Below you'll find a list of all posts from June, 2019
It was late at night when the bartender called last round. She was wearing a sophisticated little black dress, seated alone at a small table, when our eyes met across the room. Full of liquid courage, I made my way over, asked what she was drinking, and ordered two. I’d heard rumors about her before in the books I was …
I recently spent a weekend visiting my parents, and as other compulsive readers may relate to, I found myself sifting through their bookshelves in search of brain fodder. I became intrigued by the book, The Triple Package: How Three Unlikely Traits Explain The Rise And Fall Of Cultural Groups In America. The authors were Yale Law professors Amy Chua (who …
We recently hosted a friend of decades who had a fly-by-night trip through town. We collect weird friends like elderly mid-western matrons collect Hummel Figurines. We regard this label as high praise. One of the blessings of time is a loss of inhibition. This can be awkward, as in the dementia patient who grabs at anatomy he or she should …
Middle age shifts your perspective and broadens your frame of reference. Time has helped me accumulate multiple examples that demonstrate the evolution of both aspirations and exasperations. Then: Stasis is death. Seek novelty in every experience. Always keep moving. Now: Repetition creates opportunity for eventual mastery. Ritual lends comfort. Routine is a blessing. Roots form only when a seed stays …
I recently listened to the always engaging Jonathan Clements being interviewed on the White Coat Investor podcast, during which he explained a neologism I’d not heard before to refer to a type of rookie mistake I recognized for having committed it: naive diversification. As a quick review, diversification is a means of reducing portfolio risk. I own exclusively Apple stock …
I recently got a hot tip from a friend I trust and respect. Gasem mentioned that he’d enrolled in an online video course on creating a Financial Independence spreadsheet taught by blogger and math whiz Actuary on Fire (henceforth “AoF,” which I imagine to be the sound of a sucker punch to your cerebral cortex). He’d found it to be …
If you’ve read this or any other physician finance blog, odds are you’ve encountered Gasem. He is a retired anesthesiologist, a prolific writer with guest posts spanning the blogosphere, and his ubiquity and depth as a commentator has few rivals. Gasem now has his own blog at MD on FI/RE, where this piece was originally published, but he kindly permitted …
Memorial Day weekend means many things to me. It’s a chance to remember and honor men and women who gave their lives to protect our freedoms. It’s a chance to gather with family. It’s the unofficial start of summer and winding down of the school year. It’s also the weekend when many towns plan their most popular local events. My …