yup, it's pretty easy to forget that the dollar has already lost over 98% of it's value.
IIRC, when the US stopped minting the half penny, the whole penny was worth somewhere around $0.33 in 2022 currency. Lopping the last digit off of everything isn't practical for many reasons but I wish we could at least finally put the stupid "9/10" on gas prices into the grave.
In some places you're getting your wish, because they plan to need that space on the sign when the dollars go double digit.
I was a kid during both oil shocks of the 1970s. That has absolutely nothing to do with my driving. What does, and not just for driving, is the family taught cultural value of 'don't be wasteful'. So unlike so many people today, I don't make 12 trips a day to stores/friends/whatever when I can just make one or two if I actually think 5 minutes ahead. That applies whether gas is $1 or $5 per gallon. I also try to make…
In the late 1970's Star Wars toys still worked if the batteries died! Can't say that about an iPad.
I wonder which is more wasteful: A built-in rechargeable battery that lasts 500-1000 charge cycles but is difficult to replace, or a requirement of six AAA batteries that need replacement after every 3-4 hours of use.
I was a kid during both oil shocks of the 1970s. That has absolutely nothing to do with my driving. What does, and not just for driving, is the family taught cultural value of 'don't be wasteful'. So unlike so many people today, I don't make 12 trips a day to stores/friends/whatever when I can just make one or two if I actually think 5 minutes ahead. That applies whether gas is $1 or $5 per gallon. I also try to make…
I was a kid during the 80s when gas was (comparatively) cheap. But I got so sick of living out in the middle of nowhere and having to drive all the time (as a kid, with my parents), that I spend more on housing in urban areas where I can walk to multiple stores.
Throwing things away is so difficult these days that I try to make purchases that avoid it. But like...we still have my 5 year olds car seat in our garage because no place will take them (I have to make a trip to the dump, or get a junk hauler to come by with a big load for them and a few hundred bucks).
My wife grew up very close to the poverty line, with her parents always just about to lose the house. And she has this anxiety. (Edit: to be clear, she's a successful civil engineer, considered one of the best in her field locally and makes great money- she has nothing to worry about.) In order to help with it, we have a bank account that our bills come out of that has a little more than 6 months worth of all our bil…
How is this not logical or financially wise ? It is common advice to have an emergency fund equal to several months of expenses in cash. What is the alternative ? Having no emergency fund?
Several months is excessive. Even if you think you might going to spend six months with no income, you don't need six months' expenses in cash - one month's worth in instant access savings (or, sure, half in savings and half in cash under the matress, just in case), two months' in one months' notice savings, and three months' worth in three months' notice savings works just as well and will get you a better return.
In the late 1970's Star Wars toys still worked if the batteries died! Can't say that about an iPad.
I wonder which is more wasteful: A built-in rechargeable battery that lasts 500-1000 charge cycles but is difficult to replace, or a requirement of six AAA batteries that need replacement after every 3-4 hours of use.
ok, but you're replying to a comment about toys that don't need their batteries replaced, because they still work without the batteries.
a toy with optional batteries obviously requires less battery use than a thing which requires a battery. it's tautological.
Here's a decent 3-bedroom single family house in suburban Cleveland for $395K. https://apps.realtor.com/mUAZ/313q9jxa That's just one example but you can find thousands of similar listings all over the country. Outside of high-cost coastal areas, housing is still fairly affordable in most of the country.
That’s not the suburbs.
I guess it depends how you define "suburbs", but it's outside the core downtown area. If your prefer a house further out in the suburbs or exurbs then there are plenty of options to pick from.
Anyway, the point is that people on HN who have relatively high incomes and job skills, and still complain about lack of affordable housing are mostly just being picky about location. There are options available but it might mean living in a area with shitty weather or not being able to walk to trendy restaurants or among neighbors who don't share your political views. The real housing crisis is hitting people with much lower incomes who are being squeezed out.
https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/tou7v2/oc_... Even Warren Buffet always keeps at least something like a fifth of his investments in cash. Otherwise how the hell are you going to buy low?
I would imagine though that he is also very often selling / buying so that hes not just sitting on a pile of cash for months at a time?
Yep, my parents are baby boomers and definitely have this ingrained in them. I also have some habits around eating where I (usually) waste nothing, which was instilled in me by my grandfather.
Not wasting food is just normal though, or is it just so ingrained in me that it only seems so?
When I say dont waste food I mean my plate is completely clean when I'm done. I eat everything off a chicken wing so its _just_ bone left (eat all the cartilage and clean every bit of meat off). My grandfather would actually break the bones and suck the marrow out of each one.