Mustachian People Problems (just for fun)

[Dollar Slice]

Our company (well, one unit of the company) got acquired on short notice and my co-workers and I got laid off abruptly and then rehired by the new owner 10 days later... so I saw one co-worker for the first time since the lay-offs today. I know him fairly well (well enough to know he never looks at anything corporate-jargony-looking) so I mentioned to him that if he wanted to roll over the 401(k), the paperwork was in the packet they sent us in the mail. He said "We had a 401(k)?" Well... I tried...

Meanwhile, I've already got my rollover check and my Mustachian impulses are butting heads - do I send it to Vanguard as cheaply as possible, or do I pay for a Fedex or Priority Mail or something to minimize time out of the market?

Don't do it as cheaply as possible. At a minimum, tracking number. Don't want to lose that check in the mail!

They sent it to me in a regular windowed envelope, regular mail... for which I was charged a $50 withdrawal fee. Ugh. I'm tempted to just drop it in the mail because then I don't have to wait at the post office. The next two days I'm not sure I'll have time to go wait in line to mail something.

[frugalnacho]

Our company (well, one unit of the company) got acquired on short notice and my co-workers and I got laid off abruptly and then rehired by the new owner 10 days later... so I saw one co-worker for the first time since the lay-offs today. I know him fairly well (well enough to know he never looks at anything corporate-jargony-looking) so I mentioned to him that if he wanted to roll over the 401(k), the paperwork was in the packet they sent us in the mail. He said "We had a 401(k)?" Well... I tried...

Meanwhile, I've already got my rollover check and my Mustachian impulses are butting heads - do I send it to Vanguard as cheaply as possible, or do I pay for a Fedex or Priority Mail or something to minimize time out of the market?

Don't do it as cheaply as possible. At a minimum, tracking number. Don't want to lose that check in the mail!

They sent it to me in a regular windowed envelope, regular mail... for which I was charged a $50 withdrawal fee. Ugh. I'm tempted to just drop it in the mail because then I don't have to wait at the post office. The next two days I'm not sure I'll have time to go wait in line to mail something.

Why did they send you a check at all?  I was instructed to have it sent directly to the next institution without acting as a middle man so there is no possibility it gets counted as a distribution.  I also thought there was a time frame from the closing of the initial account that the money had to be in the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  I would get it into vanguard asap.

[Dollar Slice]

Why did they send you a check at all?  I was instructed to have it sent directly to the next institution without acting as a middle man so there is no possibility it gets counted as a distribution.  I also thought there was a time frame from the closing of the initial account that the money had to be in the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  I would get it into vanguard asap.

No idea, but I've done two rollovers with different companies, and both times they sent me the check even though I sent them the letter that Vanguard gives you with instructions to mail the check directly to them. I even manually highlighted that part of the letter. The check is made out to Vanguard FBO (for benefit of) [Dollar Slice], though, so I'm not too worried about counting it as a distribution.

[frugalnacho]

Why did they send you a check at all?  I was instructed to have it sent directly to the next institution without acting as a middle man so there is no possibility it gets counted as a distribution.  I also thought there was a time frame from the closing of the initial account that the money had to be in the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  I would get it into vanguard asap.

No idea, but I've done two rollovers with different companies, and both times they sent me the check even though I sent them the letter that Vanguard gives you with instructions to mail the check directly to them. I even manually highlighted that part of the letter. The check is made out to Vanguard FBO (for benefit of) [Dollar Slice], though, so I'm not too worried about counting it as a distribution.

I think you have 60 days to get it into the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  Should be plenty of time, but I would have anxiety until I got it into my IRA successfully.

[Freedomin5]

Conversation with my non-financially-minded DH today

Me: Well, we have six groups of friends coming to stay with us at our cottage this summer.
DH: Don’t your friends have their own cottages?
Me: No, I don’t think so. They sounded pretty excited when I asked if they wanted to come visit us.
DH: But why? They’ve been working so much longer than us. Why can’t they afford a $200k cottage? It’s not that much money.
Me: You have to realize you married into a financially savvy family. $200k is a lot of money to some people.
DH: Yeah, but they have good jobs. (My friends all make over 6 figures)
Me: Yeah, but they also have nice houses and nice cars and nice vacations.
DH: Fine then. Well, next year I want to invite all my friends to the cottage. Otherwise it’s not fair.

TLDR: Getting into financial fights with DH because we have too much  and we are still figuring out a way to fairly let our friends share our bounty.

[BDWW]

Paid $7 dollars on envelopes postage to mail amended tax returns in, because the budget act reauthorized some expired deductions after I had already filed. Felt weird to be physically mailing them because I've filed electronically for a decade or so.

[Dollar Slice]

Why did they send you a check at all?  I was instructed to have it sent directly to the next institution without acting as a middle man so there is no possibility it gets counted as a distribution.  I also thought there was a time frame from the closing of the initial account that the money had to be in the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  I would get it into vanguard asap.

No idea, but I've done two rollovers with different companies, and both times they sent me the check even though I sent them the letter that Vanguard gives you with instructions to mail the check directly to them. I even manually highlighted that part of the letter. The check is made out to Vanguard FBO (for benefit of) [Dollar Slice], though, so I'm not too worried about counting it as a distribution.

I think you have 60 days to get it into the new account, otherwise it will count as a distribution.  Should be plenty of time, but I would have anxiety until I got it into my IRA successfully.

I ended up sending it priority mail and certified. (Decided on largely because there was a huge line and I couldn't find a Priority Mail Express envelope...)  $15 postage on top of the $50 withdrawal fees to mail a damn check. But it will save me money in the long run since they charged quarterly fees.

[gaja]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

[LeRainDrop]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

Haha, you've probably hit the mark!  People think I'm crazy when I bring one carry-on-size suitcase/duffel bag and one large purse bag for my trips to foreign countries lasting 4-6 weeks.  I feel like I'm probably bringing a little more than I even need, yet people are like, "Is THAT all you packed???"  Take heart that when she gets there, she won't be one of the kids struggling to lug around a bunch of unnecessary luggage.  Like the time I was in Italy with a friend who brought a full-size suitcase, and this one town kept switching which platform our train would be on.  She had to haul that suitcase up and down a bunch of stairs at least 5 or 6 times!

[jlcnuke]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

Passport, hygeine supplies (toothpaste etc etc), maybe a camera?

Honestly, most people grossly over pack though. They'll bring 4 pairs of shoes and 3 outfits per day and their entire bathroom plus half the electronics they own. If common sense says everything needed is packed, it probably is.

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk

[Freckles]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

11? Nine days? ACROSS the WORLD? How are you not freaking out? And you say she's your oldest, so you can't just be inured by now from older children having left you. I can't bear it; how are you so strong and brave?

[Hirondelle]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

I remember our 5 day Rome trip at the end of high school. I was the only (!!!) person that brought only carry on luggage. Some of the girls struggled to stay within the 23 KG limit. I remember one of the girls calling her mom to tell how she was soooo glad she brought 2 outfits/day and 5 pairs of shoes cause she could wear sth else for day and nighttime.

Guess she'll be fainting when I tell her I needed <10 kg for an 11 month trip.

[BTDretire]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

11? Nine days? ACROSS the WORLD? How are you not freaking out? And you say she's your oldest, so you can't just be inured by now from older children having left you. I can't bear it; how are you so strong and brave?

I work on a Marina with a dock my customer stand on a dock over the water, it is very common for mom's or pops to be screaming at their kids to "stay away from the water or "stand right here!".
 One day I had a young mother with a boy about 4yrs old, she let him walk up and down the dock, look into the water, about a 5 ft drop, without a word. I complimented her on letting her son explore, and added many mothers
are a little crazy when their kid is by the water. She responded "I'm from Colorado, we're a bit more laid back." :-)

[Bracken_Joy]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

11? Nine days? ACROSS the WORLD? How are you not freaking out? And you say she's your oldest, so you can't just be inured by now from older children having left you. I can't bear it; how are you so strong and brave?

I work on a Marina with a dock my customer stand on a dock over the water, it is very common for mom's or pops to be screaming at their kids to "stay away from the water or "stand right here!".
 One day I had a young mother with a boy about 4yrs old, she let him walk up and down the dock, look into the water, about a 5 ft drop, without a word. I complimented her on letting her son explore, and added many mothers
are a little crazy when their kid is by the water. She responded "I'm from Colorado, we're a bit more laid back." :-)

She isn't lying. Have you driven there? I thought I was pretty steady about stuff, since I'm from rural-ish Oregon, and I've driven on my fair share of dirt and gravel mountain roads edged by a straight drop off. But dude. Dude. Colorado. We drove there during a storm once? The river was just RIGHT on the tiiiiiny white stripe, on this narrow ass road, with NO FUCKING GUARD RAIL AT ALL. Just churning river lapping on the road, no shoulder or barrier to speak of.

So I concluded, they're batshit insane there, and it's beautiful as hell, and it's probably the only other place I'd consider living long term other than PNW or N Cali.

[gaja]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

11? Nine days? ACROSS the WORLD? How are you not freaking out? And you say she's your oldest, so you can't just be inured by now from older children having left you. I can't bear it; how are you so strong and brave?

Oh, I’m absolutely freaking out, but I try to do it inside my head so it doesn’t hamper the kid. She is incredibly strong willed and independent, and it is so cool watching her grow up. She struggles with adapting to kids her own age in the normal school, and these types of activities allow her to blossom. Currently she is in Germany changing planes, and I have spent the last few hours driving around in the neighborhood, trying not to call to check whether she has found the gate, etc. She isn’t alone, there is a youth leader escorting her. But that doesn’t make it much easier, since he is a stranger, apeaking a language I’m not at all fluent in.

We might be viewed as rather laid back (some might say irresponsible) parents, but DH and I believe in treating everyone as human beings, and in raising capable adults. Sometimes it is very hard, like what we are doing now, or when he have to find good arguments rather than just saying “do what you are told”. Other times it is much easier, like when the kids were able to dress themselves, pack their school lunches, and walk alone to school, several years before their peers. Of course there has to be a balance, they are kids, and we are responsible for taking care of them. We are also very strict about polite behavior, and treating others well. But they do have a say in how their life should be, so it they want to risk breaking a leg by falling down from a tall tree, or falling into the ocean, they should be allowed to do so. Broken legs and wet clothes are fixable.

Also, we are Norwegian. Kids are learning to handle knives and axes in kindergarten here. Wrapping kids in cotton isn’t acceptable behavior.

[Dollar Slice]

She isn't lying. Have you driven there? I thought I was pretty steady about stuff, since I'm from rural-ish Oregon, and I've driven on my fair share of dirt and gravel mountain roads edged by a straight drop off. But dude. Dude. Colorado. We drove there during a storm once? The river was just RIGHT on the tiiiiiny white stripe, on this narrow ass road, with NO FUCKING GUARD RAIL AT ALL.

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

[yuka]

She isn't lying. Have you driven there? I thought I was pretty steady about stuff, since I'm from rural-ish Oregon, and I've driven on my fair share of dirt and gravel mountain roads edged by a straight drop off. But dude. Dude. Colorado. We drove there during a storm once? The river was just RIGHT on the tiiiiiny white stripe, on this narrow ass road, with NO FUCKING GUARD RAIL AT ALL.

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

[Dollar Slice]

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

I've been on that one, too! That's an amazing area... We saw lots of mountain goats but no bears.

[Bracken_Joy]

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

I've been on that one, too! That's an amazing area... We saw lots of mountain goats but no bears.

I've totally been on both of those! Haha, it's funny how many scary roads I've been on, for all that I'm not a big fan of heights or cars ;) But I am a fan of nature, and that apparently overrides all else...

Still, those roads are mild compared to the road to Hana on Maui. And that's mild compared to Baja. And I've been reassured that's very mild compared to many places in South America and China in particular.

So uh... guess I'm glad we have 2 lanes sometimes and occasional maintenance =)

[markbike528CBX]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world...... Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?
......

Oh, I’m absolutely freaking out, but I try to do it inside my head ......

Also, we are Norwegian. Kids are learning to handle knives and axes in kindergarten here. Wrapping kids in cotton isn’t acceptable behavior.

As an step grandparent, this is the most inspiring thing about parenting I've seen in a while. 

I've heard of and seen some aweful "helicopter parents". So glad that there is some counterbalance.

and yes most people overpack -self included.

[Zaga]

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

I've been on that one, too! That's an amazing area... We saw lots of mountain goats but no bears.

I've totally been on both of those! Haha, it's funny how many scary roads I've been on, for all that I'm not a big fan of heights or cars ;) But I am a fan of nature, and that apparently overrides all else...

Still, those roads are mild compared to the road to Hana on Maui. And that's mild compared to Baja. And I've been reassured that's very mild compared to many places in South America and China in particular.

So uh... guess I'm glad we have 2 lanes sometimes and occasional maintenance =)

When I was 13 my family visited Colombia, and driving between the coast and Bogota there was this road *shudder*.  It was a saddle between two mountains, with a sheer drop off to both sides, with no guardrail.  Totally terrifying!

[markbike528CBX]

She isn't lying. Have you driven there? I thought I was pretty steady about stuff, since I'm from rural-ish Oregon, and I've driven on my fair share of dirt and gravel mountain roads edged by a straight drop off. But dude. Dude. Colorado. We drove there during a storm once? The river was just RIGHT on the tiiiiiny white stripe, on this narrow ass road, with NO FUCKING GUARD RAIL AT ALL.

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

While not very scary, but awfully distracting ( Ooooooh look at the whales, sea otters etc etc), the road from the guard shack to Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant , 6 miles or so, is a beautiful look at undeveloped California coastline.

[ditheca]

We might be viewed as rather laid back (some might say irresponsible) parents, but DH and I believe in treating everyone as human beings, and in raising capable adults. Sometimes it is very hard, like what we are doing now, or when he have to find good arguments rather than just saying “do what you are told”.

We just got a call from the principal.  Our seven-year-old daughter organized a rebellion in her gym class because the teacher wanted them to play kickball and she thought it was a dumb game.

I had to try to tactfully explain that our household values critical thinking over blind obedience. We want the children to question the rationale behind our decisions. When they make a particular good rebuttal, we find a good compromise rather than sticking with the original plan.

Seems like first grade teachers aren't used to needing to justify themselves. ^_^

[Roadrunner53]

If you were trying to teach a class of 25 kids and one kid started acting up and refusing to go with the flow. It is disruptive, not a rebuttal. They are in school to learn and the teacher doesn't have time to please one kid because she/he is having a hissy fit. I see no problem with the kid asking if they can do something else but the teacher isn't there as a recess attendant. They have a specific reason they are teaching a certain thing. Kids need to learn to obey authority.

My Father told me when he went to Catholic school he did something wrong and the teacher paddled him. He went home and told his parents and his Father paddled him again for not obeying the nun. This was in the 1930's.

Not that I agree with paddling kids in school. My point is kids are in school to learn, not to change the teachers agenda. Rebuttal is fine at home but teachers are too busy to please one kid that doesn't happen to like kickball. I hated everything about gym in my day and if it was up to me I just wouldn't have gone at all. I don't think that would have worked for me!

[shelivesthedream]

There's a difference between a rebellion and a rebuttal, and between critical thinking and throwing a hissy fit. I think good parenting teaches children how to approach interpersonal conflict productively. For example, sitting down in the middle of the playing field with your arms crossed refusing to move because you think PE is stupid is not critical thinking. Approaching the teacher privately and asking if you could do X next time instead of Y because ABC is much more helpful. It's all about balance and teaching children not just to question things but HOW to question them.

[Basenji]

Finally, finally convinced DH that we could get rid of a large stack of coffee-table-style books we never look at and which were all gifts. I'm all giddy, bag them up, take heavy stack to our library for their upcoming fund-raising booksale. Sign on door: "We are temporarily not accepting book donations in anticipation of the booksale. We will resume accepting donations on April 23."

Stands in front of library reading sign. Sighs. Takes books back home. I must hide the books in case DH sees them and reconsiders letting go. Or maybe I'll just put them out front in a box and announce on Next Door. They are too large to fit in the Little Free Library boxes around the neighborhood. I suppose I could try to sell them, but wow, so much time spent on things I never wanted in the first place.

[Bracken_Joy]

Finally, finally convinced DH that we could get rid of a large stack of coffee-table-style books we never look at and which were all gifts. I'm all giddy, bag them up, take heavy stack to our library for their upcoming fund-raising booksale. Sign on door: "We are temporarily not accepting book donations in anticipation of the booksale. We will resume accepting donations on April 23."

Stands in front of library reading sign. Sighs. Takes books back home. I must hide the books in case DH sees them and reconsiders letting go. Or maybe I'll just put them out front in a box and announce on Next Door. They are too large to fit in the Little Free Library boxes around the neighborhood. I suppose I could try to sell them, but wow, so much time spent on things I never wanted in the first place.

Buy Nothing Project? Either that or you can knock on the door of someone who has a free little library, and they can keep the overflow in their house?

[Basenji]

Buy Nothing Project? Either that or you can knock on the door of someone who has a free little library, and they can keep the overflow in their house?

Thanks, yeah, lots of solutions at hand. I was just laughing at how much time I am expending on getting rid of something and thought of this thread. I mean I could just toss the books in the recyling bin, but that's not optimal. It's evidence that I have way too much time as a FIRE person. Mustachian people problem.

[Bracken_Joy]

Buy Nothing Project? Either that or you can knock on the door of someone who has a free little library, and they can keep the overflow in their house?

Thanks, yeah, lots of solutions at hand. I was just laughing at how much time I am expending on getting rid of something and thought of this thread. I mean I could just toss the books in the recyling bin, but that's not optimal. It's evidence that I have way too much time as a FIRE person. Mustachian people problem.

Haha, sorry, I did the cardinal sin of this thread and tried to SOLVE something instead of chuckling and moving on!

[Roadrunner53]

Take them to Goodwill and donate them! Get them out of sight. Charity is charity whether the library or Goodwill. I just had the Vietnam Vets do a giant pick up here. 13 giant garbage bags of household stuff and clothes. Bagged, tagged and out the door! I just donated a boatload of books to a small culinary school they were all culinary and other cookbooks. They were thrilled...me too to get rid of them!

[Dicey]

Finally, finally convinced DH that we could get rid of a large stack of coffee-table-style books we never look at and which were all gifts. I'm all giddy, bag them up, take heavy stack to our library for their upcoming fund-raising booksale. Sign on door: "We are temporarily not accepting book donations in anticipation of the booksale. We will resume accepting donations on April 23."

Stands in front of library reading sign. Sighs. Takes books back home. I must hide the books in case DH sees them and reconsiders letting go. Or maybe I'll just put them out front in a box and announce on Next Door. They are too large to fit in the Little Free Library boxes around the neighborhood. I suppose I could try to sell them, but wow, so much time spent on things I never wanted in the first place.

If you volunteered at the library, they'd have taken your books anyway. Also, you get first pick of the books that are going into the sale. Not that I speak from experience or anything. I've been doing this so long, I have the keys to the storage shed and the cashbox. Hint: They can always, always use more help setting up/taking down the book sales. In my group, if you help with take down, you can have anything you want, free of charge. But you have to get there early and choose quickly, because we move fast on takedown morning.

Either that or you can knock on the door of someone who has a free little library, and they can keep the overflow in their house?

Key word: little. Coffee table books usually don't fit.

Finally, @Basenji, bless you for reading the sign and not dumping your books beneath it. Library volunteers everywhere thank you and wish there were more like you.

P.S. Yesterday, we packed up and picked up a truckload of books from a friend who's clearing out his parents house. I was thinking that sale set-up started today, so we could drop them off directly. Erp, set-up is next week. We could still drop them off, but that's a wasted trip across town. Sigh, we'll just leave the boxes in the truck (it has a shell) until next week. Fortunately,  DH walks to work, so the truck can just sit, low-riding in the driveway, mocking me for being an idiot.

[Basenji]

If you volunteered at the library, they'd have taken your books anyway. Also, you get first pick of the books that are going into the sale. Not that I speak from experience or anything. I've been doing this so long, I have the keys to the storage shed and the cashbox.

Volunteering at the library is on my list of activities to try out. Thanks for the reminder.

[Basenji]

I just donated a boatload of books to a small culinary school they were all culinary and other cookbooks.

That's a good idea (donating specific-subject books to a school), but you will pry my cookbooks from my cold, dead (covered in some sticky sauce) hands. ; )

[living small]

I just donated a boatload of books to a small culinary school they were all culinary and other cookbooks.

That's a good idea (donating specific-subject books to a school), but you will pry my cookbooks from my cold, dead (covered in some sticky sauce) hands. ; )

Cookbooks are my life. Agreed wholeheartedly on this one!

[ditheca]

There's a difference between a rebellion and a rebuttal, and between critical thinking and throwing a hissy fit. I think good parenting teaches children how to approach interpersonal conflict productively. For example, sitting down in the middle of the playing field with your arms crossed refusing to move because you think PE is stupid is not critical thinking.

Agree 100%. But my daughter is seven years old and we can't teach her everything at once! Her big brother is much better about avoiding conflict.

Still, we've intentionally coached him on standing up to authority.  He has a serious invisible (physical) disability that makes it dangerous for him to be treated like a normal kid.  Substitute teachers can be a real threat to his well being, and we've had to teach him how to stand up for himself in productive and non-threatening ways.

[Linea_Norway]

I just donated a boatload of books to a small culinary school they were all culinary and other cookbooks.

That's a good idea (donating specific-subject books to a school), but you will pry my cookbooks from my cold, dead (covered in some sticky sauce) hands. ; )

Cookbooks are my life. Agreed wholeheartedly on this one!

I donated a bunch of Dutch cookbooks to a cook at work who speaks Dutch and Norwegian. He was delighted to get cookbooks in his other language.

[shelivesthedream]

There's a difference between a rebellion and a rebuttal, and between critical thinking and throwing a hissy fit. I think good parenting teaches children how to approach interpersonal conflict productively. For example, sitting down in the middle of the playing field with your arms crossed refusing to move because you think PE is stupid is not critical thinking.

Agree 100%. But my daughter is seven years old and we can't teach her everything at once! Her big brother is much better about avoiding conflict.

Still, we've intentionally coached him on standing up to authority.  He has a serious invisible (physical) disability that makes it dangerous for him to be treated like a normal kid.  Substitute teachers can be a real threat to his well being, and we've had to teach him how to stand up for himself in productive and non-threatening ways.

I wasn't intending to criticise - just inserting a bit of balance between you and Roadrunner53 because we obviously didn't have the full story from either of you, and I didn't think either of you wanted to start a fight over semantics! :)

[Dollar Slice]

401(k) rollover showed up in my IRA today. Of COURSE the sale processed on a down day and the money showed up in my account on an up day... *roll eyes* I want to believe in that whole "time in the market" thing, but it's sure tempting with the current market gyrations to wait and see if tomorrow is a down day again... :-/  If I buy today this rollover will end up costing me 2% of the rollover balance. Not a huge deal in the long run, but annoying on a MPP level.

[Anon in Alaska]

She isn't lying. Have you driven there? I thought I was pretty steady about stuff, since I'm from rural-ish Oregon, and I've driven on my fair share of dirt and gravel mountain roads edged by a straight drop off. But dude. Dude. Colorado. We drove there during a storm once? The river was just RIGHT on the tiiiiiny white stripe, on this narrow ass road, with NO FUCKING GUARD RAIL AT ALL.

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

And if you like those then you need to drive the Dalton Highway. Here's the New York Times making it sound bad https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/08/travel/alaska-dalton-highway.html

and here's how pretty it is in parts
https://www.google.com/search?as_st=y&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=mnTMWq_YCsWW0wK0mbfoCA&q=atigun+pass&oq=atigun+pass&gs_l=psy-ab.3..0l3j0i24k1l4.13150.15262.0.15500.7.7.0.0.0.0.158.1046.0j7.7.0....0...1c..64.psy-ab..0.7.1040...0i7i30k1j0i13k1.0.NJiKcO0bCEs

[LennStar]

The oldest daughter (11) is leaving tomorrow for a 9 day travel to a youth camp across the world. She has packed her national costume, traditional food from our country, and more than enough clothes. Still, there is plenty of room in her little carry on suitcase. I'm getting increasingly nervous, considering how much people normally pack for these types of journeys. Have we misunderstood something? Is there anything imporant she should pack that we are missing? Or do "normal" people for some reason carry a lot of unnecessary junk?

Passport, hygeine supplies (toothpaste etc etc), maybe a camera?

Honestly, most people grossly over pack though. They'll bring 4 pairs of shoes and 3 outfits per day and their entire bathroom plus half the electronics they own. If common sense says everything needed is packed, it probably is.

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk

http://www.itchyfeetcomic.com/2014/02/cargo-reduction.html#.Wsx2439CSUk

[Aegishjalmur]

Haha, yeah. I drove through the Rocky Mountain National Park, on what is supposed to be one of the highest roads in the continental US (maybe the highest?). I was driving (therefore on the side close to the center of the road) and paying very close attention, so I didn't appreciate the craziness of the road as much, but my friends were sitting on the right side of the car, where the steep drop-off was, and they were barely holding it together, sweating and clinging to the door handles... (I don't have any pics since I was driving, but see here for an example)

For another exciting road, I recommend Going to the Sun Road in Montana. Intensely beautiful, a little scary at times, and with a chance of bears and mountain goats

I've been on that one, too! That's an amazing area... We saw lots of mountain goats but no bears.

Independence Pass here in Colorado- closed for over half the year due to weather. One side isn't bad but the other side is a 2 lane road, no guardrails that in spots is single car width wide with blind corners and rock walls that come up to the side of the road and droppoffs on the other side.

After living in CO for over a decade and driving through the mountains, I find driving most places very relaxing in comparison.

Going to the Sun road was neat. No goats that I saw but we had the idiots hanging out the car window to get a photo of the grizzly cub on the other side of the road.

[Erma]

I bought my cats chicken hearts because they are cheap, but my cats get so excited that there is now a real risk in getting injured (and having additional doctor bills) by feeding them.

[BDWW]

I bought my cats chicken hearts because they are cheap, but my cats get so excited that there is now a real risk in getting injured (and having additional doctor bills) by feeding them.

I stopped buying my dogs pig ears, because it seemed to stress them out too much. One especially would run at full speed with it into the corner of the yard, and look around nervously with his back to the fence corner, and then move and hide somewhere else when anyone would look at him.  Think gollum with his precious.

[Aegishjalmur]

MPP- DW and I are 'arguing' about now that we are FIREd what day of the week we are perpetually on. I say Sunday because I didn't go to work yesterday or today. DW says Saturday as we are not dreading returning to work tomorrow. 😋

[Dollar Slice]

MPP- DW and I are 'arguing' about now that we are FIREd what day of the week we are perpetually on. I say Sunday because I didn't go to work yesterday or today. DW says Saturday as we are not dreading returning to work tomorrow. 😋

It's obviously the middle of a long weekend... :-)

[Lews Therin]

MPP- DW and I are 'arguing' about now that we are FIREd what day of the week we are perpetually on. I say Sunday because I didn't go to work yesterday or today. DW says Saturday as we are not dreading returning to work tomorrow. 😋

It's obviously the middle of a long weekend... :-)

Wednesday. Of a vacation week.

[solon]

MPP- DW and I are 'arguing' about now that we are FIREd what day of the week we are perpetually on. I say Sunday because I didn't go to work yesterday or today. DW says Saturday as we are not dreading returning to work tomorrow. 😋

Sigh. I can't wait.

[Trifle]

MPP- DW and I are 'arguing' about now that we are FIREd what day of the week we are perpetually on. I say Sunday because I didn't go to work yesterday or today. DW says Saturday as we are not dreading returning to work tomorrow. 😋

I think this is the best MPP yet!!

[Goldielocks]

Also, we are Norwegian. Kids are learning to handle knives and axes in kindergarten here. Wrapping kids in cotton isn’t acceptable behavior.

Ha!  You reminded me of a story..
I was asked to present a educational session on "simple tools" to a group of 6 and 7 year olds.

Thinks like levers, wedges, pullies, wheel, hammers, etc.

I brought a wheelbarrow, a pulley, a hammer and an axe to demonstrate what simple machines / tools are and how they multiply your effectiveness.

I think some of the moms almost fainted when I let the young girls handle the axe.  I mean -- what on earth were they going to do with it, with me right there?  We weren't even chopping, just picking it up and talking about it.

[Loren Ver]

Also, we are Norwegian. Kids are learning to handle knives and axes in kindergarten here. Wrapping kids in cotton isn’t acceptable behavior.

Ha!  You reminded me of a story..
I was asked to present a educational session on "simple tools" to a group of 6 and 7 year olds.

Thinks like levers, wedges, pullies, wheel, hammers, etc.

I brought a wheelbarrow, a pulley, a hammer and an axe to demonstrate what simple machines / tools are and how they multiply your effectiveness.

I think some of the moms almost fainted when I let the young girls handle the axe.  I mean -- what on earth were they going to do with it, with me right there?  We weren't even chopping, just picking it up and talking about it.

Oh no!  A WEDGE!  AHHHH!!!