34 posts
After my last Tales from the Glitter Gym, Stuart gave me an idea for this post. > It’s a shame that more gym members weren’t / aren’t even a fraction as conscientious as these two were. The one thing...
Read more →Since the interests of this blog involve food and risk, I thought I'd address a topic that isn't getting serious attention from major news outlets. That is the possibility that food shortages are...
Read more →You likely know that Venezuela is a disaster right now. I could post about the causes, but most of us know what happened already and the actions being taken by their socialist government will not...
Read more →Back in 2013, I was having a discussion with someone about voting. I took the position that mathematically voting was unimportant. I went further to say that we confuse being an informed citizen with...
Read more →Over the years as my interests have changed so have the topics on my blog. From hiking to financial to fitness to nutrition to cooking to whatever sparked my curiosity. But there is one huge...
Read more →After my long blogging hiatus, I returned with a list of topics I wanted to cover. One item on the list was why the events of 2016 did not surprise me. I expected both Brexit and that Trump would not...
Read more →Since late last year, I've been thinking about the following quote by Jim Rohn. > You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. !5 sign Photo by N Ino I want to share my...
Read more →The higher minimum wage debate is something I have hesitated discussing. The reasons are numerous, but mostly because I think the discussion is missing what I predict will be the worst unintended...
Read more →In May, I posted "Ballard Rents - Don't Believe the Hype!" in which I shared my thoughts on the rent situation in Seattle. Although I remain confident that the near-vertical increase in rents is...
Read more →Very shortly after my neighbors and I learned the new owners were going to evict all the tenants, a group was formed to fight the new developers. I wasn't sure what the group was going to do. We were...
Read more →This is a follow up post to Trying to Cheer Up an Economic Idiot. In that post I outlined my opinion of what was happening in the red hot rental market of my Seattle neighborhood of Ballard. Unlike...
Read more →Last October I posted about my upcoming eviction. I live in the highly desirable neighborhood of Ballard in Seattle. In the past few years rents have increased and developers have been responding to...
Read more →I recently got nailed with a $1500 car repair bill. The big ticket item was replacing an EGR Valve. Now I know very little about cars and tend to tune out when mechanics start getting technical, so I...
Read more →I haven't done a financial post in a long time, but I feel I need to defend what most people feel is indefensible: price gouging. What is price gouging? From the Wikipedia. > Price gouging is a...
Read more →I got a comment on Facebook after I posted The Gyro Meatloaf Recipe about scaling down the recipe. The recipe is for a 3-pound meatloaf. My short answer was of course you can scale it down, but why...
Read more →I ended the last post by stating: > Not everyone will get lower rent. Some people will be suckered into paying higher rent. Not me. I am going to tell you how to get lower rent. First, let me share...
Read more →Over the past month I have read several articles by people smarter than me that believe hyperinflation or even sustained very high inflation is coming to America. Despite all the great arguments, I...
Read more →I haven't posted much on finance lately as my interest in fitness and nutrition has held my attention. However, I have been thinking about inflation and if it could spread through the United States...
Read more →I do not watch sports and the only gambling I do is on Wall Street. However, I am going to share with you a technique you can use to increase the odds that you will win a college football bet. For...
Read more →This post is a follow up to The College Debt Trap where I pleaded the case to avoid becoming a debt slave to acquire a college degree. This post is about an alternative to college debt. If your...
Read more →From time to time I will do a financial post on this site. These posts are not about getting rich. They are usually about minimizing risk and not doing something dumb. Using debt to finance college...
Read more →Today I had a prescription filled. It costs me $50. When the pharmacist counseled me on the medication, he asked how much I paid. When he heard $50, he walked me out to one of the aisles and showed...
Read more →I was digging through my old blog and came across this post from June 2004. > 10 Years Ago Today - On 6/10/1994, I graduated from The Ohio State University. Although I'm proud of my school and...
Read more →As deflationary pressure builds in the economy, cash becomes more valuable. It goes to reason that those with cash are now in a strong position to ask for a better deal. I have cash and like everyone...
Read more →Whenever I hear someone say that we are going to have Hyperinflation, I respond that it is impossible because of wages. In the comments on my 2009 Financial Predictions I said: > ...you cant...
Read more →In prior posts, I have stated that I am a Short Term Bear and a Long Term Bull. But, I never really explained what I meant. The Short Term Bear part now appears obvious as the country moves from...
Read more →About a week before 9/11, I made one of the most fortunate consumer choices of my life. Although I had already decided to buy a silver VW Golf hatchback, I didn't know if I should get the gasoline or...
Read more →A few people in Seattle have asked me if this is the right time to buy a house. They don't really want my answer. They want to buy and want me to agree with that decision. My needs and their needs...
Read more →One of the criticisms I received for selling my house in 2006 and going into the rental market was that I wouldn't be building equity. Yes that is true. As a renter I wouldn't have the opportunity to...
Read more →My guess is most people probably aren't devoting sufficient time to planning and saving for retirement. I read somewhere that the average Baby Boomer has less than $50,000 in savings heading into...
Read more →One year ago, I explained in the post Renters Lose Money why I was renting and not buying. > I choose to rent rather than own because it's A LOT cheaper today. Yesterday I got our building's...
Read more →Last month I told a friend not to do a for sale by owner. In that post I went into detail why you need to court buyers agents more than ever. Someone asked me what I would do if I had to sell my...
Read more →A friend of mine recently told me she was going to sell her house herself. She asked me what I thought of that idea. Here is what I told her. > There are 2 cycles to the real estate market. A buyers...
Read more →Today the AP is bemoaning that the savings rate in the USA hasn't been this low since 1933. Another jab at Americans for being irresponsible. Yet the truth is Americans put more money in their...
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