Going into debt is a trap, you are right to be wary. I'm raised to never spend more than I have, I have seen what it can do. When you lend money, you are now on a moving treadmill, and this treadmill wouldn't care to slow down if you can't keep up, it'll eat you alive once you reach the end of the belt.
this post was submitted on 09 Aug 2025
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Yep. Debt is rarely a good idea. Even "good" debt hurts when you consider how much interest you pay on a home.
Regarding lending, I try to give instead. Lending money can cause so much heartache and it's best to presume you won't see the money again. I actually budget for this and other forms of generosity. It makes it much easier to be generous when you know you always have money set aside that you can help someone with. And when you need to go beyond that and dip into savings for them, it's still usually just better to give so you can have peace of mind.
Oh, sorry. I meant when you borrow money. Oops.
But yeah, I don't lend money either. You'll be surprised just how many tight-knitt friendships and familial relationships can end from the aftermath of just a few hundred or so.
Congratulations! I'm so happy for you!
thank you!
You're welcome! When I learned to swim, I had so many years of fun! I hope you do as well!
Having one car can be so challenging. I am trying my hardest to not buy a second car for our family, but so many days would be easier with two, especially in the winter.
What is it about the winter that makes it more challenging?
I can't ride my ebike to the store without having to bundle up. In summer I just hop on and go.
Ah yes. That makes sense. Perhaps you can tell that I'm a tropical species. π
Single car household, here. Mostly because we don't need more than one. My GF walks to work, my kids bike or walk to school, and I sometimes need to drive pretty far for various reasons (work, mostly).
I drove the same car for ages. A 1996 Volvo 940. Reliable as hell, and what little broke on it I could easily fix myself. It used to belong to my dad, but I took it over in 2005 or thereabouts.
However, with four kids the only "flaw" of that car was that we needed one more seat. So I sold it to a friend back in March after doing something I've always dreaded: Take up a car loan, and rely on a car I did not know very well.
I'm really satisfied with my new car, and I have no regrets. Everyone is more comfy, everyone can go at the same time (previously we used to send the oldest kid via airplane when visiting my mom), and it's really comfy for long haul trips.
Having the ability to "just go" is such a load off my mind, now that we don't have to sort out timing and capacity when doing anything far away.
Exactly all this! Good for you!
This sounds so much like what we've been going through. if things hadn't changed for me at work, which is a whole different can of worms, I wouldn't have needed it. Honestly, scheduling things here and there really wasn't that big of a deal. I'd much rather have a single car. But executives are going to execute... even in ways that are counterproductive.
I know nothing about this brand. But I'm going to start learning. I'm used to taking care of most of my own issues, and thanks to the internet and youtube, you can do a heck of a lot on your own these days.
Three cheers for your new vehicle!
And three cheers right back at you. May I ask what you bought?
I'm not much of a car guy, as I see them as utilitarian more than anything. The only important factor in our cases is that they do what we need them to do, with as little grief as possible. Anything more is a nice bonus.
We think a lot a like. All my purchases have been utilitarian. I ended up buying an older, but well maintained [π] based on mix of reliability ratings, standard transmission over CVT, average maintenance costs, fuel economy, and its primary use case for our family. It looks like new and is very healthy.
I really don't care much about cars. They are tools. That isn't to say that my partner and I do not have some "wish we could haves." However, until I master the whole growing a money-tree thing, I have to work within my means. I'm relatively handy, so I plan to learn and take good care of it.
I've literally never even thought about Mazda's before this! It's honestly a bit surreal. Even reminds me of my first car as a teen. My partner is very excited by it because it's sporty and feels like a go-fast car. Haha. After loads of research, I'm surprised by how little attention I've given to Mazdas.
What kind of vehicle did you end up with?
I don't know much about Mazda, except a vague memory of my dad having a moss-colored one when I was 5 or so. Other than that, I have absolutely no experience or knowledge with the brand.
My old one was manufactured by welding I-beams together at 90 degree angles, so there's only so much that can go wrong with that design. But I still needed to park it at my local shop for a few weeks for some extensive repair, and in the mean time I borrowed a Ford (a brand I absolutely detest for personal reasons, but that's a whole other story on its own). One day while visiting a town about an hours drive away I had an hour to kill, so I stopped by the local Volvo dealership out of curiosity and spoke to a guy about what I needed. Long story short, he gave me one to test drive for two days: A brand new Volvo XC90.
I parked the Ford, and I phoned up my GF to confirm that there was nothing scheduled that day. I revealed nothing about what plan I had in mind, but I told her to make sure that the kids stayed home once school had finished for the day. Just before arriving at home I phoned again and told them to get ready. It was fun seeing their surprise once I drove up to the house and told them we'd be driving to this niche/specialized candy store that had just opened in the aforementioned town. All of us would be going at the same time for a change.
Last day, when dropping the kids off at school they unanimously agreed that I should buy one. And this March I was looking through available vehicles at the dealership, and they had a 2019 model that was reasonably priced and with almost no wear on it. Well, the guy at the dealership worked there for a reason, because I just wanted some information - The next morning I picked up the car.
I was aware the entire time that the new Volvo and the old Volvo had almost nothing in common, and I've never been much of a brand loyalist. It just so happens that the XC90 was what I needed, was available, and a car I really enjoy driving.
When heading to the head office for work stuff, I used to fly for an hour. Now I don't mind driving for 7 hours.
That's a story! My partner was at the point where they were begging me to buy anything. The need for the car was for real. Haha. I should have done something like that. π
I just looked up the XC90. It's a beefy boy. It can hold a family with ease plus alllll the luggage. Now you're equipped for any trip. Including the dreaded in-law visits. π
Beefy yes, not that much luggage. The 3rd row of seats comes at the expense of luggage space. So when everyone is onboard there's only room for a couple of suitcases in the back. What is convenient is that the seats fold down completely flat, so when I need to haul something alone it's quite roomy.
We did do the 16 hour drive to visit my mom this summer, and for the occasion we got one of those roof mounted ski boxes for the additional storage/luggage space. That gave us room for 5 extra suitcases, fishing rods, life vests et.al. (boating was on the agenda).
Despite being a lot heavier and more powerful than the old car, the fuel economy is much better as it's a chargeable hybrid. For long trips this clocks in at roughly 25% less fuel spent. When it's just the daily driving stuff I switch to full electric. The battery is enough for 40ish minutes of driving.
Right after I bought it I took the kids on a small trip up this mountainside close to where we live. While driving I explained the concept of power-to-weight to them, and then told them some figures about the old and the new car. I could see them in the back mirror, thinking hard about the numbercrunching. I quietly switched to the "power mode" which basically connects all three engines for performance over economy. Just as they started to answer that the new car had a much higher PWR I floored it and I heard four surprised happy cheers from the back as the car practically jumped up the 30 degree slope.
As for the dreaded in-laws trip, for me that's almost every day, as they live 300 meters away. For my GF, that was this summer.
300 meters away! π¬
Reminds me of my old Grand Cherokee in terms of space and seating. Adding a car topper really helped. When the kids were young, we did many 3200 km trips back and forth between where we lived and where the family lived. That's a lot of car time with kiddoes and a dog. So many pee breaks.
Now, we have a minivan which has the third row of seats plus decent storage pace (in the back and below seats, millennium falcon style). It's not sexy, but it really gets the job done well. The V6 pulls the camper with ease, too. Now we only live 1300 km away. Phew!