Blog

Blog

Musings on personal finance and more. Not written with AI since 2012.

Lonely tree

Don’t be a minimalist, be a sensibilist

Minimalism is a big thing. From tiny houses to 100 things challenges, it seems that there is a building pushback against the McMansion-loving, stuff-buying, American-dream excess of our modern age, where what you buy determines who you are. From the … Read MoreRead More

Ladder

An alternative to CD lock-in: a “ladder”

I don’t think CDs (certificates of deposit) are worth the bargain. You often (but not always) get a slightly higher interest rate than an equivalent savings account, but at the price of liquidity, in that you have to leave the … Read MoreRead More

Compact disc

Is a CD worth it?

I’ve talked about savings accounts and checking accounts and when you want to put money in one versus the other. I’ve also talked about how you can benefit from using an online savings account to get a better interest rate … Read MoreRead More

ATM receipt

It is possible to have too much float

It’s important to have enough money in your account to not have to worry when your bills are paid, but too much float brings problems too. … Read More

Blocks

The internet really doesn’t want you to be untraceable

Right after I started using a VPN for all my internet traffic, so that I could remain anonymous in my browsing habits, I started having technical troubles. It started with Amazon. I don’t shop Amazon all that much (I think … Read MoreRead More

How to find out if you (or anyone really) are owed money by the state

I still fondly recall those late night TV infomercials about how you can get free money from the government. Now, as I’m learning, there may be something to all that. Because it turns out there are legitimate, state-run websites out … Read MoreRead More

Pretty nature view

For always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself

I definitely found myself struggling around writing the following phrase in my previous post on signing up for an advanced personal finance course: And, I’ll be honest, I don’t know a lot of people who are in my situation. Which … Read MoreRead More

Limassol

Why I’m signing up for a personal finance course

UPDATE (January 27, 2020): Finally published a review of this course. Michael Hyatt, the author and publisher, likes to say that “not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers“. By this, I’ve always interpreted it to mean that … Read MoreRead More