Author Topic: Overheard at Work  (Read 13253242 times)

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13200 on: May 04, 2016, 05:29:09 PM »
Hey,  540 ft is 5.46 minutes of walking.... EACH WAY.

more like 2 minutes.

Agreed. And if you can't walk at a pace of 20 minutes per mile then you need to do more walking anyway...

I remember the look on my warehouse manager's face when I took my car to pick up lunch when it's a 5 minute walk each way. In my defense, everyone in the office was a trade show and so I had to be quick to avoid missing any calls.


TomTX

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13201 on: May 04, 2016, 08:39:59 PM »

That said, I run a good sized manufacturing plant, and I drive the crappiest car in our lot. It's kind of eye opening to me to see how many of my employees drive brand new trucks and such with a $40k income. I couldn't imagine spending a year's salary on an automobile.

I second this. I run a electronics manufacturing plant and my car is worth less than $2k. Most of my employees drive brand new cars $30-40k range(there entire salary). They used to complain how they were broke to me all the time and I would just point at there car and then to mine.

I have lost the title, or at least I have competitors for "crappiest car on the lot" title at work now that I got a new car. I've also vaulted over the $2k bar, and the new car is POSH. I have Air Conditioning again!

The new car? 2009 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor.

The cost? $2,200 from State Surplus. I could easily turn around and resell for $3k, maybe $4k. I've got YEARS til I'm below $2k again, unless something major goes bad.

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13202 on: May 04, 2016, 10:32:55 PM »
I have a good one from today.  We got an application (name and email have been altered slightly) for a job position that went like this

<Subject> For your consideration
<From> Tyler MuthaFuckn Lewis
(dumbenglishfcuk@hotmail.com)
<Date> May 4, 2016

Live locally, easy to work with.  Previously employed with ________.  Resume attached

<resume.doc>



11ducks

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13203 on: May 05, 2016, 12:08:23 AM »
I have a good one from today.  We got an application (name and email have been altered slightly) for a job position that went like this

<Subject> For your consideration
<From> Tyler MuthaFuckn Lewis
(dumbenglishfcuk@hotmail.com)
<Date> May 4, 2016

Live locally, easy to work with.  Previously employed with ________.  Resume attached

<resume.doc>

Jeepers. Do the kid (I hope its a kid) a kindness and gently point out how unlikely it is that someone will want an employee that chooses those words to advertise/describe himself. Just in case he doesn't know. Cause, wow, why on earth would you?

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13204 on: May 05, 2016, 12:46:58 AM »
I have a good one from today.  We got an application (name and email have been altered slightly) for a job position that went like this

<Subject> For your consideration
<From> Tyler MuthaFuckn Lewis
(dumbenglishfcuk@hotmail.com)
<Date> May 4, 2016

Live locally, easy to work with.  Previously employed with ________.  Resume attached

<resume.doc>

Jeepers. Do the kid (I hope its a kid) a kindness and gently point out how unlikely it is that someone will want an employee that chooses those words to advertise/describe himself. Just in case he doesn't know. Cause, wow, why on earth would you?

I don't think he knew it was going to show up like that.  The job posting was on an employment website where you fill in your name and email and your message/resume and I guess it automatically fills in some information.  He probably thought that his email wouldn't show as from that account.  Either way, I think we will pass

stylesjl

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13205 on: May 05, 2016, 04:01:14 AM »
First time contribution to the wall, I got a new co-worker whom I overheard discussing when she going to get paid for the first time (we normally get paid monthly at my work place). Anyway she then says "I've only got three dollars to my name and car with half a tank of petrol [gasoline]" and this was one week after she got the final pay check from her previous job!

She then proceeded to talk about a time where she blew something like $300 in a single weekend (she did acknowledge that was a waste of money though).
So an update on this same co-worker who today mentioned that she bought a TV, even had the box right beside her at work. She was making mention of the fact that  when she first tried to buy it that she couldn't afford to pay for it in full so she put in a deposit (which also explains why she was asking if I got paid, the pay came slightly later than she thought it would). After she finally got paid she then bought the TV outright. Good lord, I'm getting the impression that she'll be doing this every month, just running out of money right before the end of the month and anxiously awaiting the next pay day as a result. Guess I'll be back in another month telling you what she blew it all on next...

mlejw6

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13206 on: May 05, 2016, 07:53:09 AM »
So an update on this same co-worker who today mentioned that she bought a TV, even had the box right beside her at work. She was making mention of the fact that  when she first tried to buy it that she couldn't afford to pay for it in full so she put in a deposit (which also explains why she was asking if I got paid, the pay came slightly later than she thought it would). After she finally got paid she then bought the TV outright. Good lord, I'm getting the impression that she'll be doing this every month, just running out of money right before the end of the month and anxiously awaiting the next pay day as a result. Guess I'll be back in another month telling you what she blew it all on next...

Keep em comin! Sounds like she will be gold for this thread

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13207 on: May 05, 2016, 09:00:11 AM »
I have a good one from today.  We got an application (name and email have been altered slightly) for a job position that went like this

<Subject> For your consideration
<From> Tyler MuthaFuckn Lewis
(dumbenglishfcuk@hotmail.com)
<Date> May 4, 2016

Live locally, easy to work with.  Previously employed with ________.  Resume attached

<resume.doc>

Jeepers. Do the kid (I hope its a kid) a kindness and gently point out how unlikely it is that someone will want an employee that chooses those words to advertise/describe himself. Just in case he doesn't know. Cause, wow, why on earth would you?

I don't think he knew it was going to show up like that.  The job posting was on an employment website where you fill in your name and email and your message/resume and I guess it automatically fills in some information.  He probably thought that his email wouldn't show as from that account.  Either way, I think we will pass

My company had a job posting out for a technical position and received several applications for an IT job. I was on the review committee so I got to read through them and help screen out the ones who weren't going to be interviewed. One resume focused almost exclusively on the applicant's acting experience. Now I don't mind a resume that shows a bit of diversity in a person's interests, but at least a bit of it ought to be tailored to the job you're applying for. It shouldn't focus almost exclusively on a totally unrelated domain.

All I could think was: "does my workplace LOOK like the setting of 'America, World Police', where we need an actor in order to accomplish our counterinsurgent mission?" The resume hit the circular file almost immediately, but it was too late. I got that cheesy-ass song stuck in my head and walked around humming "America, fuck yeah" the rest of the day.

maco

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13208 on: May 05, 2016, 09:31:25 AM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.

The rest of what she talked about was a subset of things I've learned from reading MMM, though, so there's that.

Student loan payback came up. We have a PhD here, with a LOT of student loan debt. I was like "I'm surprised YOU don't pack your lunch every day" (like I do), and he goes "heh yeah, maybe I should." But later he said food's such a small part of budget compared to the loans.... and I pointed out he could put an extra $200/mo to the loans if he packed his lunch, but he says the time spent cooking and cleaning up is not worth it. *sigh*

MgoSam

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13209 on: May 05, 2016, 09:33:33 AM »
I have a good one from today.  We got an application (name and email have been altered slightly) for a job position that went like this

<Subject> For your consideration
<From> Tyler MuthaFuckn Lewis
(dumbenglishfcuk@hotmail.com)
<Date> May 4, 2016

Live locally, easy to work with.  Previously employed with ________.  Resume attached

<resume.doc>

Jeepers. Do the kid (I hope its a kid) a kindness and gently point out how unlikely it is that someone will want an employee that chooses those words to advertise/describe himself. Just in case he doesn't know. Cause, wow, why on earth would you?

I don't think he knew it was going to show up like that.  The job posting was on an employment website where you fill in your name and email and your message/resume and I guess it automatically fills in some information.  He probably thought that his email wouldn't show as from that account.  Either way, I think we will pass

My company had a job posting out for a technical position and received several applications for an IT job. I was on the review committee so I got to read through them and help screen out the ones who weren't going to be interviewed. One resume focused almost exclusively on the applicant's acting experience. Now I don't mind a resume that shows a bit of diversity in a person's interests, but at least a bit of it ought to be tailored to the job you're applying for. It shouldn't focus almost exclusively on a totally unrelated domain.

All I could think was: "does my workplace LOOK like the setting of 'America, World Police', where we need an actor in order to accomplish our counterinsurgent mission?" The resume hit the circular file almost immediately, but it was too late. I got that cheesy-ass song stuck in my head and walked around humming "America, fuck yeah" the rest of the day.

Thanks, now I'm going to have that song stuck in my head.

A buddy of mine posted an excerpt of an email she received, it said, "I have the skills necessary and I'm ready to start work yesterday. In addition to my experience, I am a national christian rapper." This is off memory, I recall his grammar wasn't so nice.

A bunch of people posted, "I think I know this guy." And she quickly deleted the email, not wanting to shame the person.

theknitcycle

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13210 on: May 05, 2016, 09:39:39 AM »
Wholesaler came into the office today, feeding us lunch in exchange for listening to him.  As part of the warm-up chatting before he launched into what he was selling, he mentioned he had just sold his house and was in the process of moving -- they wanted the kids to have a country experience, so they're moving from a 4700SF house in the suburbs to a 3500SF house just outside of town, with a separate guest house and a barn and 10 acres because his daughter wants a pony.  He said in his "aren't kids cute" voice that when he showed his 10 year old son the new house, the kid expressed reservations that it was "too small" for their family of four and "dad, how will we ever fit in here?  I'm just not sure we can make it work."  Poor kid.

Digital Dogma

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13211 on: May 05, 2016, 10:18:07 AM »

That said, I run a good sized manufacturing plant, and I drive the crappiest car in our lot. It's kind of eye opening to me to see how many of my employees drive brand new trucks and such with a $40k income. I couldn't imagine spending a year's salary on an automobile.

I second this. I run a electronics manufacturing plant and my car is worth less than $2k. Most of my employees drive brand new cars $30-40k range(there entire salary). They used to complain how they were broke to me all the time and I would just point at there car and then to mine.

I have lost the title, or at least I have competitors for "crappiest car on the lot" title at work now that I got a new car. I've also vaulted over the $2k bar, and the new car is POSH. I have Air Conditioning again!
...

For every sub-2k vehicle I see where I work, there are two monster trucks blocking their doors in. They can't even fit in parking spaces anymore, too wide and too long to park properly, and too tall to work out of.

The irony is that clown cars used to be very tiny and packed full with dozens of clowns. These days they're so big they can't fit in a parking space and only one clown comes out when the door opens.

Orvell

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13212 on: May 05, 2016, 10:43:42 AM »
Oh, I've got one.
One of my coworkers recently (FINALLY thank god) moved out from her ex boyfriend's house and into an apartment of her own. It's pretty swank (dishwasher, huge bathroom, new everything) and she hates it (the cabinets are in the wrong spots, the turf hasn't grown in yet --it's new construction so the landscaping is a work in progress-- and her stuff doesn't fit so she 'has' to get a storage unit.)
She confessed she isn't able to save any money while paying her rent (when she lived with her ex, her room and board was free).
So what does she do? One month in to her lease, she asks me my opinion on transferring her lease from the 1-bedroom she's in to a 2-bedroom in the same building. For more money.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13213 on: May 05, 2016, 11:02:13 AM »
the kid expressed reservations that it was "too small" for their family of four and "dad, how will we ever fit in here?  I'm just not sure we can make it work."  Poor kid.

I think this is a great example of how kids really like to mimic their parents.  He probably overheard his mother saying something like that earlier and he repeated the sentiment.  I used to do crap like that all the time before I realized my mother's catch-phrases didn't always make sense.

Dezrah

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13214 on: May 05, 2016, 11:27:47 AM »
I have a story:

DH gets a call around 3pm on a Wednesday.  His boss is at a nearby bar drinking with some other doctors and lawyers and wanted him to join him.  They actually had to change venues to a nearby nightclub (middle of the day) because the bar they were at told them they had a six drink limit.  The whole thing wound up as some bizarre anthropological expedition.  I'll just say that DH is not nearly enough of a drinker, misogynist, or spendthrift to hang regularly with this crowd.

The best story for this forum was from one guy who wanted to go to Vegas.  He goes to his bank and asks for a $10k line of credit.  The bank says sorry, they don't do LOC that small but they could do one for $25k.  So he takes his $25k LOC to Las Vegas for a week.  No word on what exactly he spent it on or whether he paid it off but somehow I think it's unlikely that he spent his time camping and cooking his own meals.

BDWW

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13215 on: May 05, 2016, 11:33:48 AM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.

The rest of what she talked about was a subset of things I've learned from reading MMM, though, so there's that.

Student loan payback came up. We have a PhD here, with a LOT of student loan debt. I was like "I'm surprised YOU don't pack your lunch every day" (like I do), and he goes "heh yeah, maybe I should." But later he said food's such a small part of budget compared to the loans.... and I pointed out he could put an extra $200/mo to the loans if he packed his lunch, but he says the time spent cooking and cleaning up is not worth it. *sigh*

First car for $1800? Ballin!

My first car was $300 dollars. After a few years I upgraded to a $700 dollar car. 

mtn

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13216 on: May 05, 2016, 11:55:10 AM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.

The rest of what she talked about was a subset of things I've learned from reading MMM, though, so there's that.

Student loan payback came up. We have a PhD here, with a LOT of student loan debt. I was like "I'm surprised YOU don't pack your lunch every day" (like I do), and he goes "heh yeah, maybe I should." But later he said food's such a small part of budget compared to the loans.... and I pointed out he could put an extra $200/mo to the loans if he packed his lunch, but he says the time spent cooking and cleaning up is not worth it. *sigh*

First car for $1800? Ballin!

My first car was $300 dollars. After a few years I upgraded to a $700 dollar car.

First car that my parents bought me was about $7k (they didn't let me buy a car since I was paying for most of my own college; they wanted all money to go to school). The second car they bought me (after dad wrecked the first) was about $7,000--we sold that after 5 years and 60k miles for $4,500. The first car I bought myself, while owning the second car they bought me was $200. It ran and drove! Sold that for break even after taxes and driving it for a month or two--I'd probably still be driving that thing if I had room for it.

Second one was for my wife and I to share since we only have one car. After taxes and title, we're really balling at $9k. But wifey spends a lot of time in the car, so it was worth it from that perspective of putting her in a nice place.

MgoSam

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13217 on: May 05, 2016, 12:17:43 PM »


The best story for this forum was from one guy who wanted to go to Vegas.  He goes to his bank and asks for a $10k line of credit.  The bank says sorry, they don't do LOC that small but they could do one for $25k.  So he takes his $25k LOC to Las Vegas for a week.  No word on what exactly he spent it on or whether he paid it off but somehow I think it's unlikely that he spent his time camping and cooking his own meals.

My dad used to draw a bunch of cash for his trips to Vegas, he would get a line of credit from the casino and then settle in cash or check, but he had been going for years and knew his way around and his limit. I'm glad that's stopped gambling apart from playing cards with his friends.

Joggernot

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13218 on: May 05, 2016, 12:26:12 PM »
First car 1949 Ford (14 years old at the time) for $50.  Second car from a field, but it ran: 1950 Chevy (also 14 years old at the time) also for $50.  I'm impressed that you folks found cars for $200 that actually ran.  Around here they are tow-aways.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13219 on: May 05, 2016, 01:35:20 PM »
Shoot, my current car I got a few years ago is an '88 Sentra that runs (even did a regular commute for a few months up to Denver), and I got it for $400.

Threshkin

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13220 on: May 05, 2016, 01:48:20 PM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.

The rest of what she talked about was a subset of things I've learned from reading MMM, though, so there's that.

Student loan payback came up. We have a PhD here, with a LOT of student loan debt. I was like "I'm surprised YOU don't pack your lunch every day" (like I do), and he goes "heh yeah, maybe I should." But later he said food's such a small part of budget compared to the loans.... and I pointed out he could put an extra $200/mo to the loans if he packed his lunch, but he says the time spent cooking and cleaning up is not worth it. *sigh*

First car for $1800? Ballin!

My first car was $300 dollars. After a few years I upgraded to a $700 dollar car.

I am probably a little older than you but my first car was $100, my second car was free (inherited), it wasn't until my third car that I decided to go upscale and spend $700.

Edited to add: I drove my first car from CT to OR a year after I bought it.  All in all I kept that car for about 4 years. After my (ex) GF wrecked it, I beat it back together (sort of) with a sledge hammer and drove it from OR down to central CA.  I finally sold it without further repairs for the same $100 I paid for it.  Gotta love those older American muscle cars. Hard to kill!
« Last Edit: May 05, 2016, 01:56:31 PM by Threshkin »

BDWW

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13221 on: May 05, 2016, 03:44:18 PM »
Yeah, I suppose I should clarify due to age being such a skewer of cost. This($300) was in 1998, a 1984 Chevy Citation II. And actually that thing was a beast, I beat the crap out of it. Only two issues I can think of; occasionally I'd have to get under it and re-attach the muffler after hitting a big bump/pot hole and I had to stop and let it cool down(coolant boiling) when baha'ing up a mountain.
The next car ($700) was a 1972 Ford Maverick, kept it for about 4 years until a minivan ran a red light and t-boned me.  By that time I'd graduated college, and bought a $7500 dollar vehicle!

JoeBlow

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13222 on: May 05, 2016, 09:35:33 PM »
Hey,  540 ft is 5.46 minutes of walking.... EACH WAY.

I calculate 2.04 minutes at a slothly 3mph pace:

60/3 * 540/5280

BFGirl

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13223 on: May 06, 2016, 08:55:34 AM »
This bag looks nice because it is a classic style, clean lines. Also the pp's words of wisdm about dyes is useful.

The current societal obsession with big ass buckles all over the place is silly. Keep your classic bags and let the sheeple pay $300, $400, $500+ for things that are dated within 5 years.
I'm probably inviting the ire of many when I say this, but I feel the same way about a lot of bathroom and kitchen design ideas.  Like tiled countertops or butcher block countertops, hardwood or laminate in the kitchen, or the whole shabby chic movement (ick!).  Heck, I don't even care for subway tile or painted cabinets.

What is wrong with hardwood or laminate in the kitchen? Laminate is cheap; that is the appeal (although I do agree it doesn't look that great all of the time; sometimes I'd prefer linoleum). Hardwood... Well, it was installed in my aunt's kitchen in 1982 and through 3 kitchen renovations it has stayed. It was installed in my grandparents kitchen in the 1940's or early 50's and was only removed when the house was torn down. I always thought it looked excellent in just about any kitchen, and could be a timeless option. Obviously laminate is not, but that is where the price difference comes in.

The problem is really water damage.  I have hardwood in my kitchen but near the fridge is warped due to a water leak.  I like the way the wood looks, and it's moderately easy to clean, but if I was designing a kitchen I'd use tile or vinyl (the difference between vinyl and laminate being that vinyl comes in huge sheets so few water intrusion points).  My kitchen is open plan though so it would look a bit weird to suddenly change from wood to tile

My kitchen is open plan and it looks just fine to switch from hardwood to tile.  I am thankful to have tile in my kitchen instead of wood, but partly because my laundry room is basically in a closet off the kitchen, so I don't worry too much about dishwasher and washing machine leaks warping the floor.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13224 on: May 06, 2016, 10:22:46 AM »
Wholesaler came into the office today, feeding us lunch in exchange for listening to him.  As part of the warm-up chatting before he launched into what he was selling, he mentioned he had just sold his house and was in the process of moving -- they wanted the kids to have a country experience, so they're moving from a 4700SF house in the suburbs to a 3500SF house just outside of town, with a separate guest house and a barn and 10 acres because his daughter wants a pony.  He said in his "aren't kids cute" voice that when he showed his 10 year old son the new house, the kid expressed reservations that it was "too small" for their family of four and "dad, how will we ever fit in here?  I'm just not sure we can make it work."  Poor kid.
I'm not sure the free lunch was worth that.

pancakes

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13225 on: May 08, 2016, 12:32:21 AM »
One of my colleagues has always been struggling financially.

They've sold their home and have purchased a block of land which they'll be building a new home on. In the mean time they'll be living with family rent free. I commented that this would be a great opportunity for them to build some savings or pay off the land quickly and was told that the mortgage on the block of land is higher than their pervious home so things will be even tighter for them.

This is before they've even priced or added to the mortgage the cost of building the new house...

We all chipped in at work recently to get their daughter something for her birthday after they complained that they had no money in their accounts to buy anything. Two weeks later on payday they were celebrating their new mortgage with a $150/head meal at a top restaurant...

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13226 on: May 08, 2016, 05:34:31 AM »
We all chipped in at work recently to get their daughter something for her birthday after they complained that they had no money in their accounts to buy anything. Two weeks later on payday they were celebrating their new mortgage with a $150/head meal at a top restaurant...
I would have asked my money back them. Clearly they lied and did have enough money for their child.

The poor little thing with such parents... 

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13227 on: May 09, 2016, 11:29:11 AM »
We all chipped in at work recently to get their daughter something for her birthday after they complained that they had no money in their accounts to buy anything. Two weeks later on payday they were celebrating their new mortgage with a $150/head meal at a top restaurant...
I would have asked my money back them. Clearly they lied and did have enough money for their child.

The poor little thing with such parents...

How dare you. These people sound like they are really struggling and couldn't find a way to buy their daughter presents. That dinner celebration was something they deserved for surviving through their struggles. It comes from two separate budgets...1) actual money and 2) fairy-tale money. #2 is needed because can you really except them to live like paupers just because they are? Shame on you!


Metric Mouse

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13228 on: May 11, 2016, 04:02:26 AM »
We all chipped in at work recently to get their daughter something for her birthday after they complained that they had no money in their accounts to buy anything. Two weeks later on payday they were celebrating their new mortgage with a $150/head meal at a top restaurant...
I would have asked my money back them. Clearly they lied and did have enough money for their child.

The poor little thing with such parents...

How dare you. These people sound like they are really struggling and couldn't find a way to buy their daughter presents. That dinner celebration was something they deserved for surviving through their struggles. It comes from two separate budgets...1) actual money and 2) fairy-tale money. #2 is needed because can you really except them to live like paupers just because they are? Shame on you!

You tell it Tjat! It's so hard for the middle class these days!

dz1087

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13229 on: May 11, 2016, 09:04:37 AM »
So, I work with about 140 young professionals (officers) in my unit.  Most of them have $20-40k vehicles, but there are a few that have the $70k dually trucks and a few that have the $90-120k fancy cars.

The other day, I was standing at our ops desk (kind of like the receptionist at an office building - a lot of people hanging around and going to and fro) and a hail alert came in through weather.  All of a sudden I hear people whining in despair about getting hail damage and a few just went home to garage their precious babies (it was late in the day).  I looked over at a buddy of mine and we both just shook our heads and laughed.  I drive a $2k 90's beater and he still drives the 90's car he had in high school.  I wouldn't even notice hail damage!  In fact, one time I had it parked at a local airport and someone sat or stomped on the hood and dented it in real bad.  I actually laughed when I saw it, popped the hood and used my fist to beat out most of the dent -- good as new!


As a note, we live in in an area that has a lot of hail storms, terrible roads with lots of loose gravel, and angry people that key cars a lot.  I have no clue what motivates anyone to buy an expensive vehicle, especially in a place like this!

Chris22

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13230 on: May 11, 2016, 09:19:44 AM »
the kid expressed reservations that it was "too small" for their family of four and "dad, how will we ever fit in here?  I'm just not sure we can make it work."  Poor kid.

I think this is a great example of how kids really like to mimic their parents.  He probably overheard his mother saying something like that earlier and he repeated the sentiment.  I used to do crap like that all the time before I realized my mother's catch-phrases didn't always make sense.

OTOH, you have my almost-4y/o daughter.  We moved from an 1800 sq ft house + full basement to a 1200 sq ft house with a 500 sq ft basement.  The other day, my daughter told my wife "I wish we had a bigger house".  My wife says, why, why do you want a bigger house?  Daughter says, you know, like XXX's (neighbor across the street).  Their house is the identical model as ours.  Later she wanted to play in YYY's back yard next door instead of ours, "because it's more spacious".  You guessed it, lots are identical.  Kids.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13231 on: May 11, 2016, 09:45:14 AM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.


Our premarital counseling required us to meet with a financial counselor (a parishioner looking for easy leads- it felt really slimy!)

He asked what our dream cars were, I said a Prius, my husband said a Boxster.
Then when we went back a week later he tells me "I didn't have data on what the Prius cost, so I assumed $50k"

Um, we got married in 2004. The internet existed. Try asking Jeeves or whatever we did then rather than coming up with an INSANE number for that car.  I was so annoyed I tuned out everything else. 


(Also- I later decided a Prius was too expensive, even though I'm spendypants as far as MMM goes with cars. I paid $18k, cash of course, for my Elantra Limited).

Inaya

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13232 on: May 11, 2016, 12:42:05 PM »
Yesterday, a financial advisor came to talk to us about diversifying and mutual or index funds and whatnot. She started out her demonstration talking about inflation. I didn't notice the charts she had in the pamphlet showing ... I guess "typical"? ... prices for things in 1934, 1980, and 2015.

So she goes "for instance, how much did you pay for your first car?"

Me: "$1800"

Financial advisor looks over, sees that I'm a 20-something, not a 60-something, throwing out that number, and goes "I don't have anywhere to go with that."

The chart had 30-something thousand as a price of a car in 2015. Whaaaaat. I've bought a brand new car before too. It was like $15,000 after the extended warranty and everything.

Um, we got married in 2004. The internet existed. Try asking Jeeves or whatever we did then rather than coming up with an INSANE number for that car.  I was so annoyed I tuned out everything else. 


Jeeves! Yes! Jeeves and AltaVista were my go-to search engines before Google blew up.

JordanOfGilead

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13233 on: May 11, 2016, 12:44:55 PM »
Conversation between a coworker and I; he knows that I am car savvy and sometimes asks me questions.

CW:My son bought a new Tacoma.
Me:Oh really?  Does he have a really good job?
CW: It's ok, I guess he can afford the payment.
Me: Oh mmhmm.
CW:Of course he had to get new rims and tires for it.
Me: [Trying not to visibly wince] Ouch, bet that was expensive.
CW: Yeah he had to buy different lugnuts and stuff too, so that was like another $100 or so on top of it.
Me: [I could tell at this point he thought it was dumb too] Do you think he learned his lesson?
CW: I hope so, he just wrapped it around a tree so it is in the shop at the moment.
Me: Oh.  [then silence, I had no more words]

Of course he does not need an expensive truck for his job or at all.  This is a reoccurring theme here though, especially for Tacoma owners.  I see hundreds of those things every day and the only thing they ever haul or tow is a dog!
Tacomas come with some pretty crappy tires, but thats no reason to buy new rims. If you're gonna wrap something around a tree, the Tacoma is a pretty safe choice.
I just wrapped a scion around a pole and walked away without a scratch. If you're going to be in a crash, I would whole-heartedly recommend Toyotas.
The best part? I had a backup beater 98 civic and don't need to replace the car, so the insurance is paying off a big chunk of my pre-mustachian debt and all I had to do was give up my car! (It took a while for me to see this silver lining).

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13234 on: May 11, 2016, 02:23:44 PM »
Conversation between a coworker and I; he knows that I am car savvy and sometimes asks me questions.

CW:My son bought a new Tacoma.
Me:Oh really?  Does he have a really good job?
CW: It's ok, I guess he can afford the payment.
Me: Oh mmhmm.
CW:Of course he had to get new rims and tires for it.
Me: [Trying not to visibly wince] Ouch, bet that was expensive.
CW: Yeah he had to buy different lugnuts and stuff too, so that was like another $100 or so on top of it.
Me: [I could tell at this point he thought it was dumb too] Do you think he learned his lesson?
CW: I hope so, he just wrapped it around a tree so it is in the shop at the moment.
Me: Oh.  [then silence, I had no more words]

Of course he does not need an expensive truck for his job or at all.  This is a reoccurring theme here though, especially for Tacoma owners.  I see hundreds of those things every day and the only thing they ever haul or tow is a dog!
Tacomas come with some pretty crappy tires, but thats no reason to buy new rims. If you're gonna wrap something around a tree, the Tacoma is a pretty safe choice.
I just wrapped a scion around a pole and walked away without a scratch. If you're going to be in a crash, I would whole-heartedly recommend Toyotas.
The best part? I had a backup beater 98 civic and don't need to replace the car, so the insurance is paying off a big chunk of my pre-mustachian debt and all I had to do was give up my car! (It took a while for me to see this silver lining).
A few years back here was a hailstorm that demolished a whole village.
At the end you just had to send in photos of your golfball-like car to the insurance to get your money.
From time to time I see one of those still driving around. After all the worst that happened (if at all) was broken windows, its not as if the engine is broken or real holes in the metal or something like that. The dots may even make it more fuel efficient (or less, I guess nobody tested it)

So if you think you are lucky... :D ;)

mtn

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13235 on: May 11, 2016, 02:40:17 PM »
Conversation between a coworker and I; he knows that I am car savvy and sometimes asks me questions.

CW:My son bought a new Tacoma.
Me:Oh really?  Does he have a really good job?
CW: It's ok, I guess he can afford the payment.
Me: Oh mmhmm.
CW:Of course he had to get new rims and tires for it.
Me: [Trying not to visibly wince] Ouch, bet that was expensive.
CW: Yeah he had to buy different lugnuts and stuff too, so that was like another $100 or so on top of it.
Me: [I could tell at this point he thought it was dumb too] Do you think he learned his lesson?
CW: I hope so, he just wrapped it around a tree so it is in the shop at the moment.
Me: Oh.  [then silence, I had no more words]

Of course he does not need an expensive truck for his job or at all.  This is a reoccurring theme here though, especially for Tacoma owners.  I see hundreds of those things every day and the only thing they ever haul or tow is a dog!
Tacomas come with some pretty crappy tires, but thats no reason to buy new rims. If you're gonna wrap something around a tree, the Tacoma is a pretty safe choice.
I just wrapped a scion around a pole and walked away without a scratch. If you're going to be in a crash, I would whole-heartedly recommend Toyotas.
The best part? I had a backup beater 98 civic and don't need to replace the car, so the insurance is paying off a big chunk of my pre-mustachian debt and all I had to do was give up my car! (It took a while for me to see this silver lining).
A few years back here was a hailstorm that demolished a whole village.
At the end you just had to send in photos of your golfball-like car to the insurance to get your money.
From time to time I see one of those still driving around. After all the worst that happened (if at all) was broken windows, its not as if the engine is broken or real holes in the metal or something like that. The dots may even make it more fuel efficient (or less, I guess nobody tested it)

So if you think you are lucky... :D ;)

My wife's grandpa had an Oldsmobile that he bought new after it had been sitting on the lot for a year. Not too long after (a year or two), there was a horrible hail storm. They took the insurance money and renamed the car: Dimples.

shanghaiMMM

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13236 on: May 11, 2016, 11:17:30 PM »
Went to an after work event yesterday called 'Health and Wealth'.

I had no idea what / who would be talking but was intrigued when I saw the speaker was from RL360, the same that caught MMM's ire. His whole premise was, 'your time is precious, don't waste it by stressing about money, it's too complicated! Leave it to us, the experts!'. This claim was somewhat undermined by the 5 apostrophe and 2 spelling mistakes in his presentation. He then proceeded to scaremonger the audience about inheritance tax, insurance etc etc.

Worrying thing was, I heard plenty of murmurs of agreement and such at the end from the crowd. 


dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13237 on: May 11, 2016, 11:27:57 PM »
Went to an after work event yesterday called 'Health and Wealth'.

I had no idea what / who would be talking but was intrigued when I saw the speaker was from RL360, the same that caught MMM's ire. His whole premise was, 'your time is precious, don't waste it by stressing about money, it's too complicated! Leave it to us, the experts!'. This claim was somewhat undermined by the 5 apostrophe and 2 spelling mistakes in his presentation. He then proceeded to scaremonger the audience about inheritance tax, insurance etc etc.

Worrying thing was, I heard plenty of murmurs of agreement and such at the end from the crowd.

Are you sick and tired of the gummint stealing your hard earned money?  Sure, we all are! 

<Murmurs in agreement>

JLee

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13238 on: May 12, 2016, 12:01:11 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

Chris22

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13239 on: May 12, 2016, 12:05:10 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13240 on: May 12, 2016, 12:06:07 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

And when she finds out, decent chance that she'll feel he deserves lawyer's fees and alimony payments, so I guess it's all about what he really deserves... ;)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13241 on: May 12, 2016, 12:11:37 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

MgoSam

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13242 on: May 12, 2016, 12:12:10 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

I'm not a car person, but that doesn't seem like the dumbest thing in the world. My guess, though, is that his wife will retaliate by buying something around that price point, which can really add up. I've seen too many couples posting on FB about how due to one spouse buying ____(insert expensive toy), they get to buy ____(insert another expensive toy).

MgoSam

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13243 on: May 12, 2016, 12:13:06 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

"When did you get the car?"
"What, this old thing? I've had it for ages honey. Are you feeling well today?"

onlykelsey

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13244 on: May 12, 2016, 12:13:19 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

Yeah, I feel like the jig would be up on that pretty quickly unless you have like a 15 car garage.  If you do, you're probably not buying BMWs...

As a matter of finances I could make a 50K purchase without my husband knowing but I don't know what I could waste 50K on that didn't take up room.  Jewelry?

Kitsune

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13245 on: May 12, 2016, 12:30:00 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

Hah! My standard 'sneak this past my husband' is going 3$ overboard on my ebook budget. I'm suddenly feeling a lot less guilty about that... ;)

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13246 on: May 12, 2016, 12:41:12 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

Yeah, I feel like the jig would be up on that pretty quickly unless you have like a 15 car garage.  If you do, you're probably not buying BMWs...

As a matter of finances I could make a 50K purchase without my husband knowing but I don't know what I could waste 50K on that didn't take up room.  Jewelry?

Hookers and blow

Chris22

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13247 on: May 12, 2016, 01:13:51 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

Presumably he's hiding the PURCHASE from the wife, not POSSESSION.  She'll find out eventually, after it's too late to stop it.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13248 on: May 12, 2016, 01:49:07 PM »
Overheard at the table next to me in the cafeteria today..."I bought a BMW Z3 without telling my wife, but I felt like I deserved it."

They haven't made a Z3 for like 12 years, and you can pick one up for <$7500. 

So still dumb, but not like he made a $50k purchase dumb.

Um...I'll admit I've made a few $200 handbag purchases without telling my husband (you're not going to tell him, either, are you?), but how in the world do you sneak a car past your spouse?

Presumably he's hiding the PURCHASE from the wife, not POSSESSION.  She'll find out eventually, after it's too late to stop it.

Just tell her it's stolen

RWD

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #13249 on: May 12, 2016, 01:50:22 PM »
Hah! My standard 'sneak this past my husband' is going 3$ overboard on my ebook budget. I'm suddenly feeling a lot less guilty about that... ;)

Are you my wife? Between this and the house cleanliness stuff over in the Facebook thread you sound a lot like my wife. Except we don't have kids...

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!