My graduation party

[Martianinvader]

NOTE TO MODS: I've noticed a few topics have gotten displayed on two separate boards; I was wondering if I could have this posted here AND in the video games board. The graduation announcement is a Cafe thing, and the question of what to do would be more knowledgably answered on the VG board. Thank you very much....

I recently graduated from college and today was my party. I was expecting money, but even I was surprised at the turnout--$240.

And this:
http://www.platypuscomix.net/woodstock.jpg
Does that rule or what? But back to the money; the last time I graduated from something (high school) I recieved a total of $110. I was pleasantly surprised this time to get more than twice as much, and it makes what I had in mind for all the graduation dough pretty easy: an XBox 360.

And I COULD get that, but I wanted some more opinions first. Mainly because I have a feeling if I go and reserve the 360, I'll go to pick it up on release day and find that Gamestop tricked me with yet another practice in forced bundle-ism. They did this with the first X-Box and I believe also with the PS2. I'll go to pick up the one with my name on it and then find out the price has been increased another $100 because Gamestop has a bunch of useless things they want to get rid of....miniscule memory cards, gigantic ugly headphones, an Ashlee Simpson CD.....

Option 2 is to NOT reserve the 360 and just gradually spend the money on random DVDs and video games. This would mean a lot more DVDs, but I rarely have this much cash just sitting around. It's now, or wait another two/three years to find out what all this "Halo" nonsense is about.

Option 3 is to not spend it on the 360, but the PS3 instead. This is the worst idea IMO; not only would it mean waiting another six months, but I can't buy the first batch of anything Sony; their track record has proven the first releases of all their electronics are usually the most buggy and malfunction-prone. Plus, there's no way to disprove the PS3 isn't going to be $500 or something. They MIGHT do that. X-Box's $300 price is about eighty percent likely.

So, what would YOU do with the $240? (it'll surely be more soon; a couple relatives haven't chipped in yet and there's also the matter of my birthday being next month). And don't forget to wish me congratulations.....

[Natey]

invest it and let it grow...........

~Nate~

[Martianinvader]

Oh yeah, and I'm also Gwen using Martian's account.

There, NOW people should start caring....

[Stewie]

Dude, what's with you always acting like some sort of social victim around here. Just because every single user doesn't respond to every single thing you say with an outpouring of love and support, it doesn't mean that you're a pariah. It means you're one of thousands of people that post here. You might get more attention if you didn't complain about not getting enough attention. Toon Zone, heck The Universe, is not about getting people to boost your ego. It's about shared interests.
And don't bring Gwen into this. It's not her fault she's so loveable and wonderful. Man, isn't she great? Yes, she is.

Oh, and buy the DVDs and things. They will give you more total hours of enjoyment. Console systems are waste of money. The better bet is to get a roommate and get him to buy the XBox 360.

[Eddie G.]

Oh yeah, and I'm also Gwen using Martian's account.

There, NOW people should start caring....You're jealous of someone who's popular on the internet.* Just meditate on that.

Anyway I'd go with gradually spending your money on fun stuff like DVDs, an X-box is something that you can wait for when more money comes your way or possibly get as a gift from family or girlfriend. DVDs are more impulse purchases that can drain from your weekly paycheck so it's probably a good idea to take use the free money so you can spend your paycheck money on more important stuff.

*Not saying you're not popular elsewhere, Gwen.

[Punisher]

Just use the money to buy video games and dvds, why blow over two hundred on a new console when you can wait a year and the price will drop dramatically, and you usually get a game with purchase around then. Hold out on the consoles.

[Martianinvader]

I've asked other places, and just about everyone has said "Keep the money." It's an overwhelming majority....

....but come on, everyone thinks I should wait another TWO YEARS or more to try to understand why Halo is so popular? I hate being out of loops like that. And no, I don't know anybody whom I could borrow the game and console from, nor do I have the high-end machine required for the PC version to work. Buying an X-Box 1 would be basically buying a paperweight since the newer one comes out so soon. THAT'S why I'm interested in reserving a 360, though there are other reasons (Psychonauts comes to mind, there's also the fact that X-Box gets the best demo discs that even come in their own little cases.)

When someone here can debunk everything I've just said, then maybe I'll drop the 360 idea.

[Artimus Gigan]

Strange all the cards with checks in them I got when I graduated said "don't spend it on books, spend it on somthing you like"...

So I bought the Amazon Exclusive CCS boxset and put the other few hundred in the bank....because I really had no idea what else to buy,
where it still lies to this very day....along with whatever scholship cash they handed out at the end of graduation at my HS...I got a few hundred from that as well...I think most of that went to books or whatever...

so really spend it on stuff...X-Box 36 isn't going to be out for a year or so...it's your call.

[Stewie]

Halo is just a fun game. I've only played the second one. I think it's overrated. My roommate got it not long after release. I played it off and on (sometimes incessantly) for a few months then got sick of it. Now I can't stand it. When it was good, it was very good. Then I the flaws became glaring. So much so that the thought of playing it makes me angry. It's just a good FPS with neat guns and games and maps. That's all. And from watching my roommate play, it's almost impossible to find a good game anymore. (Who needs the flag, I'm playing Slayer?)
If you don't believe me, find a way to try it out. Best Buy/Walmart/large electronics retail stores probably won't make that one of the games available for playing (too violent for public consumption). But try the smaller game shops. You only be able to do the single player, which doesn't give you anything close to the experience of Live (Single player is quite underwhelming. The ending is less inspiring than the bottom of my shoe). But you get the gist of how it works.

And think about what is involved in getting a console. You only have $240+ dollars. At initial release, XBox 360 will cost at least that much, probably more. That may or may not include a free game or spare controller. Even then, there won't be that many good games for it. You definitely won't be able to get Halo 3 right away.
And think about how long that system will last. I don't mean durability, I mean playability. Within 2, 3, or 4 years you'll just be wanting to buy whatever the next generation is. And during those few years, there won't be that many good games to choose from. (I've never seen even ten games for any console since Nintendo that made purchasing the system worthwhile.) And they'll cost $50 bucks each. Plus all the memory cards, controllers, headset w/microphones, etc. And then there's the subscription for Live. (Without Live, Halo is not worth typing about. This is an indisputable fact.)
XBox 360 will just suck more and more money out of you, and it won't be that much fun for very long. Buy a movie that you knwo you love. One that you could rewatch dozens of times for years to come. Buy the next Gilmore Girls set. Or buy some CDs. Buy some upgrades for your PC. Buy a PC game. Get a massage. Join a gym. Whatever you like.
Definitely spend the money on you. I just graduated and I'm going through the same situation with found money after being broke for so long. I know just enough to know that a few hundred dollars won't make a difference in the important part of my finances (bills and things) in the long run. Maybe it would cover one of my loan payments. Useless. But that's a Hell of a lot of movies and CDs and games that will last me years and years to come. And I don't feel so bad about ordering pizza instead of cooking.
Buy something you enjoy. Buy something that will make you feel better. Just don't buy an XBox 360.

And there is always the Halo movie.
That's just bound to suck. I don't care if Alex Garland did write it.

[Natey]

*after a decade* im glad i invested now i have more money than 240! now i can use it for a very fancy vacation!

~Nate~

[DisneyBoy]

Honestly, Martianinvader, when I graduated from high school someone came up to me out of the blue and gave me 100 dollars in a card wishing me well. I was touched beyond words at the act of generosity and love, but I couldn't even tell you where that money went. I probably put it in the bank and promptly spent it, or kept it around the house and then spent it. Either way, I spent it...and I don't even know what on. That makes me sad.

So, do with it what you'd like as it is yours...but remember, nothing you could buy in the store will means as much as knowing people loved you enough to give you a part of their savings and earnings. That they worked hard in order to give you something for free.

I think it would be easiest on your conscience to just put it in the bank, watch it grow, and use it towards a once-in-a-lifetime experience in the next decade or so...like a trip. Gaming consoles come and go and lose their thrill....but a trip? That's personal, and deeply affecting.

Congrats though.

[guinaevere]

Congratulations MI!! I love the Woodstock!!

I'm sorta with DisneyBoy on the money issue. When I graduated (HS, I never got to go to college :sad: ), I was given a $500 savings bond by my Dad. It was spent a few months later. On what? I have no idea. And as it was a savings bond, it was only worth a certain percentage of the $500.

I regret spending it for a few reasons, not the least of which, it was one of the last things my Daddy gave me. :crying:

Anyway... don't want to drag this thread down.

What was your major? Best and/or favorite class? all the good stuff? :D

[Kury Wagner]

Congrats Martian!! Money is fun when you can blow it on something cool. I say splurge, don't wait. Get something cool that you can play with now. :D

[Martianinvader]

Well, it's in the bank right now until I know what I'm going to do with it. Before I asked around, I was pretty certain it was going to be the 360, but ten zillion people saying the same thing can't all be wrong.

Disneyboy and Gwen: I don't get emotionally attached to my money usually; no. A savings bond would be different, you're SUPPOSED to save those. I was given a few bonds from people when I was born, and I don't have them anymore, but it's not my fault. When I was about nine years old my mom was strapped for cash, so she went down to the bank and cashed those in. It wasn't me.....

If there's any piece of money I really do regret using, it's the $2 bills that my uncle used to tuck into cards. Yes, I SPENT A $2 BILL, HOW STUPID WAS THAT?

What was your major? Best and/or favorite class? all the good stuff?My major was Associate in Arts, it was the closest thing to "degree in creativity" available. Probably, the best classes I took were the ones from my final semester, as they unintentionally taught me more of what I would need to know out there than any other class, and no, I didn't expect it to be that way. One was "psychology of human relations," and the teacher spent a significant amount of time on workplace relations and how to get ahead....another was a computer class that repeatedly said computers would only further evolve and change our culture and if we wanted to impress employers, we should keep up with technology, because they'll prefer to pay those who know how to use it. The class came with a lab where I learned Word, Excel and PowerPoint (though I already knew Word). That last semester turned out really well....except for the "C" I got out of the computer class because I forgot to turn in a review (which I had done!)

[SSJPabs]

Jeez, I feel bad. I got $2200 for HS, although I probably won't get anything for college. Maybe some stuff for law school though. Some of the other kids in my class? They were the kids of rich parents and got $3000 and a new car. Or a trip to Europe. Or something. Me, I just have an ocean of relatives. My dad is one of 12 kids, my mother 1 of 5. Most of it went to books and a brand new computer that I built with a friend. Cost me 1500, but I still use the same set-up to this very day more than 5 years later and I have never felt the lack. Congratulations on graduating from college tho.

I've asked other places, and just about everyone has said "Keep the money." It's an overwhelming majority....

....but come on, everyone thinks I should wait another TWO YEARS or more to try to understand why Halo is so popular?

When someone here can debunk everything I've just said, then maybe I'll drop the 360 idea.Heh, I was in the same boat as you. In the end, my GF asked and got an Xbox for Christmas so I was able to just mooch off her (although I am the one that purchased the Halo 2 Collector's Edition!)

So... just rent one. Halo does not take that long to beat. Actually I beat Halo 2 without shortcuts in levels and doing things the "accepted way" in one marathon 6 hour session. Halo 1 is a bit longer. If you don't want to rent Halo 1, you can buy it for cheap, or used.

Alternately, because I came into Halo during I Love Bees, I ended up buying the 3 novels for a combined total of 25 dollars. I don't regret it, they are fun, lite sci-fi and if you play it for the story like I do (and I think PeterFries already expressed his opinion on that in another thread...) you will enjoy it quite a bit on it's own.

I thought the Gwen-account thing was funny...

[Martianinvader]

Uh-oh, new idea. These tales of getting PSPs to run things they're not supposed to run have me wondering if I should get a PSP instead of a 360. It would have to be soon, before Sony fixes the bug. Does anyone want to talk me out of THIS?

[Natey]

Uh-oh, new idea. These tales of getting PSPs to run things they're not supposed to run have me wondering if I should get a PSP instead of a 360. It would have to be soon, before Sony fixes the bug. Does anyone want to talk me out of THIS?
yeah do something that you will remember for the rest of ur life, like using that money and start up a vacation savings. IMO i wouldnt get a gaming system. id use it on like getting all the channels on dish or direct:p

~Nate~