Harry Potter references still abound, but I never seem to hear Hunger Games references. Is it just me, or has Hunger Games just kind of been forgotten about in the cultural zeitgeist?
I ask because it used to be a pretty big thing.
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I still hear hunger games often in my circle. “May the odds be in your favor” with the meme attached is in my personal and work chats. Or “let the hunger games begin”.
What references are you thinking that used to be popular and now are not?
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I definitely say I volunteer as tribute
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Even my teens, who were too young to watch the movies when they came out, reference them. They say stuff like “volunteer as tribute” and “may the odds be ever in your favor.” So Gen Z is keeping it alive!
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That’s interesting. It must just be the people I know. It just all of a sudden hit me that Hunger Games was so popular once, but it seems to have been forgotten in my little circle. Thank you for the replies!
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Has anybody ever gone to court for a traffic violation? Do I need an attorney? I’ve got like three attorneys who’ve sent me advertisements in the mail.
FYI I rear ended someone last week when they had to slam on brakes to avoid hitting an suv that just whipped out in front of them. Damage was minor as we weren’t going very fast.
The state trooper just told me to bring a letter from the insurance company stating the other party’s damages were taken care of and they’d dismiss it.
Also I live in NC.
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I wouldn’t. I’m sure the lawyers just want to charge you a hefty fee! It sounds like no one was injured.
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One of our neighbors had their pride flags cut down and stolen. They got one of them back, but the other one is gone. She mentioned that it was the lesbian pride flag, but in I googling I see a few different options. I want to replace it for them, and help show some neighborhood support, but I’m not sure which pattern to buy. Any input?
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I would go for the orange-pink one, as it’s the most general and afaict the most common.
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Could you ask the neighbor what the missing flag looks like so you can keep an eye out when you ate out and about with the kids (walking in the neighborhood).
This is such a nice gesture for you to replace the flag!
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I didn’t think of it while we were just talking (didn’t realize the many variations- thought I knew it but clearly didn’t log the specifics!) and i don’t see them out all that often. I want to do it before they buy a new one themselves. Poor people, you can only SEE the flags on their patio because someone crashed through their fence and their insurance is being awful.
It’s a small gesture to try and combat such an inhospitable and hateful action. I want people to feel as safe and welcome as possible. Drop in the bucket but I can try.
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I read the wiki page about the flags, lots of options, but the striped ones seem most common. And I am sure they will appreciate whatever you get them.
And a pox on the asshole(s) that stole their flags.
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That’s the one!
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OK, I went ahead and just ordered through Amazon. It can get here tomorrow, and done is better than perfect. I found a website called flags for good, but they only donate one dollar per flag, and the flags cost like $20 more. So I’ll just go for a quick solution, and do a direct donation if I decide to go that route after talking to Husband. Thank you everyone for the help!
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This is a money forum! I have a money question! 
TLDR: I am looking for input on what to do with extra money.
The only retirement account I have is a pre-tax one thru my work. I have never been able to max that out, so I saw no reason to open anything else in addition to that. I don’t enjoy dealing with money and am not interested in learning, so really the simpler the better! I will max my work IRA out this year for the first time (go me!) I may not be able to max out my work IRA in the future, depending on income.
Can I open/deposit money into an after tax Roth in addition to maxing out my work one? Or is the $19,500 max the total max for ~all~ accounts? If allowed, this is probably what I would do, but I feel like it is not allowed…
I have always wanted a decent sized accessible cash cushion, so in the past I have split commission checks into my IRA and my savings.That accessible money has mostly been in a savings account earning me basically nothing for many years because it was easy. (sorry 
) But now that amount is getting large enough that I need to do something with it. I have had a few cds, the current one matures in Feb I think. By spring when my cd matures, I will have more accessible money than I need to have and will of course keep saving as I am able to. I am probably happy with 30k and will have 50k or so which I don’t think is necessary so I am wondering where to put some money that doesn’t necessarily need to be accessible, like maybe 20k, and also where to park the maybe 30k that needs to be accessible-ish.
My bank does have a money market account (I think that’s the right term) but that needs 25k in it so I won’t be able to do one until my cd matures if I choose to do that. I also don’t know how those work, I assume there isn’t much difference in a money market account or a HYSA? I literally know nothing here. I do know that cd rates are going down too, so I am not sure if that will be a good option after mine matures. I guess anything is a better option than a savings account, ha.
Some details:
I work on a low base salary and then get commission checks based on my sales for the year. I think I live on my base pay and save my commission checks, but I don’t budget or do spreadsheets so I am not totally sure. Close enough to that, anyway. I will definitely have to work until I can collect Social Security at whatever age that ends up being, so I don’t really need a ton of post tax accessible money before then. I am 54 now.
So… what should I do with my “extra” money? If you say HYSA, do you have a preferred place? Assume that I have 50k to spread around to whatever savings buckets you like.
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Yes. You are saying IRA through work, but IRAs are not related to work; 401Ks/403bs are.
So for 2024, you can contribute $23,000 to a 401k/403b through work. Then you can also contribute an additional $7,000 to an IRA. Note that there are maximum income limits for contributing to Roths. If you exceed those, let us know and we can walk you through options.
For accessible cash, I use a HYSA through Capital One, currently paying 4.10%. Other people like Ally, and there are other banks paying a bit more but they’re lesser known. As long as you’re in that ballpark for interest, it’ll be a fine option and you can go through where you’re currently banking. For the less accessible options, you could go with a money market or even an ETF/mutual fund if your risk tolerance permits through any of the major brokerages (Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard).
So - I would max my work retirement accounts for sure. Then I would fully fund an IRA. Any additional funds I would put into a HYSA or brokerage.
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I looked online to make sure, and it’s a simple IRA. Maybe that’s different? I don’t know. My boss takes my money pretax and does a 3% match. Is there any after tax retirement plan that I can have along with this?
Income varies, but highest has been 67k.
HYSA seems easier than a brokerage thing? Is a brokerage thing a stock market thing so it could potentially make more money? Is it something that I can do with the financial advisor I have for my work one so I don’t have another person to deal with?
ETA google says I can contribute 8000 to a Roth and 19,500 to a simple, but can I max both? If I can I should go ahead and open a Roth, right?
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