@Tanner - SC Funny you mention that, I agree that "buying stuff just because you were used to having it around as a kid and felt every house needed one" I find is one of the biggest sources I've seen of stupid or regretted purchases. Especially as a college student you wind up hauling a ton of stuff that you will never even need anyway.

The way I buy tools is I get them when I need them. I work on a farm so it's a bit different for me since I do mechanical work all day on equipment that in some cases was built 30 years ago and reassembled by 3 different mechanics so I need a lot of tools, but most people honestly can get away with one of those cheap home sets.

I have also just bought tools as I needed them. You can get the vast majority done with a couple screwdrivers and a hammer. You also don’t really know what you don’t have until you need it, but such is the beauty of Walmart at 2am.

I’m not at the point in my life yet when I can afford one of those giant rolling metal tool caddies people have in their garages.

*Yet,* I can’t wait to become hank hill.

Oh, also you can buy a lot of kitchenware type stuff from the goodwill’s online store.

You can get those kitchenaid mixers for like. 1/5th the cost of retail.

Literally all I want to do is track my spending. I don't want to link my bank account and report my income and all that bullshit. Is there a good program to do this?

excel

Ya, I was thinking maybe just a spreadsheet

What's the best way to do this? A big long column? Separate columns for every month? Week? Is there a way to break it down by both week and month?

Probably, there's alot you can do with it, it just depends on how it makes sense to you

@Jacob I just use a spreadsheet, I can send my format to you if you want

I've never had the need to do this, I'm a bit 👃 'y with my money

I've always just saved and hardly spent

@Ben - OH Sure, that could help. Thanks.

I've always saved and barely spent, too, but now I'm living on my own, so it's a bit harder

understandable

Couldn't get any roommates?

Moreso that I didn't have to

And didn't want to

I get that

I'm not rich or anything, it's just that I live in a rural area, so rent is cheap enough that it's not really that big of an issue

I might get roommates once my lease ends, since I have a friend here now who is in a similar situation. But I would never become roommates with a stranger.

@Jacob Dave Ramsey, the home budgeting master, has an app to track spending that does not require linking a bank account.
<https://www.daveramsey.com/everydollar/>

"If you don't have an emergency fund built up, you should only be seeing the inside of a restaurant if you're *working* in it." - Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey is cool because he puts the most obvious, common sense financial literacy into the simplest of terms

@Tanner - SC thanks for sharing that, I had no idea he had an app.

Has anyone taken the insurance exam? Any idea of what to expect?

IIRC I think @ophiuchus has

Anybody here have any experience with homeowners insurance claims and/or fema disaster claims? Thanks to Florence, I lost my fence, most of my shingles, had driving rain and seepage come in on the windward side of the house. Also had a tree crash down on my shed, punctured the roof, some of my tools are kill...

Predict it offering 400% ROI if Kavanaugh confirmed by end of Sunday https://www.predictit.org/Contract/11361/Will-the-Senate-confirm-a-SCOTUS-nominee-in-September#data

80% ROI if Kavanaugh confirmed by end of October https://www.predictit.org/Market/4602/How-many-Yea-votes-will-Kavanaugh-receive-in-a-confirmation-vote-by-Oct-31 (Vote No on 49-

@ThisIsChris Thanks Chris!

@SamanthaM you're welcome!

Tl;dr I’ve got a bunch of damage, could’ve been much much worse. I’ve got homeowners insurance, and wind/hail. I have filed a claim and the adjuster is coming in the morning.

My question is, does anyone have any experience applying with FEMA for disaster assistance or an SBA loan? I’m very reluctant to apply for any kind of assistance, I’m also worried about getting myself in a bind financially. Even with insurance, i simply cannot afford several thousand dollars in extra cost/deductible. I am the sole provider currently, as my wife stays home with our 2 year old son and 5 month old daughter. We do not spend frivolously, and we’ve got a small savings, which I would rather not erase completely on a deductible and miscellaneous cleanup costs. The FEMA website certainly makes it very clear that even “undocumented immigrants” can receive assistance if they have a “child who is a citizen” but I have a sneaking suspicion that any gov’t funds will be prioritized for basically everyone besides white taxpaying families.

I apologize for the wall of text, I’ve never filed an insurance claim before, and I certainly don’t want to let my insurance company get away with not taking care of my home.

@ThisIsChris You think he'll be confirmed?

@Jacob absolutely, he had 55-56 senators lined up before the harassment allegations, and they've all fallen apart now. No one is willing to confirm any of them, not even the accusers, and Kavanaugh actually has documentation he couldn't have even been at the parties where these events allegedly happened.

All that's left now is some cope posting by the media, Republican leadership have been playing this very tactfully always being beyond respectful of the accusers, and have still scheduled their vote for Friday. Senate cloture rules require them to allow 30 hours for debate which will mean the real vote will probably happen Saturday afternoon