gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Sept 1, 2015 18:20:41 GMT -5
Oh man, I wish you had more details. What is the middle of summer? July? How much debt and how many payments could she have possibly missed in a month or two? Or did you mean she took out the loans 6 months ago.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 30, 2015 21:11:49 GMT -5
From what I could tell, $90k is his salary. That is not the total cost to the employer. $90k is not unusual at all for New Jersey. Teachers don't get paid as badly as people think- at least not once they have been in the game awhile.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 30, 2015 9:23:05 GMT -5
You have to watch The Wedding Ringer, staring Kevin Hart. Not only is it hilarious but it will give you both good and bad examples of the best man speech. No offense, but brothers seem to give the worst speeches for the reasons you listed. They are either embarrassing or short and forgettable. Good luck!
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 28, 2015 6:31:34 GMT -5
I wouldn't accept it unless you plan on letting her drive it. My inlaws sold their son's car when he was 17 and he still holds a grudge at 45.
Since she is already insured, I can't imagine it would be very expensive to add liability for a 1999 or older car. I drive a 1998 with liability only and it is $200/year. CarMax offered $100 for the trade in value so I walked. They offer $200 for our perfectly fine 2000. So you might be surprised what you can really get for an old car.
My parents got me a car I could share with my sister at 16. They paid for insurance and maintenance. It didn't turn us into spoiled brats and made it much easier to get full time summer jobs. We saved that money for college. And my parent were off the hook driving us everywhere. It may not be an option if you're broke, but if you can squeeze it, it may not be so bad.
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gooddecisions
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Pillows
Aug 25, 2015 20:53:01 GMT -5
Post by gooddecisions on Aug 25, 2015 20:53:01 GMT -5
Somebody please tell me the secret with down. I have pottery barn throw pillows, crate and barrel sofas and Ralph Lauren bed pillows stuffed with down. The feathers poke out, stab me and end up all over the place. Cleaning up after these damn pillows is worse than having a pet. What am I doing wrong? They aren't even comfortable because of the stabbing issues.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 25, 2015 7:13:23 GMT -5
Market rent would cover PITI, and hopefully most of a PM's fee. I shall call my lender today and ask about the LoC, Bonny. Zib, I hadn't thought about it that way. Thank you for giving me another perspective. Not necessarily. I have had renters change over several times and not had to pay anything. We do a walk through before with the expectation that the houses are left In comparable condition. Any damage or additional cleaning fees would be deducted from the deposit. So far I have always refunded the full deposit. Knock on wood. i actually think it's a good thing your current tenants are moving so you can finally collect full market rent.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 22, 2015 11:35:29 GMT -5
It's weird that they make you sign up and register. If you're an employee, you should have some sort of employee ID card and that should be enough to show a cashier to get your 10%. I could see family registering, but not employees. And, corporate shouldn't cancel a program just because they don't have 100% adoption.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 19, 2015 22:40:31 GMT -5
I've worked at a grocery store and as far as I know, there was no rule that said customers may not eat in the store. It wasn't posted and store personnel were not asked to enforce anything like that. I didn't care if somebody opened something and then paid for it. There'd be an issue if they stole it or opened it and put it back.
I'm not a snacker, so I don't personally do this. I like 2 or 3 meals/day sitting at a table. I don't even eat in my car. But if I did decide to eat or drink something while shopping- I guess I wouldn't care if people judge me for it either. Once I opened a snack size gold fish cracker for my 2 year old at Target to keep her occupied since she was getting whiney and kept trying to climb out of the cart. It worked like a charm. I paid for the open container at the check-out. No biggie. Unless I suppose people get upset about contaminating the cart with microscopic gold fish crumbs...and now we're back to why nobody should ever eat in public.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 19, 2015 21:42:51 GMT -5
Oh I haven't forgotten. For all I know, Sunnyday is you know who. It's a message board and it's just best for me to take words at face value and respond based on the information provided.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 19, 2015 20:58:35 GMT -5
You mean after you find something that in structurally sound, in a good neighborhood, in a good school district, etc? Or is the koi pond more important? Could you just build a koi pond eventually, in a house that meets your needs? Or will you only consider houses with koi ponds? Must have koi pond This can't be real. You can build a koi pond (or even buy one), but you can't build a better school if all of the schools in the district are horrible. www.wikihow.com/Build-a-Koi-Fish-Pond
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 19, 2015 18:23:19 GMT -5
We had our team scattered over many locations and did everything remotely. Then, we had some personnel changes and we were all in the office. I was amazed at how much better we worked as a team with us all in one place. We were all working toward the same things, and we could sort of understand where everyone else was coming from. In my 20+ years, less than 10 of them my actual boss was in the same state as me, and that was okay, because of the type of work I do. But, being with the team I support is so incredibly helpful. I can see when people are stressed, or if they are under control. I get so much more casual information when I'm in the break room, or the bathroom. "Hi, how is it going?" turns into a problem solving session. I know when people are on web-ex meetings they aren't really paying attention - doing other work, or playing solitaire or whatever. When we are all in the same room, you can see when you are losing someone - and they have to at least pretend better. I am not against remote working - but I do think with the technology we currently have, we have lost something. Communication seems like it should be easier, because we have ten thousand ways to get a message to someone. But, it just become more muttled because everything is typed, rarely verbal, and you get 200 emails a day, so reading them doesn't really happen - people just breeze by them. Meetings are ineffective. Something is lost, and I am not sure what the next great technology will be that will be able to substitute for a face to face conversation. Just out of curiosity, did they move everyone to the same city? My company has done the same thing, but we're all still scattered. So being back in the office is totally useless and a complete waste of time and money. Nobody collaborates, problem solves or communicates any better because we're still on our web-ex meetings all day with the people we need to work with. I'm left feeling exactly like Paul described in his post and it's horribly detracting and unproductive being back in an office.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 19, 2015 18:00:56 GMT -5
I love my big house. Best decision ever.
Before your family moves (I assume they are trailing?), rent a two-bedroom apartment in the school district you're comfortable with along the subway line you need. Spend the next 6 months to a year with a realtor and your husband searching for a home within your budget that meets your needs.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 15, 2015 7:47:14 GMT -5
And how are you going to prove this? Are you going to expect your employee to go to the doctors each time they get a migraine, have a case of diarrhea or a cold? We discussed this ad nauseum between the supervisors and HR. If they have the vacation or sick time, you don't have the right to deny them. You can't (or we can't) request proof of one person, and not of everyone. It sucks when one person abuses the system for the rest. It really isn't as easy as you seem to think. That is exactly what one place I worked at expected thanks to the chronically hungover or "cramps" crowd. Call in sick, you better produce a doctors note. As a manager, I'm not to ask for a doctor's notes. Being in people's medical business is none of my business. If they tell me something about their personal business, I can ask if they need an accommodation and then get HR involved if they do. Otherwise everyone gets 10 use it or lose it occasional illness days they can use if they are not feeling well or to take care of somebody in their household who is sick. If they call out and aren't really sick, it's not my business to question it either. Maybe they are. I think it's great and is exactly how it should be. In 15 years, I've taken exactly one sick day and my direct reports don't abuse it either. If they email me and say they have to be out sick, I simple say "Thanks for letting me know. Get some rest and I hope you feel better tomorrow."
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 14, 2015 20:56:43 GMT -5
Well, is your staff completely awful? I write evaluations twice/year and while most of my co-workers seem to dread it, I don't really mind. But, I have a great team and I am fully aware of all their contributions. I don't know if your company has goals, but I try to align each contribution/success story with a goal and then pull 360 feedback to share verbatims. My biggest challenge is staying within the 6000 character limit and having to edit it down. Toward the end, I usually add 2-4 things that I would like to see them work on or what might challenge or inspire.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 14, 2015 6:28:33 GMT -5
I too have not been able to capitalize on home appreciation. I bought my first place in 2004, 11 years ago, for $165K. Neighbors' homes were selling for $205K in 2007, but everywhere else was also at least $50K higher. Then 2010 it dropped down to $155K and now it's right back at $165K. So, I've been renting it the past 2 years at just barely above break-even. I wouldn't say it's been a great investment.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 14, 2015 6:14:49 GMT -5
Kind of an oxymoron since maternity leave can never apply to all Americans, only half. That was bad reporting blogging. This one is more specific: "The FAMILY Act to Provide Universal Paid Family and Medical Leave Workers in the United States should have at least 12 weeks of universal paid family and medical leave. The FAMILY Act introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand does just that. This bill, which Sen. Sanders is co-sponsoring, allows mothers and fathers to receive 12 weeks of paid family leave to care for a baby. It also allows workers to take the same amount of paid time off if they are diagnosed with cancer or have other serious medical conditions or to take care of family members who are seriously ill."
www.sanders.senate.gov/download/061115-familyvaluesagendafactsheet?inline=file
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 12, 2015 16:00:05 GMT -5
Angel!, it sounds like you're a parent, so you've been on the benefitting side of parent/non-parent equation. Being parent or working mother friendly is a part of the workplace culture we have built over the last 50 years or so. It's not unique to a few employers. It's common throughout large businesses in the US. If you look at the practices of the company you work for, I'm betting that you will find several policies that benefit only parents, but no compensatory policies that only benefit non-parents, or that equalize the value benefits for all employees. While cafeteria plans that would have done that were all the talk, decades ago, it was a concept that never took hold. Shitty workplaces? No. One of the places that I worked is recognized every year as a great place to work, for working mothers, LGBT employees, minorities, etc. However, there is no organization that advocates for or recognizes employers who offer comparable benefits for non-parents that they offer to parents. We have reduced discrimination against some groups of employees and made life easier for working parents, but in the process, we have created discrimination against non-parents where it previously did not exist. Regading the tax code, it makes sense to you because it appears that you benefit from the provisions of the tax code. Since I don't benefit to the extent that you benefit, it doesn't make as much sense to me. To me, the tax code should be about funding government operations, not about social engineering. To eliminate the social engineering present in the tax code, we'd have to eliminate a lot of tax deductions. OK. Let's do it. You said: "The informal system adds benefits, such as leaving early for kids activities, leaving on time due to child care issues while non-parents work late to complete projects parents should be participating in, etc. And, when parents leave erly, who gets the benefit of dealing with the issues that the parent wold have dealt with, had they been at work? The non-parent. Refuse to cover for the absent parent? Not an option. The worplace culture of most businesses will have you branded uncooperative and not a team player if you refuse to take on the tasks of the absent parent."
Sounds like a shitty workplace to me. Mine doesn't work that way. There is no expectation that others pick up my slack because of activities or daycare issues. Nor do I somehow get slack on working extra hours when it is needed. I find it odd that you seem to bitch about it on the one hand & then defend it as great when it is pointed out. If it was so great, then you wouldn't be bitching. And not all workplaces function that way. Sounds like a shitty, unfair place to work IMO.
Honestly the only policy at my company that benefits people with children over others is kid's health insurance is almost 1/2 subsidized. But, the same could be said about spouses health insurance. So those without a spouse (like me) don't get that benefit.
My company is also on the list of "great for working mothers" companies. But, it's not just great for working mothers, but work/life balance in general. Before I had kids, I never really found that balance and now after- I'm forced to. It was my choice to be a workaholic and I didn't realize it was me putting that pressure on myself until I took that pressure off myself and nobody was breathing down my neck. In the 11 years I worked there before I had kids, I never found myself keeping track of co-workers' work ethic and whether that aligned with having children. My focus was on getting my work done by the deadlines. I learned some people don't care about missing deadlines and it has nothing to do with having kids or not having kids. Some of the worst offenders don't have children. Regardless, nobody picks up any slack for me and if people are staying late, it's likely because they didn't come in until 10:00 am, took a long lunch or they are just not very efficient. There is one woman I know who stays until 7:00 pm every single night. She's been doing that for 20 years. We all think she's nuts. She never had kids. So, maybe she blames it on the folks with kids leaving at 5 and having to stay late to pick up the slack. But, that's just simply not the case. She's putting the pressure on herself. I agree with Angel, sounds like a shitty place to work if you have to stay late to complete the work that your co-workers who are parents should be there doing. That's not what a true work/life balance culture is about.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 12, 2015 15:23:59 GMT -5
Your argument is one that is typically used to justify the policies that we currently have. I look at the kids/no kids choice in the same light as a staycation/European vacation choice. If I choose to take an expensive vacation to Europe every year, should you be forced to help pay some of the costs? Should I get a tax deduction because I have contributed, theoretically, to international understanding of the American perspective and social structure? Or because I have acquired some appreciation for perspective or social structure of other countries? After all, I found my European vacations to be quite educational. Certainly, improving the population's ability to function in a multinational/multicutural business world is beneficial to the US. No? Sign me up for the European vacation please! Actually that is a very apt analogy for a childless benefit. In my last 8 years as the only single/childless employee at my work, I've always been first in line for the international business trips. It's been a great perk! Not to mention, I could afford a lot more European vacations before my $30K and soon to be $45K/year daycare bill...
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 12, 2015 13:14:20 GMT -5
As an employee who has never had children, I think that becoming a parent is an individual choice. As such, parents should not get a benefit when no compensatory benefit is provided to non-parents. But not having children is also a choice (typically). You could opt into all those wonderful benefits by becoming a parent. You choose otherwise, that's not discrimination. Excellent point about choice. It's like if I begrudged all my co-workers who have taken advantage of tuition reimbursement. They've gotten to leave for school, studied during the work day and sometimes the field has nothing to do with any jobs at my company. For example, one co-worker went back for HVAC and we work in financial services. I think it's great they've taken advantage of the benefit and have never once thought it's not fair. It's a benefit available to the employees who choose to be students.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 12, 2015 12:34:33 GMT -5
I am going to cling to this idea with all my ever lovin' might. As someone who came back to work at 3 months or less post-partum both times, I was seriously convinced I had lost significant brainpower and have been sad about that loss for a very long time. My new story is that it was a temporary thing and the brain cells I thought I had lost will return at any moment. Whatever you say. I came back within 3 months or less for both of my leaves, (and I was fine with going back when I did). I think my hormones are just now finally completely normalized after 2.5 years. I thought that my brain power had declined, but I have proof that it did not, which was 1.5 years post partum. Having a psych degree, I might have been more self-observant than most. I also enjoy reading articles on the subject, probably more than most. (For example, during and after pregnancy brain function is not diminished, but switched over to the emotional centers more.) There was a marked improvement in my focus and memory once I started getting real sleep, at 6 months, and at 1 year. This was my experience as well- except it was exactly one year. I had never taken more than 1 week off work and even still- checked my laptop constantly. So leaving for 12 weeks without any access to work was really scary and I was worried about how that would affect my career. My performance after I returned had nothing to do with losing skills and everything to do with how my brain was functioning on 2 hours of interrupted sleep/night, hormones and the constant worry about the newborn who I couldn't physically be with during the work day. The skills were still there, but I struggled with articulation and overall sharpness. I was terrified that having a baby made me dumb, and I was doomed to struggle with thought process the rest of my life. I'm not saying this happens to everyone, but it's what happened to me. Fortunately, it all came back 1 year later and I'm as sharp as ever. As an employee, I did my best during those newborn days- but it was hard. Somehow I got the highest performance review and biggest bonus of my career after having my first. I didn't think I deserved it, but my behaviors must have changed for the better, even if I wasn't as sharp. I got a promotion after having my second. So, I guess working moms aren't the worst employees. And, I put in over 10 childless years at the company before having babies.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 12, 2015 9:03:35 GMT -5
Out of 105 women in my department, I can only recall 5 women taking maternity leave, myself included since I started at the company 15 years ago. I know of 2 men who took parental leave (one for an adopted child and one for a bio child) and 2 women who took adopted parental leave. It's all 100% paid for 12 weeks. That is not a dramatic number over the course of 15 years for over 150 people including men. All came back to the company after 12 weeks. I have direct reports myself and would fully support and encourage anyone adopting a child or having a child to take the leave and not worry or think about work- to focus on bonding with their new child. I was lucky to have a few supportive managers, although one was not very supportive. While I don't necessarily agree that anything should be government mandated, I think it's great if a company wants to sweeten the pot with a generous parental leave policy. And maybe it's does not come at such a dramatic cost as people think it might.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 11, 2015 21:54:32 GMT -5
Several years ago I was talking to a lady from Canada and she told me her sister had two (2) years off paid maternity leave when she had her baby. I came unglued. She could have a baby every two years on the tax payer dime. My thought is ........ why should I pay for them to choose to have babies? Most of the women I knew having babies did just fine with 6 weeks off. Six weeks is the usual time to be released from Dr. care. Personal responsibility and it's something you plan for. My boss feels the same way. She actually told me to drop my 6 week old baby off at daycare and get back to work despite my company have a 12 week paid parental leave policy. I told her I would be back at the end of 12 weeks. Our work is not that hard to resource, it just kills her because she only got 2 weeks paid when she had her kids 20+ years ago. It burns her up that men get the same leave. I applaud my company, google, adobe and others who are embracing a more progressive stance and look forward to the day when all these old-school thinkers are out of the workforce.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 10, 2015 7:08:33 GMT -5
The building I used to work in had 2 stories. The architect took an elevator from a skyscraper and built it into the design. You had to push 42 to get to the second floor. I always thought that was cool.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 9, 2015 14:47:34 GMT -5
Wow...I never would have guessed that! I need to re-evaluate professions... this is actually a very serious issue in anarchism. the least desirable professions end up being the most highly compensated in those systems, NO MATTER WHAT THE SKILL LEVEL. therefore, it is possible in an anarchistic society to see a CEO getting paid LESS than a trash collector, and that makes perfect sense (if you are a libertarian socialist). i think this dilemma is so well studied it even has a name, but i don't know what it is. ...or they just have very strong unions, like in this case. I remember being a kid and somebody said something about growing up to be a garbage man (in a negative context). My dad was very quick to say that the trash man is actually very well paid. I suspect just about anyone would be happy to collect trash if they were aware that they get paid so much. The only thing that surprises me is that it's not well-known. Similarly, I recall the article about the bus drivers in Chicago making 6-figures. Again, unions.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 9, 2015 7:18:32 GMT -5
You must, or you and many people think you should?
Legally, there is no must. Morally there is not even a must. Interestingly when CEO pay reached outrageous amounts very few people were saying you must or even should raise other employee wages because they deserve it too.
All this crap is purely hypothetical to incorrect. The lowest pay was higher than $20K a year. People are shafted in lots of companies. The economy is not so sterling that all of us can bound over to a new improved job just because we feel like it. And even if you feel screwed that the people who used to be paid less than you get paid the same, in that company, how does that automatically mean you are worth more in the market place in general?
Again, one company changed its pay structure. One. How does that really change your market value if you were already making over $70k.yr. ? Please explain, because if it is not a large company, I'm not seeing how it can make that big a difference to overall marketability of any of its employees.
Perhaps legally and morally there is no "must," but in reality there is. For instance when all the stock clerks who put the goods on the shelves make $70k and the manager who supervises them makes $70k...where's the incentive to be a manager?
You're taking things to the extreme. With responsibility comes pay - in theory at least - and that's ok. Because with responsibility comes extra time and stress. Expecting the CEO of a company to make the same salary as the lowest rung on the ladder is ludicrous.
I don't know if people are shafted in lots of companies. Maybe? If you feel shafted then take your skills to another company who compensates you for the work you do. Ultimately it's about supply and demand just like sales...the bigger the demand the higher the salary. There just isn't that much demand for unskilled labor, because everybody can do it. Would you pay someone who takes out your trash the same amount as someone who welds wrought iron railings together or fixes your air conditioner?
Trash collectors in Seattle make $110K. Times have changed and low skill work is well-compensated. This article is old, but memorable: globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/04/seattle-trash-collectors-make-average.html
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 8, 2015 20:26:18 GMT -5
The first thing I did after my upgrade was complete, was open Edge to download Chrome. No problem at all and that was the last time I opened Edge.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 7, 2015 21:41:04 GMT -5
I had to resist the urge to reply to a friend who posted probably the same article about gardasil you're referring to...something about Lead Gardasil Creator Confesses to Clear Conscience. Facebook makes it very easy since as soon as you click an article and come back- right below it are "similar" articles. So, right underneath that article were several articles claiming none of it was true. It was even debunked on snopes. I just roll my eyes, take a deep breath and move on.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 7, 2015 21:32:48 GMT -5
I had no problems with the upgrade. It took one hour yesterday afternoon on my normal home wi-fi and I haven't had any issues.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 7, 2015 9:00:41 GMT -5
If you want a new house, talk to a realtor and figure out if there is a way given your circumstances, then come back here and crunch the numbers. That said, I know quite a few couples who bought a new house when they were pregnant with their first. I predict they all move again within 2-5 years- three already have- whether it's functionality, size, school systems or new lifestyle.
We resisted the urge and stayed in my small townhouse until my daughter was almost 2. Since we weren't in a hurry, we found a great house that was a little on the large size, but in a great neighborhood with great schools. Since we waited and were able to see that we weren't going downtown so much anymore and our lifestyle more revolved around work, daycare, Target, Costco, playgrounds, family-friendly activities and grocery stores, living downtown didn't feel so important to us. We've been here 2 years, have a second child and number 3 is on the way. I am relieved we over-estimated our housing needs and can feel totally comfortable here for at least 20 years- assuming no other lifestyle changes like relocation, divorce or health/death.
As far as the work from home deal, I would set up a desk in your bedroom where you can shut the door- assuming your husband has a normal day job and is not home. Put up a screen/room divider if you use a webcam. That way you can keep all the baby stuff in the second room so it doesn't end up all over your bedroom and the house. Keep the baby in the crib in the other room at least for naps and work on overnights when you feel ready. Good luck!
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Aug 7, 2015 6:56:42 GMT -5
Today is the perfect day to get started and opening up a Roth couldn't be easier. Go to investor.vanguard.com and follow the steps to open a Roth IRA account. I think it's still $1000 to open the account. If you want to keep it simple, you can pick a target fund or a mutual fund. Good luck!
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