The Money Mystery

I thought I was the only one who did this until I realized other people do it too.

Have you ever checked your bank transactions because you are absolutely convinced somebody stole your money?

Because the way that money disappeared? There is no way you spent that much.

I used to go through every single transaction like I was investigating a financial crime.

Who took my money?

Then I would find every transaction.

And there it was.

Me.

Nobody stole anything. Nobody hacked my account. Nobody made unauthorized purchases.

I was the one spending all that money.

And honestly, that was almost worse because now I had nobody to blame.

The Grocery Store Investigation

Especially when you go grocery shopping.

You walk into the store thinking, I am only buying about $50 worth of groceries.

Next thing you know, the cashier says, “That will be $150.”

Excuse me?

$150 for what?

So now you are standing there going through the receipt like a police detective.

I bought this.

I bought that.

Wait. How much was this?

You start checking the prices against the receipt because somewhere in your mind you are convinced the cashier has a side quest called “See How Much Extra I Can Charge This Person.”

But no.

The prices are correct.

The receipt is correct.

The cashier is innocent.

The economy is the criminal.

And that is the part that makes it even more frustrating.

Because it is not even like you bought a cart full of ridiculous things.

A lot of it is food.

Things you actually need.

Things that used to cost one amount and now somehow cost please-put-that-back money.

And Then Come the Taxes

Then there are the taxes.

You finally accept the price of everything, get to the total, and the taxes come in like:

“Oh, you thought we were finished?”

At that point, you just stare at the receipt.

You do not even want to calculate it anymore.

You just want someone to explain what happened.

Every Dollar Has a Witness

And maybe things feel different when you have more money. Maybe when you are rich, you stop investigating your own transactions.

But when you are broke?

Every dollar has a witness.

You know where that money came from.

You know where it was supposed to go.

And when it disappears faster than expected, you are checking your transactions like:

“Okay. Somebody is lying. Let us find out who.”

Then you discover the culprit.

You.

And honestly?

That is the most offensive part.