Originally posted by eskimo:
Sorta off topic, but;
RAM, Downtown and others who find it hard to scratch up $30.00 a month for AH:
How much do you typically spend each year to keep your computer and joysticks up to date? And how about your ISP account?
[/b]
I haven't spent any money on my computer this year. I have helped other people fix and upgrade their computers. Two years ago I put a rivaTNT1 PCI Graphics blaster in my computer, an HP 8380 PII 350. The Graphics blaster failed yesterday, fortunately I had another on hand which I had removed from another computer that was being scrapped. I desperately would like to get a new computer with an AGP port so I can get better graphics, but don't have the money.
Are you guys running 486's, 2 button joysticks and Free-I accounts?[/b]
Nope it is a PII 350 that I brought when the PII 400 and 500s hit the market. Got it on sale. My joystick is a Logictech Wingman Force Feedback USB that I got two years ago for Christmas along with Thrustmaster Elite Rudder Pedals from my father. I pay $149.95 a year for internet access. My wife also wanted an account, which went on my credit card. She was going to pay me back, but one of the tires on my car disintegrated after 85,000 miles so I got a new set for $200.00 this put my credit card over the limit. I can't justify monthly charges for a game when Christmas is coming and I have two small children that it will break my heart to dissapoint if Santa doesn't pay a vist.
Do you:
Own cars? Pay rent? Buy beer? Ever buy new clothes? Ever been to, or even rented a movie? Ever eaten out (even fast food)?[/b]
My Car which is slightly over 2 years old has 90,000 miles on it now. I have to drive 100 miles a day to/from work. Often I log additional miles when traveling. Yes I pay rent, hope one day to buy a house. Nope, don't buy beer, Haven't rented movies in ages, haven't been to a movie since the most recent star wars (took the kids too, matinee)
Actually, I eat out a lot, usually when I have to travel. If you have a job like I do it is part of the job, you travel, you have to eat. Often if I will be somewhere for a week I save expense money by buying bread and lunch meat. I don't like to eat out, especially fast food, often I have no choice. This is money that I am paid in expenses though.
It all comes down to priorities guys.[/b]
Right now my priorities are to reduce my debt, and hopefully be able to get my wife and kids Christmas presents, I don't buy anything if I can avoid it.
I've been driving an $800 beater for the past 5 years.[/b]
How far do you drive to work everyday, I quite often work 7 days a week, and put 800 to 1100 mile a week on my car. I use MOBILE 1 Oil trying to get the engine to last longer, and got one of those 100,000 mile between tune up cars.
I buy my clothes in thrift stores.[/b]
Actually I am expected to maintain a certain standard of dress, I think I should get a clothing allowance, but I don't. My clothes are replaced when they are ripped, torn, worn out, or covered in paint or other debris from my work.
For me, AH works out to 35 to 75 cents an hour. It's a pretty good deal compared to everything else that I buy or pay for.
eskimo[/b]
Eskimo,
I think AH is a great deal at $29.95 a month. I love the online competition of flight sims. I love WWII Era aircraft. As you said it does come down to priorities. So one of the first thing that will suffer when your budget chages is your entertainment budget. If you are in a great financial situation, your entertainment budget will go up. If times are tough, the entertainment budget is the first one to get cut, and usually the deepest.
I actually am by comparrison probably one of the better paid individuals on this board, but that doesnt' mean my financial situation is the best. Some times bad things happen to the best of us, and it cost money to get out of debt. My particular situation is that a company I used to work for was going bankrupt. They took the money from our checks for insurance. My son spent three days in the hospital in a oxygen tent. The company had canceled the insurance and not informed the employees. The company went bankrupt and I found out about seven months later that I owed about $6000.00. No lawyer would take our case because they thought they wouldn't get the money from the now bankrupt company. When times get tough, and you have an unexpected debt, times get tougher. We made arrangements to pay this debt off, but other little difficulties arose after this one. Which of course made my situation more difficult. I was just getting back in stride when the last little series of disasters hit (I.E. Tires.)
It isn't one thing I can do or eliminate to afford AH at the moment. Every penny I make is working to eliminate debt. When I can reduce the debt to income ratio, I will be back. I can be back sooner with a lower rate, but I will be back. Probably after Christmas.
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"Looks Mean as Hell! Clare Lee Chenault.
When?"Downtown" Lincoln Brown.
