A huge help is paying for college or for professional training so that the kids start off debt free. I think we all agree that no debt means less stress,more agency, and a foundation for building wealth. As a general issue, I don't believe that having money damages work ethic. It's not having a work ethic that leads to not working. In my experience, since I was a little kid growing up along side some very wealthy classmates and now as an educator, and just by looking around, how hard people work is not correlated with pre-existing wealth. Also, why is the idea of working for money considered such a virtue even when you may not need to do it?
This comment in another article here addresses an aspect of this:
https://humbledollar.com/forum/the-paradox-of-wealth/#comment-2096040 Also, I think we all need to work harder to change the system because the low and high ends of the K are unfair and unsustainable.
Don't knock Costco; their stock is doing great in my gambling portfolio!
But I won't go there. The parking lot is always packed and is the cause of the single highest traffic intersection in the city. Except for diapers, the volume packaging is usually too big. Their hours are too limited.
Whether to take the first $1000 and any additional donated money to open a Trump account is a no brainer. Do it.
Whether to donate more? It looks like it's only worth doing after exhausting other options.
Also, another app? Another account to keep track of? And trusting the gov't to manage low cost index funds and not redenominate them as crypto? When will brokerage firms like Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard have these accounts? (Or maybe they won't because the accounts are too small to be profitable.)
I have a hard time at the grocery store because I'm like, "Apples for $3.99 a pound?" But I want honey crisp apples, I don't want to make a separate trip to Cantina Grande where they're $1 each, and they won't break the bank. As for other silly things we purchase, my mom gave me some of my gradmother's gold jewelry to sell. My grandmother bought a lot of gold jewelry. She loved the different designs and the color. The jewler tested each piece. Some were 14 K, some 18 K, and some not gold at all. Neither he nor I could tell which was which by simple inspection. Sounds similar to a $6.99 card vs a $1 card. Except a few earrings added up to more than $2k.
I find it very odd that people consider an AI produced poem personalized, but if you and your friend liked it, I guess this is our new world. What, however, is the cost? Have your electric bills increased and this is the indirect fee for the service?
Email "cards" are filtered into the trash. Invitations from an automated service too. I'm happy to get a personal email, but if comes from a commercial email address I don't know, I won't even see it. I also demand that most bills come via the mail; the volume of email and texts is far too enormous to handle.
I hope the postal service isn't destroyed. Two weeks ago I received a handwritten thank you note. A few weeks ago we got a very brief thank you note on on cheap generic card. It's nice to get these.
We do not include our house. It costs a lot to have a house. Insurance and taxes this year are $30k. It needs constant repairs. The capital tied up in the house is inaccessable because even if we cashed out, we'd have to use the cash for housing. The cash tied up also can't be invested elsewhere. A loan against the equity would have a high interest rate.
My heirs, on the other hand, see the house as a pile of cash.
Where are annuities in the answers? Are we the only household with 25% in an annuity? Should Social Security be counted as an asset? I argue yes. (Although now a risky one...) Also, the answers don't include expected tax liabilities. Appreciated.assets in a Roth IRA are worth a lot more than in a taxable account. Estate planning has additional considerations...
Comments
I lesson I've failed to internalize. I wish I could, but my work ethic gets in the way.
Post: The Paradox of Wealth
Link to comment from July 18, 2026
A huge help is paying for college or for professional training so that the kids start off debt free. I think we all agree that no debt means less stress,more agency, and a foundation for building wealth. As a general issue, I don't believe that having money damages work ethic. It's not having a work ethic that leads to not working. In my experience, since I was a little kid growing up along side some very wealthy classmates and now as an educator, and just by looking around, how hard people work is not correlated with pre-existing wealth. Also, why is the idea of working for money considered such a virtue even when you may not need to do it? This comment in another article here addresses an aspect of this: https://humbledollar.com/forum/the-paradox-of-wealth/#comment-2096040 Also, I think we all need to work harder to change the system because the low and high ends of the K are unfair and unsustainable.
Post: K-shaped Economy
Link to comment from July 18, 2026
Don't knock Costco; their stock is doing great in my gambling portfolio! But I won't go there. The parking lot is always packed and is the cause of the single highest traffic intersection in the city. Except for diapers, the volume packaging is usually too big. Their hours are too limited.
Post: Frittering away Frugality
Link to comment from July 11, 2026
It's refreshing to hear celebration of how young talented people are recognized. When we have the chance, we need to help promote them now.
Post: The Making of Jonathan Clements
Link to comment from July 11, 2026
Whether to take the first $1000 and any additional donated money to open a Trump account is a no brainer. Do it. Whether to donate more? It looks like it's only worth doing after exhausting other options. Also, another app? Another account to keep track of? And trusting the gov't to manage low cost index funds and not redenominate them as crypto? When will brokerage firms like Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard have these accounts? (Or maybe they won't because the accounts are too small to be profitable.)
Post: Trump Accounts
Link to comment from July 11, 2026
I have a hard time at the grocery store because I'm like, "Apples for $3.99 a pound?" But I want honey crisp apples, I don't want to make a separate trip to Cantina Grande where they're $1 each, and they won't break the bank. As for other silly things we purchase, my mom gave me some of my gradmother's gold jewelry to sell. My grandmother bought a lot of gold jewelry. She loved the different designs and the color. The jewler tested each piece. Some were 14 K, some 18 K, and some not gold at all. Neither he nor I could tell which was which by simple inspection. Sounds similar to a $6.99 card vs a $1 card. Except a few earrings added up to more than $2k.
Post: Exercising true frugality
Link to comment from July 4, 2026
I find it very odd that people consider an AI produced poem personalized, but if you and your friend liked it, I guess this is our new world. What, however, is the cost? Have your electric bills increased and this is the indirect fee for the service?
Post: Exercising true frugality
Link to comment from July 4, 2026
Email "cards" are filtered into the trash. Invitations from an automated service too. I'm happy to get a personal email, but if comes from a commercial email address I don't know, I won't even see it. I also demand that most bills come via the mail; the volume of email and texts is far too enormous to handle. I hope the postal service isn't destroyed. Two weeks ago I received a handwritten thank you note. A few weeks ago we got a very brief thank you note on on cheap generic card. It's nice to get these.
Post: Exercising true frugality
Link to comment from July 4, 2026
We do not include our house. It costs a lot to have a house. Insurance and taxes this year are $30k. It needs constant repairs. The capital tied up in the house is inaccessable because even if we cashed out, we'd have to use the cash for housing. The cash tied up also can't be invested elsewhere. A loan against the equity would have a high interest rate. My heirs, on the other hand, see the house as a pile of cash.
Post: What’s in your portfolio ?
Link to comment from June 20, 2026
Where are annuities in the answers? Are we the only household with 25% in an annuity? Should Social Security be counted as an asset? I argue yes. (Although now a risky one...) Also, the answers don't include expected tax liabilities. Appreciated.assets in a Roth IRA are worth a lot more than in a taxable account. Estate planning has additional considerations...
Post: What’s in your portfolio ?
Link to comment from June 20, 2026