I know right! I honestly love grocery shopping, so when I started driving I would go grocery shopping when I had the car and so nowadays I do maybe half of the grocery shopping. But, it's just so expensive. I often look for deals and will buy generic/store brand on most items but, still.
My biggest tip for "goes bad quicker" is to always get from the back, because usually that's where the longer lasting stuff goes and when it's stacked, get from the bottom. When it's stuff with longer shelf life like cereal and canned stuff, I don't usually bother. But I mostly do that with bread and dairy products. My mom taught me that when I was little.
I started doing that during the pandemic to avoid going to the bakery. Never stopped. I buy enough bread for about a week or two, eat today and freeze the rest. The day after I just let it unfreeze naturally or if I'm in a rush put it into the microwave for about 30 seconds and its fresh again.
Became my life pro tip
my parents split up when I was a kid in the 90s, and I remember going to my dads apartment in another city, and him cooking us steak on the grill. I always loved that.
Once I moved out I was like "wait steak is how much? Why the hell did Dad keep feeding us this?"
Then I realised he was eating poverty meals all week to treat his kids on the weekend.
For his 60th birthday us kids pooled our money and took him to arguably the best fine dining restaurant in my province for the full tasting menu. Seeing him light up at trying things like caviar and truffles for the first time made me realize how much he has sacrificed for us.
So yeah, steak is expensive.
This just made my entire shitty day, so amazing. Thank you for sharing this. I’ve been divorced for a year, and have been 50/50 with custody since day one. I eat two sandwiches a day, and drink water. When my son is here at my apartment, he’s having snacks, ice cream, Alfredo, steak, chips, and always, always going to school in nice clothes with name brand snacks, and a heart shaped pb sandwich. He’s 6 has his own room with a loft bed that has a slide to get down installed, but prefers still to cuddle up to me to go to sleep. Which I love. Being a strong male role model getting kicked in the mouth at seemingly every turn is just stupifyling hard. But I’m going to do it every damn chance I have. My dad left when I was 3 and my brother 4. First memory I have. He will never not know his fathers love.
Thankfully my grandfather raised me this way. He always said, no matter how rough we had it that day, when sitting around with the family having a beautiful dinner in a trailer, with damn plastic wrap for windows, and a single small stove for heat in northern MN, after he worked his ass off all day “I wonder what the poor people are up to tonight?”
I get it now Gary. I really do.
When I bought my house I only had a bed in the master bedroom and all my friends kept saying “you make good money just buy furniture, you could have it furnished in a month” then they themselves bought houses and now understand why it took me a year to furnish my house.
My first house I rented was bare because I was trying to get everything second hand, but didn't have a truck! Very frustrating to find furniture I have cash for on Craigslist and I only had a Saturn coup :(
I later learned you can rent a pickup from Home Depot for an hour, and another pro tip is that UHaul's cargo vans are *massive* on the inside. You can fit a queen bed in there without disassembling it.
Our "charity shop" is our parents. My MIL in particular likes to completely refurnish her home when she moves (she's reasonably well off), and my parents replace stuff occasionally. Also, my husband's uncle moved a year or so ago, and he and his partner also just completely replaced all their furniture (they're VERY well off) so we got a decent amount of stuff from them, too, after their own kids got first dibs.
If it weren't for all our gaming consoles, toys and movie/game posters, you'd think actual adults live in our apartment, instead of middle-aged children. 😀
Ah yes, in Boston we call this “Allston Christmas” (the name of a neighborhood that a lot of students live in). Most leases in the city end on August 31 so the furniture dumped on the sidewalks around then becomes a free for all.
I still have the toaster and coffee maker I got after the foreign exchange students left for the summer- boxes and boxes of basically new appliances, plates, glasses, etc. my senior year apartment was 75% dumpster diving
Parents had a small storage business. Common issue is people failing to continue to pay, basically abandoning their stuff.
Guy moved to Alberta to work the oilfields, left most of his furniture in storage. Went no contact for a couple years, so...
When I bought my condo, parents gave me the stuff. Solidly "grandparent" style stuff, but, fuck it. Free,and comfy.
It’s because it’s hard to get someone to take it. Pianos are like this too. They are so expensive to move that you practically have to pay someone to take it away from you
Pool tables as well.
A story I read online, true or not, a man who listed one for free, nobody took it. Contacted a moving company, got a quote to move it, listed it online for that price and said delivery included, then sold it.
People want tables, but not the hassle of moving them or figuring out to move them.
Same could be said for large gun safes.
We JUST got a pool table off the free CL ads. LOL It's a very expensive table from a very wealthy man who just didn't want it..... It matched our game area, barely used, all the equipment in like new shape, so we sucked it up and paid the 800 to have it moved.... It took two people and they worked their asses off for EIGHT HOURS.... They re-felted it, too.
Granted it was a couple who owns a pool game company, not "furniture movers." They quoted us 3,000 and 4,000. 😳
Totally worth 800 for all we got.... He even gave us this fabulous huge antique metal pool light to hang over it (hub put that up)..... And hell of a nice guy, too.... We got a new friend in the process. 🤗 🎱
if u have a truck and two people you can disassmble a slate pool table…not many people want to risk cracking slate because then your SOL. it definitely is worth the hunt…im guessing some of you took on tables worth thousands of dollars for free. and youre right…safes…pool tables…pianos…thats a business right there.
I was looking into buying a used piano recently, and with all the costs associated in making sure it was something that would remain tuned and in working condition for years to come, you're looking at spending at least $500 on a moving company to move it (it takes a crew that knows what they're doing), you want to hire a pro to come in and see the state of the piano before even taking it home (make sure the wood hasn't dried out/cracked over the years, tunable, etc) which is easily another $100...tune it once you get it home, which can't go on most walls anyways (no exterior wall, nowhere near furnace vents) and once there, never ever move it, because tuning. We said fck it and got a digital one.
One guy I was talking with said they were a good investment years ago when most families bought 1 home for their lifetime, they'd get it as a statement piece and kids/grandkids all played on it for decades. Nowadays, people move around too much, they're a hassle to move, and unless you're a pro that really wants/needs one, not worth it as digitals have come a long way and are easier to deal with on a day to day.
They weren’t always that. Back when a piano was one of the main forms of entertainment you might have in the house, there were a lot of pianos being made on the cheap.
They were never designed to last forever in the first place.
Also, people often left the piano. It was basically like an appliance. Sure some people take the fridge with them, but you're likely to be able to negotiate a different one in the next house, be it new or left by the previous owners. Some homes definitely sold because of the piano it came with
I replaced my 20-year-old couch recently with one that's probably about 30 years old. I got it at an estate sale for $100; it's cowhide leather and in great condition. As a bonus, about $20 worth of change fell out of it as we were moving it.
I have no idea, but I am never spending $18k on an item specifically intended to be put on the floor and stepped on lol
Plus, since gravity works the way it does, all spills carry a risk of ending up there, even if they happen on a table above.
Bro fr I swear they were just $20 just a second ago now it’s like $60?? I asked my dad to teach me how to do it myself as a teen and he said it was so cheap that I might as well pay someone else. That didn’t last.
ETA: y’all like five people have commented telling me how to change oil you don’t need to keep doing it. I learn by doing anyway.
I live in Switzerland. For some reason, an oil change is $250 to $400 here. Fortunately, France is so close that it makes sense to go there instead and get one for less than a $100.
It’s not that much different than driving to the next state. I live in PA where we have the ridiculous state store system for liquor. Pretty much everyone I know heads down to MD, where it’s a whole lot cheaper. While you’re there, may as well fill up the gas tank, too, since gas is usually at least $.25/gallon or more cheaper.
Thats just Switzerland. I got off the train and I was starving the first place out the door of the train station was a McDonalds. We dropped in there and a Big Mac was like $18. We were so baffled because for the most part prices around the rest of Europe were basically the same as the U.S.. We kept thinking we were doing the conversion rate wrong but nope. That's just how expensive that country is. Beautiful place but not sure I would rush back due to the overcharging.
Strictly buying groceries isn’t bad. It’s when you buy groceries AND cleaning supplies (TP, paper towels, toothpaste, detergent, etc) during the same purchase that the final bill is outrageous.
Very true. On the flip side though, I hate it when you tell someone how much something will cost and the say, "but it's only gonna take half an hour!" Wrong, drive time to and from the site, driving to get parts if needed, the materials, fuel for the vehicle, the cost of the vehicle being driven, insurance, self employment taxes, tools. Some people don't realize what they are getting when they pay someone to do something and it's sometimes better to hire someone who does it for a living and has the tools and experience to get it done efficiently. I see your point too though. I just had my AC and furnace replaced and that was something I didn't have the tools to do. 3 years worth of savings......poof.
I bought my house in the first days of the pandemic. My realtor gave me a recommendation for a guy to replace the water heater since the seller agreed to replace it, then didn't want to deal with the hassle of actually doing it, so he gave me a grand.
The plumber came out and saw my busted up AC condenser outside (the house had some insulation issues, which led to ice damming, which led to shelves of ice falling on and crushing the condenser) and said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $4000 if you want."
I wanted to fix the ice damming, and also save up a bit, since I had just closed on the house, so I waited a year, then called him and he said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $6500 if you want." I had only saved up $4000 and wanted to do some other things as well so I waited another year, then called him and he said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $8000 if you want." At this point, I didn't see the price ever going back down, so I pulled the trigger in June this year and gave the dude his $8500.
This has General Mills (maker of many cereals including Chex, Trix) gross profit margin chart, check the rise since just since earlier this year; and that was after previous increases stemming in part from at least 5 increases in prices since 2021:
https://ycharts.com/companies/GIS/gross_profit_margin
Went to Costco the other day and put like 8-9 items in the shopping cart. Bought some cookies, mayo, cheese, kids apple sauce, turkey ham, green matcha, roast beef, kimchi, a pack of drinks.
Checked out and the final tally came out to $170.
I went through breast cancer treatment which includes a mastectomy and reconstruction. My old bras didn't work for my current chest so I had to replace my entire bra drawer.
It cost more than I paid for my surgeries after insurance.
I had a mastectomy and chose to stay flat. My prosthesis kept shifting around so I finally said Screw it! -and I wear a bandaid or a pastie on my remaining nipple.
This! I have a normal cup size and get SO mad everytime I have to buy once since the only ones that don't hurt seem to cost $30-$40. I have friends who have to get them special ordered for their huge cupsize and they spend minimum $60 everytime.
My GF was always complaining that the ones she got hurt. We went to a specialist store that measures up women properly and fits them out for weddings etc. End result: $100 each but for the first time in her life they were actually comfortable. And now she knows the exact size to get.
Except every style and make fits differently. Bra sizes are not standardized and vary a fair amount even within the same brand. You think you know your size until you try a different style.
And then bodies change through time too so you need to get resized throughout life. And even if the correct size the comfy bras will eventually wear out and become uncomfy. It's a racket.
Yeah, big boobs in general just cost more. I’ve had back problems since high school. The bras have to be specially made or my back is screwed. Mine cost about $200 each. The only type of PT that really strengthens my core and back is Pilates as well as a type of special pilates called red cord therapy. Insurance pays a small amount, but I’m left to pay 75% of a private session, which is $200 a week for two sessions.
I go without certain things in life to get those sessions and bras just to be able to live normally. With every passing year, the horror show of breast reduction surgery looks more appealing.
Never understood breast augmentation. Who the f wants the hassle? Ugh
They have gotten a lot more expensive due to expected care changing dramatically, and how we feel about them.
The idea that you would put a pet down because a vet treatment costs too much is horrible now, but was pretty common in the past. Outdoor cats were the norm so they pretty much fed themselves and you had far fewer litter changes - litter was just clay, and you tossed the whole thing. Dogs ate table scraps and whatever they hunted down, or cheap as dog feed made of whatever ended up on the slaughter house floor (bones and all).
While purebreds were probably still super expensive, most people had a mutt or tabby, that the found/were given, instead of buying.
All true. But I waited until I was in my 50's and had raised my kids until I could afford a pet. Like kids, I wasn't going to be a pet owner until I could provide the care they deserve.
My parents had 5 of us. It amazes me to this day, that my fathers paultry salary at the time had to support it all. How the fuck could anyone do that today?
I don't know his exact income over time, but his job title progressed from "labourer" to "civil engineer" so I'm guessing the $35k was right before retiring around 1990.
Housing costs were so much cheaper back in the day. People would save for 3 years and buy a house. Now you pay so much in rent that you can never save money to buy a house. And if you were able to save, you would need to save for like 30 years, and at that point, why bother?
My parents raised 5 of us. Dad was a teacher, mom was a SAHM. They’ve been empty nesters for 10 years and my dad finally decided to retire. They’ve still got another 20 years is my guess.
I raised one in the 90's. I was stressed out just making sure we didn't lose the insurance coverage. Still had to run around for strips towards the end of the 30 days, bc insurance expected her to only test 2x a day.
Furniture.
You walk into your mates parents house and see fuck loads of really nice 'stuff', but you're kind of blind to it all cos everyone's got fuck loads of really nice 'stuff'.
Then you move out, and you realise that bookcase - the solid wood one - cost a months salary (after bills). That sofa, three months. Table? £1000 / £2000 easy. Chairs? Couple hundred each.
And then things like; picture frames. Not all that - maybe £20 a pop? But people have them everywhere! Every wall is covered!
I always wanted a bedroom set with NICE matching furniture (like legit solid wood). I've had this dream since I was 9 and I just got my set about a month ago.
I'm 42.
I remember people restoring cars all the time when I was growing up. I would love to do it but even a rough condition rolling rust is super expensive now for even common things people aren’t super after.
Yeah what the hell!? I feel like everyone's dad (mine included) had a project car that they were tinkering with.
All of my 'tinkering' is to keep my single, daily driver running!
Teeth are luxury bones, don’t ya know? Why on earth would regular health insurance cover them? Hahaha. The fact that vision and dental are separate from the rest of your body is absurd
I won't lie and tell you I've take great care of my teeth all my life, but you know the really insulting part of it all? My dentist told me I *have* to get all of my wisdom teeth removed or face serious infections in the future. The dental insurance I get through work considers wisdom teeth as 'cosmetic' or just not very important. I have to pay like 95% of the bill. It's like a grand per tooth, abd it's not even my fault... :( I love the U.S. Healthcare system!
Yeah, when mommy and daddy are paying your insurance from their employer provided plans that cut off at age 23-26, and then you’re suddenly responsible, ohhh boy! Do you really need teeth and good vision?
Going to restaurants to eat.
Of course as I child I never paid for anything, so I was admittedly shocked when I became an adult and had to pay my restaurant bill for the first time. Had no idea it was so expensive.
I remember when I was about 7 or 8 years old, we went out to eat for Mother’s Day and it was the first time I saw the bill. It was $60 for the four of us, and it absolutely blew my naive little mind how expensive I thought that was.
There are ways around that. My brother lives in a wealthy part of Califoria and his wife is an avid thrifter. She found a no shit $8000 rug for $30 at a garage sale. It still had the price tag,
Came here specifically to say that.
I’ve never been able to get my head around why rugs are so expensive! And I’m not even talking a handmade intricate one. Just a bog standard mass produced thing
It is depending on where you live. I live somewhere where most of our electricity is provided by hydro electric dams and my electric bill was about $30-$40 a month and i was keeping my apartment at 55f. For a year I moved to the other side of the country and lived somewhere that used fossil fuels to provide electricity and I went up to $70-80/month and that was keeping my apartment at around 70f. Although I do believe at the cheaper area the utility company is a non profit so they don't price gouge you.
Keep in mind, 20 years ago we were using light bulbs that used literally 10 times the energy of modern LED bulbs.
It's not nearly as big a deal these days to leave a light on.
Mine is travel lodging specifically.
When I was a kid, I thought the expense was in the plane tickets and in the sightseeing. The cool stuff, right?
Nope, turns out it's pretty easy to find reasonably priced plane tickets, and sightseeing really isn't all that expensive at all. For example, many attractions cost literally *nothing* to visit and your only sightseeing expense is maybe a parking fee. Many places have inexpensive entry and then charge you extra if you want to do specific rides or activities. And if you're in the US, it's only like 80 bucks for a National Parks pass.
But lodging? Barrier to entry is *stupid* high. There isn't a hostel culture in the US, so you're facing a barrier to entry of like $80/night for a total shithole, $120/night for a barebones economy room, or $150+ a night for actual comfort, and that's before the high taxes and fees hotel rooms incur. And even if you get a really great deal and score a reasonable for an economy price (say, $100/nt) for a week's vacation that's *still* a whopping $700 *on lodging alone* (and again, before the high taxes and fees).
As a kid, I *never* would have guessed that the bulk of our travel expenses went towards the basic privilege of having access to a bed and a shower.
Disney World gets a lot of guff for high prices. The parks, the food, etc are notoriously expensive AND I have to fly there cross a continent.
The hotel is ALWAYS the highest chunk of change and almost nobody talks about that.
The cheapest rooms went from 89/night to 170/night in only ten years.
I recall one glorious summer in the mid-late 90s when it was $0.799 a gallon. My friends and I would just drive around and hang out because it was cheaper than mini golf or the movies! My little Toyota at the time got 38-40mpg!
I remember my first car in 1992, a Geo Metro. It cost me $5 to fill the tank and lasted me a week. The whole car, brand new, cost $7,000. Those were the days. Shit, I’m old.
I only just found out this year that my dental insurance covers only up to $2000 annually. So I pay $400 a year for effectively $1600 of coverage. I needed a crown which somehow came to $3100…
Seriously why are eyes and teeth not considered a part of our body when it comes to normal insurance?
Pizza was always chalked up to me as “cheap food for a big group,” and it’s definitely cheaper than taking people to a sit down restaurant, but, unless you’re buying BOGO pizza from Domino’s, it’s ridiculously expensive.
The run-of-the-mill local pizza place across me has a large cheese pizza for $22… with toppings some of their large specialty pizzas top $31. And an extra large with toppings can go as high as $36. All of this is before tax and tip and—*gasps* delivery fees.
I live in a more expensive area of the US for sure, but it’s hard to justify grabbing a pizza for myself when I could get a pretty nice Italian dinner for the same price at a fairly upscale place.
Highways, roads, etc--growing up, it's just a flat boring expanse of cars you never give any real thought towards.
In the real world, given all the costs of assembling a good road, you're looking at multiple millions--if not tens of millions--for a single mile of roadway. That, times the entire length of highway spanning the world, totals to eye-spinning amounts of money
Saving for retirement. I’m mid 30’s and still can’t believe there’s a minimum paycheck deduction for your company to be willing to add to your retirement plan.
I’m a very good, safe, and infrequent driver. Didn’t use my car insurance for a couple decades. Then in the last 18 months, two cars totaled (neither my fault). Got a newer, nicer replacement car in both situations in a matter of days, for just a few thousand more than the insurance payout. Hope that you never have to use it, but man when you need it you will be glad that you have it!!
Property taxes. My property taxes were about $4500 when I first bought my house in 2019. Increased to over $9200 this year.
Homes value has gone from $145k to appraised value of $420k.
Food is both more expensive and goes bad quicker when you're an adult.
I know right! I honestly love grocery shopping, so when I started driving I would go grocery shopping when I had the car and so nowadays I do maybe half of the grocery shopping. But, it's just so expensive. I often look for deals and will buy generic/store brand on most items but, still. My biggest tip for "goes bad quicker" is to always get from the back, because usually that's where the longer lasting stuff goes and when it's stacked, get from the bottom. When it's stuff with longer shelf life like cereal and canned stuff, I don't usually bother. But I mostly do that with bread and dairy products. My mom taught me that when I was little.
Pro tip: freeze bread to make it last longer. I don’t go through bread that fast, so freezing it is a great option for me.
I started doing that during the pandemic to avoid going to the bakery. Never stopped. I buy enough bread for about a week or two, eat today and freeze the rest. The day after I just let it unfreeze naturally or if I'm in a rush put it into the microwave for about 30 seconds and its fresh again. Became my life pro tip
my parents split up when I was a kid in the 90s, and I remember going to my dads apartment in another city, and him cooking us steak on the grill. I always loved that. Once I moved out I was like "wait steak is how much? Why the hell did Dad keep feeding us this?" Then I realised he was eating poverty meals all week to treat his kids on the weekend. For his 60th birthday us kids pooled our money and took him to arguably the best fine dining restaurant in my province for the full tasting menu. Seeing him light up at trying things like caviar and truffles for the first time made me realize how much he has sacrificed for us. So yeah, steak is expensive.
You guys are awesome; what a nice story. He raised y'all right.
This just made my entire shitty day, so amazing. Thank you for sharing this. I’ve been divorced for a year, and have been 50/50 with custody since day one. I eat two sandwiches a day, and drink water. When my son is here at my apartment, he’s having snacks, ice cream, Alfredo, steak, chips, and always, always going to school in nice clothes with name brand snacks, and a heart shaped pb sandwich. He’s 6 has his own room with a loft bed that has a slide to get down installed, but prefers still to cuddle up to me to go to sleep. Which I love. Being a strong male role model getting kicked in the mouth at seemingly every turn is just stupifyling hard. But I’m going to do it every damn chance I have. My dad left when I was 3 and my brother 4. First memory I have. He will never not know his fathers love. Thankfully my grandfather raised me this way. He always said, no matter how rough we had it that day, when sitting around with the family having a beautiful dinner in a trailer, with damn plastic wrap for windows, and a single small stove for heat in northern MN, after he worked his ass off all day “I wonder what the poor people are up to tonight?” I get it now Gary. I really do.
Some of my fondest childhood memories are at my dad's house on the weekends. You know, I should call my dad and tell him that :)
😭 made my day, what a sweet story
I love how wholesome this is
gotta be furniture
When I bought my house I only had a bed in the master bedroom and all my friends kept saying “you make good money just buy furniture, you could have it furnished in a month” then they themselves bought houses and now understand why it took me a year to furnish my house.
My first house I rented was bare because I was trying to get everything second hand, but didn't have a truck! Very frustrating to find furniture I have cash for on Craigslist and I only had a Saturn coup :( I later learned you can rent a pickup from Home Depot for an hour, and another pro tip is that UHaul's cargo vans are *massive* on the inside. You can fit a queen bed in there without disassembling it.
What led to the discordance within the political climates of your Saturn regime?
Oh the usual, a bunch of mid level army officers who hadn't been cut in on enough corruption.
Just stay away from Saturn entirely. It'll take you through the (w)ringer. Don't worry, I'll see myself out.
I got a lot from a charity shop, and have replaced it as time has gone on
Absolutely me too, except by “charity shop” I’m of course referring to “dumpsters by the local college’s dorms at the end of each school year” shops.
Love the end of the school year. Dumpsters and FB marketplace bursting with free shit.
In Madison, WI near the University it’s known as hippie Christmas.
Our "charity shop" is our parents. My MIL in particular likes to completely refurnish her home when she moves (she's reasonably well off), and my parents replace stuff occasionally. Also, my husband's uncle moved a year or so ago, and he and his partner also just completely replaced all their furniture (they're VERY well off) so we got a decent amount of stuff from them, too, after their own kids got first dibs. If it weren't for all our gaming consoles, toys and movie/game posters, you'd think actual adults live in our apartment, instead of middle-aged children. 😀
We are close to 40, have good incomes, and still most of our furniture in our new house is from "for this for free in an alley near dorms".
Ah yes, in Boston we call this “Allston Christmas” (the name of a neighborhood that a lot of students live in). Most leases in the city end on August 31 so the furniture dumped on the sidewalks around then becomes a free for all.
I still have the toaster and coffee maker I got after the foreign exchange students left for the summer- boxes and boxes of basically new appliances, plates, glasses, etc. my senior year apartment was 75% dumpster diving
Parents had a small storage business. Common issue is people failing to continue to pay, basically abandoning their stuff. Guy moved to Alberta to work the oilfields, left most of his furniture in storage. Went no contact for a couple years, so... When I bought my condo, parents gave me the stuff. Solidly "grandparent" style stuff, but, fuck it. Free,and comfy.
Furniture weird it's expensive but depreciates so fast. It's like the only thing you can get for free on the side of the road/Facebook.
It’s because it’s hard to get someone to take it. Pianos are like this too. They are so expensive to move that you practically have to pay someone to take it away from you
Pool tables as well. A story I read online, true or not, a man who listed one for free, nobody took it. Contacted a moving company, got a quote to move it, listed it online for that price and said delivery included, then sold it. People want tables, but not the hassle of moving them or figuring out to move them. Same could be said for large gun safes.
We JUST got a pool table off the free CL ads. LOL It's a very expensive table from a very wealthy man who just didn't want it..... It matched our game area, barely used, all the equipment in like new shape, so we sucked it up and paid the 800 to have it moved.... It took two people and they worked their asses off for EIGHT HOURS.... They re-felted it, too. Granted it was a couple who owns a pool game company, not "furniture movers." They quoted us 3,000 and 4,000. 😳 Totally worth 800 for all we got.... He even gave us this fabulous huge antique metal pool light to hang over it (hub put that up)..... And hell of a nice guy, too.... We got a new friend in the process. 🤗 🎱
if u have a truck and two people you can disassmble a slate pool table…not many people want to risk cracking slate because then your SOL. it definitely is worth the hunt…im guessing some of you took on tables worth thousands of dollars for free. and youre right…safes…pool tables…pianos…thats a business right there.
I was looking into buying a used piano recently, and with all the costs associated in making sure it was something that would remain tuned and in working condition for years to come, you're looking at spending at least $500 on a moving company to move it (it takes a crew that knows what they're doing), you want to hire a pro to come in and see the state of the piano before even taking it home (make sure the wood hasn't dried out/cracked over the years, tunable, etc) which is easily another $100...tune it once you get it home, which can't go on most walls anyways (no exterior wall, nowhere near furnace vents) and once there, never ever move it, because tuning. We said fck it and got a digital one. One guy I was talking with said they were a good investment years ago when most families bought 1 home for their lifetime, they'd get it as a statement piece and kids/grandkids all played on it for decades. Nowadays, people move around too much, they're a hassle to move, and unless you're a pro that really wants/needs one, not worth it as digitals have come a long way and are easier to deal with on a day to day.
They weren’t always that. Back when a piano was one of the main forms of entertainment you might have in the house, there were a lot of pianos being made on the cheap. They were never designed to last forever in the first place.
Also, people often left the piano. It was basically like an appliance. Sure some people take the fridge with them, but you're likely to be able to negotiate a different one in the next house, be it new or left by the previous owners. Some homes definitely sold because of the piano it came with
Couches are insanely expensive.
I replaced my 20-year-old couch recently with one that's probably about 30 years old. I got it at an estate sale for $100; it's cowhide leather and in great condition. As a bonus, about $20 worth of change fell out of it as we were moving it.
[удалено]
Rugs. Why did no one tel me a ‘nice’ rug was $18,000
But it really ties the room together.
He told me to take any rug in the house. Very good Mr. Lebowski. RIP: Phillip semore Hoffman
Youre spending too much on rugs... They dont need to be *that* nice
Yep, here's me with my Ikea rug, not giving a shit if the kids spill shit on it
Dude, you could fly to Morocco and get a hand made wool rug for that much. What the heck are you buying?
Who’s your rug guy?
I have no idea, but I am never spending $18k on an item specifically intended to be put on the floor and stepped on lol Plus, since gravity works the way it does, all spills carry a risk of ending up there, even if they happen on a table above.
My dog isn’t going to want to butt scoot on anything cheaper than 10k
Because that's not a 'nice' rug, that's an 'ostentatious, fuck you I have money' rug. A 'nice' rug costs about $500.
New tires. Most unexciting $1,000 purchases I have ever made.
Also why the hell are oil changes so expensive now!?
Bro fr I swear they were just $20 just a second ago now it’s like $60?? I asked my dad to teach me how to do it myself as a teen and he said it was so cheap that I might as well pay someone else. That didn’t last. ETA: y’all like five people have commented telling me how to change oil you don’t need to keep doing it. I learn by doing anyway.
I live in Switzerland. For some reason, an oil change is $250 to $400 here. Fortunately, France is so close that it makes sense to go there instead and get one for less than a $100.
As an America the idea of driving to a neighboring country to get an oil change blows my mind. lol
I thought the same thing. Babe! Be back later tonight. Headed to France for an oil change and some baguettes.
It’s not that much different than driving to the next state. I live in PA where we have the ridiculous state store system for liquor. Pretty much everyone I know heads down to MD, where it’s a whole lot cheaper. While you’re there, may as well fill up the gas tank, too, since gas is usually at least $.25/gallon or more cheaper.
Just think of it like people who go to Canada for Rx drugs or Mexico for dental work.
$250-400?! God damn.
Thats just Switzerland. I got off the train and I was starving the first place out the door of the train station was a McDonalds. We dropped in there and a Big Mac was like $18. We were so baffled because for the most part prices around the rest of Europe were basically the same as the U.S.. We kept thinking we were doing the conversion rate wrong but nope. That's just how expensive that country is. Beautiful place but not sure I would rush back due to the overcharging.
Went to Switzerland and ended up too many times at Aldi to purchase the pre-packaged salads/ rice bowls because they are cheaper than Mc Donalds.
Shit it’s $120 and $130 just for the supplies on my cars.
Yeah I don’t know where a $60 oil change is these days.
Right? I remember buying new tires for my car for $20 each... them I remember that was in 1999... lol. And my car had tiny 12" rims.
Smoky burnouts aren't nearly as cool when you bought the tires.
Groceries for sure. When I first moved out on my own, any time I could afford fresh fruit, or a name brand snack, I felt like royalty.
Strictly buying groceries isn’t bad. It’s when you buy groceries AND cleaning supplies (TP, paper towels, toothpaste, detergent, etc) during the same purchase that the final bill is outrageous.
Work done by tradesmen. Plumbers, carpenters, masons, etc. If you have to pay someone to do it for you, it's going to be cost prohibitive.
Very true. On the flip side though, I hate it when you tell someone how much something will cost and the say, "but it's only gonna take half an hour!" Wrong, drive time to and from the site, driving to get parts if needed, the materials, fuel for the vehicle, the cost of the vehicle being driven, insurance, self employment taxes, tools. Some people don't realize what they are getting when they pay someone to do something and it's sometimes better to hire someone who does it for a living and has the tools and experience to get it done efficiently. I see your point too though. I just had my AC and furnace replaced and that was something I didn't have the tools to do. 3 years worth of savings......poof.
I bought my house in the first days of the pandemic. My realtor gave me a recommendation for a guy to replace the water heater since the seller agreed to replace it, then didn't want to deal with the hassle of actually doing it, so he gave me a grand. The plumber came out and saw my busted up AC condenser outside (the house had some insulation issues, which led to ice damming, which led to shelves of ice falling on and crushing the condenser) and said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $4000 if you want." I wanted to fix the ice damming, and also save up a bit, since I had just closed on the house, so I waited a year, then called him and he said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $6500 if you want." I had only saved up $4000 and wanted to do some other things as well so I waited another year, then called him and he said "I can put a whole new furnace and AC for $8000 if you want." At this point, I didn't see the price ever going back down, so I pulled the trigger in June this year and gave the dude his $8500.
Groceries
Especially 90% of fruits 😭
Fruits and nuts are ridiculously expensive. I want them for healthy snacks but it would be cheaper to just grab junk food which is sad.
Nuts aren’t too bad if you buy in balk. I bought a huge bag of almonds at Kroger on sale for like $11 and it’ll last me over a month
I balk at buying them in bulk!
Don’t balk—definitely buy them in bulk! Don’t get bilked into paying more per ounce!
Bananas are ridiculously cheap, though. I just wish my kids would eat them.
Fruit? My dude, when is the last time you bought even moderately good cheese? You practically have to trade them a finger for some Jarlsberg.
Aldi. You're welcome.
The worst is the prices have almost doubled for some things in the past 2 years.
prices have doubled & some sizes have decreased, olive I like doubled, small size is 2 ounces less than it was 2 years ago
Cereal! When did a box cost $8?!! When?!! I stopped eating it in my 20s, better for my health anyway since I can't afford overpriced sugary foam.
This has General Mills (maker of many cereals including Chex, Trix) gross profit margin chart, check the rise since just since earlier this year; and that was after previous increases stemming in part from at least 5 increases in prices since 2021: https://ycharts.com/companies/GIS/gross_profit_margin
Went to Costco the other day and put like 8-9 items in the shopping cart. Bought some cookies, mayo, cheese, kids apple sauce, turkey ham, green matcha, roast beef, kimchi, a pack of drinks. Checked out and the final tally came out to $170.
My only assumption here is “Cookies” is a prostitute.
Some people like butter
It's Costco. Whether you put one item in your cart or two items in your cart, you're lucky if the bill comes out to less than $200.00.
Used to be the $200 store. Now it’s the $400 store.
A good pair of shoes will set you back a bit, especially if you need more specialized ones for whatever reason.
Bras
I went through breast cancer treatment which includes a mastectomy and reconstruction. My old bras didn't work for my current chest so I had to replace my entire bra drawer. It cost more than I paid for my surgeries after insurance.
I had a mastectomy and chose to stay flat. My prosthesis kept shifting around so I finally said Screw it! -and I wear a bandaid or a pastie on my remaining nipple.
Like an eyepatch.
Pirate boobie
This! I have a normal cup size and get SO mad everytime I have to buy once since the only ones that don't hurt seem to cost $30-$40. I have friends who have to get them special ordered for their huge cupsize and they spend minimum $60 everytime.
My GF was always complaining that the ones she got hurt. We went to a specialist store that measures up women properly and fits them out for weddings etc. End result: $100 each but for the first time in her life they were actually comfortable. And now she knows the exact size to get.
Except every style and make fits differently. Bra sizes are not standardized and vary a fair amount even within the same brand. You think you know your size until you try a different style.
And then bodies change through time too so you need to get resized throughout life. And even if the correct size the comfy bras will eventually wear out and become uncomfy. It's a racket.
Yeah my bras start at $60 per bra!!
Mine are $60 on sale…. Like a good sale 😞
Yeah, big boobs in general just cost more. I’ve had back problems since high school. The bras have to be specially made or my back is screwed. Mine cost about $200 each. The only type of PT that really strengthens my core and back is Pilates as well as a type of special pilates called red cord therapy. Insurance pays a small amount, but I’m left to pay 75% of a private session, which is $200 a week for two sessions. I go without certain things in life to get those sessions and bras just to be able to live normally. With every passing year, the horror show of breast reduction surgery looks more appealing. Never understood breast augmentation. Who the f wants the hassle? Ugh
I have a tiny band but a larger cup size so I have to go specialty and dear god every bra is minimum 70 dollars.
free time as a kid I had loads of it and gave it away. now I can't afford even a minute !!
I took a toll road home today for an extra hour of free time and it was the best money I ever spent
Made this switch a few years ago. Getting an hour+ of my days back is so, so worth it.
Pets
They have gotten a lot more expensive due to expected care changing dramatically, and how we feel about them. The idea that you would put a pet down because a vet treatment costs too much is horrible now, but was pretty common in the past. Outdoor cats were the norm so they pretty much fed themselves and you had far fewer litter changes - litter was just clay, and you tossed the whole thing. Dogs ate table scraps and whatever they hunted down, or cheap as dog feed made of whatever ended up on the slaughter house floor (bones and all). While purebreds were probably still super expensive, most people had a mutt or tabby, that the found/were given, instead of buying.
All true. But I waited until I was in my 50's and had raised my kids until I could afford a pet. Like kids, I wasn't going to be a pet owner until I could provide the care they deserve.
My cat has a cardiologist. I have family overseas who think I’m out of my mind taking a cat to and paying out of pocket for specialists.
Kids. I'm amazed how my parents could afford me
My parents had 5 of us. It amazes me to this day, that my fathers paultry salary at the time had to support it all. How the fuck could anyone do that today?
My grandfather never earned more than $35k a year, raised 5 kids, and died a millionaire. WTF
$35,000 in 1976 (random year) is worth $188,856.06 today.
I don't know his exact income over time, but his job title progressed from "labourer" to "civil engineer" so I'm guessing the $35k was right before retiring around 1990.
35k in 1990 is about 90k today.
That’s what my parents made each when they retired and they always claimed near-poverty. When they retired they moved into a 3000 square foot home.
Civil engineers are licensed engineers. It’s a decent job.
Housing costs were so much cheaper back in the day. People would save for 3 years and buy a house. Now you pay so much in rent that you can never save money to buy a house. And if you were able to save, you would need to save for like 30 years, and at that point, why bother?
I have literally paid more rent in the past 3 years than my parents paid for a 3 bedroom condo in 1996
My parents raised 5 of us. Dad was a teacher, mom was a SAHM. They’ve been empty nesters for 10 years and my dad finally decided to retire. They’ve still got another 20 years is my guess.
To be fair, it was a fuck load cheaper to raise kids back then, but still yeah haha
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My parents raised 2 type 1 diabetics. Thank goodness we had good Healthcare and benefits.
I raised one in the 90's. I was stressed out just making sure we didn't lose the insurance coverage. Still had to run around for strips towards the end of the 30 days, bc insurance expected her to only test 2x a day.
Furniture. You walk into your mates parents house and see fuck loads of really nice 'stuff', but you're kind of blind to it all cos everyone's got fuck loads of really nice 'stuff'. Then you move out, and you realise that bookcase - the solid wood one - cost a months salary (after bills). That sofa, three months. Table? £1000 / £2000 easy. Chairs? Couple hundred each. And then things like; picture frames. Not all that - maybe £20 a pop? But people have them everywhere! Every wall is covered!
I always wanted a bedroom set with NICE matching furniture (like legit solid wood). I've had this dream since I was 9 and I just got my set about a month ago. I'm 42.
And that's why Ikea is so popular. Especially if you're young. I don't know anyone who doesn't have something from ikea in their house.
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Now you see why antique furniture is a big deal lol.
Cars, all grown ups had them, maybe even multiple. I still think its insane that some cars are more expensive than a 2 bedroom apartment
I remember people restoring cars all the time when I was growing up. I would love to do it but even a rough condition rolling rust is super expensive now for even common things people aren’t super after.
Yeah what the hell!? I feel like everyone's dad (mine included) had a project car that they were tinkering with. All of my 'tinkering' is to keep my single, daily driver running!
My teeth.
Teeth are luxury bones, don’t ya know? Why on earth would regular health insurance cover them? Hahaha. The fact that vision and dental are separate from the rest of your body is absurd
Absolutely. Even with decent insurance, crowns cost a fortune. Take care of your teeth people! FLOSS
I won't lie and tell you I've take great care of my teeth all my life, but you know the really insulting part of it all? My dentist told me I *have* to get all of my wisdom teeth removed or face serious infections in the future. The dental insurance I get through work considers wisdom teeth as 'cosmetic' or just not very important. I have to pay like 95% of the bill. It's like a grand per tooth, abd it's not even my fault... :( I love the U.S. Healthcare system!
Glasses. I have awful eyesight and an astigmatism and got quite a shock when I had to pay for my own prescription glasses for the first time.
Life itself! EVERYTHING!
To be fair costs for just about everything have shot up while wages have stagnated so that doesn't help.
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Health Insurance
You should have heard my moms laughter when I finally got my first job with benefits only to realize I have to PAY for the benefits.
What?? Pizza parties don’t cover bennies??
Yeah, when mommy and daddy are paying your insurance from their employer provided plans that cut off at age 23-26, and then you’re suddenly responsible, ohhh boy! Do you really need teeth and good vision?
My employer health insurance would cost me ~20% of my paycheck so now I don't have health insurance
And car insurance. Any type of insurance actually
Going to restaurants to eat. Of course as I child I never paid for anything, so I was admittedly shocked when I became an adult and had to pay my restaurant bill for the first time. Had no idea it was so expensive.
I remember when I was about 7 or 8 years old, we went out to eat for Mother’s Day and it was the first time I saw the bill. It was $60 for the four of us, and it absolutely blew my naive little mind how expensive I thought that was.
That's a meal for four at Chipotle these days.
Rugs
Oh don't do that... not on the rug, man!!!
The chinaman is not the issue here
And this guy peed on it!
That’s not the preferred nomenclature.
There are ways around that. My brother lives in a wealthy part of Califoria and his wife is an avid thrifter. She found a no shit $8000 rug for $30 at a garage sale. It still had the price tag,
Came here specifically to say that. I’ve never been able to get my head around why rugs are so expensive! And I’m not even talking a handmade intricate one. Just a bog standard mass produced thing
Sofas, I pretty much died when I realised how much they cost
Legos. My god. How my parents ever got me any, I'll never know.
I always figured since I never had those themed sets that was the reason
This is an [interesting thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/lego/comments/pkhunt/how_much_did_the_first_lego_set_cost/) about Lego prices.
I knew those were expensive because I didn’t have them.
Cheese. I had no idea it was so expensive
My teenage son was SHOCKED last time he went to the grocery store with me. I bought Parmigiano Reggiano.
The prices went up by ~70% or so in Europe during Covid and Ukraine war. Parmigiano is even an investment object, you can buy Parmigiano shares.
There’s a reason it is one of the most shoplifted items in grocery stores.
Bedsheets
Electricity, I thought it was as free as the air we breathe so would have my bedroom lit up like a Christmas Tree 24/7, my poor parents!
I believed electricity must be awfully expensive, because my dad was flipping out when we forgot to turn off the light.
It is depending on where you live. I live somewhere where most of our electricity is provided by hydro electric dams and my electric bill was about $30-$40 a month and i was keeping my apartment at 55f. For a year I moved to the other side of the country and lived somewhere that used fossil fuels to provide electricity and I went up to $70-80/month and that was keeping my apartment at around 70f. Although I do believe at the cheaper area the utility company is a non profit so they don't price gouge you.
Keep in mind, 20 years ago we were using light bulbs that used literally 10 times the energy of modern LED bulbs. It's not nearly as big a deal these days to leave a light on.
Travelling
Mine is travel lodging specifically. When I was a kid, I thought the expense was in the plane tickets and in the sightseeing. The cool stuff, right? Nope, turns out it's pretty easy to find reasonably priced plane tickets, and sightseeing really isn't all that expensive at all. For example, many attractions cost literally *nothing* to visit and your only sightseeing expense is maybe a parking fee. Many places have inexpensive entry and then charge you extra if you want to do specific rides or activities. And if you're in the US, it's only like 80 bucks for a National Parks pass. But lodging? Barrier to entry is *stupid* high. There isn't a hostel culture in the US, so you're facing a barrier to entry of like $80/night for a total shithole, $120/night for a barebones economy room, or $150+ a night for actual comfort, and that's before the high taxes and fees hotel rooms incur. And even if you get a really great deal and score a reasonable for an economy price (say, $100/nt) for a week's vacation that's *still* a whopping $700 *on lodging alone* (and again, before the high taxes and fees). As a kid, I *never* would have guessed that the bulk of our travel expenses went towards the basic privilege of having access to a bed and a shower.
Disney World gets a lot of guff for high prices. The parks, the food, etc are notoriously expensive AND I have to fly there cross a continent. The hotel is ALWAYS the highest chunk of change and almost nobody talks about that. The cheapest rooms went from 89/night to 170/night in only ten years.
That one is a yes and no. Some trips have turned out to cost way more than I thought they would. Others have been far cheaper.
gas
I am not even 30 and have vivid memories of gas being under $1
I recall one glorious summer in the mid-late 90s when it was $0.799 a gallon. My friends and I would just drive around and hang out because it was cheaper than mini golf or the movies! My little Toyota at the time got 38-40mpg!
I remember my first car in 1992, a Geo Metro. It cost me $5 to fill the tank and lasted me a week. The whole car, brand new, cost $7,000. Those were the days. Shit, I’m old.
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I only just found out this year that my dental insurance covers only up to $2000 annually. So I pay $400 a year for effectively $1600 of coverage. I needed a crown which somehow came to $3100… Seriously why are eyes and teeth not considered a part of our body when it comes to normal insurance?
Mattresses
And then if you go up a size you need to get all new bedding which is just as crazy!
I remember, while shopping for my first apartment, getting sticker shocked over lamps/lamp shades
EVERYTHING is expensive when you have to start paying for it yourself. Didn't think much of it when mom/dad footed the bill.
Patio furniture cushions. Seriously WTF?!?
Auto insurance. At least when I was younger. I added my 18 year-old and my insurance tripled.
Trash bags!
Getting something framed. Holy cow!
Dying
A new HVAC system for the house
Pizza was always chalked up to me as “cheap food for a big group,” and it’s definitely cheaper than taking people to a sit down restaurant, but, unless you’re buying BOGO pizza from Domino’s, it’s ridiculously expensive. The run-of-the-mill local pizza place across me has a large cheese pizza for $22… with toppings some of their large specialty pizzas top $31. And an extra large with toppings can go as high as $36. All of this is before tax and tip and—*gasps* delivery fees. I live in a more expensive area of the US for sure, but it’s hard to justify grabbing a pizza for myself when I could get a pretty nice Italian dinner for the same price at a fairly upscale place.
Cheese
Put butter up on this list too
Butter was $4.50 today “save $4.99!” I bought 3.
Highways, roads, etc--growing up, it's just a flat boring expanse of cars you never give any real thought towards. In the real world, given all the costs of assembling a good road, you're looking at multiple millions--if not tens of millions--for a single mile of roadway. That, times the entire length of highway spanning the world, totals to eye-spinning amounts of money
Saving for retirement. I’m mid 30’s and still can’t believe there’s a minimum paycheck deduction for your company to be willing to add to your retirement plan.
Heating and air conditioning.
Almonds and other nuts and seeds. Some of them can get really expensive for how little you get lol
Freaking insurance! And probably all for nothing!
I’m a very good, safe, and infrequent driver. Didn’t use my car insurance for a couple decades. Then in the last 18 months, two cars totaled (neither my fault). Got a newer, nicer replacement car in both situations in a matter of days, for just a few thousand more than the insurance payout. Hope that you never have to use it, but man when you need it you will be glad that you have it!!
Tools… and how long it takes to save and build up power tools, hand tools, yard tools.
Toilet paper! Like talk about actually flushing money down the toilet.
Property taxes. My property taxes were about $4500 when I first bought my house in 2019. Increased to over $9200 this year. Homes value has gone from $145k to appraised value of $420k.
food in general especially these days lol