Walmart

I don't understand why companies and agencies do their annual budget the way they do. I especially don't understand two things:

1) Why aren't fiscal years the same as regular years? Why do they have to go July 1 - June 30?

and,

2) Why, if you don't spend money budgeted for the fiscal year, does it go away come the new fiscal year? Why can't whatever wasn't spent rollover into the new fiscal year?

Anyway, these questions came up for me recently because the group home I manage desperately needed a new TV. I think in the time I've been working there we had received 3 donated TVs and well, it was time for a new one. Turns out our recreation budget had some unused $900 in it and it was going to "go away" if we didn't spend it before July 1. New TV is a go!

Only problem: the powers that be wanted me to purchase one of those old school TVs that have an ass. One of them had seen these TVs at Walmart and said I should go get one at Walmart.

Walmart.

My grandmother worked for Walmart years ago and weren't very nice to her. I hate Walmart.

But when bosses "suggest" something most of the time it means "do it". So I took their $900 and off to Walmart I went in search of a TV with some ass.

Turns out those TVs are now considered old school and are extinct. My friendly TV helper informed me they no longer carried those TVs and she was pretty sure it was going to be hard to find a new one. Oh shoot, I have to buy a flat-screen TV.

I bought a Vizio 32" TV for $378. I thought that was crazy cheap. After picking out a wall mount and DVD player, I still had a few hundred bucks to spend. I picked up a few movies, some board games, a basketball and a football, and of course, arts and crafts stuff. I thought I'd done pretty good with $900.

I was wrong. I'd done pretty good with $714.

My issue with all this? I spent a good hour and a half at Walmart and realized that they have a lot of great stuff for really great prices.

Crap. I saw all kinds of stuff that I could use for both the home I manage and the home I live in.

In these tough economic times and my never-ending quest for a good deal, I may have to reconsider my position on Walmart.