What are the best value purchases you’ve made in life?

[DaggerDigwillow]

Looking for recommendations and stories on the best value purchases people have made throughout their life. This is not for “I bought x stock and made a fortune” or “ I got a great deal on x” but rather “I obtained x item via normal means and this was how it improved my life.”

Previous threads found on subject: none using all search terms in thread tags. Mods let me know if I’ve messed this up as it is my first thread.

As for myself my number one purchase was a large portable fan which drastically improved my daily sleep. Cost of fan $30, value of improved sleep: priceless.

Secondly, 10 year old smart phone: cost $20: use every day for free internet access, free unlimited education and world knowledge, free communication, free entertainment, life planning, and work access.

Third, wireless earbud headphone. Cost: $15. 38k+ hours of audio and counting.

Please share your best value purchases and how they changed or improved your life.

 

[AmazonQueen]

Memory foam mattress from a well-known department store whose Xmas adverts are an annual event in this country.
Their own brand so much cheaper than the big name brands. Greatly improved the quality of my sleep.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Best textbook I ever bought: The Harbrace College Handbook. I had to get it for one of my first-year English courses and ended up using it for over 15 years as a reference in my home typing business. None of my clients were going to get marks docked for incorrect grammar or formatting of footnotes, references, or bibliography. Just telling nervous first-time clients that I kept it and a dictionary at hand to make sure I did everything right sometimes made all the difference in getting a client for the next 2-4 years or them going elsewhere.

And not something I bought, but a Freecycle ad I answered: Someone offered a kitten. A black kitten. Black cats are often not adopted due to superstitious nonsense about bad luck or that they're "evil." Fifteen years later that kitten is a senior citizen cat and is dozing about 4 feet away as I type. She makes a very good little blanket in winter, and for a bonus I get my nose washed.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

And not something I bought, but a Freecycle ad I answered: Someone offered a kitten. A black kitten. Black cats are often not adopted due to superstitious nonsense about bad luck or that they're "evil." Fifteen years later that kitten is a senior citizen cat and is dozing about 4 feet away as I type. She makes a very good little blanket in winter, and for a bonus I get my nose washed.

Meanwhile, back at Ziggy's house

Spoiler :

 

[emzie]

Two things spring to mind.

First, cooking utensils: a cast iron pan, and a decent set of knives. The pan was less than $10 at the thrift store, I think I paid more for the oil I used to season it. The knives were around $200. Much better knives can be bought, but these hold their edge as long as they're cared for. I think the knifes paid for themselves, because I cook healthier, more frequently, and they've lasted me 8 years thus far.

Second, my indoor growing tent. I was able to start tomatoes and peppers a month before the last frost this year, and once they moved outside I moved on to cannabis. My first plant has yielded aprox 5oz, not amazing, but the retail cost of 5oz here is still more than the cost of the tent, the ventilation, the light, the timers, the fertilizer, the testing kits, the planters, and the seeds combined. If my yields don't fall, my next crop will cost about $2 an ounce

 

[Narz]

My kymco scooter it's great (new for around $2400)

Recently €200 water distiller, water tastes way better so I drink way more of it

Gym membership always worth it, physical & emotional benefit for an hour or so a day investment & access to a million or two worth of equipment.

 

[Narz]

Memory foam mattress from a well-known department store whose Xmas adverts are an annual event in this country.
Their own brand so much cheaper than the big name brands. Greatly improved the quality of my sleep.

Memory foam is great, not sure why anyone still buying giant, heavy old fashion matteres these days

 

[Darsnan]

Spring 2015 I went to the running shoes store for my annual purchase of race sneakers. Told them this would probably be my last year as my knee (which I'd had most of the cartilage removed in) was giving me all sorts of problems. Sales person had me try a pair of Hoka's, said they were for maximum support situations like mine. Took them for a quick spin around the store, and it was like I didn't want to take them off, and the knee problems were immediately cured.
The knee is starting to give me problems again now (even with the Hoka's), but I'd never had the last 7 years if I hadn't had Hoka's.

D

 

[DaggerDigwillow]

Spring 2015 I went to the running shoes store for my annual purchase of race sneakers. Told them this would probably be my last year as my knee (which I'd had most of the cartilage removed in) was giving me all sorts of problems. Sales person had me try a pair of Hoka's, said they were for maximum support situations like mine. Took them for a quick spin around the store, and it was like I didn't want to take them off, and the knee problems were immediately cured.
The knee is starting to give me problems again now (even with the Hoka's), but I'd never had the last 7 years if I hadn't had Hoka's.

D

I had a very similar problem with back and foot pain. Had been running marathons and long hikes. Tried several pairs of shoes and was in excruciating pain. I'd never paid more than $20 for shoes and my doc told me to get some quality shoes. Bought a pair of Hokas but even the wides were too small for my feet so I got some new balance shoes for $180 which was outrageous to me but at that point, I was willing to try anything to help with the pain. Wearing the shoes for a day completely cleared the pain and I've never had problems since.

 

[DaggerDigwillow]

Memory foam is great, not sure why anyone still buying giant, heavy old fashion matteres these days

Memory foam mattress from a well-known department store whose Xmas adverts are an annual event in this country.
Their own brand so much cheaper than the big name brands. Greatly improved the quality of my sleep.

I'm really skeptical on the memory foam. I don't really sense the difference when I sleep or wake up on it. Do you find you spend longer in REM cycles when you sleep on it or do you just feel better rested when you wake up?

 

[Arwon]

Probably my glasses since I use them 16 hours a day or whatever, and am utterly dependent on them. I shelled out for the transition lenses for outdoor sunlight and a blue light filter for more comfortable computer time, so they cost me like 600 dollars but if you do the maths that's a few cents an hour.

 

[DaggerDigwillow]

Probably my glasses since I use them 16 hours a day or whatever, and am utterly dependent on them. I shelled out for the transition lenses for outdoor sunlight and a blue light filter for more comfortable computer time, so they cost me like 600 dollars but if you do the maths that's a few cents an hour.

Did you get blue light filters?

 

[AmazonQueen]

I'm really skeptical on the memory foam. I don't really sense the difference when I sleep or wake up on it. Do you find you spend longer in REM cycles when you sleep on it or do you just feel better rested when you wake up?

Better rested when I wake up.

 

[DaggerDigwillow]

Better rested when I wake up.

Do you wear a smartwatch apple/android/Samsung/Fitbit or equivalent that can track your REM sleep time?

 

[AmazonQueen]

Do you wear a smartwatch apple/android/Samsung/Fitbit or equivalent that can track your REM sleep time?

I've only just caught up with the 20th century, I don't use these darn new-fangled contraptions.

 

[El_Machinae]

Recently, YouTube premium. I got it as a gift for an old boomer that has trouble sourcing edutainment.

It's been awesome. Four of us use the account. The ability to download, listen to stuff with the screen off, and not worry about ads has meant that we all use it a great deal .... all with very little teaching or tech support on my end.

There's an infinite amount of edutainment, and with the ability to see their history, I can suck them out of echochambers.

 

[Gorbles]

Two cats. I can't count the amount of ways they've helped my partner and I. They're seven this year, and we've had them since they were about seven weeks old.

 

[DaggerDigwillow]

Recently, YouTube premium. I got it as a gift for an old boomer that has trouble sourcing edutainment.

It's been awesome. Four of us use the account. The ability to download, listen to stuff with the screen off, and not worry about ads has meant that we all use it a great deal .... all with very little teaching or tech support on my end.

There's an infinite amount of edutainment, and with the ability to see their history, I can suck them out of echochambers.

I've been really strongly considering this lately.

 

[Narz]

I'm really skeptical on the memory foam. I don't really sense the difference when I sleep or wake up on it. Do you find you spend longer in REM cycles when you sleep on it or do you just feel better rested when you wake up?

Just more comfortable and easier to move it when you need to move it.

These days sleeping in room w a 5mo old and 3yo and gf who's gotta pee 10x a night so my sleep isn't particularly good regardless of hacks.

Probably my glasses since I use them 16 hours a day or whatever, and am utterly dependent on them. I shelled out for the transition lenses for outdoor sunlight and a blue light filter for more comfortable computer time, so they cost me like 600 dollars but if you do the maths that's a few cents an hour.

Did you get blue light filters?

I bought a nighttime pair of glasses off Zenni that I wear after dark, dunno if it helps or just placebo

 

[sophie]

My Master’s degree