That’s an expression that comes to mind many times when I chat with friends about financial things in their lives, but I usually dare not say the expression for fear of alienating or upsetting them. The first time I heard the expression someone said, A woman needs a man, like a fish needs a bicycle, which made me scratch my head, but I eventually understood the point being made (which was that Fish really don’t need bicycles, I think). Gloria Steinem made the expression a little more popular, but she didn’t coin the phrase, it was coined by Irina Dunn.
With this in mind I give you some of my own home-grown financial expressions that I hope are a little clearer than the fish needs a bicycle comment:
- Sam needs a pay day loan like a penguin needs a George Foreman grill.
- Arlene needs another credit card like a moose needs an ice cream scoop.
- Sammi the new grad needs a new car like Foghorn Leghorn needs a new car.
- Ottawa needs another Cheque Cashing Storefront like Ottawa needs more sinkholes
Like a Fish Needs a Bicycle
For those who wonder what this analogy might look like, our friends at Guiness helped us out with this useful ad:
Yeah I’m with Money Beagle. I’m much more familiar with the hole in the head line. It is a pretty flexible line though. I think your friend using it about men may be of the lesbian persuasion.
My grandma used to always say “I need (that) like I need a hole in the head.” Don’t really understand the reference but I still use it.
I said, “I need that like I need ANOTHER hole in my head”, but given today’s generational love of piercings and such, maybe the saying is passe?