Tag: wasting money

These 16 money wasters are why so many Americans can’t save for retirement

Guest Post by Richard Quinn

From the lofty perch of old age, and after a lifetime of thrift, I declare that I am qualified to comment on how not to waste money.

We’ve all heard the reports: Most Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a large number can’t come up with $400 for an emergency, and there’s no money to save for retirement and other goals.

Most of that data comes from surveys where people are, in effect, saying they don’t have enough income. My curmudgeonly reaction: Stores, fitness centers and entertainment venues are packed with shoppers, many of them buying unnecessary goods and services. If three-quarters of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, how can they afford to spend like this? It’s a funny thing: I have yet to see Warren or Bill in one of the many local spas.

Most Americans live like no other people on earth. We have more and bigger stuff: Larger houses, bigger vehicles, more shoes. And, in my not so humble opinion, we can’t tell the difference between needs and wants, between necessities and desires—and we sure can’t defer gratification.

Continue reading “These 16 money wasters are why so many Americans can’t save for retirement”

“Eating out.” Why?

Any reason for “Eating Out?”

We have a few theories about the whole concept of “eating out.” They vary widely. But strangely have a similar common denominator. Can you figure out what it is?

One of the most cited reasons for eating out or “ordering takeout” is usually “I don’t have time,” or “we are too busy to cook…”

Here’s an interesting statistic:

So…

Continue reading ““Eating out.” Why?”

Stucky Q.O.T.D. —– Pissing Away Money

Yesterday, for the very very first time in my entire life I bought two Powerball Lottery Tickets, one for me and one for Ms. Freud.  (Not just Powerball … I’ve never bought ny kind of lottery ticket.) It was just four bucks total …. but, obviously, a total fuckin’ waste of money.

What have you wasted money on … or, still do?

For me, I would have to say books. I would say I’ve spent at least $20,000 on books in my lifetime, and that’s probably conservative.  When I got divorced, I left 95% of them with The Witch.  What a fuckin’ waste!!!

Your turn.


This is why Americans are overweight and broke

I consider money wasted eating out as the biggest reason people have no retirement savings. Ten or twenty dollars per week saved rather than spent over the course of thirty years adds up to a large amount of money. The continued overspending in this category is reflected in the fact that restaurant/bar retail spending has remained one of the few bright spots in the last year. I contend this is due to the fact people are depressed by their awful wage growth and growing expenditures for healthcare, so they are eating and drinking to drown their sorrows.

“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” Isaiah 22:13

The wasting of money on “other consumer goods” is the category that really jumped. This is where the iGadgets and other tech related crap falls. We are amusing ourselves and eating ourselves to death.

Guest Post by Catey Hill

Down to your last belt loop and your last penny? These seemingly unrelated phenomena may have more in common than you think, a new survey shows.

Dining out is the No. 1 thing that Americans blow their budgets on, according to the Principal Financial Group’s annual Financial Well Being Index, which will be released Wednesday (MarketWatch got an early look at the data). The company surveyed more than 1,100 employed American adults.

Those restaurant meals are also adding to our growing waistlines: On days when people dine out, they tend to consume 200 more calories than when they eat at home, according to a study of more than 12,500 people published by Public Health Nutrition last year, and government research shows that “when eating out, people either eat more or eat higher calorie foods — or both — and that this tendency appears to be increasing.” Other studies show that eating out more frequently is associated with obesity and higher body fat.

Continue reading “This is why Americans are overweight and broke”