Do you chase the bling?

[redduck]

It occurs to me you are the worst of all - a 'bling hoarder'. I think you should be ashamed of yourself.


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To each his own. You wanna wear plastic shoes from PayLess, made by slave labor in China, that break and have to be thrown into a landfill and replaced every year? Be my guest. With the exception of my jewelry, which is a definite splurge, my values for buying clothing and shoes- buy good quality and wear it for years-are remnants of a less-materialistic era.

You've read rayinpenn before. It didn't occur to you that he was kidding?

 

[explanade]

Have a healthy travel budget but no designer luggage and I don't dress up to travel.

Just bought a 31-inch suitcase, just under $90 with $15 back from Amex. It's going to get beaten up going through conveyor belts and carousels.

 

[Aerides]

I think the broad assumption that some people buy bling to impress others or attract attention is incorrect - certainly not absolute. I'd bet a lot of nice "bling" purchases are made purely for the enjoyment of the purchaser.

Just as many people who get pleasure from showing off things do so with their travel stories. "Oh we were at Lake Como...Oh we like the Four Seasons..Oh last year in Maui...We winter in Aspen"... blah blah.

If anything, it's a little embarrassing when someone says "ooh i love your (Designer thingy)" as it often invokes a look of envy or judgment.

 

[DrRoy]

Generally no. I'm in the 'Buy Experiences' camp. I did buy a great piece of layered, sculpture sandstone in Kanab last year. But that was a memory of the experience! It looks like my own sample of a canyon on the shelf.

 

[CaliKid]

Most of us have our "bling." Though I have always been a car guy I just can't spend that money anymore. However, I do spend on travel. We were in Hawaii last week and the hotel was $600 a night. We ate some expensive meals ($300) and spent even more the night we did a luau... and other times we had PB&J in the room. A week in Hawaii is my bling... and I'll be back there, different island, in January!

 

[Johnora]

My DW and I chase FIRE not bling.....

 

[Music Lover]

Travel is something most people do to enrich their lives, to have interesting adventures and create lasting memories of unique and fulfilling experiences. Travel (especially international) creates a deeper understanding and appreciation of the richness and diversity of the world we live in, and this is something you really can't get without seeing the world up close and in person.

For those of us who find travel highly overrated, hearing about how someone has a deeper understanding of the world than you do because they took a trip can be just as annoying as hearing someone brag about their $1,200 purse.

 

[travelover]

..........Haven't wore my wedding ring in 15 yrs. .........

Yea, they do restrict your circulation.

 

[Sue J]

For a while my sister was estranged from her 2 adult sons. During that period it was obvious she was dealing with the pain with plenty of bling, all kinds of gifts to herself, most of it shiny. If you didn't notice it, she told you about it anyways.

Once she reconciled with one of her sons she was just about cured of the bling issue.

The only big name brand I like is a Coach bag. I like a small one and buy it at an outlet store in the clearance section. I was so disappointed the last time I looked, there were very few original items on clearance. Instead, they were outlet store bags with a Coach label. They didn't feel like the regular Coach bags, they just felt cheap.

I keep a bag for many years so I'll keep an eye out for something I'll enjoy using. The last one I bought was in 2007 and it was $110. My favorite Coach wallet is from 2001.

After reading that topic about selling a $$$$ Louis Vitton bag I realize Coach may be seen as quite low on the bling scale!

 

[explanade]

I don't pretend deeper understanding of the world because I played tourist.

That comes from reading, research as well as some travel.

Can someone who's never left his country, sometimes never his hometown, have a good knowledge of the world?

It's possible ...

 

[travelover]

Anyone with more bling than me is shallow. Anyone with less bling just does not appreciate the finer things in life.

 

[athena53]

I'm not a huge wine drinker and usually just go with the store recommendations but the tour/tasting was fun. I was absolutely FLOORED at what people where dropping on bottles of wine. I mean they had some fancy smancy bottle there for $7K and people were seriously thinking of buying it.

How much wine had they had before having this discussion? ;-)

Definitely not my thing. I love wine, but the difference between a $50 bottle and a $7K bottle would be wasted on me.

 

[athena53]

You've read rayinpenn before. It didn't occur to you that he was kidding?

Sorry- sometimes a comment is hard to interpret when there's no body language, facial expression or tone of voice to accompany it!

 

[NW-Bound]

I'm a guy who just a month ago finally traded my flip phone for a smart phone.

I drive a 12 yr old car and very content with it.

Can't stand wearing any jewelry (rings or necklaces or even a wrist watch).

Haven't wore my wedding ring in 15 yrs. (been married for almost 31 yrs). My finger got too fat.

You bought a smartphone? We use hand-me-down phones from our kids when they upgraded. Recently, some apps on my iPhone 3GS refused to run, saying I needed to update. Tried to update, but then they said I needed new iOS. Tried to download new iOS, Apple said "Are you kidding?".

We both have not been wearing our rings for a very long time. We are active people, and the rings interfered with our work.

We spend a lot of money on things that we enjoy, but that people do not see.

 

[ABQ2015]

I like nice things, especially clothes and house-related items. Marita's kitchen sounds gorgeous and I can appreciate a Louis Vuitton satchel although I would probably not pay more than $300 for a purse. But I compensate for my spending by bargain hunting and using items until they wear out. I wear the same clothes to work almost every week varying only with season. And I don't care about electronics or jewelry, have expensive hobbies, or drink much; drive a ten year old BMW; and, limit my fine dining to vacations which are usually long weekends in conjunction with business trips.

 

[Bestwifeever]

For those of us who find travel highly overrated, hearing about how someone has a deeper understanding of the world than you do because they took a trip can be just as annoying as hearing someone brag about their $1,200 purse.

I love to travel but I agree with this 100 percent. I have listened to so much travel one-upmanship (mention you're going to Whereverland and they're all "you must go to _____, the coffee is divine" because of course they know all about it).

 

[redduck]

Sorry- sometimes a comment is hard to interpret when there's no body language, facial expression or tone of voice to accompany it!

You're absolutely right. But, doesn't a history (even a short history) with someone give you an idea on how to interpret the tone of that person's writing?

Now I find this interesting because I don't know how to interpret the tone of your above post. I can't tell if what the "Sorry" means. Are you saying, "Sorry"-I couldn't care less about what you think, redduck" or are you saying, "Sorry" I may have misinterpreted rayinpenn's post." Or are you expressing something else?

 

[Walt34]

What is this "bling" stuff?

I guess that means I don't chase it. But today I did spend $315.30 (including tax) on a brand-spankin'-new Stihl model HS-45 hedge trimmer if that counts.

 

[rayinpenn]

To each his own. You wanna wear plastic shoes from PayLess, made by slave labor in China, that break and have to be thrown into a landfill and replaced every year? Be my guest. With the exception of my jewelry, which is a definite splurge, my values for buying clothing and shoes- buy good quality and wear it for years-are remnants of a less-materialistic era.

Athena ... Of course I was kidding a couple of old classy warm sweaters and cherished bag or two isn't bling baby. Besides Aren't we old enough to laugh at ourselves? FYI, Bling hoarding I made that up...Blingers toss it, give it away or let it rot.
They don't cherish it.

By the by even if you were "Big Moma Bling" it would be just fine. Child labor in China... Jeeze!!

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[explanade]

I don't volunteer info. About my trips or talk up places I've been to.

I don't widely share my photos. Post a few online but most remain on my system.

 

[travelover]

I don't volunteer info. About my trips or talk up places I've been to.

I don't widely share my photos. Post a few online but most remain on my system.

Travel hoarder?

 

[OxidizedDreamer]

We went for a day trip to Annapolis today ... Busy with tourist in the summer sun. I saw a number of Ferraris and Porsches cruising the busy streets that clearly fall in the super car category. They are pretty but loud I'm guessing there owners want to be noticed. I just don't get it?

Do you or did you chase the bling ...


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In my 20s I expected to chase some of the bling. I don't know why, but women wearing visible amounts of makeup have never been appealing - and I must exude that vibe, because the women who've shown interest in me were all make-free. But in my late 20s and early 30s, I went through a fair number of used European cars and convinced myself they were "the right choice" for me. Maintenance costs, however, were painful. I was 42 when I said "I need to back off on complicated cars for a while" and bought a 10 year old Civic. Damn thing surprised me. Yeah, it was buzzy, but the light weight and short wheelbase made it MUCH more nimble than the so-called "performance sedans" from Germany., And it went 10 years withour repairs. I stuck with Hondas for quite some time, happy that repair/maintenance costs were never more than 8-10% of the total cost of the car including purchase/disposal and so on. Recently I decided I wanted a muscular car, but I didn't go exotic, I acquired the performance model from a brand known for longevity.

In other products, I try to go without for as long as possible. Not to be cheap, but everything requires maintenance even if it's just battery charging and dusting. When I do buy something, I start with a relatively inexpensive one and see how that goes. 80% of the time, a cheap object does the job fine.

So no, you're not the only one who doesn't care about bling.

 

[Just_Steve]

What is this "bling" stuff?

I guess that means I don't chase it. But today I did spend $315.30 (including tax) on a brand-spankin'-new Stihl model HS-45 hedge trimmer if that counts.

 

[Ronstar]

What is this "bling" stuff?

I guess that means I don't chase it. But today I did spend $315.30 (including tax) on a brand-spankin'-new Stihl model HS-45 hedge trimmer if that counts.

Yep that hedge trimmer counts. And Stihl is super bling

 

[Mulligan]

Sorry- sometimes a comment is hard to interpret when there's no body language, facial expression or tone of voice to accompany it!

Your comment rings so true with me. I made a life time at work and anywhere saying the most over the top offending outrageous things that never resulted in a wayward look, because I had a unique ability (probably one of only a few I had) to do it with proper facial expression and tone. If it was just on paper with no context it would have got me in trouble all the time. My GF has the unique ability NOT to be able to do this so I can never tell when she is mad, joking or being snide. So I try to tip toe around verbally until I can figure it out.


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