topic Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching.... in Community Chat

Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 15:58:26 GMT

your head? One cousin not married, lives alone. parents are gone. Dad left her with money as did another relative. That's a good thing. She is not dumb, odd, but not dumb.

She does not entertain but is spending $60,000.00 on landscaping for her small ranch house. Fancy walls, patio w/fire pit, etc. It's huge. However, she wanted central air put in which was a good idea, but the furnance was decades old and for central air needed a new one. She balked at replacing the furnance. They told her you couldn't even get parts anymore.

She needed a part for the toilet, less than $20. She questioned if she needed it. There is 1 bathroom in the house.

There is a 3 bay garage and she is paying big bucks to have 1 bay turned into a she shed with heat, skylights etc. She lives alone and has a full finished basement. Her whole house is a she shed.

Yes, her money, her choices. I don't understand not blinking an eye over 60 grand for the yard but questioning fixing the only toilet.

She puts all her money in a checking account, no savings account, or investment account. She showed my sister a 6 figure check going into her checking account. God knows how much she has in there. My sister explained FDIC but didn't want to get into her finances.

Do you have a relative that makes you say "Huh?"

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

ALRATIBA — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:09:25 GMT

I'm probably the relative that everyone else is shaking their heads over! My family knows that they should mind their own business.

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First of all .... I wouldn't put my money in an investment account. Been there, done that .... and lost a small fortune in the fiasco in 2006/8 or so.

Savings account interest is practically nothing.

I don't blame her for keeping money in checking ..... so easy access.

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As you said, her money, her business.

The investment in her property will pay off if/when she sells it.

I think it's always good to question whether something "has" to be replaced rather than just fixed.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

deepwaterdotter — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:11:27 GMT

I suspect I'm the relative that makes all the others wonder.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Porcelain — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:14:34 GMT

A three bay garage and only one bathroom?

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Porcelain — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:15:17 GMT

@deepwaterdotter wrote:
I suspect I'm the relative that makes all the others wonder.

You and me both! I know I'm that relative.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:15:45 GMT

My sister's concern is the fact that she could live another 25 yrs. and has no one to care for her. Put money aside in case you need live in help or can be cared for should you become unable to care for yourself.

Again it's her money but my main thing would be heat in the winter and a working bathroom.

If it's up to her she will never sell that house.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Ms tyrion2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:18:07 GMT

It sounds like she is making a cozy, comfortable, beautiful home to enjoy. She has the funds to do it, so more power to her.

I don't call her odd. I identify with her. Bug off gossipy relatives!

😄

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:22:14 GMT

@Porcelain Yep. Her Dad had a some pricey cars. He also hated to spend money, except on his cars.

He chopped wood until he was in his 80's and made her help. He was 90 when he died. She just retired. He had her climb on the roof and clean out gutters. She took care of him afterher Mom died. No idea what the plan was if she fell off the roof and got hurt.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Barbara-QVC — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:22:16 GMT

This post has been removed by QVC because it is unkind.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Carmie — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:31:07 GMT

I come from a big family and no odd people.

my husband has a friend that is quite odd. He is a nice man, who has worked a mechanic most of his life. He has amassed quite a lot of money and has made good investments.

He is always buying and selling things. He will spend months looking for a new car, once he buys it, he might keep it for a few months,then sell it and spend months looking for another.

He does the same with household furniture, his house, RV's, boats...just about everything. He loves to browse and buy things, always looking for the best deal, but then he is bored and the cycle starts all over again.

I have been in his car when he will suddenly stop and get out to pick up a aluminum can. This can be dangerous on some highways. You would think that can is worth a fortune. He cashes in on scrap metal for another way to make money.

He always dresses like a bum and looks homeless, but he is loaded. He has taken us to the finest restaurants and wears his mechanic clothing, clean, but grungy looking. His table manners are awful, but he will order the most expensive meal and pay cash. He also will pay for strangers meals without them knowing and slips out before they have a clue.

He is married and I feel sorry for his poor wife. She never knows when she will be moving and she comes home often to find all of the furniture gone, only to be replaced with something new. He doesn't always have good taste...and one time replaced their DR furniture with a new set that had chairs made out of beer kegs. Looked like man cave junk.

He never allows her any input, she seems to have no choice. Funny, she doesn't seem to mind.

He drives me crazy and I am glad I am not married to him. I tell him all of the time that is is controlling and nuts and that he only enjoys the hunt, not the rewards..he just laughs.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

house_cat — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:24:19 GMT

Oh, boy. I've got lots of them. I guess that might indicate that I'm the nutty one?

My brother and SIL had a 2 million dollar home built in East Hampton, NY. They didn't include central air. They said they didn't need it. They're near the beach but not on the beach. It gets hot. Last time I was there I saw two of those portable air conditioning units in the bedrooms. I just don't get it.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Porcelain — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:27:05 GMT

@CrazyKittyLvr2 wrote:
@Porcelain Yep. Her Dad had a some pricey cars. He also hated to spend money, except on his cars.

He chopped wood until he was in his 80's and made her help. He was 90 when he died. She just retired. He had her climb on the roof and clean out gutters. She took care of him afterher Mom died. No idea what the plan was if she fell off the roof and got hurt.

Sounds like that's where she got it from, then. She's like her Dad, just with a different focus. Dad sounds like he must have been an interesting person too.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

drizzellla — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:30:22 GMT

Maybe your cousin is related to a woman who used to live down the street.

Apparently she got quite an inheritance. So she had numerous full sized trees planted in her front yard. We aren't talking about flowering trees or fruit trees. They were like oak and maple trees. Since the trees were 25 - 30 feet tall they could not have been cheap to buy, transport and plant.

It was a plot about 1/2 acre so we are not talking about lots of room in the front of her house.

She was well into her 70s. It turned out that I worked with her daughter-in-law about 10 years later. When the Mother-in-law passed away, the house was sold and first thing the new owner did was take out about 8 of the trees.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CelticCrafter — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:33:32 GMT

Well, it's her money to do with as she wishes.

She does sound as if she is penny wise and pound foolish though.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:34:49 GMT

@Porcelain Yeah, he was a treat. Luckily he wasn't a blood relative, just by marriage. He ruled the roost. Neither my aunt or cousin jumped without having to ask him "how high."

I had several wonderful aunts and uncles. He was the one person I couldn't stand to be around. When I got older and he started in on me, I just gave it back to him. My husband or Dad never talked to me like that and that old man wasn't going to start.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Kitlynn — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:35:56 GMT

It sounds like she is trying to fulfill her life with things she thinks she wants. She can afford to do it obviously and just thinks the next thing she does is going to bring her that fulfillment she is looking for. While in the meantime it appears she may not have a lot of common sense.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

Spurt — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 17:48:04 GMT

@CrazyKittyLvr2

I think a cousin would qualify.....She has a good job and is well off...

She belittled us because we spend money on nail polish/lipstick (that money should be invested), while she spent LOTS of money on junk jewelry from Flea Marts and yet refused to have her eyeglass prescription updated and would use a magnifying glass in addition to her old glasses to be able to read anything....She would also buy lots of stuff from the clearance carts at the grocery store even if it was something she didn't really like...her thinking....she just couldnt pass up a good bargain....🤔

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

50Mickey — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:48:25 GMT

While we are speculating about this lady I'll add my 2 cents. It sounds to me like she has taken care of the money that she inherited and she is spending it on what she wants to make her home exactly as she wants it. What's wrong with having a beautiful yard? Her plans sound lovely to me. We should all be so fortunate. As long as she is not asking the OP for money why would the OP care what this cousin does with her money. As far as saving for her later years maybe she has that taken care of.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

MaryLamb — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 16:56:44 GMT

I have a cousin who goes ghost hunting. She and her friends sleep in freezing cold, abandoned penitentiaries with tape recorders asking “is anyone here” all night long. When her father (my mother’s brother) died, my mother found an old life insurance policy her father had taken out naming her as the beneficiary. She gave it to my cousin when we arrived at the funeral home for the viewing, and my cousin immediately left the service to go into the bathroom at the funeral home to phone the insurance company to start the claim on the policy. She has a good job and a masters degree, so it’s not like she needed the money.

Re: Do you have a relative that leaves you scratching....

CrazyKittyLvr2 — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 17:03:39 GMT

@50Mickey She talks to my sister a lot. When my sister expressed surprise at just putting money in her checking account and suggesting a savings account or investing some of it she had no idea of what to do. From what I get, no, she has no plan for aging or possibly needing care.

There is nothing wrong with making your home nice but she is spending money like water on the outside of the house. However, evidently she should hire a housekeeper. Her pets have no rules or boundaries. If her cats are on her bed and she's tired she stays up, so she doesn't disturb them She also doesn't vacuum much as there is animal hair everywhere.

Again, if she wants a showplace outside and a mess inside it's her choice. I just don't get it.