How much cash have you wasted

[jokerthief]

The other day I was at Mcdonalds and ordered a double quarter pounder meal. I soon realized that I would have much prefered two double cheese burgers, so I wasted $3. I then began to think of all the times I've ordered more food than I needed, bought 1-5 more drinks at the bar than I could really enjoy, the classical guitar book I thought I would study, the Pantera WhiteZombie concert I went to even though I didn't like either band, ridiculously large drunken tips I've given out, the 50 books I've bought and haven't read, all the cigs that I've smoked for years before I quit, ect.

I bet I've wasted 20-30K over the course of my life. How much do you OOTiots estimate you've wasted?

[RRRRICK]

Wouldn't even know how to put a figure on it but its a lot

[jman220]

[ QUOTE ]
The other day I was at Mcdonalds and ordered a double quarter pounder meal. I soon realized that I would have much prefered two double cheese burgers, so I wasted $3. I then began to think of all the times I've ordered more food than I needed, bought 1-5 more drinks at the bar than I could really enjoy, the classical guitar book I thought I would study, the Pantera WhiteZombie concert I went to even though I didn't like either band, ridiculously large drunken tips I've given out, the 50 books I've bought and haven't read, all the cigs that I've smoked for years before I quit, ect.

I bet I've wasted 20-30K over the course of my life. How much do you OOTiots estimate you've wasted?

[/ QUOTE ]

They almost definitely would have let you exchange the burgers if you asked nicely...

[Ulysses]

I started to back-of-the-envelope this, but the number quickly got so sickeningly big that I couldn't stomach continuing.

[Thythe]

[ QUOTE ]

Wouldn't even know how to put a figure on it but its a lot

[/ QUOTE ]

here's to that

[Voltron87]

a lot. before i started playing poker (and started seriously winning) i never had a real job other than the typical teenager stuff. poker has just brought my finances and attitude towards money to a disgusting level for where i am in life. before poker the idea of holding two thousand dollars in my hand was just [censored] insane. not too long ago i would walk into card clubs and see some guy with a stack of green chips and say "wait, those are worth 25$ each?!? are you kidding? no way man, no way does he have a thousand dollars there". now if i see a game where people only have one stack of green chips i think "this is it, dont they have a real game going?"

ive wasted money on ipods, computer mice, cabs everywhere when i used to take the train, eating out more, running up bar tabs, the same stuff as most of you. lose your amtrak ticket? try for 10 seconds to get a free replacement, plonk down a hundy. no biggie. 60$ for a polo shirt? no sweat, it will go well with my 150$ jeans. my whole concept of what is a lot of money is totally [censored]. if something is under 100$ i dont even comprehend shopping around for a better deal. i cant even tell whether its a lot of money anymore. today i found 400$ in my pants in 20s that i didnt know about, i didnt even notice it had gone missing.

a lot has changed. a year ago if i had 100$ in my wallet i would think "bitch am i loaded or what!". ive probably wasted about 1-2K, but i have not had real income for long and i have many years ahead of me.

[nothumb]

Wanna send me that book? I play guitar but never learned classical. I'll use it.

Most of my 'waste' is difficult to quantify - I use the things I buy but often could acquire them more cheaply, buy them in bulk or get more out of what I have. Biggest thing is definitely food, I eat out way too much.

NT

[imported_anacardo]

God, I hate precocious youth. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[tonypaladino]

The thought of it is making me sick.

I'd estimate my earnings since graduating high school at $100k over 4.5 years. (Part time a lot of it). I am currently $10k in debt and have a $1-2k poker bankroll, no savings or anything. That's it. All of my clothing has gone towards the $10k in credit card debt, so I have wasted about $100,000 on crap like resturant meals, cab rides, strip clubs, and books I never read.

I'm gonna go kill myself now. Hopefully, in a couple of years, $100k won't seem like as much.

[jokerthief]

[ QUOTE ]
Wanna send me that book? I play guitar but never learned classical. I'll use it.

Most of my 'waste' is difficult to quantify - I use the things I buy but often could acquire them more cheaply, buy them in bulk or get more out of what I have. Biggest thing is definitely food, I eat out way too much.

NT

[/ QUOTE ]

Can you read music? I can't for the life of me get myself to learn to read music when tab works just fine. No tab in this book.

[Blarg]

Lots of it, and I haven't had a lot to waste.

[DcifrThs]

i drink glenlivet 12, blue label, glenmorangie (sp?) 25, and glenlivet special reserve. but i dont consider that "waste."

hard to define imo. the things i CHOOSE to do i do so because they have more value to me than doing the "cheaper" alternative. i "could" drink glenlivet 12. its a good scotch and i like it. but i choose to occasionally spoil myself w/ the better scotches.

if i go to a restaurant and order a desert that i only want a bite of, that's waste?? i was clearly prepared beforehand to only eat a bite so that single bite cost $7, or whatever it is.

i would say i've "wasted" too much to think about but mostly it was by choice/laziness/drunkenness/stupidity.

Barron

[Phoenix1010]

Far far too much. I'm an impulsive buyer and I'm really lazy. It's a bad combo. I hate to shop, so sometimes I end up buying clothes that don't fit, and then I forget to return them. I don't like to cook so I eat out way too often. I buy videogames that I won't have time to play and books that I won't have time to read. I buy movies that I don't care to see more than once. I overtip constantly. I buy my gf expensive jewelry even though she doesn't want me to. I buy Newcastle and Makers Mark when Miller Lite and Captain's would get the job done. When I got to the mall, I buy every little useless thing that crosses my line of site, to the point where I don't allow myself to go to the mall anymore. I am a money fountain.

[Voltron87]

[ QUOTE ]
God, I hate precocious youth. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

no one has any idea how much that word describes my life, multiple levels.

[mmbt0ne]

I don't want to do any calculations, but I know that when I was playing paintball, I spent more on that than I've won this year. That hurts me enough, I don't even want to think any harder.

[Eurotrash]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
God, I hate precocious youth. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

no one has any idea how much that word describes my life, multiple levels.

[/ QUOTE ]


this sounds like a story, let's hear it.


also well said Anacardo, I have to agree with you

[Voltron87]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
God, I hate precocious youth. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

no one has any idea how much that word describes my life, multiple levels.

[/ QUOTE ]


this sounds like a story, let's hear it.


also well said Anacardo, I have to agree with you

[/ QUOTE ]

someday the forum will get the story. my growing up story is very unique and pretty out there.

[Eurotrash]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
God, I hate precocious youth. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

no one has any idea how much that word describes my life, multiple levels.

[/ QUOTE ]


this sounds like a story, let's hear it.


also well said Anacardo, I have to agree with you

[/ QUOTE ]

someday the forum will get the story. my growing up story is very unique and pretty out there.

[/ QUOTE ]



well, from some past threads (and even your candid assessment in this thread), you seem to love to boast about yourself and your baller lifestyle. should be an entertaining (?) read. (I mean all of that in the nicest way possible of course /images/graemlins/smirk.gif)

[Voltron87]

its not boasting if its true, biatch!

[Blarg]

Me too. I want to hear how he was banging babysitters at 8 years old and graduated college at 16.

[Granite]

I have pissed way too much of my cash up against a wall.

Granite

[Goodnews]

I've spent every penny i've earned through poker on clothing, eating out, drugs and booze.

i refuse to drink anything less than grey goose vodka or chimay premiere beer. A trip to the liquor store usually means i will have $200 burning a hole in my wallet.

Bars? I like to be the guy who yells, shots on me..

my stupidity has caused me to buy things i dont need, thankfully though, because of a typo i put away $2500 (instead of $250) into a retirement fund where i cannot touch it for 47 years. its also the reason i my bankroll is such a sad sad sight for the amount of time ive been playing.

[dibbs]

I really dont want to think about it because if I tally it up it would piss me off and Ill think of all that I could have now, but it's really just the price of me living life without over-thinking money management that I live fine without.

Besides, if I had saved all that money, I'd blow it on crap now anways.

[illusionS]

It's really sick to think about how much I've wasted. And I'm only 20 so I'm sure it will get worse as the years go on.

Hell, while I post this I'm shopping around for a ~32 LCD TV to mount on my wall as soon as I clear out a couple of bonuses. God I love poker.

[nothumb]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Wanna send me that book? I play guitar but never learned classical. I'll use it.

Most of my 'waste' is difficult to quantify - I use the things I buy but often could acquire them more cheaply, buy them in bulk or get more out of what I have. Biggest thing is definitely food, I eat out way too much.

NT

[/ QUOTE ]

Can you read music? I can't for the life of me get myself to learn to read music when tab works just fine. No tab in this book.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, I've got a degree in music. I can't sight-read for crap but I can figure it out if I go over it a few times.

NT

[chisness]

some things are very hazy areas for me and many, for example:

1) 8 lcd monitors for a school setup and home setup (kind of a poker investment, kind of unnecessary)

2) nice clothes (figure a $2-300 shirt will last a while and will look nice, but comparable ones can be gotten for 1/5th that)

3) watch (very nice to have and can last literally forever and be a token of young success, but really not necessary)

4) big tv (again not needed but a luxury)

overall i think many of our things are nice luxuries and shouldn't really be interpreted as wastes as long as they last. saving is important and nice but having fun and buying a bunch of extras is definitely worthwhile.

[chisness]

it still can be boasting, but this is a very reasonable thread to explain those things.

probably 10k

[captZEEbo1]

I think you guys are way off base here. Paying for drinks at a bar, buying cds, clothes, etc. These are the costs of fun/life. Yes, you CAN live with spending <4k, but I don't consider it wasting if I plop down $70 to go see a U2 concert or whatever. I don't consider it wasting if I'm at a bar having fun with friends and spend a bunch or whatever. Anyways, I'm sure I've blown a lot less money than most of you guys.

[jokerthief]

[ QUOTE ]
I think you guys are way off base here. Paying for drinks at a bar, buying cds, clothes, etc. These are the costs of fun/life. Yes, you CAN live with spending <4k, but I don't consider it wasting if I plop down $70 to go see a U2 concert or whatever. I don't consider it wasting if I'm at a bar having fun with friends and spend a bunch or whatever. Anyways, I'm sure I've blown a lot less money than most of you guys.

[/ QUOTE ]

You misunderstand the question. Buying drinks at the bar isn't wasting money but buying that last drink that makes you sick is a waste of money given that you got negative utility out of it. Going to a U2 concert isn't wasting money if you can enjoy it. It is a waste of money if you don't like U2 and have a bad time. Ect, ect, ect...

[Blarg]

It's got to be put in context of what you need. Like if you are in school and can't afford next year's tuition, then blowing money partying is dumb, if by saving it you could have gone to school next year. Or if you're renting but could own a home, except you keep blowing your capital. Or if you've never really built up any savings, then blowing cash is dumb.

Many of us could significantly improve our lives if we got a tighter reign on our spending, because there's some place good to put the money. But if you're one of the rare people who either has their significant goals met or whose goals are all so impossibly far away that even trying for them doesn't matter, then spending doesn't matter much. Many if not most of us, though, probably throw away more money than we should.