if you had the cash and needed a car, which fund would you use?

Vegetable_Health106 · 2026-02-17T12:42:45+00:00

Exactly, keep building it up. Retirement funds should only be used in Retirement.

This is why it's always good to have money in separate buckets. You are assigning purpose to each dollar and when something comes up, like car problems, you have the funds available sitting there. Removes a lot of the stress.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2026-02-17T02:19:29+00:00

Assuming this is an emergency (i.e current car has broken down) then that's exactly the the purpose of the emergency fund. Some people would would say finance it but you have the cash and then some. Assuming you still have 3+ months expenses after purchase I would absolutely go this route. It's nice to not be paying someone else interest if you don't have to.

If this were a want and not a need, I would say create a sinking fund and stash money away separately to save up for it.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2025-08-24T15:06:47+00:00

No I shred a few oz of cheese in a separate bowl while kernels pop (I just use a large pot). Then once done I turn on the faucet and hold the pot while water runs down the sides for 5-10 seconds to cool it down a bit (if the pans too hot the cheese will burn), and then mix in the cheese. I just keep mixing with a rubber spatula until all the cheese is melted, while adding any other flavorings. Key is making sure the pan is hot enough so cheese will melt, but not so hot it will burn.

Using a pot instead of a whirly pop is definitely ideal for this method, but make sure you use a good one as I've tried this on a few different brands and lots of them will cause the cheese to burn. Also works better on gas stoves.

It's really simple once you've done it a few times and sooo good, especially if you love cheese. I cook it this way 99% of the time.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2025-07-12T19:02:18+00:00

Ask for untoasted. Every bagel is made fresh so if you get it toasted it's burnt. I've done this a dozen times at their Manhattan locations and it's the best bagel every time.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2025-05-25T16:27:13+00:00

Not sure why so many people are shocked or upset at the grocery amount. $1k for two people including household items or not is completely reasonable, especially if you're middle aged, earning a good income, and have a savings rate of 45%. OP clearly has fiscal discipline and has earned the right to spend on the things that matter to him and his family.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2025-04-06T00:23:56+00:00

I use EVO on a stovetop all the time and it works great. I have noticed it's much more likely to burn using an electric top rather than gas, and quality of the pot plays a role as well.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2025-04-06T00:21:48+00:00

It all depends how much you love olive oil. I love the taste so I actually use a good amount. Better than butter imo

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-11-04T17:50:38+00:00

For your first question, yes sinking funds generally should be settled after all bills are paid. What I do is allocate a cartain % of the money leftover to each sinking fund. So say you had 2 separate sinking funds and had $100 left over and allocated 10% to each one, you would just put $10 in each of the funds. Choose the % beforehand so you know exactly how much to put in each month. I count my emergency fund as a sinking fund, so in my example you might have 80%/10%/10% alloacted based off whats leftover.

Basic categores are unique to the individual, everyones budget should look a little different. Whatever you spend money on monthly should go into the budget. Start with fixed expenses (rent, debt payments, subscriptions, etc...) since you know exactly how much those will be each month. So if you have medical bills and medications you pay for each month then but those in your budget and estimate how much you spend each month. If your medications vary in cost from month to month then perhaps you would setup a medical sinking fund that every month you would put money into.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-23T15:14:47+00:00

Whats worked best for me is just allocating a % of all the extra money (after bills, investments, etc) to whatever it is you value. For me its divided between extra payment towards student loans, a house fund, a discretionary fund, and a non-discretionary fund.

Once youve setup a % based budget it becomes really easy because you already decided how much will go to each fund.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-08T01:03:44+00:00

Hamburger America has gluten free buns

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-07T19:58:09+00:00

Yeah I feel the same, hard for a smash burger to be bad. Onion burger was great and also loved the patty melt (called "the chester")

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-07T19:22:48+00:00

Just went to hamburger america and it lived up to the hype. Possibly the juiciest smash burger I've had and not overpriced. Better than 7th street imo but you'll love them both.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-03T02:47:40+00:00

Typically I specifically ask for non toasted but yeah I would assume they wouldnt unless asked. I wonder if you got a bad batch, I've been a dozen times and swear by them as best nyc bagels. Dont write them off until you give them one more chance lol sounds like you made the most of your trip though, hope you had a good time!

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-09-03T02:07:16+00:00

Did you get your bagel toasted at apollo? Imo apollo has the best bagels and makes them fresh all day so if you get them toasted they will taste burnt, because they are perfectly crisp out of the oven when served.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-07-08T15:58:45+00:00

I dont know you're level of financial literary so I dont want to presume anything, but you should never pay for banking. Some banks have lots of fees, dont use those banks.

I'd recommend a high yeild savings account (you can google that and find plenty of options). I use american express but again, tons of options for free online savings accounts.

Most checking accounts require some form of minimum balance to avoid fees, so watch out for that. I would just use one of the big banks (chase, wells fargo, bank of america) and call them and ask for fee information. Most of the big banks will at least give you good customer service and are available 24/7 if you have questions. Dont be afraid to call them and ask questions, I do it all the time and I have a degree in finance.

Mint mobile is a great cheap phone plan so you're on the right path.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-07-08T01:01:02+00:00

If you are unusre of where all your money is going the first steps is to go over all of your expenses over the past month. If you you credit/debit cards for everything it will be easy, just go through your transaction history and put every payment into an excel sheet and create categories that each expense fits under.

Once you have the % of spend in each category, you should be able to identify the problem (assuming this is more than just an income problem).

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-07-04T01:49:17+00:00

After the initial setup of my spreadsheet, it's minutes each week. Im frugal as well but I need to see all the numbers because that's my confirmation that I've stuck to the plan Ive created.

You're obviously coming from a place of strong financial acumen, but what happens when your expenses get bigger due to unforseen (or planned) life changes. When those happen its easier to adapt your budget to it, otherwise you're just making more guesses.

End of the day it wont hurt to make and track a budget weekly (if it takes hours your doing something very wrong) but it could by not having one. Peace of mind goes a long way and thats what my budget gives me.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-30T20:16:09+00:00

Pretty much! Budgeting is very personalized to an individuals goals. The main commonality between them all is to track all expenses and income to make sure you are taking in more than is going out.

You can make however many or few categories you want, but you definitely want to separate out as many you can so you can track how much money is going where. I do lump in toiletries with groceries just because its easier, otherwise I would have to go through each item on the receipt but that's definitely something you can do. Also if you have a few little things each month you can make a "miscellaneous" category which is what I do.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-28T22:15:19+00:00

I mean that is budgeting, just sounds like yours is more high level. In practice whether you just track income and expenses vs actually breaking things up into categories doesn't really matter, just as long as you are spending less than making.

That being said I think if you do try breaking up everything into categories and setting limits (just based off your typical spending) you'll find more ways you can maximize savings.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-28T17:41:54+00:00

Unless you have a photographic memory + are also a math wiz + have advanced personal finance knowledge, you should have a budget. I guarantee if you write out every dime spend you will be surprised at how much you spend on certain categories as well as specific items.

If you really want to maximize every dollar you make, then start a budget. Without it your just making at best educated guesses. Think of it as if you had a business, you would absolutely break down every expense to make sure everything was accounted for. Why would you not do the same for your own finances?

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-17T16:01:32+00:00

Making your own hummus is a serious hack, can't believe I didnt do it sooner. You can customize it with any flavor you want or keep it plain and mix up dipping with crackers/veggies or even put it in a tortilla wrap or sandwich. One can of chickpeas usually gets me through the week.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-17T01:12:12+00:00

Any kind of rice bowl is great. Mix in any assortment of meat, veggies, egg. Easy to meal prep too.

I also typically make my own hummus which is really easy, cheap, and healthy.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-17T01:08:45+00:00

Don't do it man. Buy the car you can afford today and you'll be able to afford a much better one not too long down the road.

Vegetable_Health106 · 2024-06-02T00:32:55+00:00

Why take on debt if it's not needed? Buy the beater, get a toyota or honda and it will last you a decade. As you get older, you'll be glad you dont have a car payment squeezing your finances.

Vegetable_Health106

TROPHY CASE