"Neither a borrower nor a lender be, for loan oft loses itself and friend, and borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry." ~ Polonius, Act I, Scene 3, Hamlet
Ah, yes, and in hindsight, even more so. Number One on that list would be, of course, money. Running a close second? A favorite book. Following those two list-toppers would be household items. "Okay if I borrow your...?" and whatever it may be, you can almost count on never seeing it again. So how does one say NO without risking a friendship? Well, would you rather risk losing any of the afore-mentioned or a friendship? Depends on what they're asking to 'borrow' and on what kind of friendship it is.
I've been on the loan/losing end far too many times to count. Money, favorite books, household items, not even Amazon.com would be able to replace all that has been lost over the years. Which pisses me off because I am the kind of person who would never not return a borrowed item. And if I couldn't return the original, then I'd make damned sure I returned a replacement.
If the borrowed item is money, prepare to spend a lot of time (and even more money) on court appearances and fees. And even if you "win" in civil court, the job of collecting what's owed falls on you. Try making sense of that. Okay, I won, so how do I collect what's been judged to be mine? "We can't force him to pay you..." Well, what the hell is the point of asking a judge to decide what's rightfully yours, win, and then still be left wanting? What do I do now, round up a posse and, with flaming torches, go after the villain myself? In which case, I would probably be arrested for violating a borrower's 'civil rights.'
Which only reinforces the quote about borrowing and lending. As for saying NO and risking a friendship, I offer another quote: "Forewarned is forearmed." And what is it about N-O that you don't understand, anyway?
Whoops, there goes another questionable friendship. KER-PLOP!
