Author Topic: Overheard at Work 2  (Read 1117333 times)

Fomerly known as something

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3650 on: January 23, 2023, 10:07:45 PM »
I have convinced three people in my life to contribute or max out their 401(k)s when they were otherwise not contributing at all. One retired early. (YAY!) One became a meth addict and cashed it all out years ago. And the third just informed me she cashed hers out to pay off credit cards.

One out of three ain't bad, I guess???

I convinced a friend's son who just started his first job after getting a PhD to max out his 401k. All I had to do is show him a compounding curve. I guess he deserved that PhD!

My son started a new job at the beginning of the year but cannot join the 401K for a couple of months.  He asked me for input on the fund selections when he's in town next month.  Looks like I'll print out a compounding curve before he comes home.

Back in the bad old days, I couldn’t join the TSP for close to a year.  Hire date 7/17/00, first day I could contribute 7/1/01 and I was limited to 10% of my salary.

glacio09

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3651 on: January 24, 2023, 09:18:04 AM »
From a co-worker this morning:  "It's not like any of us can contribute the max to our TSPs with what they pay us."  I'm just biting my tongue because I'm doing it, plus an IRA and HSA.  You'd think that they would have figured it out by now because I always know how much per paycheck it takes to get there.

Clearly it’s not my department where several of us lecture new people on the joys of maxing out.  Shout out to the GS 9 soon to be 11 who is doing so right now, per Erin groceries are expensive.

I have encouraged a few newer engineers "you don't have to max it this year, but start working on a plan to get there in the next three." Two of them really had never considered anything except whatever the auto-enroll percentage is, and did not even know there was a max. Hopefully they at least worked to get some education on the subject.

I get not being "able" to max it when you are new and making $50k or something and have never considered what retirement is (TDF of 2065 is now in our plan!!! Yikes for the newbies.)

I tell them add a percent every pay raise.  After you get to 10% add $20 or $50.  Which in the early years of the GS scale end up being 2* a year.

My company auto enrolled you in the +1% a year program. I didn't realize it and was manually increasing it 1% myself each year. It was a very nice surprise when I accidently maxed out my 401k. That was about the time I started searching for what next and found MMM.

Siebrie

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3652 on: January 26, 2023, 07:15:54 AM »
@glacio09 That is one for the 'Mustachian People Problems' thread :)

ColoAndy

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3653 on: January 30, 2023, 03:44:59 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.

valsecito

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3654 on: January 30, 2023, 03:57:50 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

SwordGuy

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3655 on: January 30, 2023, 04:01:44 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...

TomTX

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3656 on: January 30, 2023, 06:43:21 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
"Needed"

LOL!

To assuage their crippling social anxiety that a "normal" ridiculously oversized clown truck wasn't big and impractical enough?

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3657 on: January 30, 2023, 07:50:17 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...

Definitely means he did this to his truck.  Did the $17k include the pair of white Oakleys or did he have to buy those separately? 

Michael in ABQ

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3658 on: January 30, 2023, 08:13:28 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...

Compensating for something.

Taran Wanderer

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3659 on: January 30, 2023, 09:43:15 PM »
The lift in that photo would cost a lot more than $17,000…

valsecito

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3660 on: January 30, 2023, 09:47:07 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...
Right. So not a lift to work on his car, but an increased distance from the road to the seat. More modest observations of a similar nature can be made on this side of the large fish pond.

DSM V universally classifies these as symptoms of small willy syndrom I believe.

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3661 on: January 31, 2023, 12:48:00 AM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...
Do you know some women have inverted nipples?
That guy probably has an inverted P...laything.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3662 on: January 31, 2023, 01:49:28 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...
Right. So not a lift to work on his car, but an increased distance from the road to the seat. More modest observations of a similar nature can be made on this side of the large fish pond.

DSM V universally classifies these as symptoms of small willy syndrom I believe.

No way the parts cost $17k.  This guy is unable to wrench on his own truck and paid out the ass for someone else to do it

scottish

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3663 on: January 31, 2023, 05:19:53 PM »
A coworker bought a brand new truck.  Needed a lift for it.  The lift cost $17,000.  Yes, $17,000.  Truck no longer fits in his garage.  Traded in a 2017 Suburban for this truck.
I'm rather unfamiliar with much of the car world, let alone the US specific rather large car world. Did you mean something to lift his car? What would be the actual use for that? Is het a professional car mechanic, or is this just a very expensive hobby> And how would he lift the truck if it doesn;t even fit in his garage in any case...?

I suspect he means doing this to the truck.   Never understood WHY anyone would do it...
Right. So not a lift to work on his car, but an increased distance from the road to the seat. More modest observations of a similar nature can be made on this side of the large fish pond.

DSM V universally classifies these as symptoms of small willy syndrom I believe.

No way the parts cost $17k.  This guy is unable to wrench on his own truck and paid out the ass for someone else to do it

Yeah, apparently there's an off road community, mostly in the US.   They buy fancy 4WDs - like Jeep Gladiators and Ford Raptors - and modify them to be even more off-road capable.   A small fraction of these people take their modified vehicles out to off road parks and trails where they risk destroying their incredibly expensive rigs by trying to drive them over obstacles that would be difficult on a mountain bike.

There's a guy in Vancouver (the Canadian one) who bought a Gladiator and replaced the V6 engine with a V8 hemi out of a full size dodge ram.  ?!?   He uses the vehicle for his youtube channel where he drives far into the BC back country on old logging and mining roads.   I've watched a couple of his videos & I think the routes would be good for backpacking or horse back camping, instead of driving a big 4x4...

chasingsnow

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3664 on: February 01, 2023, 10:12:24 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.

ATtiny85

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3665 on: February 02, 2023, 05:17:55 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.

It would make me sad to be around people like that. I would try to walk away before they finished the statement to try and stay blissfully ignorant.

Sibley

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3666 on: February 02, 2023, 08:48:59 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.

It would make me sad to be around people like that. I would try to walk away before they finished the statement to try and stay blissfully ignorant.

I get it, but if you can't safely drive in the snow then I don't want you driving, and if you're nervous to take public transit then a taxi is still better than adding another idiot to the roads.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3667 on: February 02, 2023, 11:34:37 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

charis

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3668 on: February 02, 2023, 02:37:06 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

The post says taxi rather than walk or bus, not drive.

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3669 on: February 02, 2023, 04:31:12 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.

On snowy days, if the entire city hasn't shut down in a paroxysm of sphincter contractions, I do prefer to take the bus. With a professional driver and far more mass than the usual privately owned idiot-mobile, my chances of survival are far better. I found this out first-hand when an idiot in a pickup truck tried to drive up the shoulder of the road and cut in front of the bus. There was barely a jolt on the bus but pieces of the truck went flying.

Weisass

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3670 on: February 02, 2023, 06:55:17 PM »

On snowy days, if the entire city hasn't shut down in a paroxysm of sphincter contractions, I do prefer to take the bus.
Agreed. The bus is just about the only thing that safely makes it through the snow in Philly when everyone else is plowing into parked cars. Bus is *the* choice.

AlanStache

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3671 on: February 02, 2023, 08:35:09 PM »
And I would think that the bus routes coincide with those that are a priority to plow and the bus drives get some information about the actual conditions. 

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3672 on: February 02, 2023, 09:37:59 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

In fairness, Vancouver is easily the worst city to drive in when it snows in all of Canada.  It’s pretty rare for snow to fall, much less accumulate on the ground so almost nobody has snow tires or good experience driving in the snow.  I wouldn’t be surprised if there were 1000 vehicles involved in collisions per inch of snow accumulated on the roads in that city.  But yeah, sounds like they chose a taxi over walking/transit, which I can’t really understand unless they didn’t have appropriate footwear or something. 

chasingsnow

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3673 on: February 02, 2023, 10:08:28 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

In fairness, Vancouver is easily the worst city to drive in when it snows in all of Canada.  It’s pretty rare for snow to fall, much less accumulate on the ground so almost nobody has snow tires or good experience driving in the snow.  I wouldn’t be surprised if there were 1000 vehicles involved in collisions per inch of snow accumulated on the roads in that city.  But yeah, sounds like they chose a taxi over walking/transit, which I can’t really understand unless they didn’t have appropriate footwear or something.

When I originally posted this article I almost wrote "It snowed in Vancouver overnight 5cm (which in Vancouver might as well be 500cm). I used to live in Victoria and I am still utterly floored at how consistently unprepared Vancouver is to deal with snow, yet it happens on an annual basis.

johndoe

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3674 on: February 03, 2023, 06:26:17 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.

It would make me sad to be around people like that. I would try to walk away before they finished the statement to try and stay blissfully ignorant.
Is this an indictment of their driving skills or millennial lingo?  Ha sounds like a great WFH day to me.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3675 on: February 03, 2023, 07:57:26 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

The post says taxi rather than walk or bus, not drive.
Ooops, you're right.  But my reaction stands: because it will "throw off their vibe for the day"?  Seriously!?

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3676 on: February 03, 2023, 08:02:23 AM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

In fairness, Vancouver is easily the worst city to drive in when it snows in all of Canada.  It’s pretty rare for snow to fall, much less accumulate on the ground so almost nobody has snow tires or good experience driving in the snow.  I wouldn’t be surprised if there were 1000 vehicles involved in collisions per inch of snow accumulated on the roads in that city.  But yeah, sounds like they chose a taxi over walking/transit, which I can’t really understand unless they didn’t have appropriate footwear or something.
I love Vancouver because it's so incredibly pedestrian-friendly. (The donair and Nanaimo bar quality is also good.)

The last couple times I was there, I didn't feel the need to rent a car or take a taxi or ride-share even once. Not even with a bunch of suitcases. Everything I needed and wanted was readily available by public transit. It's been that way since the investments and construction prior to Expo 86. The thing I appreciate most is the effort made to move people to and from the airport, the downtown area, and other high-demand areas like the university area, the waterfront, the stadium, and other places people want to go. I haven't gone into the suburban part lately but I recall that there was good bus service and even bike rental options.

I see why some of the suburban dwellers might own a car for convenience, and there might be some corner cases where individuals do truly need and benefit from a personal vehicle, yet I don't see why anyone would drive at all in Vancouver during bad weather, if they had a choice.

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3677 on: February 03, 2023, 02:22:59 PM »

On snowy days, if the entire city hasn't shut down in a paroxysm of sphincter contractions, I do prefer to take the bus.
Agreed. The bus is just about the only thing that safely makes it through the snow in Philly when everyone else is plowing into parked cars. Bus is *the* choice.
No Tram is. There are videos out there from tram driver not reacting more than ringing the bell if an idiot drives in front of them and then gets shoved away like a kitten in front of the door.

Weisass

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3678 on: February 03, 2023, 05:21:07 PM »

On snowy days, if the entire city hasn't shut down in a paroxysm of sphincter contractions, I do prefer to take the bus.
Agreed. The bus is just about the only thing that safely makes it through the snow in Philly when everyone else is plowing into parked cars. Bus is *the* choice.
No Tram is. There are videos out there from tram driver not reacting more than ringing the bell if an idiot drives in front of them and then gets shoved away like a kitten in front of the door.

Bus. Tram. However you dice it, different countries in snow seem to all have good public transportation alternatives to sliding around in a car.

scottish

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3679 on: February 03, 2023, 05:37:38 PM »
I mostly WFH but make occasional trips to the office in Vancouver. I work with several other co workers my age (roughly 25-35). It snowed roughly 5cm overnight in Vancouver and a couple of my co workers decided to take a taxi to work rather than walk or take the bus becausue it would have thrown off their "vibes' for the day. I just nodded along politely well screaming on the inside.
Hold on a minute, driving themselves to work in snow is likely to cause them mental/emotional trauma for the rest of the work day?  Holy fragile psyche, batman!

In fairness, Vancouver is easily the worst city to drive in when it snows in all of Canada.  It’s pretty rare for snow to fall, much less accumulate on the ground so almost nobody has snow tires or good experience driving in the snow.  I wouldn’t be surprised if there were 1000 vehicles involved in collisions per inch of snow accumulated on the roads in that city.  But yeah, sounds like they chose a taxi over walking/transit, which I can’t really understand unless they didn’t have appropriate footwear or something.

How can you go skiing in the mountains without snow tires???

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3680 on: February 14, 2023, 09:36:43 AM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3681 on: February 14, 2023, 09:46:42 AM »
Ouch. And I always considered model trains as an expensive hobby.

Michael in ABQ

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3682 on: February 14, 2023, 11:45:23 AM »
Since I'm self-employed, my only co-workers now are the people I serve with in the National Guard. This weekend I was working with a guy to update some of my personnel records. The next morning when I came in, he asked if I drove a Black Widow lifted truck that he knew belonged to somebody in the unit. Apparently, this is an optional package for new vehicles that is brand agnostic and only adds about $20,000 to the MSRP - what a deal!

I told him it belonged to one of my colleagues (who is already FIRE and can easily afford it due) and then laughed that I would never make such a ridiculous purchase. My colleague had previously mentioned the sticker price was about $75,000 but he got a deal due to a police discount and it was only $70,000 or so.



Meanwhile my 18-year-old minivan that cost $4,500 a few years ago is still working fine - and probably still worth about the same amount I paid for it even with the additional years and miles since I bought it.

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3683 on: February 14, 2023, 12:07:50 PM »
75K! That 5 years of non-spendypants living over here! The only day you would see me driving this is when I won it at a lottery (not that I play or they ever have such high prices) and I am driving it to sell!

scottish

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3684 on: February 15, 2023, 07:30:22 PM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

So they've got one truck to pull the race car on a trailer, and a second truck to pull the trailer they sleep in?

Speaking of getting left on the side of the road, the MAF in my vehicle died yesterday and I had to get it towed to the garage because it would stall whenever I took my foot off the gas.    Coincidentally, this is the first time in 19 years with that vehicle that it wouldn't run.

Artem_F

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3685 on: February 16, 2023, 07:55:31 AM »
This might not work for all vehicles, but I recall that removing the MAF sensor connector tells the system to switch to a "safe mode" and run on average settings without reading MAF values. The performance and gas mileage will suffer, and the car won't pass any emission tests, but at least it will remain drivable, so one can get home or go straight to the garage.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3686 on: February 16, 2023, 08:05:49 AM »
This might not work for all vehicles, but I recall that removing the MAF sensor connector tells the system to switch to a "safe mode" and run on average settings without reading MAF values. The performance and gas mileage will suffer, and the car won't pass any emission tests, but at least it will remain drivable, so one can get home or go straight to the garage.
Heh, that reminds me of a time several years ago, when after replacing a power steering hose, I neglected to reconnect the vacuum line from the intake manifold to the MAP sensor.  Naturally, the ECU assumed there was a ton of air flowing into the manifold, and was positively dumping fuel into the intake.  Once I figured it out and reconnected the vacuum line, I took it for a test drive, and promptly smoked up a good section of the neighborhood with all the unburned hydrocarbons that had been sitting in my exhaust!

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3687 on: February 22, 2023, 02:44:33 PM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

Holy smokes.  This makes mountain bikes and gym memberships sound so tame!

scottish

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3688 on: February 27, 2023, 08:01:45 PM »
This might not work for all vehicles, but I recall that removing the MAF sensor connector tells the system to switch to a "safe mode" and run on average settings without reading MAF values. The performance and gas mileage will suffer, and the car won't pass any emission tests, but at least it will remain drivable, so one can get home or go straight to the garage.

Just curious, how would you know it was a failed MAF so you could disconnect it?     I had the same thing happen in a different vehicle about 25 years ago, so I suspected it was the MAF, but I wasn't sure...

Psychstache

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3689 on: February 27, 2023, 08:32:40 PM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

Holy smokes.  This makes mountain bikes and gym memberships sound so tame!

The road to financial hell is paved with insane car payments.

Fomerly known as something

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3690 on: February 27, 2023, 08:44:17 PM »
Once again got into an argument at work today about the difference between taxes withheld and tax rate.  Our bonuses get taxed like regular income, as in my $25k bonus last year along with my regular paycheck got taxed as if I made $850k for the year at 52% total between Feds, State (CA) and FICA.   But I’m also getting money back after filing my return because of this.

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3691 on: February 27, 2023, 11:21:55 PM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

Holy smokes.  This makes mountain bikes and gym memberships sound so tame!

The road to financial hell is paved with insane car payments.

It certainly is for this guy

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4D2psZ0GrrQ&t=11s

(long video, but worth the watch, just keeps getting more insane)
« Last Edit: February 27, 2023, 11:47:26 PM by JAYSLOL »

ATtiny85

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3692 on: February 28, 2023, 05:27:49 AM »
Once again got into an argument at work today about the difference between taxes withheld and tax rate.  Our bonuses get taxed like regular income, as in my $25k bonus last year along with my regular paycheck got taxed as if I made $850k for the year at 52% total between Feds, State (CA) and FICA.   But I’m also getting money back after filing my return because of this.

There are two methods for bonuses as I understand it. A flat 22% and a supplemental wage method. Yours appears to be the supplemental method. My company uses the flat 22% method. This is for bonuses under a million bucks. Anyone making a bonus of over that should go read the docs themselves...

Either one can lead to the argument you had though.

By the River

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3693 on: February 28, 2023, 06:47:05 AM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

Holy smokes.  This makes mountain bikes and gym memberships sound so tame!

The road to financial hell is paved with insane car payments.

This car payment is insane but not the amount.  https://hip-hopvibe.com/news/woman-buys-old-car-for-289-a-month-for-84-years/

LennStar

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3694 on: February 28, 2023, 06:49:55 AM »
84 month not years. Quality Journalism!

Sibley

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3695 on: February 28, 2023, 09:51:39 AM »
Once again got into an argument at work today about the difference between taxes withheld and tax rate.  Our bonuses get taxed like regular income, as in my $25k bonus last year along with my regular paycheck got taxed as if I made $850k for the year at 52% total between Feds, State (CA) and FICA.   But I’m also getting money back after filing my return because of this.

There are two methods for bonuses as I understand it. A flat 22% and a supplemental wage method. Yours appears to be the supplemental method. My company uses the flat 22% method. This is for bonuses under a million bucks. Anyone making a bonus of over that should go read the docs themselves...

Either one can lead to the argument you had though.

Are you referring to payroll withholdings? Some systems will withhold at a flat percentage of the bonus, others will treat it as if that was your normal pay amount and you'd have withholdings accordingly. It has no impact on how tax is calculated when you prepare the return. Its treated as income on the tax return, so refund or payment depends entirely on tax less tax payments already made.

But yes, this leads to all sorts of arguments and misunderstandings because people don't understand taxes. If they argue with me (someone who actually knows the answer to this) vs just going, huh, I didn't know that, thanks, then they've told me who they are and I will believe them.

JAYSLOL

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3696 on: February 28, 2023, 10:06:32 AM »
I got in a discussion with a coworker today about FU money.  We were testing something out, I made a minor mistake, and CW jokingly said "you're fired!" to which jokingly I said "ok!"  CW expressed how "it sure would be nice" to have FU money, and kinda-sorta asked how it's possible.  I said "well, do you see what kind of car the CEO and I drive?"  (CEO drives a 2003 Honda Civic, I drive a '97 Geo Prizm) 

Cue the "oh, but you don't wanna be left on the side of the road" comments, to which I responded that such a situation had happened to me precisely once in twenty years. Coworker drives a late model quad cab pickup truck for her 45-minute commute.  As does her spouse. They have one kid left at home, and their family's preferred extracurricular/hobby is racing cars.  Which, of course, comes with the need to buy a trailer for the car and to sleep in when they're out of town.  Coworker is probably 10 years older than me.

Holy smokes.  This makes mountain bikes and gym memberships sound so tame!

The road to financial hell is paved with insane car payments.

This car payment is insane but not the amount.  https://hip-hopvibe.com/news/woman-buys-old-car-for-289-a-month-for-84-years/

For a car worth barely over a grand, that payment amount is truly insane.  She definitely needs to bring that back.  A car over 20 years old shouldn’t be able to be financed at all in my opinion, but definitely shouldn’t be allowed to be financed over more than say 18 months.  I hope this wasn’t an outright con on the part of the dealer, and was a mistake between the dealer and finance company mixup between a 7 month term and a 7 year term.  7 months and she’d pay about $2k for that car which is about fair
« Last Edit: February 28, 2023, 10:09:52 AM by JAYSLOL »

geekette

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3697 on: February 28, 2023, 10:07:46 AM »
I tried to explain refundable tax credits this week.  It didn't go well.

ATtiny85

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3698 on: February 28, 2023, 11:12:07 AM »
Once again got into an argument at work today about the difference between taxes withheld and tax rate.  Our bonuses get taxed like regular income, as in my $25k bonus last year along with my regular paycheck got taxed as if I made $850k for the year at 52% total between Feds, State (CA) and FICA.   But I’m also getting money back after filing my return because of this.

There are two methods for bonuses as I understand it. A flat 22% and a supplemental wage method. Yours appears to be the supplemental method. My company uses the flat 22% method. This is for bonuses under a million bucks. Anyone making a bonus of over that should go read the docs themselves...

Either one can lead to the argument you had though.

Are you referring to payroll withholdings? Some systems will withhold at a flat percentage of the bonus, others will treat it as if that was your normal pay amount and you'd have withholdings accordingly. It has no impact on how tax is calculated when you prepare the return. Its treated as income on the tax return, so refund or payment depends entirely on tax less tax payments already made.

But yes, this leads to all sorts of arguments and misunderstandings because people don't understand taxes. If they argue with me (someone who actually knows the answer to this) vs just going, huh, I didn't know that, thanks, then they've told me who they are and I will believe them.

yeah, withholding, duh (duh to me not you...). I was way too loose with my typing. Should have inserted the term withholding...which of course is almost the exact origin of the arguments and misunderstanding!

Fomerly known as something

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Re: Overheard at Work 2
« Reply #3699 on: February 28, 2023, 11:56:58 AM »
I’m going to sit down with my financial advisor tomorrow now that I’m actually retired and see if I have to get a “retirement job”. Federal retiring employee.