Author Topic: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!  (Read 3979 times)

Flyingstache

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Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« on: August 27, 2020, 07:11:28 AM »
Hello everyone!

Just was curious about the Mustachian approach to hobbies/passions/interests that don't necessarily make financial sense. For example, I love horse racing & have considered getting involved in the breeding or owning side of it (at a very small level). However, horse racing (or basically anything with horses) is an industry that from a purely financial sense doesn't always make a lot of sense!

How do others handle having an expensive hobby/interest? Is it justified because you are living a mustachian life in other areas that allow you to pursue these interests?

Thanks for any insights!

Car Jack

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #1 on: August 27, 2020, 07:47:55 AM »
Not overly expensive (compared to my past life of auto racing), I offroad with my Jeep Wrangler.  It's not super expensive.  Gas and $20-$25 per event, club dues $50 a year.  But of course, equipping the Jeep to not be destroyed while out in the boulder gardens or threading between trees costs money.  And the occasional repair costs something.  I've been doing this for 3 years now and have slowly purchased stuff to allow me to more easily get over things and not break something.  A very rough list:

295-70-10 Dick Cepek Extreme Country offroad tires $1000
Wheels for these: cheap from craigslist $300
Wheel spacers to allow articulation without hitting stuff from craigslist $50
Rock sliders (go on the side bottom of Jeep) $600
Oil pan skid plate $100
transmission skid plate $100
gas tank skid plate $150
2 1/2" lift kit (open box special) $250
Rear shock relocator kit $80
Front shock extension (do it myself) $6
Steering stabilizer relocator (do it myself) $0
Front sway bar end link quick disconnects (do it myself) about $10
Front bumper (on wicked sale) $220
Winch $550
D rings $20
Fire extinguisher $25
FRS radio $25

There's always a "what's next?" for this activity.  I'd like to have something better than my very old cheapo lighter powered air inflator.  Eventually, I'll go bigger on tires and do 35-10 super swampers, but not until these Cepeks are worn to be just street tires.  I could use a rear locker, but then we're talking fairly big money that would not be recovered when selling the Jeep. 

Is it allowed?  Well, I know the Wrangler is the poster child anti-mustachian.  Too bad.  I can certainly afford it and my stache is perilously close to three mil, and both DW and I still work (I'm 63) and both kids are also working, so our cost to live is decreasing every day and our income has gone up with DW starting a new full time job in June after over a decade staying home with the kids and doing no more than 4 shifts a month as a nurse.  Our house has been paid off since 2002.  We owe nobody anything.  We have 5 paid off cars.  4 drivers.  This allows the kids to have good cars to use.  Older son bought a fun car that mostly sits in the garage, which is fine because I get to drive it (Honda S2000).
« Last Edit: August 27, 2020, 07:52:31 AM by Car Jack »

joleran

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #2 on: August 27, 2020, 07:49:40 AM »
At least two approaches here, the first of which is to interact with the hobby in a manner that mitigates costs or even turns a profit (such as owning a large enough place for horses you can board other people's).  The other is to just say "yes, this is not a negotiable expense and is what I want to do with my money" which just means you may need more stash.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2020, 07:51:45 AM »
There is no enforcement of "rules". Do what you want with your money.

If you have an expensive hobby though, that is going to decrease your savings rate and increase your time to retirement.

Laura33

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #4 on: August 27, 2020, 08:18:51 AM »
Well of course it's "allowed" -- there's no Governing Board that's going to kick you out of the club if you spend on something that does not meet predetermined utility metrics. 

Look, the point is to figure out the kind of life you want to live, understanding that we all tend to get swayed by consumer culture into thinking we want/need things that we really don't and that don't make us happy.  Most of the time, we are absolute shit at identifying what will make us happy, and so we jump on the hedonic treadmill and chase more and bigger and better in search of the next dopamine hit.  But sometimes, there is some ridiculously stupid thing that actually does make you happy.  And if you've got one of those, then yes, you can and should pursue it -- just do so thoughtfully and methodically.  That includes:

- Prioritize your needs over your wants -- and that includes Future You's needs.  Live below your means.  Make sure you are maxing out your tax-protected savings vehicles, and saving whatever else you need to to be able to retire when you'd like to.  If you're not already doing that, you can't afford your expensive hobby.

- Put a lot of thought into why you like your expensive thing, and whether there are other ways to scratch that itch that are free or cheaper, or that bring in money.  MMM wrote once about a friend who was a serious car guy who scratched the itch by buying older cars, rehabbing them, driving them for a while, and then selling them for a profit. 

- If it comes down to this particular thing is IT, then do the math on how choosing that path affects your path to FIRE -- how much extra do you need in your 'stache to support that hobby, and how much longer do you need to work to add that amount to your 'stache?  Is this particular thing really worth that much longer at your job?  If so, then go for it.  If not, then go back to step 1 and re-evaluate your budget.

- Keep in mind that often expensive hobbies travel in packs.  Like, say, if you love golf and join a private club, after a while you may feel out of place driving your 15-yr-old Camry and wearing golf gear from Target, so first you start buying nicer clothes, then you suddenly need a nicer car, then you make new friends and start hanging out for drinks after rounds, and of course then your gear is insufficient, and the next thing you know, your golf habit is costing you multiples of what you originally budget.  So if you do jump into an expensive world, you will need to work very, very hard and probably manage some internal discomfort to fight off hedonic adaptation.

- Remember that there is a big difference between "no" and "not now."  You may not be able to afford your stupid spendy thing now.  But things may change in a few years.  If you put in the work now -- maxing savings, increasing your income, lowering your other expenses -- you may find yourself in a very different position in a few years.  Hell, make it a personal goal, and create a separate savings account called "Flyingstache's Stupid Money" so that you can see you're making progress towards that goal.

FWIW, I have a StupidCar.*  I continue to be amazed no one has booted me off here because of it.  I've wanted it for more than 20 years, and we certainly had the income to "afford" payments on it.  But I waited until we were FI and I could write a check without endangering either the kids' ability to go to college or DH's/my ability to walk away from work at the drop of a hat.  And I have not regretted it for a single day -- I love love love driving, and there is just no other car like this, and it literally makes me smile every time I downshift into a corner (preferably with the top down).  So yes, I get it.  But I will also say that I enjoy the car so much because I waited and worked and saved for it.  Because there is absolutely zero fear or guilt that that money should have gone to the house or the kids or some other family need; it's just pure enjoyment.

*Of course I bought it used.  But it was still a massively stupid expense that is completely unjustifiable by any reasonable metric.  I just don't care.


mountain mustache

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #5 on: August 27, 2020, 08:54:32 AM »
I have a relatively expensive hobby (Mountain biking) and it is something I have prioritized in my life and accept lower savings rates because of it.
Now, I don't spend $10k a year or anything like that...but it comes with repair $$, occasional new bikes, sometimes road trips, and it used to involve $$ races. I decided when I was 20 that I was going to live the best life I could, right now, and not put off dreams/adventures until I was retired. Who knows what kind of adventures I will be physically capable of when I am retired? I can't predict the future, I can only do the most with the time I have right now. So I may not retire by 35, but I am still saving 30-40% of my income, while saying yes to a hobby/lifestyle that is super important to me.

I could sell all of my bikes+gear right now and probably have....close to $20k extra in my savings. But then what kind of life would I have? I don't think being frugal means sacrificing everything you love to insure a more secure future. There is a balance. I have 1 expensive hobby. I literally don't spend money on anything else...I say no to eating out, to expensive alcohol, to makeup/$$ personal care products, etc...all so I can say yes to the thing that is most important. I would personally choose the ability to mountain bike every day but having to work until normal retirement age, rather than retire early ,but have to give up on the thing I love to do most.

Lady SA

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #6 on: August 27, 2020, 09:38:35 AM »
DH and I are athletes, and fully 13% of our yearly budget is spending related to equipment, race travel, entry fees, nutrition, etc. (ahem we spent $8k per year on average the last 3 years) This is what we love to do and we have structured our lives around it, with training and traveling. It makes us happy, and mustachianism is about designing your happiest life and optimizing it and ensuring that each dollar you spend is materially bringing you happiness. So we wait to stock up on equipment and race nutrition when there are sales, and we get early bird race entries for cheaper, and beyond that, we don't really sweat it. It makes us happy to be fast, and this is what our ideal life costs, and we have accepted a higher spending rate (and therefore correspondingly lower savings) to buy our happiness now.

However, if we were living paycheck to paycheck, we absolutely wouldn't be participating in the big travel races, and we would probably scale down a lot further, but we would probably still casually do a few local races. As it is, all of our other needs are fully met and taken care of first, including setting $ aside for retirement, before we even think about pulling out the checkbook for race stuff.


ChickenStash

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #7 on: August 27, 2020, 09:50:12 AM »
If a hobby or activity is enjoyable or meaningful for you and you understand and accept what the costs mean to the rest of your  goals (FIRE) then have at it. The face-punchy comments are usually reserved for those who want some expensive luxury and are aggressively ignorant as to how it impacts their other goals. For example, trying to justify buying a fancy sports car while under mounds of credit card debt.

My expensive hobby is sports cars and track days. I do what I can to control the expense somewhat (used cars/parts, DIY most things, etc.) but it's still a fairly large cost. Because it is something that brings me joy and I want to keep doing it, I add a line to the budget for it and stick to the plan. I also treat as purely a luxury and if I need to drop my expenses for some reason, it'll be the first category to be cut.

phildonnia

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #8 on: August 27, 2020, 09:56:27 AM »
You're making it sound like there is some Holy Mustachian Doctrine.   It's not a monastic order!
It's too late; he's already discovered the secret elite inner circle.  We should prepare the initiation rites.  Can you collect the supplies this time?  I used all my peanut butter on the last one.

Sibley

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #9 on: August 27, 2020, 10:04:51 AM »
To add to everyone else - if your expensive thing involves Stuff (gear, parts, etc), there's a pretty decent chance that over time you will have Stuff that is not used or wanted anymore. Do not keep that Stuff. Sell that Stuff to recoup some of the cost.

BlueMR2

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #10 on: August 27, 2020, 10:51:48 AM »
Example:  If you've got a $5 million stash and live off $25k, but want to throw $25k a year at a hobby...  Well, the math is very favorable.  Why wouldn't you do that expensive hobby?

Now, if you've got $500k stash, then you'd better rethink those plans.  :-)

ketchup

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #11 on: August 27, 2020, 10:55:29 AM »
We have nine Australian Shepherds in our house at the moment.  Said house predates both world wars and looks like shit.  GF has camera gear worth more than double the combined value of our two cars.  Pick your priorities.

Freedomin5

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #12 on: August 27, 2020, 04:23:47 PM »
+1 to Laura33’s post.

Our expensive hobby is our lakeside cottage with resort fees of $10K per year, that we only use one month per year. In our case, we couldn’t use it this year at all due to the pandemic.

We looked at the costs and how it would impact our FIRE date, decided that we could live with the extra 2-3 months that we would have to work. We calculated how much it would cost us to rent a lakeside cottage for a month each year (~$8000). We also looked for ways to monetize or defray the costs of ownership. We split the cost amongst four family members (shared ownership). We bought a small, simple cottage. We rent out the cottage when we are not using it. Using all of the strategies, our out-of-pocket expenses is less than $8000. Basically we found a way to optimize a potentially expensive interest.

In your case, I’d find a way to board other horses, give riding lessons, use the stables for birthday parties, hold tours, or find other ways to maximize the revenue from your assets (stables and horses).





ixtap

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #13 on: August 27, 2020, 04:26:48 PM »
It isn't about achieving a specific spend rate or saving rate. It is about being intentional with your spending, using your money to fit your priorities, rather than social or peer pressure.

AnnaGrowsAMustache

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #14 on: August 27, 2020, 06:36:47 PM »
I think the idea is to use your money on things YOU value, instead of being a consumer sucka. For some, that is first and foremost early retirement and so expensive hobbies are a no no. For others, it's about those expensive hobbies! As long you are spending on things you find to be valuable, it's all ok.

norajean

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #15 on: August 27, 2020, 08:20:45 PM »
Thoroughbreds run around $50k per year to own, so as long as you don’t own too many, you should be fine.

BussoV6

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #16 on: August 28, 2020, 07:10:19 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

Laura33

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #17 on: August 28, 2020, 08:50:47 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging. 

ChpBstrd

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #18 on: August 28, 2020, 09:08:18 AM »
Would you spend X years of your life doing work you'd rather not do so that you can afford this activity?

Of course, substitute anything for horse racing - fancy cars, a mansion, big boats, vacation properties, restaurant food every day, multiple international vacations a year, designer clothes, an airplane hobby, etc.

I think the philosophy is less specific prohibitions / facepunches and more about asking ourselves if the things we trade our lifetimes for are worthy of our lifetimes. A lot of people trade their lifetimes for a "thing" that they believe will make them happy. Maybe it will or maybe it won't. A lot of people work themselves to an early grave, neglecting their families and friends along the way. Is that worth it? They might think so, but they are also arguably under the influence of advertising or peer pressure which has defined a "good life" in terms of having things.

One risk of freedom is that you might make the wrong decisions and be accountable for them. This is a great risk to take!

I humbly suggest becoming FI first, and then asking yourself if you are willing to work X more years to build a separate stash that can fund the hobby. E.g. If your hobby costs $20k/year and you want to do it for 20 years, you'd need to save up $400k AFTER you become FI and never co-mingle the funds. If you pursue the hobby before FI, you will likely never be FI.

ixtap

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #19 on: August 28, 2020, 09:19:54 AM »
I think you will find that for many of us, we found out about FI trying to figure out how to spend even more time doing a hobby. How expensive that hobby is varies greatly. If we hadn't been pursuing boating as enthusiastically as we were, we wouldn't have been looking forward to a sabbatical. And if we had started thinking about how to take a few years off work, we wouldn't have been running the searches that lead us to FIRE sites.

BussoV6

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #20 on: August 29, 2020, 04:17:51 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging.

That is not a stupidcar IMO. Many wealthier people in my part of the world buy a 911 for their low depreciation and inevitible rise in value years down the line. Not sure if that holds true in USA. Sure, maintenance is a little dearer  :-)

Steeze

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #21 on: August 29, 2020, 05:18:57 AM »
Before I went to college I wanted three things:
1. Own a mini ramp (skateboarding)
2. Live at a major ski resort
3. Race cars & drive a Porsche

College was a means of making more money to afford these things.

I did the dirt bag ski bum life, got plenty of time on my skateboard, but never raced cars or owned a Porsche. Still on my bucket list to race - but maybe I will consider a stock class like MX5 racing instead of the Porsche 24 hrs of LeMans team like I intended :)

Now FI is a priority and has become a prerequisite for a lot of this. I have a wife and a kid on the way and I have to think differently.

Maybe I won’t drive a 911, but at some point I’ll like to get something RWD as my daily driver and project car, maybe a BRZ? By then there should be some older ones that need some love.

I do still intend on building a mini ramp as soon as I move out of the city and have any kind of back yard. I also intend on living at a ski resort again, but will do so with plenty of money for housing and food!

So yeah - snowboarding, project cars, occasional racing, mini ramp... probably not super cheap. But if I’m 70 and never did any of that I’ll be very disappointed. Hell I’ll probably own a Porsche 911 at some point too for the same reason. I’ll be old and balding when I do, but in my defense it was the dream of my 16 year old self, not (necessarily) compensating for my shriveling.... I mean Low T

six-car-habit

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #22 on: August 30, 2020, 01:46:21 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging.

 I'm sort of curious why someone who usually posts well thought out,informative, and lucid responses - believes and / or promotes the stereotype of --  fast car owner = small male genitals or agonizing over age + hair loss.
    Is there some particular reason why your happy and harmonious feelings with your Porsche when diving into a turn, or rev-matching a downshift, as you mentioned, is the result of pure driving bliss / connectedness between car-human - and road, is a pure and unvarnished joy.
    Whereas you seem to say for the majority of male Porsche owners, it's not about the driving capabilities, but about compensating for some other physical shortcoming that is apparently worthy of "body-shaming".

 For the record, I've got an average 6 inch specimen attached below the belt.  It doesn't seem to affect the overall size whether i drive a fast, expensive vehicle, or a slow cheap car.

Sailor Sam

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #23 on: August 30, 2020, 04:23:35 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging.

 I'm sort of curious why someone who usually posts well thought out,informative, and lucid responses - believes and / or promotes the stereotype of --  fast car owner = small male genitals or agonizing over age + hair loss.
    Is there some particular reason why your happy and harmonious feelings with your Porsche when diving into a turn, or rev-matching a downshift, as you mentioned, is the result of pure driving bliss / connectedness between car-human - and road, is a pure and unvarnished joy.
    Whereas you seem to say for the majority of male Porsche owners, it's not about the driving capabilities, but about compensating for some other physical shortcoming that is apparently worthy of "body-shaming".

 For the record, I've got an average 6 inch specimen attached below the belt.  It doesn't seem to affect the overall size whether i drive a fast, expensive vehicle, or a slow cheap car.

I'm not Laura, but I am particularly disinterested in penises. The disinterest has given me a unique perspective on penises, and the massive amounts of time owners seem to spend thinking on them. What it wants. Who wants it. The unique fear that seems to pervade many penis owners that another penis might be interested in their penis and/or butthole*.

You have, for example, apparently measured your fine 6-inch penis. In the spirit of good data collection, have you similarly measured your fingers, toes, nose? If not, well, that's telling.

I haven't really answered your question. This has been more of a philosophical thing. I spend a lot of time around penises, and while the intense focus on such a minimal body part does become boringly tedious, I have developed a certain disinterested expertise. If anyone wants a treatise on the multi-coloured goop that can come from an infected penis, I'm your man. Just ask!




*a uniquely irritating thing, considering the robust hypocrisy centered around the current popularity of buttsex. It makes me think dark thoughts about how the brain differentiates 'those who penetrate,' and 'those who are penetrated.' However, I digress.

MrThatsDifferent

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #24 on: August 30, 2020, 06:46:58 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging.

 I'm sort of curious why someone who usually posts well thought out,informative, and lucid responses - believes and / or promotes the stereotype of --  fast car owner = small male genitals or agonizing over age + hair loss.
    Is there some particular reason why your happy and harmonious feelings with your Porsche when diving into a turn, or rev-matching a downshift, as you mentioned, is the result of pure driving bliss / connectedness between car-human - and road, is a pure and unvarnished joy.
    Whereas you seem to say for the majority of male Porsche owners, it's not about the driving capabilities, but about compensating for some other physical shortcoming that is apparently worthy of "body-shaming".

 For the record, I've got an average 6 inch specimen attached below the belt.  It doesn't seem to affect the overall size whether i drive a fast, expensive vehicle, or a slow cheap car.

I'm not Laura, but I am particularly disinterested in penises. The disinterest has given me a unique perspective on penises, and the massive amounts of time owners seem to spend thinking on them. What it wants. Who wants it. The unique fear that seems to pervade many penis owners that another penis might be interested in their penis and/or butthole*.

You have, for example, apparently measured your fine 6-inch penis. In the spirit of good data collection, have you similarly measured your fingers, toes, nose? If not, well, that's telling.

I haven't really answered your question. This has been more of a philosophical thing. I spend a lot of time around penises, and while the intense focus on such a minimal body part does become boringly tedious, I have developed a certain disinterested expertise. If anyone wants a treatise on the multi-coloured goop that can come from an infected penis, I'm your man. Just ask!




*a uniquely irritating thing, considering the robust hypocrisy centered around the current popularity of buttsex. It makes me think dark thoughts about how the brain differentiates 'those who penetrate,' and 'those who are penetrated.' However, I digress.

Well that escalated quickly!

Sailor Sam

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #25 on: August 30, 2020, 08:26:15 AM »
One day before I die... I hope to find out what Laura's :Stupidcar" is.

LOL.  Not a secret -- mentioned it in one of the car threads.  Porsche 911 convertible.  I used to call it a PenisMobile, because it was most oftened owned by middle-aged, balding men who were clearly compensating.  But as that doesn't apply to me, StupidCar just seems to capture it.*  Although I guess ReallyFuckingStupidCar would more accurately reflect the true magnitude of the financial stupidity involved. 

*Also because referring to it as my "Porsche" or "911" sounds like douchebragging.

 I'm sort of curious why someone who usually posts well thought out,informative, and lucid responses - believes and / or promotes the stereotype of --  fast car owner = small male genitals or agonizing over age + hair loss.
    Is there some particular reason why your happy and harmonious feelings with your Porsche when diving into a turn, or rev-matching a downshift, as you mentioned, is the result of pure driving bliss / connectedness between car-human - and road, is a pure and unvarnished joy.
    Whereas you seem to say for the majority of male Porsche owners, it's not about the driving capabilities, but about compensating for some other physical shortcoming that is apparently worthy of "body-shaming".

 For the record, I've got an average 6 inch specimen attached below the belt.  It doesn't seem to affect the overall size whether i drive a fast, expensive vehicle, or a slow cheap car.

I'm not Laura, but I am particularly disinterested in penises. The disinterest has given me a unique perspective on penises, and the massive amounts of time owners seem to spend thinking on them. What it wants. Who wants it. The unique fear that seems to pervade many penis owners that another penis might be interested in their penis and/or butthole*.

You have, for example, apparently measured your fine 6-inch penis. In the spirit of good data collection, have you similarly measured your fingers, toes, nose? If not, well, that's telling.

I haven't really answered your question. This has been more of a philosophical thing. I spend a lot of time around penises, and while the intense focus on such a minimal body part does become boringly tedious, I have developed a certain disinterested expertise. If anyone wants a treatise on the multi-coloured goop that can come from an infected penis, I'm your man. Just ask!




*a uniquely irritating thing, considering the robust hypocrisy centered around the current popularity of buttsex. It makes me think dark thoughts about how the brain differentiates 'those who penetrate,' and 'those who are penetrated.' However, I digress.

Well that escalated quickly!

Oh man, I've spent the last 30 months as the only not-penis, living among a pack of yes-penis. It's been...incredible, really. Mostly endearing. Sometimes disgusting (the brown goop, okay. the green goup, #neveragain). Overall, very illuminating.

How could I resist the siren call of a discussion about, well, penii?

six-car-habit

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #26 on: August 31, 2020, 01:34:23 AM »
 Hmmmn , I probably conflated LAura33's response with other responses on a similar thread which went along the lines of " large truck= small penis " 
- So my apologies if i understood her sentiment wrongly .  Maybe it was meant to say that the old bald men who frequently bought Porsche's were showing off their sleek fast car, and as such,  for them it was a psychological symbol of their sexual prowess [??]

Ahhh, but SailorSam I have previously measured my nose @ 2"x1"x1" ,  and width of hand span at 9" [ actually a useful # to make quick comparisons with when a ruler isn't handy ]  .   Toes, well no.  And in most situations it's better to comparably measure an item with a hand span vs. measuring with penis.

 I was basically feeling argumentative at how we as a society are ok with assuming a vehicle to genitals ratio,  as a stereotype.

 But while on the subject i must share this. One day driving home from work in front of me, was a very large, Very lifted- way beyond factory height, huge oversized tires, Ford F250 .   I pulled ahead in front of the Truck, and the windshield had one of those banners across the top - and it read " The Compensator ! " ....



 

ChpBstrd

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #27 on: August 31, 2020, 08:38:10 AM »

 But while on the subject i must share this. One day driving home from work in front of me, was a very large, Very lifted- way beyond factory height, huge oversized tires, Ford F250 .   I pulled ahead in front of the Truck, and the windshield had one of those banners across the top - and it read " The Compensator ! " ....

Maybe it is now the style to embrace the stereotype and declare that one’s vehicle of unnecessary capability is a “compensator”. Even if it seems honest, this is not necessarily a good thing. The courage required to make such a joke implies that one is not actually compensating. And if everyone with a big truck does it, it would become hard to tell the confident not-compensators (if they actually exist) from the compensators who are merely emulating everyone else. Then the meaning of the big truck becomes unclear, as the compensators would prefer it to be.

Laura33

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Re: Expensive Interests - Is it allowed?!
« Reply #28 on: August 31, 2020, 08:51:29 AM »
@six-car-habit -- no offense intended.  It was a correlation I drew when I first started noticing fancy cars, which always seemed to be driven by old, fat, balding guys having a mid-life crisis, with a pretty younger woman in the passenger seat.  And particularly Porsches; I have seen women in impractical cars, but almost never a Porsche (or if it is a Porsche, it's a Cayenne, that-which-should-not-be-named "Porsche").  It's part of the reason that I refused to buy one for so long, because I didn't want to come across as showing off to the rest of the world how awesome I thought I was.  It honestly never occurred to me that people might buy those cars because they actually really enjoyed driving them -- until I got that car on a racetrack and was hooked for life. 

But I agree that showing off your awesomeness through conspicuous consumption is not even remotely limited to men.  Perhaps "douchebrag" is a better word for it.