Reacting to the Wildest “Am I the Jerk?” Reddit Threads
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Today, we're answering the internet's most asked money question, am I the problem? Your language, though, scares me. He is literally spending my money in secret. Wow, that's pretty terrible. Do you think? My most like, Winston's like, babe, it's okay. It's like, hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz. I'm George Camel. And this is Smart Money Happy Hour.

This is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money. And we will get to that, but first, we're sipping on a classic gimlet cocktail. A gimlet is one of my favorites. It's one of my go-tos. Hard to beat. We're going to give you the rating and reveal the cost per glass at the end of the episode, so stick around for that. All right.

I know this probably isn't a key part of your algorithm. I feel like yours is mostly true crime and Real Housewives at this point. Am I close? Actually, well done, George. Well done. I'm on it. But there's this other trend on social media where people are asking, am I the jerk? So they're laying out...

their situation, going, am I the problem here? Am I the jerk? Am I in the wrong? And it actually starts with an A word that's much harsher than jerk, but this is a family show. Oh, yes. We're interchanging the trendy word. And I know we got a lot of kids that enjoy this show. Yes. And we are parents, so we appreciate not foul language. My daughter watches this show. But you've had a few slip ups, George, about maybe you being a jerk. I don't know. I heard one recently on the Ramsey show. Something about a moose? There was a moose. What?

Tell me about the moose. There was a guy in Alaska. This guy, maybe young 20s. Okay. Hit a moose with his car, totaled it. Oh, no. Got an insurance check for $10,000. Great. Well, the car was $6,000 and it was not paid for by him. It was paid for by his father-in-law. Okay. So now he gets this check and the father-in-law is like, sweet, I'll take the check. I'm the one who bought the car.

Okay. But the car is in the kid's name. Oh. But he didn't pay for the car. The father-in-law was just like, hey, I'll pay for the car. That's a sticky situation. You get to drive it. So what does he do with this insurance check? Is it technically his because it's his car, his insurance? Or does he have to give the father-in-law some or all of this money? I kind of feel like you have to give the father-in-law some. So this was a weird situation where he was like, am I the jerk for not wanting to give my father-in-law this check? Okay.

So I said, hey, I give the father-in-law what he paid into the car and no more. Yeah. And be done with it. Yeah, that's fair. I think that's good. Just not sever the relationship. But he's asking, am I being a jerk for thinking about that? Yeah. Yeah. And so there's a lot of situations like that out there. Yeah, and there's a lot of situations that people are very self-aware because they're asking, like, gosh, am I the bad one in this situation? If you're even asking that, it tells me you're at least a little bit self-aware. Yeah, you know,

Or maybe they're trying to throw out their situation to find a little sympathy out there on the internet. Or affirmation. We don't know. Yeah. Like, I don't know. What do you need? Because life can be sticky out there, George. That's true. Tricky and sticky. So we agreed to bravely go to the front lines of the internet. Some would say the basement, the cesspool of the internet called Reddit. You know what? I got on Reddit for the first time, George. How was that for you? Uh.

it was a little confusing. It kept wanting me to download the app. Well, that's what they're pushing you to. And I kept saying, stay in Safari. That's why I just kept clicking. Wow. Stay in Safari. Rachel's not downloading your app. Don't even dare. No, no, no. Oh, well, there's a whole subreddit where people share these stories. And so people are trying to figure out if it's them. You know, hi, it's me. I'm the problem. It's me. We're going to read out some problems and let's see if this person's the jerk. Are you ready? And I want the audience to be thinking too and see...

Who they agree with. Is it Rachel? Is it me? Is it both? Yeah, we'll see. Okay, so this one says, telling my wife's friends I make more money than her. So my wife comes from family money. I do not. Her friends and family joke that I'm a gold digger, but I work in investment banking. I pull my own weight. And at a party recently, her friend mentioned the fact that I don't come from money. And I shut it down saying, yeah, I don't, but I definitely make more than she does right now. Am I the problem? Oh, boy. This whole friend group feels toxic to me. It does.

Sammy the friend group's the jerk. Who's having these conversations? Who's saying this? Okay, so they're saying he's a gold digger because she comes from money, therefore there's probably some big inheritance or trust. I have my thoughts. And he's saying, am I the problem? No, he's not the problem at all. I think they're the jerk, but I do think his ego got in the way.

That's a good take. The fact that he has to prove it. The ego is big. The ego drives a lot of our decisions and thoughts in life. Well, I guess you're right, but I definitely make more than she does now. Hold on. Don't say that tone. Stop it. No, he could have been like, well, I guess you're right, but, you know, I make more than she does now. Like, I don't know. He's trying to defend himself. I know, but your tone, you can't say a tone with a quote. You have no clue. I can do what I want. I'm a grown man. Yeah.

So, no, I think they're the jerk of even bringing that. Like, that's so mean. But he sort of took the bait. He took the bait, and I think his ego got involved. But I do feel like he felt like he had to prove his own self, which is the ego. But I don't think he's a jerk for doing that. But would Winston Cruz be caught dead saying that sentence in front of your friends? I make more than she does. So, like, oh, Rachel, you know, Dave Ramsey comes from money, so therefore... And he goes, no, actually, you make more than she does. No, but I think Winston would be like, well, I'm doing pretty good. I'm still doing pretty good myself.

Like, I don't think he would say I'm doing better than her. I don't think he would put us in a comparative statement. And I'm not saying he would even say that. But if he went into that lane at all, it would just be like, I have worth. Like, I bring things to the marketplace and make great money too. You know, like, it would be more of that. More matter of fact. I don't think he would ever say I make more than her. Because we've had seasons of flip-flop. Like, there's been years where he makes more than I do. Some years I make more. It totally depends on work stuff. So I don't, but I don't, yeah, I don't think he'd say that.

I agree. What about Whitney? Do you think he's being the jerk? I feel like I'm more on his team than you are. No, I don't think he's being the jerk, but I do think like he sort of got in the mud a little bit too much. I would have just been like, you know what? It really doesn't matter. Like we're in a marriage. This is a partnership. We're doing this thing together. And who makes more is irrelevant. Yep. It's good. But I probably just wouldn't get into it. Yeah, that's fair. Especially with my wife's friends. I don't know. It feels like a weird thing.

But, you know, here's the assumption. And that's even a funny thing. My wife's friends. I feel like all of Winston's friends are my friends. I feel like my friends are his friends. Yeah. I don't know. Anyways. But here's the problem with this whole conversation. They think if there's a bread winner, there's got to be a bread loser. Wow. I don't think that. I think that's an insane take. George, what a quote. I don't do bumper stickers. I think it's stupid to put bumper stickers on cars. Put that on a bumper sticker. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. How do you buy something for $40,000 and you're like, I'm going to put a sticker on it. That's insane. I'm sorry. It's a crazy thing to do.

I don't put a sticker on my laptop, let alone a vehicle. It's so true, though. It's a great point. Anyway, neither here nor there. But here's the other thing. My wife stays at home now. Yeah. It would be so dumb. Well, I make more than... This is an insane thing to compare. That's a different comparison, though. A stay-at-home parent. That feels different to me. What if she came from money and they go, well, you married her for her money?

When she was working at Ramsey, I think that's a different conversation. But if she's home, everyone knows she's not like making an actual monetary income. I just think we put too much emphasis on income is what I'm saying. Oh, I do. Well, me too. As a society. I agree, George. I agree. All right. That was a good one. That was a good one. You got heated already. We're off to a great start. There are no winners in this game, only losers. You go to the next one. Read the next one. Here's one. Not telling my mom I married into money.

Grew up with a single mom who's always battled addiction. Now married to a man with family money. We've been caring for her two-year-old daughter, my half-sister, and she's now realizing we have financial means. My husband says he's happy to start sending my mom money, but I think it's a boundary we should draw. Am I the problem? No. That's a hard... I mean, it's hard. Like, that's... We kind of talk about family boundaries and stuff a lot, and we kind of say it in, like, a quick way. But, I mean, it's very difficult, right? I'm like...

It would be very hard if your mom was battling addiction and in it, but yet she can't support herself. Right? I mean, like, that's your mom, you know? But yet, you don't want to continue to fuel something that's harming her. Well, it's enabling. But yet, you do want to, like... Are you going to, like, really leave your mom on the street, though? You know what I mean? Yeah. Like, I don't know. It's hard. My thing is, if you're going to... But I think she's okay. I do not think she's the jerk. No, not a jerk. I think there's a level of protection there. Because I do think once you marry...

your immediate family has a level of priority, right? So protecting your husband and if they have kids, like protecting that unit is really important. Yeah. So no, I don't think she's the jerk. Here's what I would say. Instead of like the blanket send my mom money, let's figure out what we can actually support her with and directly put the money towards that thing. Yes, like pay the rent if you need to. And make it a gift. It's never a loan and just say, hey, we want to cover your rent for the next three months or cover the groceries or we're going to pay for your rehab.

That's a very specific thing versus just pouring money onto a problem. That's right. Yes, 100%. But no, she's not the problem. No, I don't think so. Glad we can free you from that. Wow. It's all good to do that. Okay, next one. Not taking internet safety seriously. Am I the problem? Absolutely. If you're not taking internet safety seriously, you're the problem.

I think so. Identity theft is a crime, Jim. Unbelievable. So that's why you need Delete.me. Absolutely. So Delete.me is a service that will find or remove your info from all these data broker sites that are out there. If you ever Googled yourself and they're like, how do they know my address and my name and my phone number? It's because they sold it to data broker sites who are then going to sell it for a profit.

And it leaves you at risk of spam and scams. And so Delete Me does all the work for you, saves you a ton of time. They send you a report showing you exactly what they've done. And it really does help me sleep better at night. I love getting my report. Yeah, it feels good. It feels like people are out there. It's like angels are out there watching you over the internet. It's like I took a digital shower, you know? Oh, yeah. Feel cleaner. Oh.

Definitely, George. Never thought about it like that, did you? No. Hey, go check it out. But you can get 20% off an annual Delete Me plan, which comes out to around $9 a month. So click the link below and check it out. Joindelete.com slash smart money. All right, next is buying designer items with my own money. I earn over $500,000 annually and my combined net worth with my husband. Well, she said hubby. Can I say husband instead? Please. Thank you. I'm begging you. Thank you.

hubby and bride are the two that just really, I don't know why. My bride. My bride. Yeah, my bride and my hubby. Anyways, it's $3 million. I enjoy buying designer things for myself with my high income. Go girl. He lives in worst case scenario and thinks that we should save every penny in case a recession comes or our kids need money. I recently sold some stocks to buy a treat for myself, but I only spent 5% of my income. Am I the problem?

Oh. Okay, this is a marriage issue at this point because are you the problem for doing that? No, you have the money, like 100%.

Also, is he going to fully get on board with every like somewhat luxury purchase you make? He may not because he is a doomsday or worst case scenario guy. And I think he needs to work on himself. I want to know, is there an emergency fund here? Like what is this worst case scenario where he thinks in case a recession comes, it's all going to come crashing down. Right, right. So that's where if there was an emergency fund in place and they had no debt...

That would make him feel better. I don't know their financial situation overall. Yeah, and I guess if you're like literally living off stocks and the stock market like dipped down and you couldn't take as much out that you needed to to live your life. Like, you know, I don't know. I don't know what the situation is, but... But no, she's not the problem. No. And here's the thing, the percentage matters because, you know, her buying a designer purse is like someone else buying a biscuit. And so you got to look at the ratios on this thing. Okay, it's not too much of her world. Now, could they...

Do a budget together and go, hey, here's how much of my fund money I'm going to spend. That might be $3,000 a month for their income. I don't know. But that way he knows exactly what's coming out, the limits around it. So set some boundaries and that's where the budget is really key. It's very helpful in that way, for sure. Okay. Next up, this one's juicy. Not returning an engagement ring to my ex-fiance. Ooh, if he cheated...

Keep it. If not, I don't know. Here we go. Well, the first word is a dead giveaway. I caught my ex of two years cheating a few months into our engagement. We immediately broke up and I still have the ring. Planning on selling it to help pay back the wedding costs I already lost. He is demanding to have it back and is threatening legal action. Am I the problem? No. No.

That's my caveat, though. If he cheats, no. Sorry. You were in a committed relationship, and anything going forward, like, no. What mine is mine and yours is yours. We cut it off right here, and you gave it to me. This was a gift to me. Yeah, isn't she not the owner of said ring at this point? Now, if she calls off the wedding, if they mutually decide together, like, ooh, that's probably it. Gosh, I saw something recently. Oh, love is blind.

Shocker. Shocker. I got called off last minute. I was like, what was that? Love is fine. Yeah, and if they both mutually decide to go separate ways, I'd give the ring back. Or if I called it off, you give the ring back. But if he gets caught cheating... So this is, you're like, this is fine. To be petty because he cheated and keep the ring and sell it. That's totally good. Petty. I'm just saying... What do you think?

I think she has every right to do what she wants with the ring. Do you think she's the jerk for keeping it? No. Okay. No, and here's the thing. If she's planning on selling it to help pay back wedding costs that she's lost, there's also a reason there. It's not out of pettiness. It's like, hey, we've sunk some money into this thing. I'm trying to get some of it back. Now, who knows what he's sunk into it. I don't like that you're using the word petty.

I just wanted to rile you up and it worked. All right? That's my job around here. Oh, man. But no, is she the problem? No. Now, the legal action, I want to know, does he have a legal standing to sue to get the ring back? I don't think so. I don't think you can like just ask for it, demand it come back to you.

I don't think you can do that. I don't think it's his asset to then retrieve. No, I think it's her ring at this point. Not a lawyer, but hey, lawyers, jump in the comments. Let us know. Let us know what you think. Your legal advice. I know a lot of lawyers watch this show and also leave YouTube comments. They do? No, I'm just saying. They're probably busy doing lawyer stuff. I don't know. They're probably...

But that's a dark one. That's dark. That is sad. I'm so sorry about that. But honestly, you get what you deserve, ex-fiance. Oh, man. What a dingus. Who goes, hey, I commit my life to you and also about to go cheat on you a few times. I know.

No. That's an absurd thing to do. He has, yeah. He has some issues. Okay. Only giving Vegas money to my biological child. Wait, what? Okay, here we go. My husband and I have a five-year-old daughter together plus his 10-year-old daughter. I won money on a bachelorette trip in Las Vegas.

It was in the premarital asset, so I paid off debts and put the rest in a trust for our five-year-old. When he found out that I didn't put any aside for his older daughter, he got angry. He is still not speaking to me. Am I the problem? Oh, boy. Jeez. Yeah, I think you are. Paying off the debt for our five-year-old. If you have, at this point, I think moving forward, if it was money...

that she had pre-marriage. Like, um...

like I'm thinking like a piece of land or something that she had pre-marriage and this land was supposed to go to like her biological daughter. I'm kind of flipping roles here because like it came from her dad or something generationally, right? And then you get remarried and then you get married to someone else and they have kids. I don't think that land should go to those kids. Does that make sense? Or the profits of that go to those other kids because it was already there before the marriage. But anything after the marriage, you're kind of building a life together, right?

And if you are still like, if you guys are raising kids together, I don't know. There's a part of me that like, yeah, I feel like moving forward, what we make and what we have is going to be for all the kids, right? I don't know. Yeah. So in this case, you're saying she's not the problem because this was a premarital asset. No, I think she is the problem because it's not a premarital asset. She said it was. You said it was a premarital asset. Oh.

Oh, gosh, she did say that. So I paid. Yeah. Oh, on my bachelorette trip to Vegas. So right before the wedding. Right. She wins all this money. Okay, okay. So she. I guess technically it is a premarital, but like what? Like a few months before? Yeah. I go, I'm halfway on this. Yeah. I think he might be a little bit over the top with his anger. The fact that he's not talking to her.

Yeah. Silent treatment, boo. Like, first of all, your 10-year-old daughter is going to be fine if you guys get on the same page. And just stop being a 10-year-old dude and giving her the silent treatment. Yeah. I hate that. Now, the question is...

How much stock do you put into your biological daughter versus now it's our daughter, but it's not from my marriage? And that part feels weird. Personally, I would say I'm in this family now. This is my child just as much. Yeah, I don't know. From a financial legacy standpoint. I know, I know. That might be my hot take. I don't know.

That's tough though. Yeah, I think this is a more marriage communication issue. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Because I don't think the money actually, like whatever, you'll build wealth together. Your 10-year-old daughter is going to be fine. This was not like a life-changing, the five-year-old is going to have a better life than the 10-year-old. Right, right, right. They're so young. Yeah, totally. It's not like one got a free house and the other one didn't. Right, that's right. Yeah, I appreciate that. Okay, next. Next.

Not using Christmas money from in-laws the way they specified. Oh my gosh. Here, you read this one. All right. This is the situation. Husband's parents send a check every year so our kids can buy gifts for each other and my husband and I get a treat too. This year we want to use it toward a ski trip, but they've been weird in the past about not spending the money exactly how they wanted us to. Should we do it and not tell them? I want to be honest about it, but I have a feeling they'll be mad. Am I the problem? Yeah.

No, I don't think you're the problem. I think the in-laws are the problem. Gifts with strings attached or expectations kind of give me like the...

Yeah, that's... You know what I mean? That's a weird one. So they send checks and you have to use this on the gifts that we want you to get. And you have to tell them what you're using it on. That's weird too, right? Like if you're going to give the money, give the money and let the family figure out... Yeah, if they're sending a check, they're sending money. They don't have control over that money at that point. So if you want to just buy gifts, send the parents links to Amazon or whatever and they can buy the gifts and...

and send them. But if you send money, it's my business what I do with that money. I agree. I'm with you. So I don't think you're the problem. So no, I don't think you're the problem. But I do think they should communicate with the in-laws and say, hey, listen, I think it's worth a conversation because what's going to happen is resentment with the in-laws over this stupid situation. Instead go, hey, listen, we have lots of stuff. We love stuff. Thank you for the stuff. We'd love to do an experience this year because we think it's going to create a great memory.

And we're letting you know. It's not permission. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We're letting you know. Yeah, just a heads up. And if they never send a check again...

We learned. Yes. And better for it, right? And better for it. Yeah, I don't know. Budget for it and so you can take your own kids on a trip. So no, you are not the problem. I don't think you are. But also, can you just save up and go on a ski trip and buy some gifts? Sure. You could avoid all this with a budget pretty easily. Yeah, for sure. Yep. You know what else you can save up and pay for? Cozy Earth products. 100%. Unbelievable. Put that in the budget. Take that on the ski trip. We're talking bedding. Wonderful. Talking athleisure. Yeah. For the guys and the gals. Yes, which includes socks, joggers, my favorite.

My favorite. Blankets? Blankets, sheets, ropes. Who's going to keep naming things? I know, because I keep adding to my wardrobe of Cozy Earth stuff, because it is. The quality is amazing. It's amazing. Like, if you're to the point that you're like, listen, I'm going to now invest in quality things, Cozy Earth is the place to be. It's time. It's like the most softest, most wonderful stuff ever. And I literally use the coziest product. I use two a day. Sheets? Guarantee it. And? Robe.

Sheets and robe. I mean, what else does a woman need? I know, I know. Well, hey, go check it out. They're giving our listeners a sweet discount up to 40% off if you go to CozyEarth.com slash smart money and use promo code smart money at checkout. We'll put a link in the description as well. All right, next up.

Not telling our daughter about her education fund. Okay, here's the situation. Grandparents set up a college fund for our daughter and son. We assumed they'd both go to grad school, so we told them to use scholarships for college and plan to help them with their higher ed degrees later.

My daughter went to school on scholarship and started working immediately after, so we never told her about her college fund. My son chose to do grad school, so we gave him his portion, and our daughter asked where the money came from. She's upset that she never knew this money existed just because she didn't go to grad school. Are we the problem? Yes. Lack of communication. Wow, that's pretty terrible. Do you think? That's so interesting to me. Like...

You, yeah, you have the money to pay for your kid's college. I'm all about the scholarships and grants, like regardless of if you have the money or not. Go ahead. And people don't know you can pull money out of the college account against those scholarships and grants. So if you get $20,000 scholarship, you can take $20,000 out as cash from that college fund. Okay, there you go. So there's a cool little life hack for you. It's not like, well, that was a waste to save up because we couldn't even use it. You can withdraw against those, which is great. Okay, so...

And then if the daughter is like, oh my gosh, I'm going to try to go debt free. So I have to go get a job and like work really hard when money was just sitting there in the education fund for education. And it's not being used for education. It's just sitting there. And then she doesn't go to grad school. Then that 529 money. I mean, do you know what I mean? Yeah. Well, and I think that's like, here's the key words to tell me this was a flub on the parents part. We assumed they'd both go to grad school. You know what they say about assume. Makes a jerk out of you and me.

Yeah, you are the problem. Communicate. And also, where's this assumption that both kids are going to go to grad? Like, it's just weird to go, well, they're probably both going to end up getting master's degrees. Isn't it funny? My assumption is my kids won't. Yeah, 100%. I don't even think about that.

Neither of us have master's degrees. Nope. And look at us now, George. Look at us now. Just giving the internet advice. Living the dream as YouTubers. Dream big, kids. Just some YouTubers over here. So here's my take. Communicate everything with your kids as they get older. Say, hey, here's the situation. And if you have the blessing to give money to one of the most expensive areas of your life, which is college...

Like, do it, right? Embrace it all. Give it all. Like, I don't know. Here's my thing. Would she have gone to grad school just because the money was there and just get a master's for fun? That feels like a waste. Yeah. But that's not part of this. It just feels like a sort of a secondary thing. Yeah, that's true. That's good. I don't know. Yeah, that would be... And then I would be pissed if my brother got money to go to grad school. I don't know. Do you know what I mean? It just feels so like...

Yeah, I don't like it. Sorry, parents. You are the problem. All right, here's the next one. Separating finances from husband because he won't stop giving his parents money. In the last few months, I've noticed $1,700 missing from our savings. Hmm.

has been giving his parents money, which we agreed not to do anymore because they never pay us back. That's in parentheses, very important tidbit. Yeah. He didn't tell me and he's not even working right now due to an accident. He is literally spending my money in secret. Am I the problem?

All you guys have is problems. Man. Both of you are the problem in my book. And his parents are the problem. So he's the problem because you guys agreed not to do this anymore. Yes, and he's like taking money and yeah, no. But then, yes. Your language though scares me. He is literally spending my money in secret. You're also the problem.

I don't like that language. Okay. All right, George. Spending my money in secret. My money in secret. I would never say that in my marriage. So, no, I think largely he is the problem. Our money is not going to what we agreed upon. Yes. Is what's happening. Well, and you crossed the boundary on it. And I'll say this too. Go-aheading and separating...

It's only been one month is what it says. So it's not necessarily a pattern that I'm aware of. If she looked up and she's like, he's been doing this for a year, red flag for sure immediately. He did it for a month is what it said. He's probably scared of her. I'm a little scared of her.

But... Yeah, I don't think this is like we need to separate finances. Not right away, unless you guys can't come to it. I mean, like, if you can't come to agreement, that means you can't come to agreement on him spending money and not telling you, which is weird. That's not okay. That's a financial infidelity situation. Yeah, like, that feels very...

Not trustworthy. I don't like that. Yeah. The secret stuff, not good. That will rot away a relationship real quick. We need to come to Jesus conversation. Yes. And I would do that before I make any like rash decisions really quickly because a lot of this is very emotional based, which I understand. But until we can get like as two adults talking in agreement and if you start realize, oh my gosh, I still can't trust him because...

he's not fully on a green or whatever, then like, all right, we need to start like having some more serious discussions about our life and our money. And another part was they gave their parents, his parents a loan because they said, because they never pay us back. That's right. Yeah. Never give money with this expectation. Hey, this is a loan. You're going to owe me. It destroys the relationship. It sounds like it wasn't great to begin with. Right. It's not going to get any better at this point. She's going to be resentful of the in-laws forever. Yep. Yep.

Oh, man, George. This was a lot. Oh, God. I'm exhausted. Okay, so some more big takeaways. Let people come to you with money questions instead of offering unsolicited advice, right? That we're not going to just like tell everyone what we're thinking. Yeah, if people need your opinion, they're going to come to you. But people are going to Reddit for their opinions. That's frightening. Here's one. What's the line? An uncommunicated expectation is a thought. Is it something like that? Does that sound right? Ooh.

So it's just like, if you have an expectation, communicate it. Don't ever say, well, we assumed, or I thought we had talked. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Make it clear. Yes, say it out loud. Most of these problems happen because people didn't communicate upfront. They didn't set a boundary. They didn't explain the expectation. And then things went awry and they're all shocked. Yep, totally. Like, wow, I can't believe they're upset. Yes, yep. So always be transparent. Talk about it. Talk about your wants, your needs. Yeah.

thoughts and feelings around money, all of it. Because again, I think what you're saying is a lot of this stuff ends up being a situation because it's just not said out loud, right? Yes. And the other thing is bring in a third party if you can't come to a resolution. That could be a counselor. That could be couples therapy. Whatever it is, it's worth it to not just have the two people going at each other, going, well, I'm right and you're wrong and I'm wrong and you're right. That's not going to get you anywhere. That's right. Yep.

So good, George. Well... Thanks for sharing, everyone on the internet. Man, trust your gut, too. Your first reaction of, am I a jerk, is usually probably right, too. Would you ever post in my subreddit like that? No, but I don't know how. Oh, that's true. And even if you could. No, I don't think it's... I would not put my situation out there. I think I would have enough friends and counsel in my life to not go to the internet and ask for their opinions.

Hey, some people don't. The loneliness epidemic is large in America today, George. So count yourself lucky. That I have real friends? That you have friends. Thank you. I would call Rachel before I went to a subreddit. Oh, thank you, George. I appreciate that. Or maybe Winston. Probably Winston first. And then if I didn't like his answer, I'd go to Rachel. I'd get riled up for you, George. Thank you. You know me. Be on team, George.

Okay, so before we spill the tea on our guiltiest charge, let's talk about our drinks. This is a classic gimlet. You're closer to finishing. I just didn't have enough time. I was too enthralled in the stories. Chatting to you. This is a 10 out of 10 drink for me. Me too, George. It's like one of my favorites, and I usually don't do gin. I usually do vodka. I'll ask for a vodka gimlet, which is not traditional. But the gin's good. The gin has like a... It's got the botanicals. Botanicals.

Botanicals. Yes. Wow, great word. Thank you. Flower? Flowery? Is that what that means? Floral? Yeah. Flora elements in the gin is when they distill it. Juniper. I believe it's juniper. Final answer if this was who wants to be a millionaire. So here's what's in this drink. Gin, lime juice, simple syrup.

Very easy. That's all you need. You need a little sweet, a little acid, and then you need your liquor. And it comes out to $2.94. That feels high for this drink, for what's in it. But I guess we use some high quality ingredients. Very nice. To probably make it cheaper at home. Get the recipe in the show notes. Give it a try this weekend. I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how good it is.

Well, now it's time for Guilty as Charged. And this is where we ask each other a question every week. And if we're guilty, we take a sip. Oh, boy. You want me to read this one? Yeah, you read it. What's the last thing you overreacted about and after cooling off, you realized you might be the problem?

Oh, man, this is funny. I feel like we need to phone a friend for this one and call our spouses and say, hey. My most, like, Winston's like, babe, it's okay. It's like, where's Charles? Oh, wow. The girls are usually around, but, like, we were at the beach, and, like, water gets me. Oh, yeah. I'm very like, where's Charles? And he's like, it's okay. It's okay. I'm like, did you? Did you? Did you? You know, he's like, yes, yes. So I'm a little on the anxious side sometimes.

Just with Charles. Yeah, because my girls are pretty independent. I trust them. I don't know why. Well, you also told Charles he was fine when he had broken his leg. So maybe you're making up for a previous lack of parenting. That's true. With over-parenting now. Yeah. Let me think. Yeah, I can overreact to that kind of stuff. Yeah.

I don't know. Child safety feels like a heroic overreaction. I love that. Yeah. I love that your situation involves you being the hero. It's so good. Like such a good mom. I'm such a good mom that sometimes... Sometimes I look for my child in public. I really want to call Whitney right now and ask her because I feel like she'll have... Do it. Five answers. Do you think if I called Winston right now, he'd answer? 100%. This is fun. Winston's at your beck and call. He's probably been waiting with bated breath for your call. Hi, babe.

Put him on speaker. Okay, you are on speaker right now. Oh, okay. I'm glad I didn't say what I usually say when you call me. Okay. Oh, my gosh. Has there been a situation where I have overreacted recently and it was my problem? That's never happened. I mean, traveling with you is the worst experience from a reaction standpoint. Like airports.

And I mean, I was in the bathroom and he texted me 20 minutes before people were lining up, but nobody was lining up after I got out of the bathroom. Perfect. That's it. That's the example. That's it. That's not my problem. Yeah, that's true. That's definitely not my problem. He actually created a problem for me. And actually, yeah. That was it. Yep. That's it. That's the example I needed. Perfect. Traveling is the worst. Okay. Okay.

Oh, man. Thanks, babe. Thanks, Winston. Love you. Love you. Love you. I said it first. Bye. That's right. I did. I lied. I texted him and I lied. I forgot about that. They called. I'm used to Southwest, okay? We always fly to Southwest. We flew United this last week. And they were like, and we're boarding group three, which is actually really good. So they start lining up group one. I was like, holy crap, we're going to miss and we're not going to get the overhead space because we packed all carry-ons.

So you got to get the overhead space. And I'm like, where is he? Where is he? And they're like, boarding group one. And I was like, I'm like, we're boarding. We are boarding. Like we basically missed the flight. It's over. He's like, oh, hey, there's someone. I was like, I know. But we're about to. In my defense, they could have moved at lightning speed. They could have really hurried up in group two.

We were group three. So yeah, there it is. God bless. That was it. I overreacted with our boarding process and that was my group. Thank you. Thank you for being so vulnerable, so brave. Yeah, thank you. A great mom and a punctual boarder. We love that about you.

I have never overreacted, so I have nothing to offer. You've got to bring one for the next. No, all the time. Truthfully, though. All right, I'm guilty. In your head, though, you're like, no, that was a legitimate reaction at the time with the information I had. 100%. Yeah, you've, oh, yeah. We're not trying to be. And truthfully, I've never cooled off, so I didn't relate to it. After cooling off, I'm like, no, I've never, I'm still hot. I run hot.

Run hot all the time. So good. Oh, man. Well, if you guys have some guilty charge questions, make sure to DM us, especially on Instagram. It's where we check the most, probably. That's where I check the most. 100%. So, yeah, DM us your ideas because we love this segment. It's always a good one. Always a good one. And if you enjoyed this episode, you'll definitely enjoy our episode on things that scream I'm pretending to be upper class.

Talking about more unfiltered financial truth there. So make sure to check that episode out and make sure to subscribe so you don't miss an all new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.