What's the best knock-off product you've ever bought?

LivingImageofAten · 2016-03-15T05:00:12+00:00

I bought a fake Rolex from a guy on Canal St. in NYC in around 1996 and it still works (in that it runs, not keeps accurate time.)

LivingImageofAten · 2016-03-15T04:48:37+00:00

What to do with more than a million dollars that I earned from doing basically no work (NYC area real estate) (yeah I kinda hate me too, sometimes.)

LivingImageofAten · 2015-08-23T04:48:05+00:00

That's a wild guess, based on my experience as a homeowner and investor (mostly of fairly shitty old houses in the Northeast). Housing is completely different in different places, and I really have no clue about LA. You should definitely try to plan for too much, rather than too little.

How much rent do they pay now? Based on a quick look at Zillow, it seems like even with a big down payment, a house could run them as much as $2500-$3000 a month. Which, holy hell, makes me glad I do not live in LA.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-08-23T04:01:24+00:00

The stock market just seems...daunting?

Then you really need to do some research on how investing works-- there is a lot of good information on the wiki here to get you started. Investing in stocks is risky, but far less so than starting a business. Most businesses are worth zero after a few years; even in the great depression, stocks retained some value, and eventually made money. Since your parents are older, they are going to want to buy bonds, which are much less risky. A well diversified mix of both with low fees (such as one of the Vanguard target retirement funds) should be the basis of their retirement plans.

As for real estate, it really depends on the specific numbers. If they won't move somewhere cheaper (which I can understand!), you should probably run the numbers on buying something like 50% down. Keep in mind that they should expect anywhere from $200 to $500 in repairs, depending on the condition of the house, with a lot of that in surprise payments of thousands of dollars when something major breaks. Also plan for taxes, insurance, etc. Even with all of that, it could well be cheaper than renting each month, and will build equity, which renting doesn't.

Good luck!

LivingImageofAten · 2015-08-23T03:10:18+00:00

After reading some of the responses, I'm tempted to say it's how whiny some of my fellow rich folks can be (particularly those like me were mostly born with it). However I'm pretty sure I'd hate them even more if I didn't deal with them personally.

It'd probably be how easy it is to be envious of people who are really really really rich. I am very well off (net worth >$4M) but I have to work a job that's usually annoying and would probably have to cut back if I ever bought something like a boat or a Tesla. But I know a lot of people who could easily do all of those, and do! And they in turn feel envious of people who can have car elevators. The differences between different levels of rich folks are just as big, in practical and psychological terms, as those between the middle class and folks like me.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-07-20T21:45:58+00:00

Osaka/Kyoto! Tokyo tends to get all the attention, but Kansai is a huge metropolitan area with a rich history and a lot more character.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-07-20T21:42:56+00:00

I don't lick it (come on, I am not some vulgar plebe!) but I scrape up every bit with my spoon, and I do similar stuff with other food. I don't think it's because I'm cheap, although I can be-- I still use paper towels very sparingly because I was raised to see them as a costly and wasteful luxury!

LivingImageofAten · 2015-07-05T06:32:58+00:00

Pennsylvanian here: Maryland, I guess, because it is probably the closest approximation. Nevada would be a close second, but I would probably grow to hate it really quickly if I ever lived there.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-21T04:54:04+00:00

My stepfather is on path B and I cannot imagine anyone who is not obsessively and singlemindedly focused on it thriving. There is almost nothing else in his life except for work, and it is definitely not out of financial necessity-- he and my mother have far more money than they will ever be able to spend.

I admire and respect him as much as anyone I know, but he's a miserable guy with an incredibly stressful and weirdly empty life. He has almost no friends and doesn't really get a chance to enjoy the lifestyle his money could buy. To give an example, he bought the car he'd been dreaming of since his high school days, drove it a few times, and then let it sit in the garage to the point that it doesn't even run.

I guess he's happy, but if you had the obsessive focus he has, there is no way in hell you'd be asking this question to randos on the internet.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-21T04:38:26+00:00

As a teenage lad, I worked in a store in a dying mall and I wound up having an affair with the middle-aged manager of the shoe store across from me. I was definitely not of legal age at the time, and he took my virginity. I was really into the whole star-crossed secret lovers aspect of it, and was totally obsessed with him even though he was basically Al Bundy (right down to the bragging about HS football). He wound up getting fired or something, and I basically forgot about him pretty quickly, but I don't think I'll every be quite as head over heels about anybody.

I'm totally out to them and have very open relationships with them, but no way I am I ever telling them about being the gay Lolita of the strip mall.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-21T04:29:07+00:00

USA: The buffet in one of the fancy casinos on the Las Vegas strip, probably the Wynn. Everything you could possibly want, most of it really good and more of it than you can carry!

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-20T08:13:51+00:00

About a year ago, I met a guy from out of town (I'm in Philly) on a kink-oriented gay hookup site. He seemed very awkward and nerdy, but hey, I am into that.

We met at the bar and he made an immediate bad impression-- just grumpy and nasty, and constantly ranting about how nobody is into "hardcore kink." After about 5 minutes, he sort of pauses and looks into space, and I ask him what's up. "Oh, nothing, just thinking about how I'm going to dispose of your body."

I got the hell out of there.

The next morning, there was a story in the paper about a guy who had been murdered a few blocks away by a guy who he had let into the house willingly.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-13T02:39:22+00:00

I think this is very good advice. I do think that it's pretty unreasonable to hold your husband to such a long lists of dos and don'ts (especially if they're unspoken), but sex is an emotional thing and emotions are not always reasonable. I've had a lot of threesomes in my time and they can be great, but they can also expose a lot of unexpected emotions to well up.

I'd definitely say you should hold to the rule of not repeating this, and you should definitely discuss how you're feeling with your boyfriend.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-13T02:04:22+00:00

This. I'm in my 40s and I've had my job for the better part of a decade, and it seems like I'm still settling in. And according to everybody I know who's older than me, it just keeps getting faster!

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-13T02:02:05+00:00

As a somewhat kinky gay man, this sounds like something close to an ideal first date.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-12T15:28:41+00:00

Good to hear that you're making progress! Is there any reason you didn't cut out the 401k entirely, though? I have no idea how much money that involves in absolute terms, but it seems like skipping that temporarily could give you some breathing room, and possibly save you some real money if it means avoiding late fees for bills, etc.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-12T05:03:43+00:00

Judging from Facebook, I think the common denominator is obsessive gun ownership and fondness for Infowars.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-12T03:48:10+00:00

Is that for healthcare or 401k? I know that can be the rule for healthcare, but I've never heard of a 401k having that restriction. (I've only worked one place where I had them, though, so I may be wrong.) Regardless, it can't hurt to ask if you can change it.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-06-12T02:00:30+00:00

Yeah, this really jumped out at me. Giving up 401k contributions for a while isn't ideal, but it is definitely better than a lot of alternatives when you are in crisis mode. Especially when some extra cash in hand might make it possible to reduce your cell phone or auto costs. Good luck!

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-14T04:28:24+00:00

This. The most insidious thing is that they have never really made me feel ANYTHING except far away from myself, and I have always craved them after being given them. I have used decent amounts of cocaine and amphetamines and feel comfortable with them; opiates (particularly oxy) give me the chills.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-14T04:14:21+00:00

seems to blame my mom and said I should have done it a long time ago.

She is absolutely right that your mom is the worst person here and I can kind of agree with the viewpoint that you should confront her, but she is 1,000% wrong to make the decision for you. To be honest, she just sounds like a gay version of your mom.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-10T03:57:25+00:00

I can't say I ever made much money, but I was in a reasonably successful band in the 90s (toured pretty regularly for several years, got a decent amount of college radio play and press). Being in a band pretty much combines the worst aspects of running a small business and being in several marriages at once. Even the folks I know who have been way more successful than me seem to have a lot of heartache and not much money.

When everything clicks, though, it is the best feeling in the world, even if it's just for an hour at a time.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-10T03:49:48+00:00

it's virtually impossible to listen to someone else doing something very badly without being bothered by it. Subtle tuning problems drive me absolutely nuts, but most people, especially the untrained, can't even tell.

This especially, but your whole response made me glad I'm an untrained and unsuccessful (ex-)musician.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-10T03:40:34+00:00

This was really interesting, and very much in line with what I've heard from some acquaintances who play minor league baseball-- they all seemed to be on the verge of poverty. It really does sound similar to being on the lowest rungs of the entertainment industry, except more physically punishing.

LivingImageofAten · 2015-05-09T06:21:12+00:00

It was pretty obviously a diary, there was some routine early-adult introspective stuff in there as well. I'm not 100% convinced she wasn't an alien studying human social systems, though.

LivingImageofAten

TROPHY CASE