ER Doc Budget

[ER BlueBlood]

Wanted to see what you guys thought of my current budget:

$16,000 net all-in

Mortgage (w/condo fees): $4000
Car (M3) : $1200
Savings: $3000
elec,phone, internet, cable: $400
Car Insurance: $150
Clothes: $1500
Entertainment: $1500
Food: $500
Vacation fund: $2000
safety cash fund: $1000
Student Loan: $500
gas: $250

I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women)...

Curious on others budget thoughts/proportional spend on items....

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[Pons Asinorum]

First post + that profile name + $18k/year for clothes = trollin' I hope

 

[ER BlueBlood]

First post + that profile name + $18k/year for clothes = trollin' I hope

I knew i was gonna take heat for that one...

fair enough, flame suit on

 

[DoctorMedic]

1) you plan to spend $1500/mo on clothes? Maybe for a month or two until you develop a nice wardrobe but I don't see that being an every month expense.
2) Only $500/mo on student loans, did you have most of school paid for or scholarship?
3) I assume that net is after retirement and benefits?
4) May want a nice life insurance and disability policies as well.

 

[Pons Asinorum]

I knew i was gonna take heat for that one...

fair enough, flame suit on

As long as you take me on that vacation for which you're saving up $2k/month

 

[ER BlueBlood]

the clothing is a bit much I agree, but I threw in a luxury watch (cartier) and I do have a thing for watches so will probably buy many over time. Undergrad full ride and parents covered most of the grad loans.

Life insurance besides hospital coverage is a good idea. Well, retirement is the $3000 in the 401(k) a month.

Whats crazy is how much some of my other doc friends who are just a few years older are pulling down...just don't know how they do it.

 

[Birdstrike]

I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women).....

Troll-tastic!

 

[ER BlueBlood]

Seriously though man, its crazy what these guys are doing. I mean honestly, most docs I know spend more than me (front row at NBA games, lots of vacations, SEC college baseball box seats)

 

[namethatsmell]

Unless restaurants are factored into "entertainment," then your food budget seems low given your tastes in other things...and may explain why the other docs are pulling down more ladies. Just sayin'

 

[EMquest3]

the clothing is a bit much I agree, but I threw in a luxury watch (cartier) and I do have a thing for watches so will probably buy many over time. Undergrad full ride and parents covered most of the grad loans.

Life insurance besides hospital coverage is a good idea. Well, retirement is the $3000 in the 401(k) a month.

Whats crazy is how much some of my other doc friends who are just a few years older are pulling down...just don't know how they do it.

You can't put 3000/month in a 401k. That alone makes it likely you are just trolling.

 

[Doctor Bob]

I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women)...

Well there isn't a line-item amount for "women" in your budget...

Oh wait...

Entertainment: $1500

There it is.
Is that all in $1s?

 

[shopsteward]

Well there isn't a line-item amount for "women" in your budget...

Oh wait...



There it is.
Is that all in $1s?

He's not buying the good alcohol either.

 

[jaeida8]

You can't put 3000/month in a 401k. That alone makes it likely you are just trolling.

You can put up to 50k a year in a self employed 401k. Also that car payment is ridiculous. I bought a Tesla Model S only because I was able to pay a significant amount in cash.

 

[TooMuchResearch]

JoKe tHrEaD iZ jOke rite?

 

[The White Coat Investor]

You can't put 3000/month in a 401k. That alone makes it likely you are just trolling.

I put $51K in mine a year, and usually am done by September. So $51K/9 = $5667.

Why exactly do you think he can't put in $3K a month? Most docs have a 401K/profit-sharing plan, not a run of the mill $17.5K limit 401K.

Careful what you accuse people of trolling for. So he's into clothes. Big whoop. Lots of people give that much money away every month or blow it on car payments.

To the OP:

I posted my budget a couple of years ago. I make more now (made partner) so it looks a little different. You probably ought to buy some disability insurance. Expect some flamin', I took plenty, but lots of people thanked me for it and the experience drove me to start a financial blog that sees 140,000 hits a month now.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=817037

 

[WilcoWorld]

Seems like a legit post to me. Even if the budget isn't exactly typical, it's not unthinkable. I'm often amused/annoyed at how quick we are to jump all over new folks on this forum.

To the OP: putting away 4k a month (3k savings + 1k cash = 4k) aint too shabby, but be careful not to convince yourself that you're being financially wise simply because you know a few people who are spending more lavishly. They may have more disposable income for one reason or another, or they may just be foolish. In either case, their choices aren't necessarily a good indication of what you should be doing.

Also, I second the disability insurance, you're going to want own-occupation.

 

[GeneralVeers]

As Suzie Orman says, unless you have a 10-month Emergency fund, in your case about $60,000 in cash, YOU CAN'T AFFORD IT

 

[Oenak]

I'll digress. I guess I just didn't see it from the perspective of someone who has spent their entire adult life in school/training until now. I saw it as a poor medium to share private information regarding finances versus someone looking for genuine advice.

 

[e30ftw]

Oenak, please mark this thread so you will be able to reread your post in 6+ years when you are a resident.

the original post is a bit materialistically focused, but where else are we supposed to post budget questions? you may have a $100k job already, but I worked full time in college, lived off ~10k a year from the time I moved out at 19 until age 28 when I started residency, Is it somehow an affront to the thousands of patients we have seen to post financially useful information? Would you be happy if I still lived off black beans and never ate out or took vacation, like I did during the decade of my twenties while my RN/MBA friends traveled europe and bought houses? At what point would it be acceptable to discuss retirement concerns? At what point as a hardworking tax-paying American citizen is it appropriate to discuss financially responsible stewardship of my income which includes deferred gratification (ie, pleasure) after years of negative income and uncompensated work?

 

[jaeida8]

As someone who is leaving a well-established career with a healthy six figure income in order to pursue his dream of becoming a physician.....this thread is embarrassing.

In what universe does someone think it is socially acceptable to post a lavish budget on a forum used to share knowledge and experience pertaining to the medical profession?

This isn't a thread started to seek honest feedback regarding a budget, it is a thread started so an insecure grown man with undeveloped social skills can share with people how much money he makes.

I hope members of the general public don't see threads like this.....as they would be disgusted.

I don't think he's trying to brag. I expect income to go down in the future due to Obamacare, but a lot of us who are partners in our groups have higher monthly net incomes than the OP. I think the OP just wanted feedback on his budget.

 

[Birdstrike]

As someone who is leaving a well-established career with a healthy six figure income in order to pursue his dream of becoming a physician.....this thread is embarrassing.

In what universe does someone think it is socially acceptable to post a lavish budget on a forum used to share knowledge and experience pertaining to the medical profession?

This isn't a thread started to seek honest feedback regarding a budget, it is a thread started so an insecure grown man with undeveloped social skills can share with people how much money he makes.

I hope members of the general public don't see threads like this.....as they would be disgusted.

I think you've been successfully trolled. It's his first post ever under that name. With a comment like this, "I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women)..." I think it's pretty obvious. I don't know any radiologists or orthopedists that drive a Lamborghini. Boasting about "lamborghinis...women..."......give me a break. You've been trolled.

On the other hand, like any other "joke," the best ones are those with an element of truth to them. Let's say for a minute he's not trolling. How incredibly tacky and uncouth to be bragging, on a public forum about your $1,000 per month BMW payment, and at the same time complaining that you have it bad because your lifestyle doesn't measure up to your friends with "lamborghinis, boats and lots more women." Yet we wonder why, when we belly ache and complain about Obamacare "ruining the profession," "reimbursement cuts," and EMTALA forcing docs to "work for free," that patients and non-medical people hate doctors, think they're rich and greedy and look for every reason to bash them in Press-Ganey surveys and sue them to death.

Best case scenario- The OP is a troll.

Worst case scenario- Doctors will increasingly be viewed (somewhat deservedly so) as a bunch of greedy, materialistic dirtbags that care little about people, and mostly about "BMWs, boats, and babes."

the original post is a bit materialistically focused, but where else are we supposed to post budget questions?

How about not posting your income online, at all? How about talking to an accountant or "financial advisor," in private? If you want to discuss generalities like "When should I start saving for retirement?" or "What's better a traditional 401K or a Roth 401K?" that's fine. But you don't need to post online every penny you earn, the cost of your BMW supercar and the fact that you spend more per month on "entertainment" than some people make in an entire month, or in some countries in an entire year. Are you going to post a pdf of your tax return online, too? Why not post your entire DNA sequence and a full frontal nude, too, a la Anthony Weiner, so the world can admire your specific brand of perfection? I guess that's what this world has come to. Privacy no longer exists, and no longer is thought to serve any purpose, in fact any desire for "privacy" is seen as outdated, weird and suspect. Hell, the government reads all our emails and taps, records and logs every phone call, while Google street cams and Google glasses will soon record every human event that will ever occur. Privacy is extinct and Dignity is on the endangered list.

What a weird friggin' world we live in.

 

[dchristismi]

Totally off topic, but one of my cardiothoracic guys has a Lamborghini. It's baby blue. He doesn't drive it in often, but it was parked in the lot when we EM guys park a couple months ago.

We totally gave one of the more macho EM partners (who didn't know whose car it was) hell about it - and the more he denied it was his, the more we heckled. "Baby blue? Really? Duuude."

To each his own. (regarding the original thread)

 

[la gringa]

Totally off topic, but one of my cardiothoracic guys has a Lamborghini. It's baby blue. He doesn't drive it in often, but it was parked in the lot when we EM guys park a couple months ago.

We totally gave one of the more macho EM partners (who didn't know whose car it was) hell about it - and the more he denied it was his, the more we heckled. "Baby blue? Really? Duuude."

To each his own. (regarding the original thread)

maybe he's a TAR HEEL like me... CAROLINA BLUE!!!

 

[pinipig523]

Wanted to see what you guys thought of my current budget:

$16,000 net all-in

Mortgage (w/condo fees): $4000
Car (M3) : $1200
Savings: $3000
elec,phone, internet, cable: $400
Car Insurance: $150
Clothes: $1500
Entertainment: $1500
Food: $500
Vacation fund: $2000
safety cash fund: $1000
Student Loan: $500
gas: $250

I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women)...

Curious on others budget thoughts/proportional spend on items....

Dude, you're blowing through your money. But whatever suits you.

My budget is a little different, I'm in a wealth accumulating phase.

Pay = $22,000 net
COL = $10,000-11,000/mo
Saving = $11,000-12,000/mo

I drive a 2010 MB E550 for $786/mo.

 

[Greenbbs]

Totally off topic, but one of my cardiothoracic guys has a Lamborghini. It's baby blue. He doesn't drive it in often, but it was parked in the lot when we EM guys park a couple months ago.

We totally gave one of the more macho EM partners (who didn't know whose car it was) hell about it - and the more he denied it was his, the more we heckled. "Baby blue? Really? Duuude."

To each his own. (regarding the original thread)

We have an area of our doctor's lot that is affectionately known as "exotic car land". The CT/nsgy/vascular/anesthesia/interventional guys all park there. On any given day, there are multiple high end porsche's, one vascular guy has an Audi R8, thre are at least 2 Nismo GT-R's, a few tesla, a Mercedes G-wagon......

Needless to say, I don't park there.....

 

[punkedoutriffs]

We have an area of our doctor's lot that is affectionately known as "exotic car land". The CT/nsgy/vascular/anesthesia/interventional guys all park there. On any given day, there are multiple high end porsche's, one vascular guy has an Audi R8, thre are at least 2 Nismo GT-R's, a few tesla, a Mercedes G-wagon......

Needless to say, I don't park there.....

Lol, GT-R. Guess they wanna save time on their commute.

 

[jaeida8]

We have an area of our doctor's lot that is affectionately known as "exotic car land". The CT/nsgy/vascular/anesthesia/interventional guys all park there. On any given day, there are multiple high end porsche's, one vascular guy has an Audi R8, thre are at least 2 Nismo GT-R's, a few tesla, a Mercedes G-wagon......

Needless to say, I don't park there.....

Hey, ER docs can afford Teslas too.

 

[Greenbbs]

Hey, ER docs can afford Teslas too.

Never said we couldn't.....however, I have two young kids, so exotic motor vehicle isn't on my horizon. Currently, it's family transportation with car seat capacity.

 

[EM_Rebuilder]

Dude, you're blowing through your money. But whatever suits you.

My budget is a little different, I'm in a wealth accumulating phase.

Pay = $22,000 net
COL = $10,000-11,000/mo
Saving = $11,000-12,000/mo

I drive a 2010 MB E550 for $786/mo.

We see eye to eye. The saving 4K a month on his income is not doing well IMHO.

My family is accumulating as well; we save significantly more than that, max all retirement avenues (my SEP, trad IRA, wifes 401K+match, trad IRA with conversion to ROTH each year) plus we put some in taxable.. and our home is on a 10 year note. My goal is to have enough money set aside for retirement (maxed retirement vehicles as well as taxable) so that in 10 years, I could quite if I wanted to and have cash creating funds setup. Our lifestyle would need to change to actually 'retire', and although I do not intend to quit in 10 years, having the luxury to do so would make life that much better... I am 33, wife is 32 and we have one kid with one on the way.

Aside from home loan/taxes/insurance, our biggest expense is travel. I travel a fair amount as I am active in organized medicine, and we take a 'vacation' probably every 3 months. Nothing too exotic, fly coach, priceline hotels... you can travel cheaply.

Financial Independence and a secured future is by far one of the best things in life. I'll that that over Ferraris and babes any day....

 

[e30ftw]

Financial Independence and a secured future is by far one of the best things in life. I'll that that over Ferraris and babes any day....

I am genuinely impressed by those saving ~10k/mo, that is admirable.

and on the subject of cars.. you can drive vintage cars that are cooler, lighter, more fun to drive, more attractive, cheaper, and easier to work on than any new car. would rather daily a $3k 25 y/o BMW with the correct number of pedals than a 4000 pound GTR autotragic every day of the week..

 

[John146]

and on the subject of cars.. you can drive vintage cars that are cooler, lighter, more fun to drive, more attractive, cheaper, and easier to work on than any new car. would rather daily a $3k 25 y/o BMW with the correct number of pedals than a 4000 pound GTR autotragic every day of the week..

Cooler, lighter, more fun to drive, more attractive? to all of those. First off, GTR's are deplorable, so please don't compare a GTR to anything. If you're going to make the comparison, compare your old car of choice to a modern day M3 (I guess it's a 25 year old BMW). So... I'll give you that it's cheaper. A bicycle is cheaper too. Why don't you just ride a bicycle on your attending salary.

 

[e30ftw]

Cooler, lighter, more fun to drive, more attractive? to all of those. First off, GTR's are deplorable, so please don't compare a GTR to anything. If you're going to make the comparison, compare your old car of choice to a modern day M3 (I guess it's a 25 year old BMW). So... I'll give you that it's cheaper. A bicycle is cheaper too. Why don't you just ride a bicycle on your attending salary.

a bit of an inflammatory response to a quite lighthearted post, but since you replied..

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xzot7t_champion-s-seat-swap-bruno-spengler-in-bmw-m3-dtm-e30-and-roberto-ravaglia-in-bmw-m3-dtm-e92_auto

of these two I'll take the 25 year old car every time..

 

[WilcoWorld]

Why don't you just ride a bicycle on your attending salary.

I do. It's wonderful.

 

[Old_Mil]

This is, if real, unwise. I don't know where you live that you've got a $4k a month mortgage payment. That's nuts. As is the $1200 a month car payment. You have to think like a football player...we work in an inherently unstable field with a short career track compared to most other specialties. You never know when you're going to get traded to another team, your team is going to hit a salary cap, etc. The numbers have a few zeros cut off the end compared to your average NFL star, but the mindset has to be the same...if you don't want to end up the subject of a 30 for 30 documentary because you're living under a bridge strung out on crack after you retire.

 

[Lacktherof]

1500/month for clothes, but none for charity? Nice

 

[iish]

This is, if real, unwise. I don't know where you live that you've got a $4k a month mortgage payment. That's nuts. As is the $1200 a month car payment. You have to think like a football player...we work in an inherently unstable field with a short career track compared to most other specialties. You never know when you're going to get traded to another team, your team is going to hit a salary cap, etc. The numbers have a few zeros cut off the end compared to your average NFL star, but the mindset has to be the same...if you don't want to end up the subject of a 30 for 30 documentary because you're living under a bridge strung out on crack after you retire.

Can you please elaborate on this analogy? I didn't think our field was so fickle. I also didn't think we could be out of a job that easily. I thought EM was still relatively stable. Also 4k/mo mortgage really isn't much in many parts of the country, ie Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco

 

[jaeida8]

Never said we couldn't.....however, I have two young kids, so exotic motor vehicle isn't on my horizon. Currently, it's family transportation with car seat capacity.

Tesla Model S is an excellent family car with plenty of car seat capacity.

 

[jaeida8]

This is, if real, unwise. I don't know where you live that you've got a $4k a month mortgage payment. That's nuts. As is the $1200 a month car payment. You have to think like a football player...we work in an inherently unstable field with a short career track compared to most other specialties. You never know when you're going to get traded to another team, your team is going to hit a salary cap, etc. The numbers have a few zeros cut off the end compared to your average NFL star, but the mindset has to be the same...if you don't want to end up the subject of a 30 for 30 documentary because you're living under a bridge strung out on crack after you retire.

4k a month is really not that bad for a mortgage. My mortgage is 3k a month but I pay extra every month so it comes out to 4k. Doesn't hurt at all and I max out my retirement account, etc.

 

[la gringa]

save $10k/month? that's more like my take home pay after 401k etc... even if i work extra hrs (one month, 170) it barely gets above $11k due to more going to TAXES... argh. and i get paid more here than at my last gig.

i am an employee with superb benefits compared to most.

 

[e30ftw]

1500/month for clothes, but none for charity? Nice

don't worry, in emergency medicine you will provide around $100-150k in uncompensated care for which you are still completely medico-legally liable each and every year!

that should be enough to keep you feeling smug at cocktail parties for years to come.

 

[RustedFox]

don't worry, in emergency medicine you will provide around $100-150k in uncompensated care for which you are still completely medico-legally liable each and every year!

that should be enough to keep you feeling smug at cocktail parties for years to come.

I thought about this, too - was going to go with "hey man, its his money - he'll do with it what he wants", but I'm glad that you said what I was thinking.

 

[ER BlueBlood]

appreciate all the responses (including the critical posts which some are pretty helpful.)
I've already decided to cut back on some expenses and save more. i.e. I'm going to stick with a nice digital watch that I don't have to worry about (nor worry about looking like a jerk.)

I honestly am not sure if some of the residents are trying to play Mr. Conservative on SDN; we shall see how you guys decide to spend your money once you are an attending. I do think saving 5k a year is pretty solid, so will prob bump that up...

Docs tend to be high income, low worth individuals and I am looking to avoid the same fate which will require some changes. If everyone on SDN has somehow become much more financially astute than many generations of physicians that's great...

As for the charity comments, I do give to the ASPCA but I also believe that I have helped many poor people through my work so fwiw

 

[ER BlueBlood]

I put $51K in mine a year, and usually am done by September. So $51K/9 = $5667.

Why exactly do you think he can't put in $3K a month? Most docs have a 401K/profit-sharing plan, not a run of the mill $17.5K limit 401K.

Careful what you accuse people of trolling for. So he's into clothes. Big whoop. Lots of people give that much money away every month or blow it on car payments.

To the OP:

I posted my budget a couple of years ago. I make more now (made partner) so it looks a little different. You probably ought to buy some disability insurance. Expect some flamin', I took plenty, but lots of people thanked me for it and the experience drove me to start a financial blog that sees 140,000 hits a month now.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=817037

Big thanks for posting this, vry helpful to me...

 

[WilcoWorld]

appreciate all the responses (including the critical posts which some are pretty helpful.)
I've already decided to cut back on some expenses and save more. i.e. I'm going to stick with a nice digital watch that I don't have to worry about (nor worry about looking like a jerk.)

I honestly am not sure if some of the residents are trying to play Mr. Conservative on SDN; we shall see how you guys decide to spend your money once you are an attending. I do think saving 5k a year is pretty solid, so will prob bump that up...

Docs tend to be high income, low worth individuals and I am looking to avoid the same fate which will require some changes. If everyone on SDN has somehow become much more financially astute than many generations of physicians that's great...

As for the charity comments, I do give to the ASPCA but I also believe that I have helped many poor people through my work so fwiw

That's a typo, right?

 

[ER BlueBlood]

That's a typo, right?

yea, sorry about that. 5k/month

 

[ER BlueBlood]

Dude, you're blowing through your money. But whatever suits you.

My budget is a little different, I'm in a wealth accumulating phase.

Pay = $22,000 net
COL = $10,000-11,000/mo
Saving = $11,000-12,000/mo

I drive a 2010 MB E550 for $786/mo.

appreciate the info, if you don't mind me asking how old are you since you are aggressively accumulating?

 

[RustedFox]

appreciate all the responses (including the critical posts which some are pretty helpful.)
I've already decided to cut back on some expenses and save more. i.e. I'm going to stick with a nice digital watch that I don't have to worry about (nor worry about looking like a jerk.)

I honestly am not sure if some of the residents are trying to play Mr. Conservative on SDN; we shall see how you guys decide to spend your money once you are an attending. I do think saving 5k a year is pretty solid, so will prob bump that up...

Docs tend to be high income, low worth individuals and I am looking to avoid the same fate which will require some changes. If everyone on SDN has somehow become much more financially astute than many generations of physicians that's great...

As for the charity comments, I do give to the ASPCA but I also believe that I have helped many poor people through my work so fwiw

I agree with the underlined wholeheartedly; "one man's trash is another's treasure" and all that. I have no need (nor want) for shiny, fast automobiles - but I just spent a good bit of money on baseball memorabilia.

However, some of your listed expenses are like, whoa. The mortgage thing... you had better be paying off your place at lightspeed at that rate.

 

[ER BlueBlood]

I agree with the underlined wholeheartedly; "one man's trash is another's treasure" and all that. I have no need (nor want) for shiny, fast automobiles - but I just spent a good bit of money on baseball memorabilia.

However, some of your listed expenses are like, whoa. The mortgage thing... you had better be paying off your place at lightspeed at that rate.

Honestly, condo fees eat up close to 550/month and in my city, safety is paramount so its important to have a secure building with secure parking (which that pays for). I'm not sure where you are practicing but I am in a pretty expensive city and 4k isn't that ridiculous. Austin, Dallas, New Orleans and many other Southern cities have become much more expensive in the past 5 years. Its a nice bit of coin, but its not that crazy. If it was 5k or 6k I could understand but you get the idea..

 

[ER BlueBlood]

I think you've been successfully trolled. It's his first post ever under that name. With a comment like this, "I feel like I'm pretty ballin...but my Rad and Ortho friends are killing it (lamborgini, boats, lots more women)..." I think it's pretty obvious. I don't know any radiologists or orthopedists that drive a Lamborghini. Boasting about "lamborghinis...women..."......give me a break. You've been trolled.

On the other hand, like any other "joke," the best ones are those with an element of truth to them. Let's say for a minute he's not trolling. How incredibly tacky and uncouth to be bragging, on a public forum about your $1,000 per month BMW payment, and at the same time complaining that you have it bad because your lifestyle doesn't measure up to your friends with "lamborghinis, boats and lots more women." Yet we wonder why, when we belly ache and complain about Obamacare "ruining the profession," "reimbursement cuts," and EMTALA forcing docs to "work for free," that patients and non-medical people hate doctors, think they're rich and greedy and look for every reason to bash them in Press-Ganey surveys and sue them to death.

Best case scenario- The OP is a troll.

Worst case scenario- Doctors will increasingly be viewed (somewhat deservedly so) as a bunch of greedy, materialistic dirtbags that care little about people, and mostly about "BMWs, boats, and babes."



How about not posting your income online, at all? How about talking to an accountant or "financial advisor," in private? If you want to discuss generalities like "When should I start saving for retirement?" or "What's better a traditional 401K or a Roth 401K?" that's fine. But you don't need to post online every penny you earn, the cost of your BMW supercar and the fact that you spend more per month on "entertainment" than some people make in an entire month, or in some countries in an entire year. Are you going to post a pdf of your tax return online, too? Why not post your entire DNA sequence and a full frontal nude, too, a la Anthony Weiner, so the world can admire your specific brand of perfection? I guess that's what this world has come to. Privacy no longer exists, and no longer is thought to serve any purpose, in fact any desire for "privacy" is seen as outdated, weird and suspect. Hell, the government reads all our emails and taps, records and logs every phone call, while Google street cams and Google glasses will soon record every human event that will ever occur. Privacy is extinct and Dignity is on the endangered list.

What a weird friggin' world we live in.

You seem really angry man, jeez. Perhaps you should enjoy life a little more and not take things so seriously all the time...

 

[ER BlueBlood]

I am genuinely impressed by those saving ~10k/mo, that is admirable.

and on the subject of cars.. you can drive vintage cars that are cooler, lighter, more fun to drive, more attractive, cheaper, and easier to work on than any new car. would rather daily a $3k 25 y/o BMW with the correct number of pedals than a 4000 pound GTR autotragic every day of the week..

Forgive me for my weakness, but I studied engineering as an undergrad and have a deep passion for cars. This is my 3rd sports car and I smile every morning when I start it up. While it doesn't measure up to the feeling of telling a family of daughters/sons I saved their 55 year old father's life after a heart attack, it gives me a good feeling and I admire the unbridled performance and brilliant engineers (much smarter than me) that created such a machine.