Lorin,

No reason to feel bad. Although I'm impressed with the concern and compassion. Those are good traits. Don't allow them to be compromised.

There's an old saying, attributable to Friedrich Nietzsche or Conan the Barbarian's father, depending on how you view the spatial, temporal, and dimensional mechanics involved in distinguishing between historical philosophers and characters in old fantasy movies. It is “That which does not kill you makes you stronger".

So, unless he's spent so much on you that it's cost him his life, I wouldn't worry about it. 18 year old boys (in spite of the legal classification as adult (a whole separate debate)) are usually pretty resilient and he'll most likely recover and come visit you again. I'm a bit of a sucker for the nice ones, myself.

Just look at it as being part of a lesson in finances and the concept of opportunity cost. By spending, perhaps even all of his spendables, he has to accept delayed gratification in some area, just like a decision to buy a car might interfere with taking vacations for awhile or buying a CD might mean skipping lunch in a restaurant for a day. He'll at some point have to come to terms with the allocation of his resources (cash) relative to the array of goods and services he'd like to acquire. Though we'd all love nothing more than to have a great house, car, etc. and a never-ending supply of lap dances, a balance has to be achieved.

So, just see yourself, proudly, as a vital component of this young man's instruction in economics.

And remember Conan the Barbarian went on to become Governor of California.