Paycheck to Paycheck

[oldbadger]

I'd make a comment about becoming a real man,
but I'm in a charitable mood for the next 5 minutes.

Yeah, but ours is full up............ you're just posing!

 

[oldbadger]

Me too. Just pay off the entire balance each month, and you'll score over the credit card companies!

Hi.... I just picked any post of yours to link up.......
At a less complex level, are you interested in including or collecting the little savings which can all help to support the 'begin saving for emergencies and getting on top' program?

Many years ago we were brassic, and we just had to step up or go under. We drew up a plan and it began to turn things round very quickly. The list was huge and so I cannot recall or list it all in a single post, but as I think back and recollect I will post it for any who are interested. It will be a scattered list I'm afraid because this was 45 years ago.

Debt can bring on depressions and depressions can demand a smoke or a drink or box of chocs or any treat of some kind. In the UK twenty cigs a day must cost about $70 a week by now, so a smoking couple on check-to-check living really do need to take the plunge, do the cold turkey thing and chuck the habit for an immediate 5-600 dollar per month benefit.

Folks who, say, have one lager each night really look forward to it abd can't imagine going without, but to dump booze or reduce it to one night per week helps the health as well as the pocket.

Food treats and chocs etc need to be ruthlessly rationed, and for those slightly overweight there are extra benefits. So far the person is benefiting physically as well as monetarily.

Obviously electrical and gas installation work has to be payed for, but it pays to start learning how to carry out basic home maintenance because the costs of tradespersons is huge. It is essential to begin to learn about and collect a reasonably good set of tools and get into DIY as other savings projects produce enough cash to buy these.

Stop driving fast! Slow down! Take more time for your journeys. Fast driving b*ggers brakes and suspensions up, and wears tyres down faster. Fast driving costs more fuel. If you are a fast driver you will be amazed at how much further you can travel on a gallon by learning how to become an economy driver! Check it out on IT.

Start spending more time searching charity shops for your shoes and clothes.... I'm amazed at how many expensive shoes I have found that were brand new. All my shoes and boots are Clarkes brand and had never/hardly been worn. And I didn't buy new suits either, I went to charity shops and got them for almost nothing. I was poor!

Expensive hobbies? There are less expensive versions of your favourite 'must-do' hobby. I don't care what it is. If you must go skiing at some resort then you ain't poor!

Don't buy stuff that you don't need (oh yes they do!) and NEVER buy stuff because it's at a special Sale price. If you didn't need it before you saw the Advert then you don't need it now.

Kids must have 'in' gear such as clothes and trainers etc or they can get isolated........ it sucks but it's true and you must try to help with this angle, but again, you can help a bit by searching charity shops regularly but you MUST NOT tell kids if you ever find a charity pair of nikes or whatever where you got 'em.

Do you still have dollar coins? If so, dollar coins in your change become holy and cannot be spent, they HAVE to go in the dollar box. They can only come out once a month to be changed into a 10, 20, 50, dollar bill and these bills must be put in the sacred roof box never to be spent. You do not touch these bills.

More later if anybody is interested.

 

[Revoltingest]

Yeah, but ours is full up............ you're just posing!

I pose because of popular demand.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Those I know who live paycheck to paycheck could benefit from making
better decisions....buy less dope, buy less fast food, don't buy tattoos,
shop at thrift stores, stop getting arrested for this or that, etc.

I think you're talking about people who live from handout to handout.

 

[Revoltingest]

I think you're talking about people who live from handout to handout.

No, I'm recalling people I've employed.
They earned their money....& then squandered much of it.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

No, I'm recalling people I've employed.
They earned their money....& then squandered much of it.

Impressive that they could stay employed from paycheck to paycheck. Kudos to the hard-working!

 

[oldbadger]

I pose because of popular demand.

Don't give me that. You posed for that pic 60 years ago........ I wanna see you wiv yer zimmer frame.

Paycheck to Paycheck................
You're right about losing money on court fines, parking tickets, drugs costs etc,.
Another way to lose a shedload of cash is over choice of car or truck.

Why do kids have to buy ten year old sports and fashion cars? These motors got thrashed as soon as they left the showroom, got smashed, got busted parts etc. And then some 'check to check' person reaches out and pays too much for the bloody thing, only to sink every penny they've got into it.

Surely it's best to list the vehicles that mature women were buying ten years ago? Lower mileage, less smashes, better engine condition and since the brats don't want them the price will be lower.

Brassic kids all around here are messing up over their need to look good and pose........... Oops!
No insult intended...............

 

[Terrywoodenpic]

Spend nothing
Save up every penny to buy a Ferrari.
By the time you have got the money together.
You will no longer want one, and will have developed different priorities.

 

[Revoltingest]

Don't give me that. You posed for that pic 60 years ago........ I wanna see you wiv yer zimmer frame.

Paycheck to Paycheck................
You're right about losing money on court fines, parking tickets, drugs costs etc,.
Another way to lose a shedload of cash is over choice of car or truck.

Why do kids have to buy ten year old sports and fashion cars? These motors got thrashed as soon as they left the showroom, got smashed, got busted parts etc. And then some 'check to check' person reaches out and pays too much for the bloody thing, only to sink every penny they've got into it.

Surely it's best to list the vehicles that mature women were buying ten years ago? Lower mileage, less smashes, better engine condition and since the brats don't want them the price will be lower.

Brassic kids all around here are messing up over their need to look good and pose........... Oops!
No insult intended...............

There's nothing inherently wrong with posing.
But people should use sound financial judgement

 

[Shadow Wolf]

He is addressing people that are badly in the hole. But he also says to "Live like no one else, so that later you can live and give like no one else". That means that to get out of your debt hole, you need to live on the bare minimum, and yes, work extra jobs. But once you've built up your wealth and attained economic stability, that you can spend as you will as you can afford it.

The point I want to focus on is having a part time job on top of a full job while having a family. Collectively, we need to realize that money and material possessions aren't all they're crack up to be, more so when doing so creates a "cats in the cradle" family.

 

[PureX]

The arrogance being expressed on this thread is depressing. It's sad that people can be so blind to their own advantages, and to other people's disadvantages. My, how we LOVE to blame the victims of life so that we can imagine that by our own innate superior wisdom and will power we will not become one of them. Just as the criminal oligarchs and plutocrats that are exploiting and robbing us all, want us to think.

 

[Holdasown]

The point I want to focus on is having a part time job on top of a full job while having a family. Collectively, we need to realize that money and material possessions aren't all they're crack up to be, more so when doing so creates a "cats in the cradle" family.

Right now if not for the second job my family wouldn't eat.

 

[Akivah]

The arrogance being expressed on this thread is depressing. It's sad that people can be so blind to their own advantages, and to other people's disadvantages. My, how we LOVE to blame the victims of life so that we can imagine that by our own innate superior wisdom and will power we will not become one of them. Just as the criminal oligarchs and plutocrats that are exploiting and robbing us all, want us to think.

I think it is sad that you are so against any person seeking to improve their own life.

 

[Revoltingest]

I think it is sad that you are so against any person seeking to improve their own life.

There's a problem with the victim olympics.....
If the victim could've done something differently, which would improve his
lot in life, then this means he had some responsibility for being where he is.
To give them useful advice....
Victim blaming!
So they cannot admit any responsibility for poor decisions.
Thus, it must be someone else's fault....the patriarchy, the oligarchy,
corporations, capitalism, Republicans, whitey, the wealthy, etc.

 

[metis]

The arrogance being expressed on this thread is depressing. It's sad that people can be so blind to their own advantages, and to other people's disadvantages. My, how we LOVE to blame the victims of life so that we can imagine that by our own innate superior wisdom and will power we will not become one of them. Just as the criminal oligarchs and plutocrats that are exploiting and robbing us all, want us to think.

I think it is sad that you are so against any person seeking to improve their own life.

How did you get that from what @PureX wrote?

 

[PureX]

There's a problem with the victim olympics.....
If the victim could've done something differently, which would improve his
lot in life, then this means he had some responsibility for being where he is.
To give them useful advice....
Victim blaming!
So they cannot admit any responsibility for poor decisions.
Thus, it must be someone else's fault....the patriarchy, the oligarchy,
corporations, capitalism, Republicans, whitey, the wealthy, etc.

The problem with this theory is that one assumes that everyone else recognizes, or should recognize, the same possibilities and opportunities in life. But there are a lot of people in our society that have been taught to expect that all the doors are closed to them before they even knock. And in many instances, this has been TRUE, for them. It may not be true for you, or for everyone, but it is true for some of us. And even when it's not always the case, when people come to believe it, they stop trying.

Most of the people who don't do all those clever things that you did to keep from being victimized by circumstances, never saw the possibilities and opportunities that you did. And for many of them, there were far fewer of those possibilities and opportunities, as compared to you. My point is that you're ignoring the reality of defeatism, and of social bigotry and ostracism, of self-sabatoge, and of other destructive factors that impede one's ability to recognize and pursue the possibilities available to them. You are also ignoring the very basic fact that the possibilities available to some of us are far more plentiful and more easily achieved than those available to others.

When we blame the victims of life, we are usually ignoring the fact that a lot of victimization becomes self-perpetuating after having first been imposed, by others.

I knew a guy in an addiction recovery program that used to say, "the adults all around me fed me sh*t about myself, my whole childhood. Until I eventually grew up and learned to feed it to myself". And this is far more true than we want to see. Those adults among us that have become professional losers and victims teach this to their kids. And they didn't get that way by accident, either. Nor by choice, as we so love to imagine. They got that way by being taught that they are life's losers, and that they always will be. And then they simply fulfilled the destiny that they'd been assigned. And sadly, it becomes the destiny they assign to their kids. And how would those kids ever know any different? It's exactly what they'll see and experience in life their whole time growing up.

 

[Revoltingest]

The problem with this theory is that one assumes that everyone else recognizes, or should recognize, the same possibilities and opportunities in life.

Nah, that's not it.
I assume that people can decide to make better decisions, & then follow thru.

But there are a lot of people in our society that have been taught to expect that all the doors are closed to them before they even knock. And in many instances, this has been TRUE, for them. It may not be true for you, or for everyone, but it is true for some of us. And even when it's not always the case, when people come to believe it, they stop trying.

Most of the pope who don't do all those clever things that you did to keep from being victimized by circumstances, never saw the opportunities that you did. And for many of them, there were very few opportunities, compared to you. My point is that you are ignoring the reality of defeatism, or endemic social bigotry, of self-sabatoge, and of other destructive factors that impede one's ability to recognize and pursue the possibilities available to them. You are also ignoring the very basic fact that the possibilities available to some of us are fir more plentiful that those available to others.

When you blame the victims of life, you are ignoring the fact that a lot of victimization becomes self-perpetuating after having been victimized by others.

I knew a guy in an addiction recovery program that used to say, "the adults all around me fed me sh*t about myself, my whole childhood. Until I eventually grew up and learned to feed it to myself". And this is far more true than we want to see. Those adults among us that have become professional losers and victims didn't get that way by accident. Nor by choice, as we so love to imagine. They got that way by being taught that they are life's losers, and that they always will be. And then they fulfill the destiny they've been assigned.

You deny people the power they have.
One should exploit available opportunities.

 

[PureX]

Nah, that's not it.
I assume that people can decide to make better decisions, & then follow thru.

You deny people the power they have.
One should exploit available opportunities.

People who don't know that they have any power, don't have any power that's of any use to them. People who don't know that they could overcome their place at the bottom of the economic and social pecking order are not likely to ever try to do so. Why would they?

Poverty is not just a lack of money, and of opportunity, it's a lack of vision, and of hope, causing a lack of ambition. And when the rest of society blames the hopeless for being hopeless, just so they can feel safe and superior in comparison, they only perpetuate it.

 

[Revoltingest]

People who don't know that they have any power, don't have any power that's of any use to them. People who don't know that they could overcome their place at the bottom of the economic and social pecking order are not likely to ever try to do so. Why would they?

Poverty is not just a lack of money, and of opportunity, it's a lack of vision, and of hope, causing a lack of ambition. And when the rest of society blames the hopeless for being hopeless, just so they can feel safe and superior in comparison, they only perpetuate it.

To always see things thru the lens of blame & powerlessness is crippling.

 

[metis]

People who don't know that they have any power, don't have any power that's of any use to them. People who don't know that they could overcome their place at the bottom of the economic and social pecking order are not likely to ever try to do so. Why would they?

Poverty is not just a lack of money, and of opportunity, it's a lack of vision, and of hope, causing a lack of ambition. And when the rest of society blames the hopeless for being hopeless, just so they can feel safe and superior in comparison, they only perpetuate it.

Well said, but remember that some people just cannot get it through their head that not all people have the same opportunities, and we could go on and on as to why.

One would think people who believe they are basically capitalists would understand that in that kind of system there's gonna be "winners' and "losers", which is why every single country in the world developed at least some form of safety net that goes beyond just relying on charity. It just boggles the mind as to why that can't seem to grasp that simple basic fact and why it is what it is.

Sorry to sound snarky, but this is pretty much basic Economics 101.