Economic Decisions of Thanksgiving Break

Over Thanksgiving break, my grandparents came to visit my parents and me. Despite their age, both my grandma and grandpa travel frequently, but given their limited income they faced limited travel possibilities without living beyond their means. After much thought, my grandpa decided to start a small business endeavor, and market himself to cruise lines as a bridge instructor. After ten cruises teaching bridge, however, it became clear to my grandparents that- although less expensive than it would have been otherwise- they still incurred costs greater than benefits by going on cruises. Just like a firm, my grandpa found himself operating in the long-run below his individual average total cost curve, and chose to leave the market.

The day before Thanksgiving, a packaged arrived for my Dad in the mail. Rarely in our household has a single package be an object of such controversy. My dad had caved, buying a flat-screen television, making us possibly the last family in Chagrin to get rid of our antiquated TV and embrace the trend of high-definition. Influenced by changes in technology boosting supply, and changing tastes revoking the flat-screen’s boxy predecessor, my father made the purchase despite the avid protests of my minimalist mother. When it arrived, the TV itself boasted cost-efficiency, asserting via the packaging that it carried operation costs nearly a third of the costs associated with a TV like the one we formerly used. Though it boasts a low opportunity cost, the flat-screened television has still not gained my mother’s approval.

A staple of my family’s Thanksgiving celebration is desert which always features a pie often bought from the local supermarket. While in the past we’ve had one pumpkin and on pecan, this year the pie varieties differed. Instead of pecan pie, my grandmother purchased mincemeat, largely due to the high cost of pecans. My grandmother’s refusal to continue purchasing pecan pie given their price increase demonstrates that- to her at least- pecan pie is an inelastic good. Given her reduced income from recently retiring, the preference for mincemeat pie reveals it as an inferior good, while pecan pie is normal. Also inferable is that mincemeat pie is a substitute good to pecan pie.

Over my break, I grew increasingly tired of the music on my ipod. While eager for some new songs, I faced a dilemma of how to acquire them. I had two option- buy the songs off itunes for nearly a dollar (sometimes more) apiece, or get my music through less reputable methods. While itunes would guarantee me high-quality audio, I could get songs for free from a youtube to mp3 converter albeit with often lower quality. After evaluating the costs and benefits of each option, I opted for the mp3 converter. Despite the occasional sacrifice of sound quality, my utility from free songs still exceeded that of songs purchased off itunes.

After a long day of assisting my mom and grandmother in the kitchen, I eventually got to sit with my family and enjoy the Thanksgiving meal. After consuming significant portions of mashed potatoes, stuffing, roasted vegetables, cranberry sauce, and of course turkey, my enthusiasm for the food I helped prepare began to wane. I had reached the point where, despite the yearnings of my taste buds, my stomach couldn't tolerate more of the heavy Thanksgiving spread. At the point where I started valuing each bite less and less, until consumption stopped adding to my enjoyment and began detracting from it, I stopped eating. My decision demonstrated the law of diminishing marginal utility, that when I increased consumption of a product while keeping consumption of other products constant, I experienced a gradual decline in the marginal utility derived from consuming each additional unit.