The Workday Reading: July 21, 2017
Jul 21, 2017
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- 1) “Do not ever think there will be a moment in your life where all the stars will align. ‘I have the right degree, I have the right relationships, I have the right clothes.’ That is what holds women back so much.” (The Cut)
2) Of all the bougey things, this $55 Diptyque candle set made it into my #NSale cart.
3) On a budget? Trying to save money? Try “zero dollar days.” (Refinery29)
4) Baublebar earrings for work and Baublebar earrings for play.
5) The Seven Career Traps Successful Women Avoid. (HuffPo)
6) Boden Musts: A striped tee in 10 colors, a pink pencil skirt, and a summer/fall yellow sheath.
7) Is Gwyneth Paltrow’s (junk) pseudo-science winning? (Vox)
8) Really tempted to buy this anti-microbial sonic makeup brush from Ulta.
9) Is asking for salary history a cruel corporate move? (Slate)
10) LOFT’s printed maxi is the best thing I bought all summer. So I picked up this one, too.
11) Thanks to Venmo, we all know how cheap our friends are. (NYTimes)
12) This printed Lark & Ro sheath and bow-front blouse are affordable and chic.
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What I’m Watching. Lots of VICE; waiting for tonight’s documentary on global security.
What I’m Painting on My Nails. Lippmann’s Lay Lady Lay polish. Here’s a swatch.
What I Need. This hair color.
[image found here]
Just a note about those Diptyque candles, the ones in that NSale set are REALLY tiny. They’re honestly the size of shot glasses, I think they’re about half the size of the smallest size you can buy separately. It’s a decent set (especially if you love all of the scents equally), but I know so many people who bought it and were completely disappointed because they were expecting votives — just an FYI!
I completely disagree re: Venmo. It eliminates the awkwardness of friends who “never have cash” and the irritation of putting down multiple credit cards on a large group dinner and makes planning group vacations so much easier. I don’t feel weird about being exact at all, and besides the $ amount is hidden on Venmo so the greater public doesn’t know how petty or precise (matter of opinion which) you are.
Another disagreement on Venmo making people, “cheap.” I legitimately don’t carry cash (but I also don’t let people pay for something up front for me unless we already established a plan to settle up), and most of the people in my life don’t, either – services like this, Paypal, and PopMoney are just more convenient.
It isn’t like you’re poring over a ledger and meticulously calculating this and that and demanding, “…and seventeen cents.” If you are, the time it took to do that costs more, frankly, than those precious cents are worth – and that is silly.
That said, I frankly loathe the idea of evenly splitting the bill after a shitty business trip. A group of five of us traveled across the country to attend an industry conference. Two of us [1] were in a waaaay higher pay grade than the rest of us and [2] had (& abused the heck out of) corporate cards. We generally stuck together out there and ended up eating dinner together. These two ordered *the most expensive* damn things at the restaurants we went to – Wagyu steaks, ridiculously expensive scotch, (in SoCal no less) etc. – and the rest of us got screwed. Lesson learned regarding not getting clear and sticking to our guns in the first place! Just rude. Unless you are treating or being treated, IMO it is better to cover yourself – if I decide on a $50 meal I really don’t want to subsidize someone’s $200 one (esp. when they made at least double my salary).
It’s not the use of Venmo, it’s the overuse of Venmo. I went to a friend’s house for dinner one night and as I was driving home got a Venmo request for $21, half the cost of everything she bought at the store to make the soup we ate. I called her, and she basically called me a freeloader because I thought it was weird. So I paid. Then she came to my house of brunch a few weeks later, and I sent her a Venmo for $14. If this was going to be how things worked in our friendship, then it should be even, right? She refused to pay, we haven’t spoken since. I don’t have any problem using Venmo, unless you’re overusing Venmo for things that would typically come out in the wash between friends.
Whoa! Reading that was jaw-dropping. I can’t say I’d ever expect to get a bill after accepting a friend’s invitation to a dinner at their home or to any event they were hosting and inviting people to. I wonder if she’d send invoices to wedding guests?
That’s insane!!!!
Yeah, this is bizarre, and (I hope) not at all how most people use Venmo.
Mostly it’s like the first commenter said, I think. But I also feel like it may have opened a door for people to ask for money when they wouldn’t have before. I’ve heard other odd stories. One of my law school friends got a Venmo request from a coworker for driving him 10 minutes back to class after court one day. It was for $3 and said cost of gas.
I’m really curious, what was her reasoning for refusing to pay? I mean, the whole thing just seems weird, but I’m intrigued by one request was acceptable but the other wasn’t. I’ve had friends offer to Venmo me when I’ve made dinner and they didn’t contribute wine or something, but I would never ask them to.
She claimed it was because I had invited her, while she and I had just made plans. A fine, but in her mind, critical distinction.
Sounds kind of cray. Even if there was a distinction in my mind, if a friend asked me to pay her for something, I’d pay her.
I don’t understand why people don’t just carry cash. Is it that much of an inconvenience to go to an ATM? I have made it a rule to ALWAYS have cash on me and it frankly makes things a lot easier and avoids the above and all of the other awkward exchanges discussed in the article.
I’m switching to cash, as well, more for budgeting. But I’m shocked by how many times people don’t have even a couple of singles. Of course, I was the same way 3 months ago, so…
I put everything on my credit card. That way I can see where my money goes and I get points. I have a tendency to lose track of cash.