Blog

Blog

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

The complicated ethics of peer-to-peer lending

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  “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest.” – Exodus 22:25 “Neither a borrower nor a lender be, For loan oft loses both … Read More … Read More

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Don’t plan for a 12% return (but earn it anyway)

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  WARNING: This post contains math. How much return do you expect to make on your stock market investments? (Don’t say zero.) There are those who will say that you can expect to earn a 12% return on your investments … Read More … Read More

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How are you “weird”?

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  Admit it: there’s something about you that makes you different. Perhaps it’s some thing that you do (or don’t do) that is out of sync with others. Perhaps there’s something about you that others who meet you tend to … Read More … Read More

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My social media roundup (sort of)

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  I recently switched my Twitter handle. It was @exvelleitier (read here for details on what that means), but for brand reasons, and because it’s admittedly a bit hard to spell, I decided to use the longer-but-easier @unlikelyradical. If you … Read More … Read More

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Monty Python vs. David Bowie: A study in creative legacies

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  I’ve talked about the different types of creative legacies as a way for you to think about your goals, and how to balance your creative goals with other concerns, be they financial or critical. I find that artists respond … Read More … Read More

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What I learned about creative legacy from watching Ratatouille

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  When you are engaged in a creative pursuit (and I’d argue that most of us are), you don’t necessarily think much about how you will respond to success. Most of us prepare ourselves only for failure, and therefore may … Read More … Read More

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Travel hacking to get to Buenos Aires (for cheap)

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  I’ve talked about how to buy frequent flyer miles for immediate use in travel, and why it could potentially be a good deal to do so. But why stop at theory? Here is the story of how I helped … Read More … Read More

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How to save money on airfare by purchasing frequent flyer miles

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  Frequent flier miles can be a really amazing tool for seeing the world. I used miles to travel in international business class when I came home from Europe earlier this year, and while it was a bit of an … Read More … Read More

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Why it’s better to be a volunteer than an attendee

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  Within a space of two weeks, I have volunteered at two events: World Domination Summit and Northwest String Summit. (Interesting coincidence how both events happen to use the word “Summit” in their title.) The two events couldn’t be more different: … Read More … Read More

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The grief of getting what you want

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  It’s always nice to hear from people who are achieving their goals. Whether it’s getting through school, taking a trip across the world, or even finding a partner, it is always inspiring to hear these success stories. (Or at … Read More … Read More

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