Overheard at Work

[paddedhat]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

[princeradar]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

[Megma]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

OMG. That is more than his daily calorie needs just in soda every day.

[MrMoogle]

I was in a conversation with two coworkers.  The younger one had her second kid a couple years ago and is about to move in to a 3000 sqft house.  It's LCOL, so I'm sure she and her husband can afford it, they're both technical.  But my god, 3000 sqft for 4 people. 

The older coworker then explained how that was a good size since you'd never need to upgrade.  He has a family of 4 also, and has a 2600 sqft house.  He's evidently had to talk his wife out of upgrading multiple times, and lamented that if only he had originally bought ~3000 sqft he would have more ammunition for not upgrading.

[BrandNewPapa]

I was in a conversation with two coworkers.  The younger one had her second kid a couple years ago and is about to move in to a 3000 sqft house.  It's LCOL, so I'm sure she and her husband can afford it, they're both technical.  But my god, 3000 sqft for 4 people. 

My wife and I have two other "couples" as friends. They have similar incomes to us ($150-200k combined).

Both just bought houses.

One couple just spent $450k on a 3200 sq ft house. For just them. No kids. 4 bedrooms 4 bathrooms....I'm just flabbergasted. We visited the other weekend, the house is nearly empty, and the wife is talking about how she needs to buy all this furniture and decorations to fill it up.

The other couple spent around $425k on a 3000 sq ft house. They have one child and are thinking about a second. Slightly more modest at 3 bedrooms 3 baths...but the property taxes are over $10k/year.

[Rogue]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

Thinks to self - "No way, that can't be right."

Looks at math: 46 grams/can * 24 cans = 1104 grams / 453.592 grams/lb = 2.43 lbs of sugar.

[Shudders at the mental image of eating 2.4 lbs of sugar by the spoonful.]

[mtn]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

Thinks to self - "No way, that can't be right."

Looks at math: 46 grams/can * 24 cans = 1104 grams / 453.592 grams/lb = 2.43 lbs of sugar.

[Shudders at the mental image of eating 2.4 lbs of sugar by the spoonful.]

That's 2.25 gallons a day... That is a lot of fluid. How many trips ot the bathroom does this guy take?

[Chris22]

I'm a reformed Dew drinker; used to drink 2 20oz bottles a day.  Maaaaaybe three on a bad day.  24 cans?  Holy shit. 


FWIW, I cut out all soda aside from the occasional Sprite (~1x a month) or club soda with booze about 3 years ago. 

[paddedhat]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

[A Definite Beta Guy]

"It was $30 to go 3 blocks!"

Why didn't you freakin' walk?

[mustachepungoeshere]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

I had to convert 44oz.

It's 1301ml!

The most common family-size soft drink bottle in Australia (1.25L) is smaller than that. ಠ_ಠ

[briesas]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

Thinks to self - "No way, that can't be right."

Looks at math: 46 grams/can * 24 cans = 1104 grams / 453.592 grams/lb = 2.43 lbs of sugar.

[Shudders at the mental image of eating 2.4 lbs of sugar by the spoonful.]

Over 1200mg of caffeine per day too, 3x the amount the Mayo clinic says is 'safe for most adults'

[marty998]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

I had to convert 44oz.

It's 1301ml!

The most common family-size soft drink bottle in Australia (1.25L) is smaller than that. ಠ_ಠ

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

[jinga nation]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

I had to convert 44oz.

It's 1301ml!

The most common family-size soft drink bottle in Australia (1.25L) is smaller than that. ಠ_ಠ

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

Not going to happen:
1. BigSoda can lobby pretty darn good.
2. BigSoda has bought a lot of water bottling companies and is in phase 3 of morphing into BigWater (if it isn't already there).
3. BigSoda owns snack food companies so they can make 'healthy' snacks. Don't step on Snak.

[Chris22]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

I had to convert 44oz.

It's 1301ml!

The most common family-size soft drink bottle in Australia (1.25L) is smaller than that. ಠ_ಠ

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

You can consume a "healthy" amount of soda, just like you can consume a healthy amount of candy, pizza, etc etc.  There isn't really a "healthy" amount of tobacco.

[MgoSam]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

OMG, I have never heard of anyone drinking that much soda in one day, plus the guy smokes?  I'll actually never understand how people knowingly can put there body through that kind of abuse.

It might not be as unusual as it sounds. maybe not as extreme as 288 OZ. a day, but no too far off.

We spend our winters in rural Florida, north of Tampa. It's usually pretty mild at that time of year,  60s and 70s during the day, occasionally in the  80s. The one constant of the area is that you can't swing a cat by it's tail and not hit a convenience store.  Most of them have huge, high volume fountain soda operations. Usually at something like $0.89 for any size cup. It's nothing to be in a store like that and see a line of people waiting to fill their 44 OZ. cups.  I'm sure that many of their clients stop buy a few times a day to "grab a soda" and end up drinking the equivalent of half a case of soda, or more, especially the 7-8 months a year in that area when it's hotter than the balls on a spit roasting pig, and too humid for human occupation, LOL. (I guess you can tell I'm a candy-assed yankee)

I had to convert 44oz.

It's 1301ml!

The most common family-size soft drink bottle in Australia (1.25L) is smaller than that. ಠ_ಠ

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

You can consume a "healthy" amount of soda, just like you can consume a healthy amount of candy, pizza, etc etc.  There isn't really a "healthy" amount of tobacco.

Haven't studied Big Tobacco in detail but didn't they get into trouble for

a. Saying tobacco/nicotine is NOT addictive
b. Trying to hide the links between it and cancer

Whereas soda companies have instead talking about moderation, lifestyle, and enjoyment. It's one thing to have a certain amount of vice in your life so long as it is reasonable. That's the reason why alcohol advertisements make a good point about highlighting designated drivers.

[cheapass]

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

Gotta have the nanny state protecting us from ourselves, rather than taking personal responsibility for our own choices.

[MgoSam]

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

Gotta have the nanny state protecting us from ourselves, rather than taking personal responsibility for our own choices.

O look another person throwing out terms like "nanny state" instead of deciding to have a more meaningful discussion. This is just what I LOVE about the internet. /s

[dividendman]

One day someone is going to take legal action against the big soft drink companies, in the same manner as Big Tobacco.

I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet. Are Coke and Pepsi still claiming sugar isn't addictive?

Gotta have the nanny state protecting us from ourselves, rather than taking personal responsibility for our own choices.

O look another person throwing out terms like "nanny state" instead of deciding to have a more meaningful discussion. This is just what I LOVE about the internet. /s

What's wrong with that term? You're saying people are incapable of making the decision on their own so they need a "nanny" to keep bad things away from them.

I think the comparison between Big tobacco isn't fair.

Note that Big tobacco was claiming their products didn't cause cancer way back when. Even the science from doctors not affiliated with big tobacco took some time to make this link.

You will be hard pressed to find a candy/soft drink/etc. manufacturer saying their sugary products are healthy, in fact, almost all of their products say right on them "enjoy in moderation". All health experts say you shouldn't consume much if any sugary beverages.

So, we have all the information that sugary drinks are bad for you. Now you want to sue the company? Let's also sue:
1) All tech companies for lack of privacy
2) All fast food places for selling junk food
3) All convenience stores period, because, they only sell junk
4) All bread/wheat manufacturers - that's just sugar in disguise
5) All corn farmers, because hey, most sugar is corn syrup in this country, so they're contributing
6) Movie theaters - do you see the calories on the popcorn and candy? And that's ALL they sell, terrible
7) Theme parks - man, you can't find healthy shit in there, Six Flags should be put out of business
8) Fruit juice makers - another sugar in disguise product
9) What about the ice cream man? We don't want those bells ringing in the neighborhood getting all those children to buy junk
and on and on...

Actually forget suing all of the above, let's just make it all illegal!

[MgoSam]

What's wrong with that term? You're saying people are incapable of making the decision on their own so they need a "nanny" to keep bad things away from them.

Don't put words in my mouth! "You're saying people are incapable of making the decision on their own so they need a "nanny" to keep bad things away from them." This is also why I hate terms, by your stance you make it very clear that you are incapable of having hearing anything that you disagree with.

As for the cancer link, check out the book "Merchants of Doubt," which highlight the many ways tobacco companies (and now soda, energy, and other industries have copied the model) hired scientists to deny that their products caused any damage. They didn't aim to prove that their products were good, just avoid any perception that they did lasting damage.

Actually forget suing all of the above, let's just make it all illegal!

Delightful way of looking at life, no?

[Uturn]

A coworker who just got back from a vacation in Costa Rica is now talking about how expensive new tires are for her SUV. 

CW:  I need new tires, I'm getting scared to drive in the rain.  How am I supposed to afford them on my salary?
Me:  Prioritize
CW:  You're an ass

[Vindicated]

A coworker who just got back from a vacation in Costa Rica is now talking about how expensive new tires are for her SUV. 

CW:  I need new tires, I'm getting scared to drive in the rain.  How am I supposed to afford them on my salary?
Me:  Prioritize
CW:  You're an ass

Thank you and your super-appropriate user name for turning this thread back in the right direction :)

[FIT_Goat]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

46 grams of sugar per can x 24 cans = 1104 grams of sugar * 0.00220462 = 2.433903 pounds.... HOLY  CRAP, the math checks out!  For a second, I thought you were joking.  No wonder I gained so much weight in high school.  I was drinking more than a 12 pack a day of Mt. Dew.  So glad I gave it up in college.

Edit: I see I am like the 5th person to personally check those numbers.  LOL.  It just seemed so crazy.  Like how can someone consume half a 5 pound bag of sugar every single day?

[Miss Piggy]

A coworker who just got back from a vacation in Costa Rica is now talking about how expensive new tires are for her SUV. 

CW:  I need new tires, I'm getting scared to drive in the rain.  How am I supposed to afford them on my salary?
Me:  Prioritize
CW:  You're an ass

I assume you took that as a compliment? I would have.

[solon]

A coworker who just got back from a vacation in Costa Rica is now talking about how expensive new tires are for her SUV. 

CW:  I need new tires, I'm getting scared to drive in the rain.  How am I supposed to afford them on my salary?
Me:  Prioritize
CW:  You're an ass

The window motor in my car door broke, so I took it to the shop to get fixed.
My brother said, "It must be nice to have the money to get stuff fixed."
I replied, "It is."
All I got was a dumb look in response.

[gReed Smith]

The window motor in my car door broke, so I took it to the shop to get fixed.
My brother said, "It must be nice to have the money to get stuff fixed."
I replied, "It is."
All I got was a dumb look in response.

I applaud you.  The only response to sulky "it must be nice" comments is, "Yes, it is."

[ysette9]

I spent the last 1.5 days with auditors and during some of the little breaks we chit-chatted about some mundane personal stuff. I learned that one guy lives 1.5-2 hours from work and is thinking about retiring early next year, but is hoping for a buyout offer that would amount to about $40k. I just can't wrap my head around that. This guy has obviously been with the government for a long while so he has a pension coming.

The other guy boasted about his son's new Tesla X that he purchased for $130k and how he made $80 or something betting on some sports game at a casino in Vegas. I asked some question about the bet because I have no idea how this works and he pulled out his ticket. He paid something like $88 for the pleasure of risking losing his money. I just don't get it.

At one point we were talking about managing employees and I made a comment about people who used to report to me who would ask about retirement buyout offers as well. That got me the surprised comment about that since I was "a young woman". Yeah, I've got four years experience managing people under my belt, thanks. I know it was meant kindly but I find it common for people who have spent their whole career in government/aerospace/defense to be surprised when someone makes it into management before age 45.

[kayvent]

My son calls the other day. He runs several divisions of an oil services and heavy construction company. He tells me he had spent the last week with five smartphones in various pockets, trying to fill in for missing staff.  He was missing a total of four key people due to medical events. Two phones were from the two brothers that own the place, who's elderly parents were dealing with big health issues. One department head was gone getting knees replaced, another left with chest pains. I asked about this guy? Son reports that chest pain guy is 38 YO, smokes a pack and a half+  and drinks a CASE of Mountain Dew A DAY!  I said, "Holy shit, that's not  good, you probably want to keep an eye out for his replacement, sounds like he is working hard on taking a dirt nap". He then tells me that just the soda alone works out to 2.4 pounds of sugar a day.

46 grams of sugar per can x 24 cans = 1104 grams of sugar * 0.00220462 = 2.433903 pounds.... HOLY  CRAP, the math checks out!  For a second, I thought you were joking.  No wonder I gained so much weight in high school.  I was drinking more than a 12 pack a day of Mt. Dew.  So glad I gave it up in college.

Edit: I see I am like the 5th person to personally check those numbers.  LOL.  It just seemed so crazy.  Like how can someone consume half a 5 pound bag of sugar every single day?

Yeah....the only thing more surprisingly than those numbers is that we all know someone who consumes that much each day.

There was talk about the Nanny state above. Food nutrition is one of the few aspects of the Canadian nanny state I actively appreciate. Another is CPP.

In Canada it is mandatory to put nutrition labels and ingredient lists on products. For the first two decades of my life, I didn't look at them. Now I consult them with fervour. There are bizarre land mines that are only detectable by consulting those labels. Fairly regularly I'll see two almost identical products (ex. cheese perogies) by different companies have drastically different levels of salt but everything else identical. Or there will be some products not even worth considering buying at the store but perfectly reasonably and fun to make at home (ex. chicken nuggets)

Tying this back in, I always knew that soda wasn't healthy and had lots of sugar. I have a can of it every few months. Because I knew it wasn't healthy, I never bothered looking at the nutrition label until last month. Almost fell off the chair when I saw there was 40 grams of sugars in the can.

[Sydneystache]

A coworker who just got back from a vacation in Costa Rica is now talking about how expensive new tires are for her SUV. 

CW:  I need new tires, I'm getting scared to drive in the rain.  How am I supposed to afford them on my salary?
Me:  Prioritize
CW:  You're an ass

The window motor in my car door broke, so I took it to the shop to get fixed.
My brother said, "It must be nice to have the money to get stuff fixed."
I replied, "It is."
All I got was a dumb look in response.

No brainer I'd have thought. You own a car you have to maintain it. What else have they been spending their car maintenance money on?

[Sibley]

I spent the last 1.5 days with auditors and during some of the little breaks we chit-chatted about some mundane personal stuff. I learned that one guy lives 1.5-2 hours from work and is thinking about retiring early next year, but is hoping for a buyout offer that would amount to about $40k. I just can't wrap my head around that. This guy has obviously been with the government for a long while so he has a pension coming.

...

Re the house location. Depending on the type of auditing and office practice, auditors may not actually be in the office more than a few days a month, and it makes much more sense to locate to accommodate airports, transit, highways, etc.

[BTDretire]

I am not going to argue bike culture, but the point is spending thousands of dollars on a once in a while hobby, and she was guilted into it. I can see it more if it is your main transportation or for work. There has to be a middle ground to get an old bike for cheap and fix it up.

A used quality hybrid or similar bike could probably be had for $100-$200.  A heck of a lot cheaper than a few grand and will outlast a Walmart bike.  Even brand new, those bikes retail for ~ $400 - $500.  I ride something similar on a daily basis.

I want to brag on my $30 yard sale buy, a 1996 Trek model 820. I spent another $35 on a mirror, big seat and spring post to help protect my bad back. Love it.

[gReed Smith]

In Canada it is mandatory to put nutrition labels and ingredient lists on products. For the first two decades of my life, I didn't look at them. Now I consult them with fervour. There are bizarre land mines that are only detectable by consulting those labels. Fairly regularly I'll see two almost identical products (ex. cheese perogies) by different companies have drastically different levels of salt but everything else identical. Or there will be some products not even worth considering buying at the store but perfectly reasonably and fun to make at home (ex. chicken nuggets)

We have nutrition labels and ingredient lists in 'Merica too.  Ain't nobody look at them; and ain't nobody buy perogies 'cept from Mrs. T's or Hunky-church ladies.

[marielle]

In Canada it is mandatory to put nutrition labels and ingredient lists on products. For the first two decades of my life, I didn't look at them. Now I consult them with fervour. There are bizarre land mines that are only detectable by consulting those labels. Fairly regularly I'll see two almost identical products (ex. cheese perogies) by different companies have drastically different levels of salt but everything else identical. Or there will be some products not even worth considering buying at the store but perfectly reasonably and fun to make at home (ex. chicken nuggets)

We have nutrition labels and ingredient lists in 'Merica too.  Ain't nobody look at them; and ain't nobody buy perogies 'cept from Mrs. T's or Hunky-church ladies.

I visited Vancouver a couple weeks ago and I was SO upset at the number of perogies available everywhere. I even found some "Ukrainian Style" ones (where I'm from!) that were $1.49 CAD for an entire box when on sale. THAT'S SO CHEAP!

[ysette9]

Re the house location. Depending on the type of auditing and office practice, auditors may not actually be in the office more than a few days a month, and it makes much more sense to locate to accommodate airports, transit, highways, etc.

That is true, but this location is far from work and far from airports and urban centers. I should have clarified: the second guy wasn't an auditor but a gov employee supporting the audit. He works at the same location as I do.

[paddedhat]

In Canada it is mandatory to put nutrition labels and ingredient lists on products. For the first two decades of my life, I didn't look at them. Now I consult them with fervour. There are bizarre land mines that are only detectable by consulting those labels. Fairly regularly I'll see two almost identical products (ex. cheese perogies) by different companies have drastically different levels of salt but everything else identical. Or there will be some products not even worth considering buying at the store but perfectly reasonably and fun to make at home (ex. chicken nuggets)

We have nutrition labels and ingredient lists in 'Merica too.  Ain't nobody look at them; and ain't nobody buy perogies 'cept from Mrs. T's or Hunky-church ladies.

I smiled at that. I'm sure that many haven't a clue about what you are referring to, but  growing up near a huge steel mill town, I sure do. In the "bad" part of the city, there were many eastern euro churches where the little old ladies cranked out some serious perogies. It got to the point where one of the churches  went out and bought a couple of station wagons just to deliver the things. When it came to Perogie sales, they didn't play around. Memories, yum................

[Alf91]

CW: I can't wait til payday, I'm so broke.
CW (few hours later): Gonna go get take out for lunch!

[TheGrimSqueaker]

We had a soccer team at work, and there were a lot of younger guys on the team.  They were all standing around admiring one of the guys car that he just purchased (or I assumed leased).  The car was an Mercedes AMG convertible (I'll admit it is a beautiful machine)

Me:  Nice car when did you get it.
Him:  Last week, the ladies love it.
Me:  Oh, yeah, they'd probably be more impressed if you weren't still living with your parents.

the rest of the guys thought that was hilarious, but seriously, you are making good money, living at home, why not use that money to build some wealth.  I try talking to the young guys about this, but they don't seem to care.

Where does he expect to be able to bring a lady if he catches one? Does he plan to just fuck her in the back seat of the Mercedes convertible? Because I don't believe there is one.

[Abo345]

my coworkers monthly expenses on stupid shit:
$100 month for a guy to mow the lawn
$300+ month cable bill
$300 month HOA
$315+ month food expenses while at work (eating breakfast and lunch at work, $15 per day at 21 work days per month, could be higher for all I know)
$50-60 month for his and wife new phone installment plans (had to get new phones so they could use FaceTime literally one time when the wife went away for a weekend)

So like $1100 month extra in useless stuff..nbd

And this is only the stuff that has come up in conversation. Im sure there is more.

[TaraB]

We had a soccer team at work, and there were a lot of younger guys on the team.  They were all standing around admiring one of the guys car that he just purchased (or I assumed leased).  The car was an Mercedes AMG convertible (I'll admit it is a beautiful machine)

Me:  Nice car when did you get it.
Him:  Last week, the ladies love it.
Me:  Oh, yeah, they'd probably be more impressed if you weren't still living with your parents.

the rest of the guys thought that was hilarious, but seriously, you are making good money, living at home, why not use that money to build some wealth.  I try talking to the young guys about this, but they don't seem to care.

Where does he expect to be able to bring a lady if he catches one? Does he plan to just fuck her in the back seat of the Mercedes convertible? Because I don't believe there is one.

Gotta trade up to a bigger Mercedes!

[Linea_Norway]

One of my young, female colleagues said in the lunch break that she sometimes finds clothes in her cupboard that are several years old and never worn. Sometimes she buys the same cloth twice, because she forgot she already had it.

The 2 male young colleagues at the same table said they were wearing t-shirts that they had had for years. One said his t-shirt was originally blue. It was now very grey, but still looking OK. I am myself also wearing a 10+ year old t-shirt today.

The female colleague is driving a BMW fancy kind of model. Now she is dreaming of a Tesla.
Dream on, girl!

[Debts_of_Despair]

Not overheard but more of an observation: Our parking lot has a half dozen or so leased BMW 3-series.  All of them bought leased soley for impressing co-workers.  No *ucks given by me as I rolled in past them on my bike.

[Reynold]

my coworkers monthly expenses on stupid shit:
$300 month HOA

To be fair, in some places, buying a condo or townhouse with a $300/month HOA fee can be cheaper than buying a house without a HOA fee because the additional property taxes on the same square footage house will be more than $300/month, even ignoring the higher purchase price of the house.  I would be surprised if the people you mention thought that way though. :)

A couple of years ago, my workplace offered a "higher tier" health insurance plan that cost the employee something like $800/month, versus the "lower tier" one that was more like $100/month for the employee.  The higher tier one had slightly better coverage of out-of-network stuff, but since they had similar caps on total out of pocket coverage before they covered 100%, I couldn't construct any possible scenario under which the higher tier one saved you money.  It got dropped, and the VP of my area, which is highly technical, was complaining that he couldn't get it any more.  I asked if he had ever crunched any numbers on it, and the answer was no, he just "wanted the best coverage".  While he could afford it, it only took me about 15 minutes of playing with hypotheticals to figure out the higher tier insurance was a bad buy, that is pretty good $/hour. . .

[ingrownstudentloans]

It got dropped, and the VP of my area, which is highly technical, was complaining that he couldn't get it any more.  I asked if he had ever crunched any numbers on it, and the answer was no, he just "wanted the best coverage".

I don't see the problem here - if it's more expensive, it has to be better coverage.  Good thing your family didn't get sick.  You must not love your kids if you are willing to risk their health for $700/mo.
/s

[gReed Smith]

my coworkers monthly expenses on stupid shit:
$100 month for a guy to mow the lawn
$300+ month cable bill
$300 month HOA
$315+ month food expenses while at work (eating breakfast and lunch at work, $15 per day at 21 work days per month, could be higher for all I know)
$50-60 month for his and wife new phone installment plans (had to get new phones so they could use FaceTime literally one time when the wife went away for a weekend)

So like $1100 month extra in useless stuff..nbd

And this is only the stuff that has come up in conversation. Im sure there is more.

The HOA fee doesn't impress me much without knowing what services it covers.  But, I guarantee he spends more than $315 on eating out if he buys breakfast and lunch.  Also, I can't even imagine how to get a cable bill over $300!

[Linea_Norway]

Not overheard but more of an observation: Our parking lot has a half dozen or so leased BMW 3-series.  All of them bought leased soley for impressing co-workers.  No *ucks given by me as I rolled in past them on my bike.

At my work there are a LOT of Tesla's in the parking lot most of these are owned by people with a pretty high income.

Even one of the guys who cycles almost every day owns a Tesla.

[Vindicated]

It got dropped, and the VP of my area, which is highly technical, was complaining that he couldn't get it any more.  I asked if he had ever crunched any numbers on it, and the answer was no, he just "wanted the best coverage".

I don't see the problem here - if it's more expensive, it has to be better coverage.  Good thing your family didn't get sick.  You must not love your kids if you are willing to risk their health for $700/mo.
/s

This is a weird argument.

Do you pay for a home security system?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're risking your safety for $50/mo.

Do you have a full-time bodyguard for your kids?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're not hiring professionals to follow them around for $5k/mo

----

The obvious take away is that Reynold has insurance, which DOES protect his family's health.  Should he be critical of a coworker paying for the higher priced stuff?  It depends on the financial details of the person.  If they can afford the $700/mo and it offers benefits that make it a good deal for them, then no problem.  If they're just buying an extra $700/mo of coverage for no benefit, then yes, it's foolish.

[ketchup]

It got dropped, and the VP of my area, which is highly technical, was complaining that he couldn't get it any more.  I asked if he had ever crunched any numbers on it, and the answer was no, he just "wanted the best coverage".

I don't see the problem here - if it's more expensive, it has to be better coverage.  Good thing your family didn't get sick.  You must not love your kids if you are willing to risk their health for $700/mo.
/s

This is a weird argument.

Do you pay for a home security system?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're risking your safety for $50/mo.

Do you have a full-time bodyguard for your kids?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're not hiring professionals to follow them around for $5k/mo

----

The obvious take away is that Reynold has insurance, which DOES protect his family's health.  Should he be critical of a coworker paying for the higher priced stuff?  It depends on the financial details of the person.  If they can afford the $700/mo and it offers benefits that make it a good deal for them, then no problem.  If they're just buying an extra $700/mo of coverage for no benefit, then yes, it's foolish.

I think you missed the /s switch.

[solon]

It got dropped, and the VP of my area, which is highly technical, was complaining that he couldn't get it any more.  I asked if he had ever crunched any numbers on it, and the answer was no, he just "wanted the best coverage".

I don't see the problem here - if it's more expensive, it has to be better coverage.  Good thing your family didn't get sick.  You must not love your kids if you are willing to risk their health for $700/mo.
/s

This is a weird argument.

Do you pay for a home security system?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're risking your safety for $50/mo.

Do you have a full-time bodyguard for your kids?  If not, you must not love your kids if you're not hiring professionals to follow them around for $5k/mo

----

The obvious take away is that Reynold has insurance, which DOES protect his family's health.  Should he be critical of a coworker paying for the higher priced stuff?  It depends on the financial details of the person.  If they can afford the $700/mo and it offers benefits that make it a good deal for them, then no problem.  If they're just buying an extra $700/mo of coverage for no benefit, then yes, it's foolish.

I think you missed the /s switch.

It's always fun when people take sarcasm seriously.

[Vindicated]

Glad it was sarcasm.  I've never seen it shown as "/s".  Alert level lowered to yellow :-P

[LennStar]

One of my young, female colleagues said in the lunch break that she sometimes finds clothes in her cupboard that are several years old and never worn. Sometimes she buys the same cloth twice, because she forgot she already had it.

The 2 male young colleagues at the same table said they were wearing t-shirts that they had had for years. One said his t-shirt was originally blue. It was now very grey, but still looking OK. I am myself also wearing a 10+ year old t-shirt today.

The female colleague is driving a BMW fancy kind of model. Now she is dreaming of a Tesla.
Dream on, girl!

I have a few pullover that may be 20 years old by now. They are really presentable, but as long as I don't need to impress someone they are still doing their job - warm and comfy.
Of course T-Shirts die earlier, they are thinner, and nearly always at the ellbow anyway. 5 years for a cheapo.