I know what you're talking about. I had to do the same thing during a couple bouts of unemployment.
You could buy it. But you don’t
- Thread starter Bald1
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I know what you're talking about. I had to do the same thing during a couple bouts of unemployment.
That's what I was looking for!
My wife and I have both had good careers with decent incomes.
We've always lived well below our means, given generously to organizations and causes we believe in, and we invested the rest for the future.
We raised two boys in middle-class comfort. They got everything they needed and SOME of what they wanted. All of our "toys" (quads, motorcycles, boats, etc.) were bought used.
All of our homes have been 30-40 years old when we bought them, and both our current home and our vacation place are paid off.
We don't drive new cars - mine is a 2003 and hers is a 2009.
We've never wanted for anything, but we haven't lived extravagantly either.
I'm turning 62 in 3 weeks and my wife just turned 63.
We're in a position to retire comfortably and have the resources to travel and enjoy it for the rest of our lives.
At the same time we know many other couples who have bought new homes, driven new cars, and spent a lot on brand-new "toys". They spent their money just as fast as they made it over the years.
Most of them will be working until they're 70 or older, and/or retire on very limited incomes.
So no, we don't buy every shiny new thing that catches our eye, and never have. And I think that has worked out well for us.
We've always lived well below our means, given generously to organizations and causes we believe in, and we invested the rest for the future.
We raised two boys in middle-class comfort. They got everything they needed and SOME of what they wanted. All of our "toys" (quads, motorcycles, boats, etc.) were bought used.
All of our homes have been 30-40 years old when we bought them, and both our current home and our vacation place are paid off.
We don't drive new cars - mine is a 2003 and hers is a 2009.
We've never wanted for anything, but we haven't lived extravagantly either.
I'm turning 62 in 3 weeks and my wife just turned 63.
We're in a position to retire comfortably and have the resources to travel and enjoy it for the rest of our lives.
At the same time we know many other couples who have bought new homes, driven new cars, and spent a lot on brand-new "toys". They spent their money just as fast as they made it over the years.
Most of them will be working until they're 70 or older, and/or retire on very limited incomes.
So no, we don't buy every shiny new thing that catches our eye, and never have. And I think that has worked out well for us.
One thing I keep in mind is that while everything may be financially hunky-dory now in happy retirement, if we are fortunate enough to live long enough, home care, assisted living, nursing homes — elder care — are gonna be mighty expensive...
31FordA
Member
If there is something I really want, and I have the cash, I'll buy it. That mostly applies to guns, cars, watches and books. I also don't buy cheap food. The whole reason I go to work is to earn money to make my life more pleasant. I figure you only live once, so you may as well have as nice a time as you can while you're here. What I am loathe to do is to go into debt.
My brother is just the opposite. To use a phrase my grandfather loved "he squeezes a nickel so hard the buffalo screams". I think he enjoys the security all the money in the bank represents. If it makes him happy then who am I to disagree. He's younger than me, so he'll probably inherit all my stuff anyway.
My brother is just the opposite. To use a phrase my grandfather loved "he squeezes a nickel so hard the buffalo screams". I think he enjoys the security all the money in the bank represents. If it makes him happy then who am I to disagree. He's younger than me, so he'll probably inherit all my stuff anyway.
Luckily I had the good sense to lock in a Long Term Care policy some 20+ years ago. With my age and health issues it would probably be impossible to get now.
I did a little thinking regarding a theory of mine. It finally coalesced with the realization that those of us who are considered Baby Boomers are only two generations removed from young/middle aged adults who were living during the Great Depression in the the 1930s (the grandparents of a lot of us here). The 1930s may seem like ancient history, but do the math starting with people who were born in 1946-1964 and work back.
iI have NEVER seen a BRINKS truck in a funeral procession.
One generation, I'd say, for many of us.
My mother told me stories of the Great Depression, of her dad, my grandfather, a lawyer, who would take payment in kind — chickens, catfish, whatever — from his clients. She had a story of, as a little girl, peering into the kitchen sink wherein there was an enormous catfish, her father's payment from a client, which scared her mightily.
Or, another story, she also recalled, accompanying her dad, my grandfather, hunting rabbits for the family pot, and, following his instructions, shot a rabbit, and about how the rabbit screamed when she shot it, putting her off hunting forever.
It was just a normal way to get food back in the day.
To my mind, our country, our people, seem so frivolous, so pitifully weak, in our complaints nowadays, in comparison to our predecessors.
THE PILGRIM
Member
I've heard my Grandpa tell about shooting at a covey of Quail running down between the rows of a field.
He would wait for them to get some distance from him, then shoot a high head shot in an attempt to take down the entire covey,
He had more mouths to feed than he had shotgun shells.
He would wait for them to get some distance from him, then shoot a high head shot in an attempt to take down the entire covey,
He had more mouths to feed than he had shotgun shells.
Kudos to you. That alone will go a very long way towards securing your financial future.
The truth stings mightily to hear it. Joe
This is why I changed my investment philosophy a few years ago. My wife and I discussed it and decided that while we'll leave some money for our kids and grandkids, it's silly to sit on stocks that don't produce cash dividends.
So, I sold some of my insurance stock and working with my broker came up with some higher yield choices.
Seems to be working.
Side note: Being able to sell a house and then buy a bigger and new house in a different part of the country without a mortgage is huge.
So, I sold some of my insurance stock and working with my broker came up with some higher yield choices.
Seems to be working.
Side note: Being able to sell a house and then buy a bigger and new house in a different part of the country without a mortgage is huge.
It took me a few years to figure out the difference between want and need, some folks never get it. I have trouble "pulling the trigger" on stuff I think I want and can afford. I just have trouble justifying spending the money on something I do not need in any shape or form. Firearms are a great example, I will put a bid in on something I think I need but don't want it enough to pony up the price that takes the bid.
I've always had an old vehicle to fool around with, often it was a useful old truck I depended on as a back up vehicle. I felt a little naked without an old truck parked out back and always enjoyed working on it when that time came, doing tune-ups, messing around with it. Later I found I was doing more hauling stuff for others, helping people move, loaning it out to my son who abused it and then wouldn't repair or replace worn tires. The last truck was sold and in its place I got a little hot rod, which led to a fairly stock '29 Model A. Now I realize I don't need the vehicle as a back-up although it did service nicely for about two months while my main driver was wrecked. I am to the point where I believe it is time for us to part ways with vehicles other than daily drivers. Come next Spring plans are to leave that part of my life behind, its a big move.
I've always had an old vehicle to fool around with, often it was a useful old truck I depended on as a back up vehicle. I felt a little naked without an old truck parked out back and always enjoyed working on it when that time came, doing tune-ups, messing around with it. Later I found I was doing more hauling stuff for others, helping people move, loaning it out to my son who abused it and then wouldn't repair or replace worn tires. The last truck was sold and in its place I got a little hot rod, which led to a fairly stock '29 Model A. Now I realize I don't need the vehicle as a back-up although it did service nicely for about two months while my main driver was wrecked. I am to the point where I believe it is time for us to part ways with vehicles other than daily drivers. Come next Spring plans are to leave that part of my life behind, its a big move.
