It may be my memory that fails me, but I think this cost about 50% more for the exact same watch, only in a different color and a little smaller. Then again it may be that it cost 50% more than in 2005, which would make a lot more sense, since Norwegians have probably 50% more money to spend than in 2005. The increase in disposable income here in Norway has been crazy for the last decade or so. Wages and salaries have been going up, taxes have been going down (a little), and interests have gone very low because of the international financial crisis (which we don’t have here).

In retrospect, buying non-essentials in December is not the wisdom of Solomon either, generally speaking.  But in one thing I feel justified: Buying mail order would have saved me money, but there would be no way of guessing whether I could actually pick it up, since the post office is 30 minutes of walking from home, and there is no guarantee that this distance will be survivable until spring. It could be mild tomorrow, or it could be howling arctic wind for a couple months like last year.

Ironically, that’s what I want it for, to find out whether the heart lurches when I walk in the cold actually reflect a change in heart rhythm or not. That’s why I asked for the cheapest model they had, because I really don’t need to count calories or stay in my optimal zone or get weekly statistics. As far as I am concerned, it is a medical expense, but I don’t think my health insurer would agree.