Too poor to retire; too young to die

[kcowan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 It's over the top expensive from my point of view. ROMEO is Retired Old Men Eating Out.

100 MXN = $5.50 US for bacon and eggs fruit toast and coffee, with refried beans and tortillas, sauces in a real restaurant. We could save money by going to a chain but do not have the stomach for it. We enjoy eating in style.

(and full disclosure, if it is eggs benny on the beach, it will be $120 with tip.)

[Big_Hitter]

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Originally Posted by dvalley Some of you guys are brutal, call me a softy but I applaud her (the first story) for standing on her own two feet and not asking for public assistance (and if she did I'm sure some here would label her a free loader).

well if she had internet access I suppose she could start a gofundme page...

[dixonge]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound Something I noticed but forgot to comment on. The woman has a class C motorhome, and the refrigerator commonly put into these models is a 6-cf unit, which is what we have in our class C. See photo below. It is indeed small compared to a residential fridge, but we have no problem storing food during our RV trek. And that's for 2 people. It is true that we cannot keep a big jar of mayo like we have at home, and the ketchup bottle has to be small. But we never have to get them at convenience stores. Normal grocery stores carry them. What are they talking about?

We did seven months in a pop-up camper. It comes with a mini-fridge, the size most often sold for dorm rooms. We supplemented with an ice chest that plugged in to keep cold for when we drove to a new location. We cooked 80% of our meals. It can be done.

[dixonge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R Order something like perhaps the Chicken Parmesan and Spaghetti (their red sauce is fabulous!), with water to drink. This dish costs $17.50, which with tax would come to $19, and with tip $22. As always, the serving size is huge. So, unless you are a teenager you will need to split it between yourself and another person, or take half home and warm it up to eat tomorrow. There. Now you have a nice and very filling lunch for $11. If you go on a Monday or a Saturday, you can get the Shrimp Creole as the daily special and that is out of this world; by far my favorite dish there. It's $15.95 so with tax and tip you can split it and get out of there for $10.

Which is basically what this woman did - it's right there in the first paragraph...

Quote:

After much consideration, she ordered the prime rib special and an iced tea — expensive at $21.36, but the leftovers, wrapped carefully to go, would provide two more lunches.

That works out to $7.12 per meal. Not that bad, all told.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dixonge Which is basically what this woman did - it's right there in the first paragraph... That works out to $7.12 per meal. Not that bad, all told.

Thanks, I didn't notice that!! I take it back - - she was pretty smart after all.

[dixonge]

These folks have some really nice rigs. They spent too much, they have no emergency fund for major equipment repairs. They don't seem to budget well either.

They need to emulate *these* guys, all of whom seem to have a much better time and quality of life on the road...

Cheap RV Living.com-Home

[dixonge]

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Originally Posted by W2R Thanks, I didn't notice that!! I take it back - - she was pretty smart after all.

Ha - well, on that one meal, yes.

[ugeauxgirl]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound As I said earlier, I have read blogs of destitute people who spend $5 on a fancy-schmancy toothpaste tube, or buy grocery at Whole Foods. How do we help these people?

I'm not sure you can. I thought so when I became a financial advisor- it was one of my reasons for doing so. Somebody should have helped my grandmother. I don't really see these kinds of people except when they inherit something or get money in a lawsuit. I have tried to show them how saving at least part of the money for retirement- or even just emergency savings can benefit them, but most of the time, they cash it out and spend it. Five years (or usually less) after the windfall, they are no better off than before it. Sadly, there are some people that you just can't help.

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by ugeauxgirl Sadly, there are some people that you just can't help.

I agree. A friend who works for a service that helps people get their finances in order says her job is to go over their income and expenses and make suggestions about how they could put them in better balance. That might include eating out less, getting a cheaper cable plan, cutting back on the family's $200/month cell phone bill, etc. She says they always have reasons they just can't make those changes.

After a pledge drive at our church with particularly dismal results, with many people pleading financial difficulties, she and I agreed to co-teach a Financial Peace U. class. (Note: I charge everything on my credit cards and pay in full every month, so I don't follow everything DR says, but his basic advice to the financially clueless is solid, IMO.) We did everything we could to publicize it to the church and to the community and TWO people signed up. The ones who had bemoaned their difficult circumstances did not. Very disappointing.

[Nemo2]

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Originally Posted by athena53 She says they always have reasons they just can't make those changes.

"Want cake. Want eat cake."

[Olbidness]

I was dating a woman up until recently that I would guess is heading down the same path.
She admitted she was living "paycheck to paycheck" but still insisted on going out most nights. When she not so subtly suggested she needed new tires for her car. (hint, hint) that I saw the need for my exit. I think this money management style is very common and LBYM is the exception.

[Walt34]

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Originally Posted by athena53 We did everything we could to publicize it to the church and to the community and TWO people signed up. The ones who had bemoaned their difficult circumstances did not. Very disappointing.

This does not surprise me. You're asking them to develop the maturity to defer immediate gratification and they don't want to hear it.

[Olbidness]

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Originally Posted by Big_Hitter I miss Marvin - grew up listening to him fight the good fight. I bet Houston misses him too.

I wonder how often"SLIME in the ice machine" goes unreported now

[Big_Hitter]

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Originally Posted by Olbidness I wonder how often"SLIME in the ice machine" goes unreported now

one of my regrets in life is never having played golf with Marvin - I think he was a member at braeburn


I've played behind Rudy T at Memo and behind Racehorse Haynes at Inwood. Let's just say Racehorse didn't get his nickname on the golf course...Rudy is a slow player too - likes to hit 5 shots off the first tee

[Texas Proud]

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Originally Posted by Walt34 This does not surprise me. You're asking them to develop the maturity to defer immediate gratification and they don't want to hear it.

When you are old and do not know how much longer you have to live, immediate gratification might be the best way to go....


Just saying....

[Olbidness]

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Originally Posted by Texas Proud When you are old and do not know how much longer you have to live, immediate gratification might be the best way to go.... Just saying....

None of us know.

[daylatedollarshort]

Compulsive buying and impulsive behavior have been linked to ADHD, which in turn has been linked to numerous nutritional deficiencies, low birth weight, maternal smoking and a variety of other factors that involve more than personal choices. Depression can also be in the mix, and that also can have environmental, genetic, lifestyle and nutritional causes. I don't think overspending is always simply a "lack of willpower" issue for some people. Telling someone to stick to a budget may not be any more effective than telling a depressed person to be happy, an anxious person to stay calm, or an overachiever to relax and chill out. All of those are often complex issues with no single, simple solution.

Add to that billions spent on advertising to buy consumer goods and very little directly towards savings, and that has to play a role. too.

[NW-Bound]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound ... How do we help these people?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ugeauxgirl I'm not sure you can. I thought so when I became a financial advisor- it was one of my reasons for doing so. Somebody should have helped my grandmother. I don't really see these kinds of people except when they inherit something or get money in a lawsuit. I have tried to show them how saving at least part of the money for retirement- or even just emergency savings can benefit them, but most of the time, they cash it out and spend it. Five years (or usually less) after the windfall, they are no better off than before it. Sadly, there are some people that you just can't help.

Mine was just a rhetorical question. People with poor money management can be like drug or gambling addicts. They may know what's good or bad, but for some reasons just cannot do it. I don't know. I am no psychologist.

But on the other hand, as some posters agree with me, these are people who choose to live their life the way they want. They are working to support that lifestyle, and think that their effort is worth it. They are not on public assistance, and appear to be good workers.

So, it's not the way I would live if I were in their shoes, but I should just let them be. Pursuit of happiness was an unalienable right written in the US Declaration of Independence. This country is great, that these people can do what they do now. They are not hurting anybody. Perhaps they are regretting the notoriety brought on by this article.

[Options]

Future's not looking too bright for one in five, or 20%, of baby boomers:

Here’s Why More Baby Boomers Won’t Enjoy Retirement Like Their Parents | The Fiscal Times

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The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that more than a fifth of boomers 65 and older will be holding down a job in 2024. When their parents were the same age in 1994, only a tenth were still employed. The number of older women staying employed will double to 18.4 percent from 9.2 percent, while the men’s participation rate will increase to 25.7 percent from 16.9 percent.

Emphasis added

[LARS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Options Future's not looking too bright for one in five, or 20%, of baby boomers: Here’s Why More Baby Boomers Won’t Enjoy Retirement Like Their Parents | The Fiscal Times Emphasis added

But this statistic begs the question: are people working longer because they have to or is it that 65 is the new 55 (people aren't aging as fast).


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