Doc Savage

Comments:

• Wouldn’t municipal bonds/bond funds in a taxable account be another approach for reasonably accessible cash and lower taxes? In the event of a drop in bond prices, a tax-loss harvesting strategy is also a nice way to accrue those useful capital losses, no?

  Post: Seeking Shelter

  Link to comment from June 8, 2024

• I don’t find it all that hard to believe. During hard Montana winters, several of my children learned to rollerskate on the wide hardwood hallway of our home. Needless to say, the floor had to be refinished later on. I have memorable photos of those days. Cherish them and still hear the clomp-clomp-clomp sounds of that part of the learning curve in my mind.

  Post: Bucking the Trend

  Link to comment from May 29, 2024

• I’ve wondered a lot about whether articles I’m reading are AI-generated. I notice lately that articles in WSJ sometimes appear ‘thin’ or written as if they’re explaining a topic in a very pat or simplistic way. I’ve wondered if it’s either AI-composed or simply that rigorous and ‘dimensional’ composition is no longer emphasized in higher education these days.

  Post: Man vs. Machine

  Link to comment from May 25, 2024

• Good thought. I spend a lot of my driving time observing the drivers around me and far ahead of me to gauge their intentions or to pick up on the nuances in their driving attitude. I’ve also wondered if self-driving cars could do the same.

  Post: Man vs. Machine

  Link to comment from May 25, 2024

• Many of us have read and contributed to conversations on this subject here on HumbleDollar. I wonder if anyone is aware of a concise guide to the minutiae of preparing an estate for one’s own passing to streamline this process for heirs. I’ve written up a long letter of instruction for my children but really have no idea what a living trust is or why I’d need one if I’ve dutifully detailed my assets, beneficiaries and property.

  Post: Unsettling Experience

  Link to comment from May 8, 2024

• Buyer beware with non-OEM auto parts, particularly for critical engine repair and other major components. A lot of junk out there.

  Post: Back to Life

  Link to comment from April 27, 2024

• At an older age now, I regularly send my attorneys phone # to my children with the instructions to call him first when I die, as he has the Will and an extensive letter of instruction. The intro to my letter states the importance of keeping my phone and how to access it. In recent times I moved all of my accounts to Schwab for simplicity, instead of the scattergram it once was. Regarding bills, I’ve set them all to autopay with at least a year’s worth of money in the payment account so that the power and heat stay on in the house and the cell plan stays live until the estate settles. Minute but crucial maintenance details are listed, such as blowing out the irrigation system when winter is approaching. I’m also winnowing vast quantities of household goods to the benefit of the local library, charitable organization’s donor sites, etc. It seems unfair to lay that Herculean task in the lap of my busy children.

  Post: In My Absence

  Link to comment from April 27, 2024

• My biggest issue has been dealing with a friend who has enthusiastically plunged into several investments and purchases, mindless of the terrible misfortune he’s about to endure, despite my laying out the facts. How does one avert another persons passion to commit to something toxic when there isn’t time for a long series of passive questions?

  Post: Make Them Answer

  Link to comment from April 19, 2024

• After decades of going to the gym and randomly using various machines I signed up for a personal trainer/nutrition coach who has a small space and no machines. It’s been a revelation. He teaches functional strength and strict form with what I once would have thought were totally inadequate weights. I’m rapidly gaining strength and functional capacity and the constant nutrition focus has also been eye opening. I always assumed I was just fine with my protein intake and was shocked to find it was at about 1/3 of what I need to be fit at age 73. If you have a functional strength/nutrition coach in your area, I’d highly recommend at least going in for an evaluation and several classes which in my case were free until I signed up.

  Post: Fit for Retirement

  Link to comment from March 6, 2024

• Thanks for the thoughtful article. I waited to collect SS until age 70 and then retired. It was a bit stunning to log on to SSA when I was 69 + 10 months and to realize that the monthly difference from taking SS at that age and waiting the month or so until age 70 was roughly $400/month in future payments. I’m happy I waited, as I’m in good health and don’t expect to die soon but who knows?

  Post: Our Waiting Game

  Link to comment from February 28, 2024