Poor Your Heart Out

I'm a struggling musician (singer/songwriter), so let's just say I'm not swimming in cash. I adore my girl, but I don't have money to spend on her like her previous rich ex (who'd buy her expensive jewelry and designer handbags), so I feel weird buying her anything at all. What can I get her that shows my love without breaking the bank?

--Underfunded

It probably hasn't escaped her that you sometimes prepare for dates by visiting the Coinstar machine. Money -- even just a little bit of money -- actually can buy happiness, but it helps to know what to spend it on. Research by psychologist Thomas Gilovich finds that money spent on experiences tends to make people happier than money spent on material stuff. That's because we quickly acclimate to the new things in our lives and they stop giving us the same happiness bump they did at first. But an "experiential gift" -- like writing a song for your girlfriend and singing it to her in a romantic location -- is what we might call "reusable happiness." Experiences are a renewable resource because we re-enjoy them as we reflect on them and talk about them. They also become part of a shared relationship history, and that's very bonding. Who knew? It seems there's an upside to not having a bunch of money to spend: your girlfriend looking back fondly on a day with you in a way she never could with all those romantic afternoons she spent with her Ford Fiesta-priced Prada purse.