Overheard at Work

[marielle]

I prepare food in the 2 ft x 2 ft space between my stove and sink. Much of which is taken up by an Instant Pot. It is incredibly frustrating, and I don't begrudge anyone who prefers not to deal with it.

That sounds maddening.  Could you get a little rolling cart or small table for the Instant Pot?  We have a little rolling cart that stores the dried beans and DBF's coffee things.

If the ceiling isn't too high, have you considered getting or making a rack that allows you to suspend pots, pans and other larger items from it? I've known people who have done this over the sink or over the counter area. I don't recommend putting them over your stove because they will get filthy from the spatters that happen when food gets cooked.

I'm in the same situation. About 16"x24" but I use the instant pot on the floor.

Maybe we need a tiny kitchen thread.

I think we do need a tiny kitchen thread. Mine is a typical small apartment kitchen but I have SO MUCH STUFF. I put a ton of nails in my walls just to hang measuring cups, spoons, and spatulas/large spoons. Also, I have a large spice rack over the laundry door with 50+ spices and a few extra bottles of things. The pantry is tiny, four shelves 1 ft x 2 ft in size. Stuff on top of stuff! With a bread machine, waffle maker, giant blender, and toaster oven being out most of the time there is very little space to work with. I store my large amounts of rice, flour, and oil in the laundry room that is right next to the kitchen.

[Digital Dogma]

I prepare food in the 2 ft x 2 ft space between my stove and sink. Much of which is taken up by an Instant Pot. It is incredibly frustrating, and I don't begrudge anyone who prefers not to deal with it.

That sounds maddening.  Could you get a little rolling cart or small table for the Instant Pot?  We have a little rolling cart that stores the dried beans and DBF's coffee things.

If the ceiling isn't too high, have you considered getting or making a rack that allows you to suspend pots, pans and other larger items from it? I've known people who have done this over the sink or over the counter area. I don't recommend putting them over your stove because they will get filthy from the spatters that happen when food gets cooked.

I'm in the same situation. About 16"x24" but I use the instant pot on the floor.

Maybe we need a tiny kitchen thread.

I think we do need a tiny kitchen thread. Mine is a typical small apartment kitchen but I have SO MUCH STUFF. I put a ton of nails in my walls just to hang measuring cups, spoons, and spatulas/large spoons. Also, I have a large spice rack over the laundry door with 50+ spices and a few extra bottles of things. The pantry is tiny, four shelves 1 ft x 2 ft in size. Stuff on top of stuff! With a bread machine, waffle maker, giant blender, and toaster oven being out most of the time there is very little space to work with. I store my large amounts of rice, flour, and oil in the laundry room that is right next to the kitchen.

I'll join you all in your tiny kitchen thread if it gets going! I've also got a tiny kitchen and try to squeeze all I can into it while still leaving some counter space left. I've found that using Ikea-style shelving thats made of several long thin steel bars, we can put S-hooks under these and store all of our pots, pans, strainers, utensils, etc on them in an easy-to-reach space.
We also have a shelf just outside the kitchen that stores our slow cooker, pressure cooker, coffee maker, rice cooker, mixer, blender, bread maker, and soda stream, with all our Ball jars up top. This way when we are finished using the cookers (even if the inner pots/crocks are dirty) we put the big hulk back on the shelf to reclaim our counter space once more. Sorry for foam.

[PMG]

Tiny kitchen thread is here. http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/tiny-kitchen-talk/

[TheGrimSqueaker]

I prepare food in the 2 ft x 2 ft space between my stove and sink. Much of which is taken up by an Instant Pot. It is incredibly frustrating, and I don't begrudge anyone who prefers not to deal with it.

That sounds maddening.  Could you get a little rolling cart or small table for the Instant Pot?  We have a little rolling cart that stores the dried beans and DBF's coffee things.

If the ceiling isn't too high, have you considered getting or making a rack that allows you to suspend pots, pans and other larger items from it? I've known people who have done this over the sink or over the counter area. I don't recommend putting them over your stove because they will get filthy from the spatters that happen when food gets cooked.

Man I hate those things, and things hanging from the ceiling in general. My family is short, with me being the only (mild, 6'1) exception. I have to bob and weave whenever I go home.  I'm not sure how they even make sense for a short person. If they're high enough so you won't run into them when leaning over a counter/stove, doesn't that make them a pain to reach?

No more than cabinets, really. It's an optimization exercise but it does require some design and planning.

The idea is to hang the pots and pans at a height where the lowest point is about an inch above your head, wherever that happens to be. But something hanging at 6'1" can still be easily and safely grasped by a person 5' tall if it's overhead or within easy reach of the edge of the counter. Putting it overhead in the middle of, say, a kitchen island will make it difficult for a short person. So the idea many people have of putting the racks or hooks right next to a wall with a counter in front is not good.

[MgoSam]

Yes, I'm going to be "that guy," but as there is now a thread for Tiny Kitchens, can we please go back to mocking our co-workers' unmustachian behaviors?

[Rufus.T.Firefly]

Sure! I'll offer up what I think is a pretty rough story. I've worked with a particular co-worker for about 5 years now. While this was not apparent to me immediately, I realized that both he and his wife eat out for nearly every single meal, every single day.

They both work and have to commute, so I think it's done partially out of convenience and partially out of loving the "dining-out" experience.

I don't think they eat at fancy restaurants most of the time. But they eat out at least once per day and sometimes on the weekends. I've picked up on this from casual conversations over time.

This lead me to do some rough calculations. I think this is a fairly conservative estimate: $10/meal x 2 people x 5 days/week x 2 times/day x 52 weeks = $10,400/year

Wow. Mind Blown.

[RysChristensen]

Since I'm self-employed, it's more of a 'heard from clients'.

One older couple is lovely, great people, always nice. I figure they're probably in their early 60's. The husband sells real estate, and the wife just got a new office job since I guess real estate has been slow. They went away a month or so ago, and I took care of the dog. She had to wait for the new job's first paycheck to be able to start paying off the vacation bill (with a few other walks), of $400. I can't even. How do you know you're living on a wildly fluctuating income and not have even a tiny buffer?? I would be nauseous with that little flexibility.

And from another client (not for the first time), I'll let the picture speak for itself. (If I can get it to appear)

[Raenia]

One of my close coworkers keeps talking about how he wants to save more money this year and spend less. Of course, he is still buying lunch from the cafeteria every day of the week instead of packing food (at $6-10/day).  And this is after he spent a ton of money last year on ... Cooking classes!  *facepalm*

[Linda_Norway]

One of my colleagues says almost every day to me: I should do like you and bring my own lunch, but it is such a hassle to prepare lunch.

At my work we can eat for a fixed price. It is not expensive compared to other canteens, but it is quite a sum if you calculate what it costs per month (multiplied by 22 working days). And it is for me very tempting to overeat. I went up several kilos in weight when I started working there.

[marielle]

A ton of people at work eat out for lunch everyday. Mostly cheap stuff like subway or bojangles since that's all there is in the area, but they also drive 5-6 miles total just to get lunch. A lot of them make much less money than me...some as low as $10.50 an hour. Also, almost everyone uses the vending machine for snacks and soda. It gets filled twice a week and there are only 70 employees. I've eaten out twice (both times paid by the company) and got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...I think I forgot lunch that day).

[Just Joe]

We can eat well at the company cafeteria for $5. I don't do that every day but its nice not to leave work to go get food if you didn't bring it with you. I have coworkers who eat out every single day. In an effort to save money they'll got get the $5 fastfood platter somewhere. I did that with them recently and it was okay once in a blue moon. Can't imagine doing it daily. Just not enough variety to eat fried fast food and drink sodas daily.

[Baking Powder]

A little bit ago I showed a coworker that I paid 2500 from my last bi-weekly check to my student loan. My goal is to pay 4000 per month, meaning I paid 1500 out of the first check of the month.

He exclaimed, "Wow, I wish I had that much extra money every month!" This from a guy who has 10k in CC debt, is paying for a house in the Bay Area, is paying for a brand new huge truck and a new car and hardly ever works OT when it's offered.

He knows I work nearly every single hour I can possibly get, sometimes 75 hours per week. He also knows I rent a small studio with no kitchen and have lived out of my car for months at a time and refuse to buy the newest gadget coming out every week.

Our financial lives are a complete contrast, yet he wishes he had 4000 extra dollars every month. I told him it isn't extra, I just didn't spend it so that I could pay down debt with it, instead. He can't understand my mindset... you are SUPPOSED to buy a house and have nice vehicles to drive so that people know you are doing well.

[Fomerly known as something]

Did you ever look into buying a cutting board (or two) that fits over your stovetop and/or sink? They're cheap, and give you some extra counter space.

I have a rule in my house.  Nothing gets stored on a stovetop or in the oven that will burn.  Ever.

Just like you automate your savings so you don't forget to save, you set up routines that keep you from burning down the house.   FYI - a cat CAN turn on the burners on top of the stove.

Now, a cutting board over the sink, that's a good idea!

Here in Norway kitchens traditionally often had a cutting board right under the counter, that they can pull out like a drawer. Like this:
http://www.imgrum.net/media/1199383242750159697_40867937

This is the modern version of it, a separate board that fits on top of a drawer:
http://fossline.no/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/fjoel_paa_skuff.jpg

My friend uses a board like this to cut bread. I imagine that the access crumbs end up in the drawer.

I think people generally store too much stuff on their counter. But maybe that is because they have too little room in the cupboards.

We had one of those when my parents house was built in 1982.  I wonder why they stopped making them in the US.

[boarder42]

Did you ever look into buying a cutting board (or two) that fits over your stovetop and/or sink? They're cheap, and give you some extra counter space.

I have a rule in my house.  Nothing gets stored on a stovetop or in the oven that will burn.  Ever.

Just like you automate your savings so you don't forget to save, you set up routines that keep you from burning down the house.   FYI - a cat CAN turn on the burners on top of the stove.

Now, a cutting board over the sink, that's a good idea!

Here in Norway kitchens traditionally often had a cutting board right under the counter, that they can pull out like a drawer. Like this:
http://www.imgrum.net/media/1199383242750159697_40867937

This is the modern version of it, a separate board that fits on top of a drawer:
http://fossline.no/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/fjoel_paa_skuff.jpg

My friend uses a board like this to cut bread. I imagine that the access crumbs end up in the drawer.

I think people generally store too much stuff on their counter. But maybe that is because they have too little room in the cupboards.

We had one of those when my parents house was built in 1982.  I wonder why they stopped making them in the US.

wouldnt work for me thats far to short for my height.  normal counter height is borderline. 

[Goldielocks]

Sure! I'll offer up what I think is a pretty rough story. I've worked with a particular co-worker for about 5 years now. While this was not apparent to me immediately, I realized that both he and his wife eat out for nearly every single meal, every single day.

They both work and have to commute, so I think it's done partially out of convenience and partially out of loving the "dining-out" experience.

I don't think they eat at fancy restaurants most of the time. But they eat out at least once per day and sometimes on the weekends. I've picked up on this from casual conversations over time.

This lead me to do some rough calculations. I think this is a fairly conservative estimate: $10/meal x 2 people x 5 days/week x 2 times/day x 52 weeks = $10,400/year

Wow. Mind Blown.

Reminds me of a former boss (a VP with a working spouse and three boys).   He told me once about a super sale Costco (about 40 min drive away) was having on paper plates.   I agreed that it was a great deal, but not worth it to me, because I have trouble going through 40 paper plates a year (birthday parties).

He was amazed... That was when I found out the otherwise mustachian boss used paper plates for EVERY meal... because it made for no dishes.   and this was a place that charged $75 per month for the large trash / recycling can...

[Reynold]

Agreed there are differences, but I fail to see how someone with the attitude/capacity/work ethic to understand business finance cannot learn about personal finance. And these folks are everywhere.

That is what struck me when many years ago I read a Personal Finance column in Money magazine where the topic was about actually looking for the first time at how much you owed on credit cards and paying it off, and the author used himself as the case study.  Why would I take personal financial advice from someone who didn't even pay off their credit cards? 

[arebelspy]

Reminds me of a former boss (a VP with a working spouse and three boys).   He told me once about a super sale Costco (about 40 min drive away) was having on paper plates.   I agreed that it was a great deal, but not worth it to me, because I have trouble going through 40 paper plates a year (birthday parties).

He was amazed... That was when I found out the otherwise mustachian boss used paper plates for EVERY meal... because it made for no dishes.   and this was a place that charged $75 per month for the large trash / recycling can...

The wife and I discussed doing this recently.

Decided not to, because environment, but the money aspect very well could be worth it if you hate dishes.

[dragoncar]

Reminds me of a former boss (a VP with a working spouse and three boys).   He told me once about a super sale Costco (about 40 min drive away) was having on paper plates.   I agreed that it was a great deal, but not worth it to me, because I have trouble going through 40 paper plates a year (birthday parties).

He was amazed... That was when I found out the otherwise mustachian boss used paper plates for EVERY meal... because it made for no dishes.   and this was a place that charged $75 per month for the large trash / recycling can...

The wife and I discussed doing this recently.

Decided not to, because environment, but the money aspect very well could be worth it if you hate dishes.

Just eat directly out of the take-out container.  Save tons of money on paper plates!

[Goldielocks]

Reminds me of a former boss (a VP with a working spouse and three boys).   He told me once about a super sale Costco (about 40 min drive away) was having on paper plates.   I agreed that it was a great deal, but not worth it to me, because I have trouble going through 40 paper plates a year (birthday parties).

He was amazed... That was when I found out the otherwise mustachian boss used paper plates for EVERY meal... because it made for no dishes.   and this was a place that charged $75 per month for the large trash / recycling can...

The wife and I discussed doing this recently.

Decided not to, because environment, but the money aspect very well could be worth it if you hate dishes.

Just eat directly out of the take-out container.  Save tons of money on paper plates!

Yeah,,, but he had 3 boys, isn't this what children are for?!

[With This Herring]

wouldnt work for me thats far to short for my height.  normal counter height is borderline boarderline.

Fixed that for you.  ;)

[arebelspy]

wouldnt work for me thats far to short for my height.  normal counter height is borderline boarderline.

Fixed that for you.  ;)

[With This Herring]

wouldnt work for me thats far to short for my height.  normal counter height is borderline boarderline.

Fixed that for you.  ;)

Haha, thanks ARS!

[JordanOfGilead]

Just heard my supervisor talking to a colleague about how he needs to go use his remote start to "warm up" his clown car of a pickup. It's 35*F here and he lives about 8 miles from work, so not only is he using the extra gas and hurting the environment letting his v8 idle in the parking lot, he's reducing the life of his engine by letting it sit idle for long periods (>5 minutes) with inadequate oil pressure.

All so the cabin will be 10 degrees warmer when he climbs in for his fifteen minute commute home.

[FIT_Goat]

I am a teacher, and I work at the same school my son attends. Earlier this week, he was goofing around and stepped on a teacher's school iPad. I only partially blame my son. He shouldn't have been running through her office. But, why she had her iPad, without a case, laying on the floor in front of the door, I will never figure out.

Anyway, she was pissed. And came storming to me, expecting me to be as furious as she was. Well, I wasn't. Shit happens. I told her that it was fine, just tell the tech department that my son was responsible, and I will take care of it. She was decidedly unsatisfied with my casual disregard to her emotional response, but she quickly realized that it was the only response I would give.

I spoke with my son. He was devastated. He never meant for it to happen. He swore that he would pay for it. I told him that it might be $600, that it was an accident, and it was only partly his fault. I said he could help me clean the yard to make up for it, but I wasn't going to have him drain his savings to repay it. He has like $50-$60 saved up from birthdays and events. He saves about half of what he gets, and doesn't have an allowance. So, that takes a while to build up.

Anyway, none of that is the real point. I go down to talk to the tech person about what I owe. Figure I can just reconfigure my budget to cash flow it, even if it was the full replacement cost.

"Oh, it was $85."

"$85? Alright."

"But, don't worry. You are a teacher, so you can make payments."

WTF? Payments on an $85 bill? I pointed out how insane that would be. She told me that a lot of teachers and staff don't have $85 just laying around. Not her, of course, but she would still want payments so she didn't have to lose that $85 all at once.

I don't even understand that. How do people survive when they can't swing an unexpected bill under $100? Heck, I had an expensive as hell week (emergency vet bills over $700) and expected this to be up to $600 and wasn't even sweating it. Worst would be having to move a little cash from savings and reduce some unnecessary spending for the next month. And that's to handle something I thought might be 20 times as high.

[arebelspy]

Oh yeah.  My wife used to teach yearbook at her high school, and teachers would come in but not have the $50 deposit to reserve one, and ask her to "hold one" for them until next payday, when they could afford the deposit.  $50, really?

Many teachers are very bad with money, sadly.

[Metric Mouse]

Just heard my supervisor talking to a colleague about how he needs to go use his remote start to "warm up" his clown car of a pickup. It's 35*F here and he lives about 8 miles from work, so not only is he using the extra gas and hurting the environment letting his v8 idle in the parking lot, he's reducing the life of his engine by letting it sit idle for long periods (>5 minutes) with inadequate oil pressure.

All so the cabin will be 10 degrees warmer when he climbs in for his fifteen minute commute home.

Then he won't have to wear a hat or jacket to work...

It amazes me people in northern climes like this who don't even get dressed for the weather, and then have to sprint across frozen parking lots in their dress shoes because they're freezing cold from being under dressed...

[paddedhat]

Oh yeah.  My wife used to teach yearbook at her high school, and teachers would come in but not have the $50 deposit to reserve one, and ask her to "hold one" for them until next payday, when they could afford the deposit.  $50, really?

Many teachers are very bad with money, sadly.

My DW was a teacher who did the who 30 year career thing. You wouldn't believe how many of her coworkers end up retiring, and falling for one of the school sanctioned, guest speaker,  financial experts who hooked them at one of their  free "retirement planning dinners".  Holy shit, these guys end up hammering their marks with outrageous fees and still have a blindly loyal audience. We still socialize with a few of these folks, and occasionally get hit with the, "you really need to talk to our guy" recommendation. Sorry, but if he isn't picking up the phone at Vanguard, I don't need to talk to him at all. Pre-MMM we took that ride, constant churning, a "expert" who did  things as stupid as leaving 10% on the sidelines as cash, and buying gold stocks, while handily getting stomped by index funds and stealing 1.25% a year for losing our money.

[financialfreedomsloth]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

[FIT_Goat]

Oh yeah.  My wife used to teach yearbook at her high school, and teachers would come in but not have the $50 deposit to reserve one, and ask her to "hold one" for them until next payday, when they could afford the deposit.  $50, really?

Many teachers are very bad with money, sadly.

I am aware of my own downfall.  I am a sucker for donations.  And, when you work at a school, there are a lot of causes to donate to.  We have club fundraisers, teachers who fall ill, livestock auctions (rural community), homeless families, holiday support causes, general school fundraisers, girl scouts, boy scouts, etc.  Currently, we have a student who is extremely sick with cancer.  Things don't look good.  So, we're having weekly fundraisers.  I've calculated that donating to all the causes since January 9th (when we went back) to now, it would be nearly $100.  I don't allow myself to carry cash at work.  Because I will mindlessly give.  I do have an amount that is budgeted for giving, and I have that with me at work.  When it's gone, I'm done.

My biggest money blow-out is sick leave.  I don't use it, unless things are dire.  So, I accumulate a lot of it.  Well, if a teacher gets cancer or something and is out for extended periods of time, beyond their available leave, other teachers can donate leave.  A lot of teachers don't have financial reserves high enough to survive a time like that.  Probably because they have a 3,000 sqft home and two new cars with payments, but telling that they did it to themselves is the last thing they need to hear.  And, even the best planner, on a teacher's salary, can see medical expenses wipe out years of savings.

"What the hell," I thought, "I don't use it."  So, I'd give a week of leave away to those who needed it.  It was only when I started considering my long-term plans (retirement and/or changing careers) that I asked myself what happens to leave that I haven't used.  It turns out that they pay it to you at your current hourly rate.  I have given away literal thousands of dollars in leave! It's close to 5 figures.  Not that I regret it.  I should, but the people I gave it to needed it more than I did.  One of those people was my own mother.  I'd have given her every day I had, if there wasn't an upper limit.

Anyway, I could probably write a book on the poor financial decisions that I see at the school.  And, I could monopolize the MLM thread with stories of the various ones my coworkers are trying to succeed at.

[Mezzie]

I'm in the same boat. I spend more on student fundraisers than groceries some months, and since I work in an impoverished area, there's even more pressure on us since parents often can't help.

I did give away a lot of sick leave until I became disabled. I don't regret it at all, but I do hope that if I find myself needing donations, the younger healthier teachers will feel as generous towards me as I felt towards those I donated to. Of course, ideally I won't need any donations at all.

[sonjak]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

[FIT_Goat]

I'm in the same boat. I spend more on student fundraisers than groceries some months, and since I work in an impoverished area, there's even more pressure on us since parents often can't help.

I did give away a lot of sick leave until I became disabled. I don't regret it at all, but I do hope that if I find myself needing donations, the younger healthier teachers will feel as generous towards me as I felt towards those I donated to. Of course, ideally I won't need any donations at all.

I'm also in an impoverished area.  It is almost expected that teachers will make up for the lack of supplies for students.  I also stock some non-perishable foods in my room, for students who miss the free breakfast but had nothing at home.  Little things add up fast.

If I ever became disabled and needed leave, I would hope others would step up and donate to me.  Of course, ideally, I wouldn't need that.  But, I believe in helping those around me.  In the long run, I would hope that the few thousand I gave away benefited those people more than having it would have benefited me to keep it.   

[dragoncar]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

One of my best friend was vegetarian and constantly ate at Taco Bell cause they have so many vegetarian options smh

[Metric Mouse]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

Kosher?

[dragoncar]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

Kosher?

I was gonna say that many fries aren't kosher but then I realized they aren't necessarily vegetarian either


But sign me up for the fries diet either way

[TheGrimSqueaker]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

Kosher?

I was gonna say that many fries aren't kosher but then I realized they aren't necessarily vegetarian either


But sign me up for the fries diet either way

That reminds me of a friend I made when I went back to school for my master's degree and met some students from India. One woman in particular was very fond of bragging about her vegetarian diet while eating McDonald's fries. When I informed her that there was beef fat in them, she had a full-on Hindu gross-out fit. She then asked me to help her navigate American fast food and commercial food. Apparently the mixing and blending of ingredients that is so customary in processed food here isn't a global phenomenon.

We went through my friend's entire pantry and she ended up with a lot of non-perishable food that wasn't as vegetarian as she thought. It got donated to a local food bank. I also took her shopping, taught her the importance of reading the labels, and found some substitute items that didn't have things like gelatin in them. The rudest and most offensive surprise: her favorite Altoids breath mints had gelatin.

We stayed friends for a while until she finished her studies and went back to Madras. In the interim, my friend paid me back by taking me to an ashram and teaching me how to correctly eat chutney and other Indian food with my fingers. It turns out there's technique to it, and it's important to not mix cultures. I was trying to keep my elbows tucked in the way a good diner does in a Eurocentric tradition, but that's a bad idea for sloppier foods where the idea is to use one's fingers as a spoon and one's thumb as a pusher. If you keep your elbows in while doing that, when you raise your hand to your mouth the thumb ends up being on the bottom and whatever was in your hand falls out thanks to gravity. I wound up wearing most of the first course.

[SeaEhm]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

Kosher?

I was gonna say that many fries aren't kosher but then I realized they aren't necessarily vegetarian either

Did they not use this?

[Abooki]

I have enjoyed this thread. 

Here is one.  So two years ago when I started my big girl job at a major airplane manufacturing company, they were explaining how our bonus work and all that fun stuff.
The lady who was explaining this goes " my first bonus here I bought a boat"( and I am sure she meant put a down deposit on one after seeing how 'big' our bonus are)
Then she continues "this year I am getting garnite countertops"

Now two years later:
My colleagues were talking about saving and finances and my eavesdropping mutaschian ears sharpened up and here is the conversation.

CW1: " I spend 90% of my income on drinks and going out" ( definite hyperbole but not far off based on my observations)
CW2: (who had bought a house in a nice area after living in an apartment and had said she didn't want to keep throwing away her money on An apartment " yeah I have no saving now. Even we just borrow from our 401k to put money down on your house"
CW3: " it is hard to save on his income" ( he makes more than me"

Side note: I am no where near FI or ER but I am making steps towards there.  Paying off my 52k student loan and living modestly and getting side jobs to get that paid off in 2-3 years. 

[TheGrimSqueaker]

got fries one time (I was starving and that's all I could eat with my diet...

Please tell me more about this 'fries' diet ...

LOL

Vegetarian or vegan?

Kosher?

I was gonna say that many fries aren't kosher but then I realized they aren't necessarily vegetarian either

Did they not use this?

I think they have to follow special procedures when killing the potatoes.

[dragoncar]

Kosher fries are covered in applesauce and sour cream.

[SwordGuy]

Then she continues "this year I am getting garnite countertops"

Granite or garnet?  :)

Because I have to say, the thought of how gorgeous a garnet countertop would be took my breath away.    So did thinking about what it would cost...

[Metric Mouse]

Kosher fries are covered in applesauce and sour cream.

Oy vey...

[Ralph2]

I literally have had consultants (that I hire / fire) laugh at me when they see me make a sandwich in my office.  They get a per diem when on-site, so I see why it wouldn't be a big deal for them to eat at a restaurant every day and more convienent than shopping for groceries in a strange town.  I wanted to ask if they ate at a restaurant for lunch the days they work from home, but I didn't feel like getting into it with them at the time.

If someone is going to look down on you for the brand of peanut butter you're using for your sandwich, they are probably looking down on you for packing anyway.  In either case, who cares what they think?

I think I must be either vindictive or passive aggressive or something, but I long to find those people who disparage me for living the way I live. It makes me feel superior, I think, when they continue to blow tons of money for show yet imagine themselves on a higher plane of existence than someone like me, who would bring a bowl of beans to work the entire week.

I exult within myself when people who earn 1/2 of what I do have a huge truck, a new car, and a house they can't afford 90 minutes from work...talk about how broke they are because they are paying off 10k in CC debt. Then a moment later they'll poke fun at me for sleeping in my car and eating beans every day.

The world...and I...need stupid people. Really. They validate my lifestyle choices every single day.

Most of us at work earn on a sliding scale and we all know roughly what we all earn (government).

I am with you everywhere but the sleeping in the car bit (too many years in the field), body will not take it and SWMBO would never let me do it now.

[dragoncar]

Kosher fries are covered in applesauce and sour cream.

Oy vey...

I don't know Hebrew, but I'm pretty sure they call it "poutine"

[chaskavitch]

I don't have anything egregious from work, but just a compilation of little things my coworkers do that make me shake my head (and also wonder what I'm doing that other people see as crazy).

1) We are reimbursed for mileage when driving personal vehicles between facilities.  One of my coworkers drives ~ 5 miles at the end of each workday to do a daily check at a different building.  She NEVER requests mileage reimbursement, I'm assuming because it is only like $2.50 a trip.  She's literally leaving > $500 tax-free money on the table every year.  Five.  Hundred.  Dollars.  For something she already does.

2) Same coworker drinks tea every morning in a new styrofoam cup.  Our office gave us all branded coffee mugs for Christmas.  She didn't even have to bring a mug in, just use the one they gave us and wash it in the break room.

3) Another coworker has only one credit card, and never uses it - not because he has previously had problems with overspending, I think it is just because he doesn't realize how awesome rewards can be.  Example: he buys all his diapers/formula/baby food for two kids at Target, and maybe a lot of other household goods as well, but had no idea that you could get 5% off and free shipping with their debit card.  It isn't even a credit card, it goes straight to your bank account!  He has been improving his financial situation overall - putting more into his 401k, debating changing from a target date fund with 0.7% fees to the S&P 500 fund with 0.07% fees, asking me about IRAs, paying down extra on his student loans, etc. - but I just wonder how much more he could be doing with almost zero effort.

4) Yet another coworker, who is always just a little behind (her husband just got back from a deployment and hasn't been paid yet or gotten a new job, so ok) is leasing her car, has a subscription to one of those food-box delivery things for your meals at home (because she's working 10 hr days and is too busy), also has a subscription to a snack box delivery for work, ALSO has a subscription to a "we'll send you 5 cool new makeup/skincare/beauty items a month!" box. 

Death by a thousand cuts, man.

It really has made me try to take another look at my own spending and habits to see what I'm missing.  I know there are some obvious things (cell phone bill, not biking to work), but there must be other things that would be easy fixes that I just can't see.

[Playing with Fire UK]

It really has made me try to take another look at my own spending and habits to see what I'm missing.  I know there are some obvious things (cell phone bill, not biking to work), but there must be other things that would be easy fixes that I just can't see.

Should have a separate case study format in which we just list every single financial transaction for comment, awe, and face punches as required?

Years after I got my shit together I'm still finding things I can improve.

[JordanOfGilead]

I have a coworker (and former college classmate) that has been backsliding lately. When he graduated in 2013, he had almost $15,000 in credit card debt, a new $150k house, and a new $26k car, in addition to an unknown amount in student loan debt. By this time last year he had paid down all of his credit cards, half of his car, and was working on the house all "thanks" to Dave Ramsey. 13 months later and he has traded in his 4 year old car that he owed 14k on for a two year old Chevy SS for over 30k. His reasoning was that he needed something bigger for his future kids to ride in and he needed to get rid of his stick shift so that his wife could drive his car. The v8 was just for shits and gigs.

On top of that (and I have mixed feelings about judging him for this), he now has almost 20k in debt for multiple rounds of IVF in an attempt for him and his wife to have their first child. All on credit cards.
On top of all of this he has taken to buying expensive tools and toys on a whim, "because [he] wanted it."

I kind of looked up to him when I started getting into this whole financial independence thing. Not so much any more.

[Abooki]

Ooops Garnet I meant. My mother tongue gets in the way of my English at times :)

Then she continues "this year I am getting garnite countertops"

Granite or garnet?  :)

Because I have to say, the thought of how gorgeous a garnet countertop would be took my breath away.    So did thinking about what it would cost...

[With This Herring]

Then she continues "this year I am getting garnite countertops"

Granite or garnet?  :)

Because I have to say, the thought of how gorgeous a garnet countertop would be took my breath away.    So did thinking about what it would cost...

Ooops Garnet I meant. My mother tongue gets in the way of my English at times :)

[I moved Abooki's comment to bottom of quote chain.]

Oh my.  See if you can get a picture of these counters!  Looking on the internet, it seems that "garnet" countertops are just granite countertops with pieces of garnet in them, so not solid pieces of garnet as some may have imagined.  Don't get too excited, SwordGuy.  :)

[zolotiyeruki]

[I moved Abooki's comment to bottom of quote chain.]

Oh my.  See if you can get a picture of these counters!  Looking on the internet, it seems that "garnet" countertops are just granite countertops with pieces of garnet in them, so not solid pieces of garnet as some may have imagined.  Don't get too excited, SwordGuy.  :)

I was starting to get excited about seeing them as well! :)