I have a friend who throws a re-gift party every new years. It works just like white elephant, but the idea is to bring an unwanted gift you got for Christmas or Hanukkah.
forbade it. They considered it gambling (even if no money was exchanged.) They also didn't allow you to try to sell your kid's girl scout cookies. Go figure.
I feel a need to respond to this statement. I have played RuneScape for the last three years as a form of relaxation. I can assure you that I am neither low income nor low class. There are a lot of valuable lessons to be learned from this game. With the new Grand Exchange, you can learn how to trade the stock market and I use it as an example in my classes. I teach young kids about computers. I also teach them about finances and the stock market. The lessons learned have been of great benefit to the students in ways that our public school system seems to fail. It is one thing to be able to speak proper English and solve an algebraic equation. But if the young person is unable to budget their money or learn to work for what they want, the books are useless. Runescape teaches these skills in a fun atmosphere. The true poverty comes when our youth learn nothing at all of the real world and how to survive in it.
I got married recently and invited an old friend from high school. She sent her regrets but sent a set of really ugly, generic watches as a gift. It was obviously a regift because I know this person has good taste and would not pick these watches out. The outter box was very worn, too. I noticed she paid $7 for the postage and I thought that I would have preferred a $7 gift card than to have someone's crap unloaded on me.
I think there it's useful to look at subsized care in two different categories.
First, there's subsidizing care for poor people. This, we already do, we just do it badly--poor people show up in the emergency room and get urgent care, paid for by the hospital, which then over-charges its regular patients to try to make up the difference.
Second, there's subsidizing care for sick people. This we also already do, if you think of insurance as the people who don't make claims as "subsidizing" the people who do. (I'm not sure that's a useful way of looking at it, but insurance is what we're talking about.)
Whether we ought to subsidize care for poor and sick people isn't really an issue--we already do. What the debate over affordable health insurance is about (as far as I'm concerned) is making health insurance follow the "insurance" model--provide coverage that protects people from bankruptcy simply because they become seriously ill. Insurance like that is available, it just isn't available to anyone who's ever been seriously ill (unless they have a good job with a large employer).
That can be fixed pretty easily in several different ways. And, I think, it can be done without driving up health care costs (through programs of the sort that you've advocated, such as high-deductable plans). But I think the status quo is unacceptable. My wife and I have affordable health insurance. (It costs about two-thirds of what we pay for rent, or about the same as what we pay for groceries.) But we're both healthy. If we had ever been sick--or if we were to become sick in the future--we'd be screwed. Our care would be paid for, but our insurance would become unaffordable or unavailable altogether.
Sometimes "take what you get and don't make a fuss" is a perfectly good strategy. Other times, though, making a fuss is what's called for. I think it's called for when people are being treated unfairly. And, when people are being financially ruined simply because they get sick, I think that's unfair.
I just converted my Philips DVP 642 to Region free a 0. Yes, we can watch now the German DVD's!
But they are now in black and white. Any suggestions on how to get them to play in color?
I can absolutely 2nd the motion to skip the beer/wine. I stopped drinking beer completely after I started to notice my clotes fitting tighter this summer.
I lost 8 pounds in 2 weeks by simply stopping my 1 to 2 beer a night intake -- unbelievable! I didn't change anything else that I was doing -- just no more beer with dinner. I had no idea I was drinking so many calories! And I'm sure my liver is happy for the break from beer as well (even if it is so darn tasty) :)
Along with keeping track of who gifted the items to you in the first place, try to regift outside of that group. If it came from mom, don't give it back to your sister, give it to a friend instead.
I'm not a firm believer in rule #1. If you're trying to avoid spending money on somebody by regifting, that's one thing. If you just want the item out of your house, there are other options. I have a few select friends who I offer things to, and often if they cannot use the items themselves, they have a friend or family member who can use it.
I'm also a huge fan of Freecycle for the things that I don't feel like trying to regift. It never ceases to amaze me what people will come and pick up - new, old, in between. There is a home out there for everything.
I understand Gina wishes for affordable health care - hey, so do I. But - as my daughter's kindergarten teacher told her - 'you get what you get and don't make a fuss.
It is what it is. I have pretty good ideas how the system could be reformed and work better, but no one's listening to lil' ol' me.
I pay a heavy premium for health insurance for me and my wife. I'm self-employed and, trust me, writing that ck quarterly is a killer. But I'm not going without and I guess I have to deprive myself of some other things, things I'd rather have. But, that's life.
When people talk about affordable health care, most of the time that means 'subsidized' health care. Someone else will carry part of the burden. I'm burdened enough thank you.
People talk of the uninsured in this country, and I agree it's a problem. But... of the 40 or so million uninsured, 22 million voluntarily opt out. They can, but choose not to pay the premium. They include many of the 30 and under crowd, but others who are willing to risk it and use the money for other things. Last time I checked, it was still a semi-free country and you can do this.
Another chunk of the uninsured are the underpaid, illiterate, destined to remain slaves, illegal workers. Since they put the number of illegals at anywhere from 10 to 20 million this is no small effect.
Then there is always the hope, the change of socialism! Whoops, meant to say Obamacare!
Also, remember that eggs contain good and bad cholesterol and that the net effect is sometime neutral - anyway, the jury is still out on that one. I'm pretty sure that as long as you eat a healthy diet with lots of fruits and veggies, hardboiled eggs in the morning are just fine.
The egg idea is a good one. BTW - farm fresh eggs have actually been proven to contain lower levels of cholesterol and saturated fat, so that's an option of you're concerned.
No, in that case you would, after leaving your home, drive east first, and then make a single right turn to drive south - rather than driving south first and making a single left turn to drive east. In either case you still end up south and east of your home.
Of course, this changes which roads you would drive on and thus its effectiveness is contingent on there being similar speed roads available (and no geographic barriers like bodies of water..) but in large grid-layout cities, this isn't usually an issue.
That where I live, first offense shoplifting is a class 2 misdemeanor (if you have no priors), which is punishable by up to 6 months and/or $1,000. I have rarely heard of any first-time offenders getting much more than probation, however. I agree that stores should be held accountable, but I don't think that any one retail location should get their license taken away over one offense. (With thousands of items being rung up a day, there has to be room for error -- which is no more than 2% in most states.) Many stores honestly forget to update their pricing systems, and the only stores that would really be hurt by such harsh penalties are the smaller, privately owned business.
We should be protected under the law, but we should also be aware of what's going on around us. Know the prices for your purchases, check your receipts, and follow-up accordingly. The law is only as good as those who enforce it and those who demand protection under it.
...I used to work at a company where it was common. I don't know if any money changed hands, but the players were all internal to the company; and it was viewed as a means by which people could network and socialize.
But I find the idea fascinating. Mind you, as another comment pointed out, it's interesting the gambling is frowned upon byt the lottery is encouraged.
It sounds like a fun hobby - I'd participate if I had any interest in sports at all.
Adding fiber has been shown, time and timeagain, to contribute to better intestinal health. Walking has been shown, time and timeagain, to contribute to weight loss. There are some individuals who probably shouldn't take extra fiber, but for most healthy adults, it's helpful.
Uh, yeah. I'm in the pockets of Big Fiber. Whatever. You can take whatever kind of fiber you want - I just happen to like Metamucil because it's not grainy and it tastes OK. You might have noticed that I also recommended eating lots of salad and vegetable soups, had you read farther than the third paragraph.
BTW, it's worth noting that these are some tips and tricks that I use, and this is not medical advice. Blah blah blah consult your doctor. In addition, I do not recommend using laxatives as a weight-loss method, overall. Lots of people abuse laxatives (including some celebrities) and it's a really good way to lose nutrients, make yourself sick, and screw up your colon. Please, respect your butt and act responsibly with your diet.
I work in a very small office (5 people) and my boss is an avid fantasy league player of football and baseball, usually with many leagues going simultaneously. Yes, it does keep him in touch with old colleagues so I guess it's networking on some level, but most importantly, it makes him far less likely to give his employees a hard time about reading blogs and watching online videos at work. As long as we're still getting our work done, everyone's fine with it.
Good tips. Not all are specifically ideal for me and my situation, but different things work for different people (Mr. Cranky Metamucil Poster).
One thing I've started doing lately is boiling eggs and eating 2 for breakfast. Super cheap. They are very low calorie too (~75 calories per hard-boiled egg) and incredibly filling. I don't feel hunger pains until 4-5 hours have passed. Only downside is that they are high in cholesterol (1 egg has about 2/3 the daily recommended dose of cholesterol). :(
I've also started hitting the apartment pool after work (would rather swim in private, but until I can...). Funny how much fun swimming is-- easy to forget when it's been so long.
I'm off to dance in my corner cube (...she was like static cling...but that's what happens when body start slappin'...)
Another option for regifts, especially those that have been slightly used or are older is the White Elephant/Chinese gift exchange. If your original gift giver is sensitive, you might need to take care that they are not present at the party, but if it's something from Aunt Enid who lives out of state, you're probably golden.
Well, you may think it's all well and good that you get an item for free, or 10x the difference of the error, or $5, but that's not even close to fair for what happens to you if you cheat the store.
If the store intentionally cheats a person, they get a fine which won't put them out of business, especially a large chain store with deep pockets. But what about the case above where the woman switched prices on the laptop? You can bet she got arrested and charged with a crime.
And what about gas stations? If they purposely overcharge you (I call that stealing), they get a fine, but they are still in business. Just try stealing even 1.00 worth of gas from them and you lose your driver's license.
How is that fair?
I say we need to take away the business license for any gas station caught overcharging even one person. Give them a six month suspension, remind them that owning a retail store is a privilige not a right, and make them pay a reinstatement fee to get their business license back.
But no, the powerful lobbyists have persuaded our lawmakers that the consumer is to be punished for each and every infraction against them while they stand protected against any wrongdoings they commit themselves.
It's strange that the law offices I've worked in (and many others that my friends have worked in) don't allow it when they seem to give the green light on pooling for lottery tickets! I've never participated b/c I really don't get any pleasure from losing my cash or the good-natured ribbing of constantly being told how my team's "going down!," but I always enjoyed the excitement and happiness of those who did love it. Anything that was a change of pace in those dreary workplaces was much appreciated, and it was awesome when one time a woman who didn't know anything about football won the entire pool! : )
Having been the recipient of too many obvious regifts, I just avoid that whole problem by not giving it as a gift but giving it away to anyone who might want it and letting them know it was a gift I can't use. Works for me! : )
I have a friend who throws a re-gift party every new years. It works just like white elephant, but the idea is to bring an unwanted gift you got for Christmas or Hanukkah.
forbade it. They considered it gambling (even if no money was exchanged.) They also didn't allow you to try to sell your kid's girl scout cookies. Go figure.
I feel a need to respond to this statement. I have played RuneScape for the last three years as a form of relaxation. I can assure you that I am neither low income nor low class. There are a lot of valuable lessons to be learned from this game. With the new Grand Exchange, you can learn how to trade the stock market and I use it as an example in my classes. I teach young kids about computers. I also teach them about finances and the stock market. The lessons learned have been of great benefit to the students in ways that our public school system seems to fail. It is one thing to be able to speak proper English and solve an algebraic equation. But if the young person is unable to budget their money or learn to work for what they want, the books are useless. Runescape teaches these skills in a fun atmosphere. The true poverty comes when our youth learn nothing at all of the real world and how to survive in it.
I got married recently and invited an old friend from high school. She sent her regrets but sent a set of really ugly, generic watches as a gift. It was obviously a regift because I know this person has good taste and would not pick these watches out. The outter box was very worn, too. I noticed she paid $7 for the postage and I thought that I would have preferred a $7 gift card than to have someone's crap unloaded on me.
I think there it's useful to look at subsized care in two different categories.
First, there's subsidizing care for poor people. This, we already do, we just do it badly--poor people show up in the emergency room and get urgent care, paid for by the hospital, which then over-charges its regular patients to try to make up the difference.
Second, there's subsidizing care for sick people. This we also already do, if you think of insurance as the people who don't make claims as "subsidizing" the people who do. (I'm not sure that's a useful way of looking at it, but insurance is what we're talking about.)
Whether we ought to subsidize care for poor and sick people isn't really an issue--we already do. What the debate over affordable health insurance is about (as far as I'm concerned) is making health insurance follow the "insurance" model--provide coverage that protects people from bankruptcy simply because they become seriously ill. Insurance like that is available, it just isn't available to anyone who's ever been seriously ill (unless they have a good job with a large employer).
That can be fixed pretty easily in several different ways. And, I think, it can be done without driving up health care costs (through programs of the sort that you've advocated, such as high-deductable plans). But I think the status quo is unacceptable. My wife and I have affordable health insurance. (It costs about two-thirds of what we pay for rent, or about the same as what we pay for groceries.) But we're both healthy. If we had ever been sick--or if we were to become sick in the future--we'd be screwed. Our care would be paid for, but our insurance would become unaffordable or unavailable altogether.
Sometimes "take what you get and don't make a fuss" is a perfectly good strategy. Other times, though, making a fuss is what's called for. I think it's called for when people are being treated unfairly. And, when people are being financially ruined simply because they get sick, I think that's unfair.
As an individual who has lost over 60 lbs, I loved the article. For information about my tips and tricks visit my web page http://nodietneeded.net/
Orange
I just converted my Philips DVP 642 to Region free a 0. Yes, we can watch now the German DVD's!
But they are now in black and white. Any suggestions on how to get them to play in color?
Thanks, Manny
That's awfully silly. I'd much rather buy my blue berries from the farmers market out of a paper sack. The dirtier the better :)
This is such a great article :)
I can absolutely 2nd the motion to skip the beer/wine. I stopped drinking beer completely after I started to notice my clotes fitting tighter this summer.
I lost 8 pounds in 2 weeks by simply stopping my 1 to 2 beer a night intake -- unbelievable! I didn't change anything else that I was doing -- just no more beer with dinner. I had no idea I was drinking so many calories! And I'm sure my liver is happy for the break from beer as well (even if it is so darn tasty) :)
Along with keeping track of who gifted the items to you in the first place, try to regift outside of that group. If it came from mom, don't give it back to your sister, give it to a friend instead.
I'm not a firm believer in rule #1. If you're trying to avoid spending money on somebody by regifting, that's one thing. If you just want the item out of your house, there are other options. I have a few select friends who I offer things to, and often if they cannot use the items themselves, they have a friend or family member who can use it.
I'm also a huge fan of Freecycle for the things that I don't feel like trying to regift. It never ceases to amaze me what people will come and pick up - new, old, in between. There is a home out there for everything.
Philip,
I understand Gina wishes for affordable health care - hey, so do I. But - as my daughter's kindergarten teacher told her - 'you get what you get and don't make a fuss.
It is what it is. I have pretty good ideas how the system could be reformed and work better, but no one's listening to lil' ol' me.
I pay a heavy premium for health insurance for me and my wife. I'm self-employed and, trust me, writing that ck quarterly is a killer. But I'm not going without and I guess I have to deprive myself of some other things, things I'd rather have. But, that's life.
When people talk about affordable health care, most of the time that means 'subsidized' health care. Someone else will carry part of the burden. I'm burdened enough thank you.
People talk of the uninsured in this country, and I agree it's a problem. But... of the 40 or so million uninsured, 22 million voluntarily opt out. They can, but choose not to pay the premium. They include many of the 30 and under crowd, but others who are willing to risk it and use the money for other things. Last time I checked, it was still a semi-free country and you can do this.
Another chunk of the uninsured are the underpaid, illiterate, destined to remain slaves, illegal workers. Since they put the number of illegals at anywhere from 10 to 20 million this is no small effect.
Then there is always the hope, the change of socialism! Whoops, meant to say Obamacare!
Also, remember that eggs contain good and bad cholesterol and that the net effect is sometime neutral - anyway, the jury is still out on that one. I'm pretty sure that as long as you eat a healthy diet with lots of fruits and veggies, hardboiled eggs in the morning are just fine.
The egg idea is a good one. BTW - farm fresh eggs have actually been proven to contain lower levels of cholesterol and saturated fat, so that's an option of you're concerned.
No, in that case you would, after leaving your home, drive east first, and then make a single right turn to drive south - rather than driving south first and making a single left turn to drive east. In either case you still end up south and east of your home.
Of course, this changes which roads you would drive on and thus its effectiveness is contingent on there being similar speed roads available (and no geographic barriers like bodies of water..) but in large grid-layout cities, this isn't usually an issue.
That where I live, first offense shoplifting is a class 2 misdemeanor (if you have no priors), which is punishable by up to 6 months and/or $1,000. I have rarely heard of any first-time offenders getting much more than probation, however. I agree that stores should be held accountable, but I don't think that any one retail location should get their license taken away over one offense. (With thousands of items being rung up a day, there has to be room for error -- which is no more than 2% in most states.) Many stores honestly forget to update their pricing systems, and the only stores that would really be hurt by such harsh penalties are the smaller, privately owned business.
We should be protected under the law, but we should also be aware of what's going on around us. Know the prices for your purchases, check your receipts, and follow-up accordingly. The law is only as good as those who enforce it and those who demand protection under it.
Good comments.
...I used to work at a company where it was common. I don't know if any money changed hands, but the players were all internal to the company; and it was viewed as a means by which people could network and socialize.
But I find the idea fascinating. Mind you, as another comment pointed out, it's interesting the gambling is frowned upon byt the lottery is encouraged.
It sounds like a fun hobby - I'd participate if I had any interest in sports at all.
Adding fiber has been shown, time and time again, to contribute to better intestinal health. Walking has been shown, time and time again, to contribute to weight loss. There are some individuals who probably shouldn't take extra fiber, but for most healthy adults, it's helpful.
Uh, yeah. I'm in the pockets of Big Fiber. Whatever. You can take whatever kind of fiber you want - I just happen to like Metamucil because it's not grainy and it tastes OK. You might have noticed that I also recommended eating lots of salad and vegetable soups, had you read farther than the third paragraph.
BTW, it's worth noting that these are some tips and tricks that I use, and this is not medical advice. Blah blah blah consult your doctor. In addition, I do not recommend using laxatives as a weight-loss method, overall. Lots of people abuse laxatives (including some celebrities) and it's a really good way to lose nutrients, make yourself sick, and screw up your colon. Please, respect your butt and act responsibly with your diet.
I work in a very small office (5 people) and my boss is an avid fantasy league player of football and baseball, usually with many leagues going simultaneously. Yes, it does keep him in touch with old colleagues so I guess it's networking on some level, but most importantly, it makes him far less likely to give his employees a hard time about reading blogs and watching online videos at work. As long as we're still getting our work done, everyone's fine with it.
Good tips. Not all are specifically ideal for me and my situation, but different things work for different people (Mr. Cranky Metamucil Poster).
One thing I've started doing lately is boiling eggs and eating 2 for breakfast. Super cheap. They are very low calorie too (~75 calories per hard-boiled egg) and incredibly filling. I don't feel hunger pains until 4-5 hours have passed. Only downside is that they are high in cholesterol (1 egg has about 2/3 the daily recommended dose of cholesterol). :(
I've also started hitting the apartment pool after work (would rather swim in private, but until I can...). Funny how much fun swimming is-- easy to forget when it's been so long.
I'm off to dance in my corner cube (...she was like static cling...but that's what happens when body start slappin'...)
Another option for regifts, especially those that have been slightly used or are older is the White Elephant/Chinese gift exchange. If your original gift giver is sensitive, you might need to take care that they are not present at the party, but if it's something from Aunt Enid who lives out of state, you're probably golden.
Well, you may think it's all well and good that you get an item for free, or 10x the difference of the error, or $5, but that's not even close to fair for what happens to you if you cheat the store.
If the store intentionally cheats a person, they get a fine which won't put them out of business, especially a large chain store with deep pockets. But what about the case above where the woman switched prices on the laptop? You can bet she got arrested and charged with a crime.
And what about gas stations? If they purposely overcharge you (I call that stealing), they get a fine, but they are still in business. Just try stealing even 1.00 worth of gas from them and you lose your driver's license.
How is that fair?
I say we need to take away the business license for any gas station caught overcharging even one person. Give them a six month suspension, remind them that owning a retail store is a privilige not a right, and make them pay a reinstatement fee to get their business license back.
But no, the powerful lobbyists have persuaded our lawmakers that the consumer is to be punished for each and every infraction against them while they stand protected against any wrongdoings they commit themselves.
It's strange that the law offices I've worked in (and many others that my friends have worked in) don't allow it when they seem to give the green light on pooling for lottery tickets! I've never participated b/c I really don't get any pleasure from losing my cash or the good-natured ribbing of constantly being told how my team's "going down!," but I always enjoyed the excitement and happiness of those who did love it. Anything that was a change of pace in those dreary workplaces was much appreciated, and it was awesome when one time a woman who didn't know anything about football won the entire pool! : )
Having been the recipient of too many obvious regifts, I just avoid that whole problem by not giving it as a gift but giving it away to anyone who might want it and letting them know it was a gift I can't use. Works for me! : )
There is still much work to be done to have a green world but I believe things are in motion, I'm not sure how well in motion.
For sure some companies profit from this movement and they may not be as green as they say. We need to check everything before we buy it.