Articles

Home/Articles/

Dying with Millions

What’s the Amount of Money You Must Have to Be Considered Rich? Schwab’s survey showed Americans’ conception of being rich means having a net worth of $2.2 million. This number represents a $300,000 increase from the survey’s results last year. Additionally, statistics show that the top 2% of the United States population has a net worth of about $2.4 million. On the other hand, the top 5% wealthiest Americans have a net worth of just over $1 million. Therefore, about 2% of the population possesses enough wealth to meet the current definition of being rich.  Consider your tax bracket as well, to determine what you will be able to effectively withdraw later in retirement withdrawals versus what you pay now in earnings. Lawrence recently wrote in https://bestinterest.blog/dying-with-millions/ Dear Jesse, My wife is 70 and I’m about to turn 70, and we’ve been retired for 8 years, and even with the tough market in 2022, our portfolio is up 40% from when we retired – from ~$3M to $4.2M. But I can’t bring myself to spend more…we spend exactly what we want. But I’m now wondering – what if we die with these millions, instead of putting them to some sort of good use? Ask any retiree or any financial planner who works with retirees. Most retirees struggle to change from “saver” to “spender.” They’ve built decades of strong saving habits. Years of frugality, budgeting, and “buy and hold” investing. You can’t flip that switch overnight. As a real example, check out the chart below. It shows retiree savings going up (surprisingly!) during the 2000s. Courtesy Michael Kitces My expectation was that 2000-2008 was a terrible time for retiree portfolios, considering it was the “Lost Decade” in the stock market But the reality

By |June 12th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Dying with Millions

Nana’s Life at Sea

A life at sea isn’t for everyone, but some passengers hop on a cruise and make it their home — from anywhere from a few months at a time to buying a permanent residence. Long-term cruising is particularly popular among budget-savvy retirees. Many compare it to the cost of living in a retirement home and find it more economical. Aside from the obvious fact that one of these options is at sea, the two have notable similarities such as meals, organized activities, and room cleaning. Some cruisers jump from one ship to another, and others stay on the same ship constantly. For an upscale option, The World is the world’s largest private residential ship, with 165 permanent residences onboard.

By |June 12th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Nana’s Life at Sea

Luxury Brands Stock and Real Estate Investing

I am mostly an Index fund buyer.  However, I very much like Warren Buffet's stock buying mentality for Berkshire Hathaway, which I hold stock in.  I was recently asked what about investing in a luxury brand, such as Rolex, as the price of Rolexs has soared since covid. Adapted from https://www.liberatedstocktrader.com/rolex-stock/#:~:text=in%20this%20report.-,Is%20Rolex%20on%20the%20Stock%20Market%3F,and%20scholarships%20for%20the%20underprivileged. 5 Great Alternatives to Rolex Stock Three good alternatives to investing in Rolex stock are Ferrari, Kering, LVMH, Hermes, and Nike. 1. Ferrari NV (NYSE: RACE) Most people cannot afford a Ferrari, but they can buy Ferrari (RACE) stock. Ferrari’s value comes from its brand, like Rolex. Brand Finance named Ferrari the world’s strongest brand in 2020, with a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 94.1 out of 100. Ferrari was one of just 12 brands with an AAA+ rating. Ferrari was Brand Finance’s strongest auto brand for seven years in a row. However, Ferrari was Europe’s second-strongest brand, with a Brand Index Score of 92.3 and an AAA+ brand rating in January 2022. Statista named Ferrari the fifth most valuable Italian brand, with a brand value of $8.34 billion in 2022. Ferrari is a growing company. Its global net revenue grew from €3.460 billion ($3.72 billion) in 2020 to €4.271 billion ($4.59 billion) in 2021, Statista estimates. Ferrari resembles Rolex because it has a carefully protected brand with a reputation for quality and luxury. Like Rolex, Ferrari makes a few high-quality products by hand and sells cars at a high price. Statista figures show Ferrari shipped 11,155 cars in 2021. Ferrari caters to a growing market of millionaires like Rolex. Both Rolex and Ferrari are Formula One sponsor. Ferrari is the publicly traded company that most resembles Rolex. 2. Kering SA (Euronext Paris: KER-FR) Kering SA (KER-FR), or LVMH, made headlines in

By |May 30th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Luxury Brands Stock and Real Estate Investing

Jade

Just Delivered Macy's Jade Bangle Qty: 1 Size: 2 1/2 Color:  Green Type: BRACELET Sources in Hong Kong for jade jewelery: https://www.thejadejewellery.com/categories/bracelets?page=4&sort_by=&order_by=&limit=24 Introduction There are two minerals that are commonly called jade, nephrite and jadeite. The traditional Chinese jade, is nephrite. Just to make things even more confusing, in New Zealand, jade is called pounamu or greenstone. As one of the world's oldest decorative stones, jade has been prized for its beauty across the world. Properties Close up of a carved nephrite slab, from Marsden River, New Zealand. Bown Collection Source: Geoscience Australia The two jade minerals, nephrite and jadeite are both tough and have small granular crystals giving a fibrous appearance. They have quite different chemical compositions and structures. Nephrite is a type of amphibole mineral and jadeite is a type of pyroxene mineral. Nephrite can be white, yellow, green and brown to black, depending on the amount of iron and magnesium in the mineral. Jadeite can be green, pink, purple, brown and white. Nephrite jade is very tough, the toughest known natural mineral, three times tougher than ceramics and even tougher than steel. This explains why it was used in neolithic times for knife blades, axe heads and later for ornamental carvings. While it is not as hard as some other minerals like diamond, nephrite is made from an interwoven meshwork of fine fibres or needle-like crystals so is not brittle and does not break easily. Coarser crystals and alignment of minerals decreases the toughness of the mineral. Jadeite is the second toughest mineral known, but is not as tough as nephrite as its interlocking crystals are less fibrous. The interlocking crystals or fibrous structures of these two jade minerals mean they can be polished easily, so are

By |May 25th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Jade

Quikcrete for Posts

Quikrete Fast Setting Concrete Mix homedepot.com Quikrete 50 lb. Fast-Setting Concrete Mix 100450 - The Home Depot 90-day returns $6.71 Quikrete fast-setting concrete mix is a special blend of fast-setting cements, sand and gravel designed to set hard in approximately 20 to 40 mins. Sets posts without mixing. Pour dry mix into hole and soak with water. Setting Mailbox Post I love this stuff for setting posts. In this case a mailbox post. Just dig a hole (the hardest part). Temporarily support the post in the middle of the hole. Pour in the dry Quikrete evenly around the post. Pour in water until you can't add any more. This was a wooden mailbox post and within a few minutes I was able to remove the temporary support which was a mattox and post hole digger. This couldn't be much easier unless the Quikrete could dig the hole for me.

By |May 9th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Quikcrete for Posts

Rumspringa

The concept of “Rumspringa” is a uniquely Amish tradition. It is a period of adolescence where Amish youngsters are allowed to leave the community and experience life outside their own. This period of soul-searching marks a transition from their childhood in the community to adulthood, and it’s up to them to decide whether they want to stay and continue farming or leave for a more “modern” way of life. This period of self-reflection illustrates the Amish’s embrace of choice and individuality within the boundaries of their community’s traditions and beliefs. After you are done messing about in life's various rumspringas, it's usually time to get back to work. If you want to achieve great success in life, it’s important to lock down what cornerstone habits you need to build. As you build these habits, keep the initial task simple so that it does not require much motivation to complete it. Here are some examples: For your spiritual life: Try starting your morning with five minutes of meditation. Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed, close your eyes, and breathe. If you need help getting into the right headspace, several apps can help guide you through it. When you can let the thoughts go in and out of your mind without judging them and aim to find stillness in the moment, you’re setting yourself up to reap the benefits.  TM and yoga sun salutes are great ways to start this habit. For your physical health: It’s vital that you get enough sleep every night. Use a smart device to help track your sleeping patterns and statistics. To decide when you need to get to bed, count backward from your wake-up time to ensure you

By |May 1st, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Rumspringa

Are You Ready?

Adapted from Dry Fire Training Cards. What's going on in the Ukraine has been a frequent topic of conversation lately...with family and friends, but particularly with guys who specialized in anti-terrorism work. I want to share an email from one of those guys, who's fought in failed states, was part of an anti-terrorism team, and who's lived through deadly natural disasters...in other words, he has a very good and very unique perspective you should hear.  He said..."You might think this could never happen to you...You would be wrong. In fact, the stories coming out of Ukraine as more than 400,000 citizens desperately try to escape the chaos of Russia's invasion are EXACTLY how the "unprepared" will feel the shock of a wide-scale disaster of any kind in our system-dependent society. Yes, even in the good 'ol USA. Fleeing citizens stacked up in a 20-mile traffic jam, desperately seeking a safe place for them and their families. -Vehicles ran out of fuel or simply broke down. -Some stayed in place, sleeping in their cars - trapped with nowhere else to go. -Thousands of others pushed forward on foot... like one 26 y.o. who said, "I can't feel my feet anymore." as she was left to freeze outside and stay awake so that others wouldn’t steal her spot in line. -"For 3 days, I didn't eat a single bit of food, only water." was the comment from one 22 y.o. refugee who found out the hard way that food and water supplies are non-existent when supply lines shut down. -Families found themselves separated and fearful of their children being crushed in the crowds as everyone pushed their way to get across the border or grab whatever supplies could be

By |April 17th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Are You Ready?

Soaring Inflation

Since April 2021, the cost of food prepared at home has risen by almost 20%. Within that category, the price of some cooking staples have skyrocketed. Margarine prices increased by 54%, largely due to the war in Ukraine, which is the world’s No. 1 exporter of sunflower oil. That’s the biggest increase of all food items in the Labor Bureau’s consumer price index, with a 13-ounce tub of margarine increasing from about $3.25 to $5 in the last two years. Relatedly, milk and bread production have also been affected by the conflict in Ukraine, with prices rising 19% and 21%, respectively. Rising fertilizer and labor costs are contributing factors, as well. Chicken prices have soared, too, as wholesale producers struggled to meet demand after cutting back production early in the pandemic. Prices declined slightly after peaking in late 2022, but they’re still up 20% over the last two years. Relatedly, avian flu decimated egg-laying flocks of chickens, which accounted for a dramatic surge in egg prices last year.

By |April 17th, 2023|Categories: Uncategorized|Comments Off on Soaring Inflation

Can You Refreeze Game Meat

  DANIELLE PREWETT Adapted from: https://www.themeateater.com/cook/butchering-and-processing/can-you-refreeze-thawed-meat?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=4.10.23_Whitetail%20%28Turkey%20Whitetail%29&utm_term=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themeateater.com%2Fcook%2Fbutchering-and-processing%2Fcan-you-refreeze-thawed-meat&utm_id=529729&sfmc_id=500689168 As meat freezes, the liquids inside expand and form into crystals that puncture muscular fibers. As the meat defrosts, these crystals turn back to liquid. The damaged tissue will then release additional fluid that contains salt, vitamins and proteins. This juice isn’t just moisture for the meat, it’s also flavor. In theory, meat that has been frozen ends up being slightly tougher and drier than if it were fresh. Additionally, freezing promotes oxidization of fat, meaning the overall flavor begins to decline the longer it is frozen. Now, imagine this entire process happening twice. The quality of meat is now significantly lower, so it’s no wonder why many chefs preach against refreezing meat. Because so many people, including myself, have been in this predicament, I decided to try an experiment to find out just how much of a difference refreezing makes. I defrosted a vacuum sealed package of two pheasant breasts in the fridge that had been frozen for more than a year. The next day, I placed one of those breasts back in a vacuum sealed bag and froze it for a second time. After another 24 hours had passed, I pulled the meat from the freezer and left it in the fridge to defrost with its other half. The following day, I cooked both pheasant breasts side by side in the same pan for the same amount of time. The meat that had been frozen only once was tender and juicy. The other was noticeably tougher and drier. However, I wouldn’t go so far as to say it was inedible by any means. It was still a good piece of meat. Had I served that to someone

By |April 11th, 2023|Categories: Hunting|Comments Off on Can You Refreeze Game Meat