Overheard at Work

[Papa Mustache]

I had a coworker who would continually surprise me with her bad decisions with money. She was 54 and had been through a divorce a few years prior that left her with nothing and she ended up filing for bankruptcy. She made around 45-50k. She had a 45+ minute commute each way and paid over $1100/month for rent in a nice suburb. There were much cheaper places to live near work but she was convinced that the entire city that our workplace was located in was a ghetto and she'd get shot if she lived here (this is nowhere near the truth). When she found out that HR automatically enrolls you in the 6% 401k + 6% match, she immediately had it switched to zero contribution because she needed that money in her paycheck. She was living paycheck to paycheck and would say "I need to start playing the lotto more" when things got scary. She didn't get all of her points for the work wellness plan her first year, so her insurance premiums went up $1,000 annually for the next year. She drove a Toyota Sonata that she was making high payments on, but would constantly wish she could drive a Lexus again. A couple of months before her car was paid off, she was in a car accident that totaled her car. What kind of car do you think she got next? A Lexus SUV, of course! (Used, at least.) Even though neither of us work at that place anymore, we occasionally meet up for lunch. First thing she asks me is if I've gotten a new car yet. Nope. I drive a 2002 Chevy Cavalier that is looking rather shabby these days, but it's saving me too much money right now to consider upgrading quite yet.

What's a Toyota Sonata?
There's a Toyota Solara (but these went out of production a while back) and a Hyundai Sonata ...
I also used to drive an 02 cavalier. I traded up when It started to have problems with the motor (somehow I managed to crack the valve cover? among several other problems with transmission and abs systems) and didn't want to bother paying someone to put a new one in (I didn't know how to do it myself at the time). That was at about 150k miles. How many miles do you have on yours?

Oops! I meant Toyota Solara.

That makes more sense. Absolutely terrible cars in my opinion :P
Welcome to the forum!

Maybe that Cavalier had plastic valve covers? I've seen some cars with plastic intake manifolds and plastic valve covers. My VW had a plastic water thermostat cover. yep - it cracked.

Guess it saves the factory $1.25 per car but some owner in the future will be replacing that component b/c it warps, cracks or otherwise leaks. A good reason to move on when car shopping in my mind - - - he says as he worries that everything after a certain year probably has these very parts on them...

[ShoulderThingThatGoesUp]

Because the health costs of the smoker and the societal costs of gambling are more than their contribution to the tax coffers? Just a guess.

The administrative costs of the lottery are quite substantial on their own, not just negative effects from gambling.

Please!  Stop killing my hope!

They're actually smaller than I expected them to be, but unjustifiable when you consider that (a) the lottery is a horrible idea and (b) administrative costs of simply raising other taxes to make up for the revenue would likely be minimal.

It also appears that playing the lottery in West Virginia is a horrible, horrible deal.

[nnls]

A friend at work was telling me how he plans on buying a new car, when I pointed out he got a new one only 6 months ago he said he needed this one was it was a bigger V8, more performance and the new car feeling again. Also his current one was already dropping value and this one is newer plated so it will hold more value.

The benefits of the bigger V8 that it would allow for safer overtaking and easier merging onto the freeway.....

Only 6 months ago? God damn.

I don't know anyone who can justify wanting a bigger v8 to allow for safer overtaking and easier merging. This isn't 1985 where a 6 liter v8 could put out only 200 horsepower. Since most normal cars are I4s or V6s, it's almost certain that any new v8 is most likely 400 crank... up to 700 these days. There are a lot of honest justifications for wanting a bigger v8: it sounds better, it's faster, it makes you erect. All reasonable. You get under 11 seconds bone stock in a quarter mile, or you can do 180mph top speed. Sure, it does that. Safer overtaking? Of what, the mom-mobiles everyone drives with 150-200 ponies and a slushbox auto, or worse, a CVT? Come on, I can safely overtake at >100mph on the wrong side of the road uphill - anywhere, anyone - in my car, and it only has the above-mentioned supercharged 3800, with half the output of a modern v8.

the trade in will cover his outstanding loan and he will only need a $45k loan on this one so its a good deal apparently, and also this new one is the last one ever or something so it will grow in value....

[serpentstooth]

Because the health costs of the smoker and the societal costs of gambling are more than their contribution to the tax coffers? Just a guess.

Some research suggest smokers are actually a great deal for the healthcare system. Most healthcare spending is on the end of life, and smokers have the good taste to die young. What you don't want are the "dying at 90 is dying young" genes that certain parts of my family have.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/health/05iht-obese.1.9748884.html

Obese people are a bargain too!

[MoonShadow]

Because the health costs of the smoker and the societal costs of gambling are more than their contribution to the tax coffers? Just a guess.

The administrative costs of the lottery are quite substantial on their own, not just negative effects from gambling.

Please!  Stop killing my hope!

They're actually smaller than I expected them to be, but unjustifiable when you consider that (a) the lottery is a horrible idea and (b) administrative costs of simply raising other taxes to make up for the revenue would likely be minimal.

It also appears that playing the lottery in West Virginia is a horrible, horrible deal.

But what about all the cash taken out of circulation when lottery winners salt away their millions and yet continue to live normal lives? All the lost productivity when they decide to live off the interest only?

That's not a thing.

[coin]

Because the health costs of the smoker and the societal costs of gambling are more than their contribution to the tax coffers? Just a guess.

Some research suggest smokers are actually a great deal for the healthcare system. Most healthcare spending is on the end of life, and smokers have the good taste to die young. What you don't want are the "dying at 90 is dying young" genes that certain parts of my family have.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/health/05iht-obese.1.9748884.html

Obese people are a bargain too!

The argument I've heard against this theory is that yes, while they may cost the taxpayer less over their lifetimes, theres an economic cost. E.g. people taking time off work due to constant beside vigils and eventually bereavement, families having to use welfare after the loss of a parent, the smoker or obese person may be a high income earner so they won't pay any more taxes after they die, etc.

[Ralph2]

I have overheard 2 of my coworkers on another floor:
1)Taking out  3 4 or more credit union loans successively to travel with no count boyfriend.  Same coworker's mom was heavy into payday loans, a gambling habit plus supporting a drug using son and lazy adult grandchildren.
2)Another supporting 2 adult daughters one of whom has a child and may be pregnant with another.  Neither daughter graduated high school one dropped out one got a certificate stating she'd completed 12 years.  Older one has a $600 car note and job doesn't cover it.   Younger one doesn't work at all.
As for myself I used to be addicted to the vending machine daily for 2 honey buns $1.25 each at the time and a bottle of tea from the machine $1.75.  After casually calculating I was wasting $21.25 or more per week on that thieving machine, I facepunched myself then started buying my buns from the grocery store $1 apiece or donuts  $.66 apiece from Shoppers Food Warehouse ( Shoppers has huge donuts lol I am partial) and drinks also since sometimes they are $1 each or 3 for $5.  On occasion I do bake my own as well cutting it to almost free.

We won't discuss lunch out that was $10-15 per day which I have cut down to maybe twice monthly.

Went several pages after post, but did you mean 5 for $3?

[Ralph2]

Y'all is always plural; "all y'all" is reflexive or emphatic. :-)

Man how did I miss the y'all conversation?

I agree- y'all is NEVER singular. It is always plural.
All y'all is more plural.

Oh boy, now I'll have to try and sneak "all y'all" into daily conversation and see if anyone notices!

I would love to hear such a robust southernism pulled off in a British accent.

I had a coworker previously who was from rural NC but lived in London for 5+ years - fabulous accent!

And while I'm here, we also say y'all in Kansas, where I'm from though not all y'all, I've only heard that in NC. Another NC favorite of mine is "might could" as in:
You might could do that but instead maybe you should do this.

Love it.

Or else "fixin' to" - I'm fixin' to go to the store, can I borrow your credit card?

"Fixin' to" is a popular expression in Kentucky as well, followed shortly with the standard confirmation query, "Ya-un-to?"

And also widjadidja, as in " bring the barbie widjadidja?"

[JordanOfGilead]

I had a coworker who would continually surprise me with her bad decisions with money. She was 54 and had been through a divorce a few years prior that left her with nothing and she ended up filing for bankruptcy. She made around 45-50k. She had a 45+ minute commute each way and paid over $1100/month for rent in a nice suburb. There were much cheaper places to live near work but she was convinced that the entire city that our workplace was located in was a ghetto and she'd get shot if she lived here (this is nowhere near the truth). When she found out that HR automatically enrolls you in the 6% 401k + 6% match, she immediately had it switched to zero contribution because she needed that money in her paycheck. She was living paycheck to paycheck and would say "I need to start playing the lotto more" when things got scary. She didn't get all of her points for the work wellness plan her first year, so her insurance premiums went up $1,000 annually for the next year. She drove a Toyota Sonata that she was making high payments on, but would constantly wish she could drive a Lexus again. A couple of months before her car was paid off, she was in a car accident that totaled her car. What kind of car do you think she got next? A Lexus SUV, of course! (Used, at least.) Even though neither of us work at that place anymore, we occasionally meet up for lunch. First thing she asks me is if I've gotten a new car yet. Nope. I drive a 2002 Chevy Cavalier that is looking rather shabby these days, but it's saving me too much money right now to consider upgrading quite yet.

What's a Toyota Sonata?
There's a Toyota Solara (but these went out of production a while back) and a Hyundai Sonata ...
I also used to drive an 02 cavalier. I traded up when It started to have problems with the motor (somehow I managed to crack the valve cover? among several other problems with transmission and abs systems) and didn't want to bother paying someone to put a new one in (I didn't know how to do it myself at the time). That was at about 150k miles. How many miles do you have on yours?

Oops! I meant Toyota Solara.

That makes more sense. Absolutely terrible cars in my opinion :P
Welcome to the forum!

Maybe that Cavalier had plastic valve covers? I've seen some cars with plastic intake manifolds and plastic valve covers. My VW had a plastic water thermostat cover. yep - it cracked.

Guess it saves the factory $1.25 per car but some owner in the future will be replacing that component b/c it warps, cracks or otherwise leaks. A good reason to move on when car shopping in my mind - - - he says as he worries that everything after a certain year probably has these very parts on them...

It appeared to be cast aluminum, same as the head. Could have been a ferrous compound, but it was definitely cast metal and not plastic.

[maco]

Y'all is always plural; "all y'all" is reflexive or emphatic. :-)

Man how did I miss the y'all conversation?

I agree- y'all is NEVER singular. It is always plural.
All y'all is more plural.

Oh boy, now I'll have to try and sneak "all y'all" into daily conversation and see if anyone notices!

I would love to hear such a robust southernism pulled off in a British accent.

I had a coworker previously who was from rural NC but lived in London for 5+ years - fabulous accent!

And while I'm here, we also say y'all in Kansas, where I'm from though not all y'all, I've only heard that in NC. Another NC favorite of mine is "might could" as in:
You might could do that but instead maybe you should do this.

Love it.

Or else "fixin' to" - I'm fixin' to go to the store, can I borrow your credit card?

"Fixin' to" is a popular expression in Kentucky as well, followed shortly with the standard confirmation query, "Ya-un-to?"

And also widjadidja, as in " bring the barbie widjadidja?"

A friend from NC congratulated me once on my correct use of "rightly know" in a sentence >_> Oh come on, it's just Southern for "grok"!

[TheGrimSqueaker]

I loved it when southerners asked me to "Mash the switch"

Like I was going to get out a sledge hammer to turn on the lights.

If you did, you'd probably get your heart blessed. "Bless your heart" is Southern for "you fucked up".

Other refinements of the Southern dialogue include the distinction between a conniption fit and a hissy fit. A conniption fit is a justified response to extreme provocation, whereas a hissy fit lacks reasonable cause.

[MoonShadow]

I loved it when southerners asked me to "Mash the switch"

Like I was going to get out a sledge hammer to turn on the lights.

If you did, you'd probably get your heart blessed. "Bless your heart" is Southern for "you fucked up".

Other refinements of the Southern dialogue include the distinction between a conniption fit and a hissy fit. A conniption fit is a justified response to extreme provocation, whereas a hissy fit lacks reasonable cause.

I never thought about this before, but it's true!

[CindyBS]

One of my coworkers is a single mom with a 4 year old daughter.  Dad is totally out of the picture, I think he may have passed away, but she definitely does not get child support.

She lives in a condo with the girl and was complaining how she has no money until next week because of all the food her daughter eats and then proceeded to list out a large meal the girl ate.

The cw probably makes $60K/year.

1) I'm sure there are things I don't know about the situation - but how the heck can you have difficulty paying bills for 1 kid and 1 adult on $60K/year?

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like. 

[MoonShadow]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

[RurallyFrugal]

Y'all is always plural; "all y'all" is reflexive or emphatic. :-)

Man how did I miss the y'all conversation?

I agree- y'all is NEVER singular. It is always plural.
All y'all is more plural.

Oh boy, now I'll have to try and sneak "all y'all" into daily conversation and see if anyone notices!

I would love to hear such a robust southernism pulled off in a British accent.

I had a coworker previously who was from rural NC but lived in London for 5+ years - fabulous accent!

And while I'm here, we also say y'all in Kansas, where I'm from though not all y'all, I've only heard that in NC. Another NC favorite of mine is "might could" as in:
You might could do that but instead maybe you should do this.

Love it.

Or else "fixin' to" - I'm fixin' to go to the store, can I borrow your credit card?

"Fixin' to" is a popular expression in Kentucky as well, followed shortly with the standard confirmation query, "Ya-un-to?"

And also widjadidja, as in " bring the barbie widjadidja?"

A friend from NC congratulated me once on my correct use of "rightly know" in a sentence >_> Oh come on, it's just Southern for "grok"!

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?" 

[MoonShadow]

Y'all is always plural; "all y'all" is reflexive or emphatic. :-)

Man how did I miss the y'all conversation?

I agree- y'all is NEVER singular. It is always plural.
All y'all is more plural.

Oh boy, now I'll have to try and sneak "all y'all" into daily conversation and see if anyone notices!

I would love to hear such a robust southernism pulled off in a British accent.

I had a coworker previously who was from rural NC but lived in London for 5+ years - fabulous accent!

And while I'm here, we also say y'all in Kansas, where I'm from though not all y'all, I've only heard that in NC. Another NC favorite of mine is "might could" as in:
You might could do that but instead maybe you should do this.

Love it.

Or else "fixin' to" - I'm fixin' to go to the store, can I borrow your credit card?

"Fixin' to" is a popular expression in Kentucky as well, followed shortly with the standard confirmation query, "Ya-un-to?"

And also widjadidja, as in " bring the barbie widjadidja?"

A friend from NC congratulated me once on my correct use of "rightly know" in a sentence >_> Oh come on, it's just Southern for "grok"!

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

And if you are saying these things out loud, to get the feel of them, hold your nose.

[CindyBS]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I hear ya!  We have recently resorted to ordering sheet pizzas for our family of 4.  That is 36 slices, 9 per person.  I may have 3.  The eating machines and my husband eat most of it and we usually have about 8 pieces left for lunch the next day (enough for the eating machines only.)

[serpentstooth]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I hear ya!  We have recently resorted to ordering sheet pizzas for our family of 4.  That is 36 slices, 9 per person.  I may have 3.  The eating machines and my husband eat most of it and we usually have about 8 pieces left for lunch the next day (enough for the eating machines only.)

My brother used to make peanut butter sandwiches with an inch of filling. He'd slice half in thick slabs off the Costco cheddar. Even with cheap food, feeding him was very, very expensive for a few years.

[MgoSam]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I hear ya!  We have recently resorted to ordering sheet pizzas for our family of 4.  That is 36 slices, 9 per person.  I may have 3.  The eating machines and my husband eat most of it and we usually have about 8 pieces left for lunch the next day (enough for the eating machines only.)

My brother used to make peanut butter sandwiches with an inch of filling. He'd slice half in thick slabs off the Costco cheddar. Even with cheap food, feeding him was very, very expensive for a few years.

That's like what one of my friends did when he took a job in SF out of college. It didn't pay well for the first year, but after that his income went up and he's happy (though he did later transfer to save up money).

[WerKater]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I was the same with eating at that age (13). But it seems to be necessary. According to my parents, I managed to grow 13cm in the one year between 13 and 14. That added biomass must come from somewhere...

[serpentstooth]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I was the same with eating at that age (13). But it seems to be necessary. According to my parents, I managed to grow 13cm in the one year between 13 and 14. That added biomass must come from somewhere...

My daughter turned into an absolute terror at one point in early infancy. Absolute infant fury if you did not produce a bottle INSTANTLY when she wanted one, and she wanted about twice as many as usual, straight through the night. She'd been having medical problems, so we were at the pediatrician a lot, and she grew an inch and gained a pound in a week. The doctor was so surprised she redid all the measurements because that allegedly was impossible.

[Rural]

I loved it when southerners asked me to "Mash the switch"

Like I was going to get out a sledge hammer to turn on the lights.

Sorry to interfere with your mashing, but one mashes a button, not a switch, so unless you have very old-style two button lights, you're flipping those.


Source: just had to mash the mute on the alarm twice (perhaps because I got it in 2003) before stumbling over and flipping on the lights so I could see to make coffee,

[arebelspy]

I loved it when southerners asked me to "Mash the switch"

Like I was going to get out a sledge hammer to turn on the lights.

Sorry to interfere with your mashing, but one mashes a button, not a switch, so unless you have very old-style two button lights, you're flipping those.

I pictured this:


That's a switch, seems like you could mash that.

[Papa Mustache]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

I hear ya!  We have recently resorted to ordering sheet pizzas for our family of 4.  That is 36 slices, 9 per person.  I may have 3.  The eating machines and my husband eat most of it and we usually have about 8 pieces left for lunch the next day (enough for the eating machines only.)

Don't get between them and the food - it could be dangerous. I feel safer getting between the dog and her food than getting between our kids and their food these days. Its all teeth and chewing. ;)

One teen, one on the cusp of being a tween. Both boys.

[ShoulderThingThatGoesUp]

I would eat chicken skin in high school. I can't comprehend that being appealing now.

[Elliot]

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

It's y'uns, not you'uns, and that's mostly limited to Appalachia rather than the state at large.

[merula]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

It could work out cheaper to feed a teenage boy, if you were talking about an extremely picky 4-year-old. Yeah, they only eat yogurt and snack packs, but they HAVE TO HAVE the yogurt that's $4 for a 2 oz container and the organic all-natural handmade by chimpanzees snacks that are $15 for 4.

Teenage boys, meanwhile, are not known for their discerning palates.

[Papa Mustache]

You are correct there. Would not be that surprised to see teeth marks on the exterior brick were they to get locked out of the house some afternoon. ;) Both active, normal weight, etc. Older one clearly going through a growth spurt. Same height as me. Don't know if I'll be looking up at him soon or not. Younger one is part monkey. Flips, climbing, etc.

[maco]

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

Agreed with below, but I'd spell the later "in'ere" on account of I'm pretty sure that's a contraction of "in there."

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

It's y'uns, not you'uns, and that's mostly limited to Appalachia rather than the state at large.

And a note that that's ALL of Appalachia, not just the Tennessee portion. (says the Yinzer, I mean...Pittsburgher).

[mm1970]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

My almost 10 year old boy started the day with 2pieces of toast, a smoothie, a banana, and some cheese.  Luckily he then had to go to school.  (Where he gets morning snack, lunch, and afternoon snack.)

[mtn]

Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

[BDWW]

Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

Funny, when I played sports in high school a remember eating only a single serving of yogurt for lunch, and a couple slices of bread for dinner.  Ran 5 miles before school and 2 hour practice after. Guess the sport?

Anyhow, on topic, my boss(executive VP) isn't mustachian cheap, but is cheap cheap. Awhile back it came out that he somewhat regularly sneaks into hotels around town to eat continental breakfast. Just recently our maintenance  guy was about to call an appliance repairman, when the ice machine in the fridge seemed on the fritz. It turned out the boss was just emptying/stealing the ice every night.

[mm1970]

It turned out the boss was just emptying/stealing the ice every night.

Oh good god.  We have an ice machine at work, and there was a period of time when we had a LOT of people here.  During the summer, it couldn't keep up!

[plainjane]

I would eat chicken skin in high school. I can't comprehend that being appealing now.

I had a skewer of grilled chicken skin at a Japanese restaurant in Montreal a few years ago.  I would order it again.  Very yummy.

[Elliot]

The skin is the best part of fried chicken!

[dragoncar]

The skin is the best part of fried chicken!

It puts the oil on the skin

[Elliot]

Is that a quote from Buffalo Chicken Bill?

[LeRainDrop]

The skin is the best part of fried chicken!

It puts the oil on the skin

Is that a quote from Buffalo Chicken Bill?

I don't know, but it reminds me of the psychopath who was keeping his victim at the bottom of a well in Silence of the Lambs.

[Troy McClure]

I don't know, but it reminds me of the psychopath who was keeping his victim at the bottom of a well in Silence of the Lambs.

You mean the police captain in Monk?

[MoonShadow]

2) As a mom to teen and pre-teen boys, I had to giggle to myself about food bills for a 4 year old girl.  She has no idea what kids eating a lot of food looks like.

No kidding.  My 3 year old seems to live on air.  But my 13 year old son recently complained that he wasn't hungry when called, and proceeded to only eat one whole 14 inch pizza by himself.  I'm just glad he wasn't hungry.

It could work out cheaper to feed a teenage boy, if you were talking about an extremely picky 4-year-old. Yeah, they only eat yogurt and snack packs, but they HAVE TO HAVE the yogurt that's $4 for a 2 oz container and the organic all-natural handmade by chimpanzees snacks that are $15 for 4.

Teenage boys, meanwhile, are not known for their discerning palates.

No, I don't think you understand.  I haven't seen the three year old eat more than a bite or two of anything in 6 days.  I put two ounces of dry cereal in her breakfast bowl yesterday morning, and a half-glass of milk.  After 10 minutes, I put the dry cereal back in the box & can't tell if she actually ate any, while the milk might still be half there when I put it in the refrigerator for her lunch.  She will eat any candy or cake offered, but that is not often offered, so I seriously don't know how she manages to gain weight.  Perhaps she steals it during the night, I don't know.

[mm1970]

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

Agreed with below, but I'd spell the later "in'ere" on account of I'm pretty sure that's a contraction of "in there."

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

It's y'uns, not you'uns, and that's mostly limited to Appalachia rather than the state at large.

And a note that that's ALL of Appalachia, not just the Tennessee portion. (says the Yinzer, I mean...Pittsburgher).

How yinz doin n'at?

(Grew up north of Pittsburgh, went to college in the 'burgh)

[serpentstooth]

I would eat chicken skin in high school. I can't comprehend that being appealing now.

I had a skewer of grilled chicken skin at a Japanese restaurant in Montreal a few years ago.  I would order it again.  Very yummy.

I once roasted a chicken for supper, and then Mr. Tooth was very late getting home from work. I presented him with the now denuded chicken. I really like chicken skin. So does he. He was very, very disappointed.

[gimp]

I once roasted a chicken for supper, and then Mr. Tooth was very late getting home from work. I presented him with the now denuded chicken. I really like chicken skin. So does he. He was very, very disappointed.

[zolotiyeruki]

Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

Same here.  I ran cross country and track and was on the swim team.  My mom packed me a sack lunch every day, and it was always full enough that you couldn't close it at the top.  Our 25-minute lunch period was barely enough time to finish lunch.  And then I had a bagel sometime during another class period, because I got hungry.  I estimate I was eating (and burning) 5-6k calories per day.

Ah, to be young again.

[Kitsune]

Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

Same here.  I ran cross country and track and was on the swim team.  My mom packed me a sack lunch every day, and it was always full enough that you couldn't close it at the top.  Our 25-minute lunch period was barely enough time to finish lunch.  And then I had a bagel sometime during another class period, because I got hungry.  I estimate I was eating (and burning) 5-6k calories per day.

Ah, to be young again.

Yeah, I remember having my (football, karate, swimmer) 15-year-old brother over for a weekend a few years back... His 4pm "pre-dinner" snack was an XL pizza and a sundae. And the. He ate about 3 times what I did for dinner 3 hours later. And you could see his ribs.

[Primm]

Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

Same here.  I ran cross country and track and was on the swim team.  My mom packed me a sack lunch every day, and it was always full enough that you couldn't close it at the top.  Our 25-minute lunch period was barely enough time to finish lunch.  And then I had a bagel sometime during another class period, because I got hungry.  I estimate I was eating (and burning) 5-6k calories per day.

Ah, to be young again.

Yeah, I remember having my (football, karate, swimmer) 15-year-old brother over for a weekend a few years back... His 4pm "pre-dinner" snack was an XL pizza and a sundae. And the. He ate about 3 times what I did for dinner 3 hours later. And you could see his ribs.

When we had four teenage boys at home, we used to buy the 87c loaves of cheapy bread from the supermarket (along with the usual groceries).

The purchase requirement was one loaf per boy per day... None now bigger than normal (in fact two of them are bordering on the low end of weight for height), they just needed the extra calories a loaf of bread with peanut butter or cheese provided for normal functioning.

[ambimammular]

I remember cooking a dinner with my now-husband back when we were both in college. I was shocked by the quantity he could eat. The vast amount was non-mustachian to say the least, but it did work out in the end!

[Ralph2]

On a related note, although we consume less sugar than the American median (mainly because we don't eat processed food much), DH and I were trying to cut down a bit more and reading labels, and we realized that ONE tiny Yoplait yogurt container has nearly an ENTIRE recommended daily added sugar amount. Seriously crazy.

And depending on the flavour, many have more than the recommended daily amount.
Not bad for a supposed health food.
side note, I was eating two yogurts a day on deployment until I got bored one night and read the list of ingredients. Binned half a container of it and gave the rest of my stash to another guy who ate it 5 or 6 times every day. He was also drinking 6 cans of coke a day so wasn't bothered by the sugar.
Till then I could not work out why I was gaining weight, hardly ever ate yogurt before then and still avoid it now.

[SpeedReader]

Rural Kentucky has "y'all" and "all y'all" but we make fun of the folks just south in Tennessee who use "you'uns". Another of my favorites around here is "in-nair" to denote someone who is in good favor with the boss, as in "Boy, you in-nair, ain'tcha?"

It's y'uns, not you'uns, and that's mostly limited to Appalachia rather than the state at large.

I lived in Tennessee twice, Middle & East, and never once heard "y'uns" there.  Where they do say it is in western Pennsylvania. 

[grantmeaname]

That's "yinz", not "y'uns".