Life's hard for kids..

[Gob]

One 22-year-old incoming college senior is 'freaking out' about the fact that she's already spent her entire college fund a year short of graduation - and has enraged people all over the internet, who think the 'spoiled brat' should grow up and get a job.



The young woman, who goes only by Kim, has now called in four times to Atlanta radio's The Bert Show, each time taking listeners through another aspect of her stressful saga. Despite the fact that her grandparents set her up with a $90,000 college fund that was intended to last for four years, Kim, who is about to start her senior year, has already spent it all on tuition, books, clothes - and vacations.

But initially, instead of taking responsibility and getting a job, Kim blamed her parents for not teaching her how to budget properly - and faced the backlash of others who've called her 'entitled' and said she needs to get her act together

Last week, Yahoo Parenting reports, Kim called into the local radio show (which is syndicated in 11 states) to discuss her dilemma.

'Years ago my grandparents set up a college fund for me, which was amazing,' she began. '[But] I haven’t been very good with my budget for school. The first payment for my senior year just arrived, and I don’t have the money, basically.'


She explained that she was 'hooked up' for all four years of college, with almost $90,000. But due to what the show's hosts jokingly describe as a 'banking error' on her part, Kim is now left with no money left to pay the $10,000 tuition bill for the first semester of her senior year - or the $10,000 bill that will come once her second semester starts.

'I’ve just been avoiding it. Like, I knew that the bill was coming,' she said, adding that she'd already visited her school's financial aid office and applied for scholarships with no luck.

'I just wasn't very good with my budget,' she went on. 'I also [used] that budget for school clothes and stuff like that. My college break money, I [took] out of there, and maybe I should have not done that.'

That college break was a trip to Europe, which she 'figured was part of my education'.

The show's hosts were incredulous and told her she was going to have to suck it up and break the bad news to her parents.

One of the hosts, Kristin Klingshirn, asked her: 'Do you know what a big part of growing up is?'

'I think I'm experiencing my first lesson,' Kim answered. Kristin agreed: 'It's taking responsibility and accountability You need to come clean to your parents, and you need to borrow the money from them and pay every penny back.'

Unfortunately for Kim, her parents weren't ready to lend her the money.

Calling back The Bert Show for a follow-up, she explained that after having an open and honest conversation with her mom and dad, she was told that they couldn't help her - a reaction that Kim did not expect.

'My dad was so - just a little bit of a jerk about it,' she said. He just sort of chuckled, like I'm so stupid or something.'

Kim expressed that it was unfair of them to treat her that way because it was their fault that she spent her money so irresponsibly in the first place, saying: 'Maybe they should have taught me to budget a little more... They never sat me down and had a real serious talk about it.'

While her father said they didn't have more cash to give her, Kim said that was a 'lie', as she knew her parents had a retirement account that her dad had been contributing to for 'a million years'.

The hosts of the show then told her that she was learning a valuable lesson, and would now have to go to the bank for a loan. Kim, though, hadn't accepted that as the next step, and voiced frustration that she would have to actually go 'inside' - a word she stressed - a bank to apply for one, and couldn't just do it online.

Somehow, though, she managed to make herself go inside a bank - and called the show back afterward for another update. She recounted how she filled out forms, 'wrote a lot', and was told by a woman who worked at the bank that she would need her parents to co-sign the loan - which she would then have to start paying back immediately.

That created a new problem for Kim, who explained that she never thought of getting a job to earn money. Her parents said that they would only co-sign on the condition that Kim found part-time employment, which she called 'embarrassing'.

'My job is being a student right now. I never planned on working through college,' she said.

My job is being a student right now. I never planned on working through college

She added: 'Maybe I'll tell my parents I'll be a stripper if they don't co-sign.'

Callers began phoning in to express their disgust with the 22-year-old. A man named Josh, who worked through college and took out $30,000 in loans, said: 'This girl needs to get over herself and get a freaking job.'

'I would like to tell this spoiled brat to grow up and get a job,' a 45-year-old caller named Michelle chimed in.

Finally, it started to seem like Kim was growing up - a bit. She phoned back a fourth time to tell The Bert Show that she was calling local businesses near her school to apply for jobs, though it was difficult because she had no work history. She was also quite bitter about it, and annoyed with her parents.

'I know they're trying to teach me a lesson, and blah blah blah, and character building, but I hope they realize that this can have such a negative effect on grades, and [on me] as a person,' she said, whining about the fact that she would have to work at least 15 hours a week to get by.

In addition to the callers who voiced disbelief that Kim could be so entitled, a thread on Reddit popped up to dissect her story.

'Working while in college is embarrassing? I had jobs throughout college and still had to pawn s*** to pay for books. This person sucks,' said one commenter.

Others wrote that they hoped people didn't think that Kim was representative of all millennials, as many of them work hard and take out loans to pay for college. According to a survey by student loans company Sallie Mae, three-quarters of students work at least part-time while earning a degree.


However, not everyone is laying the blame solely on Kim. Many adults - including Bert Weiss, the host of the radio show - think the parents should actually shoulder some of it as well. Some have said that Kim's mom and dad messed up by raising a girl who is so entitled, and not teaching her how to budget money well.

Several people even came Kim's defense, arguing that the cost of living for a college student - including tuition - is higher than ever before in history. In fact, $90,000, they claim, isn't very much money at all when considering the true cost of attending a college or university.

Kim's tuition alone, for four years, is $80,000 - which would have left her $10,000 to pay for school supplies, clothing, food, and entertainment over the course of her college career. The College Board estimated the average living expense outside of tuition for students - including housing, transportation, and other miscellaneous costs - to be about $11,660 to $17,410 for the nine-month 2014-2015 school year alone.

Of course, it seems that it is mostly her attitude that has turned people off, rather than the rate at which she spent money.

'This made me seriously angry. I worked 50+ hours a week at two s***ty jobs to pay my way through school,' wrote one person on Reddit. 'I learned more about life working those two jobs than I did in college. I learned how hard it is to make it on minimum wage jobs. I learned to have respect for people working s***ty jobs.'

[MajGenl.Meade]

I hope the grandparents died before her first Spring Break...

[rubato]

Its her first encounter with reality without having someone else cushion the blows and smooth off all the sharp edges.

It is coming a little late in life which is probably, in part, her parents fault. But then they're making up for it now by refusing to take away any of the richness or pungency of the learning experience now.

I don't think this is that unusual or that she is exceptionally self-involved. She was oblivious because she was allowed to be. And now she will have the opportunity to learn to appreciate the value of her education.

A nice example of how children can be harmed by being given too much.

What is that called; a bildungsroman?

yrs,
rubato

[rubato]

I hope the grandparents died before her first Spring Break...

Well aren't you nice!

If they were grandparents of ordinary intelligence and perception I would guess that long before college they had her pegged accurately as a little spoiled and clueless but they loved her and wanted to help her anyway. And if they honestly surveyed the span of their own lives would have admitted that they didn't avoid all the hard lessons either.

Which I can do and apparently self-righteous scolds cannot.


yrs,
rubato

[MajGenl.Meade]

Well, I suppose they are dead or she'd be round there fixing grandma dinner and.. what am I saying? Fixing dinner! No, with both hands held out and a promise to reveal where she'd buried grandpa alive. Since they are apparently dead (and assuming her profligate holidaying didn't kill them), it is my hope that they never knew how their hard work had like been like, wasted like.

But I'll accept the scolding. Sorry. Sorry.

[Econoline]

You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it.
And nobody's ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you’re gonna have to get used to it.
You said you’d never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
He’s not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And say do you want to make a deal?

How does it feel?
How does it feel?

[Sue U]

You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it.
And nobody's ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you’re gonna have to get used to it.
You said you’d never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
He’s not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And say do you want to make a deal?

How does it feel?
How does it feel?

Pick one:

___ Dylan

___ Hendrix

[wesw]

oooooh no, William and Mary won t due.......

[rubato]

Well, I suppose they are dead or she'd be round there fixing grandma dinner and.. what am I saying? Fixing dinner! No, with both hands held out and a promise to reveal where she'd buried grandpa alive. Since they are apparently dead (and assuming her profligate holidaying didn't kill them), it is my hope that they never knew how their hard work had like been like, wasted like.

But I'll accept the scolding. Sorry. Sorry.

Wasted? They left money for a college education and wound up getting 3/4ths of one. What with inflation and all that's pretty good. A lot of private colleges cost $40-50k per year and they wouldn't even get that much.

You have quite a pronounced need to find objects of hatred. Ever notice that before? This is why I think you don't actually like people much.

This is a 20-something who made the kind of mistake people of that age make. She didn't even bend good judgement all that hard. A real waster would have spent it all the first year or flunked out.* Now if she did THAT you could have said it was 'wasted'. Except that the reason they did it was that it pleased them to sacrifice on behalf of their granddaughter, a mitzva, and they achieved that. As someone who supports a number of groups it just does not trouble my sleep that some of that support will go to waste. I'd just as soon assume that these GPs figured that one out as well.


I don't think you're really qualified to be a missionary you're the sort of person who needs a missionary to come find you and help you sort some things out.


yrs,
rubato

* There was a young economist on the radio who explained that borrowing and saving are ways for the you of the present and the you of the future to trade resources with each other. He said that he had been very disciplined from an early age to save money and did so all through college. He said it was a great regret now because he gave up experiences he would have valued in order to transfer money which was meaningless to the person he was at present. So you can get this one wrong both ways. Its worth keeping in mind.

[Long Run]

Kind of feel sorry for her. Oh wait, kind of like the wrong thread.

[rubato]

You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it.
And nobody's ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you’re gonna have to get used to it.
You said you’d never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
He’s not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And say do you want to make a deal?

How does it feel?
How does it feel?

A very haunting song. I think everyone knows who wrote it.


yrs,
rubato

[rubato]

Kind of feel sorry for her. Oh wait, kind of like the wrong thread.

Why? She's having a valuable learning experience at a time when she can get full value from it later on.


yrs,
rubato

[Joe Guy]

Why? She's having a valuable learning experience at a time when she can get full value from it later on.

If the article is accurate, she isn't learning from the experience.

[MajGenl.Meade]

I don't think you're really qualified to be a missionary you're the sort of person who needs a missionary to come find you and help you sort some things out.

I had my own doubts. How's life sitting on your arse and doing nothing to ever try?

[Sue U]

[Like a Rolling Stone]

A very haunting song. I think everyone knows who wrote it.


yrs,
rubato

I was merely curious as to which version people preferred. There have been about a million versions, but I have always thought those two were "definitive" -- although personally I give the edge to Hendrix.

[Econoline]

Oh...Dylan, definitely.



Now get that goddamn Siamese cat off my shoulder. I ain't no diplomat.

[rubato]

Why? She's having a valuable learning experience at a time when she can get full value from it later on.

If the article is accurate, she isn't learning from the experience.

If the article is accurate it says that she has recognized the problem and admitted that her past actions helped to bring it about. She is looking for ways to solve the problem, as she understands she must. She appears to be trying to find solutions which involve the least suffering on her part, entirely understandable and intelligent but which sadistic, and stupid, moralists will disapprove of; the lowest form of 'morality' is to believe that all mistakes must be paid in pain and suffering. I would say there is a great deal of learning going on there.


Republicans repeatedly cut taxes, create deficits, and never admit that there is a connection between the two; so she has learned things in one shot that they have not after many examples.


yrs,
rubato

[rubato]

I was merely curious as to which version people preferred. There have been about a million versions, but I have always thought those two were "definitive" -- although personally I give the edge to Hendrix.

Hmmm ... hard to compare those two. Maybe if you gave two particular performances.


yrs,
rubato

[Joe Guy]

I was merely curious as to which version people preferred. There have been about a million versions, but I have always thought those two were "definitive" -- although personally I give the edge to Hendrix.

For my taste, Dylan's performance of Like a Rolling Stone is the best. Hendrix best Dylan interpretation was All Along the Watchtower. To this day I still stop everything I'm doing to hear his lead guitar when that song comes on the radio. As you can imagine it has put me in some difficult situations.

Jimi did that song so well that Dylan started performing the Hendrix arrangement at his concerts.

[Lord Jim]

'I just wasn't very good with my budget,' she went on. 'I also [used] that budget for school clothes and stuff like that. My college break money, I [took] out of there, and maybe I should have not done that.'

Frankly, I don't think missing her last year in college will be a big career inhibitor for her....

Given her level of ambition, responsibility, and intellectual prowess, I'm sure she'll have no problem finding a top-flight job in either the food service or housekeeping industries....*







*10 points for the first person who identifies that film reference without Googling....l