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DAN SMITH

    Forum Posts

    Things That Don’t Much Interest Me No More

    33 replies

    AUTHOR: DAN SMITH on 12/5/2024
    FIRST: bbbobbins on 12/5/2024   |   RECENT: DrLefty on 12/10/2024

    After It's Over

    11 replies

    AUTHOR: DAN SMITH on 11/21/2024
    FIRST: mytimetotravel on 11/21/2024   |   RECENT: mytimetotravel on 11/22/2024

    Good Old Days?

    19 replies

    AUTHOR: DAN SMITH on 11/18/2024
    FIRST: Jeff Bond on 11/18/2024   |   RECENT: H S on 11/19/2024

    How Much is Too Much

    5 replies

    AUTHOR: DAN SMITH on 6/27/2024
    FIRST: Jonathan Clements on 6/28/2024   |   RECENT: Ed Wong on 6/29/2024

    Comments

    • Dennis, for the past week we’ve been holed up at a pretty fancy resort in Port Charlotte. Chrissy’s sister’s wedding is why we came, and I am using the trip as an excuse to visit a handful of friends, some of whom I have not seen for 30 plus years. We’re are living the life of Riley (an expression Chris never heard before I said it yesterday). So you describe our situation pretty accurately. Still, I don’t ever want to forget where I came from. We did the right things and maintained good health (so far). Not everyone is so lucky.

      Post: Better Than Ever

      Link to comment from January 28, 2025

    • I always believed that the non indexed income triggers for SS were unfair. However, I didn’t know those taxes went back into the trust fund until I began reading HD. Knowing the facts changed my thinking. I agree that there should be no changes to SS that don’t include a solution to fix funding shortfalls.

      Post: Should Social Security benefits be income tax free?

      Link to comment from January 28, 2025

    • Lots of good stuff in your post. I’ve been having the same concerns about password vaults. I’ve been using Bitwarden, but have created a password protected spreadsheet with the same information. I just need to pull the trigger on shutting down the manager.

      Post: I’ve stolen the words Willful Ignorance and Disengagement from a prior forum post.

      Link to comment from January 28, 2025

    • That a great point Marjorie. That lead person bears some responsibility to bring their partner into on board.

      Post: I’ve stolen the words Willful Ignorance and Disengagement from a prior forum post.

      Link to comment from January 28, 2025

    • How about the 18 teams making up the Big 10? Ridiculous isn’t it?

      Post: Making money – out of touch with the good old days. Maybe just a little rant by RDQ

      Link to comment from January 26, 2025

    • A mimeograph? Holy molly you are old. I bet you remember when V8 juice was V2 juice. Truth is, I remember mimeograph machines too. I believe there is honor and opportunity in all work. How many of us flipped burgers in our teens? I just saw a sign at a McDonald’s in Florida advertising for managers, 97k per year; Opportunity. You and I will have to agree to disagree about todays youth, as I don’t believe they are much different than other generations.

      Post: Making money – out of touch with the good old days. Maybe just a little rant by RDQ

      Link to comment from January 26, 2025

    • So true about protecting the paycheck with disability insurance. If I recall from my time as an insurance agent, there 7 levels of risk an employee can fall into, based on one’s occupation. The more brutal the work, the higher the premium. Underwriting was also a challenge. I could get lawyers, doctor and accountants fantastic rates, but the same companies often wouldn’t issue a policy to a carpenter or iron worker for any price.

      Post: Taking Center Stage

      Link to comment from January 25, 2025

    • Ken, your dream isn’t that much of a stretch. After an old friend died, his X-wife googled my name and found my HD articles. Maybe that counts as my 10 seconds of fame.

      Post: Taking Center Stage

      Link to comment from January 25, 2025

    • The headlights stopped working on Chris’s 2010 Prius. It needs a new wiring harness, which is also more than the car is worth. I have no advice for you, as my quandary is the same as yours. i will say that with these higher interest rates, leases seem expensive.

      Post: Ok HD community I need car advice

      Link to comment from January 24, 2025

    • Richard, I think there are degrees of unskilled investing. Your plan actually sounds pretty well reasoned. But based on the many 1099B forms I have seen, many clients just own a basket full of unrelated stocks or funds based on hot tips received from God knows where. Regarding overlap, I like Morningstar’s X-ray tool.

      Post: The unskilled investor can be lucky – by RDQ

      Link to comment from January 23, 2025

    Articles

    Having the Last Word

    Dan Smith   |  Oct 9, 2024

    IT WAS 1982 OR thereabouts. After attempting to be a landlord for several years, I decided it wasn’t for me. I sold the house and the four-family apartment building I’d been managing.
    The final task in closing out this adventure would come at tax time. Keeping the books was the one aspect of being a landlord that I didn’t mind. I understood how accumulated appreciation would be recaptured and how capital gains tax would affect that year’s taxes.

    My Breakfast Club

    Dan Smith   |  Aug 1, 2024

    I RECENTLY READ AN article by Anna D. Banks, an executive coach and human behavior consultant, who talks about the importance of cultivating friendships in retirement. She discusses embracing new activities, volunteering, reconnecting with old friends, using technology, attending social events, and being open-minded about forming friendships with people from other backgrounds.
    All this got me thinking about HumbleDollar.
    The Breakfast Club is a coming-of-age movie from 1985—a movie,

    After All These Years

    Dan Smith   |  Jun 24, 2024

    JEFF, DAVE, JERRY, Glenn, John, the ElderBeerMen, and then Jeff again. Experts say a robust social network is crucial to a happy retirement. My life’s journey has revolved around a handful of friends who begin and end with the same good dude. 
    I was a 15-year-old kid who didn’t like school, and I had the grades to prove it. I did, however, have two burning desires. I couldn’t wait to turn 16 so that,

    Your Results May Vary

    Dan Smith   |  Jun 12, 2024

    “SELL THE SIZZLE, BOYS.” With those words from the sales manager at a big insurance company, the 2003 class of newly minted registered representatives were off to the races, extolling the virtues of the firm’s products to family, friends and anyone else who would listen.
    I still vividly remember that moment. Yes, I was there.
    To become registered reps, the 2003 class had to pass the necessary exams to get a Series 6 securities license and a license to sell life and health insurance.

    Studying for the Bar

    Dan Smith   |  May 9, 2024

    HOW DO SOME INVESTORS end up in places they don’t belong? Where do they turn for information and guidance? Who do they talk to before making important financial decisions?
    What follows are the results of my unscientific research, which was conducted in some of the finest and most respected centers of advanced learning anywhere.
    Barroom seminars, your window on the world. Are we talking politics, investing, religion, world peace or other topics of paramount importance,

    Our Spending Spree

    Dan Smith   |  Mar 20, 2024

    WHEN I GOT DIVORCED, my ex-wife told the judge at family court that I was good with money. But most folks I knew at that time wouldn’t be so kind: They’d say I was cheap.
    No, I didn’t align myself with the financial independence-retire early, or FIRE, movement. During my days as a driver-salesman, after I diverted 15% of my pay into the 401(k), I spent every nickel raising the kids, paying the bills and trying to keep up with my big bucks buddies.

    He Sold Staples

    Dan Smith   |  Jan 24, 2024

    IN SPRING 1984, WHEN I was age 32, we purchased a little ranch house in need of tender loving care. That’s why I found myself in a musty crawlspace, removing clutter and installing vapor barriers.
    I heard a booming voice from above. It wasn’t God telling me I should run for president. Instead, it was my new neighbor Ken. I came to the surface, dusted myself off and went inside the house.
    Standing there was a 47-year-old,

    Taxing Our Brains

    Dan Smith   |  Dec 20, 2023

    I SPENT A GOOD portion of my early adult life in neighborhood taverns. Back then, I sold beer for a living. You can imagine that I saw and heard some crazy things. Remember the sitcom Cheers? I knew doppelgangers for each and every Cheers character.
    But the things I heard in those bars didn’t come close to the things I heard later when I worked as an income-tax preparer.

    Beer to Taxes

    Dan Smith   |  Sep 14, 2023

    I DON’T FIT THE USUAL profile of a HumbleDollar reader. I don’t have what I’d consider a high net worth, nor am I a college graduate. Still, I hope my story shows it’s possible to reinvent yourself.
    Around 1920, my dad’s family moved—with few belongings but a willingness to work—from Tennessee to northwestern Ohio. My dad met my mom while working at Hostess Bakery, and he later worked at Willys-Overland, welding together Jeeps during World War II.

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