Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel - Girl Math: Smart Financial Strategy or Huge Money Mistake?

Episode Date: October 12, 2023

Rat girl summer, lazy girl jobs, girl math and valley girls. Let’s just admit it: Girl trends make life a little more fun––for everyone! Join Rachel and George as they review the girlie Gen Z trends of the moment, talk about why they resonate (even for guys), and discuss how to enjoy the “girl math” bit without letting it ruin your finances.   In This Episode:   ·      George testing Rachel’s girl math on everything from vacation purchases to in-store returns ·      “Hygiene homies” and other manly trends George wants to start ·      Rachel explaining the healthy middle ground between a “lazy girl job” and “girl bossing”   Helpful Resources:   ·      Start making memories. Go NOW and get Tapple at Walmart or wherever you buy board games! ·      Booking a flight with Going is the best and simplest way to pay less to travel more. Sign up for free today at Going.com/smartmoney. ·      Get your finances organized, make a plan, build your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to www.everydollar.com/smartmoney to get a free two-week trial and $15 off your premium membership to EveryDollar. ·      Do you have a Guilty as Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it. ·      Learn more about your ad choices: https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·      Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy: https://www.ramseysolutions.com/compa... This Week’s Happy Hour Special: Mind Eraser ·      2 ounces coffee liqueur ·      2 ounces vodka ·      Club soda Instructions: Fill a glass with ice and add the coffee liqueur. Slowly pour the vodka on top of the liqueur (no stirring!), then top with club soda. Grab a straw and take a sip. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz. I'm George Campbell. And this is Smart Money Happy Hour. Cheers, George. Cheers. I'm not going to lie. I was sipping on this before we started. That is some dirty water, Rachel.

That's what we call it in the biz. It's actually delicious. It's great. But this is the show. We're two friends who happen to be money experts. Talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money. And in the words of country music icon, Martina McBride,

This one's for the girls. Yes, and the guys. Sure. The guys are going to actually get more out of this because I'm trying to help them understand what's happening to them. Oh, that's good. Okay, so we're going to explain many girl trends

going on right now, including girl math. Those of you, there's a lot of people that know girl math, and it's been a thing that's been talked about, you know, recently. So we're going to dive in because it's a great money trends. A lot of Gen Z terminology. They love to come up with some new terms to confuse us. I know.

They're funny. I'm not going to lie. They bring some levity to life. They keep us on our toes. Yes, they do. So what are we going to sip on, though, George, while we're talking about this girl math. Well, just like girls like to forget how much money they spent,

we're sipping on a drink called the Mind Eraser. Oh, the Mind Eraser. I thought that was appropriate for this episode. So stick around until the end of the episode. We're going to give you our rating, reveal the cost, and give you the recipe. That's right. Okay. So, George, you are officially a girl dad.

Oh, my gosh. How are you feeling about it? I feel helpless. Do you? I just feel like she's going to get. get whatever she wants. At first I was like, my kid's not going to be entitled. Then we found out we were having a girl. I was like, I'll buy her a horse. Yeah, whatever she wants. It's fine. Whatever she needs. Yeah, she's precious. So good. Okay, so I assume being a girl dad,

maybe you're up to date on all the girl terminology going around these days. I'm trying to keep up. I feel like I have a lot to learn about women now. And I'm learning a lot, just changing diapers, Rachel. Yeah, well, I'm going to quiz you on some of these trends. Are you ready for this? Thank you. Okay. Do you know the trend, girl dinner? Yes, because I studied this. We covered it on the Ramsey show. Okay. Ken Coleman and I, I believe. Oh, I didn't know this. And it is when correct me if I'm wrong, it's

when girls take a bunch of random, like, snacks and then call it dinner. And then it was so relatable that girls everywhere were like, Girl dinner. Girl dinner. And I think about scandal, the show, Carrie Washington was always classic, like, popcorn glass wine. That counts. That's

a girl dinner. Right? You just kind of get some stuff together, you know, turcudery could be like a fancier term. That's actually... Kind of a tapas vibe. You know, just a few small... Little hummus here, little pepper there. Yeah.

It's a meal. Just put some stuff out. Yeah, that's a... That's girl dinner. Okay, how about this? Girl Math. That's the big one I've heard about. Yes.

This is funny. There's been some viral TikToks that, honest, they made me laugh. I didn't want to admit it. Because there's a lot of truth to it. Yeah. Because Girl Math is basically women justifying unnecessary spending expenses or unnecessary amounts of money. they spend just to like make it make sense. And when you hear it as a woman, you're like, it makes sense.

Like I can follow the girl of math vibe. Well, this has been going on for centuries. We just didn't have a name for it until Gen Z was like, let's give it a trendy name to make it sound less toxic. We're going to talk more about this later on the episode because it's going to, it makes sense. We're like, we're going to explain it more with some examples so you can understand how we can justify spending because that's what happens in our culture. Okay.

We all can justify spending. but like you said, Gen Z just put a little fun twist to it to make it justify. Say what you will about Gen Z. They make life more fun. They do. Okay, how about this one, George? Lazy Girl Jobs. This one still confuses me. What I understand about it is they want to do like the bare minimum so they have more work-life balance.

Yes. Is that the vibe? That's basically it. It's kind of almost, it feels a little bit of that quiet quitting trends where it's kind of like, I'm going to just do what I need to do so that I can still like live a great life. and not be exhausted all the time, right? Like, I'm going to just kind of... So this is the opposite of, like,

I'm going to work extra hours to try to get the promotion. It's the opposite of a girl boss. Oh, that's a good way to say it. Opposite of that. And they're not actually lazy. They're just not wanting to go the extra mile. Yeah, we're going to just...

They're not putting it 100%. Yeah, we're going to just stay within the lanes and not try to bust through any glass ceiling, if you will. There we go. That's too much work. What's your take on that? I'm somewhere in the middle. I do think that kind of the girl boss vibe

of like, you can do everything. That was a little aggressive. It's a little bit, like, not true. Just because, like, you can't do everything. And that means if you need help, you're somehow weak. Or if you choose not to go full-fledged into your career, somehow you're lazy. You know what I mean? Like that.

It's a little toxic if you take it to the extreme. I think. But then the lazy, yeah. But then also, like, there's a time and place that, yeah, you got to put in the hours and you got to step it up sometimes, right, in certain seasons of work or whatever it may be. So, like, I would go somewhere in the middle, George, personally. Yeah, there's a spectrum from, like, my, career is my identity to I do the bare minimum and I'm just fine floating by in life.

Right, right, right. Yeah, there's a little bit of like, yeah, find a little umph in what you do. A little pep in your step. Find your umph. A little pep in your step, if you will. So yeah, so that's a, uh, that's a mentality for sure. So George, how much do you think work-life balance is worth? Ooh, put a number on it?

Oh, I don't know. But like, like, like that idea, that's a little bit of like the lazy girl jobs. Like they just want to be. I think we have a real toxic view of work. Like the younger generations think work is evil, and if you have a job working for someone else, then you must hate your life and it's going to be terrible. We have fun jobs.

So I would tell them, go find things you enjoy doing that also make money. And that's out there. Our friend Ken Coleman, Ramsey Personality, covers us on a show every day, helping people do this. So I would say work is not evil. I agree, don't work 60 hours a week forever. That's not an okay life. but also just floating by and just going like, well, I'm just here for the paycheck.

That's also going to be unfulfilling. You're at work for eight hours a day. I want that to be fulfilling. Yeah, you want to enjoy those 40 hours because you're there a lot, right? For like a pretty standard job. So, yeah, I agree, George. I would say, I would say the same. You know?

I think it's good, yeah. I think it's good for people to work, but not in a toxic environment, not for toxic people in a toxic place, doing something they hate. That's not how life has to go. Sure. But I do wonder, like, from the girl's perspective, the woman's perspective, okay, lazy girl jobs, because there are moms that are home with kids, you know what I mean, and that's a level of work. That's about the opposite of lazy girl job. For sure. Oh, my gosh.

But they're not the hustle and grind either. So I always want to give them props because they can get lost in that. Well, then they feel guilty and feel shame. Yeah, when people have the megaphone of like, go kill it, go, go, go. where it's like, what if I just want to be home? And not just be home. There's a lot of work involved. But like there's dignity in that too.

So, yeah. What I'm hearing is just grace, Rachel. Just give yourself grace. A lot of grace. A lot of grace. You have to put your hand out when you do it. Give yourself grace. Give yourself grace.

Just give yourself grace. Okay, how about this one? Rat, Girl, Summer. I love it based on the name alone. I had never heard of this until we were doing this episode. I did not know about this trend. Can I say that? It feels somehow derogatory for me.

me to say rat girl summer. Can you give me permission? Yes, go, George. You can say it. Okay. Rachel Cruz said I can say rat girl summer. So this is kind of an extension of the lazy girl job trend. And this is apparently like opposite of hot girl summer.

Okay, yes, yes, for they're all. It's like I have to get primped. And all the things. Makeup, outfits. This is, we're swinging the pendulum the opposite way. Yeah, we're like greasy hair and a scrunchy with a sweatshirt. Throw it in a bun, call it good. Yep, we're just, we're doing it.

Been there, Rachel. Been there. Been there done that. During, like, COVID when we were all at home, I think I was rat girl. Oh, yes. It got dark. And there's a part that's like everyone needs a little rat girl in their life. I do feel like because not every...

What's your version of that? Like, would you shower? At leisure wear, wash the hair every four days. It's going back in a low pony. We're going to not like revolution. evolutionary style pony like kind of cute George Washington. Yeah, not George Washington

Little Pony like cute bun low pony. It was giving Jefferson. Yeah, we're not going to go Jefferson feels. We're going more like Selena Gomez, low pony vibe from like, you know, the grannies. That's your top choice is Selena? She has a great low pony. You should check it out.

Really? Yeah. Like that's her personal brand is Low Pony Girl. Four Rat Girl. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't go as much up as low with the hair. I'm learning a lot about ponies. I'm not going to like.

Yeah, and then for sure, like, Jim shorts and a great, you know, sweatshirt. I like this. I prefer, like, my wife Whitney, just like big T-shirt, hair not done. I love that. We're all in that. We can do the date night and full makeup and all that once in a while. Yes, yes. But it sounds exhausting.

Oh, yeah. I think about that for women. I'm like, you'll have to redo all of this every day. Yeah, but you can go minimal, which is kind of my life right now. And then I went down the rabbit hole, George, which I talk about comparison along. So this was a rabbit hole I shouldn't have been down, down a bunch of like, like influencer, like, done up influencer women. And they're all friends with each other. I didn't know this, but I went down this black hole, rabbit hole of like all these women.

And I did feel tired physically after looking at their profiles for a bit. So I was like, they do, they're done up a lot. Once you know how that routine goes. They're done up a lot where I just need like, give me a little powder, a little a little bronzer. Eyeliner, mascara. I'm done. Like, I'm not. Three things. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

What's Winston's routine, comparatively? Very minimal. Is he anything? No, he's in nothing. Wow. I don't think he's anything. And he still has that rugged look. He needs a little hair product that he's grown out of his hair.

So you could help him, George, with this. He's maybe looking for so hair products soon. Winston, hit me up, bro. I don't know why we're communicating this way. I could just text you, but I'm going to wait for you to listen to this podcast for the invite. I know. Whitney's low maintenance, I feel like. Oh, yeah.

Beautiful, but I feel like she's not like... She's at that stage. Like, once she got pregnant, it was like, I can't care anymore. Life is a little bit better like that. But she's naturally beautiful and that's why I chose her. Oh. So sweet. That smile.

I don't know why I did that. Love you, girl. Oh, love you. Love you. Okay. George, I feel like, you know, you should test my girl math abilities. We talked about this earlier, but the girl math, I can, like, I can vibe with.

I sound like a jinzier. I blame all the young people I work with. It sounded authentic when you said it. I can vibe with. Lindsay said earlier, I die. And I was like, that is a jinzier. I should, I need a dog that too. Oh, with no D at the end?

That's a thing. Yeah, it's like a present tense. I die. Present tense. That's really cool. They were rubbing up on us. Wow, I didn't even know I did that. You did.

He said, I die. I was like, she's so hip. It's just cool that sabotaging grammar that was fine for centuries is now like, this is cool now. This is what we do. I know. It's what it is. You form a normal sentence. You're an old.

I know. You know my new favorite one, though? I heard this and I think it's like. Oh, I can't wait. Like, you have main character energy. Oh, I do like that one. Oh, that's from the holiday. When the old man tells her, like, you're the main character in your own story.

Is that correct? Oh, I didn't even know that. Remember that? Do you remember that in the holiday? Where the old man with Kate Winslet? I love that movie. And he says, you're not the same. supporting role.

You're the main character. Wow. Wow. Full circle. Wow. You are so excited about this and I love that for you. I don't say, okay, and then I do have someone our team and she says it to me it makes me just feel good.

She's like, you are, what a queen. Oh. I love that. I remember we've got a few minutes. I haven't gotten that before. Conversation, maybe by the end of this episode, I will end up saying it. I've been called Short King. I don't think it's a compliment.

I don't think it's a compliment. I don't think it's a compliment. but I'll take it. You'll take it. You have short king vibes. Short king energy. Of a main character. That just reminds me of like Napoleon.

I feel like this guy's got an axe to grind and he's going to take over a few countries to deal with it. I can see that, George. You could take like the lazy girl summer, the lazy girl work. What was that one? Lazy girl job? Lazy girl job. You could get all this together and take over Belgium.

I think the guys need some trends. The guys have been phoning it in with. the trends. It's time. I know. The girls have stepped up recently. They have. What trend would you create for the guys? For the guys? Yeah, let's hear them. It's like short king summer. Can we make that a thing? What does that even mean? Like you have to be short. We celebrate the little guys out there doing their best who don't have to rely on their height for their personalities. You know what I mean? Give me another one. What's another one? Oh gosh. Something like skater vibes. Hygiene homies. Guys who floss? You know what I mean?

Yeah, that's a good one. Guys who take care of themselves. I think we didn't normalize guys and self-care. You know, it's not many petties. It's just like, hey, did you brush today? Did we check out that cowlick? What's that doing back here? But you go four steps more.

What does that mean? With the flossing and the mouth. I mean, you like do the whole routine. That's not above and beyond. I feel like that's baseline, Rachel. No. Do you know how I feel about gentle hygiene? I didn't know mouthwash.

You do mouthwash over the top. Yes. My grandpa would do the brown listerine back in his day. This is not a new concept. If you have an electric toothbrush, it's just as good as the dentist. Oh, no. Who told you that? The dentist.

The toothbrush people. The tooth fairy? The toothbrush people. Your kids are losing teeth, aren't they? Well, because of age and the world. I'm just saying they may not have if they went to the dentist. Think about it I think hygiene homie summer

Is going to be the next thing I think that's a great one I'm starting it But let's test your girl math Rachel Yeah yeah yeah Because let's see if I can like take a situation And justify it with girl math

Because I do this a lot in my real life So I'm going to give you a scenario Okay You walk me through it And then we'll unpack How the heck it works You're in your happy place You're shopping at Nordstrom

I imagine that's where A woman of your caliber likes to go For main character energy Let's do it You're looking for a new outfit for an upcoming vacation. Okay. Winston, you and Winston are going on an anniversary trip.

Perfect. We're going to go. Not Hawaii, too basic for you. We're going to Bora Bora. Overwater bunga. Holy crap. Overwater bungal. We're going, all right.

Do those words mean anything to you? Bucket list. Vacation is where we're going. So this is high stakes. Okay. This is an easy justification if it's this. You've given yourself. That's one thing.

Get this, Rachel. For this very expensive vacation, you have a budget of $75 for the dress of your dreams. And you find it. You find it, but the dress is 125, not 75. Walk me through the Girl Math equation. How do you go ahead and justify this in your brain?

You definitely spend the extra $50 to get what you want, because if I don't get it, Girl Math would say that I would be really sad because it would be one night going to the special anniversary dinner that's on the beach, candle it, the whole thing, and I would think this is when I would have wore that dress, and then I would be sad. and then the vacation would kind of be ruined.

And with that vacation, would it cost, what, tens of thousands? I mean, that's like a crazy trip. So tens of thousands of dollars just down the drain because you saved 50. Well, and knowing you, you've done the math on like, well, I'm not going to just wear this once. So if you count it per where, it brings the cost down. Oh, that too. Oh, yeah, because you would at least do it. But that's a fancy drain.

I mean, like, so we're talking like probably five times a summer would probably last you. five, six, seven summers. So at least that's like a good 35, 40 wears. 40 wears? Of the dress over its lifetime, sure. That's impressive. What happens at that seventh summer? Does the dress deteriorate?

No, the fashion changes and it's dunzo. Oh, it's a fashion thing. Because people say like, well, it's past its course. No, I would think if you're 125 on a dress, it's not like an Amazon $30 dress that would deteriorate and probably dissolve into the world seven years later. But 125, I would expect it to hold its... I don't destroy.

I don't know what people are doing to clothing, but mine don't get, like, destroyed. Yeah. Like, my clothes will last forever. Because you probably buy quality clothes, though. That's true. Like, you're not buying off Amazon. Like, I'll buy $30 dresses off Amazon. I did get one of those, like, polos, those knit polos on Amazon.

Oh, yeah, good for you. I love it. Yeah, they're great. So there you go. I'm an Amazon guy. It's basically wasting tens of thousands of dollars on a vacation that you're sad about. vert, you know, for $50. So spend the 50.

Like, I want to go on, I want to buy this. Therefore, I need a reason to buy it. Therefore, I will plan a date or vacation in order to buy this dress. No, I'm the opposite. Usually the event is planned, and then I think about what you wear. Then you justify the purchase. Wow. Okay.

That's helpful, actually. Like, I bought an outfit that I wore this summer. We went on a trip. Taylor Swift, Seattle. Then we went to Napa for two days in home. So we were on four different planes, and I wore the same outfit on each plane. It was like my plane outfit. Okay.

And it was from Amazon $40. It was a cute two-piece, like... Matching? Yep. Mm-hmm. Loved it. Who knew dry cleaning was on the tag? I didn't.

So I washed it because it had a lot of Southwest on it. And it was absolutely ruined. I had a third... I mean, it was just, it was ruined. The audacity. And then I looked at it was dry cleaning for a $40 outfit, which is very interesting. That should be illegal to make clothing that is dry cleaning. Yeah, so my question is, would you, would you not buy something based on, like, how the upkeep is of it?

100%. If I can't maintain it, I'm out. You're out. Yeah. Well, guess what? I bought it again. So we're going to try to be honest, Rachel. I try to dry clean my button-up shirts. I loved it so much.

It was so cute. For longevity, I try to dry clean my button-up shirts once in a while. Yes, that's fair. This one's dry. Can you tell? It's a very starch-looking. It has not been starched to my knowledge. Okay. Okay.

Okay. Okay. Okay. You find a pair of shoes in your car that you forgot to return a few weeks ago. Oh, yeah. look at the receipt, they're still eligible to be returned for a full refund. Okay. You take them to the store, and Tiffany with an eye, that's an important detail.

She's behind the register. She hands you $45 in cash for your return. So cash return, what does Girl Math say? I just made $45. Does that money go into the budget since it was cash, or does it disappear into the ether? It disappears into the ether. Winston is none the wiser. It goes into the Rachel Cruz's Slim Wallet Pocket.

And next time I'm at Shalotsky's or Wendy's. Or Wendy's. Pull that sucker out. And then I get a free meal. I mean, it's a lot of free stuff happening right now. Free money, free meals. So in your mind, at some point, the $45 was budgeted to buy the shoes. What was not in the budget was the income from returning said shoes.

That's right. It does not then have a home in the budget. No. Especially if it's a cash return. And especially if it's at least 30 days out. If you're in a different month in your budget, free. You're in a new era. You are in a new era.

Wow. Okay. For sure. That's some toxic energy in here for it. What if Winston does it? Now, if it's a $800 return. What would Winston buy a circular saw, I imagine? Right?

So he has a circular saw. It's in the trunk. He's like, I've got to return this. He gets cash. He bought a spray painter thing for the yard to do markings around the yard for stuff. Markings? What is he a referee? Yeah, for like the,

irrigation because we got our yard plug. He's like all into that stuff right now. So there you go. So if it was a $20 thing from Hode Depot, I would put the same equation on him. But if it was a, you know, sauna that's like a few thousand dollars, then no. That's different. Yeah, yeah. I'd say, I would say 200 and above is a different level.

He's like, you've got to talk about that. 200 and above it goes back in. Okay. But $199. If this was price is right, Rachel's safe. This is her own free money to use. Oh, man. It's a lot. I mean, maybe 100. But for sure.

Winston, are you listening, my man? You got $199 to spend without her having a word. You got this. Go return some stuff. Go return some stuff. That's a good one, though. Yeah. Especially when it's cash. Because, like, are you going to take the cash? Do you feel that at all? I know we're kind of joking about girl masks.

No, I do. Well, here's what I would do personally. I use cash for my haircuts for a cash discount. So I would just go, like, that goes in my little cash envelope for haircuts. But does that feel like a free haircut then? It feels like a free haircut then? Okay, so you feel the emotion too. Yeah. It's real.

But like depositing at the bank to put that money back in the bank to then budget for it, I don't know that I would do that, truthfully. Yeah. Thank you for your honesty. Yeah, thank you. From the budgeting queen. Okay. Drill math scenario number three, you take yourself to Starbucks because PSL season has officially begun.

You're living your best life. You've a plaid J. Cruz scarf around your neck. Fuzzy socks beneath your ugs. You're living your best life. Main character energy. Hallmark girl. From Lulu Lemon, have you all seen, yeah. Oh, yeah.

There's some great vests right now going on. What does Girl Maths say about buying this PSL at Starbucks? What does Girl Math say about that? The money is loaded in your app. That's a good caveat. Oh, that changes everything. That feels like a free drink. Free drink.

You're like, wow, Starbucks has blessed me with a free PSL. Yeah, it all, yes. And then you probably, let's be honest, because everyone gives Starbucks gift cards. It's like the thing people still give. So you probably have one of those loaded in. Send Rachel, Starbucks gift cards. You probably have like a $1.68 left on one of these when you scroll.

So, like, you get extra money. It's just like an ultra-free drink. Wow. Yeah, my emotions are detached after that is loaded. It's the same with Chick-fil-A. I feel the same with Chick-Fleigh. The money is loaded in the app, therefore it doesn't feel like you actually need to worry about it. That's right.

Because what happens with our family is, like, I go to Pigs. I always do the pre-order on the Chick-Fleigh app. So when we get up there to the drive-thru, it's already done, or we go sit down, it's already in there. But you have to purchase. right through the app, and usually I'll have like $7.28 and $28 left. So they're like, so I'll put an extra 50 on. Well, next time we go, it's just a bunch of free money on there. So it feels like we went to Chick-Fleigh for free, especially if it's the next month.

That's what Chick-Fleigh wants you to think. And then it feels like the next month, you're not having to like log a meal. Yeah. They want you to forget that you just spent $43 for fast food. I know, I know, I know. That's real. You know what I did? Because I experienced this too at Starbucks.

I had auto reload on a Starbucks. So if it went below my amount, it would just automatically reload $10. And that's how they make their money. So I turned off auto reload, Rachel. I was really proud of myself because I tell people to do this. Now, we're on a budget. We're debt-free. It's great, right?

Yeah. But I realize I'm more conscious now about Starbucks purchases when I have to manually reload it with an extra $10 to make that purchase. Because you don't realize that PSL was $6.88. And if you swiped your debit card for that or paid cash, you would feel it. But when it's in the app, it's like, well, yeah. I know. The emotion starts to be detached.

It's a real thing. That's good. Is Winston guilty of any boy math habits? Like, have you noticed anything? I'll say man-math. I think that's more appropriate for Winston. Man-math. I don't think anyone's calling him a boy.

What would be? What would be, like, um... He could justify a tool because it saved him money versus him paying someone else to do that same job with that tool. A hundred percent. Yep. Is that man-math? That would be man math. I'll buy a circular saw.

But in a way, it's all about the circular saw. But in a way, it makes sense because you really would save, right, versus someone, a plumber coming out. If you have some tools, you can fix it. But then the math, like with your outfit, it's, well, I'm going to use this saw at least, you know, five times a year for projects. Yeah. So it'll even out. And I believe that. Maybe I believe all this justification of all this math.

I don't even know what you use a circular saw for. I don't even know what a circular size is. It's a circle. And it goes mur. It definitely does a mur sound. We're really close. We're getting there. This is good.

We're getting there. Well, before we teach our friends about our version of Girl Math, let's break down one more example, Rachel. Yeah, or maybe they spend $20 of their fun money to buy our new favorite game, Tappel. That's a good one. Tapel is so fun. So keep in mind when you do this, you can play multiple times a year for many, many years to come, which means it's basically free. It's basically a free game. So for real, though, in our opinion,

Tappell is a great investment for your family. It's less than $20, and it's endless fun. So start making memories today. Order Tappell at Walmart or wherever you buy games. It's a great one. That's money well spent. We love Tappell. Better than Chick-fil-A.

It's so fun. All right, so it's time to teach the ladies and the gents about our version of Girl Math, and we'll call it Ramsey Arithmetic. How's that hitchy? Yeah, not as like young and hip as the Girl Math, but we'll go. arithmetic feels very like

Little House on the Prairie to me. I feel like we should might as well have an abacus up here. You know, why did I say that? It does. To kill a walking bird, right? You're way above my pay grade right now. Listen, it's been 25. Did you just say atticus? Abacus.

The original way they did math with a little, they moved up. Oh, I thought you said atticus. It sounds like it's very to kill a mockingbird, which arithmetic works in that too, I feel like. You know what an abacus is. It's the old school. They have like a little ball and they move it over to do

math and they'll like slide. Oh, yeah. My children have that. Not that your children had an abacus? Yeah, with all the color beads? Yeah. Yes. When were your children born?

It was a Melissa and Doug, a Melissa and Doug toy. I don't know what that is. You don't know Melissa and Doug yet? It's the wooden toddler toys. Oh, you'll see. It's the fancy schmancy toys. It sounds like the Cruz family's going to be getting Mia a little gift this Christmas. A little Melissa and Doug toy, whoever they are.

Hey, I did get her a smock dress after we talked about it here, didn't I? I can't wait to put her in that. She's going to be the bell of the ball. And he came with a bonnet and George was like, wow, what's this? You know when you smile so big? You're like, this is so beautiful. It really was gorgeous if she was born in 1903. Like she would be the top of the town.

It was a really sweet dress. It's really sweet. Well, she doesn't have an opinion on it yet. Well, here's what you have to do is you have to put her in it and take a picture and send it to me. That's what you're supposed to do with this. baby gifts. Like after they're playing with it or using it, you're like, look, look at Mia. Once she can fit, we'll put her in. I know. So what is the Ramsey version of Girl Math? How do we do this the right way, Rachel? Ramsey arithmetic starts with a budget. We kind of are throwing that

word in and out of this conversation, but it's a real. I mean, honestly, when you have a budget, everything just feels more in control. And I feel like that's when we can kind of have fun with this and kind of joke about the $45 or the like extra money on an app. Because overall, you know you're in control. And that's what's key. But if you don't have any plan, if you have no control, then that's where things start to get a little dicey. That's true. Well, and there's a little bit of this attitude where it's kind of funny to be like, I'm so broke, but then also do the girl math. And so what I'm trying to rally against, like, that's fun. I love watching your TikToks, ladies. But I also want you to hit your financial goals and be a homeowner and invest for the future. And to do that, you got to

get on a budget. And if you want to save for stuff and buy things, we're all about you having that stuff, we don't want it to have you. That's right. So create sinking funds to save a little bit over time and do it with money you actually have. You know what? That's a good point because when we were growing up, do you remember like the Valley Girl trend?

Do you remember like the Valley Girl? Yeah. Like Talking Valley Girl. Yeah, girls would like talk Valley Girl and you would kind of sound dumb. That was like the cool thing back when I was like in high school, middle school. And so in a way, this trend of like Girl Math, like, oh my gosh, I'm so dumb with It's Valley Girl coming back. Yeah.

And in its own sense. with money. So, like, yes, we can laugh at it and it's funny. But, like, if I had my daughter talking like a Valley Girl, there would be a point that I'm like, okay, let's actually, like, learn how to not use like every other word. Let's use, let's know how to speak. And that's the same with this Girl Math is like, after a while, like it's funny. Like, we get it. We can all laugh at it. But then, like, no, really, though, when you're actually in the real world, let's know what to do. We want you to be wise. Like, it's a, you know, it's a maturity thing, an impressive thing when you're a woman that knows how to handle our money.

And you're not, yeah, joking about being broke all the time. That's a good analogy. So a budget is like, you're helping your money talk well. Yeah, you're helping your money sound educated. I like that. So what do you think about this whole girl math mentality? You know, I think it's funny because I think part of it is truthful. Like, as we were all joking about it, there is a part of me that could justify all the purchase.

Yes. Because it's a psychological thing too, and they're just calling it out. So I think, again, recognizing it, sure, we're not going to be perfect. We're all going to fall into that to Niziziz. Grace. Yeah. Grace over time. But your overall financial picture can't suffer because of Girl Math.

Thank you for that. I'm glad you're here to help me understand this all, Rachel. Yeah. So that's it, Jorns. This one's for the girls. And from my hygiene homies out there, this one was for you too. Short Kings. Short Kings.

It's happening, guys. If you're 5-8 or under, hit me up. Here you are. Let's start this club. Okay, so it's almost the end of the episode, and we close out every episode with Guilty as charged. And this is where our producer, Lindsay, gives us a new guiltiest charge question every week. And if we are guilty, we take a sip. Lindsay?

Have you ever purchased something that wasn't in budget and then returned it because of buyer's remorse? Oh, you mean like guilt and shame? Mm-hmm. That's a nice way to say buyer's remorse. Oh, there's a good example. It's pretty much like you don't feel guilt. Okay, Whitney, can I, if Whitney did it, does that count? Sure.

It's a story. But I made her not. Okay, here's the story. Oh, my gosh. I'm so curious. Fun story. So there's this thing called a push present. Guys, this is new information to me.

If your wife is having a baby, you have to get her an extra gift because she had a baby. That's a push present. And she's. Whitney is so low key. She's very, like, doesn't ask for much. But her friend was over with these sunglasses. And so her friend calls me and he's like, Whitney was commenting a lot about how much she loved my sunglasses.

I was like, great, push present, done. I go to the store and I purchase these sunglasses, and then I threw up a little bit in my mouth. That was like, she's worth it. Can you tell me what kind? She's delivering a baby into this world. She's worth every penny. They're called crew.

Okay. Okay. They're the best. They're apparently the best. They are cute. They seemed like good looking plastic sunglasses to me. Okay. But they're very expensive.

So Whitney gets them. She's so excited. She opens the gift. She opens this gift, Rachel. You ready for what happens next? Yes. She's like, I think I need to return them. They're too nice.

No. I feel bad wearing sunglasses this nice. I was like, you deserve it, girl. Your main character energy. You just delivered a baby. You're right character energy. And so I convinced her to not return them, even though she wanted to because they're too nice for her.

So she had buyer's remorse. And she didn't even buy them. And it was a gift. That's how amazing of a person she is. She's so great. I'm glad she kept on. We went to the store. I was like, hey, you can choose any.

If you don't like this color, she walked around the store. She couldn't do it. She was like, I just can't. I think I need to return them. Wait, did you really return them though? She was about to. And I went to the store. Okay, but you did convince them.

I was like, we're going to hold on to him. I'll convince her. So I'll drink to that, to Whitney. Wow, Whitney. What a saint. Woman of the year. What a saint. Give her a few weeks.

She won't regret it. Good. What a saint. It's because she's friends with people like Lindsay who are boozy, and so that helps her step into her busy main character energy. We love it. Boogey on a budget. How about you?

Any buyers are more lately? I know. That's what I'm trying to think. I don't know if I... You have no regrets. I mean, that old Amazon outfit that wasn't supposed to be washed in my washing machine, apparently, was pretty sad. Oh, yeah. But I feel like if you're...

make a purchase, you don't go home and you're like, I shouldn't have done that. I mean, like, if it doesn't fit or it looks weird, I'd take it back. Have you ever bought something that, like, you didn't have a budget, but you justified it somehow? I'm sure. That's what's hard is I'm like, at some point in my life, yes. What about Winston's Rock Garden?

Any regrets there? Any regrets about the Rock Garden? What did we, what if we bought that we're like, man, we just don't. I mean, I feel like Winston buys the more expensive stuff. I buy all like the... But it's more sparse. Yes, more sparse.

He's like a few times a year. Yeah, but he was like into road biking for a while. I mean, he hasn't been on that bike in years. You know what I mean? Shots fire, bro. It's kind of that kind of stuff that you're like, hey, it's a hobby thing. Yes. They get into their hobbies and then they don't...

That's why I don't have hobbies. I'm like, how long am I going to stick to this? What am I going to do? I know. I know. You know, I'll drink just to finish it out. To Winston biking again. To Winston on the road bike.

To Winston's on the road bike. And do Whitney's glasses. She's going to love them. May she actually wear them? This is good, yeah. Soda water, if you just want to make a mocktail. Yeah, I mean, I basically finished it, George. What's your rating on this?

I'm going to have to go 10 out of 10. Maybe a 9 out of 10. 9 out of 10, 10. But I think I would feel confident to drink it again. You know, as I got to the bottom, it got better because the Kaluas sat at the bottom. I should have stirred it a little bit. It kind of changes. The layers change as you get lower.

Yeah, I think it's supposed to be kind of like that. That's why it's called a mind eraser right there. It's a very aggressive. name for a very simple drink. So good. I'm going to go eight out of ten. Okay. I liked it.

I like a more complex, interesting drink, but this is a solid go-to beverage. If you serve you. Short king's symptoms right there. Wow. That is not main character energy. That is bully energy. Here's what's in it. Kalua, which is a coffee liqueur, vodka, and soda water.

Very simple. It comes out to $2.30 to a glass, so cost-effective. and you can find the recipe and the show notes if you want to get the ratios on that. Give it a try this weekend. It's very refreshing. Yes. I think it's great.

Espresso martinis, you like cold brew coffee. Yes. You like coffee flavored anything. You would like it. It's very light, but it kind of reminds me of like a Coca-Cola. In soda water, vodka, and Kalua, you can use for a lot of different things too. So it's not like a very specialty thing that you're having to buy for this one drink. That's true.

So that's good. And if you want to make it a mocktail, just drink soda water. It's that easy. Okay, it's almost closing time. So you guys, thanks for watching and listening to this episode. Make sure to subscribe our subscribers and leave a review. We love reading the reviews. You guys are amazing.

You really are. We love you guys. And we'll see you next Thursday on an all-new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour. Cheers.