My good friend & longtime MegaCorp accomplice, Dawn, and I had lunch recently and she shared with me the details of her recent car purchase. She went to Gothenburg, Sweden and picked up her new Volvo under their ‘European Delivery Service’. I’ve had some friends that have done this in the past, but I wasn’t aware of how it actually works. It’s cool! Working with … Continue reading European Car Delivery
Summer is still a fortnight away, but I’m not ready for it. I’m a bit beat up. Spring sports – tennis & softball – have me nursing a painful Achilles tendinitis injury. I’ve been doing everything I can to get it back in shape. Stretching exercises, lifts in my shoes, and wearing Skechers in the house. Still, it’s been a slow road. In the last … Continue reading Stretching Into Summer
Some friends and I were trying to solve the world’s problems over a beer this weekend. Someone asked if we are going to go into a recession or not over the next year. I replied that the economy just seems really “wobbly” right now … I don’t know if it will tip,over or not. Another guy said he read that there was a 99% chance … Continue reading Is The Economy More Than Just ‘Wobbly’?
My son and I went on an epic road trip last weekend, crossing 4 states with 75 sports cars in a charity rally. We were in the car about 16 hours / 1,000 miles through the Midwest – navigating through 20 checkpoints & activities. That’s our car in the picture above! The rally is like ‘The Amazing Race’ show on wheels. Great father-son activity. We … Continue reading Road Trips Midwest
On a long road trip this weekend, my son, and I listened to the latest Apple developers conference presentation. CEO Tim Cook and his staff introduced new laptops, new software, and their new AR headset. It was all very impressive, and made me think about how far computing technology and software have come since I bought my first Apple product in 1984. I have my … Continue reading Who Will Organize Our Digital Life?
With the start of June, we’ve arrived into Glorious Summer in Minnesota- and peak lawn mowing season. At the FIRE Station, we’ve also made the full jump to an electric lawn mower. When my folks moved to a senior apartment a few years ago, I bought my Dad’s Snapper Electric Mower. I used it now and then, but mostly relied on my trusty, gas-powered Toro. … Continue reading Quietly Moving To Electric
It seems every generation wants to dump on the next one. Or, the one before it. Boomers complain about Millennials and Millennials say, “OK, Boomer”. Millennials say Boomers left the world a mess and Boomers say Millennials are ruining the world with their decisions. The irony of the situation is that the Boomers parented the Millennials themselves. (I’m a Gen X’er and our son’s a … Continue reading Gen Z Growing Wealth: The Kids Are Alright
The current federal debt ceiling debate is running 24×7 through the financial media. A retired friend I went biking with last week seemed pretty caught up in it. He said he was keeping money out of stocks & bonds in case things “got real bad.” No surprise he felt that way, given the way it is being reported in the hysterical media. The financial press … Continue reading Debt Limit Hyperbole
My friend, Jeff, texted me last week asking for an insurance agent reference. He just got his homeowners insurance premium estimate for the coming year and it was up a whopping +29% higher than what he paid last year – which was +23% higher than two years ago! I haven’t gotten my new home insurance estimate yet, but we are definitely going to competitively shop … Continue reading Home Insurance Premiums Rising
I’m old enough to have been assigned the chore of ‘raking’ the orange, thick-cut, shag carpeting in our family room when I was a kid. We had a bonafide carpet rake to keep the shag looking new and not matted down under the feet of our family of six. I remembered that dubious task this week, as my wife and I prepared for carpet layers … Continue reading Roll Out The Rug …
