Why Netflix loves me.

I will assume that if you are reading this post, you know what Netflix is. If you don't know what it is, please crawl out from under that rock and say hello to the 21st century.

Now then. A confession.

I am a total Netflix loser.

Even though I'm on the cheapest possible plan - receiving one DVD at a time, up to two a month, and a limited amount of on-line viewing time - the company is totally making money off of me.

And you know what? I don't care.

Netflix was designed for people like me. It's a fantastic business created for folks who have a terrible record for returning rented movies on time. I cringe at the thought of how much we paid in late fees over the years for movies we either never got a chance to watch, or watched as soon as we got them home, then it took us three days (Or a week. Or long enough that the movie rental place was calling us to bring them back.) to remember to put them in the car to return them. That translates to $2 or more in late fees for each video, each day.

This is why I love Netflix, and Netflix loves me. I can keep the DVD's for weeks at a time if I want and as long as I continue to pay the monthly fee there are no extra late fees and no worries.

Case in point: I still have the DVD Netflix sent to me on January 30. I likely received it February 1. (Another reason I love Netflix - the quick turnaround. I send a DVD back and have the next one from my Queue within a couple of days.) Here's the part that makes me a total loser, though: I watched the movie three weeks ago and I still haven't sent it back.

As if that weren't enough to place my name in the deadbeat column, there's more. I've kept DVD's even longer than this one.

I'm not lazy. I'm not even that disorganized. Sticking that envelope in the mailbox just isn't high on my list of priorities on any given day.

Yes, I pay $4.99 a month for the privilege of keeping a rented DVD for as long as I darn well please. It's not the dumbest thing I've ever done, and certainly not the worst thing I could be wasting money on. Definitely not worth the energy it would take to feel guilty over. So I don't.

Do you regularly spend a guilt-free $5 or $10 (or more) on something, even if it's impractical? Just because it's fun, or it's your one vice?

Movies? Coffee? Sunday morning donuts? Video games? Eyebrow waxing? (OK, I guess that one might be very practical for some.) Lunch at Burger King? Dollar store toys for the kids?

Humor me. I'm curious.