Ting Tang
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Posts posted by Ting Tang
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Huh?! This is bizarre. Who dreams this stuff up?!
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I’m sorry. 😞 We pay close to $3,000/month. Co-pays and co-insurance get worse and worse… I always wonder how this is sustainable for most families. We purchase through the marketplace as we are self-employed. But we always reconcile and pay for it all. It’s triple our escrowed house payment!
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My daughter would love to see it, but she’s 8. Kinda disappointing. It’s getting so much attention, it’s hard for the typical Barbie audience to ignore…
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Personally, if I am going to a concert, I would save photos for before/after. Then I would put my phone away and enjoy the show. I do not understand recording while attending a concert. Watching through a lens or screen takes away from the experience, in my opinion. And if they were interrupting the performer and others' viewing, then I understand what happened.
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I really have no advice, but I just wanted to say this is amazing. He might be moving at a slower pace, but I feel like this shows a love and appreciation for math.
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I'd tell him you support his decision but also tell him you would be supportive of him returning to the sport, too. Breaking his hand might have been an emotional event for an athlete, so I might leave it very open on your end for a bit, especially since this just happened last month. I have a nephew who plays for a very small college and works, too. Maybe the fact he is at a small college makes it more feasible.
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3 hours ago, Sneezyone said:
I had/have crushing debt too. Financially abusive parent who used *all* of her kids SSNs before they even knew what credit was, made us feel guilt for being dependent, etc. I get it. I have been able to defer most of mine through the years tho and use IDRs so my debt (at least the undergrad portion) is likely to be forgiven next year and the grad portion by PSLF soon thereafter. We still prioritized saving tho in part b/c I always knew I'd be PSLF eligible...little bit by little bit... and started before they were born ($20-50/mo). So even tho we had to stop for various lengths of time, we're still OK. We are (voluntarily) responsible for siblings and a niece (varying amounts monthly). We haven't been able to start saving for our niece yet but will within the next few months.
The difference is that student loan debt isn't dischargeable if things go awry. If your marriage sucks...divorce. If your mortgage loan fails, default and restart in 3-5 years. If your child becomes completely unmanageable, I know people who've defaulted on them too and surrendered them to the state (and still practice law). Student loans are uniquely limiting.
My sad reaction is for the experience you had with your own parents; I think that can be a common denominator in stories like these. Like you, I do not want to see this play out again. I am staying at home now, but I do think I need to find a way to earn some money. And perhaps when they are more grown, I will return to work.
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1 minute ago, Kuovonne said:
I think this is an issue of financial knowledge. When we got our mortgage for our house, it was very clear that the interest would cost multiple times the original loan amount. Every month my credit card statement says how much I would have to pay in interest if I made only minimal payments, and again it is many multiples of the original amount. The same goes for our car loans.
I think that paying more in interest than the original principal is just part of having a loan with a hight rate or a long term.
Variable interest rates on loans scare me.
I’m sorry you had to go through that. Do you feel you were misled into taking out those loans? Given your family dynamics, do you feel you could have done differently?
That was an awful burden for your parents to put on you. One of my goals is to not be a burden on my kids.
One of the reasons why I am a co-signer on my daughter’s loans is to let her know that I am there to help her with her burdens, and not the other way around.
One of my friends has a daughter who took out a student loan in secret by getting a different family member to co-sign. It caused lots of drama and stress that my friend didn’t understand until her daughter fessed up years later.
I had no business taking out these loans--I do feel I was financially illiterate. I might have gone to one loan counseling session my freshman year, but I do not think I understood the lasting impact they would have on my life. I do think if my familial circumstances were different, I would have been in a much better position. I absolutely do not want my children to end up like me. My husband had a scholarship to community college and then transferred to a state school. He graduated debt-free. Thank goodness! I hope your daughter is able to repay her loans with ease. The number isn't a shocker when I see tuition prices at some schools.
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21 minutes ago, SHP said:
Ours went up and we contacted a broker to see if they could find us a new company with lower rates and learned no one will cover one of our cars so we are stuck.
May I ask what vehicle cannot be covered and/or why?
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Yes. 😞 Our new normal is everything is super expensive.
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I did find my $60,000 soul-crushing. But around my later teen years, my parents started to have marital problems and became alcoholics. So having the debt while feeling guilt and being told it was my turn to take care of them (yep, they said that, my dad even stole my debit card once), it was just really hard to get a good start in life.
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18 hours ago, bookbard said:
So interesting to hear people with no/low student loans in the USA. We always say over here (in Australia) that 'we don't want to become like America', but I think everyone I know would have debts of 20,000 at least for their undergrad, and apparently it is worse now. The difference is that it is interest-free. Sort of. It is indexed to inflation, so the last 2 years have meant huge jumps. Oh, and you don't have to pay it back until you earn a certain amount (45 grand maybe?) I still have a debt from my master's degree, which has been pointless financially but I don't regret it.
Yes, my loans had variable interest rates. I paid more in interest than I took out for one of my loans. That is incredibly sad. We sometimes refer to this as a tax on the poor. (I am not saying people didn't work hard and sacrifice--not at all!)
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These posts are very encouraging. Thank you all for sharing! And of course, please continue.
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The Navient saga.... I just paid off the remaining $14,000+ on my loans. It hurt, but I found out we can finance our children's braces for 0% interest, and it will be the same amount, so that was my reasoning.
The loans said they wouldn't be repaid until 2029. I finished grad school in 2004. I do not recall ever deferring, except while in school. I financed $60,000 between college and graduate school. I had a decent college scholarship, and I lived at home. I worked part-time.
$60,000 doesn't even sound like a lot to me anymore. But it really made much of my adulthood before marriage very difficult, and we have less money because of my loans.
College has gone up so much.
So, what are your decent students financing these days? I'll assume many of them had some scholarships, at the very least. We are not rich, and we are not poor. I doubt we will get much that doesn't need to be repaid. My oldest is a rising 6th grader, so it isn't that far away.
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I would definitely make sure the owners approve so you are not liable for anything; they should also consider taking the dog to a pet kennel while they are away. Some allow animals to go from inside to a fenced area outside. I have seen this scenario not end well, unfortunately, when people decide to have domesticated pets live outside. 😞
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22 hours ago, Teach05 said:
That’s so interesting! What drew you to MP?
I was so into the community, the podcast, and the professionalism of the whole thing. But now it’s the thing that’s driving me bonkers! When people talk about how to run multiple cores I notice a lot of hemming and hawing around answers. I wonder how many stressed people there are…I was totally sold on classical. I still am---but I am going to try it the Charlotte Mason way. I have absolutely no idea how anyone can teach multiple cores, even if you do some of the guides orally. I think the expectations are very high for the respective grade levels. With that being said, I do not want to cheat my children out of a wonderful education just because I choose to homeschool and have four of them. With MP, I find it hard to have everyone on the same page. I'm trying super hard to implement the CM approach next year with minimal curriculum and using the same living books for a few of my kids. I haven't quite figured out how not to be a box checker with having four kids. I have always been stressed, so this year I am hoping by streamlining we are all happier---and gasp---even more productive in our learning!
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Last year, I used a lot of MP for my two middles. It was so hard. 😞
This school year, I used it for my 2nd grader, and I loved it. I also used a couple of pieces for my middles. I decided for many of the components, I wouldn't buy or use student guides. It really did help. It made me feel as though I could pick and choose.
Next school year, I probably won't use much, if any, at all. I do think the formula is great, but with four kids, it just isn't going to work for us. I am switching to a Charlotte Mason approach. I have bought books so far and no curriculum other than math. BUT piecing together things has been a struggle. I haven't even figured out if we can finish entire books just yet or if we can squeeze in other CM type things. My husband asked what the best boxed curriculum is and if the kids would be okay if I died and they had to do that, LOL. I said yes. Oh, I was so tempted to just return to Abeka---that was where we started!
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13 minutes ago, Sneezyone said:
Who here is arguing everyone should start at ‘0’? There are legit questions about passing multiple millions free of tax but 75%+ ppl in the USA have estates under $50k and $1 mil is a freaking ton. I agree with you about our priorities, tho I think overseas aid is of value. It really is about prioritization and the ability to see this as a debt/value and not a perk.
Oh no, nobody here has said that. I am just mentioning how some do think. It is an extreme way of thinking. I don't feel people should need to sell off what they inherited just to pay the estate tax bill. It's too sad for me. I don't think the uber rich have to do that, though. $1 million isn't even what it once was, but the uber rich really don't have to think about these things. I bet we could carve out some funds for these families. And Native Americans.
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My husband's family has their family history documented. A Polish immigrant walked miles and miles, from town to town, to establish a life. I do believe their legacy is rooted in this history. I do benefit. It doesn't mean life has been without challenge for subsequent generations. I didn't know them. I just read about it on a piece of paper. My life isn't perfect, but I do feel it is much better because someone had foresight. So did they in Tulsa.
But there are also some who do not believe in generational wealth or passing anything down from generation to generation. They believe everyone should start at 0. Fairness, they say.
In my opinion, if you believe in reparations, you should believe in the ability to pass along generational wealth and property---without having to sell off some of your property to pay the tax bill alone. Reparations are due if we can agree that you should be able to pass along some of what you've built without having to give a substantial portion of it up.
If you do have to start at 0, the "dream" should still be achievable--with some support, some of course.
I do still believe in the American dream. Some just haven't been given a fair chance to live it. This is an example. It's a shame it wasn't made right way back when. But look at other historical cases---the guilty are still getting off. We have lots of money to give away to other countries. Yes, I am going there. Why can't we use some of it to pay these families?
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Have faith, and don’t live in fear, that you are equipped to handle what life might dish out. However… yes, it became a motto for not taking Covid precautions. I just read a lady tried to use that in a Catholic hospital when refusing to mask, lol. Not quite how that works! God gave us brains!
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56 minutes ago, Rosie_0801 said:
MEP and CSMP are both free online. CSMP certainly explains things differently.
Thank you very much! I have looked at MEP but will check out the other resource-not sure I have seen it!
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1 hour ago, Gil said:
I suspect that you have not fully grasped the concept of saving the money!
Don't buy anything extra until it's demonstrated that what you have can not be used to meet your childs needs.
Just use the materials you have and if you need something else a bit of online research on teaching xyz-skill will help fill in the gaps.
I saw the price and decided not to buy it just yet, lol. You’re right! I will wait. 😊
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Math: Singapore Dimensions Grade 3
I'm planning to be very CM this year. We will study American history (16th-18th century), geography, nature lore, mythology, and fairy tales. I will pick a few novels.
Handwriting--this is a tricky one. I found a curriculum I like, but it has a big old spiral on the left side. She is left-handed.
French: Nallenart
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33 minutes ago, Malam said:
I think the Singapore extra practice book is just problems, for something that can teach you how to teach "the Singapore way", maybe get a used copy of this book
Thank you! I actually purchased this already. 🙂
What jobs could you never do? (details in post)
in The Chat Board
Posted
Anything in the medical field. I was queasy just reading my son’s elementary health book a few years ago.