I am paying down usurious credit card debt before worrying about saving.

I would note that what the writer of that article does in terms of her personal savings just isn’t achievable for all people due to wages or other circumstances.  Even so her point is well taken and I’m fortunate enough to where I’m able to do the same in terms of savings.  Even as I am saving and such I still worry about finances, that’s just the way I am and probably the reason I’ve managed to save well so far (on top of being lucky and getting a good job).

It is downright shocking that on top of the fact that wages haven’t kept up with inflation over the last 5 years (or so they say) people are still packing away the debt.  Watching TV it seems like taking on debt is fun, and just part of the culture.  It probably is.

I’d like to see some mandatory personal economics classes implemented in the school systems or something like that.  It’s not a total fix but it’s not like I know what else can be done.  There was an alternate class in High School that I took that dealt with such things.  It was downright disturbing how few people could balance an imaginary checkbook, understood how interest rates worked, or any of that stuff.   I don’t doubt it is still the same with adults these days.

I also wonder what will happen when the personal debt stuff hits the fan.  Ugly.  Even if people started paying that stuff off and living within their means . . . would the economy tank?
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Anyway, Bob, I'm sure you max out your 401(k) too.. But there is that nagging feeling of looking around at folks who know are in hock beyond there eyeballs, but are enjoying it.. Currency crisis such that the dollar becomes worthless (Thanks fed gvt for your poor trade policies and incessant borrowing), govt taxes going to eat up all your stored cash, inflationary worries eating away at your gains, etc. Makes you wonder..

Grandma was a feeder, huh ? They've got websites for those folks now..

Monkey's sister in-law is one of these "beyond all possible means" living people. She and her husband had to file for bankruptcy right before they changed the law to make it more difficult to file for bankruptcy. And, when she got her tax return this year, she went insane. It was the first spending money they'd had since the filing. And suddenly she's right back to trying to find ways to crawl back into debt. Luckily, no one will give her a credit card at the moment.

It's a scary thing, but most people just aren't bright enough to stop listening to their corporate masters who are telling them that the only way to be happy is to spend every red cent they ever made, or will make for the next fifty years. You gotta spend it to be happy, you know? Or at least, that's what they want us to believe.

I'm a big believer in percentages. I have some acquaintances that have really improved their spending habits just by cutting out using the credit cards and only spending what they've got in checking. But, they still ride that line. Paycheck to paycheck. Meanwhile, they hear me say things like, "I can't afford that until next paycheck" and they think that re-affirms their behavior. When what I could say is, "The percentage of my pay I allow myself to use for frivolous things has hit its limit until the next time my paycheck is issued." It's all about the percentages. You work out the percentage ratio that you can live with, and it's pretty easy to save.

Sadly, most folks won't ever get past the stage of saying, "Someday, I'll save a little money. But, right now, there's that shiny object."

As for your fish: Yeah. Two of a single Cichlid species is a very bad thing. Especially in the case of African Lake Cichlids, as you showed pictures of a day or two back. It's either one per species, or massive groups. (Where massive group is any group greater than four.) You gotta spread that dammage around between a group, or the small groups will just rip each other to shreds because they don't have enough distractions to break up the big fights.