AskDong

I own a Nintendo Wii. I got it a little over 8 months ago. While given the overall success that Wii has enjoyed, it’s not that much of surprise that many bloggers own the Wii. However, I’m still taken aback by the love the Wii has gotten. Some like JD at Get Rich Slowly even gave one away. While I’ve been aware of the Wii phenomenon, it truly struck me when I saw MoneyNing’s post on how his Wii was his best investment of the year.

Wii Owners/PFBloggers:

• Clever Dude And you thought he was cheap.
• Punny of Punny Money.  Added via intelligence provided by Clever Dude
• Trent at The SimpleDollar
• Flexo at Consumerist Commentary
• JD at Get Rich Slowly. JD is always a trend setter. I think he got the Wii right after it was released.
• MoneyNing of MoneyNing
• Grad Money Matter. I might be double counting since the Wii was courtesy of J.D’s Wii giveaway contest
• Jim over Blueprint for Financial Prosperity got his fiancee a Wii. Though truth be told, Jim I believe is a XBox gamer.
• Shadox at Money and Such
• The Learning Curve. Apparently he likes to pair his Wii comments with attractive celebrities

While I don’t have any hard evidence that 2 out 3 PFbloggers prefer the Wii, it does make sense. The Wii Console is much cheaper than both the Playstation 3 ($499) and the XBox 360 ($349). In addition the Wii comes with Wii Sports which despite graphically looking like a proof of concept demo disc remains consistently a popular game amongst the Wii crowd. If we know anything, we know personal finance bloggers think with their wallets. Also I imagine that most personal finance bloggers are casual gamers rather than hard core gamers. We’re not blogging about games after all. As a result, I think most personal finance bloggers are not concerned about the latest graphics or coolest technology. We want a system that provides fun at a good price. As a bonus, the Wii as system lends itself to more interaction, and I’ve suggested in the past a good way to curb socializing costs is to suggest activities that are cheap. Playing video games at home with friends is cheap.

Full disclosure: I own shares of Nintendo, or the rather ADR version (NTDOY). ADRs are American Depository Receipts which are basically U.S. versions of foreign stocks. I can’t complain about Nintendo, the shares have doubled since I purchased them which was around the same time I was gifted my Wii. I only wish I brought more

J.D. over at getrichslowly recounts a conversation with a friend of his seeking some money advice. The basic summary is that his friend Gillian is having financial difficulties, and wants some advice. J.D. basically suggest some cuts she and her husband can make to their lifestyle. She hears, but refuses to listen. Gillian isn’t willing to make the sacrifices that would put her in better financial footing. Like many people Gillian wants to have her cake and eat it too. Sadly, life doesn’t work that way.

The bigger question in all of this is how does one advise friends, especially in financial matters? In general, I’m not fan of giving unsolicited advice. Even with the best of intentions, unsolicited advice often goes in one ear and out the other. At worst, it makes someone dig in more into a wrong headed position. I know this might seem strange coming from someone who positions himself as someone who likes to give advice “solicited and unsolicited.” I try to refrain from telling people how they should lead their lives (well most people), and at least not too directly. I rather in the course of conversation steer someone to alternative way of thinking. I’m not always good at this, but I do think it’s a better way of giving advice.

So for instance let’s say I had a friend who was considering buying a timeshare which I generally think is a bad idea, I would never start off saying that timeshares are terrible investments. I would actually acknowledge that timeshares can be quite useful, and a really effective way to vacation. However then I would start asking questions of my friend. “Do you think you’ll be able to take enough time off?”, “Have you looked into how easy it’ll be able to trade the timeshare?”, “Do you think the maintenance fee will increase at a higher rate over the years?”, etc. The questions should ideally be worded in way that is more inquisitive than accusatory.

Even if you can give money advise to a friend without offending their sensibilities, it still doesn’t mean they’ll take it. Like JD’s friend, Gillian, most people want a free solution to every problem. People sometimes aren’t ready to make changes in either how they spend or manage their money immediately. However as long as lines of communication are open, then change is possible. Ultimately that’s why we advise our friends about so they can makes changes for the better.

I spent this past weekend away at Bachelor party.   Like most Bachelor parties, gambling was involved.   While at time I wish it weren’t true, I enjoy gambling.  I don’t do it often, and never more than what I consider “fun” money.  Yet, I often wonder why I play these games of chance.  The odds are assuredly stacked in the houses favor.  Over the long run, I know I’m effectively paying the house $1 to get 90 cents in return.   But to quote Maynard Keynes, in the long run, “we’re all dead.”   In that regard I’m willing for whatever reason to effectively pay the house it’s cut for the potential elation of winning.  At the same time when I lose, I grumble and ask myself why I play this game of chance.   I’m not sure if the joy winning outweighs the disgust of losing.  

I believe I will probably continue to gamble in the limited quantities that I do today, but what I will do from now on is to actually track my wins and losses (as was suggested by a friend).   Gambling is really just another hobby, and I should know how much it costs me.  I should also be tracking it for tax purposes just in case.  Gambling losses are not deductible against anything other gambling losses, but net winnings are always taxable.  In general I’ve never worried about my take in any given year, because I’ve always assumed that for the year I’ve lost money gambling.  The main benefit of tracking the expense is to better to determine if gambling is worth the cost.  If I end up looking at my balance, and find that the cost has outweighed whatever perceived benefits then it becomes so much easier to give it up.

So my first entry: +$300

As golf season kicks into high season here in the Northeast, I’ve decided to review my hobbies not just because they are important part of anyone’s budget, but because they’re important part of everyone’s life. I’ll be the first to admit, I have some expensive hobbies. However unlike some other personal finance bloggers, I don’t preach just having cheap hobbies. It’s great if you can have cheap hobbie, but sometimes hobbies choose you and not the other way around. However, I do think there are ways to minimize costs.

Golf

Equipment and green fees are expensive. However, I think most golfers are better off not spending a ton of money on top of the line equipment. Buy used when you can. A club that costs $100 a new can be had for $10 used. Especially if you’re a hacker like me, the club is most likely going to be chipped after a few holes. I may be the exception but I’ve never purchased a club as I’ve been lucky enough to get hand me downs, first from my brother and then later from a friend. Green fees in the Boston area are expensive easily running $40-50 for good but not great course. Besides playing at cheaper courses, the other thing to take advantage of are late afternoon/evening rates that some courses offer. Estimated Yearly Cost: $700 (for 15 or so rounds at around $45/round) + $100 for equipment. Golfers who belong to country clubs can easily spend in excess of tens of thousands per year on member fees.

Skiing/Snowboarding

Like golf skiing or snowboarding is expensive because of both equipment cost and use fees (lift tickets). Travel costs then take another big bite out the wallet. Few people are conveniently located near a ski slope and as result transportation and lodging can be substantial. Good thing I snowboard much less than I golf. Though I’m a much better snowboarder than golfer - that’s more of statement on my golf game as I’m pretty bad snowboarder.  Used equipment makes somewhat less sense here given the more fitted nature of ski equipment. Only the actual Skis, and Snowboard really make sense to buy used.  Boots should be personally broken in, and be the right size.  The cost of lift tickets are hard to avoid.   Besides owning a Jeep and taking advantage of Jeep appreciation day (2 free lift tickets), it’s not that easy to score free lift tickets.  However if you really do ski alot, a season pass can make sense.

Videogames

The best days of playing video games are well behind me. Most of my gaming took place on Apple //c. I currently own a Wii, but don’t play it all that much. Gaming as far as cost $/hour is quite cheap. That may be reflection of the large denominator. Playing games take alot of time, and the actual cost of any given video game is low. For example a standard action video game might cost $60, but deliver 60 hours of playing time. $/Hour is pretty a good rate. If you buy and keep alot of video games, the costs can add up. However if you instead buy used, and play quickly, and resell the game, the actual cost of a video game be quite low. As low as $10-$15 a game depending on how long you keep the game. Given that games are just software, there’s really no need to own a Game CD/DVD new. Of course the real cost of gaming is time. Like any Hobby , playing videogames takes time. However given the number of folks who have died in Asia from not stop gaming, the time suck nature of video games is quite apparent.

Cooking/Entertaining

I enjoy entertaining and cooking for friends. I definitely do not do this as often as I’d like, and less often than I used to. While I’m always happy to spend the money, entertaining friends can be quite expensive. I will be the first to admit much of this is my fault. Since I cook on a irregular basis, I end up needing to buying excess ingredients that often go to waste. Some of this is related to packaging size, but much of this is due to bad estimations on my part. If you’re going to entertain be accurate with the guest count, and don’t buy too much food. You want enough for leftovers, but you don’t want too much in leftovers.

Blogging

This is my one hobby that doesn’t cost anything beyond what I already own, a computer and internet connection. Like gaming, it’s a big time suck. But unlike video games, it’s actually a productive use of time.