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Wedding Woes
ei34
member
Fri-yay!
ei34
member
in Wedding Woes
We made it!
Shoring up the grocery list, some Thanksgiving prep and more kid-stuff decluttering for me. Wishing everyone a healthy weekend!
Shoring up the grocery list, some Thanksgiving prep and more kid-stuff decluttering for me. Wishing everyone a healthy weekend!
Re: Fri-yay!
It's also my birthday today! And Happy Birthday to my WW birthday twin, @kerbohl!
My H and I are tentatively planning to go to a French Quarter restaurant called the Pelican Club. I went there once years ago and it was delicious, but my H has never been. They are having a prix-fixe restaurant month special.
I'm also thrilled that Friday has arrived. My patience for people is wearing dangerously thin. It's supposed to be warm and sunny here all weekend. We've got to get some stuff done around the house, but also do some yard work. Hopefully a short hike, too. H got some new trail shoes and is itching to break them in.
So happy it’s Friday as well. No plans, but hopefully I can watch Queens Gambit and put my punching bag together. M and I got into a text tiff about something (don’t worry, he’s in the right and I’m actually in the wrong) so I hope I can repair that. I told him it wasn’t a convo I wanted over text, so we’ll talk later I guess.
Sorry about the morbs @levioosa, sending vibes. Enjoy the early Thanksgiving feast! Mac & cheese and sweet potato casserole are actually two of the dishes I contribute each year (and two of my faves), enjoy!
Other than that, I've got a tonne of meetings today at work, but I started early so I could go home early. And then a productive weekend, hopefully.
I've been doing more decorating today. I'm almost finished with the kitchen. H is actually working on putting up the outdoor lights. I need to put up the outdoor stuff I usually take care of before it starts raining. We are going to our art museum's Winter Light Show tonight. We've never been (this is the 3rd year). I've heard it is gorgeous so I'm really looking forward to that.
The weekend will be cleaning house and getting prepped for Thanksgiving. I also need to wrap the gifts I bought yesterday. I wrapped stuff last weekend too. I've never had things wrapped so early. Our church is going back to virtual services this Sunday due to the rise in Covid cases. I don't particularly like it but understand the necessity of doing so.
ETA: The appliance store just called and our dishwasher may be delivered next Friday! That's much earlier than anticipated. I'm really psyched!
I think H will be going into work tomorrow. He's got some IT stuff to do and no one else can be there. So probably not much progress on the counter tops this weekend. We will probably get the small 18 inch section installed since its almost ready to go. I just need to get the other end on and finish all of the sanding and filing of the edges. But I can do that while H is at work.
I have most of our Thanksgiving foods already. I will need to get some more bread to use for stuffing and mascarpone for cannoli. I'm hoping I can somehow stuff the turkey breast I got, but we will see! I also have to research to see if I can use my air fryer rotisserie to cook up the turkey breast. I was thinking of making America Test Kitchen's Mississippi Mud Pie, but its very labor intensive, so I think I will save it for Christmas. I think I will just make the cannolis. MIL/BF and BIL/SIL will be coming for dessert on Thanksgiving.
My anxiety and stress was hitting hard. And despite knowing that I should have calculated days past ovulation correctly I POAS paranoid that I was pregnant. So far no signs of AF but also only one line. I'll take it. Work has not been bad at a personal level but there's just SO MUCH going on because when you make things that people use during a pandemic, your backlog jumps.
I have a haircut today and family photos tomorrow. Chiquita is supposed to have soccer and our governor said that this weekend is the last weekend until January for "club sports". I think this may be it for that practice level which just sucks for her but we need to be safe.
DH got the ingredients I need to make green bean casserole and pumpkin pie. I'm bringing them next week to the ILs so we can have our quarantinesgiving.
So weird question, apparently this is a hot issue?
Biden wants to forgive student loan debt.
Thoughts? {including even if you don't have student loan debt}
Urg ....
Tonight is grocery pickup so afterwards I'm gonna have the bank freeze my credit.
Tomorrow I'm doing a coffee date with one of my bff's and I need to pick some stuff up at the grocery store - so we're gonna wander a bit there. {they have other stuff at this store}
We're hoping to sit outside, but we've both been safe so we both feel comfortable sitting in her car if need be.
I'm planning on taking a nice relaxing bath tomorrow night. I'm just annoyed.
M & I are looking into this company called SupperWorks - basically is frozen meals already done. You thaw and cook.
We order a lot, so this would cost to do, but overall it could reduce our grocery shop PLUS we won't have to order in as much.
Right now I have the following for approx $200 {pick up or delivery, but first order you can get $25 off}
It looks pretty good! I've made lemon-rosemary chicken before ....
1) Any system of forgiving debt needs to ensure that the institutions/banks are paid. This can't turn into a cycle where it forces tuition to go up even more.
2) One aspect of college tuition involves the choice of the college at different rates. I have very mixed feelings about forgiving debt regardless of amount when the cost of one year of tuition could vary as much as $60k or more. As an example I grew up in Connecticut and went to UConn and a few classmates went to Yale. An Ivy League student leaves with more debt at one of the most expensive institutions in the country. I would prefer some kind of sliding scale of debt forgiveness.
3) How does this work for graduates that have paid off loans vs. those who graduated in the same year still paying?
I'll also compare this to the current issue w/ healthcare and the ACA. The ACA didn't do a hell of a lot to reduce the cost of healthcare in this country. So what is the actual solution to not just forgive the student loan debt but the proactive approach that holds institutions of higher learning accountable and does not support blanket cost increases that are greater than the rate of inflation? As someone with kids, I want to see how colleges - especially those that are public (like my alma mater) are going to work to reduce the annual increases so the average cost to attend a public institution is also reflecting the average annual incomes of that state?
Plus the phrase "forgive" means they are talking about debt that has already occurred. For me, that is a different issue than having opportunities for free college tuition going forward.
Student debt often includes living costs. I don't want my taxes paying for someone living for free, just because they were a student at the time. I also don't want my taxes paying for private college tuition vs. much lower state college college tuition.
For paying college tuition going forward, that should be capped at just the college tuition (not dorms and living expenses) commensurate with state college. I'm making numbers up but, if someone can get a free college education at CSU San Marcos at a cost $10K/year, then that is what they can get for free. But if they want to go to USC at $60K/year, then they can get student loans...that do not get forgiven ever...to pay the $50K/year difference.
@banana468, makes an awesome point also. When there is a "free for all" and people are not responsible for paying real costs, you end up with extremely bloated systems like we currently have in US health care. And college education is already like that. Health costs (including insurance) and college/post high school education are already the two industries that have crazy growth rates for costs/expenses.
So many people I know skipped college because they couldn't afford it, and those who did and got a student loan are still paying it.
@short+sassy So your comment "I don't want to pay taxes so some can live for free" actually has me thinking .... do you know how the Canadian health care works?
We do technically pay for it - everyone who pays taxes, pays a portion based on their income.
So arguably, I'm paying taxes so some person can go to the doctor.
Wouldn't that be same idea?
I'm on the fence about forgiving student loans. I do think it would stimulate the economy, but I'm not sure it's the best way to do it. I also don't think forgiving student debt solves the root cause. Wiping it out and moving on would be like refinancing your house to pay off your credit cards, and then going right back to abusing your credit cards. Forgiving some student loans might give immediate relief, but they have to figure out how to address the cost of education which is a much more complicated problem.
I'm very much in favor of bankruptcy protections being opened up to allow people to go bankrupt on their student loan debt. We let people declare bankruptcy on medical, credit cards, even judgments. Student loans are the exception. If someone is facing a financial hardship because of their loans, they should be able to declare bankruptcy and walk away.
For me personally, I'd love to have my loans cancelled. Not for the good of the economy, just for the good of me.
After 7yrs out of school, you can in Canada.
There's a lot of talk in Canada about student loan debt and also trying to reduce the tuition also
I also support additional methods or requirements that can incentivize the tuition lowering. Not everyone is suited for the military and I don't know that it's a fair solution for all - but if there were any other systems implemented where some kind of service position immediately after college could lower debt I'm in favor.
I also think that should there be a shift moving forward that degree choice MUST be a factor. And I do not begrudge anyone who wants to seek a degree that is nuanced and niche. That said, I have an issue with my tax dollars that will support a way to remove the debt of a student who majored in art history at Yale who is not working with their degree because there are fewer options vs. the student that is nearly $150K or more in debt from the local state school who is an elementary school teacher that is teaching - especially if that student is teaching in a lower socioeconomic area.
I do think that a solution needs to level the playing field. I remember when they used to tell us that we could be anything we wanted to be when we grew up if we worked hard enough. I don't think that's ever been true, but I think it should be.
Student loans are often the only option for some kids to go to school, and it shouldn't be that way. I hate the idea that 18 year old Sally wants to be a teacher, but her parents can't afford college and don't live close enough to a state school for her to commute. So she's supposed to look at the cost of tuition, books and dorm, and then figure out whether she'll be able to afford to pay that off on the teacher's salary that she expects to earn, and then decide if she really wants to be a teacher.
It's nuanced and possibly not fair but I also look at this from the lens of is it fair for apples and apples? If a mutual friend graduated with the same degree as DH from the same institution and debt amount then is there a provision for DH who paid the loan?
Does it work the same if the mutual friend opted to no longer use the degree and become a stay at home parent by choice?
As a different analogy I see a different financial penalty this time of year when it's benefit renewal time at work. Our health insurance is tied to our jobs. Up until 4 years ago I was on DH's health insurance. Then 4 years ago his employer announced that if you are married and your spouse can get health insurance through their employer then you will pay a $1300 surcharge to insure that spouse even if the coverage offered by the spouse's employer is inferior AND you also pay the additional cost to insure the spouse (or spouse and children, etc.). DH and I have crunched the #s and just yesterday determined it's still at least $20 cheaper per pay period for me to go on my company's plan vs. his.
Now let's look at how our situation compares to two people in his work group:
-Coworker 1: Wife was making more money than him. But work just wasn't for her so she quit her job and is now a SAHM. She's not actively employed in the field by choice. She is insured as the wife with on penalty.
-Coworker 2: Wife owns her own business. As the owner of her business she does not offer herself health insurance. She goes on the company health insurance with no additional cost.
There are now two coworkers in DH's immediate vicinity who actively have a different level of benefits offered by the company. The playing field is NOT even and we are actively paying more.
Flash that to the college comparison and what I would want to avoid is some kind of way that you can file for student loan forgiveness if you're not working but it's by choice or you want hundreds of thousands more in forgiveness for a bachelor's degree because you made the choice to attend a more expensive institution. My answers aren't perfect but the important part IMO is not to paint that with a broad brush.
There are lots of social programs like that for housing, food, childcare, utilities, and probably dozens of other things I'm not even thinking of. To an extent, there should be help and that does mean the people who don't need financial help are helping others who do need it.
I think it's a good economic choice to give people a level of post-high school free tuition, plus it is hopefully a boost to give people a helping hand in bettering their lives. But it's enough they are getting free tuition for a lower cost state college. If they need further help for living expenses, they can get that from other social programs. And if they don't qualify for other programs, then oh well. They can get a loan and/or a part-time job and/or a full-time job while going to school p/t. Like gazillions of others, including myself, have done for decades.
As an aside, Louisiana already has an unbelievable and fantastic state program called TOPS. I don't know the GPA ranges, but for high school students who get near an A-average, they get 100% of their tuition...including living expenses if they live in a dorm...for free, if they got to a Louisiana state college. There are also grade requirements to stay in the program, once they are in college. For high school GPAs that are lower...I think even all the way down to a C-average...usually the tuition portion is free, just not the "living expense" part.
One of my coworker friends is frustrated with her daughter who is a HS senior. She has fruitlessly tried talking up this program for years to her daughter. But her daughter has never cared about school, ie "I'm not going to college anyway". And only now is becoming worried about how she will pay for the associate's degree she's thinking about to become a paramedic. But it's too late. Her grades won't qualify her for even the lowest level of TOPS help and her parents don't have much to help her...which they've been telling her all along. I try to be kind because it's hard to think that long-term for many teenagers. But it's killin' the adult in me that some kiddos can be so blase about a program that is so helpful and VALUABLE. And it makes me scowly that CA, where I went to HS, didn't have anything like that. Or at least they didn't in the "before times" of my teenage years, lol.
More interviews today. Waiting to see what happens next. And worrying about my bills.
Sorry about the morbs @levioosa. I was feeling like that too much of this week.