My ability to process Euros is impaired

anna7602

I know the dollar suuucks right now, but I can't help reading prices in Euros and thinking, oh, 70 Euros isn't bad for that, even though it is actually closer to $100 (plus some). Perhaps this is a necessary survival strategy so I don't spend the next year getting a stomach ache every time I walk into a store, but I have decided to cut short my foray on Amazon.fr for the time being. I will wait until I arrive (Monday morning, AHHHH!) to order the items I am not packing for the move.

MrsBini10

From what I've heard, it's best for your sanity not to convert prices to dollars--just think of it as "units"

FayeD

Ah, yes, the memories. I would love when a product was priced in the euro version (10 euros vs 10 dollars) and I knew I was paying extra.

kelly321

Sigh. Back in the day, the first year I was over here, things were still in German Marks so I got to divide by 2 to get the dollar price, and the Euro (used for electronic transactions but not yet in paper form) was only worth $0.89. Now when I say that I feel ancient, like, "I used to have to walk 10 miles in 5 feet of snow uphill both ways to school when I was young, so stop complaining young man!" kind of ancient. :-(

aMrsin09

Are you being pain in Euros or in dollars?  It's an easier one for one mental exchange if you are being paid in euros. 

I never had a problem "not converting" in my head, but it also helped that if we were paying 18 euros for dinner, it was the same meal that we would have paid 18 dollars for.  The only thing I couldn't help but mentally convert was for shoes.  I wasn't going to pay 50 euros for a pair of Reef flip flops.

 

azure_azure

The semi-annual sales start soon, I think the 7th, stock up on stuff then! I've found kids clothes for 80% off previous years. 

I agree, it's hard not to convert.

ukyankee

It's hard not to convert when you are potentially moving back, but it will cause you to never buy anything again while in Europe if you keep converting.  And if you are already paid in Euros, then I would just go with thinking in units & "can you afford it?".

elenetxu

I just figure that I'm earning euros so why convert?
The thing that is fun to convert is my salary. Gosh did that make me feel better about life.

myblueangel19

 Don't convert! It is really a pain in the neck if you think in dollars.

azure_azure:

The semi-annual sales start soon, I think the 7th, stock up on stuff then! I've found kids clothes for 80% off previous years. 

I agree, it's hard not to convert.

I heard it was the 11th, but I am definitely waiting to do my shopping until the sales start! woohoo!

NLfoodie

What helps too is that in most of Europe (honestly don't remember it from the last time in France) the taxes are always already added to the ticket price. If I haven't been to the US in a while, I always have to get used to paying more than it says. That helps you in 'learning' not to convert, in the US it might be 10 dollars plus tax (and you're in NYC right? High taxes), in Europe it'll be 10 euros total.

The 8.something percent tax might not make up for the entire exchange rate, but it takes off a little (and makes it all that much more confusing).

Avion22

Yeah, the dollar sucks compared the pound too....I try not to think about it.  I get paid in dollars, though I get "extra" to compensate for the exchange rate, but it's still painful to think about how much things cost, so I try not to:-)    Generally I can afford to live to the same standard as when I was in the states, so it's not a huge deal.

But yikes...spending the equivalent of $9/gallon per gas sucks no matter what it costs in pounds/litre!! 

anna7602

kelly321:

Sigh. Back in the day, the first year I was over here, things were still in German Marks so I got to divide by 2 to get the dollar price, and the Euro (used for electronic transactions but not yet in paper form) was only worth $0.89. Now when I say that I feel ancient, like, "I used to have to walk 10 miles in 5 feet of snow uphill both ways to school when I was young, so stop complaining young man!" kind of ancient. :-(

This was the case when I was working in Spain in 2002. Those were the good old days!

Thanks for commiserating, everyone. DH and I will be paid in dollars, but such is life. We've adjusted to the cost of living in NYC and I'm sure we'll adjust in Paris.