I really, truly don't get it either. I have my mortgage payment and equipment payments (more than pay for themselves, and I consider 'good debt'). I've mentioned several times now, I increased my plant floor wages 30-50% back in October. I still have several folks that still come ask for loans. I started having conversations with these people to try to determine if they're taking care of other family, if they're taking their new 'extra' and putting it towards retirement, or what the deal is? I do have one lady tell me she actually invested in a rental trailer on a beach somewhere. I was proud of her, the rest of them...the increase in wages just meant instead of stretching a carton of cigarettes a week, now meant they could buy two cartons...instead of stretching a case of beer for the week, now they can buy 2-3 cases of beer. I feel really bad for a couple of them, because they decided against applying $50 of the net $3-500/month increase in wages to short term disability (open enrollment was November)...and they're out of work for several weeks. It blows my mind, because I consider alot of the folks to be semi-educated or at least know what kind of environment they were brought up in.
