Overheard at Work

[BeFree]

Do any women have a similar; number of bikes/computers rule for men ?

I find it a big turnoff if the guy has the latest greatest expensive phablet. =P And usually it's through Verizon...

[ender]

It's amusing to me how many folks here are so proud of their judging other folks based on their external appearances.

It reminds me of the "why can't I find any frugal person to date?" thread elsewhere. Maybe everyone has written off all the Mustachians as consumeristic because they have lots of computers/bikes :P

[Half-Borg]

Now that I sold my car, I can get rid of my oldest laptop.
It had a diagnostic software installed, which licencse was linked to the hardware.

I'm finally gonna get a girl now!

On a related note, someone suggested that I need a dryer, because what should the girl I bring home think of me, if there were clothes hanged up? That I'm poor? (None of my friends own a dryer, and they are far from frugal)

[FIREdancer]

I kind of want to facepunch my coworker, but as I don't like to lecture other people for their choices and I'm not a violent person, I'll share with you all instead:

This particular coworker is in debt (mortgage, car, credit card, and student loans) and regularly talks about being in debt.  We are paid bi-weekly and every other week she says something to the effect of "Wohoo! It's payday! I can go get lunch/coffee/craft supplies/etc"

She's also in her late 40s and regularly talks about how she won't ever be able to retire because she doesn't have any money to save for retirement.

Anyway, she just bought a dog for $5,000.  I was like "What?!?!? Seriously?"  She says they saved up for it...and I'm thinking, ummmm can you really call it "saving" when you are in debt?  And now that $5,000 dog will continue to cost you more money for years to come.  Plus they already have several other pets.

A few weeks ago they also bought one of those mini pigs for like $500, but they ended up giving it back a few weeks later for some reason...so they were just out $500 for that.

[Chris22]

What's with you guys and dryers?  My latest gas bill came the other day, was for $22. I have a gas dryer and a gas water heater, since we take way more showers than use the dryer, I figure the dryer is, what, 25% of that expense at the most?  $5.50/mo?  Why is this such an obsession for you people?

[SweetTPi]

Do any women have a similar; number of bikes/computers rule for men ?

At least 2 bikes are preferable, with one for road fun and one for commuting, but I am okay with 1 serving duel purpose as that's my current setup.  Be prepared for (lighthearted) flack when you go to the group ride with a rack, bike lock, and platform pedals, though.

Oh, you mean as an upper limit?  Can there truly be such a thing beyond space constraints?

[MgoSam]

On a related note, someone suggested that I need a dryer, because what should the girl I bring home think of me, if there were clothes hanged up? That I'm poor? (None of my friends own a dryer, and they are far from frugal)

I would like to think that someone you brought home would appreciate the energy efficient way in which your clothes are dried, not to mention that they will last longer and look better.

[ketchup]

What's with you guys and dryers?  My latest gas bill came the other day, was for $22. I have a gas dryer and a gas water heater, since we take way more showers than use the dryer, I figure the dryer is, what, 25% of that expense at the most?  $5.50/mo?  Why is this such an obsession for you people?

I'm with you beat-for-beat there.  My house came with a 2011 gas dryer and I have basically the same gas bill as you.  There are much bigger fish to fry in most people's lives in both the dollars and energy consumption arenas.

I do tend to turn off my dryer early and let my clothes air-dry the last 10-20% hanging up in the closet but that's more about my own paranoia of accidentally cooking them than energy savings.

[boarder42]

What's with you guys and dryers?  My latest gas bill came the other day, was for $22. I have a gas dryer and a gas water heater, since we take way more showers than use the dryer, I figure the dryer is, what, 25% of that expense at the most?  $5.50/mo?  Why is this such an obsession for you people?

i dont get it really. i mean its like 40c a load for us ... even if we did a load every other day it would only be 72 dollars a year.  not really a huge cost savings ... i mean unless you're trying to get to the lowest costs ever.

[Paul der Krake]

Do any women have a similar; number of bikes/computers rule for men ?

At least 2 bikes are preferable, with one for road fun and one for commuting, but I am okay with 1 serving duel purpose as that's my current setup.  Be prepared for (lighthearted) flack when you go to the group ride with a rack, bike lock, and platform pedals, though.

Oh, you mean as an upper limit?  Can there truly be such a thing beyond space constraints?

I have a friend who is *obsessed* with bikes. He has 7 that are all road-ready, and always working on two at any given time. His small apartment is filled with bikes, parts, spare wheels, etc. He has a trueing stand on his kitchen counter, and two mechanic stands in his living room. Gojo is the only type of soap he has in every room.  A huge tool chest filled with bottom brackets, nuts and bolts of every type, prominently sits in the center of the living area. He is on a first name basis with every bike shop in a 10 mile radius.

His girlfriends never stick for very long.

[theadvicist]

Chris22 with every post you convince me more and more that you're just messing with us ;)

The cost of a dryer isn't just the electricity. It's the depreciation - you had to buy the dryer in the first place, right? It's the space you have to put it in, you're paying rent or a mortgage on that (or paying for dryer use at the laundromat). Do you use any sheets etc? They cost money.

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable. When I left home and stopped drying my clothes with a dryer I could not believe how much longer they lasted. Seriously, if you haven't tried hanging everything to dry, it's a revelation how long clothes can last.

Finally, it's the environmental costs. Yeah, the electricity, the materials used to make the thing and keep it running, producing and transporting the machine, dealing with it once it is past it's useful life etc.

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

[slugline]

When using a clothes dryer, simply use the lowest heat setting that gets the job done. Yes, setting the temp to high all the time will accelerate damage to clothing!

[GuitarStv]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

[Papa Mustache]

And someday you'll look back and say "those were the good old days...." (Or not. j/k)

[TheInsuranceMan]

Chris22 with every post you convince me more and more that you're just messing with us ;)

The cost of a dryer isn't just the electricity. It's the depreciation - you had to buy the dryer in the first place, right? It's the space you have to put it in, you're paying rent or a mortgage on that (or paying for dryer use at the laundromat). Do you use any sheets etc? They cost money.

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable. When I left home and stopped drying my clothes with a dryer I could not believe how much longer they lasted. Seriously, if you haven't tried hanging everything to dry, it's a revelation how long clothes can last.

Finally, it's the environmental costs. Yeah, the electricity, the materials used to make the thing and keep it running, producing and transporting the machine, dealing with it once it is past it's useful life etc.

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

Dryer causing clothes damage?  I go 5+ years with certain dress clothes that see the washer, and gasp, the dryer, once a week, or once every other week.  They don't shrink, they haven't got destroyed, and in fact, they look pretty damn good yet.  So, that's not much of a concern of mine.

[No Name Guy]

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable.

Dryer causing clothes damage?  I go 5+ years with certain dress clothes that see the washer, and gasp, the dryer, once a week, or once every other week.  They don't shrink, they haven't got destroyed, and in fact, they look pretty damn good yet.  So, that's not much of a concern of mine.

^^ - this.

What damage?  Jeans last me years.  The polo shirts I have...again, years old (and we're talking cheap JC Penny house brand polo shirts, not fancy ones).  Tee shirts....again, years, and years, and years of wear.....

The engineer in me says that the wear and tear on clothing due to washing and drying for typical guys clothing is somewhere in the 2nd order effect to negligible area, compared to the physical wear (e.g. scuffing the knees while working, the wear of the wallet in the pocket as you sit, shirt elbows wearing from rubbing on the desk, etc, etc).

[Chris22]

Chris22 with every post you convince me more and more that you're just messing with us ;)

The cost of a dryer isn't just the electricity. It's the depreciation - you had to buy the dryer in the first place, right? It's the space you have to put it in, you're paying rent or a mortgage on that (or paying for dryer use at the laundromat). Do you use any sheets etc? They cost money.

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable. When I left home and stopped drying my clothes with a dryer I could not believe how much longer they lasted. Seriously, if you haven't tried hanging everything to dry, it's a revelation how long clothes can last.

Finally, it's the environmental costs. Yeah, the electricity, the materials used to make the thing and keep it running, producing and transporting the machine, dealing with it once it is past it's useful life etc.

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

And I'm convinced you're messing with me. My dryer probably cost $400 like 8 years ago and is still going strong. Dryer sheets?  They're what, $2.99 for a box of 500?  And space?  Seriously?  Part of the beauty of a dryer is that I don't have space to air dry everything I, my wife, and my kid wear in a given week. Takes up far more space than the 9sq ft my dryer does.

Seriously, you're fucking with me right?

[Half-Borg]

Now that you mention it, bringing my clothes to the gu around the corner is only 1,50 per piece, that's only like 15€ per week. I guess I need to do that. I'll need a new car though.

[turketron]

I have a dryer (it came with the place) but generally air dry clothes and just use it for sheets and towels. I don't have A/C in my place, and it was 85+ degrees for months here this summer, so sticking to air drying as much as possible did help keep the temps a little more comfortable.

[Kitsune]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

And then what do we do when there's been a 3-month period of no one puking, and everyone sleeping through the night? Get knocked up again.

*sigh*

Good thing they're cute, is all I'm sayin'.

[Playing with Fire UK]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

And then what do we do when there's been a 3-month period of no one puking, and everyone sleeping through the night? Get knocked up again.

*sigh*

Good thing they're cute, is all I'm sayin'.

Do I take it congratulations are in order Kitsune?

[Kitsune]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

And then what do we do when there's been a 3-month period of no one puking, and everyone sleeping through the night? Get knocked up again.

*sigh*

Good thing they're cute, is all I'm sayin'.

Do I take it congratulations are in order Kitsune?

Ooh yeah. I'm halfway through pregnancy, and may actually survive the nausea.

[jordanread]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

And then what do we do when there's been a 3-month period of no one puking, and everyone sleeping through the night? Get knocked up again.

*sigh*

Good thing they're cute, is all I'm sayin'.

Do I take it congratulations are in order Kitsune?

Ooh yeah. I'm halfway through pregnancy, and may actually survive the nausea.

Hotdamn Kitsune. Congrats!!

[boarder42]

Now that you mention it, bringing my clothes to the gu around the corner is only 1,50 per piece, that's only like 15€ per week. I guess I need to do that. I'll need a new car though.

huge difference between 15 a week and 70 bucks a year.  about 11x the difference. 

[TexasRunner]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

Obviously you have never lived in the southeast. I have line-dried items for 72 hours before and still come out to find them wet at the lower ends and damp throughout.

----------

Back to the real thread (sheesh).

Goat farmer guy (as aforementioned in thread) can't buy a 450$ hydraulic pump of some type for his truck for the next few weeks. A truck that he bought because he owns a farm.  That he drives 60 miles a day to our office job.  sigh...

[kayvent]

Chris22 with every post you convince me more and more that you're just messing with us ;)

The cost of a dryer isn't just the electricity. It's the depreciation - you had to buy the dryer in the first place, right? It's the space you have to put it in, you're paying rent or a mortgage on that (or paying for dryer use at the laundromat). Do you use any sheets etc? They cost money.

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable. When I left home and stopped drying my clothes with a dryer I could not believe how much longer they lasted. Seriously, if you haven't tried hanging everything to dry, it's a revelation how long clothes can last.

Finally, it's the environmental costs. Yeah, the electricity, the materials used to make the thing and keep it running, producing and transporting the machine, dealing with it once it is past it's useful life etc.

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

And I'm convinced you're messing with me. My dryer probably cost $400 like 8 years ago and is still going strong. Dryer sheets?  They're what, $2.99 for a box of 500?  And space?  Seriously?  Part of the beauty of a dryer is that I don't have space to air dry everything I, my wife, and my kid wear in a given week. Takes up far more space than the 9sq ft my dryer does.

Seriously, you're fucking with me right?

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/how-much-do-you-really-save-by-air-drying-your-clothes/

"filling up the line and letting it air dry saves about $1.08." ---for 3 loads....   I've got better things to do with my time....

If someone put a gun to my head and said keep one modern thing in your house, it would be the clothes washer---- it saves so many hours of labor... the dryer is a bonus I'm glad to have....

This is a great video from Hans Rosling about the industrial revolution and the benefits it gives us: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZoKfap4g4w. It is a Ted Talk and is called "The magic of the Dishwasher" and explains how these quality of life improvements have given us so much free time to do so much more enriching activities.

[MonkeyJenga]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

Holy shit. Remind me never to have pets of either the canine or human variety.

But um congrats to you, Kitsune!

(I'm not going to post about my coworkers and you can't make me. My office is in lower Manhattan, though, so the usual stereotypes apply.)

[Kitsune]

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

There are particular times where it might make sense to own and use a dryer.  When we were cloth diapering our newborn son, we needed the dryer.  Stuff just wouldn't dry fast enough otherwise.

It's very nice to have a dryer for those occasions where your son has just thrown up on your bedsheets and the dog then peed on your replacement set of bedsheets . . . because everyone was ignoring that she needed to go out due to the demonic projectile vomiting screaming child and you want to wash/dry the sheets because it's already an hour past the time you wanted to go to sleep.  And your wife bursts into tears, and you slip in some vomit that nobody cleaned up, and then you burst into tears, and the dog starts howling.  That type of scenario seems to come up at least a couple times a year in our home.

Holy shit. Remind me never to have pets of either the canine or human variety.

But um congrats to you, Kitsune!

(I'm not going to post about my coworkers and you can't make me. My office is in lower Manhattan, though, so the usual stereotypes apply.)

Hah, thanks.

The first kid is an exercise in optimism. Pretty sure doing it again is a combination of masochism and amnesia.

Joking aside: it's worth it, but you have to want it.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

A work colleague was discussing the 'professional head shots' she is getting done this weekend for her Linked in profile. Is that a thing people do???

Depends on the sport, and how well she can bob and weave.

[SeaEhm]

My neighbors and I love drying our clothes.

[SeaEhm]

My gas bill was under $12 last month for a gas dryer, gas cook top, and gas water heater

Actually, the land where my dryer sits cost me about $1900 to purchase.  So that guy does have a point.  In 30 years, I hope that I can sell that land for about $4k though.

[LeRainDrop]

This is a great video from Hans Rosling about the industrial revolution and the benefits it gives us: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZoKfap4g4w. It is a Ted Talk and is called "The magic of the Dishwasher" and explains how these quality of life improvements have given us so much free time to do so much more enriching activities.

Nice!  I'm on the PRO-dryer side.  Also live in the southeast where it can take two days for my sweaters to air dry.

A work colleague was discussing the 'professional head shots' she is getting done this weekend for her Linked in profile. Is that a thing people do???

Alas, it can be when they're gonna look for a new job!

[With This Herring]

A work colleague was discussing the 'professional head shots' she is getting done this weekend for her Linked in profile. Is that a thing people do???

Depends on the sport, and how well she can bob and weave.

Haha, nice!

And, yes, I know a number of people who have gotten professionally photographed for LinkedIn profile photos.

[financialfreedomsloth]

So, after adding some more foam tot his thread (like it needed any more .. The orange and black box are overflowing already with foam .. :-) I do have an overheard/witnessed at work story to share with you.

A young co-worker fresh from university more or less strong arms her boyfriend to go live together. They lived separately, each in their own studentsflat/room in the city where they had gone to university but since they were now working she was ready to start her adult live. He just liked to hang out with friends and I got the impression he was way less in a hurry to embrace the adult live.

Anyway, since the university city is very expensive on the housing front she finds an apartment in a city 2 train stops away. It has frequent connections with the city where she works but her commute time is 2x longer now and in all honesty the little city she moves to is small and very boring, as a young person it would not be a place I would like to live. But it did definitely stop him from hanging out with friends so much.
But the apartment is in a brand new building, so they are paying top euro’s (so they do not save on rent money, they just have a bit more room and a brand new apartment, in their university city you can rent for that amount, but it will be in an older building and with less room).
New apartment, well they need new furniture off course. So for weeks on end we get to hear stories of all the furniture she is buying. Granted, she did shop for a lot at ikea but even that can add up after a while. And she is buying stuff even I do not have (and I am 15 years older and bought my own place). Since the apartment was brand new it was not yet painted so she buys all the paint and paints the apartment herself (matching with the furniture, very hip colors). Now in Belgium painting walls and such is normally something the landlord does, often people do the painting (because they like to choose the colors) but it is the landlording paying the paint. Not my co-worker, she didn’t even ask if the building owner wanted to pay for the paint and just bought it all herself.

So renting brand new apartment, freshly painted on her euro with all new furniture and cracks start to appear. He is starting to hang out at friends in the university city, even sleeping over. They have fights over it. The relationship ends, a few weeks later she turns out to be pregnant. Normally I really do not like guys dodging their parental duties but here I got a strong vibe that it was an ‘oopsy pregnancy’ by her to try trap the guy in a relationship that was already breaking apart.

So single mother to be in a little city with 0 friends nearby. After a few weeks she does realize this is not going to work out and decides to move back in with her mother (was actually advise from us, she was first reluctant but she didn’t really have any other chose if she wanted to keep her job she needed somebody to pick up the baby at the crèche, her mother is a teacher so that was very convenient).
Living at the mother should have permitted her to save a decent % of her pay check, even with the baby expenses. Of course, those baby expenses were on the high side: name brand baby clothing, nothing second hand, …
After a year she does start thinking about buying a place of her own, but not too far from the mother since she would still need somebody to pick up the baby as she would not be able to when working.

Then start the stories of her apartment hunting. It is expensive (correct, where her mom lives is an expensive place), it takes time, complain, complain, complain... But again, she is looking for new buildings that are 100% in order with no work to be done. I try to nudge her in the direction of an older building with some work because you are never going to find a bargain when looking at new build apartments. She does go to look at a few older buildings but nope, they are too much hassle and too much work (duh, that is why they are cheaper!).
So she stops looking because ‘everything is too expensive, I cannot afford anything decend’.
You would think that after this she would finally start to save. But no, still more expensive baby clothing, going out for drinks …
But now we also get stories of her dad (parents are divorced) who has a shopping addiction: he buys tons of CD’s or DVD’s and doesn’t watch them or even open the package a lot of the time. This has been going one for a long time but we hear about it now because he already spent the small inheritance he got from the grandmother on crap but the big part of the inheritance was coming (it took some time to sell the house of the grandmother, and well the co-worker comes from well off family, the grandmothers property was big, even divided among her three children her father is going to get a lot). And she is worried he is going to spend it all on useless crap. So she was planning an intervention with the family to try to convince her father he needed help with his shopping addiction.

I did agree with her that her dad had a problem and should get some help but some remarks of her made it clear that she wanted him to stop buying crap so she could have some of the inheritance to be able to buy a nice place. And yes helping a child to buy a house definitely is a better use of money than buying another boxset of DvD’s nobody is going to watch and are since Netflix nearly worthless anyway (the drop in DVD prices only got him to buy more of them, he didn’t get a Netflix subscription because ‘he doesn’t have the time to watch anything anyway’, …)
Funny how she only wanted to fix her father’s problem when she could use the money and it wasn’t a problem before, and at the same time she did nothing to reduce her own spending.

I changed work shortly after this so no idea how it all worked out …
It was a real live example how a well off family can become ‘poor’ in just two generations. The grandparents were upper-class, the father becomes a gynecologist and should have remained upper-class but his shopping addiction is holding him in middle class (for now, since he is still working and making good money, once he retires I am afraid it is going to be a different story) and she is making a middle class wage but has upper class taste but doesn’t realize that without the support of her mother who is also middle class she would have ended up poor …

[jinga nation]

(I'm not going to post about my coworkers and you can't make me. My office is in lower Manhattan, though, so the usual stereotypes apply.)

Please educate me. I don't what Manhattan stereotypes are.
Come on, you can't state that you have co-workers with facepalm-worthy stories and then not tell us. That is a yooge tease.

[Pooperman]

(I'm not going to post about my coworkers and you can't make me. My office is in lower Manhattan, though, so the usual stereotypes apply.)

Please educate me. I don't what Manhattan stereotypes are.
Come on, you can't state that you have co-workers with facepalm-worthy stories and then not tell us. That is a yooge tease.

Lunch is about $15/day at the it place of the moment, lots of conspicuous consumption, fancy coffees, you know.

[ender]

And I'm convinced you're messing with me. My dryer probably cost $400 like 8 years ago and is still going strong. Dryer sheets?  They're what, $2.99 for a box of 500?  And space?  Seriously?  Part of the beauty of a dryer is that I don't have space to air dry everything I, my wife, and my kid wear in a given week. Takes up far more space than the 9sq ft my dryer does.

Seriously, you're fucking with me right?

Why do you even use dryer sheets?

[Chris22]

And I'm convinced you're messing with me. My dryer probably cost $400 like 8 years ago and is still going strong. Dryer sheets?  They're what, $2.99 for a box of 500?  And space?  Seriously?  Part of the beauty of a dryer is that I don't have space to air dry everything I, my wife, and my kid wear in a given week. Takes up far more space than the 9sq ft my dryer does.

Seriously, you're fucking with me right?

Why do you even use dryer sheets?

Reduces static cling.

[kayvent]

And I'm convinced you're messing with me. My dryer probably cost $400 like 8 years ago and is still going strong. Dryer sheets?  They're what, $2.99 for a box of 500?  And space?  Seriously?  Part of the beauty of a dryer is that I don't have space to air dry everything I, my wife, and my kid wear in a given week. Takes up far more space than the 9sq ft my dryer does.

Seriously, you're fucking with me right?

Why do you even use dryer sheets?

Reduces static cling.

And softens cloths. And makes them smell nice. They help to keep stains out of your cloths.

And reduces lint on clothing in the dryer process.

[ender]

Huh, I've never had any of those problems not using them for years.

[RetiredAt63]

Dryer sheets reduce absorbency.  I've been a guest and been given lovely thick fluffy towels to use - that do not soak up any water.  My air-dried towels may be a bit stiffer but they actually function as towels.

[nanu]

Dryer sheets reduce absorbency.  I've been a guest and been given lovely thick fluffy towels to use - that do not soak up any water.  My air-dried towels may be a bit stiffer but they actually function as towels.

Are you sure those aren't just the towels? I have some towels that are nice to touch but have absolutely zero absorption capability, while other towels from different materials absorb water just fine.
And I wash and dry them both just the same (in a dryer, with dryer sheets)

[Chris22]

Dryer sheets reduce absorbency.  I've been a guest and been given lovely thick fluffy towels to use - that do not soak up any water.  My air-dried towels may be a bit stiffer but they actually function as towels.

Just do this once in a while:

http://lifehacker.com/5362234/use-vinegar-and-baking-soda-to-recharge-your-towels

[zolotiyeruki]

Dryer sheets reduce absorbency.  I've been a guest and been given lovely thick fluffy towels to use - that do not soak up any water.  My air-dried towels may be a bit stiffer but they actually function as towels.

Are you sure those aren't just the towels? I have some towels that are nice to touch but have absolutely zero absorption capability, while other towels from different materials absorb water just fine.
And I wash and dry them both just the same (in a dryer, with dryer sheets)

I've had the exact same experience.  The towels have all been treated the same way, too.

[mm1970]

Chris22 with every post you convince me more and more that you're just messing with us ;)

The cost of a dryer isn't just the electricity. It's the depreciation - you had to buy the dryer in the first place, right? It's the space you have to put it in, you're paying rent or a mortgage on that (or paying for dryer use at the laundromat). Do you use any sheets etc? They cost money.

It's also the wear and tear on your clothes and other washables, which, believe me, is considerable. When I left home and stopped drying my clothes with a dryer I could not believe how much longer they lasted. Seriously, if you haven't tried hanging everything to dry, it's a revelation how long clothes can last.

Finally, it's the environmental costs. Yeah, the electricity, the materials used to make the thing and keep it running, producing and transporting the machine, dealing with it once it is past it's useful life etc.

The air dries clothes perfectly well. I literally don't understand owning a machine to do... exactly what nature will do given a few hours.

(And I live in a rainy damp place. 24 hours is the max anything takes to dry inside even if it's been on a low spin cycle. If your clothes don't dry in that time you probably need to look at how healthy an indoor environment your house is providing).

I know it seems like Chris22 is messing with us a lot, but I'm kind of with him on this one.

Sure, I grew up hanging clothing to dry and all. 

But first: depreciation.  The dryer in our house came with the house and is from approximately 1987, I think.  I did a google on the part number.
Next: space and "mortgage".  In my area, the land cost is more than the house cost.  I don't think the 3x3 space that the dryer takes up is worth "more" than the back yard area it would take to hang clothes.  We do hang some things inside that we don't want to shrink, but the rack takes up more space than the dryer.

Also, of course, with the drought, it's very very dusty and there are small birds that poop in our back patio area.  We used to dry our clothing on an umbrella style clothesline underneath an easy-up.  But that's a lot of work, to put that up every weekend.  We did get lazy at one point, stopped taking it all down, and then a windstorm blew down the easy up and ripped a hole in it.

I do agree it's easier on the clothes, and I like the fresh air smell.  But I don't do the laundry anymore, and if my hubby likes the dryer, he likes the dryer.  (I also agree that the gas dryer is the minimal cost in our house, less than the oven and hot water).

[Chris22]

(I'm not going to post about my coworkers and you can't make me. My office is in lower Manhattan, though, so the usual stereotypes apply.)

Please educate me. I don't what Manhattan stereotypes are.
Come on, you can't state that you have co-workers with facepalm-worthy stories and then not tell us. That is a yooge tease.

Lunch in lower Manhattan for $15 sounds honestly pretty cheap to me!  What do they do, drink the leftover water from the hotdog cart guy for that price?
Lunch is about $15/day at the it place of the moment, lots of conspicuous consumption, fancy coffees, you know.

[Papa Mustache]

Our first new electric washer and dryer lasted darn near 20 years. I don't see what the crisis is. If you use them less I guess they might last 25-30 years.

We started out with hand-me-downs that needed TLC and they too lasted about 20 years all together.

That's about $50 per year if the original set cost $1000 which our's did not (cheaper).

Compare that to going to the laundry-mat for $10-$15 per visit. That's ~80 visits before you could have paid for the laundry machines. About 80 weeks of laundry? And transportation costs too. I would have to drive to a laundrymat - an additional $2 or so each trip.

And as mentioned before you might have trouble getting clothes to dry quickly enough on the line. And don't forget popup afternoon showers. You might leave clothes out all day only to have them rain on by the afternoon showers. Easier if you are home all day of course and can rush out to rescue the laundry.

[Dollar Slice]

Lunch in lower Manhattan for $15 sounds honestly pretty cheap to me!  What do they do, drink the leftover water from the hotdog cart guy for that price?

Midtown Manhattan lunch prices near me... sandwich (falafel, meatball, grilled chicken etc.) $6-$8. Fancy salad: $10-$12. Sauteed greens/grains/veg bowl: $8-$9. Pizza: $1-$3/slice. Soup: $3-$6.

Of course you could find more expensive places if you tried, but the restaurant/take-out prices here are not that bad.

[MgoSam]

Lunch in lower Manhattan for $15 sounds honestly pretty cheap to me!  What do they do, drink the leftover water from the hotdog cart guy for that price?

Midtown Manhattan lunch prices near me... sandwich (falafel, meatball, grilled chicken etc.) $6-$8. Fancy salad: $10-$12. Sauteed greens/grains/veg bowl: $8-$9. Pizza: $1-$3/slice. Soup: $3-$6.

Of course you could find more expensive places if you tried, but the restaurant/take-out prices here are not that bad.

Good answer, I was going to say that while I imagine Manhattan will have higher prices than nearly the rest of the country, I'm sure you can find lunch for under $10 if you look. If nothing else there has to be a hot dog stand within walking distance of some of the office buildings.

[MrMoogle]

Our first new electric washer and dryer lasted darn near 20 years. I don't see what the crisis is. If you use them less I guess they might last 25-30 years.

We started out with hand-me-downs that needed TLC and they too lasted about 20 years all together.

That's about $50 per year if the original set cost $1000 which our's did not (cheaper).

Compare that to going to the laundry-mat for $10-$15 per visit. That's ~80 visits before you could have paid for the laundry machines. About 80 weeks of laundry? And transportation costs too. I would have to drive to a laundrymat - an additional $2 or so each trip.

And as mentioned before you might have trouble getting clothes to dry quickly enough on the line. And don't forget popup afternoon showers. You might leave clothes out all day only to have them rain on by the afternoon showers. Easier if you are home all day of course and can rush out to rescue the laundry.

As a single guy, I pay about $10/month for using my landlord's washer and dryer.  So that's 100 months just to pay for the machines, then more to pay for the electricity for those machines.  It's within walking distance, but most of my neighbors do drive.  Maybe I'm getting a great deal or something, but it just doesn't seem worth it to buy my own.  Now, if I bought used, that would make more sense, but I still don't have room for them, so I'd need a bigger apartment, more rent...