"I've always been unhappy about the way parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and college admissions officers lead kids (juniors in high school, often only 17 or even 16 years old) to commit themselves to pay back tens of thousands dollars in debt."
I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. I remember being a high school senior and choosing my university. "Oh, just take out a couple loans! You'll be fine!" was the message from nearly every front. I fully admit I had never been educated in anything financial back then. (My parents were a mess. Wonderful people, horrible money role models.) Even though I had a great scholarship for an excellent school, I still came out with almost 40K in loans. (I even worked two or three jobs at a time while studying.)
I feel so suffocated by my undergraduate loans on a nearly daily basis. I've been them for a few years, have never been late on a payment, but it's still a very high percentage of my paycheck every month. (I send about 40% of my paycheck towards my bills.) I also have a very low paying job in early education right now. Never in my life have I been irresponsible with money, (Heck! I read wisebread!) but student loans are a killer.
A favorite activity for my two boys and I is to make dioramas. We come up with a theme and make them with things we have around the house. We have a max of $5 per theme to spend if we must. We have had so much fun with these.
I couldn't have said it better. Last year I was so happy to have done this because in the 2 weeks before Christmas, my husband and I were both working overtime, both got sick, and were in the midst of making a major life decision. I'm so glad I was able to avoid thinking about gift buying at that time.
I'm glad for this program. My husband's family is not financially smart at all, and only helped him with $100 for his entire college education/living expenses. The other part of this, is they counted him as a dependent for his first 2 years of college, and he would have been eligible for grants or loans that didn't accrue interest when he was in school (b/c of their income), but they would file for an extention on their taxes, so he never got any grants and all his loans accrued interest while he was in school, too. So, thanks to them, who should have know better, he was deep in debt when he graduated---to a government job that made $10,000 less a year than he had in loans. How can an 18-21 year old be expected to make good decisions about these issues, when his/her parents can't? If someone wants to talk about the financial stupidity of a program, lets talk about the deregulation of the financial systems, or the "trickle down" economics with lowering taxes of the rich, or maybe bailing out the banking system with no rules connected to it.
The toothpaste on my wedding ring worked great and even used an old toothbrush that i sanitized in the dishwasher to get it into the nooks and crannies and to rinse it out if them.
Library and Beach are our kids' favorites. But if you can be creative and as long as you give them full attention, they'll enjoy anything you do with them. Even just walking outside...
I recently found out about coffee grounds as well. It works extremely well especially if you put it inside your refrigerator. My mom bought a special container for this too. I highly recommend coffee ground when it comes to removing odor.
What's stupid about it? All these loans are already federally guaranteed, so the Treasury is on the hook for the money anyway. I expect that 10% of their income for 20 years is as much money as is likely to be recoverable anyway, so I don't see the government losing—not much, anyway. At the same time, the borrower is given payments that are actually affordable, giving them a chance to get on with their life.
These are great ideas. Decades later I still remember fishing trips with my dad. He always took one kid at a time so we each had one-on-one time with him.
As a mother of eleven children, I am constantly throwing things away. I find that keeping clutter to a minimum makes the home easier to clean for me and my family. There are always those that will argue "but we may need it one day". To which I say, fine we will buy a new one if we need it!
I bought the big presents for my kids in April of this year, thanks to an amazing sale and Target's clearance. After nearly 9 years of marriage, I think my husband has finally come to appreciate having Christmas presents bought randomly throughout the year and hidden all over the house, especially because it means bargain prices! I will totally venture out on Black Friday, especially if I find a deal I want, but that is strictly for the fun of it, and I will wait until 9 or 10AM.
When you refinance a mortgage you restart the amortization. People are often shocked at how amortization works. The first payment is virtually 100% interest and very, very little principal. Gradually over the life of the loan the proportion of principal in the payment rises until the final payment, which is nearly 100% principle.
If you sell or refinance, you restart the mortgage back at payment #1. It is pure stupidity to do this unless you get a SIGNIFICANTLY reduced interest amount.
This is why double payments are so valuable. The additional amount paid goes 100% toward principal thereby lowering future interest.
Nope, I have all kinds of clothes I'm getting ready to donate, I figure if I end up needing a costume I'll put together an outfit from my pile at home.
My rule is a simple one....if I run across it while digging and didn't even know I had it, or don't even know where I got it, I can toss or sell it.
Everything I use, need, or like to own I know where it is in my house. One other tip is NEVER be a collector. Collecting is a gateway drug into the mental illness of compulsion. Nobody is impressed with your shot glass or salt shaker collection, and when you die don't expect your family to feel the same way about your neat bottle cap collection as you do.
Finally....clutter. Some people enjoy clutter. Having 10 pieces of furniture in a room when 3 will suffice, having piles of old magazines everywhere, keeping little statuettes or putting literally dozens of pictures on the wall that serve little purpose or a theme, thats just clutter. One criminal aspect of American life is the sheer lack of aesthetic appreciation of an uncluttered room/house. Tacky furnishings, excessive amounts of items, general worthless clutter, and the sin of a garage piled high to the ceiling with things that will never ever get looked at until you die and your relatives are pawning off your stuff to pay for your funeral.
Now excuse me, I'm going to get rid of some things...
This article is great from the shopper's perspective, but it's tricky for your gift recipients if they expect their present to come with a gift receipt. If you bought that sweater back in last January and it needs to be exchanged this January, that person is out of luck.
"I've always been unhappy about the way parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and college admissions officers lead kids (juniors in high school, often only 17 or even 16 years old) to commit themselves to pay back tens of thousands dollars in debt."
I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. I remember being a high school senior and choosing my university. "Oh, just take out a couple loans! You'll be fine!" was the message from nearly every front. I fully admit I had never been educated in anything financial back then. (My parents were a mess. Wonderful people, horrible money role models.) Even though I had a great scholarship for an excellent school, I still came out with almost 40K in loans. (I even worked two or three jobs at a time while studying.)
I feel so suffocated by my undergraduate loans on a nearly daily basis. I've been them for a few years, have never been late on a payment, but it's still a very high percentage of my paycheck every month. (I send about 40% of my paycheck towards my bills.) I also have a very low paying job in early education right now. Never in my life have I been irresponsible with money, (Heck! I read wisebread!) but student loans are a killer.
A favorite activity for my two boys and I is to make dioramas. We come up with a theme and make them with things we have around the house. We have a max of $5 per theme to spend if we must. We have had so much fun with these.
I couldn't have said it better. Last year I was so happy to have done this because in the 2 weeks before Christmas, my husband and I were both working overtime, both got sick, and were in the midst of making a major life decision. I'm so glad I was able to avoid thinking about gift buying at that time.
I'm glad for this program. My husband's family is not financially smart at all, and only helped him with $100 for his entire college education/living expenses. The other part of this, is they counted him as a dependent for his first 2 years of college, and he would have been eligible for grants or loans that didn't accrue interest when he was in school (b/c of their income), but they would file for an extention on their taxes, so he never got any grants and all his loans accrued interest while he was in school, too. So, thanks to them, who should have know better, he was deep in debt when he graduated---to a government job that made $10,000 less a year than he had in loans. How can an 18-21 year old be expected to make good decisions about these issues, when his/her parents can't? If someone wants to talk about the financial stupidity of a program, lets talk about the deregulation of the financial systems, or the "trickle down" economics with lowering taxes of the rich, or maybe bailing out the banking system with no rules connected to it.
I'm with Keith. Making your own is the best!
The toothpaste on my wedding ring worked great and even used an old toothbrush that i sanitized in the dishwasher to get it into the nooks and crannies and to rinse it out if them.
Library and Beach are our kids' favorites. But if you can be creative and as long as you give them full attention, they'll enjoy anything you do with them. Even just walking outside...
I recently found out about coffee grounds as well. It works extremely well especially if you put it inside your refrigerator. My mom bought a special container for this too. I highly recommend coffee ground when it comes to removing odor.
What's stupid about it? All these loans are already federally guaranteed, so the Treasury is on the hook for the money anyway. I expect that 10% of their income for 20 years is as much money as is likely to be recoverable anyway, so I don't see the government losing—not much, anyway. At the same time, the borrower is given payments that are actually affordable, giving them a chance to get on with their life.
It seems like win-win to me.
No Halloween costume this year so no purchasing!
What, nothing in the article about the financial stupidity of this program? :-)
These are great ideas. Decades later I still remember fishing trips with my dad. He always took one kid at a time so we each had one-on-one time with him.
As a mother of eleven children, I am constantly throwing things away. I find that keeping clutter to a minimum makes the home easier to clean for me and my family. There are always those that will argue "but we may need it one day". To which I say, fine we will buy a new one if we need it!
I bought the big presents for my kids in April of this year, thanks to an amazing sale and Target's clearance. After nearly 9 years of marriage, I think my husband has finally come to appreciate having Christmas presents bought randomly throughout the year and hidden all over the house, especially because it means bargain prices! I will totally venture out on Black Friday, especially if I find a deal I want, but that is strictly for the fun of it, and I will wait until 9 or 10AM.
You missed the most important point.
When you refinance a mortgage you restart the amortization. People are often shocked at how amortization works. The first payment is virtually 100% interest and very, very little principal. Gradually over the life of the loan the proportion of principal in the payment rises until the final payment, which is nearly 100% principle.
If you sell or refinance, you restart the mortgage back at payment #1. It is pure stupidity to do this unless you get a SIGNIFICANTLY reduced interest amount.
This is why double payments are so valuable. The additional amount paid goes 100% toward principal thereby lowering future interest.
No, I usually make a costume or wear a costume from a previous year that I've made.
I'm planning on buying one. I already like your FB page.
Also, heating some vanilla extract in the oven. Try a half cup in an oven safe mug, heat at 350 for an hour.
Nope, I have all kinds of clothes I'm getting ready to donate, I figure if I end up needing a costume I'll put together an outfit from my pile at home.
My rule is a simple one....if I run across it while digging and didn't even know I had it, or don't even know where I got it, I can toss or sell it.
Everything I use, need, or like to own I know where it is in my house. One other tip is NEVER be a collector. Collecting is a gateway drug into the mental illness of compulsion. Nobody is impressed with your shot glass or salt shaker collection, and when you die don't expect your family to feel the same way about your neat bottle cap collection as you do.
Finally....clutter. Some people enjoy clutter. Having 10 pieces of furniture in a room when 3 will suffice, having piles of old magazines everywhere, keeping little statuettes or putting literally dozens of pictures on the wall that serve little purpose or a theme, thats just clutter. One criminal aspect of American life is the sheer lack of aesthetic appreciation of an uncluttered room/house. Tacky furnishings, excessive amounts of items, general worthless clutter, and the sin of a garage piled high to the ceiling with things that will never ever get looked at until you die and your relatives are pawning off your stuff to pay for your funeral.
Now excuse me, I'm going to get rid of some things...
Thanks for including us in this awesome list!
Love FMF's long commute article.....was in that situation recently
This article is great from the shopper's perspective, but it's tricky for your gift recipients if they expect their present to come with a gift receipt. If you bought that sweater back in last January and it needs to be exchanged this January, that person is out of luck.
Sort of. We're buying them from the thrift store. :-) Something nice for between $1 to $3.
I'm not dressing up, but I bought a costume for my dog as I do every year.
Absolutely! Couldn't survive without it. :)