60+ year old thread.

I think I made enough to retire for a year...

 

I have some UPS stock that i have bought over the last 25 years , but most of our portfolio is in funds. They tend to do very well.

 

I remember the late 60's when the Dow dropped to 400. I started dumping money into it then, never looked back. I learned then to be my own financial advisor. When things change.. and they will, I'm on top of it instantly, don't have time to make an appt. for next Tue. My wife thinks I'm a genius, haha, I've got her fooled. All it takes is a little common sense and the ability to focus under fire.

 

Good morning everyone!!! Happy Day Before Thanksgiving!!! Hope you have all your grocery shopping done - today is no day to be in the store.

The market has been amazing over the past few years even with corrections. I started investing as a young Army captain back in '82... luckily.

 

I still to this day thank my parents to this day for kicking me in the ass when I was 22 and strongly suggest that I partake in a 401k which is now in IRA.
The best part of it was that it came right out of my check. I didn't have have to do it myself. If I did it never would have happened!

 

One nice thing about getting older is we understand investing and how to make it work for you. I am not super wealthy but my parents taught me the power of investing. Nothing beats compounding interest and time. Time is no longer on our side but I took advantage of time when I was young.

I subscribe to the Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffet school of investment. Buy well run companies that pay a dividend and do not charge to reinvest the dividend back into company stock.

Ken: I look at the market the opposite view. When was the last time the market went down when it did not come back higher. I do agree that sometimes the market drop takes years to come back but if you are diversified your risk is somewhat lower.

Have a good day everyone and get ready for tomorrow. I have the turkey in a brine already. Doing the turkey in the smoker on a rotisserie.

 

Good Thanksgiving Eve Morning folks .
The wife and I have Roth IRA's , Standard 401 (mine), 403 (hers), and an annuity. The amount we get in the annuity is minimal, but on another note, when the market drops we don't lose anything. Hopefully the market will stay strong.
Hoping all have a great Thanksgiving and all the best for a healthy and safe weekend for you and your families .

 

Happy Pre-Thanksgiving all! Turkey is in a cooler, going to soak some apple wood for the smoker today.

I never saved until my company offered a 401K, and that was late in my work life, but I started anyway. Then, they offered matching and even stock for a while. I took what I could afford. Eventually, they quit giving peons stock, so that rolled into the 401 after a nice split, and every time I got a raise, I increased the match until I maxed out. I never looked at the statements - figured it would just be depressing - until I was near 65. Darned if I didn't actually have some money!

When they let me go in 2018, I put all the money with a firm that my wife used, and it's very diversified with minimum individual stock - what is stock is investment groups that have portfolios of their own. The best news is when the market dips, we are very slow to follow and less drastic. Same thing when it booms, we get it a little quicker as good times seem to favor all stock. Their minimum fees are very worth it - since there is NO way I could pull that off. Been lucky enough to grow back my monthly "salary" with ease, and even has almost totally paid back the solar investment (there's my payback!) We also took some and put it in annuity (against their wishes), just to create a long term hedge.

Time for the final "put the plants in and set the drips" today. Stay safe and full of Turkey! All the best to you and your families!

 

Ha! Thanks to my friends giving some Hibiscus a new home, there is now room for all in their house!



Got the drips in, flow checked, and tubing on. Now, on to the top shelf (after a little beverage break!).

 

The company I worked for offered a stock deal for several years. I could put a part of my paycheck away. That bought stock at a percentage (I don't recall how much) of the lowest price at either end of each 6 month period. There were no restrictions on selling. I built a house, bought a new Toyota and took a month long trip to Australia with the proceeds. That was a great deal.

IMO it is not a good idea to hold a lot of any single stock; not at my net worth level, anyway.

 

And all the top rack plants are back in on top, along with 21 pots of cuttings for next years Hibiscus babies! Photo before I put the hanging baskets back.



Everyone is drip watered from the solar rain (Haha! Hasn't rained since September! ) barrel. Now I can get in and check on things tho. The clear view is why i upgraded from steel and plastic. We can see blooms all winter.

 

Man i wish i had those kind of plant skills. I can only grow briars.

 

1. cut your briars close to the ground as possible.
2. Paint them with plant killer (glucosphates) or similar.
3. Before spring, till up the area.
4. Find a local greenhouse with REAL local people that know, as ask what grows where those did.
5. Plant those instead! Once they are established, you are an expert, and can now grow anything else!!!

 

My wife and i are planning to downsize in the spring. Between yardwork and cleaning the pool area , its a 4hour job. Now that the kid is grown and moved out , we just dont need this big house in the burbs. Looking to find a small cabin in the mountains. Hopefully something that doesn't require much maintenance.

 

The wife and I did that 17 years ago. Only drawback is we have an HOA but they aren't too bad. They cut the grass, shovel the snow, and we have a big clubhouse with ammenities. Although it has been closed for 8 months because of the virus. Life is good.

 

Sounds like what we're looking for. We've been taking some tours and gathering brochures. We have some family up that way , so maybe it will make the transition easier. Its amazing what those communities have to offer.

 

Happy Thanksgiving all!

 

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving and stays safe.

 

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!! Lynn and I celebrate our 46th wedding anniversary, today, too.