On 10/14, I injured my right knee in a non-contact incident on a new treadmill. Since then, I’ve been stuck using the elliptical. I’ll argue the elliptical is actually harder than running when the resistance is maxed out – you can go all-out on it and end up breathing heavier than you would on a run. Still, it doesn’t feel real. There’s no impact, no rhythm, none of the things that make running feel like running. It gets the job done, but it’s lame.

For the past six weeks, I’ve felt a mild depression from not being able to run or feel 100% when bowling or golfing. There’s no chance I could do any real sport right now, and that’s been tough to accept.

Which brings me to the real question: how much would I actually pay to avoid this stupid injury? I mean, I’d toss $100 at the problem immediately – no hesitation. If someone said, “Give me $1,000 and you’ll be healed tomorrow,” I’d be Venmo-ing them before they finished the sentence. But $5,000? Now we’re entering the zone where I start telling myself, “You know what, maybe character development is worth six weeks of misery.”

And obviously this depends on your bank account. Since you don’t know mine, everyone’s personal pain-to-wallet ratio will vary. If I had $100 million? Oh, I’d pay $5,000 without blinking. Honestly, I’d probably pay $5,000 just to avoid stubbing my toe. But to avoid an injury that sidelines me for 11% of my year? Absolutely. Take the money.

This thought experiment isn’t just about injuries – it’s basically happening in our heads all day, every day, whenever we decide what’s worth spending money on. For me, I’m a terrible chef. I’ve made my eggs a thousand times, and they’ve sucked a thousand times. At this point, I know who I am. So if I can afford to pay someone who actually knows what they’re doing, why would I spend time creating another depressing breakfast?

On the flip side, I have zero interest in spending $1,000 a month to lease a car. I don’t need to be the guy rolling around in a “premium driving experience.” A car just gets me from point A to point B – I don’t need it whispering affirmations to me while it does it.

And then you see videos of people at Disney World – peak humanity in cargo shorts – dropping mortgage-level money on churros and matching T-shirts. It’s a reminder of the wild range of spenders out there. Everyone’s internal “is this worth it?” meter works differently… sometimes very differently. Watch this video and see the freaks out there who couldn’t balance a Cheeto on their nose, let alone a budget.

You could never let these people run a business. It reminds me of the way the US government looks at finances. Don’t worry about it, everything will be fine. This brings me back to my initial question on making money to provide comfort. After watching these people, it seems a lot more reasonable to spend a k on a knee doesn’t it?