Poll: What do you spend way too much money on?

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: What do you spend way too much money on? (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=267)

[Kwyjibo]

its all about beer/alcohol

[Archmage]

I loooove to cook large meals of extravagant food...

I spend waaay too much money sometimes. :)

[artificiallife]

what about illegal narcotics? ;)

[eric_n_dfw]

I'd say for me it's a tie between the Mac and Software and Photo/Video. I voted computer though as it's an ongoing expendature while camera/video is usually a one time big expense.

[Chealion]

I spend too much on DDR, but am not planning on stopping any time soon. Hey, I can't beat playing 26 games today :) Though I usually only get 3 a week.

[Doctor Q]

I sometimes get carried away getting gifts for others. Especially if it's a complete surprise to them. Hey - that's what I like to spend my money on. Otherwise, I'm pretty frugal. I have bought myself some nice computer equipment, but I saved up plenty to afford that.

And I only buy private Learjets when I have a coupon.

[Nermal]

I spend too much on food, and I spend more than I'd like on petrol for the car (but I don't really have a choice). I spend surprisingly little on computer goodies, as I don't tend to buy too much hardware, and I usually stick to free software rather than the commercial stuff. I don't spend much at all on music, I own 5 albums, 2 singles, and 2 music DVDs. I listen to streaming radio, and I record it to my HD then cut it up into individual songs and put them in iTunes (bending the rules :)).

[MacBandit]

Computer stuff, astronomy stuff, home audio/video stuff, gaming stuff, bicycle stuff, motorcycle stuff, booze, drugs.

LIFE!!!

[shadowfax]

i voted on food, 'cos it's my secondary... "Gas" is probably what i spend more than i want to on... especially with the crappy traffic here in Norman.

[stefman]

This poll should be multiple choice.

I would say in order of expense:

1-significant other (yes, expensive!!)
2-cars
3-computers
4-food

[punter]

when do these polls stop being gerenal questions and start being marketing exercises? ;)

Right now I'm not spending too much money on anything, damn I'm poor!

[mac15]

beer and bike parts :)

[wtv]

This year, it's HPV's. My good old PowerMac with 22 inch Cinema Screen still behaves quite well, so I had the opportunity to completely overhaul my stable of HPV's :D

I traded in my 14-year old mtb for a new mountainbike (EUR 2700), bought a recumbent delta trike (EUR 3000) and traded in my 2-year old semi-low racer recumbent bike for a recumbent rowing bike (also EUR 3000).

Mountainbike: see http://www.xs4all.nl/~wtv/mtb/santos_mtb.htm

Trike: see http://www.hase-spezialraeder.de/content_d/kett_tech.htm

Rowing bike: see http://www.rowingbike.com/english/thys_cvt.htm

Also this year I traded in my 8-year old Toyota Corolla for a brand new one, paying the equivalent of nine bikes, but people generally hold the opinion that such is not considered spending too much money :confused:

Wijnandt T. de Vries.

[TimDaddy]

I have to say food. Not enough at the grocery, but way too much at restaraunts. I work my ass off all week, when weekend comes I don't want to spend one minute in a hot kitchen cooking. I eat out 2-3 meals a day on the weekend. It shows both in my bottom line and my waistline!

[beez7777]

Originally posted by Chealion
I spend too much on DDR, but am not planning on stopping any time soon. Hey, I can't beat playing 26 games today :) Though I usually only get 3 a week.

me too, only i play pump it up.

[MattG]

Way too much money on food and computers.

I ate lunch out every day this week at work, and I'll probably do the same over the weekend.

As for computers, let's see...over the last year and a half, I've bought (and sold) three iMacs, an iBook, and two Powerbooks. I've got a G5 on the way (supposedly).

[AllenPSU]

I don't know how the list missed Wal-Mart! I waste more money going into Wal-Mart to get one item and coming out with three!

[Jerry Spoon]

Live in an old house we're restoring. That's definitely where I've spent most of my money.

[Centris 650]

Other. I spend most of my money on my wife and kids. I'm giving my wife a $300 hutch for her birthday next week. All I asked for on my birthday was a pair of concert tickets ($15 each) and a $9.00 book (that after the 25% sale price, my membership card and a $5 gift certificate cost my 3 cents.) Whenever I buy something non-essential I feel like I'm taking food from my family.

[invalidname]

It's not the hardware OR the software, it's the services... $45/mo for satellite with local channels in three rooms (a good deal, to be sure), $50/mo for DSL, $70/mo for cell phones (gotta switch to virgin, I never use 1000 minutes), $100/yr for .Mac (really isn't worth more than $50 but I'm trapped), then little things like gas, electricity and running water.

-invalidname

[gralem]

I guess I'll have to say "movies", but it is not necessarily always movies. Porn would have been an excellent option. But the options were very well thought out.

---gralem

[Mr. Anderson]

I haven't bought a computer in 4 years, so that's not going to be mine ;) Although when I do buy a G5 it will probably be the biggest single expense I've had in a couple of years.

But day to day, I really don't have one thing that is draining more cash than any other.

D

[Rocket Rion]

Why wasn't strippers an option? Come on! They're really expensive, especially in the champagne room.

[GrannySmith_G5]

that's easy. marijuana.

[scem0]

Computers. Im a tight wad when it comes to everything else.

I'm guessing that I haven't spent more than $100 my whole life (I'm 16) on personal things. So every single penny Ive earned practically is in my bank account, and I am gunna empty my bank account on a brand spankin' new G5 eventually. :). But with these tests showing that the dual 1.25GHz's can compete with the 1.6 and 1.8GHz G5s I am thinking of getting a dual 1.25GHz powermac instead.

I don't spend money easily.... ;)

scem0

[achmafooma]

How about SCHOOL :-\ that's not a listed option.

Tuition this year (my senior year) is 115% higher than it was when I started at George Mason University less than 4 years ago. That's not a typo, it has MORE than DOUBLED.

GRRRR...

That's not even mentioning drastic price increases in everything from books to parking passes to food to ScanTrons on campus.

It used to be computer stuff and music for me, but can't afford those anymore.

[tazo]

i dunno, **** i dont need perhaps?

i wish i could do what scem0 does...

[sabbath999]

WAY too much money on them. Both my wife and I are cyclists. I average about $750 a month spent on them. WAY too much.

[homeward]

1. My children's whims.
2. My wife's love of new home furnishings.

[Moz]

Ugh. I just dropped 30 grand on a MINI Cooper S. Well, actually, only 16K, and had to finance the rest.

I could have put a bit more down, but I'm saving some for the PowerBooks, if and when Apple ever releases them!! Seems like I've been waiting FO-EV-AH.

So now I've got payments for the next 3 years...that's what I spent WAY too much money on!

What can you do though, ya know?

Check it out: http://on.miniusa.com/resume.jsp?user=9378

[edenwaith]

I spend too much on kids. And rent. I don't like paying bills. Sales tax is especially annoying. And high restaurant taxes. Those suck, too. And cars are also another expensive evil.

But for things I actually want to buy...probably somewhere between music-related items or computers, but even then I don't make many big purchases either way that often. I'd like to get a new G5 this year, but I don't think it is going to happen this year...maybe next year.

[mactastic]

How about an all the above option?:D

Cooking stuff probably tops my list of frivoulous spending, although tools and hiking/backpacking gear are up there too. I'm a sucker for good kitchen equipment, I just got a frying pan that I spent $125 on, but I don't regret it one bit. That pan has produced the tastiest, crispiest food, and is nice enough to display and to serve food in. My knife collection is worth about $500 I guess, and the list goes on and on. Cooking in/with cheap stuff is one thing I can't tolerate. I mean, I have to eat every day!

[montecristo]

How about a poll on what we don't spend enough money on? Or, better yet, what we don't have enough money for! I certainly don't spend enough money on buying myself a new mac, but that's cuz I don't quite have enough! One can never spend too much money buying stuff for one's macs.....assuming one had unlimited wealth! Oh well....

[eyelikeart]

sometimes I end up buying too much wine...5 bottles or so...I keep about 20 on hand... :eek:

[gopher]

Computers. I like to try software out, but never get to try the perfect software. Still it is fun to follow the industry.

[AllenPSU]

Originally posted by sabbath999
WAY too much money on them. Both my wife and I are cyclists. I average about $750 a month spent on them. WAY too much.

Wow that is a bunch. What type of bikes do you have?

I thought I was out there when I bought my Trek 2300 a few years back but that was only a one time purchase.

[Chomolungma]

Originally posted by achmafooma
How about SCHOOL :-\ that's not a listed option.

Tuition this year (my senior year) is 115% higher than it was when I started at George Mason University less than 4 years ago. That's not a typo, it has MORE than DOUBLED.

GRRRR...

That's not even mentioning drastic price increases in everything from books to parking passes to food to ScanTrons on campus.

It used to be computer stuff and music for me, but can't afford those anymore.

I'm sorry to hear that. I graduated from GMU 1997, and a semester cost $2560 + $350 in books. I hope it is all worth it. The commuting stink as I recalled.;)

[wdlove]

I voted other. My wife is the big spender, if a complain she says "I'm the one that is working." She spends a lot on wine, DVD's, books, clothing, and software.

[Waluigi]

I've bought expensive computers over and over and over again. I laugh at my self now that I wasted $4000 on a 286, then again on a 486, and again on a P1 166, and again on a p4 2.2....I hope I'll look back at my G5 Dual 2GHz purchase with fonder memories.....


Although, movies are a distant second place. I can't believe the almost 10 dollar ticket price, bombardment of ads, huge amounts of lard they make you buy, the overall low quality of movies and sequals opon sequals. I still go to the movies almost every weekend.

--Waluigi

[bograt]

Didn't think it humanly possible to spend too much on gadgets or food. Anything else is just a luxury.

[mactastic]

Originally posted by eyelikeart
sometimes I end up buying too much wine...5 bottles or so...I keep about 20 on hand... :eek:

Good man. I've gone a little crazy on wine purchases occasionally too, but there's nothing like a good bottle of wine to complement a good meal. Or to keep drinking long into the evening.:p

[achmafooma]

Originally posted by Chomolungma
I'm sorry to hear that. I graduated from GMU 1997, and a semester cost $2560 + $350 in books. I hope it is all worth it. The commuting stink as I recalled.;)
I hope it's worth it too, lol. Here are the actual rates:

In 2000-2001 it was $1,188 (in-state) and $5,568 (out-of-state) per semester.

In 2003-2004 it's $2,556 (in-state) and $7,476 (out-of-state).

These are all for full time undergrads. I'm in-state, percentage-wise my tuition hikes have been quite a lot higher than the out-of-state people.

Parking passes are now $160 for the year (they were $120 when I started), and books depend on your major and course load. Just anecdotally, it seems to me that the types of books that went for $30 a year or two ago are going for $50 or $60 this year (I have no evidence to back this up).

You think the commute was bad in '97, they have accepted something like 10% more students EVERY YEAR I've been here (in a school of over 20,000 students) and added about 30 parking spaces to one lot (and they're actually closing half of another lot starting in a week or two, for construction).

Forgive my rant :-) I'm bitter. I'm paying twice as much -- but class sizes have doubled, services have been cut, and the place has just started getting unpleasant.

I'll survive though, in May I will be a graduate and out doing work where they pay ME instead of the other way around.

[speechgod]

I spend way too much on my anime habit.

[rainman::|:|]

drugs, cigarettes and coffee.

i stopped buying porn when i realized i had one too many vices.

nah, actually i just found out it's free.

:)
pnw

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by speechgod
I spend way too much on my anime habit.

Anime? like tv series? o man... what have you been doing? there is something called Carracho and Hotline, i mean, why not, from what i've herd, its legal to have noncommercialized (spell check?) well thats what i do... i think i have about 10 gigs of anime so far... my favorite places to download anime have been down lately... so i'm stopping the downloading for now... i need to watch the anime now... hahaha but so far, i've spent nothing on anime, and everything on gadgets!!!! palm pilot ($47) ipod (370) laptop (17,000) ps2 w/ games (300) gba w/ games (100) ect...

[mactastic]

$17,000 on a laptop?????

[MacBandit]

Originally posted by Bunzi2k4
Anime? like tv series? o man... what have you been doing? there is something called Carracho and Hotline, i mean, why not, from what i've herd, its legal to have noncommercialized (spell check?) well thats what i do... i think i have about 10 gigs of anime so far... my favorite places to download anime have been down lately... so i'm stopping the downloading for now... i need to watch the anime now... hahaha but so far, i've spent nothing on anime, and everything on gadgets!!!! palm pilot ($47) ipod (370) laptop (17,000) ps2 w/ games (300) gba w/ games (100) ect...

I don't know of any non-commercial Anime. It's all sold somewhere in the world. That said I download the stuff too.

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by MacBandit
I don't know of any non-commercial Anime. It's all sold somewhere in the world. That said I download the stuff too.

non-commercial stuff means stuff that isn't sold in stores in the U.S

[MacBandit]

Originally posted by Bunzi2k4
non-commercial stuff means stuff that isn't sold in stores in the U.S

Does that make a difference to copyrights?

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by MacBandit
Does that make a difference to copyrights?

i guess so... from every1 i've talked to about anime says its ok for uncomercialized stuff... but then you have to delete them when they are being sold in the U.S so things like dbz, ect are illegal, but things like saber marionette J is legal... but then again, i dl the fansubs and those are 100% legal

[vollspacken]

man, I spend way too much money on beer...

I cut that down since I'm back from the US, but I know that once university starts again next month, will party too hard..!

eh, nevermind. let the good times roll...

:D

vSpacken

[pjhornak]

...sold my Porsche bought a Ferrari F360 F1

Still don't have my G5

[Mblazened]

Originally posted by artificiallife
what about illegal narcotics? ;)


WAYYYYY to much money....

[MacBandit]

Originally posted by Bunzi2k4
i guess so... from every1 i've talked to about anime says its ok for uncomercialized stuff... but then you have to delete them when they are being sold in the U.S so things like dbz, ect are illegal, but things like saber marionette J is legal... but then again, i dl the fansubs and those are 100% legal

Do you use Poison to get those? What would you suggest for fansubs?

[Physiognome]

Except... Saber Marionette J *is* sold in the US. Do you mean J to X 2 or something like that?

Many people recommend Direct Connect for fansubs, but I've never used it. I got them from IRC when I was keeping up with them, and now order them from a girl who sells VCDs at cost (sadly, a dying ethic) if something really piques my interest.

[gello2424]

Simple

My girlfriend.

[PowerBook User]

Originally posted by mactastic
$17,000 on a laptop?????
Prototype PowerBook G5s are expensive.:p

[Doctor Q]

Originally posted by gello2424
Simple

My girlfriend. Funny name for a girlfriend.

[SiliconAddict]

My new car that I got Jan 2002.
2002 Mercury Cougar XR edition. The monthly payments are a freaking killer because I’ll have it paid off Spring of 2005. That 0.0% sounds good until you consider the monthly payments. :eek:

But its nice to have a nice set of wheels to do my war driving in :D

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by MacBandit
Do you use Poison to get those? What would you suggest for fansubs?

I use carracho and hotline
carracho.com and hotsprings.com ... i think well they are kinda like irc... but yea

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by Physiognome
Except... Saber Marionette J *is* sold in the US. Do you mean J to X 2 or something like that?

Many people recommend Direct Connect for fansubs, but I've never used it. I got them from IRC when I was keeping up with them, and now order them from a girl who sells VCDs at cost (sadly, a dying ethic) if something really piques my interest.

well i read somewhere that it is legal to dl certain series, and that was one of them... i think the way they used the word commercialized was shown on tv in america... meaning slayers, dbz, gundam are illegal but i dunno go to an anime fansub web sight... and they should tell you more information about what is legal and what isn't... if you don't know of any fansub's just search for them off of yahoo or google... they both will find you something...

[Squire]

Originally posted by Nermal
I spend too much on food, and I spend more than I'd like on petrol for the car (but I don't really have a choice). I spend surprisingly little on computer goodies, as I don't tend to buy too much hardware, and I usually stick to free software rather than the commercial stuff. I don't spend much at all on music, I own 5 albums, 2 singles, and 2 music DVDs. I listen to streaming radio, and I record it to my HD then cut it up into individual songs and put them in iTunes (bending the rules :)).

I put down "food" but it's a mix of food, alcohol, and transportation.

I traded in my gasoline-powered car for a diesel. Bone dry, my car took about 70 dollars US to fill the tank. I filled it once a week. Now, it "only" costs about 40 dollars to fill my car and I do that about every 5 days. Add the 100 dollars a month for tollgate fees and transportation becomes a pretty big expense.

Squire

[cb911]

i voted for Books/Comics... Comics mostly.

i went on sort of a comic spree a couple of months ago, spent about $200 in two weeks!:eek: but it was all worth it, comics are good!:D

i would spend more money on beer and spirits, but my money keeps going other places.:rolleyes:

[cionheart]

Well, as we are nearly all Apple Users the question should be: "What do you spend way too much money beside computers?" :D Nice Poll anyway, thanks!

[york2600]

My money gets split up about 75 25 between my car and my computer. It's 2300 bucks just to get an engine rebuilt before 2000 in parts. Life is expensive and I'm not rich.

[wdlove]

Originally posted by york2600
My money gets split up about 75 25 between my car and my computer. It's 2300 bucks just to get an engine rebuilt before 2000 in parts. Life is expensive and I'm not rich.

It is a sad comment. They sit in board rooms trying to figure out how to get more of our money. Sadly they are winning. Newspaper, mail, E.Mail, Radio, & TV are set to do just that. Example now they have us asking for drugs before we even know if we need them. Medications should be offered when a patient needs them!

[Les Kern]

fritos

[iJon]

well first i would say computers, but most of the stuff i buy i get for free. well at least the computer part. i get my powerbook and powermac free from my parents. but i also bought my creature speakers, 20 inch cinema, isight, ipod, as well as my pimped out pc. but i think now most of my money has gone into my car with spending over 200 dollars in the first week i got it, and that was just for cosmetics, like tinting and stuff like that. then the body kit, brembo brakes and cold air intakes will start to set me back way more than my computer stuff ever did. looks like im becoming more of a acura slut over the traditional apple slut.

iJon

[BaghdadBob]

Gas.

[obeygiant]

digital camera equipment

[Genie]

THis G5;)

[Squire]

You like pretty damn happy- giddy, in fact- in those pics. Can't say I blame you. I'll probably be just as content when I unpack mine...my Bluetooth mouse, that is. ;)

Squire

[Genie]

Originally posted by Squire
You like pretty damn happy- giddy, in fact- in those pics. Can't say I blame you. I'll probably be just as content when I unpack mine.... ;)


It is FUN opening up a dual2! More fun than I thought it would be!

[wdlove]

Congratulations on your new G5 Genie. Looks like you were having a lot of fun. How long did you wait for you prized possession? Thank you for sharing the pictures. Hopefully I will be the same way when I get my G5!

[Genie]

Originally posted by wdlove
Congratulations on your new G5 Genie. Looks like you were having a lot of fun. How long did you wait for you prized possession? Thank you for sharing the pictures.

I waited about 3 months...

I could have spent the time figuring out all the new stuff I'd have to buy- like new usb hubs, new SATA drives, new audio interface, et c. It seems certain legacy peripherals don't work with the G5...