Useless Conversation

[Abagadro]

I'm starting a new organization: GFGTELSADTMA.

Giant Fat Guys That Eat Like Shit And Drink Too Much Anonymous.  Need to get a local chapter set up for weekly meetings.

[Strazos]

Will there be snacks?

[schild]

Will there be an insurance coop?

[Chimpy]

I'm starting a new organization: GFGTELSADTMA.

Giant Fat Guys That Eat Like Shit And Drink Too Much Anonymous.  Need to get a local chapter set up for weekly meetings.

I thought that was what this place was?

[taolurker]

meeting 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWdik29MTrE

[Sir T]

That's me in the back there.

[WayAbvPar]

I had some similar chest issues last summer. Turns out it was anxiety coupled with acid reflux. Got on a couple of meds and feel a hell of a lot better. My heart is actually in decent shape for how badly I treat my body. And I am slowly working on that part too. Down 35 pounds from my worst.

[Soln]

I'm starting a new organization: GFGTELSADTMA.

Giant Fat Guys That Eat Like Shit And Drink Too Much Anonymous.  Need to get a local chapter set up for weekly meetings.

Start a thread.  Post your weight.  And your complaints.  I'm sure we'll all join.  It's not like we're leaving 2016 on a high point.

Also, list your fav scotch(s) and indulgences so we can drink&snack along.  

[Abagadro]

Doing at a minimum Sober January with hopes of actually not drinking until my next vacation in mid-March.

Grats on dropping 35 Way.

[01101010]

Doing at a minimum Sober January with hopes of actually not drinking until my next vacation in mid-March.

Grats on dropping 35 Way.

Good luck with that... especially around the 20th.

[Selby]

Doing at a minimum Sober January with hopes of actually not drinking until my next vacation in mid-March.

Surprisingly this has been really easy.  I stopped at Thanksgiving and other than 2-3 over Christmas eve and day, I don't miss it nor do I really feel that desire to break out the whiskey.  Lost 5lbs already too, so there's that added bonus.  The monetary savings of not going through 0.5 liter of whiskey every night is making me happy too.

[Sir T]

I've been trying to get myself fitter and healthier in the last few weeks. I have cut off snacks and I'm walking every day. So far it sucks. I really, really don't like exerting myself. I literally hate going for the walk with every fiber of my being, and that's leaving aside the anxiety issues. But I am walking faster and I've lost a couple of pounds. Having the money i'm not spending on snacks is nice too.

[Abagadro]

In my current drunken state I would like to formally apologize for all my recent maudlin drunken posting. 

[Signe]

Well, at least you're not a drunken raging lunatic.  I totally forgive you.

[Morat20]

Welp, my kid just got removed from my car insurance (or rather will, in the next 20 days) and running quotes around shows he's gonna triple his insurance costs.

Ouch. He was hoping to move out (he's 20) and he just saw "Oh yeah, your insurance costs will triple until at least February 2018" (He had two at-fault accidents in February of 2015, which should drop off his record then).

His exact reaction was "What the fuck am I supposed to do?".

I got no answers for him. His insurance is gonna be half his monthly income, and he works long and hard. On the bright side he's due a raise, but....damn.

My best suggestion is "Stop driving for a year". Don't know how he gets to or from work like that, though.

[schild]

Where all does he live? Is there not public transportation / walkability of any measure?

[Morat20]

Where all does he live? Is there not public transportation / walkability of any measure?

Houston. Sprawled as fuck. No public transportation, and the place he was looking to move to is closer than where he lives now, but still not close.

Houston's not built for anything but cars.

He's got a few options. One, suck up a triple insurance bill for at least a year (and possibly three. Those accidents at 18 drop off his record after 3 years, but insurance agencies may track them longer). Two, stop driving (but continue to pay for his car) until said accidents drop and bum rides/use Uber as needed. Three, find the money from someone (unofficial loan, as it were) to pay off his rather small car loan and then drop to just liability -- which is a much more acceptable increase. (Like less than 25% over what he's paying now).

That required full coverage due to the bank still owning the car is what's killing him.

Not really anything I can do to help, other than perhaps give him that unofficial loan (he's a hard worker and I don't worry about him paying me back, it's more trying to find that much money so quickly).

Edited to add: Aw fuckit, I'll probably just swap cars with him. (Mine's older, higher mileage, and has been paid off for years. And I love it to death, and I'm fucking pissed because I could have bought an updated model of that car instead of the one he got if I was gonna do that in the first damn place). He's still gonna make the car payments though. Half at least -- I'd be trading up. Liability on a 2009 with 120k on it has got to be lower than a 2013 with 20k.

Stupid kids. Being all...kids and still having to love them and shit. Oh well, shitty driver, hard worker and decent kid. (And admittedly, 2/3rds of his shitty driving were in the first six months of being a driver). There are worse combinations.

[Torinak]

Can he sell the car he can't afford to insure, pay off the loan, and buy something cheap enough to be able to afford liability-only insurance? (without skimping so much on liability coverage that an accident would ruin him forever)

[Morat20]

Can he sell the car he can't afford to insure, pay off the loan, and buy something cheap enough to be able to afford liability-only insurance? (without skimping so much on liability coverage that an accident would ruin him forever)

Yeah. That's probably what we're effectively going to do. (Swap him my older, paid off car. Or pay off his car cash and have him pay me back).

Texas has minimum coverage requirements, so getting faux insurance isn't a problem. It's really the requirement for comprehensive coverage that's so expensive with his record. (Any at-fault accident is, well, twice as expensive -- so it's twice as expensive to insure).  And having a car loan means comprehensive coverage. I'd probably insist he carry 100k/300k/100k instead of the state minimum of 30/60/30 though.

I'm mostly pissed because if I'd known the accident that required getting him a new car (with a payment he pays for) would result in his insurance rates tripling, I'd have approached replacing the wrecked car differently. (I'd have given him my old car, which he can carry just liability on, and bought myself what I wanted, and worked out some percentage of the payment as his responsibility for wrecking the old one).

Swapping cars is a big trade-up for me, it's just....the criteria for him buying a car is different than ME buying a car, so a month's difference meant me ending up with a reliable car versus me ending up with a reliable car that's exactly what I wanted. (An updated model of my car).

[schild]

Where all does he live? Is there not public transportation / walkability of any measure?

Houston. Sprawled as fuck. No public transportation, and the place he was looking to move to is closer than where he lives now, but still not close.

Houston's not built for anything but cars.

He's got a few options. One, suck up a triple insurance bill for at least a year (and possibly three. Those accidents at 18 drop off his record after 3 years, but insurance agencies may track them longer). Two, stop driving (but continue to pay for his car) until said accidents drop and bum rides/use Uber as needed. Three, find the money from someone (unofficial loan, as it were) to pay off his rather small car loan and then drop to just liability -- which is a much more acceptable increase. (Like less than 25% over what he's paying now).

That required full coverage due to the bank still owning the car is what's killing him.

Not really anything I can do to help, other than perhaps give him that unofficial loan (he's a hard worker and I don't worry about him paying me back, it's more trying to find that much money so quickly).

Edited to add: Aw fuckit, I'll probably just swap cars with him. (Mine's older, higher mileage, and has been paid off for years. And I love it to death, and I'm fucking pissed because I could have bought an updated model of that car instead of the one he got if I was gonna do that in the first damn place). He's still gonna make the car payments though. Half at least -- I'd be trading up. Liability on a 2009 with 120k on it has got to be lower than a 2013 with 20k.

Stupid kids. Being all...kids and still having to love them and shit. Oh well, shitty driver, hard worker and decent kid. (And admittedly, 2/3rds of his shitty driving were in the first six months of being a driver). There are worse combinations.

Yea. That's no bueno for Houston. That said, even without those accidents, insurance for a kid younger than 25 fucking blows.

[Morat20]

Yea. That's no bueno for Houston. That said, even without those accidents, insurance for a kid younger than 25 fucking blows.

No shit. Oh well, not much you can do.

He's a good kid, and his accidents have all been dumb rookie driver shit. Not texting while driving, not DUIs, not speeding or reckless driving. I can't blame the insurance companies for jacking his rates so high (they're in it for the money after all), but damn.

I think we've got a plan figured out where he can actually afford to drive. Which is good. He's a hard worker (for all the shit you hear about millennials, he's a really solid worker), he's in line for one of two promotions (both of which jump him to...well, more than I made at 20. A lot more. Even adjusting for inflation), and he's got a solid plan for the next few years. All of which require mobility. Which means cars.

Still kind of a punch to the nuts.

[Xanthippe]

One of the biggest generational changes I've seen in the past couple of decades is the penchant for college aged adults to drive new cars. I live a few blocks from a university on a lesser main route to get there. When we moved in (early 90s), students drove older cars - maybe not beaters, but mom's old sedan or wagon. Now it seems, they are driving new cars or cars that are a couple of years old. Have people grown more prosperous, or are students using student loans to pay for new cars, or are students able to get new car loans more easily? Credit is ridiculously easy to get these days.

Best of luck to you and your kid, Morat. Sounds like a better solution than stop driving which would mean stop working, or ride a bicycle (eek! People tend to run those over).

[Rendakor]

John Oliver had a bit about subprime auto loans that might account for some of that, Xan.

[Selby]

Have people grown more prosperous, or are students using student loans to pay for new cars, or are students able to get new car loans more easily? Credit is ridiculously easy to get these days.

It's the credit and car dealers being willing to sell cars at any angle. New(er) cars are cheap or as cheap to own as a 5 year old one these days regarding payments, especially with the warranties and free oil changes so many dealers throw in. You have to go back 10-15 years to get a car that is truly cheaper, but most people go straight for newer ones anyways for the previously mentioned reasons. When I was in college I bought a 27 year old one and fixed it myself as necessary. Most people don't have that kind of patience or time. Let's also not forget the younger kids who get parents buying them all sorts of newer toys, like the guys in college with the jacked and lifted Excursions ($60k worth in 2000ish time).

[Morat20]

You can't fix a lot of modern cars as cheaply as older ones.

But yeah, finding a used car that's not "bought from a friend/family" for under 10k means dealing with some sketchy used car folks (reliable dealers tend to stick to 9000 and up) and you're still stuck with carrying full coverage if you don't pay cash up front.

Being 20 and trying to find even 3k cash for a clunker you can just carry liability on is tough enough.

It's looking like I'll be swapping my 2009 Prius (120k) in excellent shape for a 2013 Corolla with 18k and trying to sort out the payments with him. (The Corolla replaced the paid off car he had, which I had paid. That being the accident that necessitated the new car AND the giant jump in coverage costs). So I can't just take over the (rather minimal -- under 200 a month for three years) payments since the only reason there's a car payment is him. On the other hand, it's a big trade up for me, so I don't feel right making him pay 200 bucks a month for three years to cover a car I drive. Probably just split the bill.

[MrHat]

If he lives in the loop, he could just uber for anything but his work commute.  Might be cheaper.

[calapine]

Pig Fact 98282: Pigs are smart enough to push other animals into the electric fence, and if they don't get shocked the pigs will leave.

[Zetor]

Pig Fact 98282: Pigs are smart enough to push other animals into the electric fence, and if they don't get shocked the pigs will leave.

Sounds like the precursor to Pig Fact 98283:

And when you got your six pieces, you gotta get rid of them, because it's no good leaving it in the deep freeze for your mum to discover, now is it? Then I hear the best thing to do is feed them to pigs. You got to starve the pigs for a few days, then the sight of a chopped-up body will look like curry to a pisshead. You gotta shave the heads of your victims, and pull the teeth out for the sake of the piggies' digestion. You could do this afterwards, of course, but you don't want to go sievin' through pig shit, now do you? They will go through bone like butter. You need at least sixteen pigs to finish the job in one sitting, so be wary of any man who keeps a pig farm. They will go through a body that weighs 200 pounds in about eight minutes. That means that a single pig can consume two pounds of uncooked flesh every minute. Hence the expression, "as greedy as a pig".

[WayAbvPar]

 Well, thank you for that. That's a great weight off me mind. Now, if you wouldn't mind telling me who the fuck you are, apart from someone who feeds people to pigs of course?

[Torinak]

There were a lot of pig farms where I grew up. I wonder how often they got a special snack like that?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3qy4Zv4snI

Edit: better clip

[Bunk]

I imagine it happens. Likely what the serial killer Robert Pickton did in my area, considering he ran a pig farm.

How the hell did this topic of conversation start?

[calapine]

*guilty look*

[Chimpy]

Modern technology is almost scary. I am at the dentist getting a crown. Instead of getting a pile of goop stuffed in my mouth to be sent off to make a molded crown, they stuck a wand that made Geiger counter noises into my mouth, the dentist used photoshop skills to select the exact outline of the fake tooth, and there is a machine currently milling the crown out of a block of whatever they use to make crowns.

[01101010]

Modern technology is almost scary. I am at the dentist getting a crown. Instead of getting a pile of goop stuffed in my mouth to be sent off to make a molded crown, they stuck a wand that made Geiger counter noises into my mouth, the dentist used photoshop skills to select the exact outline of the fake tooth, and there is a machine currently milling the crown out of a block of whatever they use to make crowns.

Man there are so many things they make crowns out of now. Just wait till they just start 3d printing your teeth right next to you. That will be a trip.

[Chimpy]

It was pretty close to that, the machine is in the hallway and I could hear it working while the computer in the room showed me a progress bar.

Now they are cooking it to cure it.

Only needing to come to the dentist office once for a crown is a novel thing.