Vinyl Me Please (store, exclusives, swaps, etc)

Lord Diaper Baby said:
As far as keeping track of what you're spending - and I admit my technique may be a little OCD but it works - I use the calculator and notepad on my phone.

Every time I make a purchase (only discretionary spending; this does not include constants like bills, mortgage, savings, etc) - be it in-person or online; cash or credit - I add it to a running tally on the calculator. It only takes a second. Then when I have a moment I'll quickly add it to the notepad (in case the calculator erases by accident) - usually I give it the notepad treatment at the end of the day or after a larger purchase.

This way I know exactly where I am with my weekly WANTS spending budget; rather than a bunch of vague numbers floating around where I'm unsure of how well I'm staying on track w/ budget, I know (down to the cent) how much I've spent.

Like I said it's perhaps a bit anal, but it works and it allows me to keep a ledger where I know exactly how much money I have to my name (cause a bank statement isn't going to include pending credit card payments). Albeit I don't live anywhere close to the financial edge, but it's a habit I adopted in my 20's and I find it has kept me fiscally honest and have to face up to tangible proof if I'm spending too crazy.
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This is a great system, and one that I used to use as well to track everyday spending. I've since migrated my tracking to Mint budget tracker. It compiles all my online accounts and gives me real-time snapshots of where I am broken out by financial class or customizable categories. It also tracks certain assets as well which can give you an overview of your debt to asset ratio which can be helpful at times. I just take a look at my reports a couple times a week to ensure that I'm not getting near my self-imposed budget on any of my FIN classes. Then once a month I'll do a deep dive.

So far, its been working well.
 
wynn72 said:
Been there. I'm happy with where I'm at now but it hurts to think about how much less my mortgage or how much higher my retirement would be, if I learned some of these lessons earlier.
Still think basic financial management and investment concepts should be taught as general requirements in school as opposed to things like Algebra and Cursive, but whatever.
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I think it should be a requirement like Health or Phys Ed. You're going to get lots of glazed over faces as the kids don't care except making money, money, money. But if you could plant some seeds, it would help. I say that but my dad was a very frugal man. He never splurged on things short of vacations. My grandmother once joked with him that he wasn't going to take his money with him when he moved on from this life. You would think that would've trickled down to me but it really didn't. I was caught up in wanting things but not being patient enough to buy them when I could afford to. And then credit cards became an option. Each person has to find out the hard way just how good and bad credit can be. I'm just happy to be at a point where we only spend what we have. We do use credit cards with points for pretty much any purchase, even utilities. But we don't ever carry a balance or if we did in the past couple years, we'd put it on a zero % balance transfer card.
 
Tyr said:
This is a great system, and one that I used to use as well to track everyday spending. I've since migrated my tracking to Mint budget tracker. It compiles all my online accounts and gives me real-time snapshots of where I am broken out by financial class or customizable categories. It also tracks certain assets as well which can give you an overview of your debt to asset ratio which can be helpful at times. I just take a look at my reports a couple times a week to ensure that I'm not getting near my self-imposed budget on any of my FIN classes. Then once a month I'll do a deep dive.

So far, its been working well.
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I'll have to take a look at that. Admittedly, mine is a very rudimentary system but I'm super comfortable with it and never wished it could do more for me - I mean, it's a calculator and notepad so it's pretty much at its ceiling.

I do keep an excel tracker tabbed out for my budget calculations (that only changes when I get a raise or new recurring expense) and breakdown; a ledger tab where I deduct expenses and keep a real account of how much money I have ('cause as discussed, a bank statement is not accurate); ROTH IRA (I should also add a tab for my employer 401K but I never have); mutual funds; brokerage account; and monthly utility expenses.

It's not high tech but I feel like I always have an exact pulse on where I am financially and I like that.
 
mdmost said:
I think it should be a requirement like Health or Phys Ed. You're going to get lots of glazed over faces as the kids don't care except making money, money, money. But if you could plant some seeds, it would help. I say that but my dad was a very frugal man. He never splurged on things short of vacations. My grandmother once joked with him that he wasn't going to take his money with him when he moved on from this life. You would think that would've trickled down to me but it really didn't. I was caught up in wanting things but not being patient enough to buy them when I could afford to. And then credit cards became an option. Each person has to find out the hard way just how good and bad credit can be. I'm just happy to be at a point where we only spend what we have. We do use credit cards with points for pretty much any purchase, even utilities. But we don't ever carry a balance or if we did in the past couple years, we'd put it on a zero % balance transfer card.
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I feel lucky in that sense - my mother and father instilled in me a sense of financial responsibility and the very real correlation that a luxury bought represents time out of your life (i.e. the hours at work it took to earn that money). I think if people thought that way it might change the way they spend. $5 at Starbucks every morning? Well, you make (e.g.) $20 an hour so is that coffee worth 15 minutes of work to you? $30 record - gotta work 1.5 hours to buy that. I think if we thought of it that way it may change our habits. And, of course, often the answer is "yes" that it is worth that time at work. But I'd hope someone wouldn't buy, for example, every single exclusive VMP comes out with when they think of it that way and would become discerning with their expenditures.

My nana used to also tell me not to buy anything on a credit card that I couldn't afford outright. She looked at them the same way that I do - a convenience and certainly never a workaround for not having funds in hand.

Schools don't want kids to learn financial responsibility. Then they'd be, ya know, more financially responsible.
 
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I don’t know much about credit cards but I’ve been happy with the Alaska Airlines card. They’re a great airline and offer good options for flights tofrom the west coast, including coast-to-coast routes (i live in DC, but my parents are in PDX). I trust them way more than United/American/Delta. I’ve never ever experienced rudeness or lost bags with Alaska. Prices for flights are best on tuesday mornings about 10 weeks in advance of your planned trip.

Exhibit A: Last summer, I was flying from DC to PDX and, 10 hours or so before my departure time, they emailed to say my flight was oversold and would I be willing to take a different flight. They put me on another flight that left at the same exact time from the same airport and gave me $550 voucher for the “inconvenience” (which was more than the cost of the flight).

They also have usb and regular wall outlets at every seat and free streaming of hundreds of movies to your devices.

Anyway, the card has a $75 annual fee but allows you waive the $25 fee for your first checked bag, so after 2 round-trip flights in the year I’ve saved a net $25.

You also get one “companion fare“ each year where your second ticket on the same flight (if you book them together) is only like $100, regardless of how much the first ticket cost.

And you earn miles and all that good stuff.

The card is through Bank of America, and I already had a checking account with them, so it’s convenient to see both accounts in the same BofA app, and really easy to make/ schedule payments from my checking.
 
sylvian said:
I'm not lol, I just sent that myself. I fucking wish they'd actually respond.
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so still no response regarding my lost record ... BUT... I did get an email from Jason -
Hey there,

Thanks for the feedback, we totally understand. We hope you'll stick around and take advantage of the bridge offer, but we understand if you need to cancel. Over the last several years, we have made significant investments into the quality of our products, including the details of the package, and the quality of the sound. Despite these investments, we have not increased our prices in more than 3 years, making it hard for us to maintain (and continue to invest in the overall experience) without sacrificing quality. We do appreciate your feedback, and I will be sure share your notes with our team. We will continue to invest in the overall experience and hope that you'll join us again sometime soon.

Not sure I know what a Bridge offer even is... AND I just got notice that my Fiona's, Bar Kays, Lord Finesse and Donald Byrd have shipped. Hmmmm. Not BVSC though. And still no mention of my wandering record... OK, OK I will admit, it is Joey Dosik. :) that is missing for a month. what? I watched Vulfpeck's Madison Square Garden and thought Dosik was good. And it was on sale for 11 bucks. LOL
 
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Joe Mac said:
I agree but self control is the key. If you know you don’t have it then I think that the default position is to not have one.

I’ll be honest with you and say that over here rewards aren’t as attractive and good value financing is obtainable by shopping around more than through already having a credit card/financial product with the company.

I have my credit card for foreign currency transactions, purchase insurance on larger items, emergencies and last, and least, buying something that I might not have the money for now but that I will have the money for by the following statements repayment date.
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Ghost said:
New to the world of rewards credit cards, I have only used my credit card thus far for the occasional vinyl purchase and emergencies/unexpected costs like parking tickets or vet bills and stuff like that. My credit is pretty good all things considered (750 neighborhood) ... are there any specific rewards cards you advocate for or that are the most popular options. I’m sure I can ask google but since I got ya here!
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I use a CC for everything. Give me all the points. I never carry a balance.
 
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