Post Archive by Month

We discuss money often in our family. Until recently, I thought this was an unqualified positive. When we returned from our summer travel to Washington, D.C. and Spain, the entire family reviewed the costs of all three weeks, pinpointing the areas of greatest expense (spoiler alert: the U.S. travel was much more pricey!). When we went out for ice cream …

We recently took a full moon hike as a family offered through our local nature conservancy, and it inspired a suggestion for what could be a fun and possibly spooky family Halloween activity for those who live in the Southwestern United States: a night-time scorpion hunt! It’s worth knowing that in the Los Angeles area, where I live, there are …

How important is putting down roots in a community to your life objectives? The question was underscored on reading a recent guest post by Jacob Lund Fisker (of the legendary Early Retirement Extreme blog) on Get Rich Slowly. Jacob is a theoretical astrophysicist who studied at Berkeley and achieved FI before eschewing academics for a life pursuing interests independent of …

A few years ago, a provocative concept became the basis for a most amusing book entitled, “Not Quite What I Was Planning.” The conceit was that, similar to the title, the book consisted entirely of six word memoirs submitted by persons ranging from the famous to the obscure. My favorite came from the writer Dave Eggers: “Fifteen years since last …

Perspective in allopathic medicine is often (regrettably) present in homeopathic doses. This post, much like the vitamin B shot your last patient reported getting from the local Clinica Malpractica down the street, is intended to compensate for a perceived deficiency of perspective that may well be imaginary. Not What I Thought It Would Be Many of us become disillusioned with …

*Special thanks to reader MF, who graciously corrected an error on my part in the original post. The article has been updated and the error corrected as of 10/15/19. A consistent question I get from new investors is whether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds are the optimal vehicles for investments in taxable brokerage accounts. This post is an attempt …

There’s an old adage that gets trotted out at every elementary school fundraiser: If you think education is expensive, try ignorance. Today I’d like to explore some of the consequences, both financial and non-monetary, of ignorance in my life through some illustrative case studies. Case #1: Failing To Contribute To A Roth IRA During Internship The Roth IRA was established …

I’ve been inspired by my fellow physician finance bloggers lately. The Frugal Physician announced that despite recently graduating residency and paying off her student loans, she was cutting back to four days a week in the clinic. Her post dovetailed with a guest post at Physician on Fire by Dr. Dawn Baker (of Practice Balance and Stealth Wealth Family blogs) …

Taking a dump is one of the most satisfying activities one can aspire to in middle age. And yet, this is not a Beavis and Butthead post I refer to the ability to eliminate, for lack of a better term, the “life clutter” that obstructs productivity and happiness. Perhaps it derives from the sobering reality that there are likely more …