Comments on: Reader Mailbag: A Day for Gaming

By: AnnJo

AnnJo — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 22:09:13 +0000

Gretchen, the costs in a “gun hobby” come in the form of ammunition, range fees and, just as in most hobbies, wanting to try something different, i.e., buy a new gun. As the saying goes, “How many guns do you need? Answer. Just one more.”
(Actually, since I’m quite new at this hobby, I can think of at least six or seven more that I need.)

Competitive shooting also involves membership fees and tournament fees.

It is not a cheap hobby (a couple of hours at the range can easily cost $60 or more in fees and ammo), and someone who 27 years old and still living at home should choose something less expensive.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:08:13 +0000

Is it just me, or did a bunch of comments on this post get deleted?

By: BirdDog

BirdDog — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 18:08:55 +0000

On quitting smoking, I quit an almost ten year smoking habit 15 and a half months ago. In the six to twelve months before I quit, I had cut way back. I went from smoking a pack or a pack and a half a day down to two packs a week. The last two packs of Marlboro’s I bought before I quit were over ten bucks. I think that sealed the deal that I was going to quit. I know in many areas they are much more expensive than that. And it is very possible to quit smoking without gaining weight, in fact, I’ve lost weight sine quitting.

By: Mary

Mary — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 04:26:47 +0000

Q3. I have to agree with everyone here, if your husbands job is not making money and costing a little, it’s time for a change and even he has to know this.

By: jim

jim — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 00:06:32 +0000

Gretchen : “What is a “gun hobby”?”

I assume it is owning, collecting and shooting of firearms. Probably mostly collecting and shooting for target practice in a firerange or such.

By: beth

beth — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:45:23 +0000

If husband’s business hasn’t made any money in past 3 years, it is time for him to move on and find a paying job. Period.

By: moom

moom — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:34:54 +0000

The US and Australian tax codes are probably just as complicated in their own ways but the instructions that come with US forms are much harder to understand than the Australian ones. A lot could be done in the US to make the tax system easier to understand without actually changing the code. That said, most people in Australia get someone else to do their taxes anyway…

By: Gretchen

Gretchen — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:19:51 +0000

What is a “gun hobby”?

For parties, I do chili, which for some reason my family eats on a roll (like sloppy joes) and lunch meat trays (made myself).

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 23:01:39 +0000

Q1: Buy assets that improve your situation, not consumed goods and services.
Q3: Tell your husband to get serious or give up on the budget, assuming you haven’t pledged to support the business for X years.
Q4: It’s not that they’re entertaining, it’s that a winning team sells more tickets and the best players win. It’s a zero-sum game so they’re overpaid in that they don’t make anything better, but because there are so few of them vs. revenue the market bears it.
Q5: Use TaxAct.
Q6: You probably will collect disability the rest of your life which will help with retirement, so in a sense you’ve already met a retirement goal in the sense of “not work and keep receiving income.” With that perspective, saving even $100 per year is extra so don’t worry about not being able to save as much as someone with a good job.

By: Riki

Riki — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:15:43 +0000

Q9 Alan –

It’s hard to tell from your post but it looks like you’re not making a ton of money. Are you under-employed? Do you have a post-secondary education? Where are you working right now? These are all important questions that I don’t have an answer to.

The cold truth is, you’re wasting a lot of money. It’s actually an easy trap to fall into while still living at home without significant bills to pay. You need to rein in your spending significantly and start saving. You also need some goals; part of “getting off the treadmill” is having a destination in mind. Once you figure out where you want to be and what you need to do to get there, making changes is a lot easier.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 15:00:08 +0000

Q9: How much money do you make? The numbers you list add up to about $700/month – is that all you’re bringing in? If so, then priority #1 should be to make more money. Even in a low-cost-of-living area, you’ll have trouble making it on your own on that little.

Your cell phone and internet numbers seem high to me. So I’d also suggest looking into cheaper options (including prepaid cell phones) as soon as your contracts allow.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:52:45 +0000

Q3: Could it be time to pull the plug on your husband’s business? On a budget as tight as yours, a $5000 net loss is not “a little,” it is a lot. Even if he just did nothing instead, you would be a lot better off. If he could do some part-time work and odd jobs to get some money coming in, even better. Best of all is if he could get a real full-time job, but that may not be possible in your area right now.

By: valleycat1

valleycat1 — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:52:26 +0000

Q5 – Also, most tax reporting software for the individual user is very easy to use, as it quizzes you about various types of income & expenses and about your family size etc, and then plugs all the numbers in the right places. Unless you have a really complicated situation or are itemizing deductions & needing to identify every single one, I agree with Johanna that you shouldn’t need someone else to help. Also, once you’ve figured out where your various numbers go, set up your filing system for the new year organized by tax form line, & next year you’ll be in even better shape to go it alone! If you use accounting software, set up your categories on there by tax form line too & it’s even easier.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:38:04 +0000

Q5: If your tax situation doesn’t change much from year to year, you should not have to pay someone else to do your taxes more than once. Just take your forms from last year (you kept those, right?), figure out which numbers go in which boxes, and fill out the forms with the corresponding numbers for this year.

You do not need to understand the entire tax code to do your own taxes – if you’re like most people, most of it doesn’t apply to you.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:27:28 +0000

Q2: Since January is almost upon us, I’m guessing that this is an old question and that Ron has already had to make his decision. But in case he hasn’t: If you sit out this semester at the university and it turns out you don’t get the high school position, would the university allow you to go back to teaching there in the fall? Can you make it through this one semester on your income from subbing alone (and drawing on savings if necessary)?

Those are the questions I’d be asking if I were in your shoes.

By: SwingCheese

SwingCheese — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:18:45 +0000

@Ron, question 1: I would caution you against walking away from your university position after you’ve signed a contract. I’ve never held a teaching job that didn’t require signing a contract, and in the education field (as anywhere else, I’d imagine) there can be dire consequences for walking away from a contract. (For example, breaking a contract in my previous district allowed the state to investigate yanking your teaching license.) That being said, I would maintain the university position, unless it is clear that you will receive this long term sub position, or unless you are sure you can maintain your income on subbing alone (if the long term position doesn’t work out). The last thing I would caution you to keep in mind: you mentioned that the long term sub position would be teaching both physics and upper level math. Do you have state certification to teach both of these positions? Do you need the proper certification for a long term sub position? Could this negatively affect your standing with the state board of education? (I live in a district that requires all substitute teachers to have a valid teaching license from the state. Not all districts have this requirement from what I understand, so my questions may not be pertinent.)