Tag: friends
There are 12 entries that are tagged friends. Now displaying reults 1 - 12.
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When Does Borrowing Become Mooching?
Posted on January 21, 2008 by Him
Back when I was a kid, borrowing Nintendo games from friends was an accepted practice. One would usually set a limit to how many days the game could be lent out for; those who went past the deadline were usually given a good book check in the hallway or have an annoying girl told that he had a crush on her. There was always that one kid who kept games for a lot longer than was ever agreed upon. I hated that guy.
I feel that the rules of borrowing are a little different now that we're adults. I have a friend who owns a Blockbuster store worth of DVDs. He's pretty generous with lending out his DVD to friends; he'll push them on you if you haven't seen a movie of a TV show that he things is awesome. Other friends of mine often ask to borrow DVDs from him, which he happily lends out.
He does have many television shows on DVD that I would like to watch. Since we recently canceled our Netflix account, we don't have the unlimited access to any DVD we'd want to watch.
If I asked him to borrow DVDs am I:
A) Making a frugal decision? After all, I am just borrowing a few DVDs from a friend.
B) Being cheap? I have enough money to rent/buy them on my own, after all.
Of course, if he actively lends them to me (dude, you HAVE to watch this...here's the DVDs!) then that's a totally different story.
When does borrowing become mooching? Do you have friends who are over-borrowers? Do you borrow a lot of stuff from your friends?
A Friend Comes Up To You And Asks...
Posted on January 09, 2008 by Him
photo: -Mandie-
"Hey, can I borrow $______?"
How much do you give without a second thought?
One dollar?
5 dollars?
10 dollars?
20 dollars?
Your answers are appreciated.
Guests, Guests, and More Guests
Posted on August 23, 2007 by Him
We've just had company over for the last 11 days, hence the lack of timely posts. Mind you it wasn't all the same people - somewhere in our budget there was room for a revolving door that family and friends could come and go as they please.
Of course, having guests over for any period of time induces a little mental stress, although we have yet to sit down and see what kind of stress is put on our finances. Luckily, our guests were all more than generous and insisted they pay for meals out (which some they did, some we did), suggested that we eat in, or just plain stuck to inexpensive things to do. At first glance, it doesn't seem like it'll be too bad, but we need to give Microsoft Money a thorough work out.
The VIP Drinks at Da Club
Posted on June 19, 2007 by Him
A few weeks ago a friend of ours had a birthday celebration at a club in downtown Chicago. Neither Her or I are of the clubbing type (and that includes baby seals) so we begrudgingly went. Lucky for us, there was no cover to get in before 9PM, so we were there nice and early. I do have to admit that clubs suck when they're empty.
The club itself was pretty nice, but again, not our style. After I had a few overpriced Miller Lites (still the cheapest beer there), I wandered into an empty VIP lounge. Scattered among the tables of the lounge space were champaign buckets that had menus of the VIP drinks. I was just un-inebriated enough to take this picture of it...
The top bottle, the 'L' Exclusive de Ruinart, would run you just about $3,000! If I bought that, I sure as hell would expect to take every woman home (if I were single, and a pimp, of course) after we imbibed that sort of liquid gold.
I also had no idea how much Cristal cost, and that there were even different varieties and sizes. I guess that's why I'm not a rapper. Well, that and I have no flow.
When A Friend Has Become A MLM Robot
Posted on June 14, 2007 by Her
What do you do when a good friend gets sucked into a multi-level marketing scheme (MLM), more commonly known as pyramid schemes?
Over the past year one of my closest friends has displayed increasingly bizarre behaviors that are totally unlike her. For example, she has been making claims about how much money she is making in the MLM, even though statistically over 99% of participants in that MLM have earned less than $10,000 per year. To boot, this MLM is known for encouraging participants to acquire huge credit card debt in order to purchase products and "move up the ranks." Last time we went out to eat, her credit card was declined...for a $12 purchase.
She used to be a complete tomboy, but lately she's been bragging about the very girly prizes she has won from her MLM participation. This is a girl whose only dress was her wedding dress...but who suddenly has started carrying matching pink luggage with rhinestones on the front.
This MLM is also known for being almost cult-ish in its religious doctrine. She is from a family of atheists, and until recently, never expressed the slightest interest in religion. Last time I saw her, she had purchased a bracelet with scripture on it.
Now, carrying debt and bracelets in pink luggage are hardly unusual by themselves. But in this instance, these things are totally out of character for my friend.
I am afraid she is becoming a MLM robot and is headed for financial ruin. I sent her some literature exposing the dangers of this MLM and never got a reply. What's a girl to do?
Getting Drunk Or Oil Changes For Cheap (Or Free)
Posted on May 28, 2007 by Him
This past weekend I went to lunch with a friend of mine from way back in the day. Although I haven't seen this guy in quite a while, when we do get together it usually results in a crazy night where I wake up without pants (in my bed, mind you) and half-eaten Doritos all over me. The great thing is that almost all of my cash that I left the apartment with is usually still left in my pants, wherever I left them.
What I neglected to say is that my friend is bartender. Not only does that mean free drinks at the bar that he works at, but he seems to know every bartender at every other Chicago bar. He also worked at a restaurant, and when he did we would get heavily discounted meals at nice places. Alas, the biggest expense whenever we went out were for cab rides and tips.
Normally, I'd really feel guilty taking all of the free drinks, but I NEVER ask to go out to the bars with him. Whenever I invite him out, it is usually for lunch where I can pay for myself. Whenever he invites me out, it is generally to a tavern or six. I consider myself really lucky to have such a generous, well connected friend.
When it comes to getting discounted services, I also able to get inexpensive service performed on our car. A family friend of ours has been the mechanic for all of our cars for the past 10 years. At first we would bring our cars to him because we knew he wouldn't rip us off, and he would charge us only a fraction of the labor charges. Now when we ask him to look at our cars he offers to do it "on the side" at his house, assuming it isn't too complicated. He takes a little longer, but only charges us for any parts. Of course we add in some extra cash to compensate him for his work.
In the first example, I get free stuff because of a mutual friend relationship - we do more than drink. In the second example, it is purely a business relationship - we only really see each other when the car needs work.
Do any of your relationships (business, friendships, etc.) directly affect your personal finances? How did these relationships come about, and how are the discounted services or goods handled?
Our Peers Aren't Doing So Bad
Posted on February 01, 2007 by Him
I have a ton of websites that are currently in my feedreader, but only a few that I visit daily. Of them, the Chicago-based Gaper's Block (origin of the name) is surely one of my favorites. The site is well-designed, contains articles about lesser known Chicago happenings around town, and even has a calendar of (often free) events that we usually end up going to.
One of the sections on the site is called "Fuel," a feature that asks a question and asks the general community to share their answer. The questions range from where to eat breakfast to whether or not you believe in UFOs to what your favorite zoo animal is. Of particular interest to those in the personal finance blog community were two questions that were asked recently: How much do you earn annually? and especially Are you saving for the future? How?
After reading all of the responses, I was quite surprised - the audience that Gaper's Block attracts is usually anti-corporate, anti-mainstream, art-loving hipsters and hipster wannabes. Despite that generality, many of them were well aware that they need to be saving for the future. Many had accounts with ING Direct and contributed to their retirement plan at work. Sure, their answers weren't highly polished replies that meandered over the benefits of asset allocation. That's okay though, as for them, money is just a means to an end.
Much of the has been said in the pfblogosphere about how much we think our peers aren't saving. It is nice to see, that at least for this particular instance, my original assumptions were very wrong.
I Love My Friends. Their Names? The Joneses.
Posted on January 19, 2007 by Him
Last weekend, we attended a house warming party for a friend of ours. They just bought a large condo in an up-and-coming neighborhood, and a week later he bought a 52-inch flat screen TV. At the party they were serving food from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. The heat was turned up to 80F. It was great. Our price? $0.00.
A few weekends ago a friend of mine picked me up in his brand new Nissan Murano. We drove to another buddy's party where he had a keg and lots of hard liquor. We all got wasted. It was great. My price? $0.00.
Another friend of mine bought a condo in another up-and-coming neighborhood over a year ago. He just bought a 42-inch flat screen TV. I go there all the time to watch sports games that our alma matter is in. Football is so much more awesome on a 42-inch flat screen. Every time I go over to his place, the cost is $0.00 (that's not entirely accurate - I usually bring some beers with me, so whatever that cost is).
There is so much that is said about not keeping up with the Joneses. Their lifestyles are very different from our Jewel and Dominick's bought food, our vintage 850 square foot apartment with leaky windows, our thermostat at a maximum of 66F, our economical mid-size car, and 20 year old 27-inch television (with wood paneling, I might add). Admittedly, looking at their posh places, watching their large TVs, driving in their expensive vehicles, and eating their delectable food, I was a little bit jealous. But most of all, I am grateful that I have the kind of friends who invite me over all the time, regardless of the stuff that I own.
Battlestar Galactica > Retirement Plans
Posted on October 26, 2006 by Him
A few weeks ago I was out having a few drinks with few coworkers during happy hour. One of my coworkers (CW1) noted that in a few weeks he will have been at the company for six months. Another coworker (CW2) remaked that he was then eligible to participate in the company retirement plan. Both of these coworkers are my age, maybe a little younger. The conversation went a little like this...
CW1: Hey, I'll be at the company for six months in a few weeks!
CW2: Yeah dude, you'll be eligible for our 401k. (but we have a SIMPLE IRA...or am I just being nitpicky?)
CW1: Yeah that's cool.
Him: Yeah, I was thinking of rolling over my SIMPLE IRA to a Traditional IRA because I don't like our investment options. I won't be eligible to do that until May, though.
(blank stares)
CW2: Yeah, my boyfriend works at Morningstar, so he handles all of that stuff for me.
CW1: I don't have a clue when it comes to that stuff.
CW2: Yeah. You guys watch Battlestar Galactica?
Sigh.
Selling to Friends vs. Ebay vs. Craigslist
Posted on July 20, 2006 by Him
This weekend we had some friends in town. One friend expressed how she was feeling overwhelmed with all of the things going on in her life. She said she was thinking about getting a PDA. As a matter of coincidence, I had a Palm Tungsten T5 laying around, not doing anything.
In fact, that PDA had been sitting around not doing much for some time now. Before our friend said anything about it, I was contemplating selling it on eBay or Craigslist.
When she asked about the price, I told her to take the PDA for a test drive and see if she could successfully integrate it into her life. In my mind, I was thinking $100 - a price that is lower than what I could get by selling it online, around $150-$250.
My questions for you, dear readers:
1) Should I sell it to her for the price I could get online?
2) Do you cut your friends/family slack when it comes to selling stuff to them? How much of a discount do you give to them?
I Want To Keep Up With The Joneses
Posted on March 28, 2006 by Him
Another fine mantra of pfbloggers is "don't keep up with the Joneses." The pfblog community as a whole loves to assume that the Joneses are debt ridden, know nothing about finances, have flashy and glamorous stuff, have nothing to save for retirement, and have no emergency fund.
But what if the Joneses are doing everything right?
One of my roommates in college is now very successful. I've never seen him use a credit card. While he may not know what "beta" means in terms of mutual funds, I'm sure that his retirement accounts are well funded. He has a nice SUV that he paid mostly cash for, shares a huge apartment in the heart of the yuppiest neighborhood of Chicago, goes on vacation a couple times a year, and regularly buys everyone rounds at the bar. This behavior isn't atypical for my group of friends.
If that's what the Joneses are doing, why wouldn't I want to keep with them?
Money is All Relative
Posted on February 19, 2006 by Him
In college, everyone is poor. That makes it pretty easy to just make friends regardless of how much money one has. Sure, there are a few people who seems to have an endless supply of beer money, but they are usually the exception and not the rule.
Then comes graduation. Many of my friends had jobs waiting for them right away. Others weren't so lucky. Some went to law or med school. She and I choose grad school.
Two college roommates/great friends had very different post-graduation financial lives. One didn't find a job out of college, and lived at home. He eventually found a job outside of his field that didn't pay so well; he eventually worked his way up the ranks, bought and paid for an SUV, and is now looking and saving for a house. He doesn't go out so much to bars or restaurants, but when he does, he sticks around home in the suburbs where it isn't so expensive.
My other friend found a really good paying job out of college. He actually bought an SUV in college when he had a high-paying internship. He travels extensively, goes out to expensive bars most nights of the week, and eats out all the time. Weirdly enough, he didn't know what an expense ratio was when we were talking about mutual funds.
It is weird how money has changed my relationships with my friends. With the first friend, I don't feel so...poor? uncomfortable?...when we go out. With my second friend, I sometimes feel inadequate and cheap, and that I can't keep up. The MightyBargainHunter reminded me of an article I read this week at CNNMoney about the discrepancies of the incomes of recent college grads. From the article:
Wealth disparity can drive a wedge between even the closest friends. This is increasingly a fact of life in today's winner-take-all economy, where some skills are in fevered demand and others are, well, not. And it can make a friendly lunch feel weird.
There is nothing wrong with either of my friends' lifestyles, but the differences in income have dictated how they are spending (pun?) their young adult lives, and have had the potential to change the way that we all handled our relationship with each other. A few nights ago we went to an event where money wasn't even a consideration, which gave us the opportunity to have a lot of laughs just like the old days. It reminded me that our friendship is based on everything but money.
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