Mustachian People Problems (just for fun)

[Bicycle_B]

My 12 yr old daughter was doing some math problems online just now (ALEKS).  There were some word problems regarding budgeting, to teach finding a percentage.  In one problem, a man made $65000 a year, and spent $7150 on clothing, according to his pie chart budget, but only $4500 on savings.  She had to calculate his savings rate.  She just couldn't believe this dude would spend more on clothing than savings!  "He's stupid!"

Great story, PepperPotts.  And obviously your daughter inherited your own peppery attitude! Well done.

[zolotiyeruki]

I now have enough money in the stock market that this dip in the stock market actually is greater than my income for the month.

I don't know if I qualify as a SWAMI, but I *do* know that I'm about 15 years from FIRE at my current rate, so I pay little attention on a daily/weekly/monthly basis to what the market is doing.  Down 2%?  Meh, who cares, I'm still in the accumulation phase! :)

[LennStar]

I now have enough money in the stock market that this dip in the stock market actually is greater than my income for the month.

I don't know if I qualify as a SWAMI, but I *do* know that I'm about 15 years from FIRE at my current rate, so I pay little attention on a daily/weekly/monthly basis to what the market is doing.  Down 2%?  Meh, who cares, I'm still in the accumulation phase! :)

And if you still feel under pressure, just look at the crypto markets. Down 50%? Ah, that happens every year once or twice.

[marielle]

So I thought my company was going to get a 401k in March. Nope. We're getting an HSA instead. I am probably the only person upset and probably the only one wanting to tax shelter more than $3400...

Better than nothing I guess...and I can still contribute to the 2017 HSA I would assume. Problem is that I already filed my taxes so now I have to do an amended return. ugh!

Job hunting is looking a lot sweeter now.

I would double check that HSA thing. As far as I know, you can't contribute after the end of the year.

You can.  I just did so earlier this week.  On the HSA website they specifically asked which year I was contributing for. 

In this case, though, the thing to watch out for is if there's HSA eligibility for 2017.  I think it is odd phrasing that work just got an HSA, since HSA eligibility is dependent on the type of health plan (HDHP), not the employer.  Marielle needs to make sure her 2017 health plan was an HDHP.  More specifically, was she part of an HSA-eligible HDHP on 1 Dec 2017?  If not, then no retroactive contributions are allowed.  If marielle had a qualifying health plan on 1 December, but not for the whole year of 2017, she can contribute to an HSA for the whole year, but only if she maintains eligibility for an HSA for all of 2018.  If she had an HSA-eligible health plan for all of 2017, she can contribute up to the full amount with no requirement to maintain the plan through 2018.

More details are available in IRS Pub 969.

I don't believe our healthcare plan is changing. My deductible is $3000 as a single person (but $2000 of which is reimbursable by the company) so that is a HDHP correct?

It's a relatively new company so it makes sense that they could have had an HSA last year but chose not to bother with it. Same reason we're not getting a 401k.

[Sibley]

So I thought my company was going to get a 401k in March. Nope. We're getting an HSA instead. I am probably the only person upset and probably the only one wanting to tax shelter more than $3400...

Better than nothing I guess...and I can still contribute to the 2017 HSA I would assume. Problem is that I already filed my taxes so now I have to do an amended return. ugh!

Job hunting is looking a lot sweeter now.

I would double check that HSA thing. As far as I know, you can't contribute after the end of the year.

You can.  I just did so earlier this week.  On the HSA website they specifically asked which year I was contributing for. 

In this case, though, the thing to watch out for is if there's HSA eligibility for 2017.  I think it is odd phrasing that work just got an HSA, since HSA eligibility is dependent on the type of health plan (HDHP), not the employer.  Marielle needs to make sure her 2017 health plan was an HDHP.  More specifically, was she part of an HSA-eligible HDHP on 1 Dec 2017?  If not, then no retroactive contributions are allowed.  If marielle had a qualifying health plan on 1 December, but not for the whole year of 2017, she can contribute to an HSA for the whole year, but only if she maintains eligibility for an HSA for all of 2018.  If she had an HSA-eligible health plan for all of 2017, she can contribute up to the full amount with no requirement to maintain the plan through 2018.

More details are available in IRS Pub 969.

I don't believe our healthcare plan is changing. My deductible is $3000 as a single person (but $2000 of which is reimbursable by the company) so that is a HDHP correct?

It's a relatively new company so it makes sense that they could have had an HSA last year but chose not to bother with it. Same reason we're not getting a 401k.

It'll specifically say that it's a HDHP. You can ask HR or whoever handles benefits if you're not sure.

[DTaggart]

Now that I'm FIREd I can go hiking on weekdays, but then I have to deal with commute traffic getting to the trail head.

[ScreamingHeadGuy]

I hate having to wait until mid-February to receive my Vanguard brokerage account tax forms.  I just want to finish my tax returns and be done with them already!

I feel your pain.

[BudgetSlasher]

I hate having to wait until mid-February to receive my Vanguard brokerage account tax forms.  I just want to finish my tax returns and be done with them already!

I feel your pain.

I just got a mailing that I hoped was tax paperwork, not it was based on the types of inventments in your accounts we estimate that you will have you tax documents by mid-March.

[Linea_Norway]

First problem: Today I got up at a quarter to 5 in the morning and decided to eat an extra slice of bread, compared to the normal 1 slice. Later at work, just now, I got hungry and wanted to start nibbling of my lunch. But I couldn't find my lunch in my large handbag. Searched carefully, but it was not there. First conclusion was that my lunch must be laying smeared at home. But then I realized that I hadn't even smeared my sandwiches at all.

Second problem: I was still hungry, so I decided to buy something at the cafeteria at work. My cafeteria cash card had very little money on it, so I tried to load it up. I pressed "Load card" typed in kr. 100 (8-ish dollars). Then I put my card in the payment terminal, but nothing happened. No personal was to be seen. So I try again the "load card" function and type kr. 100. Then I see on the screen that there are 2 transactions waiting for me to load kr. 100 into the card. As I seldom use the card, this is too much. But I don't see a way to remove the transaction. Still no personnel to be seen. Then comes a new customer behind me, trying to figure out whether I am done. I explain to him that I don't know how to load up my card. He suggests using the "bank" button, which worked. Of course, everybody else uses their card all the time and knows the routine. I am one of the very few lunch-from-home eaters, who are not familiar with the routine.

Third problem: Then I had finally loaded my card with enough money for the whole of 2018. I picked the item I wanted to eat. But of course, this item didn't have a price. I also haven't got a clue how to register this item on the machine, as the screen only shows "breakfast, lunch, dinner", etc. Still no personnel to be seen. Then I decided to write my name and the article in the bloc note where people are supposed to register for dinner, on a separate skipped page. Then I went to my place and ate the item. I rely on that there will be personnel there during lunch so that I can make up for my purchase. And I hope I will succeed in buying lunch all by myself.

[LennStar]

At least you tried to bought lunch, not snow balls.



https://boingboing.net/2018/02/06/there-are-snowballs-for-sale-i.html

[dougules]

At least you tried to bought lunch, not snow balls.



https://boingboing.net/2018/02/06/there-are-snowballs-for-sale-i.html

I need to franchise that here.  I'd make a killing. 

[dougules]

Now that I'm FIREd I can go hiking on weekdays, but then I have to deal with commute traffic getting to the trail head.

It sounds like the root problem is that you're getting up as early as all the commuters. 

[Just Joe]

At least you tried to bought lunch, not snow balls.



https://boingboing.net/2018/02/06/there-are-snowballs-for-sale-i.html

I need to franchise that here.  I'd make a killing.

I checked. That snowball machine is sitting on a corner in Wisconsin...

[FireHiker]

Now that I'm FIREd I can go hiking on weekdays, but then I have to deal with commute traffic getting to the trail head.

Congratulations!!!

My MPP today: Went to Costco and wanted to use the credit card reward to pay for our shopping, but the checker was lazy (end of shift two people after us in line) and wouldn't do it and sent us off to customer service to get it cashed, so I paid with a credit card. The customer service guy confirmed that I should have been able to pay for my purchase using the reward. Now I am stuck with a bunch of cash. Our bank is USAA so it's not convenient to deposit it in the bank. I put everything on a travel rewards card (except our Costco and gas purchases); it's going to take me months to spend all the cash.

[dragoncar]

Now that I'm FIREd I can go hiking on weekdays, but then I have to deal with commute traffic getting to the trail head.

Congratulations!!!

My MPP today: Went to Costco and wanted to use the credit card reward to pay for our shopping, but the checker was lazy (end of shift two people after us in line) and wouldn't do it and sent us off to customer service to get it cashed, so I paid with a credit card. The customer service guy confirmed that I should have been able to pay for my purchase using the reward. Now I am stuck with a bunch of cash. Our bank is USAA so it's not convenient to deposit it in the bank. I put everything on a travel rewards card (except our Costco and gas purchases); it's going to take me months to spend all the cash.

But on the plus side you got more rewards by using the credit card

[frugalnacho]

Now that I'm FIREd I can go hiking on weekdays, but then I have to deal with commute traffic getting to the trail head.

Congratulations!!!

My MPP today: Went to Costco and wanted to use the credit card reward to pay for our shopping, but the checker was lazy (end of shift two people after us in line) and wouldn't do it and sent us off to customer service to get it cashed, so I paid with a credit card. The customer service guy confirmed that I should have been able to pay for my purchase using the reward. Now I am stuck with a bunch of cash. Our bank is USAA so it's not convenient to deposit it in the bank. I put everything on a travel rewards card (except our Costco and gas purchases); it's going to take me months to spend all the cash.

Agree with dragoncar.  I cash my rewards check then pay with credit card to get more cashback.  I always deposit cash into my bank, and never spend cash if I have the option to use credit cards.  You can make cash deposits at ATM locations for USAA.  Minor pain in the ass, but not more so than physically going to the bank to deposit cash.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

Was supposed to max my 401K in January with my bonus. Unfortunately, there was a screwup (my fault) & I did 1% instead of 100%. Which means. . . I barely put anything in said 401K. I quickly edited my options for the next few paychecks & went all in to 100%. It takes a few weeks to take effect, which means the first one is my Friday paycheck. So. . .timed the market well unintentionally & am getting a bit of a sale on stock. Bright side?

[PhilB]

I gift an amount to my kids' school every month by direct debit.  Under UK tax rules, they can reclaim 25% of what I give from the tax man and so can I.  I'm FIREing later this year though, and will have a couple of years with no taxable income (school gets no tax relief) and then I will be on a lower tax rate permanently (I get no tax relief).
I have just emailed the school and asked them to cancel my direct debit and I'll make a one-off contribution of everything I would have given over the next 6 years whilst it's still tax efficient for everyone.
My MPP is that the monthly payment has been featuring in 'other spending' in my spreadsheet for a while.  If I suddenly put 72 months worth in in one go my numbers will look screwy, but I don't want to go back and unpick it to a new category either.  Decisions, decisions.  On the plus side, I finally have an MPP :o)

[Taran Wanderer]

The stock market is tanking, and all I can think of is, yay, stocks are on sale.

[Dollar Slice]

The stock market is tanking, and all I can think of is, yay, stocks are on sale.

My MPP is that I need to rebalance and it's only 2.5 months after the last time I rebalanced...

[Luckyvik]

My MPP is that I only want to do the types of projects at work I find enjoyable and I really struggle to get done the types that I don’t enjoy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jlcnuke]

The stock market is tanking, and all I can think of is, yay, stocks are on sale.

I'm thinking "keep dropping baby, daddy wants a fire sale!".... and I'm not very mustachian overall..

[Bracken_Joy]

My company is switching 401k plans. I was excited at first! I can go from putting 80% of my paycheck in to 100%! But then... it started only sending like $5 to the 401k, and nearly $500 is coming to me each week?? Y tho? So now I'm missing out on that sweet, sweet stock sale, while my company tries to figure out what the hell is going on. And it's no one's priority, since the rest of the roll over is higher priority. Ughhh.

[Bicycle_B]

I gift an amount to my kids' school every month by direct debit.  Under UK tax rules, they can reclaim 25% of what I give from the tax man and so can I.  I'm FIREing later this year though, and will have a couple of years with no taxable income (school gets no tax relief) and then I will be on a lower tax rate permanently (I get no tax relief).
I have just emailed the school and asked them to cancel my direct debit and I'll make a one-off contribution of everything I would have given over the next 6 years whilst it's still tax efficient for everyone.
My MPP is that the monthly payment has been featuring in 'other spending' in my spreadsheet for a while.  If I suddenly put 72 months worth in in one go my numbers will look screwy, but I don't want to go back and unpick it to a new category either.  Decisions, decisions.  On the plus side, I finally have an MPP :o)

Congratulations, PhilB!

[Zaga]

My company is switching 401k plans. I was excited at first! I can go from putting 80% of my paycheck in to 100%! But then... it started only sending like $5 to the 401k, and nearly $500 is coming to me each week?? Y tho? So now I'm missing out on that sweet, sweet stock sale, while my company tries to figure out what the hell is going on. And it's no one's priority, since the rest of the roll over is higher priority. Ughhh.

Oh man I'd be so mad!

DH just started a new job Jan 2, he gets paid once a month on the last day of the month.  He did sign up for the 401-K, I confirmed it on the website, but nothing came out of his first check and i have no idea why!

[Sibley]

My company is switching 401k plans. I was excited at first! I can go from putting 80% of my paycheck in to 100%! But then... it started only sending like $5 to the 401k, and nearly $500 is coming to me each week?? Y tho? So now I'm missing out on that sweet, sweet stock sale, while my company tries to figure out what the hell is going on. And it's no one's priority, since the rest of the roll over is higher priority. Ughhh.

Oh man I'd be so mad!

DH just started a new job Jan 2, he gets paid once a month on the last day of the month.  He did sign up for the 401-K, I confirmed it on the website, but nothing came out of his first check and i have no idea why!

It usually takes 1-2 pay periods to get everything setup.

[Aegishjalmur]

My mpp for today- DW and I are cooking and I am looking at the scraps from the veggies and meat trimming that I have to compost or toss as we are downsizing for travel and I can't save them to make stock.


Damn you auto correct- mpp became mom...

[Bracken_Joy]

My company is switching 401k plans. I was excited at first! I can go from putting 80% of my paycheck in to 100%! But then... it started only sending like $5 to the 401k, and nearly $500 is coming to me each week?? Y tho? So now I'm missing out on that sweet, sweet stock sale, while my company tries to figure out what the hell is going on. And it's no one's priority, since the rest of the roll over is higher priority. Ughhh.

Oh man I'd be so mad!

DH just started a new job Jan 2, he gets paid once a month on the last day of the month.  He did sign up for the 401-K, I confirmed it on the website, but nothing came out of his first check and i have no idea why!

It usually takes 1-2 pay periods to get everything setup.

Yeah it's been more than that =( And I went and confirmed- by the date on the website, it should have fixed weeks ago. I get paid weekly, so 1-2 paychecks is fast for me, and *is* what the 401k says to expect. Plus I never set it low, so there's no reason it should have moved to the 1% or whatever it's at right now. I went from 80%, to 100% (which made it 1%), back to 80% (where it has stayed 1%). NFC why, I have a support ticket open so hopefully I'll hear more Monday?

[Dollar Slice]

Yeah it's been more than that =( And I went and confirmed- by the date on the website, it should have fixed weeks ago. I get paid weekly, so 1-2 paychecks is fast for me, and *is* what the 401k says to expect. Plus I never set it low, so there's no reason it should have moved to the 1% or whatever it's at right now. I went from 80%, to 100% (which made it 1%), back to 80% (where it has stayed 1%). NFC why, I have a support ticket open so hopefully I'll hear more Monday?

That is super annoying :-( The HR dept at the company I've been at for the past year is pretty hopeless, too - everything takes forever to set up or change, random things get screwed up for no real reason, they talk down to me even though I've never been wrong when I came to them with a problem. I have learned to just keep a really close eye on everything and contact them immediately when I spot something, and assume it will not get fixed immediately. It took them 3 weeks to update my 401(k) deduction, IIRC. Also had problems with my PTO accrual, tax withholding, pre-tax transit benefits... I think the only thing that was never fucked up was insurance. I hope for their sake that they are just really overworked and not as incompetent as they seem, but the bookkeeping department is the same way so I have a feeling someone over there is just really bad at hiring people. (I had a nightmare with the bookkeeping dept this week when I discovered they forgot to send me copies of $50k worth of deposits... I was trying to go through them invoice by invoice and the woman who had processed all those deposits was making every mistake you could make - skipping lines, transposing numbers, swapping the names of similar-sounding clients, copying and pasting things into the wrong place, etc. etc. How does this person have this job!? Ugh.)

OK, that rant went off on a tangent, but it's MPP so I'm keeping it. ;-)

[Bracken_Joy]

Yeah it's been more than that =( And I went and confirmed- by the date on the website, it should have fixed weeks ago. I get paid weekly, so 1-2 paychecks is fast for me, and *is* what the 401k says to expect. Plus I never set it low, so there's no reason it should have moved to the 1% or whatever it's at right now. I went from 80%, to 100% (which made it 1%), back to 80% (where it has stayed 1%). NFC why, I have a support ticket open so hopefully I'll hear more Monday?

That is super annoying :-( The HR dept at the company I've been at for the past year is pretty hopeless, too - everything takes forever to set up or change, random things get screwed up for no real reason, they talk down to me even though I've never been wrong when I came to them with a problem. I have learned to just keep a really close eye on everything and contact them immediately when I spot something, and assume it will not get fixed immediately. It took them 3 weeks to update my 401(k) deduction, IIRC. Also had problems with my PTO accrual, tax withholding, pre-tax transit benefits... I think the only thing that was never fucked up was insurance. I hope for their sake that they are just really overworked and not as incompetent as they seem, but the bookkeeping department is the same way so I have a feeling someone over there is just really bad at hiring people. (I had a nightmare with the bookkeeping dept this week when I discovered they forgot to send me copies of $50k worth of deposits... I was trying to go through them invoice by invoice and the woman who had processed all those deposits was making every mistake you could make - skipping lines, transposing numbers, swapping the names of similar-sounding clients, copying and pasting things into the wrong place, etc. etc. How does this person have this job!? Ugh.)

OK, that rant went off on a tangent, but it's MPP so I'm keeping it. ;-)

Yeah part of my problem is I don't even know who HR *is*. Between a large company and a merger? Oh and our local office assistant quit. I have no flipping idea who to write to, haha.

[Trifle]

My MPP is the bank we have our mortgage with. We went with them for the low rate, but boy oh boy do they suck if you are paying the loan down faster.  First, they have no option to pay anything online other than your regular monthly payment.  Want to pay extra on the principal?  They tell you to do it by mail, using the hardcopy coupon.  Except that the first two times I did that, they screwed it up and put the extra payment toward future months' payments. It was a nightmare getting that fixed over the phone.  I decided after that that I would have to physically go to the bank each month if I had any extra payment to make. I started doing that, but the fun was only beginning. Turns out that apparently none of the tellers at this place had ever done (or could understand!?) an extra payment to principal.  They looked at me like I had two heads. Finally, after many months, I succeeded in training one of the tellers in what I wanted to do, but then she left. Back to square one. Now, after two months I have identified a teller who can do it, but only if I first make the regular payment, then pull the checkbook back out and say "And I'd like to make an extra payment to PRINCIPAL ONLY."  Somehow the separate check helps her get it.  The whole situation is weird and baffling.  I've done this before with other banks and there were no problems.

[Step37]

@Trifele that sounds horribly frustrating. A level of frustration that would probably make my head explode. Clearly, the bank does not welcome extra payments.

ETA my own MPP that I was unable to think of when I wrote the first part. I bought some bulk spices (at the special bulk food store) yesterday, and clearly got complacent that everything was a better price, because I didn’t pay much attention as my items rang through. I though $30 seemed a bit much, but figured the few Valentine’s treats I’d picked up for my husband had been heavier than I thought. Not the case. When I got home, I realized that the culprit had been granulated garlic!! Holy crap, $41.45/kg, so the little bag I bought was nearly $10.00. The dumbest thing is, I almost exclusively use fresh garlic, and really don’t even need it. Certainly won’t make that mistake again.

[Zaga]

I'm annoyed with DH's new company.  He just started a new job Jan 2, gets paid once a month at the end of the month.  He signed up for the 401-K immediately, but nothing came out of the first check.  I double and triple checked the 401-K website, he is set to contribute.  So I'm a bit annoyed, and since it's a brand new job he has no idea who to contact about the issue.  Maybe there is a specific time delay, like my job where you can't contribute for the first year?  We have no idea, but if there isn't anything withheld in the Feb paycheck then I'll have him track down an answer!

[radram]

My mpp for today- DW and I are cooking and I am looking at the scraps from the veggies and meat trimming that I have to compost or toss as we are downsizing for travel and I can't save them to make stock.


Damn you auto correct- mpp became mom...

I do not understand. Are you saying you will be unplugging your freezer while traveling? These scraps would freeze well, as would the stock you make out of them. Either could stay frozen for years and still make great soup.

[marielle]

I am anxiously wanting to book flights for an upcoming trip, but I have to wait for my signup bonus points to post on my credit card. I should have plenty of time...but still. I can't complain to (most) people about not being able to book flights yet that are nearly free...

[ketchup]

I am anxiously wanting to book flights for an upcoming trip, but I have to wait for my signup bonus points to post on my credit card. I should have plenty of time...but still. I can't complain to (most) people about not being able to book flights yet that are nearly free...

I had some fun with that game last year.  GF had a work trip planned to Australia in August.  Before buying the tickets (January or February), she said "Hey, didn't you say there was a thing people did where they were able to get a bunch of free bonus miles by signing up for credit cards and stuff?"

Welp, by the time we figured that all out, it was too late to use points for that trip, so she just paid cash.  Naturally though, I applied the anything-worth-doing-is-worth-overdoing ethos and we wound up with about half a million points/miles of various flavors that we've slowly been burning off (about halfway through the stash so far, just over six grand of value redeemed so far).

[Slow&Steady]

I started a new job late Jan and they have a 30 day delay before I can contribute to a 401k.  On top of that I will probably only get 2-3 paychecks in before I go out on unpaid maternity leave so I won't get to put very much money into the 401k until June/July AND DH and I decided that we should hold off on putting any 2018 contributions into his IRA until we make sure that baby (and momma) get home safe and healthy from delivery,  plus it will be easier to manage once I have an income again.  Shitty timing for stocks to go on sale for me, maybe they will still be low in June/July when I get to start putting money in again. 

MPP - I really want to be putting money into the stock market right now but it is a more sane decision to hold off for several months.

The good news is that we did put some money into his IRA on Friday for a 2017 contribution that we were sitting on due to maternity leave/baby but decided that we should be fine without it.

[Imma]

Noticed today my favourite jumper has a small hole under my underarm. It's not fixable, it's a knitted jumper and the whole area is very worn out, it's just a matter of time before it's a really big hole.

This is one of my favourite pieces of clothing to wear to work during winter because it's both warm and stylish. I hadn't planned on replacing this one for a few more years because it's still fairly new in my head and it was quite expensive when I bought it. Then I tried to estimate how old it was. I think I bought it in 2011. "Fairly new" to me. Ancient to 99% of the people.

Now I have 3 MPP's:
- I don't have a warm work sweater anymore. If this cold snap continues, I'll need to buy a new one quickly, so I won't have time to look for the best deal.

- I now have 4 "too bad to wear to work, too good to throw away"  knitted jumpers in my closet to wear at home. And I'm at work 5 days a week.

- 75% of my closet now consists of "home" clothes instead of "work" clothes. I only have a small closet. I need to buy work clothes, but I don't really have the space. I have to get rid home clothes that still have a few years of wear left in them, which is a waste.

[merula]

Noticed today my favourite jumper has a small hole under my underarm. It's not fixable, it's a knitted jumper and the whole area is very worn out, it's just a matter of time before it's a really big hole.

This is one of my favourite pieces of clothing to wear to work during winter because it's both warm and stylish. I hadn't planned on replacing this one for a few more years because it's still fairly new in my head and it was quite expensive when I bought it. Then I tried to estimate how old it was. I think I bought it in 2011. "Fairly new" to me. Ancient to 99% of the people.

Now I have 3 MPP's:
- I don't have a warm work sweater anymore. If this cold snap continues, I'll need to buy a new one quickly, so I won't have time to look for the best deal.

- I now have 4 "too bad to wear to work, too good to throw away"  knitted jumpers in my closet to wear at home. And I'm at work 5 days a week.

- 75% of my closet now consists of "home" clothes instead of "work" clothes. I only have a small closet. I need to buy work clothes, but I don't really have the space. I have to get rid home clothes that still have a few years of wear left in them, which is a waste.

You might try a quick darn to slightly prolong the life of the sweater (sorry, American). It won't look great, but under your arm is probably pretty unobtrusive.

That only really works for your first MPP though.

[Linea_Norway]

Noticed today my favourite jumper has a small hole under my underarm. It's not fixable, it's a knitted jumper and the whole area is very worn out, it's just a matter of time before it's a really big hole.

This is one of my favourite pieces of clothing to wear to work during winter because it's both warm and stylish. I hadn't planned on replacing this one for a few more years because it's still fairly new in my head and it was quite expensive when I bought it. Then I tried to estimate how old it was. I think I bought it in 2011. "Fairly new" to me. Ancient to 99% of the people.

Now I have 3 MPP's:
- I don't have a warm work sweater anymore. If this cold snap continues, I'll need to buy a new one quickly, so I won't have time to look for the best deal.

- I now have 4 "too bad to wear to work, too good to throw away"  knitted jumpers in my closet to wear at home. And I'm at work 5 days a week.

- 75% of my closet now consists of "home" clothes instead of "work" clothes. I only have a small closet. I need to buy work clothes, but I don't really have the space. I have to get rid home clothes that still have a few years of wear left in them, which is a waste.

You might try a quick darn to slightly prolong the life of the sweater (sorry, American). It won't look great, but under your arm is probably pretty unobtrusive.

That only really works for your first MPP though.

Or just do like my FIL and sew a pad on the worn-out elbows. Like they used to do with children's trousers when I was a child.

[Mika M]

Disneyworld. We always get 'So when are you planning to take your kid to Disneyworld?'

Blah. I always say if I'm gonna spend that much money on a vacation it'd be a guided adventure tour out in the Southwest or something. DH agrees. Pretty sure kiddo would also find that a better use of time, energy, and money. The most painful experience we can endure for kiddo's glee is letting her enjoy the free play area at the American Doll store of the high end mall in our area. (She never asks to buy anything but does enjoy playing with their stuff for a while.) It is fun to watch families walk out with bags full of overpriced junk, though.

I always roll my eyes at that conventional idea that Disneyworld is some requisite box you gotta check as a parent. Maybe if we happen to be visiting SoCal and she's big enough to enjoy the roller coasters and she really really wants to go I'd pay for a day pass into Disneyland. But the price tags I hear for some of these Disneyworld trips get insane!

[Just Joe]

There are lots of other amusement parks across the land to choose from...

[FireHiker]

My MPP for the day: We maxed out our 401Ks and upped our HSA last year, finally, with catch up contributions for my husband. As a result, our taxable income actually went down even after raise time, and we have a refund from both state and federal. We e-filed last week, and one of the refunds came yesterday. We're still paying down 401k loans from when we bought our house (should have mine gone this year!), so as soon as it came yesterday I initiated an extra payment. I wake up this morning and our other refund has been direct deposited too. But, I can't submit another extra payment until the pending one clears. I would have just waited and paid more down on it today, but I didn't expect them both to come so quickly!

Mika M, if you ever DO decide to do Disneyworld (we haven't yet) there's a travel hacking guide to do it mostly for free/very cheap. If we ever do it, we'll do it using those tips. But, for now, we get So Cal passes to Disneyland every few years and get our fill locally. We like Disney well enough (grew up in So Cal so there's a nostalgia factor there) but the idea of Disneyworld is super overwhelming to me.

[LeRainDrop]

Vanguard brokerage tax forms came out a few days early, so I was able to file my tax returns.  Last year was my first full year of not working.  I discovered, now I'm one of those "rich people" who "don't pay their fair share."

[Just Joe]

What is the difference between Disneyworld and Disneyland? I know they are two different parks but beyond that I don't know.

[zolotiyeruki]

What is the difference between Disneyworld and Disneyland? I know they are two different parks but beyond that I don't know.

Disney World is Disney's complex of resorts and theme parks near Orlando, FL.  There are 4 main theme parks, a water park, and a whole bunch of resorts (hotels).  Disneyland is a single theme park in Anaheim, CA, and is located across the street from a second Disney theme park, California Adventures.  Disneyland (in CA) is very similar to the Magic Kingdom (part of Disney World in FL).

[Freedomin5]

What is the difference between Disneyworld and Disneyland? I know they are two different parks but beyond that I don't know.

Disney World is Disney's complex of resorts and theme parks near Orlando, FL.  There are 4 main theme parks, a water park, and a whole bunch of resorts (hotels).  Disneyland is a single theme park in Anaheim, CA, and is located across the street from a second Disney theme park, California Adventures.  Disneyland (in CA) is very similar to the Magic Kingdom (part of Disney World in FL).

There’s also Disneyland in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Paris, and the newest one in Shanghai (may be a few more that I’m missing). They’re smaller than Disney World.

My Disney-relates MPP is that our daughter thinks that Disneyland is free because when we say we’re “going to Disney” we actually go to the free park outside of the theme park, then go to the Disney shopping area and visit the LEGO store where she can play for free. And often as we leave, we are asked to fill out a quick survey and DD gets a sticker or small notebook or bookmark as a thank you gift. She’s in for a rude awakening when she realizes there’s an actual theme park with rides and so much more than she could imagine.

[merula]

Minor quibble: Disney World has two water parks, and Disneyland has a neighboring park called Disneyland California Adventure.

I have a similar MPP, on a smaller scale. Last summer, we took the kids to a port city ~3 hours' drive away. One of the things we saw was a retired naval ship that has been turned into a museum. We went into it, found out that admission cost $10/person and decided it wasn't nearly worth it. But we were kinda hungry and the gift shop had a freezer with packaged ice cream, so we bought some and left.

My kids will talk about the "ship that sells ice cream" about once a week and desperately want to go back. They are convinced that this whole ship only exists to sell ice cream. My in-laws are talking about taking them to the same city, so we need to be really clear with them that they should go to the ship but not to tour it, just to buy ice cream.

[Uturn]

It is going to be an unusually warm day today.  Low to mid 70s, perfect for open windows.  But I just noticed that my new rented house has no window screens.  I have no way to keep the cat in if I enjoy fresh air and free temperature control.  :(

[barbaz]

It is going to be an unusually warm day today.  Low to mid 70s, perfect for open windows.  But I just noticed that my new rented house has no window screens.  I have no way to keep the cat in if I enjoy fresh air and free temperature control.  :(

I built a wooden frame that fits into the window frame and stapled a cat net on it