Family-budget negotiations are stalemated, and, like the government, we may have to shut down this operation Friday. My position is non-negotiable: To save gas we hook up a rickshaw to the shih tzu, but a reduction in coffee consumption is NOT on the table. And I stand by my position that teens and young adults can survive on three dinners per week, but to show my good faith, only one of them must be ramen noodles.