Tag: personal finance
Discipline Is the Key to Ending Financial Moronity
Anyone familiar with this blog knows that prior to my 40th birthday, I was a financial moron. And that’s not me be self-deprecating. It’s just the cold, hard truth. Heck, I didn’t even know what an emergency fund was until I was 42. The good news for the financially moronic, however, is this: personal finance…
The Chris Matthews Leg Tingle and Financial Independence
During the 2008 primary season, MSNBC host Chris Matthews experienced something rapturous as he listened to a speech being delivered by then-candidate Barack Obama. He described the feeling as follows: “I have to tell you, you know, it’s part of reporting this case, this election, the feeling most people get when they hear Barack Obama’s…
The Real Culture War
Up until I was 40 years old (I’m 55 now), I floundered financially. I wasn’t a basket case. I was able to pay my bills. But I was using debt to live beyond my means and acquire the superficial symbols of success—a car, a condo, a host of electronic equipment, and a bunch of credit…
A Sweet Transvestite’s Guide to Personal Finance
In the late 1970s, young people in New York used to go to movie theaters at midnight with newspapers and water guns. Yes, that sounds bizarre. But it’s true. What’s even more bizarre is that many of these young people would be dressed up like the two bon vivants pictured below. I never understood The…
Personal Finance and Ethics
In January of this year, I wrote a post about experience envy. I was very envious of such blogging luminaries as Paula Pant and Maggie Banks riding elephants in exotic lands. But happily, with the aid of Mrs. Groovy and some chocolate moonshine, I was able to work through my FoMO issues and come to…