I'm pretty sure when my parents gave me 20 dollars as a kid I could have bought a whole house, reserved the next "Call of Duty," and still has some left over to treat the family to Golden Corral. (OK, maybe that is a little bit overboard, but as a kid, it seriously felt that way). It didn't seem like money was that big of a deal because you had money without worries. No bills were due at the beginning of the month. You didn't have to worry about the water dripping in the shower or setting the AC to 80 while no one was home.
You lived life and life lived itself.
Then it happened. (I'm really not sure what happened, but this is for dramatic effect.)
Somewhere along the line that 20 dollars began to vanish quicker and quicker each time you got one. Whether it was the ten dollar meal you got at the restaurant. God forbid you don't forget to tip, so that 20 is poof, gone. Maybe it was the snacks you decided to load up on along with a six-pack cause tonight is a binge-watching night. How about that Netflix, Hulu, Spotify, Apple Music, Clash of Clans, Youtube TV, and World of Warcraft subscription?
It seems as if 20 dollars doesn't stretch out as much as it uses to. Mine usually go to filling my tank about halfway because that is all I get out of a 20 at the station. (For the next generation... 20 bucks at the gas station was a full tank running over and thirty-two-ounce drink for free because the clerks were always feeling generous). Now 20 bucks will get you enough gas to fill the edger and the weed-eater.
Being good with money is a must nowadays, but even the smartest of finance gurus have to know that the value of a 20 dollar bill is not the same as it once was. If you want to conduct your own experiment on the value of a 20 dollar bill just go pull you out one and see how much you can get out of it. I was able to get one meal, a few snacks, and a lottery ticket in the hopes that I could get another one.
(There just isn't much to it anymore. It's like getting one kid a bicycle and the other a tablet. See which kid is going to bringing their present back.)
