Author Topic: Overheard at Work  (Read 13253133 times)

Papa Mustache

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8900 on: June 29, 2015, 02:47:33 PM »
I don't know any actors here so I can't comment on that at all, but if you are above average musician here you can make a pretty good living. Some of that is because there are a lot of rich people here who support arts. Most of the musicians I know earn part of their money by giving private lessons or working in a music school. Private cello lessons by the way go for 120-130 $/hour here.

As with so many things in life - you might make $130 per hour but only work 2-3 hours per week b/c there just isn't enough demand. My handful of artists in my social circle are much like the ones mentioned earlier - most cobble an income together from multiple sources including working in coffee shops and restaurants. 

mtn

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8901 on: June 29, 2015, 03:13:00 PM »
I don't know any actors here so I can't comment on that at all, but if you are above average musician here you can make a pretty good living. Some of that is because there are a lot of rich people here who support arts. Most of the musicians I know earn part of their money by giving private lessons or working in a music school. Private cello lessons by the way go for 120-130 $/hour here.

As with so many things in life - you might make $130 per hour but only work 2-3 hours per week b/c there just isn't enough demand. My handful of artists in my social circle are much like the ones mentioned earlier - most cobble an income together from multiple sources including working in coffee shops and restaurants.

This. There is a reason that my little brother isn't going into music, even though that is what he loves and is best at.

boyerbt

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8902 on: June 30, 2015, 11:54:44 AM »
Email received today:

"Normal payday is scheduled for Monday July 6, but we decided to pay everyone this Friday July 3 so you can enjoy the weekend."

What does this mean "So you can enjoy the weekend?" Are you promoting spending your entire paycheck as soon as it is deposited?

vivophoenix

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8903 on: June 30, 2015, 11:58:09 AM »
Email received today:

"Normal payday is scheduled for Monday July 6, but we decided to pay everyone this Friday July 3 so you can enjoy the weekend."

What does this mean "So you can enjoy the weekend?" Are you promoting spending your entire paycheck as soon as it is deposited?

thats quite the leap you've made there.

getting paid three days early might cheer some people up and allow them to meet financial obligations sooner. I dont hear this and think oh cause all these slobs must have spending issues. sometimes i think people over read into situations. getting paid early makes me smile

boyerbt

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8904 on: June 30, 2015, 12:19:25 PM »
Email received today:

"Normal payday is scheduled for Monday July 6, but we decided to pay everyone this Friday July 3 so you can enjoy the weekend."

What does this mean "So you can enjoy the weekend?" Are you promoting spending your entire paycheck as soon as it is deposited?

thats quite the leap you've made there.

getting paid three days early might cheer some people up and allow them to meet financial obligations sooner. I dont hear this and think oh cause all these slobs must have spending issues. sometimes i think people over read into situations. getting paid early makes me smile

I don't think that it is a huge leap, it is definitely a pessimistic attitude, but that was what came to mind for me. Almost all of my financial obligations as well as deferrals are automatically dispersed so moving the day that money is direct deposited by +/- a day or two really doesn't make a difference to me.

Just my $0.02.

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8905 on: June 30, 2015, 12:56:23 PM »
I always enjoy my weekend more when I've prefunded my investments for the coming week(s). Don't you? ;)

Sam E

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8906 on: June 30, 2015, 01:02:16 PM »
Email received today:

"Normal payday is scheduled for Monday July 6, but we decided to pay everyone this Friday July 3 so you can enjoy the weekend."

What does this mean "So you can enjoy the weekend?" Are you promoting spending your entire paycheck as soon as it is deposited?

thats quite the leap you've made there.

getting paid three days early might cheer some people up and allow them to meet financial obligations sooner. I dont hear this and think oh cause all these slobs must have spending issues. sometimes i think people over read into situations. getting paid early makes me smile

I don't think that it is a huge leap, it is definitely a pessimistic attitude, but that was what came to mind for me. Almost all of my financial obligations as well as deferrals are automatically dispersed so moving the day that money is direct deposited by +/- a day or two really doesn't make a difference to me.

Just my $0.02.

I would say most people don't automatically deposit their paychecks anywhere but their checking account. I know I don't. I prefer to manually pay all my bills to make sure I know how much I'm paying and can notice and check on any discrepancies. Though I also am paid hourly so my paychecks aren't identical week to week and that limits automatic depositing as well.

I enjoy getting paid because it means I now HAVE that money and can put it away where it needs to go. Getting paid early is a nice feeling that would add to the niceness of a long holiday weekend. It really does feel good to get my bills paid, especially if it means my next paycheck goes 100% into my savings (currently debt reduction, technically).

That's not to say there aren't probably people in your workplace who intend to spend more money on the holiday due to getting a paycheck beforehand, or who define their enjoyment with frivolous spending. In fact, there are probably many. But I think it's important to be careful when interpreting someone's intentions not to jump to extreme conclusions too quickly.

vivophoenix

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8907 on: June 30, 2015, 01:33:18 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.


slugline

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8908 on: June 30, 2015, 01:43:43 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.

The math -- it burns!!

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8909 on: June 30, 2015, 01:58:25 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.
HAHAHAHA! Yeah, I'm getting laid off... better take on more debt ASAP! Because truck! :P

cripzychiken

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8910 on: June 30, 2015, 02:30:37 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.
HAHAHAHA! Yeah, I'm getting laid off... better take on more debt ASAP! Because truck! :P
come on, that old SUV would have - idk blew up or something? Plus the like 5% employee discount will easily overcome the 15% depreciation on both the 'old' SUV and the brand new truck.  Plus - discount on all the extras.  The 4x4 upgrade was only like $5000 after the discount.  So worth it.

Plus, when this "long time" is up (I'm thinking like 3 years, that's long, right?) he'll probably have a new job and can get his discount back.

forummm

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8911 on: June 30, 2015, 02:38:39 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.
HAHAHAHA! Yeah, I'm getting laid off... better take on more debt ASAP! Because truck! :P

It makes sense. You won't be able to get a huge new loan if you don't have a job.

Ferrisbueller

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8912 on: June 30, 2015, 04:09:01 PM »
This foam is fucking hilarious my $0.02

nobodyspecial

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8913 on: June 30, 2015, 04:37:44 PM »
This foam is fucking hilarious
Special MMM foam - it's a shaving product AND a desert topping

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8914 on: June 30, 2015, 07:00:55 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.
HAHAHAHA! Yeah, I'm getting laid off... better take on more debt ASAP! Because truck! :P

It makes sense. You won't be able to get a huge new loan if you don't have a job.

I know a guy who made sure he got his mortgage before he quit his good-paying but bad-for-health job, because he wouldn't qualify with his new job. My suggestion that the bank might have a point was not appreciated.

lbmustache

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8915 on: June 30, 2015, 08:34:02 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.


Haha, my friends and I always joke about this kind of thing. "Spend it while you have it"/"Spend it before it's gone" mentality.

frozzie

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8916 on: June 30, 2015, 10:46:53 PM »
CW : I need to change my car (2 years old BMW 1, drives around 10k km a year)
Me : I'm selling my 2001 Forester if you want (switching to a more economical used Prius)
CW : thanks but I need something more reliable to commute
Me : Never had a problem in the 12 years I've own that one ...
CW: and something bigger ...
Me: bigger than the forester? but you don't have a partner, kids or family around ?
CW: I'm done with small cars that breaks every year or two so I'll get a SUV X5 or Q7
Me: ah ok ... makes perfect sense to commute all by yourself in a big fricking tank!
CW: ahaha it's not that big and quite economical with diesel
Me: ah ok (rapidly firing up MMM website for emergency relief)

Strawberry

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8917 on: July 01, 2015, 07:42:23 AM »
Turns out they paid ONLY interest for 7 YEARS. OMG!!!???
Isn't this actually a brilliant stratergy ?
You pay 1/2 price "rent" on a property while you live there.
If the price goes up you sell and pocket the profit, if the price drops too far you give the keys back to the bank and walk away.
It's like a $1M free options contract on a REIT - with discount accommodation thrown in !

Sure, if that is your strategy. This is not strategy, however, and they haven't saved anything. They're now in a market where they are stuck and have no assets. But, I see your point.

But if the market has risen overall, they're still up aren't they?

If you borrowed $500K and only paid interest on it, and then sold 10 years later for $750k you effectively 'paid rent' for 10 years (as your mortgage interest payment) and walked away with 250k, no? It's not like they will hand the keys back and get nothing in return - they will get the increase in the value of the property.

Yes, they're still up if they considered 7 years of payments rent and the house values have gone up that much. Putting aside that they moved from paying cheaper rent in SF so they could "own" in the suburbs for a moment, I think they've actually broken even. The house was actually around 500K. I'm not so sure it's worth too much more than that if they sell it now... but. If we assume they paid in about 250K over the seven years and the values went up similarly, they come out even and basically got free rent for 7 years. Now I'm curious how much the home is worth today, but I won't given into my baser instincts and troll on zillow. Let's see if I can convince him that he's brilliant. After all, my main issue is that he's so bitter about buying a house. If you flip the perspective like this, maybe he's in better shape. I worry he just likes to feel victimized, though. I really do like the guy, but I wish he'd see how freaking fortunate we all are to be having these discussions in the first place. 

SweetLife

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8918 on: July 01, 2015, 07:55:39 AM »
Talking to a CW about my return to work ... we all ended up with cheques from a recent contract (lost severance). Before going on maternity this CW had been talking about getting a motorcycle (Harley used) with his check ... I asked him if he got his Harley - he said Yeah and paid cash for it (hurray)!! But it is a little hard to wash he says ... I said OH? yeah ... he ended up buying NEW and then  financed a new fifth wheel (that the Harley parks INSIDE) and that he prefers to his house (I said sell the house!) ... THEN had to pay $5000 for upgrades on his MASSIVE 350 truck because it "needed more power" ... and he will never retire because he has two children to put through school he says.

Nicest guy ever... but with better decisions both he and his wife (making together over $170,000 per year) could have been retired comfortably long ago ...so sad. I am afraid he will turn out like one of my other bosses from years ago ... another great man, and hard worker ... spend long hours at the office, in towns far from family and made so many plans for "when he retired at 60 he would spend time with his wife and they would travel everywhere" - he adored his wife - and he was the accountant so I assumed he was making all the proper investments etc so they could do this ... he was 55yrs old ... unfortunately his wife was diagnosed with a rapid type of cancer and died within 3 months ... he is still working, must be 64yrs old by now :(  and all those years lost NOT spent with family.

abuzzyisawesome

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8919 on: July 01, 2015, 08:32:12 AM »
We are on a government vendor contract at my office - so our state hasn't passed a budget and we may miss a few checks (possibly over a month w/o pay) until money flows again. Our boss explains we may miss checks and to prepare for it until we are fluid. TWO of my coworkers went out and financed new Harley Davidsons last week.
« Last Edit: July 01, 2015, 01:47:34 PM by abuzzyisawesome »

MishMash

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8920 on: July 01, 2015, 12:47:32 PM »
My fountain of overly consumeristic bullcrap of a coworker (the one that wanted a bigger house so she had more room to store her clothes that she no longer fit into from earlier in the forum) quit several months ago so things have been pretty quiet around here.  We've hired in a bunch of new people and things were looking good, most of them were bringing lunch to work, nothing fantastically stupid said etc....Until this morning (and I had SO much faith in this new group)

CW1: man, my car DIED on the way home yesterday, I threw a rod through the engine
Me:  How old was it?
CW1: 14 years, had that thing through college, I kind of wanted to cry a little on the side of 66
Me:  *Thinking YAY!  Good on you for keeping a car that long etc
CW1:  Now I need a new car, they said it would be a fortune to fix it.  I think I want a Jeep
CW2:  Oh man, you TOTALLY need a Jeep, I just got a brand new Wrangler unlimited and it is SWEET
CW1:  Oh really!  can I see it? 
CW2:  Sure...guys go down to the parking lot come back in talking cars and I hear this conversation

CW2: Yea bro, my wife almost killed me when I came home with this one, my other one was only a year old so I was upside down on the loan.  I had to roll almost 9k of the old debt into the loan for this one, but the rate was only 5% this time around so it kind of evened out (me thinking how bad is your damn credit if 5% was low and wtf was he paying before).  I'm not sure why she was so mad, it was almost the same montly payment.  My dads friend is a car salesguy so he was able to get me that sweet deal (book was like 40k I ONLY paid 35), you want his number?

Me to CW2:  How long was the loan on the second one for?
CW2: 7 years I think
Me: How long was the old one for?
CW2:  Uuhh, I think it was a little shorter
Me:  I don't blame your wife for wanting to kill you
CW2:  It's OK, I told her she could skip getting me anniversary presents and birthday presents this year...
CW1:  Yea give me that guys number and I'll Uber over to see him this afternoon.

Mind you this kid has been here 3 months, was unemployed for 6 months before that, has a new baby and a wife that desperately doesn't want to work but is to meet the bills.  He also doesn't have the drive his sales position requires so I don't see him lasting here long.  So much faith...GONE.

vivophoenix

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8921 on: July 01, 2015, 01:02:20 PM »
My fountain of overly consumeristic bullcrap of a coworker (the one that wanted a bigger house so she had more room to store her clothes that she no longer fit into from earlier in the forum) quit several months ago so things have been pretty quiet around here.  We've hired in a bunch of new people and things were looking good, most of them were bringing lunch to work, nothing fantastically stupid said etc....Until this morning (and I had SO much faith in this new group)

CW1: man, my car DIED on the way home yesterday, I threw a rod through the engine
Me:  How old was it?
CW1: 14 years, had that thing through college, I kind of wanted to cry a little on the side of 66
Me:  *Thinking YAY!  Good on you for keeping a car that long etc
CW1:  Now I need a new car, they said it would be a fortune to fix it.  I think I want a Jeep
CW2:  Oh man, you TOTALLY need a Jeep, I just got a brand new Wrangler unlimited and it is SWEET
CW1:  Oh really!  can I see it? 
CW2:  Sure...guys go down to the parking lot come back in talking cars and I hear this conversation

CW2: Yea bro, my wife almost killed me when I came home with this one, my other one was only a year old so I was upside down on the loan.  I had to roll almost 9k of the old debt into the loan for this one, but the rate was only 5% this time around so it kind of evened out (me thinking how bad is your damn credit if 5% was low and wtf was he paying before).  I'm not sure why she was so mad, it was almost the same montly payment.  My dads friend is a car salesguy so he was able to get me that sweet deal (book was like 40k I ONLY paid 35), you want his number?

Me to CW2:  How long was the loan on the second one for?
CW2: 7 years I think
Me: How long was the old one for?
CW2:  Uuhh, I think it was a little shorter
Me:  I don't blame your wife for wanting to kill you
CW2:  It's OK, I told her she could skip getting me anniversary presents and birthday presents this year...
CW1:  Yea give me that guys number and I'll Uber over to see him this afternoon.

Mind you this kid has been here 3 months, was unemployed for 6 months before that, has a new baby and a wife that desperately doesn't want to work but is to meet the bills.  He also doesn't have the drive his sales position requires so I don't see him lasting here long.  So much faith...GONE.

i honestly in this moment didnt realize that 84 month car loans are a thing now.

cloudsail

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8922 on: July 01, 2015, 04:17:22 PM »
Turns out they paid ONLY interest for 7 YEARS. OMG!!!???
Isn't this actually a brilliant stratergy ?
You pay 1/2 price "rent" on a property while you live there.
If the price goes up you sell and pocket the profit, if the price drops too far you give the keys back to the bank and walk away.
It's like a $1M free options contract on a REIT - with discount accommodation thrown in !

Sure, if that is your strategy. This is not strategy, however, and they haven't saved anything. They're now in a market where they are stuck and have no assets. But, I see your point.

But if the market has risen overall, they're still up aren't they?

If you borrowed $500K and only paid interest on it, and then sold 10 years later for $750k you effectively 'paid rent' for 10 years (as your mortgage interest payment) and walked away with 250k, no? It's not like they will hand the keys back and get nothing in return - they will get the increase in the value of the property.

Yes, they're still up if they considered 7 years of payments rent and the house values have gone up that much. Putting aside that they moved from paying cheaper rent in SF so they could "own" in the suburbs for a moment, I think they've actually broken even. The house was actually around 500K. I'm not so sure it's worth too much more than that if they sell it now... but. If we assume they paid in about 250K over the seven years and the values went up similarly, they come out even and basically got free rent for 7 years. Now I'm curious how much the home is worth today, but I won't given into my baser instincts and troll on zillow. Let's see if I can convince him that he's brilliant. After all, my main issue is that he's so bitter about buying a house. If you flip the perspective like this, maybe he's in better shape. I worry he just likes to feel victimized, though. I really do like the guy, but I wish he'd see how freaking fortunate we all are to be having these discussions in the first place.

Where in the Bay Area is a house worth only 500K??  East Palo Alto??

TRBeck

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8923 on: July 01, 2015, 04:24:29 PM »
I may have posted this before but friend of a friend knows a poor girl out there named "Abcde" (ab-see-de)
Haha, I've heard the Abcde one before - is it real, though?
I once searched our district to see if we really had a student named Abcde. There were several.
There was an Abcde at my high school in Hawaii in the 1990s. I never actually met her but I did see her name on some official lists, etc. So, not a joke.
Mi'Precious is my all-time favorite. I have had some terrific names come through my classes, but none that could automatically conjure up LOTR for me in the middle of an otherwise drab, dreary day in a dank, windowless classroom? I should have written that mom a thank you.

NoraLenderbee

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8924 on: July 01, 2015, 05:59:15 PM »
Turns out they paid ONLY interest for 7 YEARS. OMG!!!???
Isn't this actually a brilliant stratergy ?
You pay 1/2 price "rent" on a property while you live there.
If the price goes up you sell and pocket the profit, if the price drops too far you give the keys back to the bank and walk away.
It's like a $1M free options contract on a REIT - with discount accommodation thrown in !

Sure, if that is your strategy. This is not strategy, however, and they haven't saved anything. They're now in a market where they are stuck and have no assets. But, I see your point.

But if the market has risen overall, they're still up aren't they?

If you borrowed $500K and only paid interest on it, and then sold 10 years later for $750k you effectively 'paid rent' for 10 years (as your mortgage interest payment) and walked away with 250k, no? It's not like they will hand the keys back and get nothing in return - they will get the increase in the value of the property.

Yes, they're still up if they considered 7 years of payments rent and the house values have gone up that much. Putting aside that they moved from paying cheaper rent in SF so they could "own" in the suburbs for a moment, I think they've actually broken even. The house was actually around 500K. I'm not so sure it's worth too much more than that if they sell it now... but. If we assume they paid in about 250K over the seven years and the values went up similarly, they come out even and basically got free rent for 7 years. Now I'm curious how much the home is worth today, but I won't given into my baser instincts and troll on zillow. Let's see if I can convince him that he's brilliant. After all, my main issue is that he's so bitter about buying a house. If you flip the perspective like this, maybe he's in better shape. I worry he just likes to feel victimized, though. I really do like the guy, but I wish he'd see how freaking fortunate we all are to be having these discussions in the first place.

Where in the Bay Area is a house worth only 500K??  East Palo Alto??

7 years ago, you could find 500K houses in less scary places than EPA.

Nudelkopf

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8925 on: July 01, 2015, 06:53:25 PM »
Thought I'd toss this on the pile - a coworker and I were discussing cutbacks at a local auto plant and how they would affect her family since her husband works there.

Well, we had to go out and get a new truck before anything happens, he might lose his employee discount, so we bought a new one with the chrome package, extended cab, short box, 4X4, etc. etc. while we can still save the money. It meant trading in our (2 year old, very big) SUV, but at least we will have this one for a long time.

Insert facepalm.
HAHAHAHA! Yeah, I'm getting laid off... better take on more debt ASAP! Because truck! :P

It makes sense. You won't be able to get a huge new loan if you don't have a job.

I know a guy who made sure he got his mortgage before he quit his good-paying but bad-for-health job, because he wouldn't qualify with his new job. My suggestion that the bank might have a point was not appreciated.
My mum did this. Bought a car with a loan (it was only like, 2%). Then promptly retired the next week.

bzzzt

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8926 on: July 01, 2015, 09:07:46 PM »
i honestly in this moment didnt realize that 84 month car loans are a thing now.

Well, you'll be shocked to hear they have 96 month loans then.

To some, term doesn't really matter since you can refinance an auto loan. I had a buddy who refinanced his truck at about 48 months in to a 72 month loan. This eased his budget while he was laid off. When he went back to work, did he pay it off? Nope, saved the extra cash for a lift and huge tires... he got laid off again literally two days after picking up the truck from getting it lifted. *facepalm*

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8927 on: July 01, 2015, 09:10:22 PM »
i honestly in this moment didnt realize that 84 month car loans are a thing now.

Well, you'll be shocked to hear they have 96 month loans then.

To some, term doesn't really matter since you can refinance an auto loan. I had a buddy who refinanced his truck at about 48 months in to a 72 month loan. This eased his budget while he was laid off. When he went back to work, did he pay it off? Nope, saved the extra cash for a lift and huge tires... he got laid off again literally two days after picking up the truck from getting it lifted. *facepalm*

Uggh, these stories are depressing!

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8928 on: July 01, 2015, 11:45:08 PM »
Not really an "Overheard at Work" but I visited a friend overseas who works for a successful entrepreneur.  The entrepreneur is a larger than life personality.  I won't mention his name or even the country.  It's small enough some posters from there would recognize him.  Anyway, he make a ton of money and immediately spends it on expensive stuff.  To a degree it's understandable.  His personality drives his diverse businesses through aggressive networking. He must put on a show with an expensive car, clothes, and mansion to business partners and clients.  This isn't a problem since he's got plenty of money for it.  But he also spends outrageous amounts hoarding assorted art and personal interest items which nobody but him ever sees.  Some of it's really cool, some of it's junk but unlike hoarders he has a warehouse for it.  He listens to preditory "financial advisors" who've soaked him for millions and really has no sensible investments at all.  My friend says he's like a shark.  He's a big, bad money making machine. But if he ever stops swimming, he's dead.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8929 on: July 01, 2015, 11:52:37 PM »
That's an urban legend. Sharks don't have to continually move.
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8930 on: July 02, 2015, 12:01:25 AM »
That's an urban legend. Sharks don't have to continually move.

He's a nice guy.  So I hope that's true for him too!

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8931 on: July 02, 2015, 01:49:27 AM »
That's an urban legend. Sharks don't have to continually move.

About time I had an opportunity to pimp my friends move. Go watch Ghost Shark 2: Urban Jaws http://www.ghostshark2.com

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8932 on: July 02, 2015, 06:23:41 AM »
That's an urban legend. Sharks don't have to continually move.

Semi urban legend.  While some sharks can stop moving and still are able to pump water over their gills (nurse sharks) other sharks are not able to (great whites, hammer heads).  They might be able to stop if they find a particularly O2 rich area until the O2 is used up, but if they stop moving for too long, they stop getting fresh O2 from the water, they don't breathe, they die. 

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8933 on: July 02, 2015, 07:18:03 AM »
More sea foam: Some sharks need to move to breathe, some don't, but all need to move in order to avoid sinking because of the lack of a swim bladder.

Source: http://www.amnh.org/learn/pd/sharks_rays/rfl_myth/index.html

The metaphor still works: if this entrepreneur stops swimming, he'll sink into the murky depths.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8934 on: July 02, 2015, 10:19:23 AM »
Met a client today named Om'Unique.  It did happen at work.

Oh, and a coworker mentioned that she owes $120K in student loans for her degree in social work. I can't even understand why someone would do that.
« Last Edit: July 02, 2015, 10:38:19 AM by crispy »

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8935 on: July 02, 2015, 10:22:04 AM »
Met a client today named Om'Unique.  It did happen at work.

Oh, and a coworker mentioned that she owes $120K in student loans for her degree in social work. I can't even understand why someone does.

I have a cousin who complains non-stop about how much her student loans are, and how she will be in debt for the rest of her life.  I have no idea what her undergrad is, but her Master's degree and now PhD are in Sign Language Interpretation. From a really expensive private school.  Maybe the M.A. has value, but that seems like a prime example of a PhD not to get if you don't have an employer paying for it.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8936 on: July 02, 2015, 01:11:14 PM »
My little brother is a commercial truck driver, and for a while was over the road. One of the things that I thought was really cool was the way the engines were setup. There is like a 'sleep' mode for sleeping in the cab. It keeps the engine off, but when the temp drops, it starts it up in some weird mode just to make sure the driver doesn't freeze. Just a really neat piece of technology that I didn't even know existed.

Had to watch a building one night that had a fire earlier in the evening at work. I was the reflash watch. Was COLD so I idled the engine all night. It was a V-6 and used 3/8 of a tank of fuel as I recall. I tried running the engine part time and really the interior of the car cooled off so quickly that the engine was not off very long.

I wonder how much fuel a big truck burns idling all night. I know diesels can be very efficient.

A few times per year I travel for work and I bought a generator with my work budget. It is a 6500W Honda generator. They make a simple gen set with a lawnmower engine and the amount of noise you might expect. They make another series of gen sets like mine which are so quiet and efficient that you can stand beside them while they run and have a conversation. Good on fuel too. Expensive. Have often wondered why big trucks don't have something like this incorporated into the vehicle that starts and stops on demand to keep the interior warm or cool as the case maybe. Maybe have a couple of onboard batteries to power everything but the heat or a/c which prob pull far too much to run on batteries - unless a Prius style HVAC system was battery friendly - which they might be.

Am sure it is a matter of $$$ spent and $$$ saved. When it makes $ sense, it'll be done. 

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8937 on: July 02, 2015, 01:14:28 PM »
So, the car was in a campus building (non-residential) parking lot. Probably not a child paying with it.  Not a cop car. Newer model.

Beware of these things. My sister-in-law and family woke one night to find their Kia minivan idling in the garage. Apparently the keyfob lost it's mind and started the engine. Who knows how long it had been running but the exhaust was so thick in the garage that they could not go out to shut off the engine. They had to open the garage door from the other car parked outside and wait for the exhaust to dissipate. Brother-in-law disabled the keyfob and never used it again.

All I could think of was the CO risk to the interior of the house.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8938 on: July 02, 2015, 01:17:58 PM »
@Joe Average

Typically, newer on-highway trucks do one of two things - one is a small diesel genset - just for running the "hotel" loads.  The other is to use a super-efficient engine operating point when the engine is just idling (unless they have to regenerate the emissions equipment, then it really gets loud).

Fleet owners go for whichever provides better fuel savings, as even small amounts of money makes a big impact over the number of vehicle miles they drive.  Individual owner-operators are more likely to go for customized trucks that do not have the same fuel saving technologies.

(Worked as a powertrain engineer for Detroit Diesel / Freightliner / Western Star a few years back)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8939 on: July 02, 2015, 01:42:06 PM »
Quote
All I could think of was the CO risk to the interior of the house.

CO detectors are cheap. Especially if your garage is part of the house... come on, people.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8940 on: July 02, 2015, 02:52:43 PM »
My mom is a public school teacher, and she's heard some odd names over the years. One that always sticks with me is Lord Dorian. That whole thing is his first name, by the way. His mother "didn't want him to be disrespected". I don't think she was aware of what middle school kids are like.

Talk about unintended consequences...

An actual example of irony (not as its used today post Jagged Little Pill, to mean coincidental)!

fify

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8941 on: July 02, 2015, 04:02:52 PM »

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8942 on: July 02, 2015, 04:46:30 PM »
It's a foam party!

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8943 on: July 03, 2015, 12:43:07 AM »
If a shark is swimming in the foam and it stops, will it die?   Or does that only apply to sharks with names like Tan'iqua?   Will the PC Police, grammar nazis, etc rescue it?  And if the shark dies will evidence be documented on an orange box or a black box?

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8944 on: July 03, 2015, 01:04:14 AM »
If a shark is swimming in the foam and it stops, will it die?   Or does that only apply to sharks with names like Tan'iqua?   Will the PC Police, grammar nazis, etc rescue it?  And if the shark dies will evidence be documented on an orange box or a black box?
Nice summary of this thread ;-)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8945 on: July 04, 2015, 01:29:19 PM »

I'm going to go ahead and just assume that it was a warning based on his own experience. Viper mentioned that they weren't trying to be negative, just giving a head's up. That would be an interesting journey to follow though.

Hey Viper: What would you say to starting a thread in either the journal's section or the Ask a Mustachian section, documenting your efforts to get rid of that annoying boredom you are experiencing. I'd definitely be interested in that!!

I guess that because being retired bores me instead of doing meaningful work that I loved...well I guess I'm just a loser. To each his own...what do I know?

That's kind of what I was trying to figure out. I don't hear often from those who get bored in retirement. I was merely suggesting that some may find value in how you can beat those feelings, and it would be a journal thing I would read.
The caveat being that there would need to be some desire to address (or look into) the boredom instead of complaining about it and projecting your experiences onto everyone else.

Let me know if you do that though, otherwise best of luck with the rest of your retirement.

I can see both sides of this I think.  I am not bored "doing nothing" in retirement and yet I am restless for adventure, so maybe that's being bored?  I am always looking for the right mix of chilling at home and travel.  More and more travel is going in the right direction.  Actually, I do find a lot of "retirement" activities boring --- organized activities, volunteer work, clubs, annual events/festivals.  Also, I find some retired people are not that adventurous or physically fit or even sociable.  So at home, I work out, walk for miles, attend to investments, watch movies, garden, read, shop and cook, take a few courses, and plan the next year's travel.  I do miss some of my old jobs, for the satisfaction of accomplishment a very hard task, as well as the pleasure of the doing.  So to give myself the equivalent, I try to make more money every year and do ever more challenging trips.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8946 on: July 04, 2015, 02:14:15 PM »
I have heard very similar lines from CWs about the cost of fresh produce.  I think the people that say this are just trying to justify not eating healthily.  GF and I eat very little that is packaged (frozen berries and oats come in packages but that's a grey area to me.) and while we do spend quite a bit on groceries we both feel we are eating a ton of very high quality, delicious, healthy, fresh food.  I think the health benefit easily offsets the labor cost of slicing up my veggies! =)

I have found that many of these people are the same ones that eat out all of the time. I always counter back with "well the good produce is expensive, but it's still cheaper than eating out." They usually nod in agreement.

I agree, I eat very well on a lot less than people spend on fake food in grocery stores and fast food. Waste is rampant. At a garden party yesterday, mostly retirees in attendance, I mentioned I was going to a farm to buy blueberries and cherries for the freezer. (I also get pushback on how much work this is and how costly it is.  Yet it is only minutes to freeze enough for a year, and much less costly and healthier and tastier than out of season produce.)

Retiree #1 (well-off, former engineer): I should get a freezer again.  We used to have one and buy a side of beef and a lamb every year, but we still had a lot of lamb left by the time the next year's lamb (pre-ordered) was coming. So I had to barbecue all the meat and invite everybody we know to eat it all.  Or the meat got freezer burn because we didn't eat it and we had to throw it out.  So it's a waste of money.

Retire #2 (small pension, no assets, former nurse): You end up with all this meat in the freezer for years and it's a waste of money. (I happen to know her well and she moves a freezer full of ancient frozen meat from place to place. She often mentions she has to "clean out the freezer" but can't because she needs a cooler to put the meat in while she is "sorting".  I have told her a few times in the past I would do it for her in 10 minutes without a cooler. Just throw out anything that you don't know for sure is less than 1 year old and you're done).

Me: I don't buy more meat until I have eaten what is in the freezer (about 3 month's worth maximum) and then buy another 3 months' worth. Anything left in the freezer when the new meat goes in, goes into the freezer compartment of the fridge and gets eaten within a week or two.

Retiree #1: Yeah, but…. (shrug)

Retiree #2: But you're so organized (deprecating tone).

I used to pass on information on how to manage money, how to get organized, how to eat healthy, but I realized that people already know how to do it. They just don't want to and try to justify instead of change.  So, I no longer feel sorry for people because they knowingly bring it all onto themselves.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8947 on: July 04, 2015, 02:49:28 PM »
I have heard very similar lines from CWs about the cost of fresh produce.  I think the people that say this are just trying to justify not eating healthily.  GF and I eat very little that is packaged (frozen berries and oats come in packages but that's a grey area to me.) and while we do spend quite a bit on groceries we both feel we are eating a ton of very high quality, delicious, healthy, fresh food.  I think the health benefit easily offsets the labor cost of slicing up my veggies! =)

I have found that many of these people are the same ones that eat out all of the time. I always counter back with "well the good produce is expensive, but it's still cheaper than eating out." They usually nod in agreement.

I agree, I eat very well on a lot less than people spend on fake food in grocery stores and fast food. Waste is rampant. At a garden party yesterday, mostly retirees in attendance, I mentioned I was going to a farm to buy blueberries and cherries for the freezer. (I also get pushback on how much work this is and how costly it is.  Yet it is only minutes to freeze enough for a year, and much less costly and healthier and tastier than out of season produce.)

Retiree #1 (well-off, former engineer): I should get a freezer again.  We used to have one and buy a side of beef and a lamb every year, but we still had a lot of lamb left by the time the next year's lamb (pre-ordered) was coming. So I had to barbecue all the meat and invite everybody we know to eat it all.  Or the meat got freezer burn because we didn't eat it and we had to throw it out.  So it's a waste of money.

Retire #2 (small pension, no assets, former nurse): You end up with all this meat in the freezer for years and it's a waste of money. (I happen to know her well and she moves a freezer full of ancient frozen meat from place to place. She often mentions she has to "clean out the freezer" but can't because she needs a cooler to put the meat in while she is "sorting".  I have told her a few times in the past I would do it for her in 10 minutes without a cooler. Just throw out anything that you don't know for sure is less than 1 year old and you're done).

Me: I don't buy more meat until I have eaten what is in the freezer (about 3 month's worth maximum) and then buy another 3 months' worth. Anything left in the freezer when the new meat goes in, goes into the freezer compartment of the fridge and gets eaten within a week or two.

Retiree #1: Yeah, but…. (shrug)

Retiree #2: But you're so organized (deprecating tone).

I used to pass on information on how to manage money, how to get organized, how to eat healthy, but I realized that people already know how to do it. They just don't want to and try to justify instead of change.  So, I no longer feel sorry for people because they knowingly bring it all onto themselves.

Can't you just put the "old" meat on top of the new meat? Kind of like the grocery store does with all of their products? This is what we do when we order meat.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8948 on: July 04, 2015, 08:37:06 PM »
This foam is fucking hilarious
Special MMM foam - it's a shaving product AND a desert topping
and a sex toy!

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #8949 on: July 05, 2015, 12:56:03 AM »
I have heard very similar lines from CWs about the cost of fresh produce.  I think the people that say this are just trying to justify not eating healthily.  GF and I eat very little that is packaged (frozen berries and oats come in packages but that's a grey area to me.) and while we do spend quite a bit on groceries we both feel we are eating a ton of very high quality, delicious, healthy, fresh food.  I think the health benefit easily offsets the labor cost of slicing up my veggies! =)

I have found that many of these people are the same ones that eat out all of the time. I always counter back with "well the good produce is expensive, but it's still cheaper than eating out." They usually nod in agreement.

I agree, I eat very well on a lot less than people spend on fake food in grocery stores and fast food. Waste is rampant. At a garden party yesterday, mostly retirees in attendance, I mentioned I was going to a farm to buy blueberries and cherries for the freezer. (I also get pushback on how much work this is and how costly it is.  Yet it is only minutes to freeze enough for a year, and much less costly and healthier and tastier than out of season produce.)

Retiree #1 (well-off, former engineer): I should get a freezer again.  We used to have one and buy a side of beef and a lamb every year, but we still had a lot of lamb left by the time the next year's lamb (pre-ordered) was coming. So I had to barbecue all the meat and invite everybody we know to eat it all.  Or the meat got freezer burn because we didn't eat it and we had to throw it out.  So it's a waste of money.

Retire #2 (small pension, no assets, former nurse): You end up with all this meat in the freezer for years and it's a waste of money. (I happen to know her well and she moves a freezer full of ancient frozen meat from place to place. She often mentions she has to "clean out the freezer" but can't because she needs a cooler to put the meat in while she is "sorting".  I have told her a few times in the past I would do it for her in 10 minutes without a cooler. Just throw out anything that you don't know for sure is less than 1 year old and you're done).

Me: I don't buy more meat until I have eaten what is in the freezer (about 3 month's worth maximum) and then buy another 3 months' worth. Anything left in the freezer when the new meat goes in, goes into the freezer compartment of the fridge and gets eaten within a week or two.

Retiree #1: Yeah, but…. (shrug)

Retiree #2: But you're so organized (deprecating tone).

I used to pass on information on how to manage money, how to get organized, how to eat healthy, but I realized that people already know how to do it. They just don't want to and try to justify instead of change.  So, I no longer feel sorry for people because they knowingly bring it all onto themselves.

I'm buying my first house, closing date is August 14th, and I plan on getting a chest freezer so I can get a side of beef. Thinking of getting an eigth, and looking it down to nothing before buying any more meat (except for occasionally chicken or fish).