Mustachian things you do that "ordinary people" think are strange...

[Icecreamarsenal]

- Instead of going out to eat, I eat my young
- Shower in the Denny's bathroom
- Sunbathe naked to dry
- Hook up my prius to the streetcar cables

I lol'ed.
I'm looking for a 1200sf home and am having a FIREsale of all my bad purchases (keeping me in indentured servitude) in the past 2 years.
I've stemmed the tide and managed to get back upstream. My acquaintances are heading in the other direction.


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[Cressida]

1. I'm an accountant so people automatically assume I do taxes, even though I don't.

Totally. It's like no one has any idea that any money anywhere might need to be accounted for, other than tax.

[TomTX]

Technically, a penny found is taxable.

Gift.

[ketchup]

Coworkers think I'm nuts when I say I do my own taxes.  ("Ever since I got married and bought a house, I have a guy that does them.") It's really not that hard. 


"You bought a house for eighteen grand!?"

1. I'm an accountant so people automatically assume I do taxes, even though I don't. Even though I don't do taxes, I know I'm capable of doing them. I have been doing my parent's, my brother's, my own, my SO's, and anyone else that happens to come along. My SO's sister keeps going to H&R block. The first year, I told her I'd do them for super cheap. But she had already gotten them done. So year 2, I tell her the same thing. The girl ignores me and has H&R block do them. She gets back afterwards and I say how much did they steal from you to do your taxes? She has two children, isn't married, doesn't own a home. She paid them over $200 plus an additional fee for some other nonsense. I immediately freaked out, "WHHHHAAAAATTTTTT??!?!?!!?!"  I then tell her that it would cost me nothing to prepare her taxes and I would be only charging her for my very limited time (like 20 bucks at most). She's like, "whoa really?" I smacked my forehead after that one.

2. I'm actually curious about you paying $18k for your home.

Yeah, that's crazy to pay $200 for a situation so simple.  Some people just don't know.

The house technically was $18.5k.  Built in the 70s, 1br, 500 square feet, in a decent-but-not-great area.  Western Chicago suburbs.  Everything was in great shape.  Only thing I had to buy was a stove.  Ended up moving out last year and renting it out to a friend-of-a-friend, and now a different friend-of-friend.  Bought it when I was 20 (early 2012) with no credit on seller financing.  It's been pretty great.  My girlfriend and I are thinking of moving back into it when we move out from with her sister and her sister's boyfriend.  It's great for one/two people.  We had four adults, and that worked but was cramped.

[Pegasus]

Not really much savings in it but I wash and re-use ziplock freezer bags.

[RootofGood]

I play my old 8-bit nintendo entertainment system and sega genesis.

And not just a little bit.

Ha ha!  Our kids' neighborhood friends see our 8 bit system and are like "wow this system is cool".  Little do they know it's 30 years old... 

As for things we do that other people think are strange - I'm not really sure.  We drive 14 year old cars with messed up paint, but that isn't totally out of place where we live and among our friends (who range from almost broke to young millionaires).  Otherwise, we do some frugal things that others might think are a little weird, while others around us are more frugal than we are in some areas. 

[lindsey]

Had two home births. Under two thousand per kiddo. I think the hospital ones start in the 10k range.

Wait, what? You have to pay to give birth?

I mean, I knew you had to pay for medical treatment, but it never occurred to me that this extended as far as giving birth. Surely this just encourages poor people to give birth without medical supervision?

I think it wouldn't occur to regular people to look for cheaper options or go w/o a hospital.  They'd just go into debt.

This pulled me out of lurking because I have become familiar with ALL of the (legal) options in California. None of the options are what a Mustachian would consider cheap. As was mentioned up thread, in many states unassisted homebirth is illegal, and in some states even a birth assisted by a Certified Nurse Midwife is illegal at home.

For our daughter 2 years ago I had a completely normal/standard pregnancy and delivered in the hospital with only midwives and nurses, the OB never even came into the room. For prenatal care and delivery we paid ~$10k out of pocket, with decent PPO insurance. I did change insurance halfway through the pregnancy which increased our out of pocket max, however those sneaky insurance fuckers get you by increasing your deductible to include your newborn the day they arrive. Essentially, your deductible doubles while you are in labor in the hospital, which is the biggest expense. Also, I had to fight to go home early despite the fact that the baby had been cleared same day as birth. They only let me leave after 24 hours after I agreed to a home health nurse visit. I was perfectly fine and had been walking around since 90 minutes after our drug free labor and delivery, but it was against protocol and it is hard to leave AMA with a newborn. They literally put an alarm on the baby.

I am currently 31 weeks pregnant with my second and we have received prenatal care from the local birth center. Unfortunately, local in this situation means a 25 minute drive, or 45+ in traffic. The cost is a flat $5k for all the care you receive there, lab work and any necessary ultrasounds are an extra expense paid to a third party vendor. Our PPO will reimburse me  a vague and unspecified part of the 5k afterwards, with only a few hours of paperwork ;) Unfortunately this time I have some complications that are requiring monitoring by ultrasound to determine if I will be able to safely have an out of hospital birth, so we may hit the same out of pocket again. I was expecting to stay under $7k otherwise. The cost is identical if not slightly less to a home birth, the midwife rate is the same but you don't have to pay to rent any optional extra equipment (like a birthing tub).

Besides the doubling deductible issue for your first born, the main reason the cost is so high is that western medicine and insurance companies treat birth like a catastrophic event. An OB is a surgeon who is supposed to monitor your entire active labor (in my case 26 hours) and is looking to minimize statistical risk, plus an anesthesiologist as it is standard in the US to want to get stuck in the spine with a giant needle, and then they want you and the baby to stay for a minimum of 48 hours while they check on you every 3-4 hours with zero regard to the fact you are trying to sleep.

I just realized that was a bit of a novel.
TL;DR is there is no cheap and legal way to give birth in the SF Bay Area, and in my research none in the US.

On topic, my ILs think it's insane I have compared the costs and statistical risk of prenatal, labor & delivery, and post partum care options. Especially my MIL who was a post partum nurse in the hospital, and my SIL who thinks we must be poor and is sad for us. We also cloth diapered and I exclusively breastfed, and then we did baby led weaning (no baby food or special equipment).

[bikerdood]

No car, no driver's license.  I carry a passport for ID.

Either ride my bike or skateboard to commute. 

[RetiredAt63]

Birth costs - when I had our DD my costs were zero.  That included staying longer than planned because she developed jaundice. If she ever gets around to having kids, her costs will be zero.  Canada, horrible socialist medical care, eh?

[Gin1984]

Had two home births. Under two thousand per kiddo. I think the hospital ones start in the 10k range.

Wait, what? You have to pay to give birth?

I mean, I knew you had to pay for medical treatment, but it never occurred to me that this extended as far as giving birth. Surely this just encourages poor people to give birth without medical supervision?

I think it wouldn't occur to regular people to look for cheaper options or go w/o a hospital.  They'd just go into debt.

This pulled me out of lurking because I have become familiar with ALL of the (legal) options in California. None of the options are what a Mustachian would consider cheap. As was mentioned up thread, in many states unassisted homebirth is illegal, and in some states even a birth assisted by a Certified Nurse Midwife is illegal at home.

For our daughter 2 years ago I had a completely normal/standard pregnancy and delivered in the hospital with only midwives and nurses, the OB never even came into the room. For prenatal care and delivery we paid ~$10k out of pocket, with decent PPO insurance. I did change insurance halfway through the pregnancy which increased our out of pocket max, however those sneaky insurance fuckers get you by increasing your deductible to include your newborn the day they arrive. Essentially, your deductible doubles while you are in labor in the hospital, which is the biggest expense. Also, I had to fight to go home early despite the fact that the baby had been cleared same day as birth. They only let me leave after 24 hours after I agreed to a home health nurse visit. I was perfectly fine and had been walking around since 90 minutes after our drug free labor and delivery, but it was against protocol and it is hard to leave AMA with a newborn. They literally put an alarm on the baby.

I am currently 31 weeks pregnant with my second and we have received prenatal care from the local birth center. Unfortunately, local in this situation means a 25 minute drive, or 45+ in traffic. The cost is a flat $5k for all the care you receive there, lab work and any necessary ultrasounds are an extra expense paid to a third party vendor. Our PPO will reimburse me  a vague and unspecified part of the 5k afterwards, with only a few hours of paperwork ;) Unfortunately this time I have some complications that are requiring monitoring by ultrasound to determine if I will be able to safely have an out of hospital birth, so we may hit the same out of pocket again. I was expecting to stay under $7k otherwise. The cost is identical if not slightly less to a home birth, the midwife rate is the same but you don't have to pay to rent any optional extra equipment (like a birthing tub).

Besides the doubling deductible issue for your first born, the main reason the cost is so high is that western medicine and insurance companies treat birth like a catastrophic event. An OB is a surgeon who is supposed to monitor your entire active labor (in my case 26 hours) and is looking to minimize statistical risk, plus an anesthesiologist as it is standard in the US to want to get stuck in the spine with a giant needle, and then they want you and the baby to stay for a minimum of 48 hours while they check on you every 3-4 hours with zero regard to the fact you are trying to sleep.

I just realized that was a bit of a novel.
TL;DR is there is no cheap and legal way to give birth in the SF Bay Area, and in my research none in the US.

On topic, my ILs think it's insane I have compared the costs and statistical risk of prenatal, labor & delivery, and post partum care options. Especially my MIL who was a post partum nurse in the hospital, and my SIL who thinks we must be poor and is sad for us. We also cloth diapered and I exclusively breastfed, and then we did baby led weaning (no baby food or special equipment).

Not all insurances do that.  In fact my insurance, and my husband's (different employers) did not count the baby as a separate charge unless I left before her.  Also, all I had to do was put a DND sign on the door and the nurses left me alone.  Then again, the baby was waking me up so I did not get much sleep anyway.
I did not get the epidural and it is not something that I had a problem getting them to realize I was against.  They checked when I checked in, and then again while in labor, that was it.  However, during my normal, natural, no meds birth.... my daughter ripped me and caused internal bleeding.  I was quite happy that the OB was there and that did not increase my copay.

[YK-Phil]

Birth costs - when I had our DD my costs were zero.  That included staying longer than planned because she developed jaundice. If she ever gets around to having kids, her costs will be zero.  Canada, horrible socialist medical care, eh?

Yup, Canada is such a socialist hell. Our total cost for the birth of my four children, which also included full airfare and stay in Montreal for the mom because we were at the time living in a remote area in the Arctic: $0. While I wish I could pay less taxes, and large corporations pay a little more, I always made good money and I am more than happy to pay my fair share to have a decent social safety net for the less fortunate.

[golden1]

I discovered Craigslist before a lot of people I know and a lot of furniture in my house comes from Craigslist.  I bought a wonderful oversized chair for my back room for $60, and when I bragged about it at work, I got horrified looks.   I also sold all my used baby items on Craigslist once my kids got older.

[Trimatty471]

I do not have cable nor own a car.

[MeghanD82]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded. All you need is a pack of Rid Dye and a pot and tongs (that are only to be used for this - you are not supposed to cook with items that have been used for dying clothes).

[tofuchampion]

Nothing too crazy by Mustachian standards, but family, friends, & coworkers think I'm a bit odd.

1.  Bike, obviously.  I've been biking to work for a couple of years, and just got a rack & pannier bags so I can do more errands, etc., without the car.  Husband, unfortunately, doesn't have this option - he just started a new job that's about 30 miles away, and he has to be in uniform, ready to go, when we walks through the front gate (he works at a prison).  So no biking for him, at least not for work, even when we move closer.

2.  Husband and I only have one car.  We had 2; I wrecked mine, started biking instead, and never looked back.

3.  No cable.  We have a tv and use it, along with smartphones and a Chromecast adapter, to watch Netflix & Hulu.  We don't even have a DVD player.

4.  We have one computer for me, husband, and kid - a 4-year-old MacBook.  It's a bit slow (needs a tuneup or something, idk), but works fine.

5.  I'm going back to school in January for my nursing degree (I'm currently a CNA), and people don't believe me when I say I won't have any student loans.

6.  I have never gone out for breakfast with coworkers (I work night shift and there are quite a few who do this on a regular basis). 

7.  I have never bought an electronic gadget for my 8-year-old.  He has a Nintendo DS, but he bought that himself after a year of doing extra chores to earn the money, and he bought it secondhand (awwww, mini mustache!!). 

8.  I do my own nails.  Apparently weekly or bi-weekly professional manicures are standard for women my age.  Who knew?

9.  We're having a baby in November, and apparently all our of pregnancy/childbirth/parenting choices are weird.  Such as...

- Planning to cloth diaper and exclusively breastfeed.

- We recently moved to a smaller apartment, and will be selling our (stupid, unMustachian) SUV to pay cash for a small car - instead of upsizing like everyone thinks we should be doing.

- Almost all the baby stuff I have so far was bought secondhand.

- A coworker called me today because her sister is getting rid of a bunch of baby stuff, and she wanted to give me some and was checking it would fit our theme.  I didn't really know how to respond, we don't have a nursery, let alone a fancy "theme."  Baby will stay in our room for the first few months, at least, then she & big brother will be sharing a room.  The theme is Small & Simple.

- I told my husband that if, during labor, I start talking about getting an epidural, to remind me of the co-pay. 

[Astatine]

1) I cut my own hair. I've never dyed my hair and have intention of ever starting. I'm quite happy to go grey naturally. Most people seem to cope ok with the idea of me cutting my own hair, but going grey naturally is apparently A Big Deal. A Very Big Deal. It's quite funny really.

2) I don't like seeing perfectly good stuff being thrown out. Most of my friends (with a few exceptions) and colleagues don't think twice about it. I've quite often volunteered to take perfectly good (almost as new) clothing and shoes to a charity for them so at least there's a hope of a second life for them.

3) Not doing retail therapy and buying clothes or shoes (or geek paraphanelia, depending on the person!) as a cheer me up. I just don't get this and have learnt to just nod and smile politely when people tell me excitedly about their new purchase.

[Squirrel away]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded.

I do that too, it's a really good idea.:)

[Dumb blonde]

Just bought a house, a really nice house, and a quite expensive house too. It's the home of our dreams and we plan to live there for the rest of our lives. No McMansion, it's smaller than the average US home, but larger than the average Dutch home.

We have been living in a small rental for 11 years, saving up our money to buy a nice house. We watched prices fall 25-30% the last few years in the Netherlands (the bigger homes have  dropped about 30% in price, some even more, while average homes dropped about 25%). A year back we got really tired of living in such a small place with 3 teenagers, we shopped for months for the right home and last week we bought it. We negotiated a good price, and while we still need a mortgage, we can live there quite comfortably.

Friends and relatives are in shock that we could afford such a nice home. They all thought we were living hand-to-mouth, both self-employed, driving a cheap car (1 car), camping, thrift-shopping etc. While both our businesses thrived, especially in the last few years, we didn't spend the money, we saved it. I was surprised by the reactions of friends and family and I wonder what's going to happen now that we are out of the closet. :-)

[RetiredAt63]

Congratulations!  And now you can continue on your frugal ways, loudly moaning about house expenses and mortgage costs.  Just don't be too specific, because I am sure those will be lower than others think they should be  ;-)

Just bought a house, a really nice house, and a quite expensive house too. It's the home of our dreams and we plan to live there for the rest of our lives. No McMansion, it's smaller than the average US home, but larger than the average Dutch home.

Friends and relatives are in shock that we could afford such a nice home. They all thought we were living hand-to-mouth, both self-employed, driving a cheap car (1 car), camping, thrift-shopping etc. While both our businesses thrived, especially in the last few years, we didn't spend the money, we saved it. I was surprised by the reactions of friends and family and I wonder what's going to happen now that we are out of the closet. :-)

[justajane]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded. All you need is a pack of Rid Dye and a pot and tongs (that are only to be used for this - you are not supposed to cook with items that have been used for dying clothes).

Genius, thank you! I can't believe I never thought of that.

[Dumb blonde]

I also dye my faded black clothing! And I dye clothing when I don't like the color (anymore). Just changed a hot pink dress to a dark red dress. When you dye something to another color, make sure the original color matches the new one, as some fabrics (like lining) is harder to dye, and most yarns are polyester, so the stitches usually keep their original color.

[RetiredAt63]

Yarn too - there are web sites devoted to over-dyeing.  Nice fibre, bad colour so on deep discount -> new colour at a great sale price.

I also dye my faded black clothing! And I dye clothing when I don't like the color (anymore). Just changed a hot pink dress to a dark red dress. When you dye something to another color, make sure the original color matches the new one, as some fabrics (like lining) is harder to dye, and most yarns are polyester, so the stitches usually keep their original color.

[Threshkin]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded. All you need is a pack of Rid Dye and a pot and tongs (that are only to be used for this - you are not supposed to cook with items that have been used for dying clothes).

Genius, thank you! I can't believe I never thought of that.

Rit dye is not a great choice.  It is very expensive compared to other options.  Rit dye is a "union" dye that will dye both cellulose (Cotton, linen, etc.) fibers and protein (wool, silk, etc.) fibers.  It takes two different kinds of dye for these fibers so if you are only dying cotton, you are throwing out half of the dye.

A better option is to find a crafts supplier on-line that carries dyes (there are many) or check with your local yarn store if you have one. 

I am a fiber artist and do this stuff as my side gig.  Soon to be primary activity post-FIRE.

[rubybeth]

This is a long thread so I haven't read all of it, but I'd add:

• thinking about/talking about retirement when I'm 33 - people find this kind of amazing
• our parents still forget we don't get network television even though it's been years - it's just so normal for people to ask "did you see this or that" on the news or a popular television show or whatever, and we always remind them "nope, no television!" - we do have television sets, one to stream Netflix and Hulu Plus via our XBox and another is just connected to a DVD player

[TurtleMarkets]

No car, no driver's license.  I carry a passport for ID.

Either ride my bike or skateboard to commute.

I was the same for a bit and really didnt have a permanent residence so I didnt see the point of state ID. More than once places refused to serve alcohol me because they said a passport was not a form of ID.  That was the only downside to using a passport. One waiter leacutred me on how it was illeagle to not have a state id. It was odd how mad he was about it.

[falcondisruptor]

No cable,
home hair cuts,
SO takes bus to work instead of paying for parking,
we have a meal plan calendar on the fridge,
do most home renos ourselves,
we're not planning a second kid,
we don't think our two year old needs to be registered for soccer/music lessons yet.

[fujiters]

WEIRD: I bubble wrapped my windows.  Saved $30 a month in power bills.

I didn't know about bubble wrapping windows! I just bought a roll of large bubble wrap. I hope it will make a difference this year with my single-pane windows (which I feel bad for just replacing, since they're otherwise in good condition). Thanks for sharing.

[Beric01]

thinking about/talking about retirement when I'm 33 - people find this kind of amazing

Heh, I'm thinking/talking about retirement at age 24, and people are blown out of their minds! :P

Add:

• just sold my only car
• I bike everywhere
• make my own lunches and bring them to work every day
• don't watch TV at all

[Penny Lane]

Growing my own onions.  I grow lots of things, but got the strangest look from a friend about the onions.

"You know, that's why god made supermarkets, Lane".

[falcondisruptor]

thinking about/talking about retirement when I'm 33 - people find this kind of amazing

Heh, I'm thinking/talking about retirement at age 24, and people are blown out of their minds! :P

Add:

• just sold my only car
• I bike everywhere
• make my own lunches and bring them to work every day
• don't watch TV at all

I sold my only car when a year or so after I graduated.  Ya, people think that's weird. 

We now have two cars (neither can be driven right now, but that's a whole other story) and am excited to get back down to one.  I'd like to go car free again sometime in the future.

[Elderwood17]

No cable is the one that really seems to rattle people.

[Cressida]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded. All you need is a pack of Rid Dye and a pot and tongs (that are only to be used for this - you are not supposed to cook with items that have been used for dying clothes).

I avoid buying black cotton items for exactly this reason, so this interests me. So, can you machine wash the items after? The dye doesn't bleed onto other clothes?

[CerebralPrimate]

I live overseas and pretty much only work Expat gigs. That way my housing is taken care of, quite often my food is as well. And generally speaking, I have no transport needs.

It's not easy... you're away from your family, you're away from your own culture, you're away from all of your usual comforts.

On the upside though, you're away from your family, you're away from your own culture and you're away from all of your usual comforts. Haha...

[Dumb blonde]

I dye black clothing items that have faded. I mentioned owning leggings that someone else in the office had on, but said it was almost time to re-dye them and she and another girl literally busted out laughing and said I should buy another pair. I've extended the life of so many cotton things that they would have discarded. All you need is a pack of Rid Dye and a pot and tongs (that are only to be used for this - you are not supposed to cook with items that have been used for dying clothes).

I avoid buying black cotton items for exactly this reason, so this interests me. So, can you machine wash the items after? The dye doesn't bleed onto other clothes?

I think it might do, so I always wash with similar colors, black with brown, dark blue, red with pink, orange etc. Never had any problems.

[Beric01]

I live overseas and pretty much only work Expat gigs. That way my housing is taken care of, quite often my food my food is as well. And generally speaking, I have no transport needs.

It's not easy... you're away from your family, you're away from your own culture, you're away from all of your usual comforts.

On the upside though, you're away from your family, you're away from your own culture and you're away from all of your usual comforts. Haha...

I'm just curious how you got into these? I would love nothing more than to work internationally (while getting my housing paid for). :-)

[Phil_Moore]

The thing I catch the most flak for probably is cutting my own hair.  My boss in particular is astounded by this, we did a comparison and he estimates that he has spent £20,000+ ($33,000) on haircuts and hair products since I started using clippers...

I don't get how I'm the weird one.

[LibrarIan]

The thing I catch the most flak for probably is cutting my own hair.  My boss in particular is astounded by this, we did a comparison and he estimates that he has spent £20,000+ ($33,000) on haircuts and hair products since I started using clippers...

I don't get how I'm the weird one.

+1. I've been cutting my own hair for probably like 8 years. I've suggested doing so to other friends who keep their hair as short as mine, but they decline trying, citing how good of a job their barber does and how they just couldn't achieve the same look. I just roll my eyes.

Other things people think are strange include...

- riding a bicycle
- taking the bus (not sure why this is so strange)
- using the library
- not having cable
- paying less than half of what they pay for cell service (I have a smartphone with data)
- donating and recycling when they'd rather just throw away
- not drinking coffee, soda or most sugary juices
- owning an old, generic car (you could totally buy a new one, bro!)
- being vegetarian
- not going to church (I live in a heavily catholic area)
- exercising at home
- avoiding the movie theater/sports arenas.

[CerebralPrimate]

I'm just curious how you got into these? I would love nothing more than to work internationally (while getting my housing paid for). :-)

Like most people doing this kind of gig, it all started with a friend who was doing it. That said, it wasnt much of a real "in" for me, just made me aware that it was a possibility.

It was early in the year 2007. An acquaintance who been away a while was visiting town and we bumped into one another socially. I asked him how things had been and after some idle chit-chat he mentioned he wanted to go see a movie since it had been a few years. I didnt understand why he hadnt seen a movie in years, but a few of us all agreed we'd hit the theater the next night. Well the next night on the way to the flick, he was hungry so I asked him where he'd like to stop. "Any place is fine... fast food's OK".

"Nah man, I want to eat real food and have a beer with it (this got cheers from the other 2 guys with us)... if it's a money issue, I'll pay for you, man."

He kinda chuckled and said "Thanks, but I definitely dont have any problems with money. I'm going to look at Cadillac's tomorrow."

"They payments are gonna be a killer... you sure?"

"I'm going to pay in cash."

At that point, I knew I wanted a sidebar conversation with him, but the evening didnt really allow it. The focus was on beers and grub. So I called him up the next day and invited him to lunch- my treat. I have found so often in life that amazing information can be gained just for the cost of lunch. Anyway, after meeting up and doing the idle chat thing, I asked about the Cadillac. "Im still thinking about it. I wont be here to drive it much, so that's got me thinking twice."

I just came out with it... "How can you afford a Caddy?"

"I have been working for the last 2.5 years in Saudi, bro. There isnt anything to spend your money on. I just saved it all. I have over $300,000 in my accounts."

Now, this guy had sometimes slightly stretched the truth in times past, but he was not an outright liar. I figured if there was even a nugget of truth to what he was saying, he was out-earning me by 200% or more, and I was 8 years his senior and the only one of us with a degree. So I dug a little deeper and it seemed that he did 4 years in the military, then got out and went to work for a small govt contractor, staying in Saudi where he'd been stationed. Same base, same line of work, only he went from being enlisted in the army to being a civilian "subject matter expert"... trippling his yearly income by doing so.

He said to me "You were prior military... and you even had a clearance... and you were even stationed overseas (Europe)... with you having your degree now, I'd bet you could find a similar position."

There were no financial positions with his small specialized Intel company, since all finance was run from their DC heaquarters. But none the less, I was on a plane bound for Baghdad just 3 short months later. I started immediately applying an old Anthony Robbins technique... if you want massive results, you need to take massive action. I quickly figured out that I couldnt just sit around waiting for him to try to get me in with his company, so I did some research and found a list of the top 100 defense contractors, then went to each and every one of their websites and made sure my Resume was registered with them. I then looked at the jobs/careers section of each of their websites and applied for anything in the Middle East or southwest Asia. I figured out who all the big players were and made sure I was continually checking their websites and applying for anything remotely within my field. It didnt take too long before the interviews started, then an offer... then I was on that plane.

So that's really how I got into it. I hadnt even heard of such a thing before. It didnt seem real to me at the time... the notion that someone would pay me over six figures and house me and feed me. When I got that first offer letter in writing, it felt like pure shock... $140,000/yr and zero expenses???

Since then, the market has shrunk and it's more difficult to get your foot in the door if you dont have prior middle east experience. At the peak, there were about 100,000 contractors working in Iraq. Another 50,000 in Afghanistan. Now since Iraq pretty much shut down, and Afg is in the process of shutting down, it flooded the market with people who got used to the income levels and are now desperate to preseve their elevated lifestyles.

I worked multiple middle east gigs since then... I only kept that first job for 6 months due to incoming fire (mortars/rockets) and my boss being a terrible human being. I've hopped around and had quite a few long breaks (including 2 years in SE Asia- mostly Thailand). If I were more of a mustachian back then, I'd be easily retired by now. At least now, at the ripe old age of 43, I am on the glidepath to ER... probably about 3 years out. And this current gig is by far the most comfortable one I've ever had... a fully commercial venture that has nothing to do with the military. Heck, when I started 10 months ago, Erbil was seen as an oasis of peace and prosperity... ISIS was only a Syrian problem. My how that all changed in the course of my time here...

It's not a lifestyle that most could handle. But if it's something you want, start looking for big multinational corps that might have need of someone with your skillset... there's always airlines and hotels looking to hire a variety of jobs.

Sorry so long... I could probably write a book on this subject... or at the very least, a thread... sorry to seem like I'm threadjacking...

/soapbox

[grmagne]

- not having cable

I think this is starting to gain mainstream acceptance. Ten years ago I was regarded as eccentric for not having cable TV, but now it seems that many young people consider a cable-free lifestyle as quite normal. It might soon go the way of landline phones and music stores.

[2ndTimer]

Currently making all PBJ sandwiches with cranberry sauce.  It was 6/dollar at Grocery Outlet recently.  The Hub says he can't tell it from strawberry

[Jane]

My husband cuts my hair. I don't tell many people normally, but in general I think people would find it strange. In his 35 years, he has managed to learn the very difficult skill of...cutting in a straight line. I watched some youtube videos on adding layers and such and do that myself after he trims the length.

It both saves a lot of money, and it also saves me the time of going to the salon and awkwardness of small talk with the hairdresser. Plus, I can have more frequent trims this way so my hair actually looks better now than it did when I used to pay.

[Beric01]

I'm just curious how you got into these? I would love nothing more than to work internationally (while getting my housing paid for). :-)

Like most people doing this kind of gig, it all started with a friend who was doing it. That said, it wasnt much of a real "in" for me, just made me aware that it was a possibility.

It was early in the year 2007. An acquaintance who been away a while was visiting town and we bumped into one another socially. I asked him how things had been and after some idle chit-chat he mentioned he wanted to go see a movie since it had been a few years. I didnt understand why he hadnt seen a movie in years, but a few of us all agreed we'd hit the theater the next night. Well the next night on the way to the flick, he was hungry so I asked him where he'd like to stop. "Any place is fine... fast food's OK".

"Nah man, I want to eat real food and have a beer with it (this got cheers from the other 2 guys with us)... if it's a money issue, I'll pay for you, man."

He kinda chuckled and said "Thanks, but I definitely dont have any problems with money. I'm going to look at Cadillac's tomorrow."

"They payments are gonna be a killer... you sure?"

"I'm going to pay in cash."

At that point, I knew I wanted a sidebar conversation with him, but the evening didnt really allow it. The focus was on beers and grub. So I called him up the next day and invited him to lunch- my treat. I have found so often in life that amazing information can be gained just for the cost of lunch. Anyway, after meeting up and doing the idle chat thing, I asked about the Cadillac. "Im still thinking about it. I wont be here to drive it much, so that's got me thinking twice."

I just came out with it... "How can you afford a Caddy?"

"I have been working for the last 2.5 years in Saudi, bro. There isnt anything to spend your money on. I just saved it all. I have over $300,000 in my accounts."

Now, this guy had sometimes slightly stretched the truth in times past, but he was not an outright liar. I figured if there was even a nugget of truth to what he was saying, he was out-earning me by 200% or more, and I was 8 years his senior and the only one of us with a degree. So I dug a little deeper and it seemed that he did 4 years in the military, then got out and went to work for a small govt contractor, staying in Saudi where he'd been stationed. Same base, same line of work, only he went from being enlisted in the army to being a civilian "subject matter expert"... trippling his yearly income by doing so.

He said to me "You were prior military... and you even had a clearance... and you were even stationed overseas (Europe)... with you having your degree now, I'd bet you could find a similar position."

There were no financial positions with his small specialized Intel company, since all finance was run from their DC heaquarters. But none the less, I was on a plane bound for Baghdad just 3 short months later. I started immediately applying an old Anthony Robbins technique... if you want massive results, you need to take massive action. I quickly figured out that I couldnt just sit around waiting for him to try to get me in with his company, so I did some research and found a list of the top 100 defense contractors, then went to each and every one of their websites and made sure my Resume was registered with them. I then looked at the jobs/careers section of each of their websites and applied for anything in the Middle East or southwest Asia. I figured out who all the big players were and made sure I was continually checking their websites and applying for anything remotely within my field. It didnt take too long before the interviews started, then an offer... then I was on that plane.

So that's really how I got into it. I hadnt even heard of such a thing before. It didnt seem real to me at the time... the notion that someone would pay me over six figures and house me and feed me. When I got that first offer letter in writing, it felt like pure shock... $140,000/yr and zero expenses???

Since then, the market has shrunk and it's more difficult to get your foot in the door if you dont have prior middle east experience. At the peak, there were about 100,000 contractors working in Iraq. Another 50,000 in Afghanistan. Now since Iraq pretty much shut down, and Afg is in the process of shutting down, it flooded the market with people who got used to the income levels and are now desperate to preseve their elevated lifestyles.

I worked multiple middle east gigs since then... I only kept that first job for 6 months due to incoming fire (mortars/rockets) and my boss being a terrible human being. I've hopped around and had quite a few long breaks (including 2 years in SE Asia- mostly Thailand). If I were more of a mustachian back then, I'd be easily retired by now. At least now, at the ripe old age of 43, I am on the glidepath to ER... probably about 3 years out. And this current gig is by far the most comfortable one I've ever had... a fully commercial venture that has nothing to do with the military. Heck, when I started 10 months ago, Erbil was seen as an oasis of peace and prosperity... ISIS was only a Syrian problem. My how that all changed in the course of my time here...

It's not a lifestyle that most could handle. But if it's something you want, start looking for big multinational corps that might have need of someone with your skillset... there's always airlines and hotels looking to hire a variety of jobs.

Sorry so long... I could probably write a book on this subject... or at the very least, a thread... sorry to seem like I'm threadjacking...

/soapbox

That sounds awesome! We should stop threadjacking, but I'd love to hear more! I'm currently at a multinational company in the US, but so far no success to getting an overseas transfer to a foreign office. It may be my age... :-)


Back on topic, another thing people are shocked at is that not only do I live in a 250 square foot apartment, but I'm very happy with it, and if anything think it's too big. I would definitely be fine with cities like Hong Kong or Tokyo, where the apartments are even smaller.

[The Guru]

Not only do my wife and I not have cable. we have two (3 if you include her desktop monitor) perfectly functional CRT TVs (AFAIK- when we got married over 2 years ago I and moved into her house, I put my TV in the bedroom. I've never plugged it in- I assume it still works). Every now and then my wife or her daughter will daydream out loud about a new flat screen. i just say "uh huh....say, when's the last time you watched TV?" Neither one can remember, which usually ends the conversation.

[Threshkin]

Our friends call us "foodies" because we make so much of our own foods.  They love parties at our house because there is always something new and unusual to eat.

Recent projects include: Hard Cider, Dry cured pork belly, Apple sauce, Flaky pastry, no-bake, gluten free moon cakes........

[Kaspian]

...I was busy sneakily pulling a quarter on the carpet closer to me while thinking, " OMGGGG I can't believe there's a quarter on the floor!! How could someone leave this here!!" Lol.

Hahaha..  I do that too!  Score!!  In my mind, what?  Say it takes 10 seconds to get it:

0.25/10 seconds = $0.025/second
0.025 x 60 seconds x 60 minutes = $90/hour
$90 x 7.25 hours = $652.50/day
$625.50 x 260 working days = $169,650/year

Sweet fancy Moses!!  What I wouldn't give to have my job be picking up quarters all day long!  $170K a year?  Sign me up! 
(I think most people don't properly understand rate of return.)

[BaldingStoic]

Here's another one: I got my electricity bill and noticed a $40 CA energy credit (something all residential CA customers are getting in April and October).

Me: "Cool! Two months of free electricity!"

Neighbor: "?! Are you using candles or something?!"

That's awesome! The credit wouldn't even last me 2 weeks so I commend you! 

I recently canceled Netflix (never had cable), and now rely on streaming free content to the $35  Chromecast. 

[1967mama]

Got our OTA antenna working again (disconnected it for the summer) and are watching great HD shows for free on our tv!

Goodbye forever, cable! Don't let the door hit ya on the way out!

[CatamaranSailor]

One thing that drives me nuts is when my son tells his friends he can't go swimming (or to the movies, or the mall, or lately the "Halloween Store") because he doesn't have any money and they (usually the parents...not the kid) offer to pay his way. My son has plenty of opportunities to earn money...and when he wants something bad enough...he does. I don't like it when they (the parents) pop off with "Well, it's only $10.00...we'll cover it" like we can't afford to give our poor kid an allowance, when the fact is we're trying desperately to teach him not to be a mindless consumer and learn the value of earning his own spending money. I want to rant and rave and point out the fact they are not doing their own kids any favors by spoiling the shit out of them. We've won the battle with him (He'll usually decline on his own if he doesn't have the money or better yet...doesn't want to spend the money he does have on XYZ activity). But still we get annoyed at the rolled eyes from the parents. They already think we're terrible because we don't provide him with an iPhone with unlimited text and data! Sheesh!

[pichirino]

Something like taking public transportation to get around.
If it was a country such as the Netherlands biking and public transportation would be applauded,but here where I live you're either crazy or poor for choosing such.

[Rube]

There are many but my favorite is giving a stuff middle finger to the trendy and expensive gym in town. It's mostly a social expedition for the stay at home moms who enjoy spending between $150-200 a month to hang out with a bunch of other pretentious nitwits. My gym costs somewhere between $9-10 a month. But then the insurance discount is $20 so I get paid to go to the gym. Wife does it too.

My office is near a trendy new area mostly made up of restaurants and nightclubs. Nobody can figure out why I bring my own lunch in a cooler every day.