Question for you chronic UAS sufferers...

Ukejenny

Ukejenny

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What are y'all living off of - ramen noodles and koolaid? Dang, there is some major dough being spent on multiple acquisitions by some of you UUers!! At times like this, I really miss my disposable income! I need to change my user name form ukejenny to ukenvy!!! :p
 
i brown bag it, cut down on dating (or dating high maintenance types, anyway), cut down on beer/booze, and stopped buying other gear-guitars, synths. Though I have a long term plan for a modular synth, that can wait...
 
Ukejenny said:
What are y'all living off of - ramen noodles and koolaid? Dang, there is some major dough being spent on multiple acquisitions by some of you UUers!! At times like this, I really miss my disposable income! I need to change my user name form ukejenny to ukenvy!!! :p
Click to expand...

hahaha...we are all in different situations in life but I totally believe that a uke should never be bought with a credit card or any other loan unless you can pay it off at the end of the month.

Enjoy every uke that you currently own!
 
I agree with nongdam. I found that I liked my ukes better than an old-fashioned watch a great-aunt gave me, better than gold earrings I haven 't worn since my hair turned gray, and a Chinese rug that had been rolled up in a closet for 10 years. Sale of all those items helped to fill my uke fund.

Do you have anything you can sell? Or do you do something (like tutoring) you can moonlight with to make a few extra bricks?
 
Ukejenny said:
What are y'all living off of - ramen noodles and koolaid? Dang, there is some major dough being spent on multiple acquisitions by some of you UUers!! At times like this, I really miss my disposable income! I need to change my user name form ukejenny to ukenvy!!! :p
Click to expand...

My thoughts exactly...especially when I see the quick turnover of expensive instruments for less than what was originally paid.

I have early retirement (retiring at 53) happening next year so material possessions (Stuff Aquisition Syndrome) have come to mean less to me now. Oh don't get me wrong - I am currently jonesing for a new tenor guitar and would love to have a nice hollow-body electric guitar, not to mention a new fly rod, or a new set of wheels for my road racing bicycle, but sweet retirement has taken top priority, plus I have learned that I just don't need all that stuff.

And besides...I also found out that I like shopping and scanning ads on the internet and surfing ebay and nationwide Craisglist ads. The hunt is half the fun for me!
 
It is pretty amazing, :drool: so good for those who can afford to go there though. We will just have to live vicariously through them. I did make my one time splurge on my Compass Rose though, so I can't complain to much. :D
 
GinnyT11 said:
I agree with nongdam. I found that I liked my ukes better than an old-fashioned watch a great-aunt gave me, better than gold earrings I haven 't worn since my hair turned gray, and a Chinese rug that had been rolled up in a closet for 10 years. Sale of all those items helped to fill my uke fund.

Do you have anything you can sell? Or do you do something (like tutoring) you can moonlight with to make a few extra bricks?
Click to expand...

These are good suggestions. Some of us can't increase our income except by selling some stuff that's worth something to other people. What we can do is to prioritize our spending. Do we need to go out to a movie and spend $30 when we can watch the same movie at home for $4.99 in a month? Do we need to eat out every week? I throw my loose change in a plastic jar on the dresser. I ask myself do I need a new leather sport coat or would I rather have a particular uke? If there's a special uke that you really gotta have, you can add a budget line item for it and start saving. I agree with the folks that suggest not going into debt to get a uke, but that's a general statement. If a store has one for half off that you really want at the moment........That's pretty rare though.
 
GinnyT11 said:
I agree with nongdam. I found that I liked my ukes better than an old-fashioned watch a great-aunt gave me, better than gold earrings I haven 't worn since my hair turned gray, and a Chinese rug that had been rolled up in a closet for 10 years. Sale of all those items helped to fill my uke fund.

Do you have anything you can sell? Or do you do something (like tutoring) you can moonlight with to make a few extra bricks?
Click to expand...

A couple of years ago I sold some gold jewelry no longer being worn and a fine classical guitar no longer being played and purchased some nice ukes. Recently sold some vintage bowlback mandolins and some of my first K brand ukes I thought I would never part with. Wanting to keep the money from the sales
in music, specifically ukes, I've upgraded. Don't want to own more, just better quality ones.
 
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I used to think I had UAS but I have lately decided what I have is more like UTS (Ukulele Trying Syndrome). I never have more than a small handful of ukes at any one time. Sure, I like to buy new ukes and experience the work of many different builders, but I can't afford to 'acquire' per se...I have low-no income so as soon as I buy one I need to sell another in order to fund each purchase...so yeah, try lots, sell lots. My buying has slowed down greatly this year as I seem to have found great contentment in what I currently own, which I'm thankful for.
 
For me it's all about prioritising and saving. I've spent a fair amount on ukuleles but then I don't drink or smoke and I live within me means, so it's my only vice.
 
The cure for my UAS was realizing that I will be paying off school for a LONG time, and that I will probably find it really hard to enjoy something I bought while in absolutely crushing debt. If anything, I'm probably going to downsize very soon.
 
I don't drink, I don't smoke, my tastes in food are simple, I don't have expensive hobbies like skiing or golf or scuba diving. Music is my passion, and I'm not shy about spending a couple of bucks on it.

Almost all instruments have some resale value, and good ones will often net you most or all of your money back, if you need to sell. I'd sooner put a few extra bucks into a new instrument then a .010% account at the bank.
 
I haven't been playing long, but I've already overcome this simply by realizing that I would have been better off buying one REALLY good uke instead of the 4 I have. I also realized I don't like regular scale sopranos at all, so I won't be buying anymore of those.
 
My ukuleles are cheaper than a red Maserati convertible.

I agree that one shouldn't buy an ukulele (or almost anything, really, absent exigent circumstances) with a credit card if you can't pay the card off in full.

I've been lucky to have a job that pays well enough, and a while ago I instituted a policy that for every ukuleole I bought, I'd donate one (*not* of equivalent value) to charity. Still, I think I've probably "overacquired," given that I have some ukuleles I don't play very much, and may downsize soon.
 
Ginny's right. I'm keeping stuff that my daughter has told me she doesn't want so it's time to get busy on Craiglist and Ebay so I can finance a Compass Rose mini-jumbo. :D
 
mds725 said:
My ukuleles are cheaper than a red Maserati convertible.

I agree that one shouldn't buy an ukulele (or almost anything, really, absent exigent circumstances) with a credit card if you can't pay the card off in full.

I've been lucky to have a job that pays well enough, and a while ago I instituted a policy that for every ukuleole I bought, I'd donate one (*not* of equivalent value) to charity. Still, I think I've probably "overacquired," given that I have some ukuleles I don't play very much, and may downsize soon.
Click to expand...

Mark, is one of those a mini-jumbo?
 
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