Last week, I mentioned finding the drive-in a frugal experience. I don’t plan to be exploring that experience with the not-so-new-anymore movie, Sex and the City. (I meant to write this article a week or two ago.) Then again it’s not like the makers of the movie are targeting my chromosome pairing.
Before I go too much further, I should issue a warning. I’m probably going to upset some readers. In fact, recently I got in a heated discussion with a friend about this very topic (she doesn’t know about my personal finance blogging). Sometimes you have to take to a stand for what you believe in, even if it means stepping on some people’s toes.
I’m not a big fan of Sex and the City. I gave it a decent shot watching more than a dozen shows in my time, but I just don’t get it. I thought it might be because it’s about the lives of (mostly) single women, and I’m a married man. However, I’ve come to reject that notion as I’m a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer – probably the biggest example of (mostly) single women and their empowerment in the media today.
I’m not a big fan of Sex and the City because of the consumerism of the main character, Carrie Bradshaw. How bad is it? Well Wikipedia currently has 550 words to say on just her wardrobe, including “…Carrie claims she has spent over $40,000 on shoes. Her pairs seem to average at least $400 a pop (according to Miranda), and it is implied that she has at least, if not more than, 100 unique pairs.” With just the two feet, I don’t see how that’s possible. If she doesn’t throw them out regularly (and I would think she’d keep $400 shoes for at least two decades), how does she store them all? I’ve seen the closets in New York City… they aren’t large. You can get large closets if you spend for a big apartment. You know what else is not cheap in New York City? Big apartments.
Also if you are going to spend $40,000 on something few people ever see (shoes), how much does she spend on purses or dresses? I would think that’s got to be triple, right?
According to that Wikipedia article, in one episode she “comes to the conclusion that it is okay to spend that much on oneself, specifically one’s shoes, to make the single girl’s walk through life a little more fun.”
This is precisely the thinking that gets people in huge debt.
In stark contrast, here is what Buffy has to say about her footwear:
“Well, I’m not exactly quaking in my stylish yet affordable boots, but there’s definitely something unnatural going on here.”
From this man’s point of view, I’d rather date someone like Buffy who is more concerned about saving the world than expensive name-brand shoes.
I always viewed Sex and The City as commentary on the power of female friendships. To me the the dating, clothes, etc were simple there for to appeal to the shallower audiences. The important part was that these women rely on each other and are part of a self-made family, something I can relate to as a single female who’s friendships make up for the lack of a strong familial unit.
To me only Miranda was even remotely “real” which may be why she was the least liked. I have to agree though that I think as a role model or even as a friend Buffy would have been better, also a show that has a strong “relationships are more important” undercurrent.
I’ve never been able to understand the attraction of Sex and the City either, but television doesn’t get any better than Once More with Feeling. :D
Plus, Buffy’s whole Season Six arc with her being (in effect) a single parent with no job and who still has to save the world even when all she wants to do is crawl back into her grave is a lot more affecting than anything I ever heard of those four going through.
I haven’t seen the movie, and probably won’t, but most of my favorite movie characters weren’t very frugal either and drove really sweet vehicles. Bond? Ironman? Hans Solo? But I guess people think they can be like Carrie. =)
Any post that references Buffy is a good post:) You really have to suspend disbelief with sex and the city. She’s a columnist for a newspaper how does she afford all of it? it’s all fiction
They do not represent smart women. Yes, one is a lawyer and another has her own business but they are not smart women.
Women I know discuss owning their home outright, maxing out their 401K contributions, and having a contingency fund that allows them to be liquid with $40,000 therefore not having to depend on credit cards.
I love both shows, they are probably my top two of all time.
Carrie definitely has credit card debt at the beginning of the series and is sort of “keeping up with the Joneses” as all the other three characters are extremely well off. Her apartment is rent-controlled so she has a pretty decent space for what she is paying. She does borrow from a friend to put a down payment on her apartment. However, once her character gets a book deal then we see some episodes where she is getting checks of $100,000 for advances and the assumption is that she has paid back all her debts. In the second movie she has 5 books out and also is married to an investment banker, so she is very well off as well.
Since all of the characters are portrayed as well off I don’t think you can read much into it about living beyond your means, especially since they frequently reference first coming to NYC and living in tiny crappy apartments and not being able to afford to eat all the time.