I have 2 friends that are careless with money. One is 25 in nov. And he makes nearly 4000 a month. Which is alot in our state. He has had this job for two years now at this pay rate and has nothing but plane tickets and concert and event tickets to show for it. He has no savings nothing. Its sad. All that work for pieces of paper and memories. And my other friend is 22 and she has a job and still expects everything to be handed to her and expects everyone to like her. She is getting better. Although she is not saving either to live out on her own and she relies on my other friend for everything, rides to work, food, shelter. EVERYTHING.

Wow, what in the world does he do to make 4000 a month and where do I sign up?

I have home taught my kids for the past few years, and I graduated my son early, he had his own business at 16 with a license and his own truck. My daughter wanted to work last year as I finished with her studies for the year, she was just turning 15, but no one would hire her because of her age. So when we get the other business started in November she's just going to work there, and my son as the business he's in is slightly seasonal.

Good job!

Yeah i know! Lol and funny thing is, he barely made it through high school and never went to college. This job landed in his lap. He was working at the dollar store, when the guy who is his boss now told him to apply and he would hire him. Well, he works in the office of a geophysics company. He does the data entry for the detections found throughout the day. They detect metals and such in the ground at the old army base here. It uxo detection. Yeah i wish i had that job lucky man he is. And with no education beyond high school.

I know a little about this field, people with masters degree's in this area get up to 300,000 per year. He was lucky to get this job!!
Great for him

That is beyond awesome. Oh well, I know education doesn't guarantee anything, mine certainly didn't.

If you are willing to move around and go to remote area's your income can increase. I am dealing with this now, looking at all the jobs on the internet but bad time for me to unload my house due to the really bad economy. My present job is ok for now.

Eh, I don't mind moving, but scared to live in some places. I don't think I'd do well in a remote area....

Yeah me too I do not want to go to a remote area but many can be temporary jobs. I do not like to drive long distances into remote area's. They have alot of jobs in AZ on the Indian Reservations, one advertized that you would have to travel into area's with no telephone contact!! Hmmmm....you would be safe enough but it sounds depressing.

I think a lot of it is we have taken a lot of power away from parents. Now all a kid has to do is threaten to go live with the other parent, Grandma, or stay at their friends and your authority goes out the window.

Teachers who make double what most of us make stand at the front of the classrooom and tell them what screw ups we are because we won't leave work to help them control a classroom after they act more immature than many of the kids or cover for the ones that are even worse. The school day has gotten shorter and they are out of class more days than they are in. Teachers used to be required to do activities and now high school programs are just warm ups for corporate sports or commercial media fields. The college program is buckleing under the saturation of alcohol and on campus crime.

Therapy and treatment programs for behavior problem kids are a joke. They give them a cash allowance, take them on field trips and out to eat and buy them junk for Christmas and prescribe them enough dope to keep them stoned. They don't make them bath, allow them to smoke, and skip school and still collect a paycheck and in many instances a diploma which is not worth the paper it is written on.

Corporate employeers let teens goof off on the job, steal from the inventory, and show up when they feel like it while working lower and middle management employees to the ground to hang onto their dwindleing health benifits.

The courts don't do spit to kids until they commit a felony letting them off repeatedly with a slap on the wrist for stealing, truancy, drug use, drunkeness, and often physically abuseing their siblings and custodial parents while not even attempting to court order the not custodial parent to pay child support or parent.

Yes kids don't go out and play anymore because the activities, parks, and the playgrounds have been taken over by homeless mentally ill, dope fiends, sex perverts, and second and third generation gang bangers. If they have facilities they are burned or polluted with garbage and filth.

They tell you that you are suppose to leave work because no one will take any real responsibility for anyone elses kid, that they are entitled to a phone and extra ciricular activities but that they don't have to do chores if they don't feel like it.

A lot of the electronic toys and computers being bought for kids are just so the parents can have bragging rights or play with them themselves. What the heck does a child need a cell phone for except for a parent to pretend they know what their kid is doing. Most kids are on and electronic latchkey because as tax payers we really don't care if they get a well rounded full days worth of education and they are at home alone way more than is good for them.

Wow, this is a good post with many valid points but where are we headed?? They are the next generation and will be running things eventually???

wow, $30 is cheap for halloween costumes where i come from. heck, the dog's costs about that much!

i'm guilty of buying my kids expensive presents; if i can afford them, do not overindulge, and they appreciate it, i see no harm. it's all relative anyway to income.

i'm also guilty of enrolling and/or registering my children in a lot of extra curricular activities. they never much liked playing on the street with the other kids so it's the next best way to stay active. they've been in everything - karate, dance, gymnastics, skating, swimming, piano, soccer.

they aren't allowed to use their game boys during the school months (except on the weekend) but boy did those games come in handy driving with them to florida myself. worth every single penny!

my eldest has a cell phone. it's a safety issue for me. as soon as she moves on to high school, the middle child will get one too. while it doesn't guarantee security, it's at least one area where i can at least do something to help. there's a spending limit on it and if it's abused, i'll think of something else but so far the card expires before it's even used. that's another area where i think that my money has been well spent.

I truely believe there is a difference in what you do, and the actions of some parents. You seem to be an active parent in your childrens lives. You seem to enforce rules and set active goals for you kids. School seems to be a main focus because you dont allow video games during school. A cell phone is good in emergencies for kids to have. I suggest a cell phone where you can keep up with the location of your childs phone with the gps on your phone if you can afford it. But those parents that just let kids run all over them those are the ones that drive me crazy. If you can afford to give your kids things you might not had had as a child that is great as long as they understand and appreciate why you give these gifts.

The hand of knowledge does wonders for the seat of learning.