Fascinating opinion piece by Allen Tucker on how we should be paying more for the stuff we buy and, in turn, buy less of it. As he explains:

Have you ever inherited something that's really old? When you held it, did you notice that it's different than what you can buy at the store today? Chances are your grandparents saved up for quite some time to buy it, and that's why it's lasted until now.

Often something that costs twice as much doesn't perform twice as long, it lasts ten times longer.

And he's got an interesting tit-bit about tipping, which resonates with me -- I will gladly pay more if the service I receive is above average:

No one cares about $5 unless it's a tip or part of a meal. This is so weird to me. No one haggles over $5 on the price of a car, but it seems that everyone needs a tip calculator to determine if they should pay 21.50 or $22.00 for a meal.

I usually eat at the same few restaurants all the time. They're maybe 10% more expensive, usually locally owned, and the food doesn't come out of a frozen pre-made bag before being tossed in the oven. I never tip less than 20%, and I'm not an asshole....at restaurants.

I always get great service. The staff who isn't even waiting on me comes over to say hi. They know what I'm going to order, and if I forget something, they know it.

This doesn't happen at Applebee's or McD's.

Overpaying in small ways is often not financially significant to you, but it seems like a lot to someone else. Over tipping makes $2 or $5 seem like a lot of money. This multiplies the value of your money.