How many deal with Financial stress? (credit cards, loans, payments, real estate)

[Yorkie_Mom]

I guess with us, we have always had to live on a tight budget, with my husband paying out child support and all, then things got a little better in the 90's when I was also making good money.
We thought we were doing great having $50,000 saved up in our savings, our house paid off, just a two bedroom not a big nice house by any means, but paid off, and a van, and a car all paid for.
Well we bought the van for $6,000 and my car was new back in 96 except for my car was a 95 and that is why I got a good deal on it for $7,000 not bad. I was going through a depressing time and went shopping when I was feeling down, well that lead to trouble, pretty soon our $50,000 went down to $10,000.
In the last three years I haven't been able to work due to fibromyalgia and RA, along with other health problems, so I now will be getting SSD starting this month. My husband was injured in a forklift accident two years ago, he has had ulnur nerve surgery on the right arm, left rotator cuff surgery, he needs the right side done yet, and has had a three level neck surgery done in May of last year, he still needs lower back surgery done.
His doctors have now said he will never be able to return to work, so we have been making it off of his work comp for two years, cashing in the last of CD'S that we had in the bank. So much for our dream, so yes we know what it is like to be under stress. As far as our marriage, not much of that left either, he blames me for my health problems, and I kind of blame him for not being able to take care of his daughter and I.
I hate to put my life out there for you all to see, but if I could change anything, I would have moved away from here at an early age, and then maybe my life would have turned out different.

[stellar9]

I did leave MN at a young age. Moved to California when I was 19. Met the man I soon married and if you see my above post, things have not been peachy for us over the years (been married 21 years). I'm sorry you've been going through a tough patch. Those of us who have it tough usually suffer from a combination of making stupid decisions and things just happening at the wrong time. In my thinking, we should have left California years ago before we got priced out.

Micki

[Yorkie_Mom]

Originally Posted by stellar9

I did leave MN at a young age. Moved to California when I was 19. Met the man I soon married and if you see my above post, things have not been peachy for us over the years (been married 21 years). I'm sorry you've been going through a tough patch. Those of us who have it tough usually suffer from a combination of making stupid decisions and things just happening at the wrong time. In my thinking, we should have left California years ago before we got priced out.

Micki

Sorry to hear that you also are having a rough time, we have been together for 23 years, you would think things would get better, in our case I guess not.
I agree with making to many bad choices, I will be the first to admit that, I guess part of my problem was a father who died when I was young and having a abusing mother who had her favorites, I not being one of them, but I was like Cinderella in my younger years, haven't found the rich so to speak Prince charming lol. I guess we just live day to day to see where it gets us.
I hope you will be able to move, and find some place you can call heaven, I guess anyone that can handle the state of Minnesota is great in my book. Take care and good luck!!!!!!!!

[Kathleenh54]

The egregious thing about this country is that health issues should not mean financial ruin for a family. It is a shameful aspect of life in the USA.

Even for people like us with great coverage, it is still a PAIN IN THE A$$. We paid our premiums but there was a 'snafu' and the policy was inadvertently cancelled. Our medications were cancelled. The doctors sent faxes explaining why we needed them but since our policies were 'cancelled', the insurance companies tossed them. Now the glitch has been fixed but the doctors have to re-fax all the information to them. HUH? We are paying through the nose (and various other orifices) for this coverage and still have to jump through hoops to get medicine we've been receiving for several years? It is disgraceful.

Another thing, while I'm on a roll here. Advertising. We are saturated with it, everywhere you go. Even watching sports on tv, the stadiums have ads on the walls, under home plate, on the tennis nets, etc. Companies make us think we NEED their products. Most of what we buy are luxuries. If you can afford them, fine. If you go into debt for them, that's not fine. Now we expect to have a certain standard of living and if we don't we are 'losers'. All of us could use a little help getting past that, especially our kids.

Rant over; no charge. :-D

[Tjukken]

wel im not from the states. but somehow i still post in this forum.

Financel stress yeah i know about that. (i gone use nkr norwegian kroner in this post. so it will look high. but its not.. coz stuf costs more. and it goes like 6 - 7 nkr per Dollar)

After bills ive been siting with less than 300 nkr... that meens that my dinner rearly costs more than 6 nkr. That meens that my lunch cant cost more than 3.6 nkr.

So well. tomato suppe costs 6 nkr and one "bag" thingy just fill with water. i can have for 3 days. that meens i can buy 1 bread per week. and some cheese.
And once a while i can afford me a some Coca Cola. or like to day i had saved up to one beer. cant remember last time.

only lux i have is this internet connection. and my tv. (via satelite) and a celphone who i need to work. tho i have to pay for. (well i geet back what i used workrelated)
I have for the first time got me a smal credit card loan. i kinda had to.. uknow for surviving. tho it is like kicking my self in the rear..

anywhy i have lived like this for 5 years now. luckly we got by law 4 weeks payd wacation here... those 5 weeks i dont use my car. so i use the gas money for me instead. to nicer dinners. and putting some to the side. for the rest of the year.

it have been hard real hard.. but to day my bos said that i gona have 4 or 5000 nkr higer pay per month. starting 01.02.07. I also gona geet more per mile cover for using private car att work... so from next month. my stress realy shud ease up a bit.

Oh and the best way for pep in financal stress. just ignore it.. forget it.. if ur in like i have/had it. u cant do anything.. exept buying absolutly the cheapest. and dont by clothes. if ur carfuel jeans and most other clothes holds for 5 years.

TJ..

[Sonnenwende]

Isn't Norway one of the most expensive countries to live in on the planet period? Though I watched on a docu program here in Germany that you all have it made from a social services perspective.

I think Norway is gorgeous, but the price of a beer makes me keel over.

[Tjukken]

Originally Posted by Sonnenwende

Isn't Norway one of the most expensive countries to live in on the planet period? Though I watched on a docu program here in Germany that you all have it made from a social services perspective.

I think Norway is gorgeous, but the price of a beer makes me keel over.

yah. u realy have to know what to buy when u want dinner for 6 nkr... (its only tomato supe.)

if u buy a beer in an avrage pub. u ll end up paying 45 - 80 nkr for 0.4 L ($ 7 to $12 i think)

If u go in a supermarket u can geet a 6 pack from about 70 nkr to 125 nkr.

Tj..

[Sonnenwende]

Jeeze. I can get a six pack of Jever for about 2.89€ + deposit. I got about 26 nkr from that when I converted kroner to euro. Ouch.

Hehe, well, anyway, this thread isn't about international beer price comparisions. LMAO!

[GoPadge]

Continuing the beer sidetrack....

When I was in Ecuador in '96 a six pack of the local brew was $0.25, a six pack of Miller Genuine Draft was $0.50 and a six pack of Corona was $6.25. Back home in Florida MGD was about $4.00 and Corona was $6.00.

Which makes buying beer somewhat stressful.

[Sonnenwende]

I understand the sticker shock. We pay about $3.90 (beer + about .48 € bottle deposit) for a six pack of Beck's here. In the US, we had to pay $12.49 on sale for a twelve pack with no deposit. That hurt. I know it is import, but jeeeezzzzzeee. Even domestic beer I felt was a bit on the expensive side. However, you can get absolute swill here in Germany for .29€ (.40 US cents?) a bottle. I think the worst I saw was a .5l can of beer here for .17€. The deposit on it was .25€! Uh, not that desperate. Still, it makes a difference in how I view beer pricing, Germany compared to other countries.