ahh...when you have a wife...and it comes to funding cards....

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

With Christmas coming up...this tends to at least be a minor issue with my family...both sets of our parents are fairly well to do, and along side gifts for Christmas, tend to each year also give us a "together" gift of cash...we've always used these "together" gifts for new dining room sets, new bedroom suites and such....and boy I have to tell you I just love partaking in that So i'm just curious if anyone else has an issue like this...and would it be totally bad of me to suggest we split up these "together" gifts...where I could put my half towards cards??

[Archive]

Posted By: Peter_Spaeth

If you even have to ask, you probably know the answer: NO WAY.

[Archive]

Posted By: Tom Boblitt

T206's........?

The gift that keeps on giving..........

I used to do shows in the early 1990's and my wife (at the time....#1) would always salivate when I'd come home because it would be 'how much did you sell'. We could buy a new kitchen table or more clothes! Yeehah......JUST what I was looking for.

My wife now (final.......#2) doesn't say a word about it. But we also have a few more finances than I did then!

[Archive]

Posted By: david Poses

agreed. if your wife is anything like my wife, i wish you a happy holiday in advance and hope you enjoy the fabulous new sofa or bathroom fixtures. either would really bring out the red on the leaves outside your house during that one-week peak foliage time.

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

Maybe its just the thought of doing something together...she always takes me along on these "together" purchases...asks if this will match the paint on the wall and such....maybe I just need to start asking her about cards, "will this E98 Cobb Orange match your flower arrangement in the foyer?"

[Archive]

Posted By: Randy Trierweiler

Dave, we are in the same boat. I've been married 19 years and have collected the whole time. Take it from me, enjoy the China you are going to get. The cards will be there later. Randy

[Archive]

Posted By: Steve Murray

Everything that comes in, gifts, inheritances, earnings, etc. just goes in the pot. My wife spends what she wants and I spend what I want. She does however give a big "ooie, ooie" everytime I sell a card.

[Archive]

Posted By: leon

You need to make it sound like you are doing her a favor....however you need to spin it, make it sound like that, and you will be able to get it done....

[Archive]

Posted By: Jim VB

I agree with Leon 100% on this one.

Try, "Honey, we've always spent this Holiday money on something practical for the house. This year let's be crazy. Take half and get something for yourself that you might not normally buy."

Then wait until she has spent HER HALF! Deal done.

[Archive]

Posted By: Jim VB

Truth is, this has all the makings of a bad story line from The Honeymooners. There is no way it will work out like any of us think it should.

[Archive]

Posted By: Jason L

1) Ask your parents to send you the gift (assuming a check) in the mail, and then you could misrepresent the amount to your wife, skimming a good portion off the top for your needs. "Gee, sorry hon. They must have had a tougher year in the market this year."

2) Simply ask your parents to buy you the top item or 2 on your card wantlist, and that would be that. "Gee, sorry, hon. I don't know why they chose to do that..."

Now, I say you COULD do that. I don't necessarily recommend it - I'm just trying to give you options. If these don't work, be sure to have alternate room & board options already prepared. Good luck, and I hope to be seeing great things from you on the Decmber and January New Pickups threads!

[Archive]

Posted By: Glen V

It's easier to beg for forgiveness than to get permission. Just spend the money on cards. Your future ex-wife will understand.

[Archive]

Posted By: Steve

Dead man walkin'

[Archive]

Posted By: anthony

coming from a single man, i would mention the "D" word on the 26th of december, split the together gifts then get back together on the 27th...you each keep your 1/2.

coming from a common sense man, like everyone else...enjoy the furniture.

maybe you can suggest putting 50% in the house gift, 25% in your cards, & the other 25% on whatever the wife wants. maybe even suggest getting her nails done, or a massage, facial, new shoes, etc...make it sound like she getting this awesome gift and you're only getting some cardboard.

[Archive]

Posted By: JimB

Sounds completely reasonable to me. I agree with Leon; how you frame it is critically important. You know your wife best, but maybe framing it as a potential investment could help.
JimB

[Archive]

Posted By: boxingcardman

You stand a better chance of landing an El Al 747 in Tehran than getting a wife to willingly give up home "improvement" money for cards.

If you really want to stand tall on the issue, don't ask her, just take a chunk and spend it then justify it later on.

[Archive]

Posted By: leon

"Honey, it's an investment".....Then let her spend her part on whatever she wants to....

[Archive]

Posted By: Justin

"Women: can't live with 'em, and they can't pee standing up."

-Rube Baker
Major League II

[Archive]

Posted By: peter chao

Tell your wife she can spend all the money on herself. If there's any money left over, you have a couple of items you would like to buy.

If you are like me, during the year you normally spend a lot more money on your cards than buying presents for your wife. Now is your chance to balance it out some.

It's much easier for me to give you the above advice than it is for me to follow it.

Peter C.

[Archive]

Posted By: pas

Think what you are saying. Tell her she can spend it on herself, and IF THERE IS MONEY LEFT OVER...... LOL. I would bet on the El Al jet rather than that scenario.

[Archive]

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

"If you are like me, during the year you normally spend a lot more money on your cards than buying presents for your wife."

Peter, I hope your wife doesn't read this board. Even though it's no doubt true for everyone on this board you are NEVER supposed to admit it. Especially in writing!

[Archive]

Posted By: peter chao

Jeff L.,

She already knows I spend more on cards. She's a smart cookie. When I buy presents for her she figures out whether the money for the present came from a joint or a separate account. She's right on top of it.

Peter C.

[Archive]

Posted By: E, Daniel

I actually SOLD memorabilia this year so that I can buy my wife some diamond earrings. I'll take the hugs, back tickles, moral support and bad sweaters any day over some old cardboard.
Thanks honey for 7 great years.
Oh yeh, and thanks for not saying anything about the padded parcels that arrive every week from all over the world!



Daniel

[Archive]

Posted By: ItsOnlyGil

I agree with those who recommend an investment excuse, something along the lines of "we have enuff of this furniture and decorating crap (perhaps smoothed out a little more eloquently), how about this year we concentrate the focus of these gifts on our long term financial stability? For example, why don't we consider an investment grade ruby/sapphire/emerald, possibly set in a ring/necklace/braclet configuration. That would be a nice long term choice. And with the other half of the money, to assure diversification, maybe a Matty/Anson/Wagner, set in plastic with a PSA/SGC few/some/many theme.

[Archive]

Posted By: boxingcardman

You can always resort to the "when you generate $_____ a year you can decide what to do with it; for now, I'm buying some cards!" Yeah, and sleeping alone too...

No, there is no good solution. Marriage deprives women of the ability to see beauty in anything that doesn't have a fake French name (WTF is a "duvet" anyhow, why does it have to be covered, and why does it cost so much?) and doesn't sit in the living room. We just finished a remodel and I kid you not, my wife must have purchased 30 samples of beige paint. Each has a different name but they were all beige. And another 30 samples of green paint. Our living room walls looked like checkerboards. And she went 20% over budget and was so proud of herself for only spending an extra $10,000 (and that was without refinishing the floors, thanks to my breaking my @$$ all weekend doing them myself). If I came home from the National with an extra $10,000 worth of cards that I'd floated on credit cards I'd be moving in with my parents and visiting my kid on weekends...

[Archive]

Posted By: Dan Bretta

I feel sorry for you guys. If I told my wife that we can just split the money up she'd go with that in a second. Of course my wife is not really into "french" things, and she got over her Longaberger basket phase many years ago.

[Archive]

Posted By: Bob

My wife knows that when I depart this veil I am not taking my cards with me. The daughters and grandkids will claim some of the cards they like but the rest will be sold and she can do whatever she wants with the money. The younger daughter (25) is a sharp cookie though and since she has first crack she already knows to take the Matty signed baseball with her first pick

[Archive]

Posted By: Russ Bright

My wife is understanding when I tell her it's for an investment - She has seen me over the past year make some VERY NICE flips (buy a card and quickly sell it for more) of newer Shiny Cards, and realizes that the Old cards are an absolute investment - She has a 401K that appreciates at 8-15% a year, and i have my cards that grow as well - If you have last years price guide and show her how much the cards went up - figure out the % and then show that spending $500 could very well be a 2k card in 5-10 years - try doing that with China!

Regardless, it's a very fortunate thing that you have in-laws that have money and can give you some. My father in Law lives at my house and is a thorn in my side with NO money who leaves a path of filth and destruction in his way... I'd rather have relatives who give me money, even if I couldn't spend it on something I wanted... lol