Oh noes, it's teh XP-ocalypse

I have spent far more money this month than I would have liked, but I suppose it was inevitable.

I went down to Altex on Tuesday and special ordered a new computer. I had saved up some for it since late last year, but not quite enough to cover the actual cost. I have extra right now though, so it's not a problem. I guess it was wishful thinking that I could get a computer for the amount I had saved that would nicely run the software I use. Anyway, it cost less than the one I'm on right now, which is almost six years old, and the manager knocked some off the price because I had a quote for something similar from Dell. They came in $200 under what Dell was pitching. I hope it lasts as long as this one. I also decided since there's really nothing wrong with the computer I'm on, except that the OS is no longer going to be supported, and it is 32-bit and Autodesk, in their infinite wisdom, er, I mean them being in bed with Microsoft (I told that to some students and they giggled, and then I laughed at them because it was funny) not creating 32 bit versions of their software, despite all that, that I would like to keep using it, maybe as a render farm. I'm not sure how to set that up, but I might can figure it out.

At any rate, I have no space on this little rickety computer desk that I'm currently using. It came from the Wal-Mart about seven or so years ago, and is really a waste of space. The shape makes it so that you can't really put anything but a monitor on it, and it takes up a lot of floor space nevertheless. Right now, my tower is on top of my short bookcase, because you seriously cannot fit a tower on this computer table. So, I got to thinking I'd like some raw furniture that I could stain myself that might be sturdy enough to put two towers and a monitor on, but the stuff is like $300. I had the brilliant idea of looking on Craigslist yesterday, and lo and behold, I found a desk for $80 that was real wood that came from the store I was looking at. I went over and took a look at it after class this evening, and it looks great. And they knocked $5 off the price because the lower shelf was a little loose, and the guy said I'd need to reinforce it. They were very nice. This is actually the first time I've ever bought anything off Craigslist, and I gotta say, if I need furniture I should look there first. Anyway, it fit in the back of my Mazda Tribute, and so I have it out there now. Maybe I can get it set up tomorrow. I don't know when Altex will have my computer ready, but I'm looking forward to it now. When I realized that I really needed to just go ahead and get a new one, I was kinda sad about it. But maybe the VPN won't jack up my IP address when I log off of it on Windows 8.1, and maybe explorer won't randomly decide not to load when logging in.

Now, no more spending. Next up is hopefully writing a nice check to hubby's student loan servicer. 

Debt is good... o rly?

I had meant to write about this the other night, but wound up ranting about something else instead. As I was leaving the classroom on Thursday evening, some students and I were talking about student loans, and I said that I wanted mine paid off, and that I never wanted any more debt ever again, not even a mortgage.

One of the students, who is not my student by the way, but one who had stopped by with friends who were my former students, said to me something to the effect, "Well, having debt is good because it makes your credit better, so that then the bank will give you a loan that you can maybe pay back eventually."

That caused me to blink a couple of times, and I couldn't address what they had said because we were half way out the door, but I wanted to say, 'do you hear what just came out of your mouth?' People, people, people. You've been sold a bill of goods. Quit buying crap you can't afford with money you don't have so that you wind up giving all of your disposable income to the bank in the form of interest payments! I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Add up what you're paying in interest on your debt, and put that into an IRA calculator with a 8% return over forty years (the market has averaged 12%, but we can be conservative on the matter). Don't try to cry too much. It will just make your allergies worse.

Offer for a Loan at 30% Interest

The other day I got a loan offer in the mail from some company called Springleaf (if it looks like a payday lender, and sounds like a payday lender...) They say I can borrow $5,250 at get this - an interest rate of 29.43 percent. I laughed, and laughed, and laughed. I'm still laughing like two days later. Who in their right mind would borrow money at that interest rate. Actually, if you're borrowing money at any interest rate you need your head examined, but nearly 30%?! LOL What do I look like? Stupid?

I thought about sending the thing back to them with something funny written on it, but that would cost me a stamp, and I don't think it's worth that. Speaking of profitable, this company would exist if people didn't borrow money from them. People, people, people, you're not broke because you don't earn enough money at your job. You're broke because you keep giving the banks, the payday lenders, the mortgage company, the car loan company, the credit card companies, the Dept. of Education servicer, the loan sharks, etc. ad infinitum, all of your disposable income, and then some! Just STOP IT!

Makes me think of this:

 

"The borrower is SLAVE to the lender," and this is not rendered obsolete by the Thirteenth Amendment. When you are in debt up to your eyeballs, the debt informs your life, your choices, your career opportunities. The debt is your master, literally, and you, it's slave.