I keep thinking about the way my husband just sort of… signed the papers for that new car. Like it was nothing. I remember my dad, he used to count out every dollar, every single one, just to make sure we’d make it to the end of the month. Watching him, I sort of felt this cold squeeze in my chest, a feeling like sand slipping through your fingers, you know? Like maybe I got it all wrong, this whole idea of keeping things tight, keeping a little bit put away for a rainy day… maybe it’s just not how things are done anymore, and I’m just old-fashioned, I guess. I just don't want us to end up like my parents, always counting pennies and arguing, and I wonder if that new car is like the first little crack in the dam, you know?