Lending Tree

Ok, if there's any advice I can ever give anyone that truly means something, it is: Never lend money to anyone, and especially not people you are close to. I have made that mistake twice. Luckily, I got one of them to pay me back already, but the one who is being the biggest pain ever is my Ex. And trust me, the last thing you'll ever want is to have to deal with your ex once a month for however many years it takes for him to pay it off. This is what I am dealing with right now, and I can't stand it. Especially since my ex was the biggest jerk ever, and the last thing I need is to have to feel like he still controls me somehow. I got him to sign an agreement like a year ago saying he owes me the money, so I can take him to court if need be, but it still doesn't alleviate the high blood pressure I get from trying to contact him every month to make sure he's going to pay me. I HATE it. Plus, I hate that when I have to talk to him, he also has to brag about how wonderful he's doing, and hear about his new girlfriend, etc. Funny thing is, this is the same girlfriend he broke up with a few months ago, and that he told me was not "wife material" and didn't have enough self-esteem, and wasn't pretty enough for him. Right before he tells me that I'm the one he'll always love, and always want to marry. ICK. People like him make me sick. And I guess you are asking if that is the case, why the heck was I ever with him? Well, trust me when I say that people like him know how to charm the pants off of a girl. Especially one, who, at the time, had no idea what she wanted to do with her life, and didn't really feel like she was worth anything. That's how they weave their tangled, screwed up web around you, and get you all messed up in the head. So that even once you do leave them, you can't get their voice out of your head for a very long time. Believe me, it wasn't easy. And it's funny how his type will do anything for you, while they know you are still single and they still have a shot at you. Once he figured out I had a boyfriend, that was it. Now he leaves me alone. Which I guess I should be thankful for, were it not for the fact that now he likes to ignore me when I call him about money too. Anyway, after all of my ranting and raving, what I really want you to get out of it is what my dad told me a few months before he died. Never a borrower or a lender be. If you let someone "borrow" money, you may as well have given it to them, because you'll most likely never see it again. Unless of course, you have good ways of threatening them, which I luckily did.