Every month around this time, bills arrive and quickly come due. From utility and cellphone bills to credit cards and the mortgage, the envelopes arrive all at once, like clockwork and, unlike checks, they hardly ever come late.

Although I do not like getting bills, I secretly like paying them. Like crossing items off a to-do list, paying bills is an accomplishment that makes me feel proud. Most can be paid electronically, but I will often take the trouble to hand write and mail a check to maximize the experience.

I recognize that many Americans struggle to meet their financial commitments each month and sympathize with their burden. That anxiety is an understandable byproduct of evading the realities of how we amass debt and, all too often, how we fail to pay it off.

My bills are not a surprise. For some unexplained reason, Americans seem outraged when Visa (V) or MasterCard (MA) or AT&T (T) asks them to actually pay for the goods and services they ve enjoyed over the prior month. For all the so-called abuses of credit-card companies, they re not the ones ring up an average of $1,900 in charges each month. Every bill that arrives is a charge we ve voluntarily assumed.

Man is not a wild caribou that can survive instinctually by gnawing on grass or twigs. To live, we must deal with reality and use reason to create the values that keep us alive. We must work, save and plan for the future, which is exactly why half of Americans pay their credit card in full each month.

Despite the example set by federal and state governments, we know that one cannot live outside his means for any prolonged length of time. Regardless if you re a Joe Six Pack or a socialist European economy, bills can be avoided or delayed, but they must be paid eventually. Continually racking up debts you are unable to satisfy requires a willing suspension of reality. That creates anxiety, depression and unhappiness.

Conversely, there s a concrete feeling of achievement in purchasing a good or service, enjoying it fully, then having the financial wherewithal to actual pay the bill once it comes a few weeks later. Vice President Biden is correct: there is a palpable dignity that comes with earning a living and keeping current on one s finances. But that that plateau cannot be reached knowing that your self-worth hinges on a handout from Uncle Sam only through your own rational efforts.

The Big Payback

Americans credit card debt has plummeted.

From a spike in saving to a surge in coupon clipping, the economic downturn has prompted a thriftiness not seen in generations. Americans credit card debt has dropped every month for a record 16 months, shedding $111 billion since September 2008.

Beyond the immediate benefit of getting one s finances on stable ground, the country is discovering the genuine satisfaction that comes with living within your means and fulfilling your obligations. It s the difference between dealing with reality and avoiding it.

Regardless of what the markets do, it s a worthy goal to which all rational Americans should aspire, even if our own government does not.