Author Topic: Overheard at Work 2  (Read 1112813 times)

Channel-Z

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #50 on: December 27, 2018, 05:07:18 PM »
The Fortran and hoarding references remind me of the Fortran class I took in college in 1996. The professor was a hoarder whose office was filled to the ceiling with stacks of papers and binders. He carved a small path from the door to the desk. Anyone visiting during office hours had to stand next to the seven-foot stacks of papers. By the way, it turns out while I'm really good at following instructions, I'm awful at writing instructions for a computer.

At work, the walls, which have been gray or off-white for a long time, are now being painted random colors. Some are now yellow, some are green, some are various shades of blue and red. One conference room is red and black, and it looks like the Twin Peaks dream sequences. It's as if the bosses looked at a color wheel and said "We'll take one of each."

TomTX

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #51 on: December 27, 2018, 05:41:26 PM »
TomTX beat me to it, still wish it was more.  I know some gov workers can do a lot more, never really looked into why as I never expect to be one.

So, while most employer plans (401k, 403b, SIMPLE IRA, etc) "count" against the same per-person $19k limit, the 457 plan has its own separate $19k limit. Only government entities and nonprofits can offer the 457. Some of them will offer both types of plan, effectively allowing $38k in contributions.

The flip side is that salaries tend to be notably lower than private sector, so it's more difficult to take advantage of the extra space.

In some cases you can do even more.  I get a 403b and 457 that I can contribute to unmatched, and a 401a that my employer automatically deducts 5% of my pay and deposits a 2 for 1 match of 10% into, but I cannot increase or decrease the 401a contributions, nor roll any other funds into it.  So 38k plus 5% of my pay.

Yes, for me it's ~10% of nominal salary going into the mandatory pension (matched, but only if I qualify for the pension and draw it, not if liquidated) - plus $38k of capacity between 401k and 457, unmatched.

Luckystepho

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #52 on: December 28, 2018, 12:27:22 AM »
A colleague is about to have some pretty major work done on her home... walls knocked through to make all the downstairs rooms open plan, with folding doors. This will cost several thousand, particularly as some of the walls are load-bearing so will need joists (although a family member can do some of the work).

The kicker- she lives in social housing... it's not her house and she'll never own it...

Damn.   If she's unlucky she could be paying to put it back in the original condition, too.

That, and the housing authority might decide that if she has money for expensive renovations, maybe she shouldn't be getting social housing at all.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing... she did get permission to do the work but insists she 'needs' a large three bedroom house with a huge garden for just her and her husband...

Gail2000

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #53 on: December 28, 2018, 02:47:13 AM »
I work with a lady who picks up coffee from Starbucks everyday. She has more than 10k on her credit card as she recently inherited that amount and paid her credit card with it. I am not saying stoping the Starbucks habit would make the differennce but she might come in happier. I’m scratching my head.

fell-like-rain

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #54 on: December 28, 2018, 09:07:25 AM »
Was talking to one of my coworkers and found out his commute is more than an hour and a half (one way)! I said that sounds awful, and he replied that it wasn't so bad, because he spends most of it on the train and can "get some extra work done" (in addition to the 8-9 hours he spends in the office). Someone's institutionalized...

talltexan

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #55 on: December 28, 2018, 09:29:58 AM »
Train commute is not as bad as a driving commute.

Just Joe

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #56 on: December 28, 2018, 09:38:38 AM »
I work with a lady who picks up coffee from Starbucks everyday. She has more than 10k on her credit card as she recently inherited that amount and paid her credit card with it. I am not saying stoping the Starbucks habit would make the differennce but she might come in happier. I’m scratching my head.

Get back with us on a year or so and tell us if she is right back in debt.

LPG

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #57 on: December 28, 2018, 10:03:05 AM »
textbooks from the 80s teaching people to code in FORTRAN

Hey, I resemble that remark! I've been coding in FORTRAN at my current job since 2010. Every time we get new management, they say "Oh, we're going to rewrite that system in <trendy language of the day>". Then, after some discussion, they realize that no, they're not rewriting 20-million odd lines of FORTRAN anytime soon.

Yeah, fair enough. FORTRAN is a useful skill in some contexts. All depends on the needs of the job. I actually learned FORTRAN in 2009, despite it being a rarely used skill at that point, because I needed to add code to a certain FORTRAN-based program to finish grad school. I make the remark because I'm the only person in this company who does any coding, and I sure haven't touched FORTRAN since 2009. It's a pretty useless skill around here, and my co-workers still wanted to hold onto that book. For God knows what weird reason.

shadowmoss

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #58 on: December 28, 2018, 10:06:32 AM »
I'm trying to make myself get rid of some PERL and general programming books I acquired around 2007.  I don't think donating them will work.  I need to just toss them.  I don't program anymore as I'm retired.

Dave1442397

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #59 on: December 28, 2018, 02:23:53 PM »
textbooks from the 80s teaching people to code in FORTRAN

Hey, I resemble that remark! I've been coding in FORTRAN at my current job since 2010. Every time we get new management, they say "Oh, we're going to rewrite that system in <trendy language of the day>". Then, after some discussion, they realize that no, they're not rewriting 20-million odd lines of FORTRAN anytime soon.

Yeah, fair enough. FORTRAN is a useful skill in some contexts. All depends on the needs of the job. I actually learned FORTRAN in 2009, despite it being a rarely used skill at that point, because I needed to add code to a certain FORTRAN-based program to finish grad school. I make the remark because I'm the only person in this company who does any coding, and I sure haven't touched FORTRAN since 2009. It's a pretty useless skill around here, and my co-workers still wanted to hold onto that book. For God knows what weird reason.

Yeah, the books are totally unnecessary at this point. There are multiple websites with full manuals, coding samples, and Q&A about various algorithms.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #60 on: December 29, 2018, 10:38:01 PM »
Train commute is not as bad as a driving commute.

I agree but not sure on the ratio.  Would you rather have a 1 hour train commute or 30 minute drive?

faithless

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #61 on: December 30, 2018, 03:27:15 AM »
Train commute is not as bad as a driving commute.

I agree but not sure on the ratio.  Would you rather have a 1 hour train commute or 30 minute drive?

I'd love a train commute!

I've currently got the option of:

- an early start and a 40 min stressful inner city drive, then a 20 min walk (from where there's free parking if you're early enough, otherwise similar drive but £12/day parking - lol, nope, that's an hour's wages after tax)
Pros: being in your own car is nice, with no other people! Cons: v early start required, and I found the inner city drive and hoping for parking really quite stressful, I noticed I was wound up when arriving at work.

- a 40 min bus ride then a 20 min walk across town, bus is more expensive than driving and is unpleasant, the town walk is not very nice. A slightly more expensive option would be to get a connecting bus for a 10 minutes ride e.g. if raining heavily, but I've not done this.
I started off doing this option, but the buses on this route are old and crappy, infrequent and sometimes just don't turn up on the way home for a hour or two.
I thought this would be a nice relaxing option, as it doesn't require anything from me, but it's actually a horrible clunky journey that makes me feel sick, with a crap walk at the other end. I gave up on this after it took me 2.5 hours to get home one day when there was nothing wrong, just the buses being crap. Can't tolerate the uncertainty of when I'm going to get home.

- Current choice is an easy 15 min drive (5 mins of which is on a motorway), to a Park and Ride, then a nice modern, frequent P&R bus to right outside my office that's half an hour. Less than half the price of the bus.


They're supposed to be reopening/building a train line which would be amazing - a 15 min stroll from my house, 15 min ride, then a 10 minute walk, but frustratingly they're not getting this done quickly/at all.

Fortunately I can now work from home 2 days per week on average, which makes the commute manageable!

meghan88

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #62 on: December 30, 2018, 03:48:43 PM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html

MissNancyPryor

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #63 on: December 30, 2018, 07:59:04 PM »
ptf (there will be a couple pages of this new thread devoted to ptf!)

SwordGuy

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #64 on: December 30, 2018, 10:16:17 PM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html


Wow.   Simply wow.


The first request would have been met with a "No!"


If there was a second request, it would have been "I'll be posting screen shots of this conversation at work as a gift to all our colleagues.   I won't be removing the names from the screen shots.  Have a Merry Christmas!"



Inaya

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #65 on: December 30, 2018, 11:31:53 PM »
Was talking to one of my coworkers and found out his commute is more than an hour and a half (one way)! I said that sounds awful, and he replied that it wasn't so bad, because he spends most of it on the train and can "get some extra work done" (in addition to the 8-9 hours he spends in the office). Someone's institutionalized...


My train-commuter bus commute is 2h one-way . It's not so bad, since I'm not the one driving. Bus has WiFi, so I can get some work or homework done. Or just catch up on sleep. When I first started at this job, I had to do it every weekday, and it was awful. Now I work from home at least 2 days a week, and it's much more manageable.

AnnaGrowsAMustache

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #66 on: December 31, 2018, 01:12:41 AM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html

There are some goddamn crazy people around. I don't even know what connections would have to be loose in the upstairs in order to think that way.

Imma

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #67 on: December 31, 2018, 01:47:05 AM »
Hey, I resemble that remark! I've been coding in FORTRAN at my current job since 2010. Every time we get new management, they say "Oh, we're going to rewrite that system in <trendy language of the day>". Then, after some discussion, they realize that no, they're not rewriting 20-million odd lines of FORTRAN anytime soon.

Perhaps I should learn FORTRAN now that I'm considering FIREing.  Having enough knowlege to charge a high consultancy fee could be a good way to put a little gold in my pocket in the future? 

FORTRAN-FIRE?

(also, PTF).

Actually, I know a guy who did exactly that. He was the last guy on the team that knew the ancient computer system well enough to do maintenance and fix problems. He retired and they now hire him back as a consultant whenever they have issues (for $$$, I assume). They were going to replace the system 10 years ago, which is why they never bothered to train someone else, but the new system never happened.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #68 on: December 31, 2018, 01:55:30 AM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html


Wow.   Simply wow.


The first request would have been met with a "No!"


If there was a second request, it would have been "I'll be posting screen shots of this conversation at work as a gift to all our colleagues.   I won't be removing the names from the screen shots.  Have a Merry Christmas!"

New phone who dis?

I prefer to read the actual reddit post rather than a yahoo “article” summarizing the images and top comments

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChoosingBeggars/comments/a6irjn/honestly_didnt_believe_people_like_this_actually/?st=JQC38YXS&sh=eeb0e2bb


Ps it turned out to be fake but was hilarious nonetheless
« Last Edit: December 31, 2018, 02:40:19 AM by dragoncar »

meghan88

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #69 on: December 31, 2018, 02:28:19 PM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html


Wow.   Simply wow.


The first request would have been met with a "No!"


If there was a second request, it would have been "I'll be posting screen shots of this conversation at work as a gift to all our colleagues.   I won't be removing the names from the screen shots.  Have a Merry Christmas!"

New phone who dis?

I prefer to read the actual reddit post rather than a yahoo “article” summarizing the images and top comments

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChoosingBeggars/comments/a6irjn/honestly_didnt_believe_people_like_this_actually/?st=JQC38YXS&sh=eeb0e2bb


Ps it turned out to be fake but was hilarious nonetheless

Ahaha ... sucked into a yahoo post ... but I am happy to have amused you.  Dragoncar - I am missing your old signature line with the porn on your blender quote.  I should've bookmarked it.

LPG

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #70 on: December 31, 2018, 02:31:31 PM »
Guess this is as good a place as any to post this - office greed in the form of a not-so-secret Santa recipient:

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/naughty-nice-woman-goes-viral-asking-secret-santa-colleague-buy-kids-70-tablet-135432482.html


Wow.   Simply wow.


The first request would have been met with a "No!"


If there was a second request, it would have been "I'll be posting screen shots of this conversation at work as a gift to all our colleagues.   I won't be removing the names from the screen shots.  Have a Merry Christmas!"

New phone who dis?

I prefer to read the actual reddit post rather than a yahoo “article” summarizing the images and top comments

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChoosingBeggars/comments/a6irjn/honestly_didnt_believe_people_like_this_actually/?st=JQC38YXS&sh=eeb0e2bb


Ps it turned out to be fake but was hilarious nonetheless

Wow, I'm extremely glad to see you say it was fake. When I read through that story and thought it was true...My desire to be a human temporarily plummeted.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #71 on: December 31, 2018, 10:58:34 PM »

Wow, I'm extremely glad to see you say it was fake. When I read through that story and thought it was true...My desire to be a human temporarily plummeted.

Well some reddit “investigators” turned up another post from the OP indicating he was still in school and looking for a job then he deleted his account so... probably fake but unfortunately believable.


Ahaha ... sucked into a yahoo post ... but I am happy to have amused you.  Dragoncar - I am missing your old signature line with the porn on your blender quote.  I should've bookmarked it.

Im really trying to remember which sig you are referring to.  Porn on a blender?  Sounds like something I’d say.

ysette9

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #72 on: December 31, 2018, 11:40:10 PM »
Something about your toaster getting hacked because you tried to watch porn on your blender. Right?

Piglet

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #73 on: January 01, 2019, 03:26:35 AM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #74 on: January 01, 2019, 04:06:21 AM »
Something about your toaster getting hacked because you tried to watch porn on your blender. Right?

I don’t think it was in my sig.  maybe this post from another thread that we shall never speak of again: https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/antimustachian-wall-of-shame-and-comedy/overheard-at-work/msg1314732/#msg1314732

Adventine

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #75 on: January 01, 2019, 05:18:59 AM »
Posting to follow, as the original Overheard at Work thread was (is) one of my favorites.

KodeBlue

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #76 on: January 01, 2019, 07:53:28 AM »
We have free coffee at work. Every break room has a coffee maker that the hospital provides and keeps stocked with different types of coffee, creamer sugar etc.
Recently an outside company put a little "market" where you create an account and pay by scanning your finger print. Coffee is is $1.50 a cup. So I see all my coworkers lining up to buy this coffee and like an idiot I ask them why they're paying for coffee when it's supplied free. Answer: "because it's only a $1.50!".

Why drink coffee for free when you can pay "only" a $1.50 for it, right?

Just Joe

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #77 on: January 01, 2019, 01:30:25 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

So self imposed poverty... That's fun.

People's sense of expensive can be so odd. Sometimes the luxury items are a must at all costs. Sometimes $10 is too much without luxury items.

I remember a coworker who came to me (I'm a shadetree mechanic as well as an engineer) about his broken headlight. I said, no sweat. You have an older car that is common. Look here on eBay - there is a good used headlight for ~$10-$15. Nope. He was looking for the 10 cent solution like wrapping the headlight in Saran Wrap or gluing a piece of plexiglass over the headlight. Why? The headlight would not likely stay waterproof, the bulb would burn out frequently (rain water), the beam might not be focused, etc. He wasn't being frugal, he was being cheap.

Piglet

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #78 on: January 01, 2019, 02:40:44 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

So self imposed poverty... That's fun.

People's sense of expensive can be so odd. Sometimes the luxury items are a must at all costs. Sometimes $10 is too much without luxury items.

I remember a coworker who came to me (I'm a shadetree mechanic as well as an engineer) about his broken headlight. I said, no sweat. You have an older car that is common. Look here on eBay - there is a good used headlight for ~$10-$15. Nope. He was looking for the 10 cent solution like wrapping the headlight in Saran Wrap or gluing a piece of plexiglass over the headlight. Why? The headlight would not likely stay waterproof, the bulb would burn out frequently (rain water), the beam might not be focused, etc. He wasn't being frugal, he was being cheap.

"self imposed poverty" - that perfectly describes so many of my past and current coworkers.

Sadly, I know so many other coworkers who suffer from this. Ten years ago, I worked with a woman who had 2 daughters and a borderline abusive husband. DD1 was the child of a former spouse that she brought into the marriage with the borderline abusive husband. DD2 was his child. They lived in a beautiful house on the water in a "prestigious" East Coast town, but her commute to work was 80 miles round trip.

She drove a relatively new BMW 300 something, very nice suits, hair always done, full court press makeup, nails, Tiffany jewelry - even eyelash extensions... EVERYDAY...

Now, I am all for someone taking good care of themselves and wanting to look their best at all times... Right up until she came to my desk and asked me to help figure out how to pay for DD1 to go to college.

DD1 had decided that no matter what it took, she was getting as far away as possible from her step-dad and had her heart set on going to college in California, specifically in San Bernardino. DD1 had figured out if she went to San Bernardino Community College, after 2 years she could transfer to CSUSB, which I thought sounded great... right up until.....

Her mother presented me with several loan documents from different banks and asked me to help her figure out which one DD1 should apply for to get the best terms. After ascertaining that CW had not saved a single dime to send DD1 to college and had no interest in a PLUS loan (don't blame her), I reviewed the loan documents and was astounded to discover that out of state tuition for SBCC cost 4 to 5 times what in state (where CW lived) would cost (This was in 2007, I think..).

I asked her to seriously consider convincing DD1 to go in state, but due to the horrible behavior of the step-dad, DD1 would have none of it. So I then asked CW, is there something you can sell to pay for the first semester? The longer DD1 can put off taking out a loan, the better. CW had also expressed to me that she wasn't sure DD1 would make it through SBCC because DD1 had done poorly in high school, but wanted to give DD1 a chance "away from her step-dad". (CW also confessed she knew her husband had treated DD1 badly, and so wanted to support DD1's wish to go to SBCC).

Anyway, CW (wearing her Tiffany jewelry with salon eyelash extensions, and professionally manicured nails) replied she had nothing she could sell to offset the cost of the first semester. I gently mentioned the BMW, and explained she could sell the BMW and probably get enough $ for at least the first semester at SBCC and see if DD1 could hack it before DD1 had to take out any loans. I mentioned that CW could purchase a small Toyota or Honda for a minimal amount and would actually be a better car for such a long commute.

At this point, CW crossed her legs, locked her arms around her chest, leaned back in the chair away from me and outright refused to part with her BMW. So I advised her which loan her DD1 should take out (at just under 6% interest).

Fast forward a few months, DD1 graduates from highschool and CW buys DD1 a graduation gift: a Louis Vuitton purse ($1,000) and a pair of Uggs... "It's the least I can do and this way she'll fit in at SBCC".

0_o

Fi(re) on the Farm

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #79 on: January 01, 2019, 02:50:53 PM »
PTF, no good stories right now but don't want to miss out on the fun.

Linea_Norway

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #80 on: January 02, 2019, 05:27:47 AM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

Normally I find it very unMustachian when people use paper dishes for daily use. But I do understand it in your case.

We have a cabin without running water and therefore no dishwater. It is indeed time consuming and not so motivating to wash dishes by hand. We do it when we are there, because then we have the time to do so. But I remember a period when we had to do some hard work (digging drainage) all day and I even bought half fabricated food for dinner that could be prepared really fast. If you have a busy day, spending a lot of time on cooking and on dishwashing leaves little time for other things.

Piglet

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #81 on: January 02, 2019, 12:04:59 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

Normally I find it very unMustachian when people use paper dishes for daily use. But I do understand it in your case.

We have a cabin without running water and therefore no dishwater. It is indeed time consuming and not so motivating to wash dishes by hand. We do it when we are there, because then we have the time to do so. But I remember a period when we had to do some hard work (digging drainage) all day and I even bought half fabricated food for dinner that could be prepared really fast. If you have a busy day, spending a lot of time on cooking and on dishwashing leaves little time for other things.

Agreed. However, we had reached a point with the dishwasher that unless we basically washed 99% of the food residue off, the dishwasher wasn't going to get it clean. We ended up several times just running the dishwasher twice to clean one set of dishes. So we were cleaning one set of dirty dishes sometimes 3x just to get them clean.... Complaints to the landlord fell on deaf ears. As far as LL was concerned, dishwasher runs, what's the problem? I guess cleanliness is a judgement call? Et voila, paper plates...

TexasStash

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #82 on: January 02, 2019, 12:13:13 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

So self imposed poverty... That's fun.

People's sense of expensive can be so odd. Sometimes the luxury items are a must at all costs. Sometimes $10 is too much without luxury items.

I remember a coworker who came to me (I'm a shadetree mechanic as well as an engineer) about his broken headlight. I said, no sweat. You have an older car that is common. Look here on eBay - there is a good used headlight for ~$10-$15. Nope. He was looking for the 10 cent solution like wrapping the headlight in Saran Wrap or gluing a piece of plexiglass over the headlight. Why? The headlight would not likely stay waterproof, the bulb would burn out frequently (rain water), the beam might not be focused, etc. He wasn't being frugal, he was being cheap.

"self imposed poverty" - that perfectly describes so many of my past and current coworkers.

Sadly, I know so many other coworkers who suffer from this. Ten years ago, I worked with a woman who had 2 daughters and a borderline abusive husband. DD1 was the child of a former spouse that she brought into the marriage with the borderline abusive husband. DD2 was his child. They lived in a beautiful house on the water in a "prestigious" East Coast town, but her commute to work was 80 miles round trip.

She drove a relatively new BMW 300 something, very nice suits, hair always done, full court press makeup, nails, Tiffany jewelry - even eyelash extensions... EVERYDAY...

Now, I am all for someone taking good care of themselves and wanting to look their best at all times... Right up until she came to my desk and asked me to help figure out how to pay for DD1 to go to college.

DD1 had decided that no matter what it took, she was getting as far away as possible from her step-dad and had her heart set on going to college in California, specifically in San Bernardino. DD1 had figured out if she went to San Bernardino Community College, after 2 years she could transfer to CSUSB, which I thought sounded great... right up until.....

Her mother presented me with several loan documents from different banks and asked me to help her figure out which one DD1 should apply for to get the best terms. After ascertaining that CW had not saved a single dime to send DD1 to college and had no interest in a PLUS loan (don't blame her), I reviewed the loan documents and was astounded to discover that out of state tuition for SBCC cost 4 to 5 times what in state (where CW lived) would cost (This was in 2007, I think..).

I asked her to seriously consider convincing DD1 to go in state, but due to the horrible behavior of the step-dad, DD1 would have none of it. So I then asked CW, is there something you can sell to pay for the first semester? The longer DD1 can put off taking out a loan, the better. CW had also expressed to me that she wasn't sure DD1 would make it through SBCC because DD1 had done poorly in high school, but wanted to give DD1 a chance "away from her step-dad". (CW also confessed she knew her husband had treated DD1 badly, and so wanted to support DD1's wish to go to SBCC).

Anyway, CW (wearing her Tiffany jewelry with salon eyelash extensions, and professionally manicured nails) replied she had nothing she could sell to offset the cost of the first semester. I gently mentioned the BMW, and explained she could sell the BMW and probably get enough $ for at least the first semester at SBCC and see if DD1 could hack it before DD1 had to take out any loans. I mentioned that CW could purchase a small Toyota or Honda for a minimal amount and would actually be a better car for such a long commute.

At this point, CW crossed her legs, locked her arms around her chest, leaned back in the chair away from me and outright refused to part with her BMW. So I advised her which loan her DD1 should take out (at just under 6% interest).

Fast forward a few months, DD1 graduates from highschool and CW buys DD1 a graduation gift: a Louis Vuitton purse ($1,000) and a pair of Uggs... "It's the least I can do and this way she'll fit in at SBCC".

0_o

Too many disastrous things in this post to determine which is the most alarming - the abusive relationship, the $0 saved for college, the graduation gift, the inability to compromise or sacrifice, the high maintenance routine....

Hunny156

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #83 on: January 02, 2019, 12:36:53 PM »
Happy New Year and YAY for the new thread!

I work in financial services, and my company is a 401K provider to many other companies.  We have great benefits, and lots of little perks that no one but me seems to be aware of.

One of those perks is that the first contribution to your 401K every year, you get your match PLUS a flat $250.  I am tickled pink by this perk, and I do check in after the first paycheck of the year, to make sure the extra $250 posted.  Last year, I mentioned it to a co-worker, who like so many others, had no idea.  We both checked out accounts, confirmed the extra funds, and started to chat about the other nice perks that come with that first paycheck, like the $1K to the HSA, plus an extra $300 if you completed the bloodwork test a few months prior and achieved a "passing" grade.  Co-worker doesn't even try for that extra $300, b/c he's overweight and doesn't think he'll get it.  OK, your loss.  I happened to mention that when I had received my last promotion, I didn't want a penny of that money going to the tax man, so I increased my 401K contribution just as the raise hit my paycheck, which brought my contribution up to 12% (I don't max this out, yet).  Co-worker was SHOCKED that I contribute that much $$ to my 401K, as he could never afford to do so.  He's older than I, makes considerably more, and last year, when buying a modest home, he had to borrow the down payment from his 401K.  I didn't bother to tell him that between the HSA I max out, and the ESPP I also max out, more than half of my paycheck never makes it to my checking account, and I still save $$ from that amount!  He's a great guy, but he's got a ton of family members taking advantage of him, and he lets them bleed him dry.

The other think to note is that we just moved to a brand new campus, and among the many amenities we have here, we have an actual Starbucks onsite.  There are at least three break rooms on each floor, all of which offer adequate free coffee, multiple options, along with assorted teas, hot chocolate, and every single type of sweetener and creamer.  The amount of employees who will buy Starbucks multiple times/day is insane and baffling to me!  Most used excuse?  Oh, the coffee in the break rooms suck.  The employer recently switched to a more expensive option, but according to these folks, it still sucks.  I usually drink coffee at home before work, but the few times I've tried the break room coffee, it's actually pretty good!  It just pains me, as our company tagline is very clear about saving for a better tomorrow, and so many people here don't get all the ways they could take advantage of all the perks to get there faster.

phildonnia

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #84 on: January 02, 2019, 01:33:08 PM »
We got an email at work reminding us that the 401(k) limit had been raised to $19k.  People were talking about it at lunch, and I mentioned casually that you can also put an extra $6k in your personal Roth.  Oh, and your spouse can do the same. 

There was a beat, during which everyone realized (and I realized too) that I was making a cynical joke.  Because, you know, how could two people with professional careers possibly save $50k.
« Last Edit: January 02, 2019, 04:51:42 PM by phildonnia »

Piglet

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #85 on: January 02, 2019, 02:16:41 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

So self imposed poverty... That's fun.

People's sense of expensive can be so odd. Sometimes the luxury items are a must at all costs. Sometimes $10 is too much without luxury items.

I remember a coworker who came to me (I'm a shadetree mechanic as well as an engineer) about his broken headlight. I said, no sweat. You have an older car that is common. Look here on eBay - there is a good used headlight for ~$10-$15. Nope. He was looking for the 10 cent solution like wrapping the headlight in Saran Wrap or gluing a piece of plexiglass over the headlight. Why? The headlight would not likely stay waterproof, the bulb would burn out frequently (rain water), the beam might not be focused, etc. He wasn't being frugal, he was being cheap.

"self imposed poverty" - that perfectly describes so many of my past and current coworkers.

Sadly, I know so many other coworkers who suffer from this. Ten years ago, I worked with a woman who had 2 daughters and a borderline abusive husband. DD1 was the child of a former spouse that she brought into the marriage with the borderline abusive husband. DD2 was his child. They lived in a beautiful house on the water in a "prestigious" East Coast town, but her commute to work was 80 miles round trip.

She drove a relatively new BMW 300 something, very nice suits, hair always done, full court press makeup, nails, Tiffany jewelry - even eyelash extensions... EVERYDAY...

Now, I am all for someone taking good care of themselves and wanting to look their best at all times... Right up until she came to my desk and asked me to help figure out how to pay for DD1 to go to college.

DD1 had decided that no matter what it took, she was getting as far away as possible from her step-dad and had her heart set on going to college in California, specifically in San Bernardino. DD1 had figured out if she went to San Bernardino Community College, after 2 years she could transfer to CSUSB, which I thought sounded great... right up until.....

Her mother presented me with several loan documents from different banks and asked me to help her figure out which one DD1 should apply for to get the best terms. After ascertaining that CW had not saved a single dime to send DD1 to college and had no interest in a PLUS loan (don't blame her), I reviewed the loan documents and was astounded to discover that out of state tuition for SBCC cost 4 to 5 times what in state (where CW lived) would cost (This was in 2007, I think..).

I asked her to seriously consider convincing DD1 to go in state, but due to the horrible behavior of the step-dad, DD1 would have none of it. So I then asked CW, is there something you can sell to pay for the first semester? The longer DD1 can put off taking out a loan, the better. CW had also expressed to me that she wasn't sure DD1 would make it through SBCC because DD1 had done poorly in high school, but wanted to give DD1 a chance "away from her step-dad". (CW also confessed she knew her husband had treated DD1 badly, and so wanted to support DD1's wish to go to SBCC).

Anyway, CW (wearing her Tiffany jewelry with salon eyelash extensions, and professionally manicured nails) replied she had nothing she could sell to offset the cost of the first semester. I gently mentioned the BMW, and explained she could sell the BMW and probably get enough $ for at least the first semester at SBCC and see if DD1 could hack it before DD1 had to take out any loans. I mentioned that CW could purchase a small Toyota or Honda for a minimal amount and would actually be a better car for such a long commute.

At this point, CW crossed her legs, locked her arms around her chest, leaned back in the chair away from me and outright refused to part with her BMW. So I advised her which loan her DD1 should take out (at just under 6% interest).

Fast forward a few months, DD1 graduates from highschool and CW buys DD1 a graduation gift: a Louis Vuitton purse ($1,000) and a pair of Uggs... "It's the least I can do and this way she'll fit in at SBCC".

0_o

Too many disastrous things in this post to determine which is the most alarming - the abusive relationship, the $0 saved for college, the graduation gift, the inability to compromise or sacrifice, the high maintenance routine....

As a final follow up.... When I first met CW, she was trying to get a promotion at work that would move her to Colorado, at which point, she planned to divorce her husband and take the girls. (I am uncertain if she could have just done that with DD2, although she could have with DD1.) The promotion never came through, so she didn't leave him. Over the course of the first six months of getting to know her she described her life with him:

1) he kept a freezer in the basement full of HIS food, locked with a padlock, (but when guests would come over, the lock would mysteriously disappear)
2) he purchased a new state of the art washer dryer set and had them installed upstairs in a laundry closet next to the master bedroom... For HIS clothes only. CW and the girls had to use the old washer dryer in the basement
3) he would go on work trips and bring home a gift for CW and DD2, but not DD1 (who was 1 year old when CW married him and thus knew no other father figure - I understand bio-dad was and is a no show)
4) taught DD2 to drive in his car but would not do so for DD1
5) sometimes in the morning, the phone on her desk would start to ring and ring. When we answered it, the caller always hung up. Turns out, he would call her on her cell phone as she drove into work. When CW pulled into the underground garage and lost signal, he would count down 5 minutes and start calling her desk. If she didn't answer it by the time the 5 minutes were up, he'd scream at her asking where she had been since it didn't take 5 minutes to walk from the garage to her desk...

And the list goes on and on...

For the life of me, I can't understand why she stayed with him since he treated DD1 like a shifty renter as opposed to a baby girl who grew up with him as her dad. At the time, CW made a fairly good salary - upwards of $60k a year - easily enough to divorce him and take DD1 out of the toxic home and fight for custody of DD2. But instead she would tell us about how they were spending a fortune renovating and upgrading and improving their waterfront home (and aforementioned BMW, hair, makeup, nails, clothes, jewelry, eyelash extensions)...

I heard later that sadly DD1 dropped out of SBCC after 2 years, having borrowed a full two years of tuition at the out of state rate with no degree to show for it. There have been no updates since, I suspect because DD1 cut ties with her mom for choosing the step-dad and the lifestyle CW had to have over her first born child...

CW is still with the husband...

galliver

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #86 on: January 02, 2019, 06:45:11 PM »
After literally years of lurking, I have a post.

My husband and I both work full time. We have toddler twins. Coworker has 3 kids under the age of 7. Wife is SAHM. Coworker mentions that after work he's exhausted and wife is too after caring for kids. He mentions that by the time he comes home and they fix dinner and clean up, he doesn't have a lot of time to spend with them. I commiserate with him and mention we had the same issue. I was able to carve out an extra half hour or so a day by switching to paper plates (we are renting - dishwasher is anemic and kitchen has no garbage disposal - thus we have to go through Olympic effort dishwashing everyday - turns out so do they). When the kids get a little older (able to do some chores to help) we will switch back to regular dishes. We have spent maybe... $80 on paper plates in a year in order to get back 30 minutes of quality time A DAY with our kids.

He basically tells me that they can't afford papers plates (90 for about $2 - $3 - lasts for 2-3 weeks) because they are a single income household.

He drives a BMW 500 something. She drives a BMW X5. o_0

So self imposed poverty... That's fun.

People's sense of expensive can be so odd. Sometimes the luxury items are a must at all costs. Sometimes $10 is too much without luxury items.

I remember a coworker who came to me (I'm a shadetree mechanic as well as an engineer) about his broken headlight. I said, no sweat. You have an older car that is common. Look here on eBay - there is a good used headlight for ~$10-$15. Nope. He was looking for the 10 cent solution like wrapping the headlight in Saran Wrap or gluing a piece of plexiglass over the headlight. Why? The headlight would not likely stay waterproof, the bulb would burn out frequently (rain water), the beam might not be focused, etc. He wasn't being frugal, he was being cheap.

"self imposed poverty" - that perfectly describes so many of my past and current coworkers.

Sadly, I know so many other coworkers who suffer from this. Ten years ago, I worked with a woman who had 2 daughters and a borderline abusive husband. DD1 was the child of a former spouse that she brought into the marriage with the borderline abusive husband. DD2 was his child. They lived in a beautiful house on the water in a "prestigious" East Coast town, but her commute to work was 80 miles round trip.

She drove a relatively new BMW 300 something, very nice suits, hair always done, full court press makeup, nails, Tiffany jewelry - even eyelash extensions... EVERYDAY...

Now, I am all for someone taking good care of themselves and wanting to look their best at all times... Right up until she came to my desk and asked me to help figure out how to pay for DD1 to go to college.

DD1 had decided that no matter what it took, she was getting as far away as possible from her step-dad and had her heart set on going to college in California, specifically in San Bernardino. DD1 had figured out if she went to San Bernardino Community College, after 2 years she could transfer to CSUSB, which I thought sounded great... right up until.....

Her mother presented me with several loan documents from different banks and asked me to help her figure out which one DD1 should apply for to get the best terms. After ascertaining that CW had not saved a single dime to send DD1 to college and had no interest in a PLUS loan (don't blame her), I reviewed the loan documents and was astounded to discover that out of state tuition for SBCC cost 4 to 5 times what in state (where CW lived) would cost (This was in 2007, I think..).

I asked her to seriously consider convincing DD1 to go in state, but due to the horrible behavior of the step-dad, DD1 would have none of it. So I then asked CW, is there something you can sell to pay for the first semester? The longer DD1 can put off taking out a loan, the better. CW had also expressed to me that she wasn't sure DD1 would make it through SBCC because DD1 had done poorly in high school, but wanted to give DD1 a chance "away from her step-dad". (CW also confessed she knew her husband had treated DD1 badly, and so wanted to support DD1's wish to go to SBCC).

Anyway, CW (wearing her Tiffany jewelry with salon eyelash extensions, and professionally manicured nails) replied she had nothing she could sell to offset the cost of the first semester. I gently mentioned the BMW, and explained she could sell the BMW and probably get enough $ for at least the first semester at SBCC and see if DD1 could hack it before DD1 had to take out any loans. I mentioned that CW could purchase a small Toyota or Honda for a minimal amount and would actually be a better car for such a long commute.

At this point, CW crossed her legs, locked her arms around her chest, leaned back in the chair away from me and outright refused to part with her BMW. So I advised her which loan her DD1 should take out (at just under 6% interest).

Fast forward a few months, DD1 graduates from highschool and CW buys DD1 a graduation gift: a Louis Vuitton purse ($1,000) and a pair of Uggs... "It's the least I can do and this way she'll fit in at SBCC".

0_o

Too many disastrous things in this post to determine which is the most alarming - the abusive relationship, the $0 saved for college, the graduation gift, the inability to compromise or sacrifice, the high maintenance routine....

As a final follow up.... When I first met CW, she was trying to get a promotion at work that would move her to Colorado, at which point, she planned to divorce her husband and take the girls. (I am uncertain if she could have just done that with DD2, although she could have with DD1.) The promotion never came through, so she didn't leave him. Over the course of the first six months of getting to know her she described her life with him:

1) he kept a freezer in the basement full of HIS food, locked with a padlock, (but when guests would come over, the lock would mysteriously disappear)
2) he purchased a new state of the art washer dryer set and had them installed upstairs in a laundry closet next to the master bedroom... For HIS clothes only. CW and the girls had to use the old washer dryer in the basement
3) he would go on work trips and bring home a gift for CW and DD2, but not DD1 (who was 1 year old when CW married him and thus knew no other father figure - I understand bio-dad was and is a no show)
4) taught DD2 to drive in his car but would not do so for DD1
5) sometimes in the morning, the phone on her desk would start to ring and ring. When we answered it, the caller always hung up. Turns out, he would call her on her cell phone as she drove into work. When CW pulled into the underground garage and lost signal, he would count down 5 minutes and start calling her desk. If she didn't answer it by the time the 5 minutes were up, he'd scream at her asking where she had been since it didn't take 5 minutes to walk from the garage to her desk...

And the list goes on and on...

For the life of me, I can't understand why she stayed with him since he treated DD1 like a shifty renter as opposed to a baby girl who grew up with him as her dad. At the time, CW made a fairly good salary - upwards of $60k a year - easily enough to divorce him and take DD1 out of the toxic home and fight for custody of DD2. But instead she would tell us about how they were spending a fortune renovating and upgrading and improving their waterfront home (and aforementioned BMW, hair, makeup, nails, clothes, jewelry, eyelash extensions)...

I heard later that sadly DD1 dropped out of SBCC after 2 years, having borrowed a full two years of tuition at the out of state rate with no degree to show for it. There have been no updates since, I suspect because DD1 cut ties with her mom for choosing the step-dad and the lifestyle CW had to have over her first born child...

CW is still with the husband...
I would classify this as "abusive," not "borderline"... Wouldn't be surprised if there was serious emotional abuse and isolation of CW that she isn't willing to talk about...

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #87 on: January 03, 2019, 02:23:09 AM »
Abusive or not, I'm stealing the personal fridge idea.  Somehow all my chicken tendies go missing.

leviticus

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #88 on: January 03, 2019, 04:25:20 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Linea_Norway

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #89 on: January 03, 2019, 05:47:58 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Terrible... We spent 3 at FIL's house. But he assigned both us and BIL to make dinner one night, including buying the ingredients. Nice to share the expenses. BIL also brought beers and cheese along. FIL did not have high costs, apart from that he bought LOTS of extra vegetables, while we were supposed to cook. But that was his own mistake.

Linea_Norway

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #90 on: January 03, 2019, 05:49:13 AM »
Abusive or not, I'm stealing the personal fridge idea.  Somehow all my chicken tendies go missing.

My DH always snacks away the blue cheese that I buy to use for dinner. Maybe just a small box with a lock on it would do the trick...

OtherJen

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #91 on: January 03, 2019, 06:47:13 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Dear lord. Does the rest of the family ever reciprocate or is he enabling a bunch of freeloaders?

leviticus

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #92 on: January 03, 2019, 07:08:40 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Dear lord. Does the rest of the family ever reciprocate or is he enabling a bunch of freeloaders?

From the mutterings I gather that they are freeloaders, but it's alright because his Mother In Law brought a Christmas Cake. SMH.

carolinap

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #93 on: January 03, 2019, 07:28:21 AM »
I work for the government, and I have a coworker who has been in this workplace for 20 years. Hard work but good payment, job security, all that. I already knew she liked to spend, had a lot of clothes, bought clothes and after a while donate them still with the price tag on them (!), 100+ pairs of shoes... crazy for me, but not the worst case I have seen.

Talking during work, she tells me that she lived with her parents until she was 40, then got a mortgage and is paying for it, now at 43 years old. She didn't save ANYTHING from her good salary as a government employee for 20 years living rent free and food free with her parents! She spent all in clothes, travel and "minor expenses"!

I felt so offended, I'm not against people living with their parents as long as they take care of some expenses, but if I was in her situation I probably would be homeowner and FIRE'd at age 45.
« Last Edit: January 03, 2019, 07:31:53 AM by carolinap »

eljefe-speaks

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #94 on: January 03, 2019, 08:35:41 AM »
I work for the government, and I have a coworker who has been in this workplace for 20 years. Hard work but good payment, job security, all that. I already knew she liked to spend, had a lot of clothes, bought clothes and after a while donate them still with the price tag on them (!), 100+ pairs of shoes... crazy for me, but not the worst case I have seen.

Talking during work, she tells me that she lived with her parents until she was 40, then got a mortgage and is paying for it, now at 43 years old. She didn't save ANYTHING from her good salary as a government employee for 20 years living rent free and food free with her parents! She spent all in clothes, travel and "minor expenses"!

I felt so offended, I'm not against people living with their parents as long as they take care of some expenses, but if I was in her situation I probably would be homeowner and FIRE'd at age 45.

Wow, what a particularly horrifying wasted opportunity. And to boot, she is going to feel poor now that she is making a mortgage payment. Call me cynical, but I am doubting she will be able to dial back the spending. She will fall deeply into debt. Oh, what could have been.

Sugaree

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #95 on: January 03, 2019, 08:51:57 AM »
Yesterday, a guy at work was wondering if the cafeteria took post-dated checks because we didn't get paid until today.  First, who the hell writes checks for things that aren't mailed anymore.  Secondly, this is the only single guy with no kids in the office.  Third, today he's talking about buying a utility trailer to haul his toys around on.

Piglet

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #96 on: January 03, 2019, 11:49:24 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Wait... 49 people... in HOTELS, and MEALS, and GIFTS, FOR A WEEK? (Please note my tone of my voice rises until it hits a screech at the end of the sentence....)

Cassie

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #97 on: January 03, 2019, 12:18:18 PM »
That’s totally ridiculous!

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #98 on: January 03, 2019, 12:46:39 PM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Wait... 49 people... in HOTELS, and MEALS, and GIFTS, FOR A WEEK? (Please note my tone of my voice rises until it hits a screech at the end of the sentence....)

I think, if you can afford it, it would be a great once in a lifetime family reunion type thing.  But if it’s gonna cause monetary stress, people should just pay their own way and maybe some people can’t show up.  That’s also assuming the recipients aren’t acting like spoiled freeloaders to begin with.

leviticus

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #99 on: January 04, 2019, 02:11:00 AM »
This is the first time I've had a story to share, which is far more exciting for me than it should be. . .

Coworker comes into work today, fist day back since he finished for Christmas, and when asked how his time off was he slumped in his chair and started complaining about how expensive the holidays were.

Apparently he and his wife had to host their two children and partners, their 6 grandchildren, the partners parents, as well as his and his wife's parents, siblings, siblings partners and children. Totaling 49 people for Christmas day. They couldn't all sleep in the house, so he and his wife paid for hotel rooms for all of them, and they spend Christmas through to New Year living in a hotel, paying for everyone to eat, have presents (iPads and gadgets from what I could gather) and do activities.

He ran up a bill into the five figures, just to host Christmas.

Wait... 49 people... in HOTELS, and MEALS, and GIFTS, FOR A WEEK? (Please note my tone of my voice rises until it hits a screech at the end of the sentence....)

I think, if you can afford it, it would be a great once in a lifetime family reunion type thing.  But if it’s gonna cause monetary stress, people should just pay their own way and maybe some people can’t show up.  That’s also assuming the recipients aren’t acting like spoiled freeloaders to begin with.

I agree, if you can afford it, it would be a lovely one off way to spend the festive season.

But I don't think he can afford it, and I don't think the attendees really deserve it.

His spend on celebrating Christmas is more than the deposit I'm saving to buy a house, it blew my mind a bit.