Overheard at Work

[mlipps]

A coworker was printing out all of her year-end statements from her various credit cards at work today...because she needed to give them to her accountant so that she could get an interest deduction on her tax return. I don't think she believed me when I told her that her credit card interest isn't deductible...

I believe it used to be, so she's not nuts for thinking that. Her information is just very dated, on a par with knowing how to change the ribbon on your typewriter.*

*To the last 3 typewriter users in the universe. Yes, I know you're here; how very mustachian of you. My point stands.

ROFL - I believe the credit card interest deduction was phased out at least 20 years ago. Good one about the typewriter.

You can also technically take a student loan interest deduction if the only thing you use the card for is qualified educational expenses. Though something tells me that's not the case.

[zinnie]

Another one: my company switched from a bi-monthly pay schedule to a bi-weekly pay schedule (pay divided into 26 checks per year instead of 24). Panic ensued because the checks are smaller, even though they come more often. Excerpt from a discussion this morning:

I am so unhappy about the bi-weekly switch in 2014. All of our bills are based on a per-month schedule and now we have less money each month except May and October, when we have a random third paycheck. Responsible people (like me) must cancel automatic payments to the mortgage company, credit cards, student loan companies, etc. because we are not paid the same time each month. Please put a stop to this personal accounting nightmare!!! I cannot get paid less every month until MAY!

Responsible people not being able to handle this switch is my favorite part of the comment...and that she has less money each month except for the months where there are three paychecks. Because, you know, all that matters in personal finance is how many paychecks you get in a month. Not what it adds up to over time...

I would definitely not like getting switched to bi-weekly. It wouldn't mean anything really different for my financial situation but it would trigger my OCDness a bit.

This is interesting to me--I saw it as a good thing because we get the money sooner, and every two weeks is easier for me to keep straight than trying to remember which day of the week is the 10th and 25th and which day they will deposit it if payday is on the weekend, etc.

I was mostly intrigued/surprised by the fact that she literally thinks that she is getting less money 10 months of the year and more money 2 months of the year. The checks come every two weeks and they are the exact same amount each time. it is only the division into "months" that makes it seem off balance...

I didn't include the whole rant but she went on to complain (on a board visible to my entire company, that is intended for professional discussions) about how she couldn't pay her bills this month and was bringing the issue up with HR, etc. It got very heated and awkward.

[dragoncar]

I was mostly intrigued/surprised by the fact that she literally thinks that she is getting less money 10 months of the year and more money 2 months of the year.

Well, she is getting less money 10 months and more money 2 months.  I see what you are saying, and obviously this shouldn't cause any "responsible" person to have trouble paying bills.  I guess everyone has their own preferences (I don't care what day of the week I get paid, for example).

[dragoncar]

Saw a scene the other day while waiting in a hospital hallway. Two construction workers walked by carrying their lunch coolers. The 2nd fellow had a pretty banged up lunch cooler with no lid, so I could see his various packages sitting in there as well as his banana.  I immediately thought of MMM and how the guy was clearly not wasting his hard earned $$$ on a new lunch cooler...his worked fine for carrying a lunch. Who needs a lid? Made me smile :-))

Cooler without a lid?  I'd just use a bag.

[dragoncar]

@dragoncar -- I was giving the guy the benefit of the doubt in assuming the cooler was a acquired cheap or free ;-) also, a lunch sitting in a sunny car from 7am till noon in a bag might not hold up as well as one in a cooler with a ice pack.

I'm still confused as to the efficacy without a lid.  Anyway, everyone knows you just put your frozen burrito on the dashboard in the morning, and by lunch time you have a hot snack.

[Nudelkopf]

It would make a lot more sense for everyone to be paid once a month. You know, just like virtually every other bill we pay once a month.

I just assumed everyone got paid fortnightly. My bills are all fortnightly (rent, sport.. actually, that's all my bills). Monthly confuses me because each month has a different amount of days in it - there always 14 days in a fortnight, so to me it makes it more even.

[mgarl10024]

Another one: my company switched from a bi-monthly pay schedule to a bi-weekly pay schedule (pay divided into 26 checks per year instead of 24).

I've never understood why:
- bi-monthly means twice per month (24 paycheques)
- bi-weekly means every two weeks (26 paycheques)

Shouldn't bi-weekly mean twice per week?  (or bi-monthly every two months) to be consistent?

MG

[Primm]

I thought bi-monthly *did* mean every two months. I would have thought twice a month should be semi-monthly. Surely there's a grammar Nazi on here who can chime in.

[lithy]

Bimonthly means both twice a month and every two months.

Let that one sink in.

[mgarl10024]

Bimonthly means both twice a month and every two months.

Let that one sink in.

I was going to order a new bicycle, but I now wont know whether it comes with half a wheel or two wheels.  :-)

[warfreak2]

That's language for you. Flammable and inflammable mean the same thing, too. So long as people commonly use (and understand) "bimonthly" to mean "every half a month", then that's what it means. In a strict etymological sense, it should mean "every two months", and "semimonthly" should mean "every half a month", but etymology isn't the only determinant of the meaning of a word. Otherwise a "boyfriend" would be a boy who is your friend.

[AlanStache]

Letting the English majors determine the rules of English instead of the Math and Engineering majors was probably the worst mistake we ever made in setting up the English language.  And dont get me started on how bad the English majors messed up the spelling conventions.

[warfreak2]

English majors don't determine the rules of the English language, though a small number of them might like to pretend they do. In some sense, nobody makes the rules, and in another sense, everybody does.

[Rural]

In some sense, nobody makes the rules, and in another sense, everybody does.

Language is a system that functions only through consensus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Course_in_General_Linguistics

[Paul der Krake]

It would make a lot more sense for everyone to be paid once a month. You know, just like virtually every other bill we pay once a month.

I just assumed everyone got paid fortnightly. My bills are all fortnightly (rent, sport.. actually, that's all my bills). Monthly confuses me because each month has a different amount of days in it - there always 14 days in a fortnight, so to me it makes it more even.

That's interesting, is it typical for bills to be fortnightly in Australia? What about things like utilities or, gasp, cell phone bills?

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay. Maybe because it sounds less expensive? But unless you work a labour intensive job or some sort of temp job, everyone is still paid monthly.

[mgarl10024]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

Maybe, as you suggest, this is London centric.  I live outside of London, and rents are always pcm, although I have recently seen the odd agent start to quote per week - but this is a new development here.

[Primm]

Most bills in Australia are monthly or multiple monthly (quarterly, annual). About the only things I know of that are fortnightly are rent and gym / sports memberships.

[randymarsh]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

Just for fun one time I was looking at London apartments on Craigslist. I kept thinking "I thought London was expensive; these are the same or less than rent here?!?" Then I realized...

[rocksinmyhead]

I think we should all just start using the word "fortnightly" like you Brits and Aussies. I like it, it makes me feel like I'm on a quest or something.

[limeandpepper]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

That's how it works in Melbourne, Australia as well. Or at least every place I've rented here. Apparently some other states do it differently. My company pays fortnightly. Bills are usually monthly or quarterly, sometimes half-yearly, and occasionally you can pay annually for some things, I think.

[Winston]

I think we should all just start using the word "fortnightly" like you Brits and Aussies. I like it, it makes me feel like I'm on a quest or something.

Thank you for that, I needed a chuckle :)

[thd7t]

It would make a lot more sense for everyone to be paid once a month. You know, just like virtually every other bill we pay once a month.

A couple of people I know get paid monthly.  Everyone else just gasps and says "how do you do it!?  That last week must be hell!" 

Because apparently you just spend money in the account until it is all gone, and then hang on for grim death until the next paycheck comes through.

I kind of end up feeling that way, because I "pay myself first" and really feel like I don't have that money.  I've done it for as long as I can remember.  I admit that I always feel broke at the end of the month even when I'm saving around 40% (you may scoff, but it's pretty good for me, and getting better).

[Rural]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

Just for fun one time I was looking at London apartments on Craigslist. I kept thinking "I thought London was expensive; these are the same or less than rent here?!?" Then I realized...

Rents at the extreme lower end of slum housing in the city of the college where i work are advertised (and paid, as far as I know) weekly. Mostly I think the target is factory workers, who are paid weekly. I imagine it makes eviction faster as well as making it sound cheaper.

Pay schedules vary wildly around here, but the general rule I've observed is that the more professional the job is considered to be, the less frequent the pay (up to the max of monthly, the schedule both my husband and I are on).

[Fireman]

I think we should all just start using the word "fortnightly" like you Brits and Aussies. I like it, it makes me feel like I'm on a quest or something.

[rocksinmyhead]

I think we should all just start using the word "fortnightly" like you Brits and Aussies. I like it, it makes me feel like I'm on a quest or something.

noooooo! but we were set to reach the Willamette Valley in a fortnight!!!

[galliver]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

Just for fun one time I was looking at London apartments on Craigslist. I kept thinking "I thought London was expensive; these are the same or less than rent here?!?" Then I realized...

Rents at the extreme lower end of slum housing in the city of the college where i work are advertised (and paid, as far as I know) weekly. Mostly I think the target is factory workers, who are paid weekly. I imagine it makes eviction faster as well as making it sound cheaper.

Pay schedules vary wildly around here, but the general rule I've observed is that the more professional the job is considered to be, the less frequent the pay (up to the max of monthly, the schedule both my husband and I are on).

When I worked in construction, pay was weekly, and it is at the restaurant where I work. My temp agency pays weekly too. But it seems like as soon as you move into a white collar industry, paychecks come less frequently.

Grad student stipends in many places (probably not all) are monthly. Not very white-collar. More like ratty-jeans. ;)

[Albert]

Some bill I pay are monthly (rent, health insurance, credit card), some are quarterly (internet, electricity, TV licence) and some are yearly (public transport pass). None are more often than once per month. Our pay is always once a month and when we talk about income the usually units are pretax francs in a year.

[lithy]

One thing I will add to this conversation is that I often have bills that arrive at different times and would never be able to 'sync' them up to pay everything on one day a month because the due date is usually only 2-3 weeks out.  I'm thinking utilities specifically.

So I do my accounting biweekly on the same day as payday.

[Le0]

One thing I will add to this conversation is that I often have bills that arrive at different times and would never be able to 'sync' them up to pay everything on one day a month because the due date is usually only 2-3 weeks out.  I'm thinking utilities specifically.

So I do my accounting biweekly on the same day as payday.

My utilities let me pay credit. So if I over pay it goes to the next bill. If I wanted I could pay the them on the 1st of march even if I dont owe anything until the 30th of April. I don't do this, but there has been a few cases where this has worked well. 

[Shor]

That's language for you. Flammable and inflammable mean the same thing, too. So long as people commonly use (and understand) "bimonthly" to mean "every half a month", then that's what it means. In a strict etymological sense, it should mean "every two months", and "semimonthly" should mean "every half a month", but etymology isn't the only determinant of the meaning of a word. Otherwise a "boyfriend" would be a boy who is your friend.

I don't see why this was allowed to slide when we have biannual and biennial for the years...
I would say English majors failed to provide the necessary language before people took up the same word "bimonthly" and propagated it under both situations and BOOM! societal collapse. Any time now we'll see the folly in carrying on such a hopelessly conflicted system and just give up.
Our only hope is a scientific study on "The Social Integrity of the Bimonthly vs. Bimonthly Terminology".

I assume English Master students need to find some kind of asinine topic for their thesis... this one's a freebie.

[fantabulous]

When I worked in construction, pay was weekly, and it is at the restaurant where I work. My temp agency pays weekly too. But it seems like as soon as you move into a white collar industry, paychecks come less frequently.

I work in IT as a fake engineer and get paid weekly. Not sure if that counts as white collar.

Grad student stipends in many places (probably not all) are monthly. Not very white-collar. More like ratty-jeans. ;)

I'm not sure if I'm considered a white collar worker or not. I definitely don't do much physical labor, and rarely wear a collared shirt and sometimes wear ratty jeans (or even both). When I did phone/email support for my current employer, I felt like it was essentially blue collar work in that I was a replacable warm body in a building.

[Hunny156]

He will get 36 weeks severance and they are just going to try and keep the house.

I asked if he will try to find another job and she said that it was pointless because his position is in a dying field.  He is just going to  "take the summer off and spend it at the cabin with his mom." 

I feel like I shouldn't be this pissed off.  I do not feel bad for them.  It is their own fault for not building up any savings (hello emergency fund!?)   

This is sad because they don't even seem to be serious yet (about figuring their plan out). It's like she's given up halfway through the struggle. With that much wiggle room there's so much to do and so many cards they can still play--the defeatist attitude there is the most depressing part.

One of my good friends is a recruiter, and she sees this happen all the time.  I look at severance as a chance to find a new job before the $$ runs out and maybe even get ahead, but most people look at it like a paid vacation, and a new job will pop up in the nick of time.  I would never be able to enjoy my "time off" if I thought like these people do!

If my employer gave me that much notice and severance, I assure you, my resume would have been out in the market before the end of the 1st day!

It's great if you can make the timing work. I got laid off last summer. They telegraphed it so far in advance that on the day they laid me off I already had a lunch interview scheduled - my third with that company. Signed the papers for new job 5 days after getting laid off. I did take a few weeks of "paid vacation" in between jobs, though.

It still amuses me to think about the manager apologetically telling me they'd have to let me go - and then looking confused about why I was practically laughing in his face.

Good for you!  When I was laid off, it was really obvious to me b/c both of my supervisors had moved into different positions.  HR called me in and advised me to meet w/two new managers, but they kept delaying my meeting.  I still had plenty of other work to do, but if that's not writing on the wall, I don't know what is.

So, on the day I was officially laid off, I had called in about being a few hours late due to my hot water heater breaking.  I was actually at an interview that morning.  I didn't get the job, but when HR called me into my office, I asked, oh, is it time to get fired now?  It made the meeting less awkward, since I pretty much took the white envelope, confirmed the severance was in line w/my time with the company, and walked out.

I spent the next 18 months bouncing between temporary and permanent jobs, cobbling together an annual salary that was a little bit more than the job I got laid off from.  It was a personal goal for me to bank that severance, which I eventually was able to do, for good!

[Fonzico]

I get paid weekly, and I quite enjoy it - Not only do I get a "bonus" paycheck four times a year (as I don't include it in my budgets) but I get to play around with my money once a week :) I'm one of those who gets giddy when I get to pay off debt or put money into investments, so the more frequent, the better.

All my bills are monthly though. They all either come out of a separate account which gets funded weekly, or credit cards, which also get paid off weekly. It's probably not the most efficient system, but it works for now.

Back on topic though - and in line with this whole "what day is payday" thing, witness the conversation I recently had with a dear friend:

Her: "Well, I might be up for a promotion soon, but I'm not sure if I want to take it?"
Me: "Why not? You'll get a pay raise, won't you?" (I know her and her boyfriend are pretty tight financially.)
Her: "Because my paychecks will come on the same day as [boyfriend's] and then I'll have to make it last for two weeks instead of one!"
Me: "That's absurd! You really can't budget for two weeks? You would have more money! How could you not make that work to your advantage?!" <- not my exact words, but I was pretty blunt.

I love these people, and they work really hard, but just cannot get ahead. Some due to past mistakes, but as far as I can tell, they're not doing anything particularly ridiculous right now. They don't have a vehicle, both work full time... If their eating-out budget is seriously the thing holding them back, wow.

I cannot be the only one around here who wishes loved ones would just put me in charge of their finances! I could make their lives SO much easier..

[Abe]

I have managed my parents' investments since going to college because they saw I had interest in finances and they don't. They essentially use 10-15% of their earnings for discretionary spending and the rest (bills, taxes, savings) I manage.  Let's just say they have a ton more money now than before.

[Primm]

It would make a lot more sense for everyone to be paid once a month. You know, just like virtually every other bill we pay once a month.

A couple of people I know get paid monthly.  Everyone else just gasps and says "how do you do it!?  That last week must be hell!" 

Because apparently you just spend money in the account until it is all gone, and then hang on for grim death until the next paycheck comes through.

I kind of end up feeling that way, because I "pay myself first" and really feel like I don't have that money.  I've done it for as long as I can remember.  I admit that I always feel broke at the end of the month even when I'm saving around 40% (you may scoff, but it's pretty good for me, and getting better).

Me too. My pay hits my account and my little electronic goblins distribute it to savings / mortgage / investments / bills, and what's left over is mine. That's how I get away with telling people I can't afford it and have no money, because it honestly feels like that. My transaction account has something like $200 in it each pay, and that's to cover all my living expenses. It's a mind game, but it works for me.

Funny because we're in the process of buying a house, so everything is stashed away. I asked my husband for $20 for fuel the other day (we have separate accounts) and he looked at me like I had two heads. Then I realised I could just transfer it from my savings account, but that felt so wrong because it's always been untouchable. I actually felt really ill while I was doing it.

[Rural]

Funnily enough, rents in England (well London at least) are often advertised per week, but they calculate the pcm, or per-calendar-month amount, and that's what you pay.

Just for fun one time I was looking at London apartments on Craigslist. I kept thinking "I thought London was expensive; these are the same or less than rent here?!?" Then I realized...

Rents at the extreme lower end of slum housing in the city of the college where i work are advertised (and paid, as far as I know) weekly. Mostly I think the target is factory workers, who are paid weekly. I imagine it makes eviction faster as well as making it sound cheaper.

Pay schedules vary wildly around here, but the general rule I've observed is that the more professional the job is considered to be, the less frequent the pay (up to the max of monthly, the schedule both my husband and I are on).

When I worked in construction, pay was weekly, and it is at the restaurant where I work. My temp agency pays weekly too. But it seems like as soon as you move into a white collar industry, paychecks come less frequently.

Grad student stipends in many places (probably not all) are monthly. Not very white-collar. More like ratty-jeans. ;)

But they're modeled on faculty pay, which is usually monthly, and which, like some grad stipends, doesn't always involve being paid 12 months of the year.

At my institution, faculty are monthly and staff are biweekly.

[KatieSSS]

I was recently at a work-sponsored dinner where I was the only one in the room making less than 6-figures. A conversation with one of the high-earning guests went like this:

Guest: What do you hope to be doing in 20 years?
Me: 20 years? I hope to be retired! (I'm in my 20s, btw)
Guest: Retired!? I'm sorry dear, but it is going to take much longer than that for you to retire!
**Laughter ensues from the rest of the table, with nods of agreement toward the guest***
Me: We'll see….

I hope you get the chance to retire from this company and make EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM eat their words, though I think they will be speechless (and really fucking jealous - they'll probably make up a story that you inherited or married money).  You go girl!

Woot!!! Thanks for the encouragement, y'all! Someone upthread mentioned something about it not being a good career move that I mention retiring in 2 years - it wasn't 2 it was 20.

And actually, these people at my table were not fellow employees, but people affiliated with my company. I would LOVE to get in touch with all of them in 20 years and tell them something to the effect of IN YOUR FACE! However, most of them at my table were definitely in the 50-60 range, maybe even 70. So at that age, they may be dead in 20 years. And I don't mean that in the sense that I wish that for them, but more as an example that they are still working at that age and for them it seems like retirement is still a dream (all based on their reactions to me when I said I wanted to retire in my 40s - I have no actual of knowledge of when they'll retire). I plan on being several years retired by my 60s, so hopefully I never say something similar to what was said to me.

[Nudelkopf]

I kind of end up feeling that way, because I "pay myself first" and really feel like I don't have that money.  I've done it for as long as I can remember.  I admit that I always feel broke at the end of the month even when I'm saving around 40% (you may scoff, but it's pretty good for me, and getting better).

I didn't go to the movies last week with a friend, because I said I couldn't afford it. She then asked me at work what on earth I spend all my money on... I told her I spend it on savings. She was confused.

[grantmeaname]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

[T-Rex]

Me: Is the free wifi working?
Coworker: I don't know, I use (paid faster wifi), why don't you?
Me: Well, I already have free wifi and a computer at work. Isn't the paid wifi $100 a month?
Coworker: No, I pay $25 a week.
Me: So you do pay $100 a month.
Coworker: No, it's $90 if you pay by month.

>_>

[Khao]

Me: Is the free wifi working?
Coworker: I don't know, I use (paid faster wifi), why don't you?
Me: Well, I already have free wifi and a computer at work. Isn't the paid wifi $100 a month?
Coworker: No, I pay $25 a week.
Me: So you do pay $100 a month.
Coworker: No, it's $90 if you pay by month.

>_>

Your coworker is kinda right. He does not pay $100 a month. Instead he pays $108.33 on average a month since he's stupid enough to pay weekly ;)

[dragoncar]

Me: Is the free wifi working?
Coworker: I don't know, I use (paid faster wifi), why don't you?
Me: Well, I already have free wifi and a computer at work. Isn't the paid wifi $100 a month?
Coworker: No, I pay $25 a week.
Me: So you do pay $100 a month.
Coworker: No, it's $90 if you pay by month.

>_>

Your coworker is kinda right. He does not pay $100 a month. Instead he pays $108.33 on average a month since he's stupid enough to pay weekly ;)

Wow, these just keep getting better.  Why do you need to pay for WiFi at work, though?

[mlipps]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

I stick with the ambiguous "It's not in the budget this month", which walks a fine line between the two.

[NeverWasACornflakeGirl]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

I stick with the ambiguous "It's not in the budget this month", which walks a fine line between the two.

I like that.  I also go with "we're trying not to spend money right now."  People understand that and it makes you sound very responsible.  Kind of like someone on a diet.  ;-)

[Oscar_C]

I cannot be the only one around here who wishes loved ones would just put me in charge of their finances! I could make their lives SO much easier..

I did this about September of last year. No late bills and no power outages form late electricity bills. Phone bills paid 2 weks in advance. it took almost 6 months of negotiating, but it was completely worth it.

(Also rounding up the numbers a bit so I get a little profit from everything, lol)

[homehandymum]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

I stick with the ambiguous "It's not in the budget this month", which walks a fine line between the two.

Yes.  I did this too, back when I had co-workers and spendy flatmates.  Otherwise people would offer to pay for me, and that's just not on.  Now I just hang around with other single-income homeschool Mums, and they *all* understand about saying 'no' to stuff.

[Melody]

I travel a lot so I just say "i'm saving for my trip to..."
What my coworkers don't know of course is that my holidays cost me a fraction of the cost of their holidays (hosteling, budget airlines etc) - so my 6 weeks in America will cost me significantly less than my co-worker's 3 weeks etc. So it seems like a legitimate thing to save for and that it's reasonable I'd be feeling a bit stretched.
Works well with friends as well, as many of them have not traveled or are not very good savers, so they either think travel is super expensive (so many friends think they need to save $5k for a three week trip in Asia - as if! $1k will do it with change, 3k if you want the 5 star experience) or it's not weird for someone on  a decent salary to need to "save" for a year to get say $6000 together for a trip (because that's how long it takes them) - I'll have the money "saved" within 2 months and then it's onto building the stash again!

[Kactus]

I travel a lot so I just say "i'm saving for my trip to..."
What my coworkers don't know of course is that my holidays cost me a fraction of the cost of their holidays (hosteling, budget airlines etc) - so my 6 weeks in America will cost me significantly less than my co-worker's 3 weeks etc. So it seems like a legitimate thing to save for and that it's reasonable I'd be feeling a bit stretched.
Works well with friends as well, as many of them have not traveled or are not very good savers, so they either think travel is super expensive (so many friends think they need to save $5k for a three week trip in Asia - as if! $1k will do it with change, 3k if you want the 5 star experience) or it's not weird for someone on  a decent salary to need to "save" for a year to get say $6000 together for a trip (because that's how long it takes them) - I'll have the money "saved" within 2 months and then it's onto building the stash again!

Perfect segue into something I 'overheard' at work: On the company social network someone posted this:

Can you help with my holiday planning?? Here's your Friday Brain Buster:
 
Nikki and David need to save $5000 each for their trip to Coachella Music Festival in California.
 
Nikki currently has no savings and David has $1000. Nikki can save $150 per week but David can only save $75 dollars per week.
 
How long will it take for them to each save $5000 and at what point will they have saved the same amount of money?

They could mean that that is how much they are saving by cutting their expenses even further than usual I suppose, and that they are still putting loads into investment savings, but I doubt it.

[lifejoy]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

I don't like to give the impression that I'm bad with money management. Instead of saying I can't afford it, I say I'm busy or suggest other plans. Or, I go! Investing in friendships can be good :) Everything within moderation!

[Albert]

That's always tough to explain. It's never "I don't have the cash", but "I don't want to spend my money on that" never comes across well.

I don't like to give the impression that I'm bad with money management. Instead of saying I can't afford it, I say I'm busy or suggest other plans. Or, I go! Investing in friendships can be good :) Everything within moderation!

Same here. I'd feel ridiculous saying that I don't have money for going to movies or for few drinks in town. My friends know that I have a high salary and no dependants...