The Wordsmith's Forge

>>A real friend either won't ask for a ride, or will offer something in trade.<<

With a mutually respectful relationship, you can also use humor and friendly sass to indicate displeasure with a situation.

My favorite is to jokingly ask for pay or healthcare benefits...then they say they can't afford it...then I tell them to hang around and help me with whatever they just asked me to do.

I've also done this with allergies: "Are you sure there's no X? 'Cause if there is you get to practice calling an ambulance!" "No, no, we don't want to practice that!"

>>You just have to understand money well enough to know what you want to spend where, and enough about people to manage their expectations. Well, and you need a willingness to punt jerks out of your life.<<

Also, add "Ability to predict human behavior." People will overdraw the commons if their needs are unmet enough, and annoying though that may be, I cannot really fault them for it.

It did, however, cause me to take my reference book home at night over leaving it in the common area to share. (I did still share when I brought it back in, I just wasn't up for buying a new one every few weeks.)

>>This is an excellent and effective solution, even recommended in some religions.<<

Thanks!

While it's not demanded by my religion, some of the foundational beliefs often encourage such things... but it's a good thing to do regardless.