Author Topic: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!  (Read 3415 times)

englishteacheralex

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3891
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Honolulu, HI
Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« on: March 10, 2023, 11:50:52 AM »
The episode that just dropped seems like an impromptu interview that Paula Pant threw together because MMM mentioned somewhere that he was experimenting with a FIRE themed dating app. It was kind of cute (also a little cringe, which just added to the cuteness factor IMO) and I was surprised that he was willing to put himself out there to that degree. Seems like he's a pretty eligible bachelor; I was trying to think of single forumites who might be a good match for him.

Aspects of MMM's interview reminded me a bit of @Experimental_FIRE , who btw I thought might like to try out this dating app. It's free!

Dying to discuss.

MaybeBabyMustache

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5351
    • My Wild Ride to FI
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #1 on: March 10, 2023, 12:17:47 PM »
Oh my. I'm not a podcast person, but definitely going to check this out.

GreenSheep

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1072
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #2 on: March 10, 2023, 01:45:35 PM »
I came back to the forum after a long hiatus specifically to see if anyone is discussing this. Am I the only one who feels like Paula has a crush on Pete (I mean, the giggling...) and that the obvious answer to all of this is for the two of them to get together?

Edit: corrected typo (if --> is)
« Last Edit: March 10, 2023, 02:03:19 PM by GreenSheep »

englishteacheralex

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3891
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Honolulu, HI
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #3 on: March 10, 2023, 01:58:02 PM »
I came back to the forum after a long hiatus specifically to see if anyone is discussing this. Am I the only one who feels like Paula has a crush on Pete (I mean, the giggling...) and that the obvious answer to all of this if for the two of them to get together?

Kind of. The thought of "shipping" Paula Pant and MMM went through my mind. But...I really like Paula Pant as a podcaster but she seems like kind of an awkward person. They don't really seem like a match. MMM's awkwardness exists too, but it doesn't seem super compatible with Paula Pant's.

I think Paula's giggling was due to trying to amp up the "juicy tea" angle of the topic of the podcast. It sounded like they didn't prepare at all for the podcast ahead of time, so she was trying to affect a slumber party vibe without having had any time to figure out a strategy.

I think she just heard "MMM is willing to talk about his love life! But only if you catch him RIGHT NOW!" and knew that it would be podcast gold and she had to jump on his capricious energy while it was directed at her podcast. Early in the podcast she mentions that she had just called him and he had a slow evening and was willing to chat.

So no, I don't think they'd be good together. But I get how that would be a possible thought while listening to the podcast.

Telecaster

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3551
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #4 on: March 10, 2023, 04:16:29 PM »
Despite my best intentions, I couldn't resist the salacious nature of this and decided to have a listen...

Welp, it sure seemed to me Paula was slobbering all over MMM.   


iluvzbeach

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1578
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #5 on: March 10, 2023, 06:17:26 PM »
When I first heard that MMM and the former Mrs. MMM had split and then heard right around the same time that Paula Pant had gotten a divorce, I thought for sure that Pete & Paula had gotten together.  When that Netflix documentary came out last fall and they were both on it, I felt like there was a real possibility they were together.  I would not at all be shocked if they were already together.  Just my $.02 as someone who does not know either person IRL.

englishteacheralex

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3891
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Honolulu, HI
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #6 on: March 10, 2023, 06:45:49 PM »
When I first heard that MMM and the former Mrs. MMM had split and then heard right around the same time that Paula Pant had gotten a divorce, I thought for sure that Pete & Paula had gotten together.  When that Netflix documentary came out last fall and they were both on it, I felt like there was a real possibility they were together.  I would not at all be shocked if they were already together.  Just my $.02 as someone who does not know either person IRL.

Wow. I feel like I do basically every week when I find out about students of mine who are dating. WHAT? NO WAY!

But seriously...Paula Pant and Pete do not seem like they would be a good couple to me. They seem to have wildly different life trajectories/values. I just took her giggly tone as an attempt to do a good interview about a fun topic.

iluvzbeach

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1578
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #7 on: March 10, 2023, 06:52:11 PM »
ETA, I haven't actually listened to the interview yet, so I'll have to listen and see if I still feel the same way.

Zamboni

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3882
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #8 on: March 10, 2023, 07:18:43 PM »
There actually was such a website . . . it got posted on this board . . . did he make that? I was on it briefly. The main match I got where we communicated back and forth was on a different continent, though. But I should go back on, as I am single again and I'm going to be spending half of next year on that continent.

Does anyone remember that thread? Care to link?

GilesMM

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1489
  • Location: PNW
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #9 on: March 11, 2023, 05:31:04 AM »
Is he still living on $25k/year?  Could be a tough sell.

uniwelder

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1697
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Appalachian Virginia
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #10 on: March 11, 2023, 05:52:06 AM »
There actually was such a website . . . it got posted on this board . . . did he make that? I was on it briefly. The main match I got where we communicated back and forth was on a different continent, though. But I should go back on, as I am single again and I'm going to be spending half of next year on that continent.

Does anyone remember that thread? Care to link?

Firedating.me  but I have no idea if that’s the particular site. I haven’t listened to the podcast yet.

Edited to add— yes that is the site. There’s a link to it from the Afford Anything podcast page. 

edited to add again--  WOW, that was pretty awesome.  There was 5 minutes in the beginning where Firedating was discussed, then in the middle for a bit, and then Paula Pant creates a dating profile and goes through the entire process.  I hope the site gets a lot more traffic.  The discussion between Paula and Pete was excellent.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2023, 07:33:41 AM by uniwelder »

lhamo

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3094
  • Location: Seattle
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #11 on: March 11, 2023, 10:32:01 PM »
If you have ever heard Paula Pant joke around with the other hosts on Stacking Benjamins it would be clear that this is just a side of her personality that she doesn't show as often on her own podcast, where she tends to strike a more serious tone.  I don't think she is interested in Pete -- they are good friends, is all.

It will be REALLY interesting to see if this spikes interest in the app.

Not at all interested in dating, and I have had great luck developing IRL friendships more organically just out of meeting forum friends one on one and through group settings, but if I ever feel the need to find more FIRE-minded folk to hang out with while on extended travels, etc. I would consider creating a profile.  I find it pretty easy to find like-minded, friendly people who understand/value a lower cost, lower impact lifestyle among the FIRE-minded.  Been hanging out with such folk virtually and in person since way back in the Your Money or Your Life threads on early fora like The Motley Fool (before it went paid sub) and The Simple Living Network.

And one day I WILL meet @spartana in person!

lhamo

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3094
  • Location: Seattle
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #12 on: March 12, 2023, 11:30:38 AM »
Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it is a function of geography (Seattle has a BIG contingent of YMOYL/FIRE-minded people), but I quite honestly cannot think of anybody in my immediate social circle who is big on consumer consumption.  Maybe my brother and his family -- they have a big house in an expensive neighborhood, a holiday home in Italy, and sent their kids to top notch private schools.  They probably spend a lot more on food than us because all of them are foodies.  But other than that, just about everybody I know lives a pretty frugal, sustainable lifestyle.  My immediate friend circle at the moment consists of:

Old friends from childhood/high school who I still click with
Grad school friends, still mostly in academia
Friends I've made through internet places like this over the years, quite a few of them now IRL friends
Friends I've made through my local Buy Nothing group
Friends I've made through volunteering
Friends I've made through gardening

I'm also friendly with several neighbors, though I wouldn't call most of them friends at this point -- could easily become that.  I guess there are a couple of those who appear to be more consumption oriented, but they sure like it when I offer them homegrown cucumbers and tomatoes for free!

Anyway, just rambling here but I guess my point is that for those who struggle to find people who understand a FIRE-oriented, low-consumption life, maybe it would help to try to expand your social circle into areas where you are more likely to find folks with that mindset. Where you find a few people who enjoy having low-cost fun, you are likely to find more. 

Fomerly known as something

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1627
  • Location: CA
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #13 on: March 29, 2023, 11:05:53 AM »
If you have ever heard Paula Pant joke around with the other hosts on Stacking Benjamins it would be clear that this is just a side of her personality that she doesn't show as often on her own podcast, where she tends to strike a more serious tone.  I don't think she is interested in Pete -- they are good friends, is all.

It will be REALLY interesting to see if this spikes interest in the app.

Not at all interested in dating, and I have had great luck developing IRL friendships more organically just out of meeting forum friends one on one and through group settings, but if I ever feel the need to find more FIRE-minded folk to hang out with while on extended travels, etc. I would consider creating a profile.  I find it pretty easy to find like-minded, friendly people who understand/value a lower cost, lower impact lifestyle among the FIRE-minded.  Been hanging out with such folk virtually and in person since way back in the Your Money or Your Life threads on early fora like The Motley Fool (before it went paid sub) and The Simple Living Network.

And one day I WILL meet @spartana in person!

As someone who also listens to Stacking Benjamin’s I agree, this is just more Paula the person, not Paula the Journalist.  I can’t see them together.

Zikoris

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4536
  • Age: 37
  • Location: Vancouver, BC
  • Vancouverstachian
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #14 on: March 30, 2023, 09:04:01 PM »
Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it is a function of geography (Seattle has a BIG contingent of YMOYL/FIRE-minded people), but I quite honestly cannot think of anybody in my immediate social circle who is big on consumer consumption.  Maybe my brother and his family -- they have a big house in an expensive neighborhood, a holiday home in Italy, and sent their kids to top notch private schools.  They probably spend a lot more on food than us because all of them are foodies.  But other than that, just about everybody I know lives a pretty frugal, sustainable lifestyle.  My immediate friend circle at the moment consists of:

Old friends from childhood/high school who I still click with
Grad school friends, still mostly in academia
Friends I've made through internet places like this over the years, quite a few of them now IRL friends
Friends I've made through my local Buy Nothing group
Friends I've made through volunteering
Friends I've made through gardening

I'm also friendly with several neighbors, though I wouldn't call most of them friends at this point -- could easily become that.  I guess there are a couple of those who appear to be more consumption oriented, but they sure like it when I offer them homegrown cucumbers and tomatoes for free!

Anyway, just rambling here but I guess my point is that for those who struggle to find people who understand a FIRE-oriented, low-consumption life, maybe it would help to try to expand your social circle into areas where you are more likely to find folks with that mindset. Where you find a few people who enjoy having low-cost fun, you are likely to find more.

It could also just be you're using a different definition of a low-consumption lifestyle than the people who struggle in that area. For example, my comfort level consumption-wise is things like:

- Living in a studio apartment
- Car-free living
- No takeout, no alcohol, basically no restaurants, no beauty products, no gift-giving, very, very low spending overall, buying secondhand wherever possible
- Producing about one grocery bag-size worth of garbage for a household of two every 1-2 weeks
- Generally striving for zero waste
- Doing errands by foot or bike, well beyond what would be considered reasonable
- Bulk meal prep and planning, generally being a kitchen-nazi to eliminate food waste

And probably lots more, but those are the first ones that come to mind. I don't know your friends so maybe I'm off base, but I'm guessing they don't tick too many boxes on that list. I've met only a small handful of people who operate at that level, over many years.

uniwelder

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1697
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Appalachian Virginia
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #15 on: March 31, 2023, 08:56:09 AM »
Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it is a function of geography (Seattle has a BIG contingent of YMOYL/FIRE-minded people), but I quite honestly cannot think of anybody in my immediate social circle who is big on consumer consumption.  Maybe my brother and his family -- they have a big house in an expensive neighborhood, a holiday home in Italy, and sent their kids to top notch private schools.  They probably spend a lot more on food than us because all of them are foodies.  But other than that, just about everybody I know lives a pretty frugal, sustainable lifestyle.  My immediate friend circle at the moment consists of:

Old friends from childhood/high school who I still click with
Grad school friends, still mostly in academia
Friends I've made through internet places like this over the years, quite a few of them now IRL friends
Friends I've made through my local Buy Nothing group
Friends I've made through volunteering
Friends I've made through gardening

I'm also friendly with several neighbors, though I wouldn't call most of them friends at this point -- could easily become that.  I guess there are a couple of those who appear to be more consumption oriented, but they sure like it when I offer them homegrown cucumbers and tomatoes for free!

Anyway, just rambling here but I guess my point is that for those who struggle to find people who understand a FIRE-oriented, low-consumption life, maybe it would help to try to expand your social circle into areas where you are more likely to find folks with that mindset. Where you find a few people who enjoy having low-cost fun, you are likely to find more.

It could also just be you're using a different definition of a low-consumption lifestyle than the people who struggle in that area. For example, my comfort level consumption-wise is things like:

- Living in a studio apartment
- Car-free living
- No takeout, no alcohol, basically no restaurants, no beauty products, no gift-giving, very, very low spending overall, buying secondhand wherever possible
- Producing about one grocery bag-size worth of garbage for a household of two every 1-2 weeks
- Generally striving for zero waste
- Doing errands by foot or bike, well beyond what would be considered reasonable
- Bulk meal prep and planning, generally being a kitchen-nazi to eliminate food waste

And probably lots more, but those are the first ones that come to mind. I don't know your friends so maybe I'm off base, but I'm guessing they don't tick too many boxes on that list. I've met only a small handful of people who operate at that level, over many years.

I'm actually quite surprised, Zikoris, that with your online presence, you don't know more people as hardcore as yourself.  Maybe because you live in a city?  I know quite a few, due to some friends that operate a small local farm that are hardcore minimalist environmentalists, but without the MMM financial savings aspect.  A big reason for the non-savings is their low income.

Dicey

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 22319
  • Age: 66
  • Location: NorCal
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #16 on: March 31, 2023, 09:32:52 AM »
Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it is a function of geography (Seattle has a BIG contingent of YMOYL/FIRE-minded people), but I quite honestly cannot think of anybody in my immediate social circle who is big on consumer consumption.  Maybe my brother and his family -- they have a big house in an expensive neighborhood, a holiday home in Italy, and sent their kids to top notch private schools.  They probably spend a lot more on food than us because all of them are foodies.  But other than that, just about everybody I know lives a pretty frugal, sustainable lifestyle.  My immediate friend circle at the moment consists of:

Old friends from childhood/high school who I still click with
Grad school friends, still mostly in academia
Friends I've made through internet places like this over the years, quite a few of them now IRL friends
Friends I've made through my local Buy Nothing group
Friends I've made through volunteering
Friends I've made through gardening

I'm also friendly with several neighbors, though I wouldn't call most of them friends at this point -- could easily become that.  I guess there are a couple of those who appear to be more consumption oriented, but they sure like it when I offer them homegrown cucumbers and tomatoes for free!

Anyway, just rambling here but I guess my point is that for those who struggle to find people who understand a FIRE-oriented, low-consumption life, maybe it would help to try to expand your social circle into areas where you are more likely to find folks with that mindset. Where you find a few people who enjoy having low-cost fun, you are likely to find more.
To this excellent list, I will add a few more ways I've made frugal friends:
Volunteering at a local Thrift Shop
Volunteering at my library's Friends Group book sales
Eventually joining Library Friends Group Board and helping to run said sales
Volunteer ushering at my local theater

uniwelder

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1697
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Appalachian Virginia
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #17 on: March 31, 2023, 10:27:54 AM »
Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it is a function of geography (Seattle has a BIG contingent of YMOYL/FIRE-minded people), but I quite honestly cannot think of anybody in my immediate social circle who is big on consumer consumption.  Maybe my brother and his family -- they have a big house in an expensive neighborhood, a holiday home in Italy, and sent their kids to top notch private schools.  They probably spend a lot more on food than us because all of them are foodies.  But other than that, just about everybody I know lives a pretty frugal, sustainable lifestyle.  My immediate friend circle at the moment consists of:

Old friends from childhood/high school who I still click with
Grad school friends, still mostly in academia
Friends I've made through internet places like this over the years, quite a few of them now IRL friends
Friends I've made through my local Buy Nothing group
Friends I've made through volunteering
Friends I've made through gardening

I'm also friendly with several neighbors, though I wouldn't call most of them friends at this point -- could easily become that.  I guess there are a couple of those who appear to be more consumption oriented, but they sure like it when I offer them homegrown cucumbers and tomatoes for free!

Anyway, just rambling here but I guess my point is that for those who struggle to find people who understand a FIRE-oriented, low-consumption life, maybe it would help to try to expand your social circle into areas where you are more likely to find folks with that mindset. Where you find a few people who enjoy having low-cost fun, you are likely to find more.

It could also just be you're using a different definition of a low-consumption lifestyle than the people who struggle in that area. For example, my comfort level consumption-wise is things like:

- Living in a studio apartment
- Car-free living
- No takeout, no alcohol, basically no restaurants, no beauty products, no gift-giving, very, very low spending overall, buying secondhand wherever possible
- Producing about one grocery bag-size worth of garbage for a household of two every 1-2 weeks
- Generally striving for zero waste
- Doing errands by foot or bike, well beyond what would be considered reasonable
- Bulk meal prep and planning, generally being a kitchen-nazi to eliminate food waste

And probably lots more, but those are the first ones that come to mind. I don't know your friends so maybe I'm off base, but I'm guessing they don't tick too many boxes on that list. I've met only a small handful of people who operate at that level, over many years.

I'm actually quite surprised, Zikoris, that with your online presence, you don't know more people as hardcore as yourself.  Maybe because you live in a city?  I know quite a few, due to some friends that operate a small local farm that are hardcore minimalist environmentalists, but without the MMM financial savings aspect.  A big reason for the non-savings is their low income.
City living is actually a place you might find more minimalist and/or environmentalist then country areas. Lots of us live in small spaces which use fewer natural resources, products, equipment and land to build, run and maintain. There is shared infrastructure of space and all utilities (often powered mostly by shared solar like my 500 SF little house is), we share multiple resources like laundry facilities, outdoor spaces,  and gardening space etc, it's easy to be carless and walk, bike or use public transit, minimal needs or space to junk up, etc. Country people often need large plots of land, vehicles to drive far to get supplies, equipment to care for their large property, heavy water and power usage, etc. So minimalism and environmentalism go very well with city living.  Actually better then rural in most cases.

I totally understand that living in a city is usually more environmentally friendly than out in the country.  I just wonder how many city dwellers consider themselves minimalist/environmentalist types, especially since Zikoris doesn't know that many.

Zikoris

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4536
  • Age: 37
  • Location: Vancouver, BC
  • Vancouverstachian
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #18 on: March 31, 2023, 10:36:12 AM »

I totally understand that living in a city is usually more environmentally friendly than out in the country.  I just wonder how many city dwellers consider themselves minimalist/environmentalist types, especially since Zikoris doesn't know that many.

By the criteria I laid out above, I know exactly two people who hit all the points, one couple who used to live that way but eventually decided it wasn't what they wanted to do, and another handful of people who probably would hit most of them if they were single, but make lifestyle compromises for their partners. I'm surprised you think there would be a lot of people who would tick all those boxes, though of course it depends where you live.

uniwelder

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1697
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Appalachian Virginia
Re: Whoa MMM is lookin' for love on "Afford Anything"!
« Reply #19 on: March 31, 2023, 10:49:52 AM »

I totally understand that living in a city is usually more environmentally friendly than out in the country.  I just wonder how many city dwellers consider themselves minimalist/environmentalist types, especially since Zikoris doesn't know that many.

By the criteria I laid out above, I know exactly two people who hit all the points, one couple who used to live that way but eventually decided it wasn't what they wanted to do, and another handful of people who probably would hit most of them if they were single, but make lifestyle compromises for their partners. I'm surprised you think there would be a lot of people who would tick all those boxes, though of course it depends where you live.

Checking off all those boxes would be extremely hardcore.  I just thought your presence would cause like minded people to gravitate towards you and make their existence known.  I'm crediting you as too much an internet celebrity--- not all heroes wear capes.