We all have our little quirks that we do during the everyday normal course of our lifes. But have we taken a step back to see just how much this really cost us and what is it keeping us from having if we did things a little different.

These seem like reasonable decisions about relatively small expenses. It's hard to imagine how much they add up. The harsh reality is that each dollar that's spent today isn't available for something else tomorrow. And these little purchases have a way of robbing us of the things we really want.

Why? Most of us haven't stopped to consider whether that daily latte is truly precious to our well-being, or if it's just a habit. If it's precious, it's worth doing -- at least part of the time. But is it worth giving up the convertible Mustang that all those cups of coffee could otherwise have purchased?

I have done the math on the cost of just a few that I must admit I am as guilty as the next person, but to show you how much and maybe think of what you could do if you knew. These seem like reasonable decisions about relatively small expenses. It's hard to imagine how much they add up.
The harsh reality is that each dollar that's spent today isn't available for something else tomorrow. And these little purchases have a way of robbing us of the things we really want.

1. Coffee/Donut: $4 a day, that over 10 years is $ 22,389 and over 30 years $190,453 !
2. Pizza Delivery: $25 a week, that over 10 years is $18,661 and over 30 years is $158,731 !
3. Smoking : $35 a week, that over 10 years is $26,125 and over 30 years is $222,223 !
4. Lunch out at work: $10 a day, over 10 years is $37,322 and over 30 years is $317, 462 !
5. Golfing: $75 a week, over 10 years $55,983 and over 30 years is $634,924 !

The presumption is that if you hadn't spent this money, you would have saved it and earned an average of 8% on your investments. The expense figures are estimates, of course. Things like golf green fees can vary widely. And your personal money pits are probably different -- maybe you buy songs or videos each week, or regularly drop $10 to add games to your iPad.
That's not really the point. You can probably relate to the notion of $20 or two inexplicably dropping out of your pocket for things you never really focused on buying. When you see how those little things add up, you might choose to pay more attention.
What's your money pit? Have you ever tried to calculate the long-term cost? What could you do if you saved this instead? Just some thoughts from Powell's Thoughts.