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Weird Presents Anyone?
g8way writes "Now that Christmas is about, it's time for presents. A joyous occasion with much drinking, fruitcake, and butt-ugly sweaters. What's the weirdest gift you've gotten so far? Personally, I got toothpaste, tic-tacs, deodorant, and a McDonalds coupon book in the same package. What's your story of Christmas present mayhem?"
Your friends were cheap. They should have splurged on a Real Doll for you to splooge in.
Ummm, guess again. 1 kb = 1024 bytes or 8192 bits, 1 MB = 1024 kb, 1 GB = 1024 MB. Hard drive manufacturers advertise capacity in the decimal system ( 1 kb = 1000 bytes, 1 MB = 1000 kb, 1 bit = 1 byte ) and so the 40 GB iPod has 40,000,000,000 bytes, which in the binary system is about 37.25 GB. for more help in byte bit conversion and systems: Bit and Byte Conversion
3M makes a spray-on adhesive in a aerosol can, this would work best imho, can get it at any home depot
The nice people who are suggesting that you build your own house are probably not considering life in a major urban area as desirable.
I would count it as extraordinarily difficult to save enough money for a downpayment for a house in, say, Southern California (where I live) and similar areas. For the entry level house I just bought in Woodland Hills, the price was $428,000. Woodland Hills is an upscale suburb but doesn't have the cachet of, say, Beverly Hills or Malibu, where entry-level homes start at around twice that. If you consider that typical entry-level homes in the downscale suburb of Canoga Park start at close to $350,000, I think I got a real deal.
I'm presently renting a house for $1,400 a month, which is way under market. My landlord sold it out from under me, and I checked rental options and found them all horribly expensive. So I talked to a very nice realtor, and he, together with a great mortgage broker, showed me that a good house wasn't beyond my means, despite my lack of savings other than company 401(k).
In the end, I had to withdraw money from the 401(k) just to rarise the 3% deposit needed to prove that you're serious about the house, and to pay closing costs. My lender gave me 100% financing in a first and second mortgage, with a total payment of around $2,750 a month. Property taxes add another $500-odd a month. However, virtually all of this is tax-deductible, on both federal and state returns. The bottom line is that I get about $1,000 of that from the taxman, so my net cost is $2,250 a month.
I used some extra money from the 401(k) withdrawl to pay back all my debt. With my debt paid down to zero thanks to the 401(k) withdrawl, my net cost of housing + debt - tax deductions is actually going to be a bit lower than were I was before.
A nice bit of fiscal alchemy.
If - and only if - you believe your real estate market will continue to do well, 100% financing may make sense, even though it doesn't sound like a good idea when you first look at it. The tax deductions really help hugely, taking really scary numbers and bringing them down to reality.
Here in Southern California, there are huge population pressures, and the economy is diversified enough to continue to do well. So on balance, I think home ownership here is a reasonable gamble. The fact that my home, being a tiny but beautifully made place on a hillside, is in a unique area with extremely low housing turnover also helps.
I have lots of plans for my new home, and I think it's going to be a great experience. And to be honest, I don't think I could have ever saved the amount of money needed without 100% financing.
If you want to own a home, I think it's well worth considering.
D
One hole is the mouth, one is the anus, and one is the vagina. Hence three holes, get it now?
Wait 30 minutes to see what posts get moderated up and which post is first.
Look at the content of a highly moderated post farther down on the page and regurgitate it as a reply to a first post.
It looks like it's an original thought and it's at the top of the page!
If a post has nothing to do with the parent post, don't moderate it up. Chances are it's redundant from something posted earlier but farther down.
You should have posted to the real first post (and changed the title so it's not "re:") which is most likely moderated at a -1. Then it looks like you post is the parent post to those who don't browse at that level. Badabing! First Post. Without even trying.
Ben
Work Safe Porn
Why would that be weird? Darwin was a professing Christian till the day he died. Shocked? Then you might be interested in reading his books, like "Origin of the Species".
If you research his life and theory you may discovers some interesting facts.
But don't let that stop you from poking fun at Christians. It helps keep us on our toes.
I agree, the wishlists are restricting. There are other places to do non-amazon-only wishlists, and I chose The Things I Want, whose wishlist is easy to find (based on name seach or you can give them an url to click on), and it automatically pulls pictures for them, AND allows them buttons to tell other family members if this is purchased already.
It paid off very well this xmas...
My example conversation amalgam may have been misleading. I always tell my mother I love the gift, "Thank you so much, It's great, I love it, etc..." It's in the 'off season', like when I'm fixing her comuter or something that I drop very large hints that I don't use Windows (Like saying "I don't use Windows").
My whining is enterely to Slashdot, never to my Mother.
Sorry for you loss, Merry Christmas.
I believe they used this resource: Heifer.org