues. You know what I mean?
14:46 Rachel Cruze? Just, the older you get, is that what it is?
14:48 George Kamel? The older I get, the more trust issues I have. I'll work that out with my therapist.
14:52 Rachel Cruze? All right, those were the pros and cons of 2005. Let's fast forward to today, George.
15:00 Rachel Cruze? 2025, here we are.
15:02 George Kamel? Hit me with the pros.
15:03 Rachel Cruze? What's the pros? I'm gonna say online brands.
15:06 George Kamel? Yeah.
15:06 Rachel Cruze? Because if you didn't have a storefront back in the day, besides Delia's and their catalog, you didn't, there was nothing else you could do. I mean, like, but there's all these now, whether it's like clothing brands or electronics...
15:20 George Kamel? Or direct-to-consumer brands, where they're not sold in a store, they just sell it directly through their website.
15:24 Rachel Cruze? Yes, and so it's nice, because you can get other options, and people can start things too, I like that. The entrepreneurial spirit is very alive and well, because you can start your own thing, but you don't have to have brick and mortar. There's my br, there's my two words again.
15:36 George Kamel? Bringing back brick and mortar.
15:37 Rachel Cruze? Brick and mortar, hate brick, hate mortar.
15:39 George Kamel? Great example, though, of a direct-to-consumer brand, you ready for this?
15:42 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
15:43 George Kamel? Cozy Earth.
15:44 Rachel Cruze? Oh, great one.
15:46 George Kamel? One of the great direct-to-consumer brands.
15:47 Rachel Cruze? Yes, they don't have a storefront.
15:48 George Kamel? You're not gonna find them like in a Target, you go to their website, you order it, you know it's gonna be good, and you get all your stuff, they have a great return policy, 10-year warranty on bedding, so that I can trust.
15:58 Rachel Cruze? It's incredible, and the fact that they can spend so much of their effort on their quality, we love that, versus trying to manage a store and all of it.
16:06 George Kamel? Or pay a middleman, they're not having to do that.
16:08 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, that's true, yeah, yeah.
16:09 George Kamel? It's direct-to-consumer.
16:10 Rachel Cruze? It's so nice.
16:10 George Kamel? They pass the savings on to you.
16:11 Rachel Cruze? Yes, if you go to cozylearth.com, you guys, slash smart money, it is an incredible place. Go and just bask in the beauty of Cozy Earth, because the quality is fantastic, and so is the discounts that they're giving.
16:27 George Kamel? 40% off.
16:28 Rachel Cruze? Giving our listeners, you guys, so you guys out there, you get 40% off all Cozy Earth purchases, and let me tell you, from the pajamas... To the athleisure, to the socks, to the blankets, to the sheets. All of it is just absolutely incredible. You will not be disappointed. Make sure to check them out.
16:44 George Kamel? I got their no show socks on right now. Guess what?
16:46 Rachel Cruze? Yes, you do.
16:47 George Kamel? You can't see them. They're the John Cena of socks out here.
16:50 Rachel Cruze? The no show is real. The no show is real.
16:52 George Kamel? Check it out. Forty percent off cozyearth.com/smartmoney or click the link in the description. All right. Here's a pro of 2025 shopping. Convenience. You know, you get it. You're a busy mom. The kids are crazy, work's crazy. It's nice to be able to purchase something right there from your phone. And get it in no time.
17:12 Rachel Cruze? It's so bad. This is like my, this is my number one.
17:14 George Kamel? Your kryptonite.
17:15 Rachel Cruze? My kryptonite. I love it. I love it. And I'll do anything.
17:19 George Kamel? You get a dopamine hit?
17:20 Rachel Cruze? Hair clips.
17:21 George Kamel? To this day, when you just hit that add to cart purchase button?
17:24 Rachel Cruze? Especially if it's something I want, even if it's like face wash and I quote unquote need it, you know? It's like not an exciting purchase, but even that, I'm like, yes.
17:32 George Kamel? It just feels good knowing you're gonna get something.
17:34 Rachel Cruze? I know. George, I have a sickness. I have a sickness. I've been doing this job way too long and still feel like this. Why do I love it so much?
17:42 George Kamel? The question is, does Winston get to get anything in this marriage or is it just you?
17:45 Rachel Cruze? Yes. He has a line item. Nothing.
17:48 George Kamel? What is the last thing he bought?
17:50 Rachel Cruze? Nothing really. You know what I've started putting in his line item? Cause he doesn't buy anything. He'll get lunch out with friends and I usually would put that in the restaurant category. I've started putting it in his.
17:57 George Kamel? Cause like, hey, give him something to put in there.
17:59 Rachel Cruze? I'm like, just stick it in there. So it doesn't take away from our restaurants and you're not gonna use your money anyways, so.
18:03 George Kamel? You ever think about buying something for him through his line item? That could be nice. Does he need a new rock to add to his rock wall?
18:13 Rachel Cruze? No. No, no.
18:14 George Kamel? Can I tell you, I got to see the rock wall.
18:17 Rachel Cruze? You did? You guys came over this weekend.
18:19 George Kamel? It's a beautiful rock wall.
18:20 Rachel Cruze? What do you think?
18:21 George Kamel? I threw shade. I thought it was like, he was like collecting rocks like a seven year old. These are the biggest rocks I've ever seen. These are like Jurassic rocks.
18:29 Rachel Cruze? They're like boulders.
18:30 George Kamel? Like they have dinosaur fossils in them. I don't even know how someone was able to move this rock from one place to another. It was a feat. It's like whoever built the pyramids delivered this rock. Same guy.
18:41 Rachel Cruze? Built the rock wall. You see it?
18:42 George Kamel? It was impressive.
18:43 Rachel Cruze? What do you think? All the rocks?
18:45 George Kamel? I think that's quite the hobby to have, and I respect it after seeing it. It was like an eighth wonder of the world. I was like, how did someone even put all these rocks here?
18:52 Rachel Cruze? How'd they do it? And it looks good, doesn't it?
18:54 George Kamel? Looks beautiful.
18:54 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, they did a great job.
18:56 George Kamel? You gotta have a rock guy. Winston, he gave me the contact for his rock guy. Hard to come by these days.
19:00 Rachel Cruze? And our porch fence person.
19:02 George Kamel? And a fence guy.
19:03 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
19:03 George Kamel? These are the adult things we do with our fun money.
19:05 Rachel Cruze? Winston's like, George texted me again. I was like, about what? And it was like a...
19:09 George Kamel? Fence guy.
19:09 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, he needed someone. I was like, well, there you go.
19:12 George Kamel? I love it. But if you don't have a Winston, you know, good luck with your life. That's all I gotta say. Convenience, that's a big one.
19:19 Rachel Cruze? Yeah. Next is price comparing options. So you can quickly pull up different websites at different stores and compare the item, which is fantastic, versus before, you may have to take a little...
19:32 George Kamel? Just fingers crossed.
19:32 Rachel Cruze? A little Saturday and be like, I'm gonna hit H. H. Greg, Best Buy, Sears, you know?
19:39 George Kamel? Yep. And then you have to figure out who has a price matching policy that I can play.
19:44 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, they used to do that. That is right. They did.
19:46 George Kamel? I think Target just got rid of theirs.
19:47 Rachel Cruze? No way.
19:48 George Kamel? It was a long time thing they had.
19:50 Rachel Cruze? They're just doing fine.
19:51 George Kamel? Now it's just...
19:52 Rachel Cruze? They don't need it.
19:52 George Kamel? Unbridled capitalism. Just, we're gonna do what we wanna do and charge what we wanna charge.
19:57 Rachel Cruze? Just move it up.
19:58 George Kamel? But I use, I use price comparisons all the time, and for a hack, this is not a sponsor, but there's a site called camelcamelcamel.com, no relation, and you can track Amazon price history. So you'll know, am I actually getting a good deal? Is it really 70% off MSRP? Or is it always this price, or even higher than it should be?
20:16 Rachel Cruze? Okay, that's good.
20:17 George Kamel? And there's different plugins you can get, like, all kinds of different ones that do price comparison. So when you're shopping online, when you're on an item, it'll be like, bloop, you can get this cheaper over here.
20:26 Rachel Cruze? Right there. I love it.
20:27 George Kamel? So that's definitely a perk of 2025 that saves me time and money.
20:31 Rachel Cruze? Also a pro is that there's more options for small businesses. So you can do like Venmo, Cash App, even things like Etsy where you can sell your products.
20:42 George Kamel? What'd you do back in the day?
20:44 Rachel Cruze? I don't...
20:44 George Kamel? Just go to like the local... Farmer's market?
20:48 Rachel Cruze? What are you talking about?
20:50 George Kamel? Like if they wanted to sell a handmade good, you couldn't do it online.
20:52 Rachel Cruze? Oh yeah, you go to flea market sometimes, like, or they do a crafts kind of like fair.
20:56 George Kamel? Yeah.
20:57 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, I mean, it was probably a rough go for the, for the handmade.
21:00 George Kamel? Yeah, but you know, the problem with Etsy now, it's all a bunch of crap that's not handmade anymore.
21:06 Rachel Cruze? Really?
21:07 George Kamel? From like Alibaba and, you know, Timu and they just, yeah.
21:10 Rachel Cruze? No.
21:10 George Kamel? It's a huge problem.
21:12 Rachel Cruze? Well, that's sad.
21:13 George Kamel? And it's hurting the true artists out there trying to make a living.
21:15 Rachel Cruze? I believe it.
21:16 George Kamel? So shout out to the true artists out there, keeping it real.
21:19 Rachel Cruze? Very passionate about it.
21:20 George Kamel? Yeah, I think Etsy needs to do something about this, get rid of all the kind of spam.
21:23 Rachel Cruze? Are you on Etsy a lot? Like, I haven't been on Etsy in years, I'm honest.
21:26 George Kamel? I wouldn't say a lot, but I like to peruse.
21:28 Rachel Cruze? You do? Okay.
21:29 George Kamel? Yeah, like, you know, looking at Turkish rugs.
21:31 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
21:31 George Kamel? They have a great selection of, of Turkish and Persian rugs on there.
21:35 Rachel Cruze? Okay, on Etsy.
21:36 George Kamel? Yeah.
21:36 Rachel Cruze? You know, I was thinking the whole time you've been saying this, Pinterest.
21:40 George Kamel? Pinterest.
21:41 Rachel Cruze? But you're not talking about Pinterest, you're talking about Etsy. Yeah, where you actually buy stuff.
21:44 George Kamel? Yeah.
21:45 Rachel Cruze? Okay, I was a little confused.
21:46 George Kamel? Pinterest is just sort of like, you're, you're dreaming.
21:48 Rachel Cruze? Yep.
21:49 George Kamel? You're dreaming it up. Etsy is like, we're making it happen.
21:51 Rachel Cruze? I don't go to either of those websites.
21:53 George Kamel? And it shows.
21:54 Rachel Cruze? I just, that's not.
21:55 George Kamel? Way to support local artists. It's fine. I kid. But no, that's true. More options for small businesses is wonderful. I'm a fan of that. Next up on the pros list for 2025, buying secondhand is way easier. Cause you got Poshmark and eBay, Facebook Marketplace, which reduces waste and allows people to buy nice things way cheaper than you could at retail prices.
22:18 Rachel Cruze? Yep, I love this. Cause we would always say, sell your stuff and usually it would be a garage sale. And when it was a garage sale, I mean, it was like, I mean, you're, you're selling it cheap.
22:27 George Kamel? Yeah.
22:27 Rachel Cruze? I mean, at that point, honestly.
22:28 George Kamel? Garage sales can be brutal these days. People would just show up with like a dollar bill, like, I'm taking this. And you're like, no, no, no, that's, it's worth 50 bucks.
22:35 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, totally.
22:35 George Kamel? And then you just give up and take it all to Goodwill.
22:37 Rachel Cruze? Right, right.
22:38 George Kamel? Now you can list it all on Facebook.
22:39 Rachel Cruze? Actually be strategic about it, about selling. I love that.
22:41 George Kamel? We've done this a lot with furniture and it's been a lot of fun. To just get rid of stuff and I'm helping people get things at a deal. Basically, I would give it away, but at least you're getting something for it.
22:50 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, for sure.
22:51 George Kamel? So we probably made a few grand just selling stuff.
22:53 Rachel Cruze? Oh, that's nice.
22:53 George Kamel? Before we moved.
22:54 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, good for you guys.
22:55 George Kamel? Thank you.
22:56 Rachel Cruze? Well, and was it, what was your number one site that you used?
22:59 George Kamel? Facebook Marketplace.
23:00 Rachel Cruze? Okay, that's great.
23:01 George Kamel? That's the number one.
23:02 Rachel Cruze? Especially for furniture.
23:02 George Kamel? Yeah, I had to get Whitney to start posting though, because I was doing it for my personal Facebook. And I, I'm not great, and so people would think it's a scam. Because they'd see my profile and go, wait, that's the, why would the Ramsey guy be posting stuff on Facebook Marketplace? But it really was me.
23:16 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, you're like, I'm practicing what I preach.
23:18 George Kamel? Yeah.
23:19 Rachel Cruze? Man.
23:19 George Kamel? So I, I've, I made some mistakes.
23:21 Rachel Cruze? Okay.
23:22 George Kamel? But I took a photo with some people in my driveway.
23:24 Rachel Cruze? Well, there you go.
23:25 George Kamel? I picked up a bedroom suit, yeah, and it was like, hey, you're the guy. I'm like, yeah, and I was like, can you mind if we get a photo? I'm all sweaty from helping him move this guest bedroom suite. And so we took a nice sweaty photo.
23:34 Rachel Cruze? Right, there we are.
23:35 George Kamel? Somewhere out there, it's a nice sweaty photo of me.
23:37 Rachel Cruze? I love it, George. People will be stalking you now, figuring out what they can buy from George Campbell.
23:41 George Kamel? I'm not listening anymore. You're not going to find me out there.
23:44 Rachel Cruze? All right, those were some good pros. Now, there's some cons to our world today, George.
23:49 George Kamel? Many cons.
23:50 Rachel Cruze? Uh, one of them is online scams. Because we are online all the time, and that's why we love Delete Me. Delete Me goes in and removes your information from online data brokers. And they take it and they're like, oh, well, we're going to remove this. Because if they don't, data brokers then go and sell your data to companies. And that puts you at risk for fraud, phishing, the P H phishing, which is not great. Harassment, all this stuff. And you want your information removed as soon as possible, and Delete Me helps you do that.
24:20 George Kamel? Yes, and it's happening more and more. And so the more unprotected, the better I sleep at night. And it's wild, because they'll send you the custom report, showing you what they removed and how much time they've saved you. And you're just like, how does it just keep on coming? And so they have real data privacy experts working behind the scenes all year long to scour the internet to help keep you protected. And I salute them for their work and effort. So go check it out. Go to joindelete.me.com/smartmoney and you'll get 20% off their annual plans. Protect the whole family, especially the boomers out there need, need it. They need it the most.
24:53 Rachel Cruze? If 2005 was like your peak in life, you need Delete Me. Let's just say that much.
24:58 George Kamel? Yeah, so link in the description if you want to check it out.
25:00 Rachel Cruze? So great. All right, some cons. Constant returns. Ah, this is me, George.
25:05 George Kamel? I have, I think I have 12 returns sitting in my garage right now.
25:07 Rachel Cruze? Shoot, I have some right now, too.
25:09 George Kamel? You know what I can make a business of? Doing the returns for other people.
25:13 Rachel Cruze? Oh.
25:13 George Kamel? You send me like the QR code for the Whole Foods Amazon return and I'll go do it for you.
25:17 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, and you'll do it. Okay, that's good. So, Amazon, I always take mine to Kohl's.
25:21 George Kamel? Oh, wow.
25:24 George Kamel? I haven't darkened the door of a Kohl's in over a decade. What's it like in there? Who's in there?
25:33 Rachel Cruze? Where else do you return your Amazon stuff?
25:36 George Kamel? I go to the Whole Foods drop-off. It's way faster and I don't have to go into a Kohl's.
25:43 Rachel Cruze? Wait, wait. How do you return stuff at a Whole Foods, though?
25:47 George Kamel? So, you know, I don't know if you know this. Amazon bought Whole Foods.
25:51 Rachel Cruze? Oh, I do know that story.
25:53 George Kamel? So now, they put an actual Amazon return like kiosk and a desk with real people staffing it. That's all they do.
26:01 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
26:01 George Kamel? That's all they do.
26:02 Rachel Cruze? Well, Kohl's has a similar setup.
26:04 George Kamel? You're not gonna try to win me over on going to Kohl's to do my returns.
26:08 Rachel Cruze? I don't know why. It's really easy. They made it easy. I don't know.
26:13 George Kamel? This is not a shot at Kohl's, but it's also, it's a shot at Kohl's. Do you have Kohl's cash you're also trying to use while you're there?
26:19 Rachel Cruze? No, but they give me Kohl's cash because I do Amazon returns there.
26:23 George Kamel? See?
26:23 Rachel Cruze? So I have a lot of Kohl's cash.
26:24 George Kamel? They're trying to lure you in with the Kohl's cash.
26:26 Rachel Cruze? They are. I mean, serious. Oh, my gosh. You know, now that I'm thinking about it, Kohl's does kind of feel like 2005. Like, you're stepping back in time a little bit, maybe.
26:35 George Kamel? They haven't changed much.
26:36 Rachel Cruze? But it's great.
26:36 George Kamel? I'm sure they're very nice people over there, don't get me wrong, but I find I can be in and out of Whole Foods.
26:41 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
26:41 George Kamel? Very quickly.
26:42 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
26:42 George Kamel? But yeah, I have a lot of returns to make and it just feels constant because half the time the stuff on Amazon didn't work out.
26:48 Rachel Cruze? I know.
26:48 George Kamel? Was wrong, defective, not the right size, yada, yada.
26:52 Rachel Cruze? Not good. So, it is. The, um, the returns are always there.
26:56 George Kamel? Do you ever have the ones where they go, "Hey, just recycle it, donate it, and we'll give you your money back"?
27:01 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
27:02 George Kamel? I'm like, "This feels like a scam."
27:03 Rachel Cruze? Okay, I did the same thing on a bathing suit website, you guys. And I ordered a bunch because they were really inexpensive. So I was like, "Well, I'll get a couple and just see which ones I like and I'll return the ones I don't." And I went to return it and they were like, "We'll give you 75% your purchase and you can just keep it and not return it. Or we'll give you 100% if you return it." I was like, "Well, I'll take the 75%, so I'll have to go and return it."
27:28 George Kamel? Wow.
27:28 Rachel Cruze? And I thought, is that a scam? Like, how?
27:30 George Kamel? Rachel's getting paid to shop out here.
27:32 Rachel Cruze? I mean, literally, I'm like, "That doesn't make sense to me." But I guess that they're just so, they're so cheap. That in order to hire someone to do all the picking and stuff, they're like, oh yeah, we save money there for the returns we get, I guess.
27:43 George Kamel? It can cost them more to return it.
27:44 Rachel Cruze? And I didn't do this because I am a honest, good person, I think. But couldn't you lie and say like, I don't want these anymore? And then go and get 75% of your money back? Even if you're still gonna wear it?
27:56 George Kamel? You could, but you'll be judged by me and God.
27:58 Rachel Cruze? I know, I know.
28:00 George Kamel? It's up to you. None of our viewers or listeners would do that. They're people of integrity, so we don't have to worry about them.
28:04 Rachel Cruze? But I did think like, how are they not getting like, how are they still in business? Why isn't everyone doing this, you know?
28:08 George Kamel? Just makes you, makes you think.
28:10 Rachel Cruze? It's crazy. Crazy, crazy. Okay, up next, a con. Comparison culture.
28:15 George Kamel? Oh.
28:16 Rachel Cruze? This is real.
28:17 George Kamel? This is social media and the trend cycles and what's in and what's out and what the heck is a bobaloo or whatever they're called. It just feels exhausting.
28:26 Rachel Cruze? All of it, I know.
28:26 George Kamel? Back in the day, you didn't know what the trends were, except what you're, what the cool kids at school were wearing.
28:30 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, and that was it.
28:31 George Kamel? The popular girls.
28:32 Rachel Cruze? And that was it, yeah. Now you're learning about Dyson, hair wraps, all these things that you're like, I never would have known that existed.
28:37 George Kamel? You didn't know you needed it and now you're insecure because you don't have it.
28:40 Rachel Cruze? Yes, I know, terrible.
28:41 George Kamel? I like old school. I like old school where the popular girl at school was wearing it and that made you insecure.
28:46 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
28:48 George Kamel? Not the popular boy, but the girl.
28:50 Rachel Cruze? Let's go, let's go back. Let's go back to that day.
28:53 George Kamel? What were the jocks wearing? I guess Abercrombie and Hollister? That was like, top tier toxic bro.
28:59 Rachel Cruze? Yes, that was the thing. Yeah, for sure.
29:01 George Kamel? Aeropostale was like a tier down from that?
29:03 Rachel Cruze? Yes, tier down from there. Abercrombie was pretty.
29:06 George Kamel? I think Old Navy, I was like, you're, you're a real American. You know what I mean?
29:09 Rachel Cruze? Yes. With the American, uh, flag t-shirt.
29:12 George Kamel? It felt like that was the common man. It was like, Old Navy was the common denominator.
29:16 Rachel Cruze? Just go Old Navy all day.
29:16 George Kamel? If you were wearing anything, that's highfalutin. If you were wearing Abercrombie, I was like, okay, tell me you have money without telling me you have money.
29:23 Rachel Cruze? Um, what was there? A polo?
29:26 George Kamel? Lacoste?
29:26 Rachel Cruze? With the actual, oh God, now you're money.
29:29 George Kamel? The Lacoste polo.
29:29 Rachel Cruze? Now you're money.
29:30 George Kamel? Double polo, uh, billionaire status.
29:33 Rachel Cruze? Billionaire, unbelievable.
29:34 George Kamel? You summer in the vinegar.
29:35 Rachel Cruze? Okay, in the same vein, the fast fashion, I think is a con.
29:38 George Kamel? Yes.
29:38 Rachel Cruze? Like, this is like the really, really, really, really cheap websites and the quality is terrible.
29:44 George Kamel? You wanna name one? You wanna name drop?
29:45 Rachel Cruze? Sheen, I would say.
29:47 George Kamel? Yeah, that's true. Well, and truthfully, Amazon.
29:50 Rachel Cruze? Timu? Timu's another one?
29:52 George Kamel? A lot of the stuff on Amazon would be considered fast fashion.
29:54 Rachel Cruze? Don't say that.
29:55 George Kamel? Rachel feels better because she buys it through Amazon instead of through Shein. That's fine. But yeah, quality decreases, profits go up, waste increases because it's not made to last.
30:05 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, it's just kind of crappy stuff, but we ended up buying it.
30:08 George Kamel? And it's just very like, it's on trend, I'll buy it now and next season I'll throw it away or goodwill it.
30:13 Rachel Cruze? Right. And the trends change so much, like even your jeans. I'm like, it would be like wide leg and now it's barrel. And now it's, I mean, it's like, oh my gosh, the cuts are all different. It's just crazy.
30:21 George Kamel? Who can keep up? What are we at right now? As of this recording, what is in trend?
30:25 Rachel Cruze? I think barrel jeans are like, kind of the like, on the cutting edge, I would say, but I don't know, I could be wrong.
30:32 George Kamel? I mean, how wide can we go before there's a revolution back to skinny?
30:35 Rachel Cruze? You know, it kind of, it gives flavor of cargo. You remember the baggy cargo pants that guys would wear?
30:43 George Kamel? The like Jinkos?
30:44 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
30:44 George Kamel? Yeah, that's kind of what I see now with the women. They're wearing basically Jinko jeans.
30:48 Rachel Cruze? That's what I'm saying. It's kind of funny. Like, I'm like, yeah, yeah.
30:50 George Kamel? But mom jeans are kind of out?
30:52 Rachel Cruze? I don't know. Maybe.
30:55 George Kamel? Gosh, I can't keep up. By the time I figure it out, it's already moved on.
30:58 Rachel Cruze? It's changed, I know. You went away from skinny, though. You're now slim fit.
31:01 George Kamel? Yeah. I'm trying out some baggier jeans. I have a, let me caveat this with, this is my version of a dad bod. So I don't fit in a lot of the clothing that I used to fit in.
31:10 Rachel Cruze? Oh.
31:11 George Kamel? Like my skater kind of tight jeans and all. It just doesn't.
31:14 Rachel Cruze? Doesn't work.
31:14 George Kamel? I can't breathe.
31:16 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, just kidding.
31:16 George Kamel? Your boy's got to breathe.
31:17 Rachel Cruze? Can't get the oxygen flowing.
31:19 George Kamel? Yeah. So I've been going a little, you know, more athleisure, things that can add a little more stretch to it.
31:24 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
31:25 George Kamel? Next con, not to make it financial, but sneaky debt, like buy now, pay later.
31:30 Rachel Cruze? Ooh, that's a great one.
31:32 George Kamel? Poison in the waters.
31:33 Rachel Cruze? Yes, Klarna and all of these things. And it's like, hey, get this $20 sweater.
31:38 George Kamel? For $4.
31:39 Rachel Cruze? For $4, for, you know, for the next four to five months, five months. Terrible. Yeah. So the whole idea of pushing out payments and pushing out purchases, not a great idea.
31:49 George Kamel? Yeah.
31:49 Rachel Cruze? Buy in the present. Swipe the debit card, use the Apple Pay, do what you gotta do, and then be done.
31:55 George Kamel? Yeah, debt has become more subtle, more normalized, more frictionless. And so now, just at checkout, one button, boom, it adds to your tab, and just puts you into debt without you really thinking about it. So this is one you gotta watch out for. Always make sure you can afford it in full, at the time of purchase, without derailing any other financial goals. Otherwise, it's a not now.
32:15 Rachel Cruze? That's right. Okay, last but not least, the ads, they will find you.
32:21 George Kamel? They're insufferable.
32:22 Rachel Cruze? Unbelievable. And it's not even just like the ads themselves. It's even the people on Instagram that show up in my feed, showing me things that they have.
32:32 George Kamel? Oh.
32:33 Rachel Cruze? And like wanting to buy from them too. I'm like, how does, how does it know? How does social media know everything? Do you think your phone does listen to you?
32:40 George Kamel? Hundred percent.
32:41 Rachel Cruze? Okay.
32:41 George Kamel? I've tested it.
32:42 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, when we talk about like olives or something, I'm like, olives, olives, and olives show up. And you're like, how do, like, this is insane.
32:48 George Kamel? You're getting ads for olives of food?
32:49 Rachel Cruze? I mean, like, I just thought of something random. Cruises. Like, I'll be talking about a cruise, and then cruise ads come up. I mean, like, yes.
32:57 George Kamel? Wow.
32:58 Rachel Cruze? Does that not happen to you?
32:59 George Kamel? It does with specific products.
33:01 Rachel Cruze? Okay.
33:01 George Kamel? So if I mention a brand, like I mentioned Abercrombie, it would not shock me if I'm getting ads for Abercrombie as I scroll my Facebook, as I like to do.
33:09 Rachel Cruze? Yeah. No, you don't.
33:10 George Kamel? I do.
33:11 Rachel Cruze? You're a Facebooker?
33:12 George Kamel? I've returned to Facebook. Because here's the thing, LinkedIn got too toxic. Everyone's fake on there trying to find their next job.
33:18 Rachel Cruze? Hold on, who's on LinkedIn, like, hanging out?
33:21 George Kamel? Exactly. It's the dark time over there. They always have some crazy first line that's like, "I quit my job today for one hour to hang out with my kid, because I want to..." I'm like, hey, all right, we get it. You're a great dad. But Facebook is where the true, the true honesty is still happening over there. And Facebook groups is where I find joy now. So I'll just go to neighborhood, doesn't have to be my neighborhood, any neighborhood Facebook group. I'll just try to work my way in there to get into some drama.
33:49 Rachel Cruze? My gosh.
33:50 George Kamel? I'll just post a picture of dog poop on a lawn, be like, hey, someone needs to handle this.
33:54 Rachel Cruze? No, you didn't.
33:57 George Kamel? Do I have a fake account? You'll never know. I don't have hobbies.
34:01 Rachel Cruze? Oh my gosh, unbelievable.
34:02 George Kamel? But the ads will find us. That's all I need to say about that.
34:05 Rachel Cruze? For sure. Okay, so we've been talking about shopping, the good and the bad. But the truth is, George, we have to do it today. Like, we have to shop. You gotta buy stuff.
34:12 George Kamel? Yep.
34:12 Rachel Cruze? You don't have a choice, right?
34:14 George Kamel? But you can be intentional about it.
34:15 Rachel Cruze? You can. So there's some tips that I think are important to think through when we are shopping.
34:20 George Kamel? Okay.
34:20 Rachel Cruze? First and foremost, check your motivation. Saying it to myself. Why are you buying it? Are you buying it because you're bored? Are you buying it?
34:29 George Kamel? Happy, sad, mad, glad?
34:31 Rachel Cruze? Oh, look at you. Great one, yeah. Yeah, what's like the, what's the emotion going on in you? What's the comparison? You want people to see it? You want to feel better about yourself? Like, what's going on with the purchase? What's your motivation?
34:43 George Kamel? I try to be emotionless when I make a purchase, just stone-faced.
34:47 Rachel Cruze? Just no, no emotion?
34:48 George Kamel? I'm not happy about it, I'm not sad about it. We just need toilet paper.
34:51 Rachel Cruze? It just is what it is.
34:52 George Kamel? Exactly.
34:53 Rachel Cruze? I love it.
34:54 George Kamel? Next, never use debt to make a purchase. It's that simple. And it's easy to be tempted. Let me just put it on the card, we'll pay it off next month. Let me do the buy now, pay li- No. Full stop, no. If you're not comfortable using your own money to pay for it now, then you should not be buying it at all. And if America believed that and took it to heart, we would be $0 in consumer debt.
35:15 Rachel Cruze? I believe it, George. Well done. Did you run for president?
35:18 George Kamel? I don't think I'd be very good. I need people to like me.
35:20 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, I don't know.
35:22 George Kamel? People pleaser. I would please nobody.
35:24 Rachel Cruze? Please nobody doing that job. Um, all right, and last but not least, check the purchase and the budget. So if you have not done every dollar and every dollar budget you guys do that, download the app, and it's great. Because when you know where your money's going and you know, do we have enough money in the budget? It's a much easier yes, right?
35:42 George Kamel? And there's no guilt.
35:43 Rachel Cruze? Yes. And you're like, oh yeah, it's in there financially. I'm not being stupid. I'm being wise with it, so it's a fantastic thing.
35:50 George Kamel? Even for the fun stuff that feels frivolous, if you just put it in the budget, you go, oh, this isn't impulsive anymore.
35:55 Rachel Cruze? Yes, yeah, you know what you're doing. I love it.
35:58 George Kamel? So there you go. Some budget smart shopping tips. And those work whether it's 2005 or 2025. I like my financial advice to be timeless. Because who knows what the future holds?
36:08 Rachel Cruze? You never know.
36:08 George Kamel? What if Blockbuster comes back? We don't know.
36:12 Rachel Cruze? Stick to your guns. Now that would be a great time.
36:15 George Kamel? If Blockbuster came back? Would you actually go? But if like you say you would go and then no one would go?
36:19 Rachel Cruze? Probably not.
36:20 George Kamel? And they would just shut down again?
36:21 Rachel Cruze? But I wish.
36:23 George Kamel? Insult to injury.
36:24 Rachel Cruze? I know. I just wish it would.
36:25 George Kamel? Like if Toys R Us still existed, would your kids go?
36:29 Rachel Cruze? Uh, yes, because there's a toy store called Brilliant Sky in Cool Springs and Franklin. And my kids, they always ask to go, just to look around.
36:37 George Kamel? I haven't been there.
36:38 Rachel Cruze? You haven't.
36:39 George Kamel? Should I take my daughter? We did take her to Barnes & Noble.
36:42 Rachel Cruze? It's like the last toy store. I'm like, there's no toy stores anymore.
36:44 George Kamel? Yeah.
36:45 Rachel Cruze? But it's great. It really is. And the people working there are fantastic, really sweet.
36:48 George Kamel? You've gotta be. If you're working at a toy store, like you've gotta love it.
36:51 Rachel Cruze? I know. And they have like great stuff, but my kids, they love it. So see, it's in us, George. Like in human nature, we want to be present or we want to be like
36:59 George Kamel? Connected to real things and real people.
37:01 Rachel Cruze? To the thing and see it and look at it. Yeah. So bring back 2005 shopping.
37:05 George Kamel? I love it.
37:05 Rachel Cruze? That's what I say. All right, before we spill the tea on our guilty as charged question, uh, let's share the drink details and the rating.
37:12 George Kamel? Yes, this was and is the Enzoni.
37:15 Rachel Cruze? Mm-hmm.
37:16 George Kamel? The cost, $2.96 per glass. Hmm, what is my rating on this drink?
37:22 Rachel Cruze? I didn't drink a lot of it.
37:23 George Kamel? I'll go 7 out of 10.
37:27 George Kamel? Wow, you're going less. I can sense it.
37:29 Rachel Cruze? I may go 6.
37:31 George Kamel? That feels generous based on your...
37:33 Rachel Cruze? Because it was fine. It was fine. I don't know if I'd order it at a restaurant, but if it was at a restaurant, I wouldn't be mad. Like if someone like ordered it for me and was like, "A rounds of Enzonis," something like that.
37:45 George Kamel? I could see it pairing well with pizza.
37:47 Rachel Cruze? Yeah. Yeah, it's kind of a fun summer drink, too.
37:50 George Kamel? Yeah, here's what's in it. It's got gin, Campari, simple syrup, muddled grapes, and some lemon juice. And for some reason, it just tastes like a really nice grape fruity cocktail.
38:00 Rachel Cruze? Yes, that's what it tastes like.
38:02 George Kamel? Not a grape cocktail, but grapefruit.
38:03 Rachel Cruze? Yes, I agree with that 100%.
38:05 George Kamel? So get the recipe in the show notes, give it a try this weekend, and maybe you'll prove Rachel wrong. Maybe it's a 10 out of 10 for you.
38:10 Rachel Cruze? Maybe you'll love it. Maybe you'll love it.
38:11 George Kamel? None of my business.
38:13 Rachel Cruze? All right, now it's time for
38:14 George Kamel? Guilty as charged.
38:16 Rachel Cruze? 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, you ready for this, George?
38:23 George Kamel? Hit me.
38:23 Rachel Cruze? Have you recently made any impulse purchases?
38:27 George Kamel? Oh my goodness. Yeah, I mean, come on.
38:30 Rachel Cruze? I'm guilty too. I did one just last week.
38:34 George Kamel? What was yours?
38:35 Rachel Cruze? A Kindle. I went to the other side.
38:39 George Kamel? Like you bought an Amazon Kindle?
38:40 Rachel Cruze? Yeah.
38:41 George Kamel? To read books off of?
38:42 Rachel Cruze? Yes.
38:42 George Kamel? What was the other side?
38:44 Rachel Cruze? Physical books.
38:46 George Kamel? Oh.
38:46 Rachel Cruze? Like actual books. Because I love to read. And I all and I refuse.
38:51 George Kamel? Do your book giveaways now?
38:52 Rachel Cruze? I refuse. George, I'm telling you, it's very hard. I refused to get a Kindle. And then I was on a trip, Winston were taking a trip. And all of our team, they started a text message with me. There were like eight of them. And they were like, just convincing me over. And they have been for a while. Be like, you need a Kindle, get a Kindle. Because I was going to pack three books like in my suitcase.
39:11 George Kamel? Oh, I can't imagine.
39:12 Rachel Cruze? Get a Kindle, get a Kindle. And I was like, I.
39:17 Rachel Cruze? I was like, I don't want one, you know, it's this whole thing. And finally, they're like, just get it. And if you hate it, you can return it. And I was like, I guess. So I bought it. And I love it.
39:27 George Kamel? Wow. It doesn't, you don't miss turning a physical page?
39:31 Rachel Cruze? I hate that, I love it. But I love it.
39:34 George Kamel? Wow. What are you going to do with all your books? Burn them?
39:38 Rachel Cruze? Well, I get, no, I give them away on Instagram.
39:40 George Kamel? Oh, that's true.
39:41 Rachel Cruze? Yes, um.
39:43 George Kamel? So, hold on, I'm still confused. You took three books on one trip to just read the whole time in a different place? Like, what are you actually doing on this trip?
39:52 Rachel Cruze? Nothing.
39:53 George Kamel? You're just reading in a different environment? That's what you're paying for?
39:56 Rachel Cruze? In the pool. Yeah, Winston and I.
39:58 George Kamel? You have a pool now, so you could just.
40:00 Rachel Cruze? Doesn't matter.
40:00 George Kamel? Sit in your pool.
40:01 Rachel Cruze? No. Winston, I take a trip every summer.
40:05 George Kamel? What is Winston doing the whole time? It feels like you're ignoring him.
40:08 Rachel Cruze? Reading, sleeping. I mean, we, that's our trip, we want to do nothing. Give me drinks by the pool and books. Nice dinners out and a show at night. And I'm good.
40:19 George Kamel? New idea. You pay me, I'll come to your house, serve you drinks and give you a little show.
40:25 George Kamel? That's a great side gig for me. You're supporting a local business. You don't have to pack your bags. Sleep in your own bed.
40:30 Rachel Cruze? That's vacation to me, sitting by a pool and...
40:34 George Kamel? Yeah, I guess I'm just shocked because I'm realizing now that you don't take trips. You just go to places to read and be served drinks. But okay, that's great.
40:43 Rachel Cruze? That's it. That's what I love.
40:45 George Kamel? It's like you go to places to experience that place and that culture.
40:48 Rachel Cruze? Oh, yeah. No, not necessarily.
40:51 George Kamel? So you're in Miami, just reading a book at a different pool.
40:55 Rachel Cruze? Yes, exactly.
40:56 George Kamel? Cool.
40:57 Rachel Cruze? Okay, what about you?
40:58 George Kamel? Uh, impulse purchases. Mine involve things that are on sale that I stock up on, like it's an apocalypse.
41:05 Rachel Cruze? Oh, okay.
41:06 George Kamel? So this happened yesterday. Stocked up on Spindrift because it was BOGO.
41:11 Rachel Cruze? Oh, I love Spindrift.
41:12 George Kamel? So it brought the price down to like 40 cents per can.
41:15 Rachel Cruze? Oh, jeez.
41:16 George Kamel? Because your boy did the math. You can't beat that.
41:18 Rachel Cruze? Yeah, no.
41:19 George Kamel? And so I did a pickup and this poor soul unloaded 17 cases of Spindrift into my trunk. The other one was ice cream bars. I got Jenny's Ice Cream Bars, 50% off ice cream. So we're talking Jenny's Ice Cream Pints for like three bucks, four bucks.
41:33 Rachel Cruze? Amazing.
41:34 George Kamel? Your boy stocked up.
41:35 Rachel Cruze? And you said?
41:36 George Kamel? Yeah.
41:37 Rachel Cruze? So you're telling me you could eat ice cream when I was trying...
41:41 George Kamel? No, say it.
41:42 Rachel Cruze? I was trying to give you a hard time, but I can't come up with it.
41:45 George Kamel? No, give me a hard time for having joy in my life. I dare you.
41:51 Rachel Cruze? I know. You're making fun of my trip.
41:52 George Kamel? It's my nightly...
41:53 Rachel Cruze? Trying to make fun of your ice cream.
41:53 George Kamel? Hence the dad bod. My nightly treat is having a little bit of ice cream.
41:57 Rachel Cruze? No ice cream. I don't like ice cream.
41:59 George Kamel? So those are my impulsive purchases. They hurt nobody. They only bring me and others joy.
42:04 Rachel Cruze? I'm so glad.
42:05 George Kamel? So if you ever come over, I got plenty of Spindrift. Every flavor that exists.
42:08 Rachel Cruze? Spindrift and ice cream. I believe it. I believe it.
42:11 George Kamel? You want the island punch? We got it.
42:12 Rachel Cruze? Good purchase. Great purchase, George. Oh, my gosh. Well, if you have any guiltiest charge questions for us, make sure to DM us at Rachel Cruz and at George Kamel. And if you loved this episode, you're going to love our episode, What Today's Teens Are Buying.
42:27 George Kamel? Wouldn't you like to know?
42:28 Rachel Cruze? And it's fantastic. So to find out, make sure to watch that episode coming up next. And make sure to subscribe so you don't miss an all-new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.
42:40 Rachel Cruze? Cheers.
42:41 George Kamel? Cheers.
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