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Carl is a retired professor of ethics and religion who served 28 years in various educational and administrative roles at at Concordia University Texas in Austin. Originally from Minnesota, he and his wife live most of the year in the mountains of Colorado. His professional interests included public theology and ethics, leadership and ethics, ethical philosophy, the mission of Church-related Universities in the United States, environmental ethics, ethics of technology, Latino/a Studies, History of Mexico, Liberation Theology, and human migration. In retirement since 2025, he and his wife enjoy hiking, birding, reading, visiting our two children, and world travel. Your Money or Your Life and Personal Finance for Dummies, along with parents, deeply shaped his early financial education and beliefs. I have begun to write at Carl's Musings.
What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
12 replies
AUTHOR: Carl C Trovall on 3/15/2026
FIRST: Dan Smith on 3/15 | RECENT: R Mancuso on 4/19
Certainty addiction in financial decision-making
9 replies
AUTHOR: Carl C Trovall on 11/13/2025
FIRST: Mark Crothers on 11/13/2025 | RECENT: Jack Hannam on 11/18/2025
What does your daily schedule look like?
38 replies
AUTHOR: Carl C Trovall on 10/30/2025
FIRST: David Lancaster on 10/30/2025 | RECENT: Carl C Trovall on 11/3/2025
Financial Education in Middle and High School
22 replies
AUTHOR: Carl C Trovall on 10/24/2025
FIRST: Ben Rodriguez on 10/24/2025 | RECENT: youthbudget on 10/25/2025
Introduction
24 replies
AUTHOR: Carl C Trovall on 10/20/2025
FIRST: Mark Crothers on 10/22/2025 | RECENT: Mark Crothers on 10/25/2025
Comments
Great article, William! Your comments reminded me of Joe Madden (who managed the Chicago Cubs from 2015–2019, including their 2016 World Series championship). His philosophy was to succeed through "the relentless execution of fundamentals." Seems to work in every aspect of life, whether listening in personal relationships, gluing your butt to the chair when trying to write, or planning for retirement. There are two elements to success: First, people actually knowing what the fundamentals are, and secondly, people acting on that knowledge. Your overview is a powerful and simple statement of the fundamentals of investing.
Post: Investing Fundamentals: A Simple Guide for Beginners
Link to comment from April 25, 2026
It has worked out very well for me. It is especially nice being able to test different income scenarios and see what effects on taxes they have.
Post: Tools/calculators for monthly retirement cash flow and tax estimation
Link to comment from April 12, 2026
Excellent use of Claude, Mark. I have disliked spreadsheets my whole life but they are great for these sorts of projects. I, too, could never build something like this in my own. I could learn, but I rather be out hiking or reading a good book.
Post: Tools/calculators for monthly retirement cash flow and tax estimation
Link to comment from April 12, 2026
I did something I thought I would never do. I asked Claude to create an Excel spreadsheet to do this. I was impressed with the result. Just made a few adjustments. Here was my prompt: "I am retired and need to plan out my taxes for the coming year. What is the best way to do this, including pension and investment income so that my wife and I, who are married and file jointly, can stay in the 12 percent tax bracket? Do you have an example of a spreadsheet for tax planning?" I also use Boldin and Empower to help in my longer term planning and asset location planning.
Post: Tools/calculators for monthly retirement cash flow and tax estimation
Link to comment from April 9, 2026
Very helpful, James. I took everyone's advice and looked up Boomer Benefits, and I am impressed.
Post: What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
Link to comment from March 19, 2026
Thank you! I appreciate the link, and suggestions.
Post: What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
Link to comment from March 19, 2026
Thanks, Chris. Great advice. I will plan to chose a carrier highly rated in Texas and Colorado. You chose a Medigap plan for the same reasons I will be.
Post: What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
Link to comment from March 19, 2026
Thank you, Doug, for the link. Very helpful. All my best.
Post: What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
Link to comment from March 15, 2026
Thank for the suggestion, Dan. I will reach out to a broker.
Post: What happens to Medicare Supplement coverage when moving to a different state?
Link to comment from March 15, 2026
I retired last July and wanted to sell some heavily appreciated tech stocks I had inherited, but I didn't want the capital gains tax liability. Because giving has always been a priority in our budget — 10% of gross income, even during lean years — a DAF through Fidelity was the perfect solution for us. It made donating stock very straightforward, and allowed us to stack deductions (charitable giving, property taxes bundled into one year, plus mortgage interest) so we could itemize our deductions in 2025. Another nice thing is that I get the tax benefit of the donation in the year I give it, but I don't have disburse all of my donation in one year, but can spread it out over numerous years. Donating to all sorts of charities has become incredibly simple — simpler than I ever imagined. With a few clicks, I can give to more than 20 of our favorite charities, all in one place. For one-off donation requests that come up from time to time, it's easy to log into Fidelity and give immediately. My only regret is not having set one of these up earlier in life. Once I reach 75, I'll likely shift to QCDs. Until then, I'm quite satisfied with the DAF and will happily pay Fidelity for the convenience.
Post: What is the best way to donate to charity in 2026?
Link to comment from March 5, 2026