Learn to control money but do not allow it to control you

hypno06

Have a good journey home xxx

savingwannabe

I love Maya Angelou. Well done on deciding to do up your house and again, have a safe and inspiring journey back. I bet little boy and your best friend, Mr Firewalker will be delighted. Welcome back.

kit.

Firewalker

Just to say that I am back and I am beat! It was loverly to see everyone though Little Boy has a cold. Now light dinner and off to bed, I think.

Firewalker

hypno06

Sleep well x

Firewalker

Bang! Bang! – I am sitting in my study and this is what I keep hearing. Yes, the bathroom people are here – four of them and astoundingly the old bathroom is almost gone in the skip. It took them all of an hour to get rid of everything. Our old bathroom was really bad but now it is a sight of total devastation. But the vision of what it is going to become – it is all worth it. This bathroom (it is the Master bathroom) will be my place for relaxation and pampering – I am going to crack this art somehow.
No need to mention that despite the efforts of my three men the house is looking a bit dirty and dusty. There does not seem to be much point in cleaning at the moment – there will have to be a really focused cleaning complain once the building work has finished, or in about two weeks. Probably will ask the lady who does our ironing to help with this – probably not very MSE but a necessity given how busy we are for the observable future.

I was more concerned that my spreadsheets had not been done while I was away but OH kept all receipts. So last night I was sitting here doing the spreadsheets for last week – and this is probably the second thing I did; the first being to watch Merlin with Little Boy. What I found (and documented) is that during the week I was away OH spent £50.94 altogether; of this £15.05 was on food, £13.50 window cleaners and the rest covered a birthday present for a school friend of LB’s and his new hobby (he has learned to knit while I was away). Very well done! From all this I can conclude one of two things: a) I eat far too much if my absence reduces the food bill by so much; or b) I still buy far too much stuff that we don’t have to buy. Might be wise to put OH in charge of all shopping.

The pleasing news is that this month we will probably be only very slightly over our regular income and this will include buying a fridge/freezer and my new toy – about £450. Mmmm… let see what happens and then it will be time to reconsider the whole budget.

“Don't let what you can't do interfere with what you can do.” – Paolo Coelho

Firewalker

Firewalker

Remember that couple of days ago I mentioned that I did not spend much in Washington? I also managed to see all the monuments and couple of museums – but if I did not decide to save the pleasure of seeing other museums for a future trip with OH and little boy, the financial outcome would not have been different. Which got me thinking, and as it happens it got me thinking about money and our relationship to it.

This was possible – seeing stuff and not spending much – because of all the museums around Washington Mall (there are probably over twenty of those) only two or three charge entrance fee. All three museums/attractions that charge entrance fee are one way or another connected to the state – they are either part of government departments or set up by such. The rest of the museums were set up and are maintained by philanthropy and endowments. Which brings me to the following question: why is philanthropy so widespread in the US and not in Europe?

There is a culture of ‘giving back’ in which most people in the US are socialized, one might say. Correct - but why such culture hardly exists in Europe?

And I believe that there is one fundamental difference between the US and Europe and this is that in the States acquiring wealth is a right; in Europe acquiring wealth is an inherited privilege. This changes the perspective on what happens to the wealth one has amassed after one is gone. In Europe, this wealth passes mostly to the heirs; in the US substantial proportion of this wealth goes towards providing opportunities to people – just like the person who made the money was given an opportunity. Bill Gates, for instance, always in interviews points out that he was a very lucky man – he is aware that he built what he managed to build because he had an opportunity; and his life could have easily turned out different were he born 20 years earlier and in a different city; or his mother could not send him to the private school he went to when he was not achieving in a normal school.

On this one, I am going to be American – I pledge that 10% of what OH and I make from January next year will go to charity. Selection will be made later but suggestions welcome.

And the thought for today is:

Our dreams give us strength to perform impossible tasks – Paolo Coelho

Firewalker

savingwannabe

Who said that man was inherently selfish?

hypno06

FW that is a very interesting way of looking at it! I will give the matter some thought during the day x

Money_Fritter

Hi Firewalker,

I like your last post about giving to charity. I must admit that after coming back from my travels, and even to some extent before I went, I started to look at things in a different light.

Certainly after my travels I realised that sometimes in the UK we have become a moaning culture and we always want more, when perhaps we should be grateful for what we already have. Yes I don't have lots of money, but I have a roof over my head and I can put food on the table and live resonably comfortably, unlike 90% of people living in third world countries.

For this reason, I too wanted to do more for charity, that is why next year I am doing the coast to coast on a bike in two days, which is about 70 miles per day. I have not decided which charity yet, any ideas would be gratefully appreciated.

Money Fritter

Double_Trouble

I already give 10% of my income to charity sometimes a lot more which is something I have had to battle with when money feels tight but it feels right and I am also a strong believer that the more you give the more you receive to give away again and we haven't gone bankrupt yet although it has been a bit tight at times. I am also a trustee of a charity that operates in Uganda and going out there and seeing what relatively little we give does out there is very humbling I haven't been this year because of my personal circumstances but I have really missed it and I am looking forward to my next trip in May. I think this is one reason why I have never posted a SOA because I didn't want to be criticised about what I give away as a lot of people wouldn't understand:o

DTxx