Comments on: We are Living in a Material World and I am a Material Man

By: Act Your Wage

Act Your Wage — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 02:24:00 +0000

I don’t think that’s really material. We work for food, shelter, clothing AND entertainment. If your budget were perfect, there would be no need for us to oogle.

By: Livingalmostlarge

Livingalmostlarge — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 00:44:39 +0000

How did you get red sox ticekts for only $30! That’s a steal, was it out west? Darn I didn’t think Fenway had tickets that cheap.

By: Minimum Wage

Minimum Wage — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 18:59:53 +0000

I am a boomer with nothing which could be considered “career-related” experience. Employers don’t hire inexperienced people my age for “good” jobs. I don’t expect there is a better job in my future.

By: Roberta

Roberta — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 00:09:53 +0000

I wish I could start a reasonable savings plan. I can’t save two nickels to rub together. I’m trying working longer hours for overtime pay to see if that’ll help. Hopefully it will before it kills me.

By: Darius

Darius — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 00:52:42 +0000

Good luck with your saving. I stared such a program less than a year ago and it can get hard at times.

It is all about finding a balance between spending and saving. I believe that nobody should go without vacationing. What is the point of living if all what you do is work? I know some people get their kicks out of work (I enjoy what I do a lot, too) but there should be a limit.

Minimum Wage, I agree with Lazy Boy [editor: Lazy Boy is trademarked name not affiliated with this site ;-)]. There are a bunch of good sites out there that can help you work towards an income increase. You can start with basic research and see what the market for your type of job is (a good place for this is salary.com – if you are willing to put up with their ads).

By: Lazy Man

Lazy Man — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:38:59 +0000

MW: I recommend working to increase your income above minimum wage.

By: Minimum Wage

Minimum Wage — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:03:56 +0000

There is no “Fun” basket in my budget; I earn minimum wage and have student loan debt. In fact, I have worked for 30 years and have never had a vacation.

By: Lazy Man

Lazy Man — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:31:15 +0000

Minimum Wage:

At The Bottom has a great point. I like to liken it to a diet. I know professional nutritionists who eat foods that aren’t perfectly healthy at least some of the time. In fact they almost universally recommend that you eat some of the unhealthy foods that you enjoy, so that you stay on the diet. Sometimes choosing to lose a battle can help you win the war.

As Jon mentioned above, Red Sox games are typically a lot more – probably about twice of what I paid for all three games in Boston. Since they come out to Oakland once a year, it fits well within my usual baseball expenses. Considering that my other entertainment costs are kept very low for my income, it should not be a problem.

Additionally the money spent on a travel computer can actually be thought of as an investment. This site makes me money and being able to update it and keep in touch with readers and advertisers on the road should end up paying off in the long haul.

By: At The Bottom

At The Bottom — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 17:42:24 +0000

Boo Sox! Go Tigers!

I don’t know what Minimum Wage is talking about. What is the point of saving money if you can’t spend it on something you enjoy? All good budgets allow for a “Fun” basket that lets you spend some of your savings on things that you will enjoy like vacations and BASEBALL GAMES.

PF Newbie!

By: Moneymonk

Moneymonk — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 17:23:45 +0000

As long as you are paying cash and still can budget for the rest of the month or week. Who cares about being materialistic. It’s when we constantly live beyond our means is when our spending is out of control

By: Minimum Wage

Minimum Wage — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 16:57:28 +0000

I find it amusing to see people spend like this and then write about personal finance!

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 16:45:05 +0000

Baseball is always worth the expense! :) I also enjoy going to minor league games where the environment is just as fun, but everything is much cheaper! You don't get to watch your favorite MLB teams, so the splurge of going to a big league game every once and awhile is always worth it.

By: Jon @ The Money Mythos

Jon @ The Money Mythos — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 15:22:12 +0000

Tickets for a game involving the Red Sox for $30 – I’d say that’s worthwhile! Here in Boston I’d have to sell a kidney to have half a chance at nosebleed seats.