Overheard at Work

[Seppia]

Does he get gas from Amazon?

[Fearthebait]

He said he will fill up a few gascans next time he goes out. I'm sure they we're an upgrade from the kind hearted dealership as well.

[lemanfan]

-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves

Bazinga!

[larmando]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

The cash that you'd be using to pay someone to do the work has probably had tax paid on it too. So if your highest marginal rate of tax is 20%, then the £10 you've paid someone to a job needs you to earn £12.50. If you're a 40% tax payer, you'd need to earn £16.66 to generate the money to pay someone £10.

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

Impossible, you have to pay yourself first.

[arebelspy]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

The cash that you'd be using to pay someone to do the work has probably had tax paid on it too. So if your highest marginal rate of tax is 20%, then the £10 you've paid someone to a job needs you to earn £12.50. If you're a 40% tax payer, you'd need to earn £16.66 to generate the money to pay someone £10.

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

Impossible, you have to pay yourself first.

Hah.

As a non-sarcastic aside, I think pay yourself first is terrible advice for a Mustachian.

[ender]

As a non-sarcastic aside, I think pay yourself first is terrible advice for a Mustachian.

Why?

There's my HSA, then my 401k, and then IRA.

What's wrong with paying myself first? ;-)

[Warlord1986]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

That's beautiful. If he really plans to fill up gas cans, you might want to remind him that gas is useless after six months.

[Travis]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

Korea?

[Metric Mouse]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

That's beautiful. If he really plans to fill up gas cans, you might want to remind him that gas is useless after six months.

Sounds like not burning enough gas will not be a problem...

[Fearthebait]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

Korea?

Middle east in a country most people have never heard of.

[Travis]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

Korea?

Middle east in a country most people have never heard of.

Gotcha.  This vehicle purchase is doubly ridiculous considering the Middle East countries that a) we're friends with b) we have bases and c) you can buy a POV while deployed are all very small. 

[TomTX]

The jury is out on whether Friday is Frey's, Freya's or Frigg's day. The fun part is that you have kept all the Nordic names, except for Saturday. In the Nordic languages this is the washing day (laugardagur), but you would rather watch the time go by? (Saturn = god of time).

As a Nordic citizen I have to report that of course we don't wash ourselves on Saturdays. That would be a serious health threat and quite wasteful. We take our annual baths just before Midwinter Sacrifice. Whether we need it or not.

Nobody likes a dirty sacrifice!

[Papa Mustache]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

I remind our teenager that he is poor and just about unemployed (part time work) so the notions of custom cars and motorcycles will have to wait until he has more money in a few year. He might have enough money to buy something shiny but he still can't afford it b/c it decimates his savings. ;)

We mapped out the major life events over his next ten years the other night in the car. School (uni or trades) or military, first apartment, maybe marriage, maybe children of his own, adventures/travel, etc. I think I smelled smoke wafting out of his ears after that conversation. ;)

[Kitsune]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

I remind our teenager that he is poor and just about unemployed (part time work) so the notions of custom cars and motorcycles will have to wait until he has more money in a few year. He might have enough money to buy something shiny but he still can't afford it b/c it decimates his savings. ;)

We mapped out the major life events over his next ten years the other night in the car. School (uni or trades) or military, first apartment, maybe marriage, maybe children of his own, adventures/travel, etc. I think I smelled smoke wafting out of his ears after that conversation. ;)

Excellent parenting job. :)

[Papa Mustache]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

Unless you have kids, or don't have enough time to sleep.  Then you can argue that it's worth it!

Time is always worth something.  You always have an opportunity cost, what else you could be doing with that time.

True. I installed a new faucet and disposal yesterday (Sunday afternoon). I'd work for a while and then pop my head up and look at the beautiful day outside through the kitchen window, then I'd go back to work. Saved ~$200+ yesterday not calling a plumber.

Yep - I blew my opportunity to wash the car and rake leaves.... ;)

[Papa Mustache]

BINGO!

I've heard people say well, you make $$ per hour at work, of course you can afford to pay someone $ per hour to do your task.

No, I'm at home, in the evening or on the weekend. I have time to do it. I have the skills to do it. I might hire someone but its not b/c I don't have the time.

Usually I hire it out if I don't have the skills and then I watch so next time I can do it for myself. ;)

Yep. When I complain about boring errands, my husband always reminds me, "unless you get a second job, your free time is worth nothing".

Also, I remember complaining to my dad about the hourly rate at my first job (£3.83 an hour). He said, "Do you think you're worth more?", and I said, "Yeah, I'm worth like £5 an hour!".

And he just said, "Nope. Sorry. You're worth what you can get someone to pay you. Not a penny more". Good lesson.

The cash that you'd be using to pay someone to do the work has probably had tax paid on it too. So if your highest marginal rate of tax is 20%, then the £10 you've paid someone to a job needs you to earn £12.50. If you're a 40% tax payer, you'd need to earn £16.66 to generate the money to pay someone £10.

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

My coffee hasn't kicked in yet and I'm pretty dimwitted right now.

Can you explain what you mean here?

[Papa Mustache]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

Korea?

GITMO?

[Pooperman]

Alright, I will update this with a picture shortly, but today I saw something truly amazing.

An individual pulled up to work in a brand new Chevy Silverado with KC Light attachments, 6" lift, front end police bumper add-on, and about 10 other "Upgrades" that I could spot from the exterior. The car must have cost him at least $50k although he wouldn't tell me what he actually paid. Pretty bad already, but here are some more details to make you cringe:

-The base is only 3 miles from end to end
-DFAC/Gym/Work all within 100 meters of the barracks, it literally takes longer to drive to these locations than it does to walk
-Only allowed to leave base every few weeks
-Only here for 1 year
-Can't ship the vehicle home
-Plans to sell it "At a profit" when he leaves
-No gas station available on base

Korea?

GITMO?

[With This Herring]

The cash that you'd be using to pay someone to do the work has probably had tax paid on it too. So if your highest marginal rate of tax is 20%, then the £10 you've paid someone to a job needs you to earn £12.50. If you're a 40% tax payer, you'd need to earn £16.66 to generate the money to pay someone £10.

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

My coffee hasn't kicked in yet and I'm pretty dimwitted right now.

Can you explain what you mean here?

It's just a joke.  cerat0n1a is saying that you are effectively paying someone else after tax at your highest marginal tax rate, so the last dollars you earn.  ARS is jokingly saying to just pay instead with the first dollars you earn, those taxed at the lowest rate or not taxed, as if it made any difference with something fungible such as money.

[Royale with Moustache]

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

My coffee hasn't kicked in yet and I'm pretty dimwitted right now.

Can you explain what you mean here?

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

[MrRealEstate]

The trick to avoiding that: Pay them with the first dollar you earn, not the last.

My coffee hasn't kicked in yet and I'm pretty dimwitted right now.

Can you explain what you mean here?

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

Unless it's tax deductible, then using the last dollar is better than the first..?

[zephyr911]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

[zolotiyeruki]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

Actually, that first dollar only has a marginal rate of 0% if you have non-refundable credits that take your total tax to $0.  If you've got refundable credits greater than your total tax (i.e. if you have lots of kids), the marginal rate for that first dollar is still 10%.  Source: me doing my taxes earlier this year.

[RyanAtTanagra]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

Actually, that first dollar only has a marginal rate of 0% if you have non-refundable credits that take your total tax to $0.  If you've got refundable credits greater than your total tax (i.e. if you have lots of kids), the marginal rate for that first dollar is still 10%.  Source: me doing my taxes earlier this year.

Marginal rate for first dollar should never be over 0% since everyone gets a standard deduction.

[zephyr911]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

Actually, that first dollar only has a marginal rate of 0% if you have non-refundable credits that take your total tax to $0.  If you've got refundable credits greater than your total tax (i.e. if you have lots of kids), the marginal rate for that first dollar is still 10%.  Source: me doing my taxes earlier this year.

Your first dollar of taxable income isn't the same as your first dollar of income. Source: standard deduction, personal exemption, and so on.

[zolotiyeruki]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

Actually, that first dollar only has a marginal rate of 0% if you have non-refundable credits that take your total tax to $0.  If you've got refundable credits greater than your total tax (i.e. if you have lots of kids), the marginal rate for that first dollar is still 10%.  Source: me doing my taxes earlier this year.

Your first dollar of taxable income isn't the same as your first dollar of income. Source: standard deduction, personal exemption, and so on.

We're both correct, just talking about two different scenarios.  You're correct if deductions and exemptions reduce taxable income to $0.  I'm correct if the "This is your tax" line is >$0 but non-refundable credits reduce the tax to $0

[zephyr911]

I'm pretty sure that what I'm saying is accurate for either scenario, but I may be missing something.

[zolotiyeruki]

I'm pretty sure that what I'm saying is accurate for either scenario, but I may be missing something.

You know what?  You're right--I was thinking about things backwards.  Sorry!

[zephyr911]

I'm pretty sure that what I'm saying is accurate for either scenario, but I may be missing something.

You know what?  You're right--I was thinking about things backwards.  Sorry!

NP, let's hug it out.

[arebelspy]

Only on the MMM forums would that stupid joke I made generate a dozen posts of discussion.  I heart you guys.  :)

[ender]

Because of marginal tax rates the first dollar is only taxed at ~10%, while the last dollar may have been taxed at ~33%. Thus, using the first $10 would only really cost $11 while if you used the last $10 it costs you more like $15.

The first dollar is at a zero rate, or possibly even a negative marginal rate, with little things like EITC and saver's credits....

depends on FICA too ;)

[cerat0n1a]

Only on the MMM forums would that stupid joke I made generate a dozen posts of discussion.  I heart you guys.  :)

I was admiring the fact that the OP had framed the problem in £, I'd responded with UK tax rate examples and we'd then segued into the intricacies of the US tax code ;-) Maybe if I'd pointed out that the tradesperson might have to charge 20% VAT on the work too, depending on the size of their business, we could have digressed onto the intricacies of sales tax?

Back on topic, company I work for was acquired a couple of months back. All employees had share options, so everyone has an unexpected lump of cash. Company paid for a lot of (good quality) financial advice re pensions, tax, ISAs and other investments and (lots of mathematically minded engineers here) most people have been pretty sensible.

Lady I work with calculated that laser surgery on her eyes would pay back vs the cost of contact lenses pretty quickly and has had the operation, which seems OK. However, she's also bought a new BMW on finance (6% interest rate) in spite of having the cash, because "the dealer threw in 12 months free insurance if you took their finance package."

[LennStar]

However, she's also bought a new BMW on finance (6% interest rate) in spite of having the cash, because "the dealer threw in 12 months free insurance if you took their finance package."

I gues she doesn't know how cheap insurance is. I was surprised too when my dealer said it costs him about 50€ per year. Ok, was a cheap car, but still.

[kayvent]

Only on the MMM forums would that stupid joke I made generate a dozen posts of discussion.  I heart you guys.  :)

I was admiring the fact that the OP had framed the problem in £, I'd responded with UK tax rate examples and we'd then segued into the intricacies of the US tax code ;-) Maybe if I'd pointed out that the tradesperson might have to charge 20% VAT on the work too, depending on the size of their business, we could have digressed onto the intricacies of sales tax?

Back on topic, company I work for was acquired a couple of months back. All employees had share options, so everyone has an unexpected lump of cash. Company paid for a lot of (good quality) financial advice re pensions, tax, ISAs and other investments and (lots of mathematically minded engineers here) most people have been pretty sensible.

Lady I work with calculated that laser surgery on her eyes would pay back vs the cost of contact lenses pretty quickly and has had the operation, which seems OK. However, she's also bought a new BMW on finance (6% interest rate) in spite of having the cash, because "the dealer threw in 12 months free insurance if you took their finance package."

She bought the BMW because the dealer threw in the insurance, she bought it on financing terms because of the insurance, or she bought the BMW AND financed it because of the free insurance?

If it is 6% and no interest in the first X-months (and she can pay it off before then), that's not a horrible deal. Except for the BMW.

[cerat0n1a]

she bought it on financing terms because of the insurance.
If it is 6% and no interest in the first X-months (and she can pay it off before then), that's not a horrible deal.

I don't think there's any interest free period and she can't pay off early. I reckon the 6% interest will cost her over £4000 over the term of the loan. The insurance is probably approaching £1000 - it's only for the first year.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

she bought it on financing terms because of the insurance.
If it is 6% and no interest in the first X-months (and she can pay it off before then), that's not a horrible deal.

I don't think there's any interest free period and she can't pay off early. I reckon the 6% interest will cost her over £4000 over the term of the loan. The insurance is probably approaching £1000 - it's only for the first year.

Globally, there's still a lot of variation in terms of what the laws allow lenders to do. Not accepting early loan payoffs, or charging a fee for them, is not legal everywhere. It pays to know the laws of the country, province, and state you're living in.

[sleepyguy]

Chatting sports over instant msg to a coworker of mine in the US.  Nice but generally complains about money problems, underwater mortgage, car payments, kids expenses, nothing saved for retirement, working til 75, etc etc. 

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

[jinga nation]

Not my workplace.

Wife tells me last night that her boss, the CFO (in his upper 50s/low60s, makes $200k + bonus) said that he needs to work another 20 years to pay off his house. He thinks he'll be working past retirement age. Meanwhile he has no qualms on throwing a wedding at Disney for one of his kids, annual Disney passes (staying at resort hotels). From what I've heard, he's an enabler for his kids. His wife is always getting some form of plastic surgery.

My comment: So we're closer to retirement than him, huh? (Hooray, Team Jinga Nation!) In other news, sunny with blue skies in Tampa Bay.

[Miss Piggy]

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

Sounds crazy, but with me and my husband both being lifelong Cubs fans, I don't find this shocking at all. In fact, we considered buying tickets for a game as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but honestly, if the Cubs lost that game, my soul would be crushed. Not worth the risk. (On the other hand, if the Cubs won the game, I would consider that money well spent. Crazy, I know.)

[onlykelsey]

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

Sounds crazy, but with me and my husband both being lifelong Cubs fans, I don't find this shocking at all. In fact, we considered buying tickets for a game as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but honestly, if the Cubs lost that game, my soul would be crushed. Not worth the risk. (On the other hand, if the Cubs won the game, I would consider that money well spent. Crazy, I know.)

Sure, but I imagine you are not planning on working until you drop dead and have enough money to pay your bills and save for retirement, no?

[Miss Piggy]

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

Sounds crazy, but with me and my husband both being lifelong Cubs fans, I don't find this shocking at all. In fact, we considered buying tickets for a game as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but honestly, if the Cubs lost that game, my soul would be crushed. Not worth the risk. (On the other hand, if the Cubs won the game, I would consider that money well spent. Crazy, I know.)

Sure, but I imagine you are not planning on working until you drop dead and have enough money to pay your bills and save for retirement, no?

You imagine correctly. We are FI with plans to RE in a few years. So yeah, it would set us back a week or two. ;)

[mtn]

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

Sounds crazy, but with me and my husband both being lifelong Cubs fans, I don't find this shocking at all. In fact, we considered buying tickets for a game as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but honestly, if the Cubs lost that game, my soul would be crushed. Not worth the risk. (On the other hand, if the Cubs won the game, I would consider that money well spent. Crazy, I know.)

Sure, but I imagine you are not planning on working until you drop dead and have enough money to pay your bills and save for retirement, no?

You imagine correctly. We are FI with plans to RE in a few years. So yeah, it would set us back a week or two. ;)

My wife, generally pretty frugal, is working on convincing me to go to a game (by myself). I'm looking hard for a ticket on craigslist. I'm considering driving to Cleveland and back tomorrow and seeing one there.

[Miss Piggy]

My wife, generally pretty frugal, is working on convincing me to go to a game (by myself). I'm looking hard for a ticket on craigslist. I'm considering driving to Cleveland and back tomorrow and seeing one there.

Something doesn't seem very safe about buying a ticket like this (at current prices) on Craigslist. Is there something I don't know about safely buying tickets on Craigslist, or are you just hoping for the best? For some reason, StubHub seems safe to me, but Craigslist doesn't.

[mtn]

My wife, generally pretty frugal, is working on convincing me to go to a game (by myself). I'm looking hard for a ticket on craigslist. I'm considering driving to Cleveland and back tomorrow and seeing one there.

Something doesn't seem very safe about buying a ticket like this (at current prices) on Craigslist. Is there something I don't know about safely buying tickets on Craigslist, or are you just hoping for the best? For some reason, StubHub seems safe to me, but Craigslist doesn't.

There are ways to protect yourself.
1: Transfer on ticketmaster, where a new barcode is generated and the old one null and void (and they won't have access to it)
2: In person transaction, at a police station, where I can obtain the persons information including drivers license, license plate number, and do a thorough search on them (facebook, linkedin, google)
3: Cash transaction at the ballpark, where I am in front of them in line, hand the cashiers check/cash to them immediately prior to entering the stadium (I enter before them).

You're right though, it does require due diligence. I've already backed out of one deal prior to this (different game; it was only $50 for that one). The one time I did a cash for physical ticket transaction prior to the game was from a fireman, and the transaction was conducted in his Chief's office.

[Pooperman]

My wife, generally pretty frugal, is working on convincing me to go to a game (by myself). I'm looking hard for a ticket on craigslist. I'm considering driving to Cleveland and back tomorrow and seeing one there.

Something doesn't seem very safe about buying a ticket like this (at current prices) on Craigslist. Is there something I don't know about safely buying tickets on Craigslist, or are you just hoping for the best? For some reason, StubHub seems safe to me, but Craigslist doesn't.

I bought tickets to the world series last year because I'm a Mets fan. They lost and I was sad, but having the opportunity to go before moving away from the NYC area was well worth it. I used StubHub.

[Miss Piggy]

There are ways to protect yourself.
1: Transfer on ticketmaster, where a new barcode is generated and the old one null and void (and they won't have access to it)
2: In person transaction, at a police station, where I can obtain the persons information including drivers license, license plate number, and do a thorough search on them (facebook, linkedin, google)
3: Cash transaction at the ballpark, where I am in front of them in line, hand the cashiers check/cash to them immediately prior to entering the stadium (I enter before them).

You're right though, it does require due diligence. I've already backed out of one deal prior to this (different game; it was only $50 for that one). The one time I did a cash for physical ticket transaction prior to the game was from a fireman, and the transaction was conducted in his Chief's office.

Good suggestions. I especially like the Ticketmaster transfer. Was not aware of that option.

[BDWW]

Chatting sports over instant msg to a coworker of mine in the US.  Nice but generally complains about money problems, underwater mortgage, car payments, kids expenses, nothing saved for retirement, working til 75, etc etc. 

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

It's kind of nice being a soccer fan, MLS tickets are rarely more than $50 bucks. Even in Europe most of the tickets are less than $100. It's kind of an American thing to pay ridiculous amount of money to watch a game live.

[druth]

Chatting sports over instant msg to a coworker of mine in the US.  Nice but generally complains about money problems, underwater mortgage, car payments, kids expenses, nothing saved for retirement, working til 75, etc etc. 

Told me he's going to all the World Series games all for a fantastic deal of $2500 (3 games).

me ---> <shock of silence>

Is that for the whole trip everything included or just the tickets?  I'm paying a lot less than that to go to Europe for a month...

[Kitsune]

Overheard at work and pissing me off: "Oh, this team of people is refusing to do *thing that has been determined they will be doing as part of their daily duties* because they feel like the decision to do it has been imposed on them."

Like... Yes? Yes, in fact, that's the trade you make by having a job. You accept that someone else can tell you want the job entails, and in return you get X amount of money. If you are unhappy with that, you have options: you can look for another job, you can quit and live on savings, you can protest (if you're part of a union, I guess - and, frankly, this is not a big thing, so good luck protesting).

But saying "I want to get paid while not accomplishing tasks that have been determined I should do because I didn't decide to do it" is just... lady. you are missing the point so hard. If you want to stay home and have money, work to be FI. Until then, you are selling your time, and you do your job. WTF.

[mm1970]

Overheard at work and pissing me off: "Oh, this team of people is refusing to do *thing that has been determined they will be doing as part of their daily duties* because they feel like the decision to do it has been imposed on them."

Like... Yes? Yes, in fact, that's the trade you make by having a job. You accept that someone else can tell you want the job entails, and in return you get X amount of money. If you are unhappy with that, you have options: you can look for another job, you can quit and live on savings, you can protest (if you're part of a union, I guess - and, frankly, this is not a big thing, so good luck protesting).

But saying "I want to get paid while not accomplishing tasks that have been determined I should do because I didn't decide to do it" is just... lady. you are missing the point so hard. If you want to stay home and have money, work to be FI. Until then, you are selling your time, and you do your job. WTF.

That's a slippery slope though, and there are probably times when a protest is warranted (not making a judgment here).

Signed,
A senior female engineer who finally said "fuck you, do your own damn Fed ex".