(Lack of) Money frustration

[theletterelle]

Backstory: I bought a car on credit. $5000. "Ha ha!" I said. "I'll have that paid off in less than a year! I can afford to pay $500 per month!" I did not factor into my decision the amount of interest I'd be paying, which is just over $300/month. Neither did I factor into my decision the fact that a month later, I'd be paying $930 for a new

Comments

[eac]

How can I achieve this happiness without spending money?

My theory (not that I've carried it out much)? Get things on freecycle and make things with them. Then you can acquire things for free.

[rednikki]

Ha! I said Freecycle too!

[rednikki]

Drugs.

HA HA HA. I jest.

There are ways to acquire without spending. Have you taken a look at Freecycle? It's addictive!

I achieve happiness by interacting with friends, by cooking, by gardening - by creating, in a lot of ways. Also, by figuring out how to get things for free. Because free? Is AWESOME.

ETA: Also, I've been poor for so long that spending more than $40 at a time makes me hyperventilate. No, really.

[nixieq]

besides, you generally have to PAY for drugs.

[corwynj]

Hobbies??? I had hobbies. I started my gardenlast spring. I was going for a Fall garden as well but I was too late to plant. I used the time I did shopping and buying things online playing online games. I also started excersising. I then moved onto updating and cleaning all my electronic publications websites and things I have been putting off.
And lastly I have been working so much overtime that I am too tired (only 2-3 days a week and not on my days off)to think of shopping.

[jessielyn]

Uh, what planet did you get this alternator on? They generally dont run almost a grand... I have a rare car that all parts places dont even have listed in their computer system and junkyards rarely have parts and my alternator was $140.

and if a shop charged you for that they probably got you good for at least $700 of "labor" alone (by markingup the product price as well) and if you did it yourself that alternator better be made out of platinum and encrusted with diamonds.... jesus...

[theletterelle]

*hides head in shame*

I went to the shop at the dealer. I know they overcharge, but I don't know any mechanics in the area, and it was all I could think of. I was panicking and trying to get to work (and in a town with no public transit, that's a hell of a pain in the ass.)

So yeah, I totally got taken to the cleaners. But I got my car back the next day.

If nothing else, this has taught me that I desperately need to learn how to fix my own car.

[jessielyn]

alternators are really easy to change on most cars. most have anywhere from 2-4 bolts holding it on and then a plug on the back so it charges the system... the trickiest part is getting the serpentine belt back on it right, but its easier to get it back on the alternator than anywhere else it connects to...

Ive been doing my own mechanical work for god... 8 years or more... been working on cars and learning since I was 5 or 6...

dealers will always kill you in charges... and so will a lot of mechanic shops too... I dont trust many myself anymore after having 3 give metotal nightmares in car problems they SUPPOSEDLY fixed, they instead just rigged them and i ended uplosing all my brakes on route 9 in NY where the speed limit varies from 30-55 in different spots.. I believe I was going 45-50 and had NO brakes.... fun fun.... since that very moment I have never set foot in a shop with any more issues.

What kind of car do you have?

[jessielyn]

ah, also, if i came off sounding like an ass... im sorry... lol

I just hate mechanic... and thats sad considering I want to go to school to get certified :/ kinda paradoxical... lol