Last April, I wrote this post about using Udio to make my own music for my own use largely because I got fed up with copyright nonsense, greed and selfishness. I’ve been looking for some better options and quite frankly I find some amazing new AI tools almost every day but none that has made…
Banking Cyber-security Has Gone Insane!
I’ve now had three different incidents with banking cybersecurity that has resulted in major inconveniences. Wise I use Wise app to transfer money back and forth from the U.S. to Europe. The app and service has been pretty good but lately they have gone insane with cyber-security. It’s already bad enough to jump through hoops…
Play Time Over, Time To Make Money On IWM
Following up on this post regarding my plan to sell covered call options on IWM from back in November, I had written I would wait until the new administration had been sworn in and that’s now done so it’s time to make money. Since November I have been accumulating IWM via buy-write transactions and ended…
How I Reduced Colds & Flu At Home
For 2025, I am keeping a tighter eye on my annual household operating costs. I’ve already put in an order for new HVAC filters for my home and those cost me about $50 for a pack of 6 but that’s not what this post is about but it’s related. The other HVAC expense I have…
A Whopping 7.254% Interest Rate On Municipal Bonds
I’m giddy with excitement. I got an email from Fidelity on some new municipal bonds offering a whopping tax equivalent yield of 7.254 percent. The real yield is 4.57 percent but keep in mind that the interest is free from state and federal income taxes so the adjusted yield is equivalent to about 7.25 percent….
How Much Money Is Needed To Retire?
One of the most annoying questions I see on websites like Finance.Yahoo.com ask something like, “I have $5 million dollars, can I retire now?” It’s an annoying question because the answer is always going to be the same: it depends. If you have a $100,000/month shopping habit, then $5 million may not be enough to…
Happy Makar Sankranti
For my Hindu readers, happy Makar Sankranti!
Adding Climate Risk Lens To Investment Portfolio
Last year I wrote a post on how I evaluate municipal bonds that I own in my portfolio. I also wrote a post about what bonds to avoid. I like to think that I’ve been very thorough in my bond selection process but one key thing I left out was climate risk and that’s going…
I’ve Been Busy Hoarding Electronics
If you’re wondering why I haven’t had a post in a few days it’s because I’ve been busy researching and shopping and hoarding. I’m also busy at work with the start of the new year but it’s the shopping that’s eating my free time. New Administration Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know…
Financial Gratitude: The Kindness of Strangers
I started a series on financial regrets highlighting mistakes and/or financial regrets I made over the years but as part of the new year, I have been doing some retrospective look at the positive things in my financial life and I had some memorable moments worth sharing. Washington D.C. I started my first real corporate…