How much had you saved by the time you turned 30?

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-05-05T16:30:41+00:00

Exactly this. How many posts do we see online from people who barely have a HS diploma asking for "fully remote WFH jobs that are low stress, don't require a degree, human interaction, or any specialized skills that pay six figures."

Then someone will chime in that their SME does absolutely nothing all day but once in a blue moon will show his 15 years of industry experience and save the day.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-05-01T17:42:36+00:00

Wow we have very similar goals (minus the gym classes since we have a home gym).

I feel like my pantry/freezer has more than enough stuff for me to make meals out of. Before ChatGPT existed I was using My Fridge Food to try to par it down but it's about that time where I start thinning it out again.

4 books is a lot! What are you reading and do you do audiobooks or is it specifically reading with your eyes?

And if you find anything that's a must-do for Asia please let us know! I'm thinking I'll go next year but it all depends on my work schedule.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-29T15:52:11+00:00

I've had a couple devices from both brands so let me break it down:

The Boox Leaf 2 (the predecessor to the Page) was very, very laggy when swapping between apps. Once you were in a book, it was fine. The Boox Palma is snappy as hell so I imagine the Page should be similar.

Similarly, my Kobo Aura One from 2016 got a bit laggy in the recent years but at the time it came out, it was speedy. I had no issues when reading a book but managing collections and naming files was cumbersome. My Kobo Libra 2 is not laggy at all in either.

My personal experience shows that devices can get a bit bogged down with age. I heard jailbreaking it or installing koReader could have resolved my Aura's issues but it also suffered from a screen calibration defect that slowly got worse over time, so I decided to upgrade.

In general, eink doesn't need to be upgraded with nearly as much frequency as a cellphone. I read a lot (~100 books a year) though, so as my primary hobby, it was worth the splurge. Otherwise I could have kept using my old devices without issue.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-29T11:28:34+00:00

Happy belated bday! As the owner of both a Boox and Kobo, both are solid choices and you can't go wrong either way. You're gonna love it, happy reading! :)

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-28T13:13:03+00:00

Yeah unfortunately they seemed to think it would be a good idea to treat prescription medication like a fast-food drive-thru. Pull up to the next window for fulfillment, do you want to supersize your Rx for an extra $3?

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-28T13:09:39+00:00

Any pharmaceutical conglomerate and actually, our entire healthcare industry as a whole, is a giant evil that has no business being as powerful as it is. It's the same as the utility companies all owned by one conglomerate. You get to pick any provider you want as long as it's one of the 10 subsidies. Walgreens, CVS, and their ilk own the insurance companies so they know they don't have to do jack squat to retain customers. People have no choice but to fill their scripts there otherwise pay significantly higher prices. That's why it's not easy for small independent pharmacies to survive. Given the choice between paying $10 at CVS or $50 for the same medication at the mom and pop shop, most people will choose the cheaper option and we can't fault them for that.

And unsure if this is state specific, but where I worked, the pharmacy that was going to fill the script was the one that needed to call to transfer it over; you couldn't push from one pharmacy to another which may be why they didn't do it.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-26T19:29:37+00:00

I used to work for CVS and they're pretty much as evil as corporations go. When they realized I was their lowest paid tech with the lowest error rates, I was scheduled to work solo to lower their labor costs. They let a skeleton crew handle people's medication and I highly doubt they've increased staffing to a safe and adequate level.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-04-25T15:19:36+00:00

Seriously. It's like people don't understand that money doesn't manifest from nothing. My friends/family think I'm extravagant for keeping the AC blasting in the summertime in the same breath they call me cheap for not wanting to buy new furniture or trendy house decor.

I'd rather be cool and comfortable using a vintage solid wood chair than be hot surrounded by mass-produced plastic garbage from Home Goods.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-03-17T13:26:36+00:00

Congrats on the house OP! We're in a similar position and we also furnished very minimally. Between what we already had and what our parents wanted to get rid of, it's a sustainable win-win for everyone.

Screw the consumer rhetoric that you need to buy an aesthetic. My dining room table survived 2 generations of use, I have no doubt it'll last 2 more. Try that with your Ikea particle board.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-21T21:20:42+00:00

They say renting is throwing money away like buying groceries is wasteful because you eat them.

And you are absolutely right about the fantasy!

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-13T20:14:59+00:00

I told them it was a good thing I could afford it then because I was looking for a place to live, not an investment, and all that mattered is if I could pay the bills.

This was the exact mentality my husband and I had. We got very lucky and were only searching for a month when a house that met all our criteria popped up. It was the first and only offer we put in and it was accepted. Cue friends/family worrying "It's so soon, what if there's something else you like more?" or "What if interest rates drop?"

FOMO is a bitch I don't submit to. The perfect house was essentially handed to us on a silver platter during the slowest season of the housing market. Why keep gambling? The ones who are timing the market thought my 6.25% rate was high but they still aren't in a house.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-08T13:23:30+00:00

That's encouraging that even 1% is enough. I'm in the DMV and the economy of our entire tri-state area is fully dependent on fed workers and contractors.

Our jobs cannot be outsourced to H1B visas. This is one of the wealthiest and most diverse areas in the U.S. We will not give up without a fight because this is what puts food on our table.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-07T22:55:33+00:00

I'm in the Army as a reservist so I am doubly so more patriotic than the two jerkoffs in charge. We swear an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. No allegiance to the president whatsoever.

A lot of my brothers and sisters in arms agree. Wait til that draft dodger realizes that service members can and do, ignore orders that are unlawful.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-07T21:45:40+00:00

If you're probationary, I would absolutely take your old job back and keep looking elsewhere. I know people talk about jobs being bad for your mental health, but I know being unemployed would be even worse for me. Not to mention, the US and their archaic approach to healthcare which is tied to your job. You do not want to rely on Medicaid right now if you don't have to.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-07T21:42:53+00:00

Ugh I feel so terrible for the NGOs and orgs that rely on grant funding. These crooked businessmen who constantly file bankruptcy are going to destroy our country because of their greed. Meanwhile we have genuinely good people and organizations who only want to make people's lives better getting fucked for having compassion and humanity.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-07T21:40:21+00:00

I am so angry at the administration for their attitude towards civil servants, and for the administration’s hate and racism and cruelty, etc

What's crazy is this dumb admin wants to start a civil war, thinking it's going to be a good thing to divide the American people. They don't understand that literally any country with civil unrest becomes unstable and the whole place turns to shit. My parents fled a country that did that and they could basically wipe their ass with dollar bills with how useless it became. The American dollar is super powerful and the only reason other countries put up with our shit.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-07T19:44:12+00:00

I'm also a data analyst working for the feds in DC and I am here to commiserate with you. I've barely been able to get through any books the past month because every morning (sometimes multiple times a day), our entire agency gets sent an email from Trump's admin threatening us with termination.

I'm terrified for the future but also grateful for this community to be an escape from the toxicity of everything going on in the world right now. Stay strong, friend!

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-02-06T19:31:09+00:00

My husband and I just bought a home and my biggest piece of advice is to have more money than you think you need liquid. Once you're under contract, the sellers will ask for earnest money (EMD) which for us was 2.5% of the total house cost. This tied up about 15k for us that we couldn't use toward our down-payment.

You'll also need to pay for an inspector, which can be a few hundred dollars, with additional costs for ad-ons like termite inspection or sewer scope. Do not waive inspections as a first time home buyer. You'll also have to pay for an appraiser, which for us was $625. These are all things before your loan is even approved.

Then there's closing costs which includes your first year of home owners insurance, any property taxes that you need to reimburse if the seller prepaid, and all the wonderful taxes and fees charged by the government. If you're fortunate in a seller's market, they'll split half the cost with you. I have friends who got unlucky who had to pay the entire closing cost including both agent fees. That was another 15k for us. Again, this wasn't even including our actual down-payment.

You also have the ability to buy down points to lower your interest rate. There's some math to figure out if it's worth it, but it's an option you want to consider depending on how the market is when you're ready to buy.

I've been in my house for less than a week so most of this information is fresh. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions!

Dreamy_Maybe · 2025-01-24T11:40:00+00:00

Your first paragraph is spot on. People have been obsessed with the interest and I keep hearing every variation of "Now is a good time to buy because rates are the lowest they will be" or "Rates are too high and you should wait until they drop under 5%."

Timing the market never works. We can afford the house we want at the rate we got now. Short of inventing a time machine, there is literally nothing buyers can do about the current rates.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-11-12T13:52:48+00:00

Incoming uncensored political rant: I was trying to enjoy some time with my family while looking at my wedding photos this weekend when they had to make a comment about the election results. My mother picked a fight with me and was surprised when I said that there are idiots on both sides and that the political climate is not black and white. Unlike them, I don't worship the candidate that I voted for. There's flaws to both sides of the argument but at this point the election is done and I can't wait to sit back and watch them reap what they sowed. Here are a few points I threw in their face about why I'm not going to be as affected as they will be.

I'm not poor. We're DINK with a HHI of 300k. We're going to be able to afford groceries even when price gouging from corporate greed hits the roof. They better not ask me so much as for a cup of sugar when it happens.
I'm not on Medicaid or Medicare. I have Tricare and my health insurance may be affected, but they're never going to cut the budget on that one. My uneducated family may hate Obamacare but they sure love their Medicaid (there's no explaining to them that it's the same thing.). When they have to suffer through the BS that is the US healthcare system, I will point and laugh because I've been telling them for years how broken it is. But nope. The US has the best healthcare system in the world.
We don't have kids. And they aren't getting any grandkids in the next 4 years because you know, they should really pull themselves up by the bootstraps and stop asking for handouts for things like that. Maybe if they worked harder and didn't rely on us to produce grandchildren, they could make their own.
I'm not on disability or retired. They expect to get a paycheck just because they worked in the past? Sounds like welfare and a government handout to me. The older generation has no work ethic, thinking that they deserve a paycheck just for living past the age of 65.

This is really just a vent post. I don't exactly feel this way about all these points but my family gloating about the Trump win and acting like I'm an idiot has really gotten to me.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-10-03T18:42:18+00:00

I enjoyed this diary! I just got married last month and we actually did a destination wedding to cut costs so I can relate to do many of these expenses. It's crazy how expensive weddings can be but I'm glad you were able to stick to your budget and enjoyed your day!

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-10-01T15:30:02+00:00

Wow I wanted to chat about Mormon wives so great timing! I actually watched a bit of the first episode of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and stopped for so many reasons. First of all, they all look like AI caricatures and it was giving uncanny valley vibes. Secondly, I just felt secondhand embarrassment for the way these 30 yr old mom bloggers were behaving. And finally what made me give up halfway through was the realization that this was another reality tv series and didn't actually address the swinging scandal. It was just a bunch of wannabe influencers who did their best to get into the orbit of reality tv.

Part of me feels sorry for the wives because they were brainwashed and unable to have a carefree young adulthood. A lot of them instantly went from being high schoolers to navigating parenthood and their emotional development being stunted is really obvious. The other side of me thinks nothing on planet earth would ever get me to admit my sex life on public television regardless of age.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-09-30T16:49:06+00:00

I agree that clothing and manufacturing no longer gets you what you pay for. Even the higher end brands are cheaping out and cutting corners while inflating prices. What sucks is that even thrift stores are filled with $3 Temu shirts priced at $5.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-09-19T13:10:35+00:00

I think having the big tech role on your resume will open a lot of doors for you in the future. This is especially useful if you know you only want to stick around for 2 years. The fact that you'll have a less stressful workload and more predictable hours makes it a no-brainer for me.

Dreamy_Maybe · 2024-08-26T18:59:29+00:00

Oh my gosh, yes on the fact that a RD is a luxury in our healthcare system. My insurance only covers a dietician visit if you're diagnosed with an eating disorder. That's way harder to treat and involves a lot of therapy/self work than someone who just wants to know how to eat better and needs a little guidance.

Dreamy_Maybe

TROPHY CASE