Introducing a huge idiot

By PayDaze

I can't believe this guy! I just read about him in this article in the L.A. Times:

"Five years ago, at the tender age of 25, Nathan Drake of Whittier found himself starting life over, but with an anvil around his neck. Drake wound up divorced and nearly $25,000 in debt after spending got out of control in an emotionally rocky marriage. With just a car and a computer to his name, he moved on and into an apartment, buying everything anew from a shower curtain to a couch.

Drake eventually mended his heart, and remarried last July. But his finances are still broken, and that anvil got much heavier. The Canadian transplant, who nets $30,000 a year, is $54,000 in debt and considering bankruptcy. "I'm at my wits' end," said Drake, 30, who works as a product manager for a Whittier microfiche storage and industrial furniture company. "My paycheck is spent before I get it."

Starting over -- and buying a truck and a sparkling wedding ring for his new wife -- put Drake further in the hole. He dug it even deeper, splurging as a newlywed to show his Canadian wife, Jodi, 23, around Southern California. He and Jodi dined out on $100 seafood dinners, took trips to Las Vegas and, on weekends, went out to dinner and a movie.

All of it added up. Drake carries $29,000 in debt on six credit cards. He owes an additional $16,000 at his bank. And he has borrowed $9,000 from his 401(k) retirement plan, which is worth $14,000 and was his only unencumbered asset.

Each month, he spends nearly $2,000 more than he earns. Any financial mishap and he's further in the hole. Recently, Jodi needed a root canal, forcing him to put $900 more on plastic."

Oh my god. This guy needs to start a personal finance blog ASAP.