Overheard at Work

[Frugal_is_Fab]

Just saw the funniest thing near work but not inside it.   My office is in a very wealthy suburb of LA where some celebrities live. (I don't live there!)  Anyway, I saw a newer Mercedes Benz with "Student Driver" signs posted all over and the company name was something like "Mercedes driving school".   Does this imply that new teen drivers in this community get 50k+ cars as the first car?   WTF!!!!

Anyway...hysterical.  It's important to go to school to learn to drive a luxury car.  Nothing less will do for the little darlings.  HA! HA! HA!

[Frugal_is_Fab]

Overheard some folks I don't know at work during my lunch break:
She: So has your son decided where to go?
He: Not exactly.
She: [To other co-worker] He's paid into the state pre-paid program, but his son doesn't know if he wants to stay here.
He: We talked about it this week, and Son just isn't sure where he wants to go. He did remind us that we promised him a new car when he graduates high school. I told him he has a better shot at a new car [I presume otherwise it would be used, lol] if he stays in state. That way he'd get the new car, have 4 years of college paid for, and it will give us those 4 years to save up for his graduate school. I hope he chooses that.
She: Yeah, that's the best option. Hopefully he'll realize that soon."






I know the whole "should you pay for your kid's college" thing depends on your parenting/financial philosophy, but if you're willing to pay for college, shouldn't you...I don't know...get to have a say in where the kid goes?? A 17-year-old is not capable of making such a big decision, nor should his parents just sit idly by while their son makes decisions on what their money should go toward! And saving up for his graduate school, too? This guy looked older, at least in his late 40s/early 50s; I think that money would be better served going into his retirement fund.

Never mind the whole idea of buying a college freshman a new car when most college campuses either don't have room for or straight up don't allow cars your first year. And what do you need one for? You can walk most campuses pretty easily and really only need to bum rides to the airport or train/bus station to go home for the holidays. Sheesh.

This reminds me of my year of internal eye rolling while I had to listen to a coworker's endless bragging about her "wonder" son who was going to an expensive out of state school as a freshman to major in engineering , whereas my lesser child went to a mere community college the two years.   After all the drama of her getting darling to school, established in an expensive fraternity and paying for it all,  her little darling decided to leave the expensive out of state school and is now at (drum roll please!!!).   Community College!
He also doesn't like engineering and has no major

Doesn't even have a full schedule of classes because he had to enroll late after returning from expensive out of state school.  30k flushed down to commode!

[Frugal_is_Fab]

OK, this does not belong here at all, since it wasn't overheard and it's not shame-worthy.  But I'm too lazy to start my own thread, and this one has the word "work" in the title, so good enough.

A colleague of mine came up to me today and said, "Every time I go to spend money, I think of what you told me:  every bit of money I spend now is taking away freedom of choice from the future me.  Sometimes I still spend it, but sometimes that stops me."

How cool is that?

Totally cool!  I know it will never happen to me.  This is why I have to come out here a vent once in awhile.

Sometimes I want to put a big giant NO sign on my cube wall because people have no memory

NO! I don't want to go out for a $20 lunch
NO! I don't want to go to Starbucks!
NO! I don't want to be in the Lotto Pool
NO! I didn't watch last night's episode of (fill in the blank dumbass reality show).   I've been researching investments instead.


Of course, I'm much more tactful in real life.

[skyrefuge]

I saw a newer Mercedes Benz with "Student Driver" signs posted all over and the company name was something like "Mercedes driving school".

Looks like it's this: http://www.mb-drivingacademy.com

$1390 for their integrated program for teen driving.

A comparable program at http://www.deltadrivingschool.com/ (randomly picked from a Google search) is $860. So the Mercedes one actually isn't quite as bad of a ripoff as I was expecting, I thought it would be like 3x the normal cost; this is only 1.6x.

However, Mercedes-Benz almost surely created their school primarily as a marketing effort, so the fact that they can actually get *income* from their advertising is the evil-genius part to the whole scheme (and that's what truly makes it Antimustachian!)

(it should be noted that the Mercedes program has 16 hours of behind-the-wheel training, so I priced Delta with the same amount. California only requires 6 hours though, so the requirements can be met for considerably less money than even Delta).

[stevesteve]

On my way to work on the platform I heard a woman tell a sad story:

"I've never been this behind before.  I haven't bought anything extra.  ...  Well, I bought some shoes.  ... I guess I also get pants but..."

It was kind of sad.

I don't hear much at my current work.  I think most everyone I work with would be pretty ashamed to talk about being in debt.  I bet a few of them are frugal and most make good money, save a bit for retirement, and spend a good amount on 'nice things'.  In general the only time I hear about money is 'my house renovation quote cost too much so I didn't do it' or 'it's worth spending a bit to have someone move for you'.

OK, this does not belong here at all, since it wasn't overheard and it's not shame-worthy.  But I'm too lazy to start my own thread, and this one has the word "work" in the title, so good enough.

A colleague of mine came up to me today and said, "Every time I go to spend money, I think of what you told me:  every bit of money I spend now is taking away freedom of choice from the future me.  Sometimes I still spend it, but sometimes that stops me."

How cool is that?

Totally cool!  I know it will never happen to me.  This is why I have to come out here a vent once in awhile.

Sometimes I want to put a big giant NO sign on my cube wall because people have no memory

NO! I don't want to go out for a $20 lunch
NO! I don't want to go to Starbucks!
NO! I don't want to be in the Lotto Pool
NO! I didn't watch last night's episode of (fill in the blank dumbass reality show).   I've been researching investments instead.


Of course, I'm much more tactful in real life.

Yeah, I definitely hope you're more tactful!  I've taken a different angle.  Yes, I will go to Starbucks with you for the walk.  Yes, I will go to lunch sometimes and get a cheap soup, a drink, or sometimes nothing.  We also have cafeteria places where I can eat my homemade lunch while they eat whatever.  No, I will not be in the Lotto pool.

I like my coworkers so I generally like to do things with them.  I don't want to be the guy who just sits in his cubicle at lunch and would much rather eat with my coworkers.  I like to think I get the best of both worlds.

[Ashyukun]

He pays a ton in insurance, maintenance costs are sky-high and for some reason the stupid car doesn't even have a spare tire because the front and rear wheels are different sizes (not even sure how that is possible).

I'm going to lose sleep if you don't follow up on what he means by this. Front/back might make sense (but be dumb). Side/Side would be dangerous. Maybe he means the spare offset is different, but that would be better than no spare and not as risky as no spare.

Eh, front/back isn't really a problem though isn't very common. One of my cars has it because they needed to do it for weight balance, and I often see it on more purpose-built (usually for racing) vehicles. It is odd though that they wouldn't include a spare at all- my car with the different size wheels/tires still has a common lug pattern and a spare, so while it will drive a bit oddly you can pop any of the tires and still put the spare on and still be able to limp to a service place.

[lifejoy]

I heard a good thing at work! I was chatting with my favorite coworker and mentioned something about MMM. He goes, what's that? I said, oh just this guy who retired at age 30 by saving over 60% of his income. And he leans towards me and in a whisper says, I do that.

Not gonna lie, this is like my ultimate work fantasy.

Mine too! I want to be the one that gets to whisper those magical words!!

[Elaine]

Oh my god, this is insane you guys. My work has an INCREDIBLE retirement plan, full matching. This girl and I talk about money a lot, and she thinks she's very frugal- I thought she was too until she told me that she doesn't use our 401b because she's "saving for a house". WTF?!

[nicknageli]

Oh my god, this is insane you guys. My work has an INCREDIBLE retirement plan, full matching. This girl and I talk about money a lot, and she thinks she's very frugal- I thought she was too until she told me that she doesn't use our 401b because she's "saving for a house". WTF?!

[galliver]

Overheard some folks I don't know at work during my lunch break:
She: So has your son decided where to go?
He: Not exactly.
She: [To other co-worker] He's paid into the state pre-paid program, but his son doesn't know if he wants to stay here.
He: We talked about it this week, and Son just isn't sure where he wants to go. He did remind us that we promised him a new car when he graduates high school. I told him he has a better shot at a new car [I presume otherwise it would be used, lol] if he stays in state. That way he'd get the new car, have 4 years of college paid for, and it will give us those 4 years to save up for his graduate school. I hope he chooses that.
She: Yeah, that's the best option. Hopefully he'll realize that soon."






I know the whole "should you pay for your kid's college" thing depends on your parenting/financial philosophy, but if you're willing to pay for college, shouldn't you...I don't know...get to have a say in where the kid goes?? A 17-year-old is not capable of making such a big decision, nor should his parents just sit idly by while their son makes decisions on what their money should go toward! And saving up for his graduate school, too? This guy looked older, at least in his late 40s/early 50s; I think that money would be better served going into his retirement fund.

Never mind the whole idea of buying a college freshman a new car when most college campuses either don't have room for or straight up don't allow cars your first year. And what do you need one for? You can walk most campuses pretty easily and really only need to bum rides to the airport or train/bus station to go home for the holidays. Sheesh.

This reminds me of my year of internal eye rolling while I had to listen to a coworker's endless bragging about her "wonder" son who was going to an expensive out of state school as a freshman to major in engineering , whereas my lesser child went to a mere community college the two years.   After all the drama of her getting darling to school, established in an expensive fraternity and paying for it all,  her little darling decided to leave the expensive out of state school and is now at (drum roll please!!!).   Community College!
He also doesn't like engineering and has no major

Doesn't even have a full schedule of classes because he had to enroll late after returning from expensive out of state school.  30k flushed down to commode!

I had 4 friends whose parents sent them to Fancypants Private HS. (Tuition is currently $38,900, but this was around 10 years ago). I went to (carefully selected) public schools. 3 friends actually did quite well, but no better than my classmates. At the moment, one is finishing up her clinical year of Psych doctorate, two graduated from Vassar and are working in industry, and one...well...she's doing fine, too. However, she spent a year at a big state school as far from her parents as she could get, partied/failed out, went to CC for 2-3 years while working odd jobs, and has now settled down with her third job in marketing and a fiance in software. My mind spins at the money spent on education to no clear advantage...

[Adam Zapple]

A conversation between two co-workers about another co-worker:

Co-worker 1: "That guy is the cheapest S.O.B. on the planet.  The guy's a millionaire and he's NEVER owned a new car.  Last year he got hurt repairing his roof because he was too f-ing CHEAP to hire someone!"

Co-worker 2:  "If I was a millionaire I wouldn't have a new car....I'd have a private helicopter to fly me around."

[Fireman]

Co-worker 2:  "If I was a millionaire I wouldn't have a new car....I'd have a private helicopter to fly me around."

Hilarious! 

[Travis]

I was talking to a young co-worker recently (he is only 19) and he was telling me (in a bragging way) about his fancypants Jeep that he got. He pays a ton in insurance, maintenance costs are sky-high and for some reason the stupid car doesn't even have a spare tire because the front and rear wheels are different sizes (not even sure how that is possible). Anyway, because I do the payroll I know that this kid doesn't make much money. I tried to get through to him that he was basically working so that he could drive a fancy car, and that it was sucking him dry.  Yup, he agreed, but had no plans to sell it, he wanted to drive a fancypants car. BTW, he lives at home and has no plans to move out on his own.

You clearly dont live in a military town, this is about SOP for a good percent of those under 25 and is so common it does not even elicit an internal mental note.  Ridding a bike around base housing is like riding past a row of car dealerships, minus the inflatable dancing tube men.  Wish it were not so but maybe you can over the months save one guy.

It pains me to see a 20 year old soldier spend literally his entire paycheck on a car that he doesn't do anything with.  You mention riding around the housing area while I face palm every morning when I pull into the barracks parking lot.  I have a warrant officer with 18 years in who is just now talking about dabbling in the stock market. He'll have a decent pension when he retires and should have no problem with a second career, but I want to ask him what he's been doing with his money all this time.

[mgarl10024]

Co-worker 2:  "If I was a millionaire I wouldn't have a new car....I'd have a private helicopter to fly me around."

I wonder if this co-worker is confused between someone who has wealth of a million or someone who annually earns a million.

Slightly off topic and grossly simplifying, in the UK, there are two main political parties - the Tories (Conservatives) are a low tax, small government party, and Labour who are a high tax, large government party.
There is also tiered income tax, whereby the more you earn, the higher the rate on the amount above the limit is.
There has recently been a lot of debate about what the rate should be for income earned above £150,000.  Before leaving office, Labour raised it to 50%, and since coming into office the Conservatives have lowered it to 45% and (it is commonly believed) would like to put it back down to 40%.  Labour is against this.

The thing that infuriates me (politics aside) is that Labour insist on calling this a "Millionaire's Tax Cut".  Labour make the argument that every person who earns £1,000,000 in a year would be £40,000 better off, and makes political capital from this as it resonates with the public.
However, if you subscribe to the view (like me) that a millionaire is simply someone with wealth over a million, calling it a "Millionaire's" Tax Cut is just wrong
- someone earning £200,000 with no stored wealth is not a millionaire, but would benefit from a lowering of the rate over £150,000
- someone with wealth of over a million, with no income, who is a millionaire would not benefit from a lowering of the rate over £150,000

I can only imagine that Labour (who aren't silly enough to make this mistake) were deliberately confusing the definition of a millionaire, but I was amazed at how successful they were.  In the end I had to stop watching the debates as it just got me annoyed.  :-)

https://www.labour.org.uk/poster-on-camerons-tax-cut-for-millionaires
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/reality-check/2012/oct/02/is-david-cameron-really-going-to-give-each-millionaire-a-40-000-tax-cut

[Hedge_87]

I would need more than a million but.... If I had money to burn a helicopter would be pretty bitchin'. I would like to see peoples faces when I meet them for dinner or something and put it down in the parking lot. My helicopter would also have missiles so I cold blow shit up too.

[CommonCents]

I had 4 friends whose parents sent them to Fancypants Private HS. (Tuition is currently $38,900, but this was around 10 years ago). I went to (carefully selected) public schools. 3 friends actually did quite well, but no better than my classmates. At the moment, one is finishing up her clinical year of Psych doctorate, two graduated from Vassar and are working in industry, and one...well...she's doing fine, too. However, she spent a year at a big state school as far from her parents as she could get, partied/failed out, went to CC for 2-3 years while working odd jobs, and has now settled down with her third job in marketing and a fiance in software. My mind spins at the money spent on education to no clear advantage...

The house we just bought, the old owners have 4 kids (about 7 to 15).  ALL FOUR have gone to private school from day 1.  And not because the schools are bad - we now live in such a nice school district that people keep asking us when we're going to have kids (because that's apparently the only reason to move there).  DH thinks they are wealthy enough just have money to burn.  I think burning money like this is not necessarily indicative of wealth (and contributes to the opposite!).

[rocksinmyhead]

Oh my god, this is insane you guys. My work has an INCREDIBLE retirement plan, full matching. This girl and I talk about money a lot, and she thinks she's very frugal- I thought she was too until she told me that she doesn't use our 401b because she's "saving for a house". WTF?!

OMG same here. we get full matching up to 8% of our salary, vested immediately. a coworker who started around the same I did (we were both fresh out of grad school so around the same age, she's a few years older) also doesn't contribute because she's saving for a house. I thought of this again the other day when we were talking about our recent bonuses (not specific amounts so as not to be tacky :) just that we were excited to have gotten them) and I said after the bonus I was down to only 3 student loans, one of which is almost gone ($700). she said, "I'm so jealous! it will be a LONG time til I'm at that point."

why are you jealous? we probably make almost the exact same amount of money. that would be like me saying I'm jealous you are saving up to buy a house (and she wants a big one too, yikes). sure, I would like to buy a house, but I am making a choice that I think is better. I could make a different choice if I wanted to, so I'm not "jealous".

[jordanread]

Oh my god, this is insane you guys. My work has an INCREDIBLE retirement plan, full matching. This girl and I talk about money a lot, and she thinks she's very frugal- I thought she was too until she told me that she doesn't use our 401b because she's "saving for a house". WTF?!

I had to quote this, just to figure out the facepalm smiley. Alas, it's not built in. And then I realized, I don't think any smileys are built in on SMF :)

[galliver]

I had 4 friends whose parents sent them to Fancypants Private HS. (Tuition is currently $38,900, but this was around 10 years ago). I went to (carefully selected) public schools. 3 friends actually did quite well, but no better than my classmates. At the moment, one is finishing up her clinical year of Psych doctorate, two graduated from Vassar and are working in industry, and one...well...she's doing fine, too. However, she spent a year at a big state school as far from her parents as she could get, partied/failed out, went to CC for 2-3 years while working odd jobs, and has now settled down with her third job in marketing and a fiance in software. My mind spins at the money spent on education to no clear advantage...

The house we just bought, the old owners have 4 kids (about 7 to 15).  ALL FOUR have gone to private school from day 1.  And not because the schools are bad - we now live in such a nice school district that people keep asking us when we're going to have kids (because that's apparently the only reason to move there).  DH thinks they are wealthy enough just have money to burn.  I think burning money like this is not necessarily indicative of wealth (and contributes to the opposite!).

Some of the posting here just sounds like gossip. How does galliver know how any of those kids would have turned out absent the Fancypants school? The judgment of personal decisions that aren't obviously purely economic ones strikes me as nasty and uninformed.

I know because I am comparing them to dozens of kids from similar backgrounds, living in the same area, same school district. 3 of the 4 were family friends, one I went to middle school with. They were no different, academically and socially, than dozens of my other family friends or classmates or me. Would they say that FPHS was a positive experience for them? Sure. Would they have exactly the same life outcomes if they had gone to public school? Maybe, maybe not. But they wouldn't be in a drastically different place in life right now.

[nicknageli]

I had to quote this, just to figure out the facepalm smiley. Alas, it's not built in. And then I realized, I don't think any smileys are built in on SMF :)

: )  Yeah.  No smilies so I had to improvise a bit.  Here's another one I like.

[Russ]

I had 4 friends whose parents sent them to Fancypants Private HS. (Tuition is currently $38,900, but this was around 10 years ago). I went to (carefully selected) public schools. 3 friends actually did quite well, but no better than my classmates. At the moment, one is finishing up her clinical year of Psych doctorate, two graduated from Vassar and are working in industry, and one...well...she's doing fine, too. However, she spent a year at a big state school as far from her parents as she could get, partied/failed out, went to CC for 2-3 years while working odd jobs, and has now settled down with her third job in marketing and a fiance in software. My mind spins at the money spent on education to no clear advantage...

The house we just bought, the old owners have 4 kids (about 7 to 15).  ALL FOUR have gone to private school from day 1.  And not because the schools are bad - we now live in such a nice school district that people keep asking us when we're going to have kids (because that's apparently the only reason to move there).  DH thinks they are wealthy enough just have money to burn.  I think burning money like this is not necessarily indicative of wealth (and contributes to the opposite!).

Some of the posting here just sounds like gossip. How does galliver know how any of those kids would have turned out absent the Fancypants school? The judgment of personal decisions that aren't obviously purely economic ones strikes me as nasty and uninformed.

Welcome to the Antimustachian Wall of Shame and Comedy. That's like the whole subforum.

[dragoncar]

I had 4 friends whose parents sent them to Fancypants Private HS. (Tuition is currently $38,900, but this was around 10 years ago). I went to (carefully selected) public schools. 3 friends actually did quite well, but no better than my classmates. At the moment, one is finishing up her clinical year of Psych doctorate, two graduated from Vassar and are working in industry, and one...well...she's doing fine, too. However, she spent a year at a big state school as far from her parents as she could get, partied/failed out, went to CC for 2-3 years while working odd jobs, and has now settled down with her third job in marketing and a fiance in software. My mind spins at the money spent on education to no clear advantage...

The house we just bought, the old owners have 4 kids (about 7 to 15).  ALL FOUR have gone to private school from day 1.  And not because the schools are bad - we now live in such a nice school district that people keep asking us when we're going to have kids (because that's apparently the only reason to move there).  DH thinks they are wealthy enough just have money to burn.  I think burning money like this is not necessarily indicative of wealth (and contributes to the opposite!).

Some of the posting here just sounds like gossip. How does galliver know how any of those kids would have turned out absent the Fancypants school? The judgment of personal decisions that aren't obviously purely economic ones strikes me as nasty and uninformed.

Welcome to the Antimustachian Wall of Shame and Comedy. That's like the whole subforum.

Lets get back on topic, guys.  Today my office manager asked my boss which kind of pens he prefers -- twisty bottoms or clicky tops.  Long story short, we're getting clicky tops.

[Russ]

Lets get back on topic, guys.  Today my office manager asked my boss which kind of pens he prefers -- twisty bottoms or clicky tops.  Long story short, we're getting clicky tops.

caps 4 lyfe

[Fireman]

Lets get back on topic, guys.  Today my office manager asked my boss which kind of pens he prefers -- twisty bottoms or clicky tops.  Long story short, we're getting clicky tops.

Ohhhh, I loooove clicky pens!

[Albert]

Millionaire is someone who earns a million dollars a year or more. I think it's a standard definition.

[the fixer]

Millionaire is someone who earns a million dollars a year or more. I think it's a standard definition.

Nope. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millionaire

This is something that annoys me too in the media. I think it's because our entire tax system is based on people's income, so politicians like to take shortcuts. It's now changing the meaning of the word to something I think it's quite anti-Mustachian: defining status by income instead of by wealth.

[aclarridge]

Millionaire is someone who earns a million dollars a year or more. I think it's a standard definition.

According to Wikipedia:

A millionaire (originally and sometimes still millionnaire[1]) is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency.

[Albert]

Ok, fine but that doesn't necessarily mean particularly rich. It could be a house worth a million and not much else on top of it.

[Mori]

... Today my office manager asked my boss which kind of pens he prefers -- twisty bottoms or clicky tops.  Long story short, we're getting clicky tops.

This is even funnier if your boss said "twisty bottoms".

[coconutpop]

Today a guy at my telemarketing job told me that he only made 100$ this week and in the same sentence told me that he just bought the ps4 with 4 games. The guy has 2 kids a wife that does not work and a 2002 bmw that is in decomposition.

I don't even understand how these people stay alive. 

[ysette9]

There are so many gems in this thread! Unfortunately people mostly don't talk about money at my work, and since we are all engineers, I suspect people handle their money pretty well anyway, generally speaking.

On a completely unrelated note though, I did overhear a wonderful conversation recently in Cubicleland. One coworker complained long and in great detail about his health condition which apparently included hormone therapy, erectile disfunction, and the impact of said health conditions on his sex life.

Sheesh.

I'd almost prefer a good old fashioned spouting of absurd political viewpoints!

[SwordGuy]

There are so many gems in this thread! Unfortunately people mostly don't talk about money at my work, and since we are all engineers, I suspect people handle their money pretty well anyway, generally speaking.

I work in software for a staff augmentation company.  They sign contracts with the gov't to provide X bodies for Y time period at $$$$$$$$$ per hour, for which they pay us $$ per hour.   But I digress on that last part...

The date the contracts expire is well known.  It's quite common for the new contract holder to hire most of the people who actually did the work on the old contract.  And this is the important part - it's not uncommon for them to do so at a reduction in salary.

So, with several years warning in my pre-MMM days, I decided it would be prudent to pay off as much as I could so that wouldn't be a problem.  Just to make it a real challenge, I made it my goal to be debt free, including the house, by the time the contract was up for renewal.

I mentioned this to some co-workers.  One of them was very concerned about the possibility of a salary reduction because, in his own words, he and his wife lived pay check to pay check. 

We had the usual Murphy issues that get in the way when one gets serious about getting rid of debt (you've all had it happen, too!), so it took us a year longer to put all our debts to rest.  Luckily, there was a contract award dispute that delayed the award of a new contract for a year, so we made our goal anyway.   Since we had such a low minimum expense level, I didn't have to worry overmuch about the wage outcome.

My co-worker was still living paycheck to paycheck.  Hadn't done a thing but coast along.  And yes, the wages were a few percent lower.

Now it's three years later and I overheard him and another coworker lamenting the fact that they'll never be able to retire.  Obviously, he still hasn't changed a damn thing.

On a funny digression, even though my salary was a few percent lower, I actually made more take home pay than I had under the old company.  That's because the old company gave us an option to buy an extra weeks' vacation and I took them up on it.  The new company included that extra week in its base vacation package and paid a higher % of the medical insurance.  I came out a few hundred $ ahead.  If I hadn't been buying the extra vacation hours, I would have had a lower net pay.  Weird how the math works out sometimes, eh?

[jba302]

Speaking of math, had a great conservation with someone via email. A friend of mine got a new Leaf. This was acquired to replace his wife's 16mpg commuter. This is completely genius right? Long term planning and all that?

Here's the issue - Both of their vehicles are already paid off, they aren't selling their current vehicles, and they aren't buying the Leaf. They are LEASING a Leaf on top of keeping their 2 other cars. The wife's monthly commute was running them around $250, which is the lease cost of a Leaf. So they are leasing a new vehicle to save gas money which is costing them more overall monthly as they have to hold full comprehensive / collision coverage on the Leaf.  Net loss of a little over $100/month.

Can't make this shit up, I didn't even try to show the math.

[randymarsh]

Here's the issue - Both of their vehicles are already paid off, they aren't selling their current vehicles, and they aren't buying the Leaf. They are LEASING a Leaf on top of keeping their 2 other cars. The wife's monthly commute was running them around $250, which is the lease cost of a Leaf. So they are leasing a new vehicle to save gas money which is costing them more overall monthly as they have to hold full comprehensive / collision coverage on the Leaf.  Net loss of a little over $100/month.

Can't make this shit up, I didn't even try to show the math.

This may not be your friend's situation, but I read an article that claimed in some states leasing a Leaf actually causes you to break even on the lease cost or even make money.

[Daleth]

Here's the issue - Both of their vehicles are already paid off, they aren't selling their current vehicles, and they aren't buying the Leaf. They are LEASING a Leaf on top of keeping their 2 other cars. The wife's monthly commute was running them around $250, which is the lease cost of a Leaf. So they are leasing a new vehicle to save gas money which is costing them more overall monthly as they have to hold full comprehensive / collision coverage on the Leaf.  Net loss of a little over $100/month.

Can't make this shit up, I didn't even try to show the math.

This may not be your friend's situation, but I read an article that claimed in some states leasing a Leaf actually causes you to break even on the lease cost or even make money.

Yes, it does. Friends of mine in Georgia leased a Leaf for $199/mo for two years, and they get a $5000 tax credit for it. So the car itself (not including insurance and the negligible cost of plugging it in to charge it enough for quickie around-town runs) is actually better than free ($199x12 = $2388 and $2388x2 = $4776).

[jordanread]

I had to quote this, just to figure out the facepalm smiley. Alas, it's not built in. And then I realized, I don't think any smileys are built in on SMF :)

: )  Yeah.  No smilies so I had to improvise a bit.  Here's another one I like.

Yeah, I've used a similar one on some other Forums. Gotta love it.

[nicknageli]

On Friday my coworker was discussing an exciting new service she's considering signing up for. She pays $200/month, and twice a month, a doctor will show up at her apartment and give her an IV of something (saline and vitamins, I think?) to help her get over her hangover. I really don't even know where to start.

Hahahahaha!  No way!  I busted out loud reading that!

[warfreak2]

That's even funnier than it sounds, because you can guarantee the people paying for this service will have many more drinks (at bar prices) on the nights before, so that they can "get their money's worth".

[randymarsh]

On Friday my coworker was discussing an exciting new service she's considering signing up for. She pays $200/month, and twice a month, a doctor will show up at her apartment and give her an IV of something (saline and vitamins, I think?) to help her get over her hangover. I really don't even know where to start.

I knew this was a service available in Vegas (http://www.hangoverheaven.com/in-room-treatments/) but didn't realize it was available as subscription lol.

[Melody]

And to think I'd been using Berocca this whole time ;-)
(These tablets you disolve in water that have a lot of vit B and ginseng and stuff in them... You get 45 for $20 - deals with months worth of hangovers even for the most hard-core!)

[GrayGhost]

I think the way financing works, in many cases, is that banks aren't really banking on your ability to pay off everything, even eventually. What would be great for them is if they got constant cashflow until you're bankrupt, at which point then get your house, and they come out even further ahead.

Remember, the objective of money lenders is, in many cases, to make you their slave. It's even more true in the case of housing, which is an emotionally charged issue with heavy government involvement.

[vern]

For hangovers, drink some coconut water before you go to bed.

[Elaine]

*Raises Hand* Psst, I've got one!

Me: I'm going to costco this weekend!
Co-worker (who had 4 kids): What do you get there? I never find anything there I would use.
Me: Well lots of things. Olive oil, oats, flours, yeast, nuts, and all the supplies I use to make my own cleaning products.
Co-worker: Oh well I'm a really smart shopper. I get all my cleaning products at wallmart.
Me:...
Co-worker: I mean, I get really good deals because I'm such a smart shopper. Usually I drive to Wallmart, then I drive to Target because the fiber one bars at target are only $5 for a big box. Then I drive to B.J.s to buy broccoli and string cheese.
Me: Wow, sounds like a plan, I just walk to Costco then take a $7 car service home.

I mean, so many things here. The amount of driving, the purchasing of pre-made crap (I mean granola bars are like the cheapest thing EVER to make). I don't think she even understood what I was saying about making cleaning products.

[jimmymango]

I'll just post the transcript of a gchat conversation I'm having right now with a friend. She's thinking about a new career path and is planning on using her remaining vacation, then quitting and living off savings until she finds a new job/calling, which didn't sound like the worst idea ever until...

Friend: what I need to figure out is how I'm going to get benefits
haha let alone a job

me:  do you think this is the best idea? how much money do you have saved?

Friend:  it is
some, i'm not telling you LOL
I have my retirement, but I have to look into the penalties of withdrawing from it..i have no idea how it works

me:  ok. just hoping you don't quit and then blow through your savings before you have another job
wait wait wait
no no no
you're going to take money from your retirement savings?
why in the world would you do that?
why don't you just save up enough money, in cash, to live off for a few months after you quit?
dont dip into your retirement. then you're turning retirement years into working years

Friend: it's not that much
who cares

me: but then you won't have any retirement savings...

Friend:  w/ all that and my tax refund
i'll have enough
right, but i'll start making that at my next job
and when I marry [ex-boyfriend], he'll have a great retirement
package LOL

me: ha
let's hope that works out for you

Friend: oh i don't really know what will happen of course
I'll figure it out

me: so what's your next move on the job search?

Friend: well i have my resume out
get a job..that's my move lol

[rocksinmyhead]

For hangovers, drink some coconut water before you go to bed.

that makes sense... similar to what I do, which is take an S-cap electrolyte capsule. one before you start drinking, one before bed, one in the morning... tada! originally bought em when I was training for a 50k, but they are great for hangovers too. (and I tend to get BAD hangovers, even when I don't drink a ton)

[Paul der Krake]

Friend:  w/ all that and my tax refund
i'll have enough
right, but i'll start making that at my next job
and when I marry [ex-boyfriend], he'll have a great retirement
package LOL

That's some forward-thinking right there. Unless she has figured out a way to marry ex-boyfriends without them noticing?

[ThatsMyOtter]

CW1 is single, lives by himself, mid to late 60s and has previously complained about how impossible it is to save for retirement

CW2: How was your weekend?
CW1: Great! I bought a new computer and it was only $600.
CW2: Don't you already have a couple computers?
CW1: Yeah, this is my fourth. I decided I wanted one just to keep in the bathroom [to keep himself entertained while on the toilet].

Turns out CW1 owns four different laptops, all newer than 2009, because he finds it too inconvenient to go to a different room and bring it to the room he wants to be in. So he has one for the bedroom, one for the living room, one for the kitchen/dining room, and now one for the bathroom.

[Half-Borg]

for me it would be way to inconvient to sync my data between 4 laptops

[mgarl10024]

for me it would be way to inconvient to sync my data between 4 laptops

Sounds like you don't have a file server and home LAN.  ;-)

[Hedge_87]

Lol we have one laptop and one tablet and I think that is excessive. Until my gf moved in 4 years ago I didn't have any computers or internet in the house.