Good words, tx_2500.

 

here's what i posted in another thread:

this is the vicious cycle of life:
--you want
--you need
--you desire
--you daydream about it

-you buy it.
-you have payments
-you can't afford to modify it like you were dreaming about

-you get upset
-you get mad because your dreams did not work out.
-you try to get rid of what was your most DESIRED impression.


just relax, make a list of whats important to you.

 

Find it interesting how all of you say don't get credit cards. I have a couple and use them to buy everything then pay them off every month and get the basically free rewards.

 

I wont say "dont get credit cards". A few years ago when I went to buy my motorcycle I had no credit. That was SO bad that I couldnt not even co-sign on the loan (had to have my dad take out the loan), it dropped his score too much! I got a credit card through my bank, and within 6 months I was able to get a loan for the full ammount of my truck.

This sort of "negative" view towards credit cards has actually cost one woman I used to work with a house (for at least a year). They had not used any of their credit cards or taken out any loans in over 3 years. When they went to get the loan to start building their house they were denied. Using no credit for those 3 years utterly killed their score.

Up in Amarillo there is alot of "old money" and several of those never believed in credit. On more than one occasion I heard of people worth many millions of dollars unable to start a cell phone plan because they had 0 credit.

 

This girl is most likely attracted to these type of men. one of my wifes friends attractive 30's good job always and I mean always ends up with loser's. Last one took for few thousand $'s and her car(totalled) And for the life of her she cant understand why she always meets these guy's.


My oldest boy has been on his own 4 years .Has a good job rents as of yet is looking to buy a condo or Townhouse . Bought a used Tacoma(works for Toyota) and a Buell for his toy. I set up an IRA account for him a few years back and he faithfully contributes to it. He does buy everything with his credit cards including food - but he keeps track of it all and when the bill comes he pays it in full every month. He and his girl went to Hawaii last year and had to pay for food . Hotel and air was all done with points and miles.

 

dunno if this will help anyone, but i had it in the break room:

pray about it, and ask everyone you know for their advice:

Proverbs 1:5
A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel,

someone else said "a wise man seeks many counsels"



this next verse means, if you can't agree on it (with your wife/spouse/parents/GF or anyone else) then don't DO IT.

if you get butterflies (more than normal) then you are confused about it, and don't need to do it.

1 Corinthians 14:33
For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.

if you are at peace with one course of action, and all your advice is the same course, and your close family/Friends agree, then go for it.

i have two favorite phrases:

"It's expensive to be cool" (ask about my bike collection....)

"money is NEVER a good reason to do ANYTHING" (like go to Iraq for $150K a year)

money never makes up for the bother of it all.

 

i'll update this "advice" thread with a fresh nugget:

don't pull your blue work Dickies pants out of your crack with wet white paint on your gloves.


"ask me how i know"

but hey, i got the garage floor repainted.
of course, i got paint on my pants (guess where), coat, gloves (was pulling the old dried skin out of the roller pan), shoes,
and on my bike, i stopped work to rub some spit on that and get it off.

 

A little late but thanks for the advice....

Actually I was helping a friend paint his house and one of our lady friends got a little frisky and spanked me





Seriously though, this is a great thread. lots of good advice here

 

In the same vein, don't stick your finger in your nose when you've got used diesel motor oil on your hands. Your wife may let you walk around like that for a while. One of us thought it was very funny.

Back OT, my best friend's sister has 3 kids by 3 different losers, will go home with any guy who tells her that her tush looks great and buys her a drink. And she endlessly whines about the lack of "good guys". I told her that if she really wanted a good guy, she'd be a woman worthy of a good guy and go where the good guys are.

 

was thinking about this thread again...

BRUSH YOUR TEETH!! and floss!!

i had to get braces this year, and i talked to a lot of old codgers at church & around before i creaked open my wallet.

one fella needs $12k to fix his teeth.

one fella got told "would be more than a new car"
they wanted $20k to start on his.

one guy at church had spent $4k on his teeth, wife $3k

me & wife spent ~$10k this year, but that was including braces (twice for me)

one my buddies has cavities, but won't brush, and bums amoxicillin (sp?) to kill the infection because he don't think he really has a cavity.

just brush ya teeth!! the girls may even be nicer to ya!

you ain't got but one set, and you will smiling most of your life, if you own a CTD!!

 

but beer dont taste as good after brushing my teeth...

I need to go see my dentist again, but he always lectures me...

 

Oh man I can vouch for the teeth costs! This month im topping about $10k in two years on teeth work. However I do brush and floss regularly, just some reason my teeth dont absorb calcium. Oh well. Thats where you never underestimate the importance of health / dental insurance!

I worked for a couple bucks an hour more, to have no benefits. Shoulda taken the slightly lower pay job with full benefits when it was available.

But I'm gonna say it again, you're only as good as the people you date. You whine about losers, thats cause that is what YOU are pickin!

 

Excellent thread! Really needs to be discussed, thought about, and prayed through as there are many point that have been brought up that lead to signifigant life decisions later on.

Couple quick notes: Housing is to be 25% or less of your income. I've always heard 30%, and that's about where my mortagage is at with taxes & insurance. However I can't believe the families I know with mortgage only at 50% of thier income!! It's killing them literally! Plus most have one or two car payments, and several grand on credit cards. What it translates too is lifelong debt, most likely transferred to descendants...gee thanks.

I have a credit card that I pay off every month. One thing that car dealers will feed you is that you need to take out a loan on a car, even if you have cash, to establish credit for a house purchase. WRONG. This is them trying to sell you a loan product - they make a lot more money on a financed car or truck than a cash sale. I've even heard of dealers adjusting the final price (up) if it's cash as they won't get thier share. All you need is to buy a few things with a credit card, pay them off, and keep current with your rent, utilites, etc.

One area I need to work on is eating out. Do it too much. Need to quit not only for cost but also for health...just a matter of taking time to cook, eat LESS and more healthy overall. Time is a factor many times for me.

I just parted ways with the younger lady I was dating for 6-months, largely due to financial reasons. She can't afford her apartment, had a low paying job (but she has a master's degree) and pretty much seems to have a vow of lifelong poverty on her. Couldn't understand why I wouldn't sell my house, leave my semi-stable job and move to another part of the country if I felt the Lord was calling me there. It's just not that easy for me, and maybe that's my pride. I like a measure of stability and I am aware that finances are the root of many divorces - including those amoung Christian folks.

Good to hear others out there who essentialy agree with my thoughts. Great book if you guys ever want to check it out "How to be a Gentleman." It's really a lost art in our time.

One more thing - sorry this is getting long. Take time to listen long before you speak. That along will have you noticed, and for many good reasons. Done now - time to listen...

 

Some great life lessons and wisdom 04ctd, thanks for sharing them.


Here are a few of mine,

God, family, country.

Set your personal value system and standards high, so high, that you have to constantly look up to meet them. Live them, don't talk about them.

Be a husband to your wife and a father to your children, your feelings always come last.

If you said it, you own it. Follow through without compromise or excuses.

Look people straight in the eye when talking to them, you lose them the second you look away.



Cherish every moment with your loved ones. Life changes in the blink of an eye, will you have regrets after the next blink?

Keep it simple.


Tim

 

Sage advice everyone. Thank you.

Josh