This week’s Monday Mission.
- When you take a vacation, do you ever suffer from Internet withdrawal? Or maybe the nagging urge to blog or read blogs? Or are you glad to be away?
Well, I don’t miss blogs, usually, but I do suffer from email withdrawl something terrible. - Have you ever been “furloughed” (told to take time off work without pay) or laid off? How did that impact your family dynamics? Your finances? If not to you, have you seen it happen to anyone you know? How did they handle it?
Hm… not really. I’ve had hours cut and stuff. Plenty of people close to me have been laid off (living in Silicon Valley and hanging with/dating/being related to programmers and other computer-related folk, y’know), and their reactions vary from traumatized to totally zen. Usually they all start to get bummed out as the job search cranks into its sixth or eigth or twelfth month, though. - If you fell on hard times, what is are some non-essential reoccurring luxury expenses (cable TV, TiVo subscription, cigarettes, high-speed net connection, newspaper, daily Starbucks coffee, etc.) you would give up to save money?
Hm… Aikido classes, maybe. I’ve pretty much pruned out as many non-essentials as I’m willing to already. - On the same thought, what is the one non-essential expense you would NOT give up?
Computer stuff. I don’t pay for it now (mooching off the ‘rents is a grand thing) but if I did, I wouldn’t give it up. Period. - Would you ever ask your family (parents, in-laws, relatives) for financial assistance? What would be some of your concerns about asking for help? Have you ever asked for it before? Did it go well?
I’ve had to borrow money from my parents before. It was okay, although it did cause some tension. - Has a friend or relative ever borrowed money from you? Who were they and how much did they want? Did you ever get paid back, or did it matter? Did you feel compelled to keep an eye on them to see if they spent it wisely?
Nope. I generally don’t get asked to loan money because people know I don’t really have much to spare. - Imagine you won a tax-free gift of $7,000. The only stipulation on the gift is that it must not be invested or saved, and must be spent before 2004. How would you use the money?
Ooh, that would be a hard call. I’d probably spend half on my loans and the rest on books, furniture, and clothing.
