Dear Mustachians: May I have a Pony?

[iamlindoro]

NO.  No you damn well can't.

What's with all the questions where the asker doesn't care about the answer and intends to buy it anyway?  ;)

What do people expect, anyway?

[lauren_knows]

It's hard for some people to break the consumerist mentality.  At least praise them for trying to come to terms with it, rather than mock them. Hope that they heed the advice given here.

[iamlindoro]

I don't know... praising people who come looking for good advice, universally get good advice, and then disregard it sort of makes a mockery of asking in the first place.

I prefer the term "highly amusing facepunch."  ;)

(And isn't that what this site is about, anyway?  You don't pull punches and make people feel good about having thought about making good decisions and making bad ones anyway-- if anything, that's a more grievous mistake than just being ignorant to start with)

[Erica/NWEdible]

You may only have a pony if you own, free and clear, enough land on which to pasture said pony and have the income, dedication and skills to build and maintain appropriate shelter plus feed, tend, exercise and occasionally medicate your new pony. You should also know before you buy that ponies poop a lot, and you will be responsible for this poop. Further, although people think ponies are good with kids because they are short, this is generally not the case. Ponies were bred primarily for hard work in mines, and often have the temperament you might expect from that lineage. One day your pony will die and then you will have to dig a really, really big hole. Also, ponies are NOT purple or pink and do not come with glitter rainbows on their ass. Ever.

[maryofdoom]

One year, I asked the husband for a million dollars and a pony for Christmas.

He got me a My Little Pony and $1,000,000 in Monopoly money. Because he is great.

[StarswirlTheMustached]

"May I have a Pony?"



sorry. Couldn't resist.

[arebelspy]

OP, you win post of the day.

Well done.

[iamlindoro]

I love literally every response to my post.  Every one.

[MafiaPrincess]

Ponies generally are full of ponitude.. and if you get one for a child you need to have an adult rider decent enough and light enough to give said pony an attitude tune up..  I've been that adult.  I hate ponies.

I do have a horse though.. and because it lives on a friend's farm and I don't pay board I can afford her.  450-700 a month for board isn't cost effective to me.  Vet bills when needed are though.

Poop can be turned into a profit though.. Have the room to let it breakdown some and it can be sold as top soil..  We did that this spring.

[StarswirlTheMustached]

Good point, Mafia Princess! If you have pasture you own free and clear, you can mix the pony poo with sawdust or other carbon-rich material and resell the resultant compost at a tiny profit! The pony would pay for itself in no time, considering they can often be had for a song from consumerist types who didn't know what they were getting into.

That's an eye-opener. Everything really is relative: under the right conditions, a pony can be a mustachian purchase.


(This is the last one, I swear.)

[kudy]

Come check out the new model year ponies today - It's as easy as SIGN and RIDE!

[MafiaPrincess]

Good point, Mafia Princess! If you have pasture you own free and clear, you can mix the pony poo with sawdust or other carbon-rich material and resell the resultant compost at a tiny profit! The pony would pay for itself in no time, considering they can often be had for a song from consumerist types who didn't know what they were getting into.

That's an eye-opener. Everything really is relative: under the right conditions, a pony can be a mustachian purchase.

Horse market sucks at the moment.  Decent broken horses can be had for a song currently.  Mine was free, person couldn't afford her anymore.  If you live in suburbia.. a pony is not so mustachian..  If you live in the country it can very much work at a low cost.  Vet bills not included...  Though my horse vet is more apt to work with me over the phone and is cheaper than any dog vet I've ever had.  Livestock vs pets is huge.

[randymarsh]

I'm coming down...definitely not to where people want me to be at, but it wasn't a worthless thread.

[c]

I'm coming down...definitely not to where people want me to be at, but it wasn't a worthless thread.

For me the thing is that sometimes you just don't know. On the face of it many things seem worthwhile and it's helpful to have other people's perspective.

Also, sometimes you want to go ahead anyway. It's not ignoring the advice, it doing something knowing all the pros and cons.

I remember the days when I thought I was the shit because I never went in to debt. I spent everything I made, but I wasn't in debt. To me it was a big achievement, I didn't know any better.

[grantmeaname]

I'm coming down...definitely not to where people want me to be at, but it wasn't a worthless thread.

This wasn't entirely in response to you. There's also people who want $2000 amplifiers, kitchen remodels, going back to grad school with no clue why, and expensive laptops, to name four of the most recent examples that come to mind. And people who think maybe if they don't spend much on groceries, driving an Audi is okay.

We're all working towards getting our expenses down.

[Jamesqf]

Horse market sucks at the moment.  Decent broken horses can be had for a song currently.  Mine was free, person couldn't afford her anymore.

Same free horse here, though it was a case of the previous owner's wife/girlfriend splitting, and him not wanting "her" horse around to remind him.

[iamlindoro]

I'm coming down...definitely not to where people want me to be at, but it wasn't a worthless thread.

This wasn't entirely in response to you. There's also people who want $2000 amplifiers, kitchen remodels, going back to grad school with no clue why, and expensive laptops, to name four of the most recent examples that come to mind. And people who think maybe if they don't spend much on groceries, driving an Audi is okay.

We're all working towards getting our expenses down.

Exactly this.

[Paul der Krake]

Came for the humorous title, stayed for the horse market comments, spent 30 minutes reading various things about horses in another tab. Dammit, Wikipedia.

[Emerald]

What about a mini horse?  How expensive are they?  God help me, I want one.

[Jamesqf]

What about a mini horse?  How expensive are they?  God help me, I want one.

Why?  Can't ride them, so what's the point?

[Emerald]

What about a mini horse?  How expensive are they?  God help me, I want one.

Why?  Can't ride them, so what's the point?

I love animals, they're cute, and I'd like to rescue one or two if I had the opportunity.   I can't ride my dog either,  but he brings a lot of happiness into my life, and he's cheaper than a kid.

[dragoncar]

How about this little guy:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pud%C3%BA

[mustache brony]

I approve of both the images in this thread, and the informational posts on pony ownership.

[happy]

What about a mini horse?  How expensive are they?  God help me, I want one.

Much cheaper, and also cheaper to keep. You can drive them.

[happy]

For some people, the process of making a decision involves asking others for advice, then arguing against all the advice given.  If, weary of the all the arguing, one then says, "Ok you're right I agree", then this can then spark a series of counter arguments in the opposite direction.

I have a family member who does this. I've learnt not to get too invested in the "discussion", since the person will do what they wanted anyway. I'm not sure what it achieves but  I've learnt its just how this person makes decisions (or avoids making them). : - /

[MafiaPrincess]

There is  lot of squee factor in minis..  Cute as hell, eat less.. but that may or may not cause more 'maintenance'.  They can be more prone to founder as they really need less.. While not always the case, you may need to be more on top of a mini's nutrition and have a dry lot (no grass) to put them part of the time.

I have a friend with one.  Her hubby wanted it (they own a horse farm) but are not mustachian at all and really the horses cost them endlessly...  He wanted to drive.. but they are in debt, and even used driving equipment is a luxury they cannot afford. 

Mini's still need hoof care if looking at expense break down.  Easier to self farrier with smaller feet though- but unless you are short (I am) it's a long reach down/ bent over and can hurt your back.   As they aren't being ridden I like to practice ones farrier in the making skills on them if you or friends have one..   After years of research we do all of our horses feet ourselves.  Too many shoddy farrier visits (and heck it saves money as ours go unshod).

As Happy pointed out you can totally drive them.  Even then there are options for driving and competition if one got hardcore and wanted a sport (though could be a costly one).  I personally prefer a horse as I really enjoy riding.. but there are certainly size options ;)

I love that this thread made you go google Paul.. I thought I was the only one who did that.

[shadowmoss]

Also, aparently if it is a gelding there is some necessary chore called shieth* cleaning that I learned more than I ever wanted to know about in a thread on vets and horses over at SimpleLiving.  Anyone who wants a horse, go read that and come back and tell me you still feel the same way.

*my sig at the other forum is 'bad spellers of the world UNTIE!', I can't spell well and this doesn't have spell check.  That doesn't look right but darned if I can figure another way to spell it.

[etselec]

I look at those give-me-a-pony posts as coming from more or less a Mustachian 6-year-old. They are not just consumerist babies anymore, because they are starting to understand the basic concepts like "money doesn't grow on trees" and "I can't actually have everything I want" - they understand the difference between right and wrong choices but they don't yet have the maturity, discipline, patience, and self-control to make good choices consistently.

Just because the 6-year-old ignores your advice and does something stupid, doesn't mean that her Mustachian future is doomed, or that the effort of giving advice was all in vain. She'll grow and mature, and your advice will stick in her head and perhaps be applied to some other quandary down the road once she's ready, willing and able.

tl;dr: be patient with newbies. It takes them a while to catch on sometimes.

[MafiaPrincess]

Shadow, sheath cleaning ;)  No worries.  My work computer has no spell check and won't let me add it and it drives me nuts.  Any male horse needs their sheath cleaned, gelding or stallion..

I find it a terribly unpleasant job and am glad I have a mare..  A friend had a horse I rode often and adored.  Was the wrong horse for me, and way way out of my price range.  Loved him, but cleaning his sheath was unpleasant for me..

That said.. If you board out.. there are people who happily do it for entire barns for a fee.  A lot of horse owners find it nasty enough of a chore they are happy to pay for it..

[GuitarStv]

So . . . nobody approached this as a money making opportunity?  Open a children's pony ride on weekends, haul your groceries by pony to save on gas, heat your house by burning pony poop (look it up, Mongolians have been using cow dung to heat their huts for ages).  If things don't work out you can always eat your pony, saving on food bills for months, and then tan and cure the pony hide to make some supple and long lasting rustic pony pants.

Really, a pony is a financial boon that keeps giving!

[bcg150]

So . . . nobody approached this as a money making opportunity?  Open a children's pony ride on weekends, haul your groceries by pony to save on gas, heat your house by burning pony poop (look it up, Mongolians have been using cow dung to heat their huts for ages).  If things don't work out you can always eat your pony, saving on food bills for months, and then tan and cure the pony hide to make some supple and long lasting rustic pony pants.

Really, a pony is a financial boon that keeps giving!

Get rich with.. Ponies!

I feel the comment about the 6yr old Mustachian is dead on.  I feel we are all at different points of our mustachian journey so some of us still have some learning to do.  I know while I feel I do pretty well at budgeting and saving some money I can do much better in areas of self control, drive and discipline.   Are the threads "true" to what we have in the forum, probably not but we all learn differently.

[Connie]

I posted about the laptop and frankly, it's really disheartening to be openly mocked multiple times. Why isn't this a more welcoming community? We're all on our own journeys, and it's not constructive to ridicule people looking for advice. I was excited to discover MMM and start working towards financial independence with a likeminded community, but I have been disappointed by your attitudes towards me. 

I've actually decided to forego the laptop for a more moderately priced tablet after talking to some friends. You don't know me. I don't appreciate the mocking.

[iamlindoro]

I posted about the laptop and frankly, it's really disheartening to be openly mocked multiple times. Why isn't this a more welcoming community? We're all on our own journeys, and it's not constructive to ridicule people looking for advice. I was excited to discover MMM and start working towards financial independence with a likeminded community, but I have been disappointed by your attitudes towards me. 

I've actually decided to forego the laptop for a more moderately priced tablet after talking to some friends. You don't know me. I don't appreciate the mocking.

Actually, I wasn't thinking of your post at all when I started this thread.  If you'll remember, I sympathized with your desire for a mac and suggested a couple of ways you might be able to get most of what you want.

That said, your reaction here suggests you might be missing the point of this particular site, which is to gleefully (and good naturedly, as this post is intended to reflect) deliver the cold, hard truth (the proverbial "facepunch").  I actually find this particular community to be a fair amount above par in terms of internet civility.  I appreciate that people don't let one another get away with much but are mostly sympathetic and nurturing.

If anyone should be angry at me, it should be the guy who wants a 2K Tube Amp while he's > 50K in debt.

Edit:  And even this may have come off as more stern than I meant.  I was only trying to make light of the "pony posts."  I didn't mean any harm by it.

[ruthiegirl]

I look at those give-me-a-pony posts as coming from more or less a Mustachian 6-year-old. They are not just consumerist babies anymore, because they are starting to understand the basic concepts like "money doesn't grow on trees" and "I can't actually have everything I want" - they understand the difference between right and wrong choices but they don't yet have the maturity, discipline, patience, and self-control to make good choices consistently.

Just because the 6-year-old ignores your advice and does something stupid, doesn't mean that her Mustachian future is doomed, or that the effort of giving advice was all in vain. She'll grow and mature, and your advice will stick in her head and perhaps be applied to some other quandary down the road once she's ready, willing and able.

tl;dr: be patient with newbies. It takes them a while to catch on sometimes.

This is dead on and I count myself in with the 6 year olds.  Well, maybe an 9 or 10 year old, but definitely not through puberty yet.  I'll let you know when I grow some pubes. 

[arebelspy]

I like how multiple people have thought this was "targeted" at them.

In light of the fact that it wasn't, maybe the fact that they immediately interpreted it as so says more about them than the OP, IMO. One who thought this was directed towards them when it wasn't should maybe take a hard look at themselves if such a ridiculous post as this hits too close to home.

 

[Jamesqf]

I posted about the laptop and frankly, it's really disheartening to be openly mocked multiple times. Why isn't this a more welcoming community? We're all on our own journeys, and it's not constructive to ridicule people looking for advice. I was excited to discover MMM and start working towards financial independence with a likeminded community, but I have been disappointed by your attitudes towards me. 

If I'm remembering that thread correctly, you didn't get all that much mocking, and got a number of useful suggestions, too. 

Attitude goes both ways, you know.  It seemed - to use the pony analogy - that you wanted to spend lotsa bucks on a highly-bred dressage horse, when what you needed was a pony.

[Connie]

I'm coming down...definitely not to where people want me to be at, but it wasn't a worthless thread.

This wasn't entirely in response to you. There's also people who want $2000 amplifiers, kitchen remodels, going back to grad school with no clue why, and expensive laptops, to name four of the most recent examples that come to mind. And people who think maybe if they don't spend much on groceries, driving an Audi is okay.

We're all working towards getting our expenses down.

This is the post that specifically referred to expensive laptops. I think I also felt stung by the person who suggested to me that people only come on to ask if they can buy a luxury and then leave when told they can't. Then there was a whole thread making fun of such people.

Honestly, I don't enjoy being contentious. I think I'll just go back to lurking.

[Bakari]

Ponies generally are full of ponitude...

http://youtu.be/sXoYK4b_q24

"Giddy-up"

[Erica/NWEdible]

I'm a big believer that you can have almost anything you want, you just can't have everything you want. If someone is willing to come on to this forum asking for permission to get something, then they probably feel hesitation about getting it in the first place but really want it. So they are looking for either, (A) talk me out of this, because I know I shouldn't get it OR (B) give me your best reasons why this is stupid and if after hearing them I still want my thing, I'm getting it and screw the savings hit.

I think either one makes for pretty valid feedback because values are clarified through the process. Most people on this forum are not choosing between a new $2000 amp (was it an amp?) and eating....they are choosing between a $2000 amp vs. a few more months of status quo working. So if the "But I Want It!" poster comes away concluding that they want "it" enough, and are buying it eyes wide open to the consequences, and aren't whiney about it, who am I to judge?

Of course, when I buy my brand new MacBook I'm not going to mention it to any of y'all. ;)

[grantmeaname]

This is the post that specifically referred to expensive laptops. I think I also felt stung by the person who suggested to me that people only come on to ask if they can buy a luxury and then leave when told they can't. Then there was a whole thread making fun of such people.

Look, if you want to deliberately misinterpret me so you can complain about your feelings being hurt, that's your prerogative. But considering that I listed half a dozen things like your post, and yours is not even the only example of someone wanting an expensive purchase and coming here to ask us if they could get one (see also this post, this post, this post, this post, and this post for laptops alone), and then closed it with an inclusive and conciliatory statement meant to reassure another reader with a post just like yours, who I was directly responding to, I think it's pretty clear that the post wasn't meant to disparage you.

But if you get your kicks by getting your feelings hurt on the internet by deliberately misunderstanding the words of strangers, by all means, carry on.

[Jamesqf]

I think either one makes for pretty valid feedback because values are clarified through the process. Most people on this forum are not choosing between a new $2000 amp (was it an amp?) and eating....they are choosing between a $2000 amp vs. a few more months of status quo working.

I think most of the responses tend to be more of a C) Do you actually want to spend big bucks on that - be it amp, laptop, dressage horse, or whatever - when you could get virtually indistinguishable results by spending a lot less?  As in the expensive laptop thread(s), where a lot of responses point out that most people can get everything the expensive new laptop does by buying a used one.

[grantmeaname]

As in the expensive laptop thread(s), where a lot of responses point out that most people can get everything the expensive new laptop does by buying a used one.

This.

We did the same thing in the kitchen thread (used/recovered building materials and DIY), the student's new car thread (reliable old car), grad school (figure out what you want from your life through introspection, not by buying more letters to go after your name), and the thread about all-organic diets (eat less meat, or buy organic only on things that really matter, or join a CSA, or garden).

[DocCyane]

Honestly, I don't enjoy being contentious. I think I'll just go back to lurking.

That's totally your call, Connie. I understand if this space is a little rough. But I've come to believe in the good heartedness of the Mustachians.

Keep in mind that we all value different things. I'm happy to walk around in crap clothes and shoes and have my significant other cut and color my hair. For many women, this is a mindset against God and Humanity.

In turn, I value all my Apple products because they are my universe. My work, my play, my life. I'll drop thousands on those items while skimping on clothes, food, cars, apartments and nearly everything else. And I allow it because I save a significant part of my income and have a massive plan to FIRE.

We don't know what you value. The Mustachians are just giving options. Don't toss out the baby with the bath water because this community offers a lot of answers and support. My two cents.