tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66748624637802288402024-02-18T23:44:30.740-05:00Your Friendly Neighborhood NerdMediocre-quality, thoughtful musings regarding personal, financial, and social issues of the day.
Or maybe just junk in my head. It's pretty up in the air.Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-26330052112160356512009-04-09T14:50:00.005-05:002009-04-09T15:14:09.506-05:00Insult to Injury<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7J7z72paWELH2wL3Li_yNhg9NFD9S2rlDP0ddNrhNBcstOhD-5DI0KR37JdIY2ategU-EzHNT5iXvwBddBQOXBvyAvlwNIEb6igwNR38409ShPfBjG6Ni4BygKTRVC6pn9b0hgxZwjgY/s1600-h/IMG_2399.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7J7z72paWELH2wL3Li_yNhg9NFD9S2rlDP0ddNrhNBcstOhD-5DI0KR37JdIY2ategU-EzHNT5iXvwBddBQOXBvyAvlwNIEb6igwNR38409ShPfBjG6Ni4BygKTRVC6pn9b0hgxZwjgY/s320/IMG_2399.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322785087805854162" border="0" /></a>I got my hair cut today. I tend to keep it pretty short and disheveled (maintenance-free, baby!), so I just go to the cheap-o Great Clips place around the corner where I can get it cut for $8 with a coupon. Usually, my once-a-month visit is quiet, quick, and pleasant. Today, though? Lacking the pleasant part.<br /><br />Now, I've been going grey for quite some time. Around 17 or 18, I started to notice my first grey hair, and it's been getting steadily worse since then. Now, I'm downright salt-and-pepper. I'm generally okay with that, and it's probably helped my career a bit. I've found that if I keep my hair short and maybe put a little gel in it, it's not nearly as noticeable to most folks. It doesn't hurt that I'm also 6'4", so there aren't a whole lot of people getting a good view of the top of my head on a regular basis.<br /><br />Today though, it was an issue. The stylist (someone I'd never seen before) and I were chatting as she trimmed my flowing locks (ha!); just the general chit-chat that always occurs. Somehow, we got to a point in the conversation where I mentioned that I had just had a milestone birthday this past Sunday. Here's how that conversation went:<br /><br />Me: <span style="font-style: italic;">"Yeah, I just had a milestone birthday this past Sunday."</span><br /><br />Her: <span style="font-style: italic;">"Oooo, let me guess how old you turned...um, forty?"</span><br /><br />Me (noticeably peeved, I'm sure): <span style="font-style: italic;">"Yeah, um. Actually, no, I just turned thirty."</span><br /><br />Her: <span style="font-style: italic;">"Oh my gosh. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to..."</span><br /><br />Me: <span style="font-style: italic;">"That's okay, I'm starting to get used to...."</span><br /><br />Her: <span style="font-style: italic;">"It's just that I saw all that grey hair on the apron and thought....I mean, you're REALLY grey for thirty."</span><br /><br /><br />Wow. Gee, thanks, lady. You sure know how to brighten my day.<br /><br />At least I only paid $8 for the abuse.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-69365774831127892852009-04-06T16:52:00.008-05:002009-04-06T17:08:56.472-05:00Things Are A-Changin' Around the YFNN House...Our house had some pretty gnarly pine trees at each corner of the house. Likely planted when the house was built (in 1986), they’d grown to over 20 feet tall and were ridiculously close to the house itself. They weren’t even all that attractive. Check out the pictures.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijkGf2vIyZE9T4aJdPrlF-Ze6sX6YRBEO6SAac-61yVoeFrjAAp6JLLD0x61bBACa_go-0C7I-Lx5PGKmXtnFU3hM7TFC0YbGWwr1mTo6qYP4m7C32iSr7kFvFfxKW3Xga8vgmUaaGp8s/s1600-h/IMG_2333.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijkGf2vIyZE9T4aJdPrlF-Ze6sX6YRBEO6SAac-61yVoeFrjAAp6JLLD0x61bBACa_go-0C7I-Lx5PGKmXtnFU3hM7TFC0YbGWwr1mTo6qYP4m7C32iSr7kFvFfxKW3Xga8vgmUaaGp8s/s320/IMG_2333.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321701858955790578" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkAMTIjlY9Y20yVG1KJDwx5ngofom57LNC74vvZ_mp0djBlsUql8iFUGzriKQUJIwQEEj8VlClEOCtW6hof0SyMhlldA0l0z_vuEHPZ6u_CzkAxW0S04sem_VY8aZ7tO97GlaewQ1wncU/s1600-h/IMG_2326.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkAMTIjlY9Y20yVG1KJDwx5ngofom57LNC74vvZ_mp0djBlsUql8iFUGzriKQUJIwQEEj8VlClEOCtW6hof0SyMhlldA0l0z_vuEHPZ6u_CzkAxW0S04sem_VY8aZ7tO97GlaewQ1wncU/s320/IMG_2326.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321702439316367794" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span><pic><pic><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></pic></pic><br /><pic><pic>This caused some problems. First, every time the wind blew, the trees would sway a bit and rub against the house siding, or the windows. This always made some noise, usually annoyed us, and occasionally spooked <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKLQdX7RoXjKtYvh4HbBEdBkyGKXWSD8BGE73c0gWbGhs10hR62odNfEImxplh9e5qI4H-whQno5a72YT5QRvmtnhYCoNmRYqkfBwdq8PkOiRpapNgVk0JuThhO8gFjrKFx-rMV-3_Q-0/s1600-h/IMG_1856.jpg">our bossy dog</a>. In addition, they were close enough to the house that their root systems were getting to be a concern for our basement and such. Then, last year, we got <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagworm">bagworms</a>, and despite their manual removal and treatments, they slowly started to kill the trees. So, we decided that the trees had to come out.<br /></pic></pic><br /><pic><pic>Since the tree folks were going to removing at least four pine trees, we also had them remove an additional white pine that was diseased and encroaching on our deck, a large half-dead cherry tree in the center of our back yard (yeah, it was as dumb as it sounds), and a terribly unruly shrub that no matter how much we cut it back decided to take over an entire side of the house, preventing access to the lone outdoor hose spigot.<br /><pic><br /></pic></pic></pic><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTUbTqDZfDGiPPZ9zKNE_l9IJqirtiEr2orw42W5cwD8hqlpjXXCBqtNhr8fZdG2oR3Xs7Ju7pn9KfQFm7G2RE_-y7TJfR_4ZFSYeJsGf3RNOKU-x-OWQtrED1CeY5r7O1a_pDXs7VuzI/s1600-h/IMG_2334.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTUbTqDZfDGiPPZ9zKNE_l9IJqirtiEr2orw42W5cwD8hqlpjXXCBqtNhr8fZdG2oR3Xs7Ju7pn9KfQFm7G2RE_-y7TJfR_4ZFSYeJsGf3RNOKU-x-OWQtrED1CeY5r7O1a_pDXs7VuzI/s320/IMG_2334.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321703016698045538" border="0" /></a><br /><pic><pic><pic><pic><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />So, last Tuesday, the tree guys removed it all while I was at work. Apparently it only took a couple of hours and they left no damage and no debris. They did, however, leave the stumps, but those should be ground out shortly.<br /><br />The next phase of the project includes reseeding certain areas with grass seed, planting new plants (of the placement and type I am unaware, but trust my wife’s judgment entirely), and finishing with mulch and such. That work should commence next week.<br /><br />Right now though, I’m just looking at some stumps and bare dirt around the house, but I can already see that it’s going to look MUCH improved. The fact that it’s going to be less work, less worry, and give us more usable yard is even better.<br /><br />YFNN<br /><br /></pic></pic></pic></pic>Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-18980231671353429932009-04-06T12:03:00.003-05:002009-04-06T12:07:28.040-05:00ING Savings Rate and Other Ramblings<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkaArbqZJz74RHp_vNsOpXLu_JlmpOTzCkMWihWlGU-SF5FmBqpdcXibwpa247XN080yK6zxg4TM8QZzdKPFN_19c0A1lyIIl647E15z5d2BNC69fAeKmdlV5DXMCiGqhREoI5IAaqyQ/s1600-h/cardboardbox.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 287px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkaArbqZJz74RHp_vNsOpXLu_JlmpOTzCkMWihWlGU-SF5FmBqpdcXibwpa247XN080yK6zxg4TM8QZzdKPFN_19c0A1lyIIl647E15z5d2BNC69fAeKmdlV5DXMCiGqhREoI5IAaqyQ/s320/cardboardbox.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321626109879358098" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">ING, Debt, and Savings</span><br /><br />Well, ING Direct dropped their rate for their Orange Savings Account yet again. This time to 1.490% APY (1.50% APR). So, my money is now working a lot less hard for me than it was before.<br /><br />Still, it’s way better than my brick and mortar bank’s rate (currently 0.05%), and our emergency fund money is safe there, so I’ll keep slowly piling up money there every week.<br /><br />Also, with savings account rates so low right now, it’s a great time to pay off debt. Do it, do it, do it. Make sure you keep a bit of a cash cushion in savings, but don’t be afraid to pound out some debt right now.<br /><br />We don’t currently carry any debt (aside from the house), but my student loans used to be at a fixed rate of 3.375% APR. When ING Direct was giving me 4.5% APY on my savings, it made sense to put money into savings, rather than pay off debt. Essentially, we made more money on interest on the savings than we paid in interest on the loan. Now, even with the student loan interest tax deduction, it makes more sense to pay off the loan.<br /><br />If you’re on the fence about paying off some debt, DO IT. I can’t tell you how calming it feels not to have worry about car payments, credit cards, or other debt.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Insurance Coverage</span><br /><br />In other news, we’ve finally completed the finalization of our bills from the hospital for our <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-really-good-reason.html">most recent trip</a>. The hospital charged the insurance company over $16K for my wife and over $4K for the baby, but thankfully we were responsible for much, much less. It was interesting to see just how inflated the charges from the hospital were and how much they'd actually accept from the insurance company. Examples? You betcha.<br /><br />My wife's stay: $16,757.40. Insurance paid just $4,261.84. I paid $1,065.46. So, basically the hospital wanted almost $17K, but only got a little over $5K. Ridiculous.<br /><br />The epidural: $3,280. Insurance paid just $880. I paid $220.<br /><br />Baby's stay: $4,261.84. Insurance paid just $1,032.24. I paid $258.06.<br /><br />It's crazy to me that the hospitals are willing to write off so much money (and charge so much to begin with). I know the reasoning behind it all, but I don't want to get into it right now. Suffice it to say, the way we handle insurance is stupid (and no, universal healthcare would make it <span style="font-style: italic;">worse</span>, not better). Maybe that'll be another post some day.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Friends and Food</span><br /><br />Since the birth of our son, we’ve had loads of people over to visit and especially to bring us food. Before Baby was born, I kind of poo-pooed the idea of everyone bringing food to us, thinking that I’m still more than capable of putting together a meal for us every night. But, I’ll definitely admit that it’s pretty nice having something in the refrigerator or freezer that just needs to be heated. I wouldn’t have believed it before, but it’s a little difficult sometimes to find 30-45 uninterrupted minutes to put together a nutritious meal. We’ve been very fortunate to have such wonderful friends and family, especially ones that can cook!<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-47385892196748523792009-02-20T06:43:00.002-05:002009-02-20T06:43:00.493-05:00I Wanna Be a Mean Parent<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguVmXO-EBfI9S-lKBCbZ8gaLKhrCsQQxwiV8wbeiVTjSLcbP6wYYXMzk8zWqi8OJZjqb8JvaVxd63k-ejxPJOgrX6ColbKWT2nfMdnwl4kQQiNOXJk3OjBRgWSnFS2EG8EncyH5dBUbUs/s1600-h/sternwoman.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguVmXO-EBfI9S-lKBCbZ8gaLKhrCsQQxwiV8wbeiVTjSLcbP6wYYXMzk8zWqi8OJZjqb8JvaVxd63k-ejxPJOgrX6ColbKWT2nfMdnwl4kQQiNOXJk3OjBRgWSnFS2EG8EncyH5dBUbUs/s320/sternwoman.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304660266651421938" border="0" /></a><br />When I was a child, my parents were mean. <span style="font-style: italic;">Horribly mean.</span> And, I hope that I will be just as mean as they were.<br /><br />My parents weren't physically, emotionally, verbally, or psychologically abusive. That's not the kind of "mean" that I'm talking about.<br /><br />When other kids had Oreos and ice cream for breakfast, we had to have eggs, toast, or cereal. When other kids had Pepsi and chips for lunch, we had sandwiches and carrots. While other kids had pizza and cake for dinner every night, my mean parents gave us healthy meats, potatoes, vegetables, and fruits. My parents were mean when it came to food.<br /><br />We were required to be clean and wear clean clothes; other kids could wear the same clothes for days. We had to have normal, appropriate haircuts; other kids were allowed to be rebellious with their hair. We had to look “presentable.” Since I'm the oldest of their three children, I didn't have to wear hand-me-down clothes, but my mean parents made my brother and sister wear my old-but-still-good clothes, just to save money for other things like college. <span style="font-style: italic;">Can you imagine?</span><br /><br />Our mean parents gave us bedtimes. And we had to stick to them! While other kids got to sleep until noon on the weekends and have no responsibilities, my parents completely disregarded child labor laws and gave us chores to do <span style="font-style: italic;">before </span>we could play. We had to help with the dishes, set the table for meals, and keep our toys picked up. It was like they dreamed up chores for us to do in their sleep! Where did they come with these unreasonable expectations?!<br /><br />Once we were in school, things got even worse. We had to walk to the bus stop, about a block away, for junior high and high school. Even in the rain and when it was cold. Other kids got to sit in their parents’ fancy car, even on nice days, avoiding the unrestricted socialization with the kids besides us with mean parents.<br /><br />My brother, sister and I weren't allowed to be "sick" like our friends and miss school. Some other kids could stay home by themselves when they had a headache, hangnail or other critical ailment. Not us. In fact, I can distinctly remember my mother saying "You're not sick, you just have a cold. Get up and go to school." We never got pulled from school to go on vacations. "That's what summers are for," we were told.<br /><br />They were mean about our grades, too. While other kids celebrated Cs and Ds and just passing classes, my parents accepted nothing less than As and Bs. Somehow they knew that if we got anything less, we weren't really trying. They had us figured out. They were actually <span style="font-style: italic;">involved </span>in our education. They kept tabs on major projects, annoyed us about completing our homework, and constantly asked if we needed help. We were expected to speak properly, and write even better. It was horrible. Come graduation time, none of us were allowed to drop out and we were expected to go to college. Just awful.<br /><br />Our mean parents made us go to church <span style="font-style: italic;">every week</span>. We couldn't skip and stay home like some other kids. We weren't allowed to wear jeans or shorts and we had to look presentable. We had to pray, participate, and pay attention in our Sunday School classes and during the service. Unlike some of the other kids, we weren't allowed to climb on the pews, make noise, or fall asleep. It was completely unfair.<br /><br />When we were older, my mean parents insisted on knowing where we were at all times. They had to know where we were going, when we were getting back, and who we were going with. If plans changed, we were required to call. If we were late, we had some explaining to do.<br /><br />They set rules and boundaries for the three of us. They knew how to say "no" and weren't afraid to do so. Their "no"s were uncompromising and there was no negotiating the standards of behavior that were expected. Even if they didn't totally agree with everything, they worked as an unwavering team to set the bar high and expect the best from us, always.<br /><br />Somehow, their mean-ness worked. All three of us grew up to be well-adjusted, polite and well-spoken. None of us have been arrested or talk like Valley Girls. We all hold college degrees (one of us, multiple!) and are now successful on our own. They taught us to be tough, smart, and strong. None of us are entitlement-minded or dependent on anyone or anything. We grew up to be honest, God-fearing, and self-motivated. And, we owe it all to our horrendously mean parents.<br /><br />Now, with a <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-really-good-reason.html">child of my own</a>, I hope to set the same mean standards and expectations. I can only hope to be as mean a parent as they were. I can’t wait to use one of my favorite phrases, “You’re not sick, you just have a cold,” and I can guarantee you that I will be filled with pride when my child finally calls me "mean."<br /><br />So, if you're reading Mom and Dad, thanks for being so darn mean.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-18115024242396553502009-02-19T21:27:00.003-05:002009-02-19T21:27:00.386-05:00Cool Things I Learned About Childbirth<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpKxlJD67Z0HAwzNULICnycUY93oZEBDilwL_VnV-qSVqfSRLDqzSPzP5pF6b9y7er052K019KTWXWksZXocBVk-Ikd0miOgt9znkbjeZf-kJLbN53gKJycFGJ159I8dxoB1_A1pB-Sug/s1600-h/IMG_1947.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpKxlJD67Z0HAwzNULICnycUY93oZEBDilwL_VnV-qSVqfSRLDqzSPzP5pF6b9y7er052K019KTWXWksZXocBVk-Ikd0miOgt9znkbjeZf-kJLbN53gKJycFGJ159I8dxoB1_A1pB-Sug/s320/IMG_1947.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304658330812996610" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">If you've got a thing about blood, poop, or medical stuff, you may want to skip this post. Seriously.</span><br /><br />As I stated in the <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-really-good-reason.html">previous post</a>, I was heavily involved in the birth of our son about two weeks ago. I asked lots of questions, got as close as they'd allow, and kept involved as much as possible. I learned a tremendous amount, and had a great time on my little science-y field trip to the labor and delivery room with my wife. Here's just some highlights:<br /><br /><ul><li>Contractions are surprisingly consistent and predictable, both in frequency and magnitude. I loved the live data that the monitors were able to acquire regarding heart rate, blood pressure, and the contractions.</li><li>Internal heart rate monitors (for the baby in utero) are actually screwed into his scalp when it's visible through the vagina. Like a tiny fishhook.</li><li>The baby's first poop is actually <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meconium">meconium</a> and is from swallowing amniotic fluid and such.</li><li>Babies can have their first poop in utero. This can cause some problems immediately after birth, so the uterus is flushed out with clean fluid during delivery.</li><li>Once the baby's head is out, things move pretty quickly. No, I take that back. Darn near instantly.</li><li>Babies are sometimes born with splotches of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vernix">vernix </a>on them, which is a waxy, protective gunk. It kind of looks like soft, white cheese.</li><li>Umbilical cords are much thicker than I thought and when you cut it, it feels like you're cutting rubber tubing.</li><li>After the rest of the umbilical cord and placenta are delivered, you have to inspect the placenta to ensure that all of it made the trip out. Small pieces left inside are dangerous.</li><li>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placenta">placenta </a>and umbilical cord pulsate a bit after they're out. Yes, it's as creepy as it sounds.</li><li>If the doctor decides that an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Episiotomy">episiotomy </a>is needed, they're quick and precise with the scissors. If you blink, you miss it.</li><li>There are different levels of tearing, one to four. Level two isn't bad.</li><li>They put antibacterial gel on the baby's eyes shortly after birth to prevent infection.</li><li>Babies sometimes come out with fine hair on their back and shoulders called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanugo">lanugo</a>. It falls out after a little while.</li><li>There's a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gomco_clamp">slick little tool</a> that's used to perform the circumcision of newborns. It makes it darn near impossible to mess up. It even comes in different sizes. :)</li></ul><br />All in all, it was a very educational trip.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-71094574157143449492009-02-19T18:16:00.006-05:002009-02-19T18:55:00.128-05:00My Really Good Reason<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm8SOUzMDRKGmGPEmv3iBuMEzPK-7xtGhgDeXhn4I4cKyXuOd_Whog1sG5bu0Vb4E3l049LWXWJPmisLWiP8hz8DUQAn4AzKKEOw1Vcv-9i5jopsMOvQUIP58Ajo1JcpThcMpYGFtqSPI/s1600-h/newbabycranky.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm8SOUzMDRKGmGPEmv3iBuMEzPK-7xtGhgDeXhn4I4cKyXuOd_Whog1sG5bu0Vb4E3l049LWXWJPmisLWiP8hz8DUQAn4AzKKEOw1Vcv-9i5jopsMOvQUIP58Ajo1JcpThcMpYGFtqSPI/s320/newbabycranky.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304653599043765026" border="0" /></a><br />It’s been a while since I posted, and I have a really good reason, I promise.<br /><br />On Monday, February 9th, my lovely wife gave birth to our perfect baby boy. As a first-time father, I can tell you that it was absolutely unbelievable on so many levels.<br /><br />First, I thought I was prepared mentally and thought that I understood what it would feel like to be a father. I wasn’t. <span style="font-style: italic;">Not even close.</span><br /><br />As soon as he was born, I cried. When I held him for the first time, I cried. When I changed his first diaper and held his little hand, I cried. Even now, over a week later, I look into his tiny eyes as I hold him and just cry tears of joy. I was completely unprepared and I don’t think I could have ever fully understood before it happened.<br /><br />Second, I learned that my wife is probably the strongest woman I have ever met. I had no idea that she had it in her. She was absolutely incredible. To see the anguish and effort that she went through was absolutely amazing. She was a trooper. She was WonderWoman. I will never forget her toughness she showed through 18 hours of labor and over two hours of pushing. She was completely inspiring and now carries an ever greater air of self-confidence and strength. I love what this baby has done to her.<br /><br />With the touch-feely, decidedly un-manly stuff out of the way, I have to say that from a nerdy point of view, the birth and subsequent few days was awesome. I’m not one to shy away from questions or interactions, so it was like a big science-y, medical vacation for me. I learned about epidurals, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meconium">meconium</a>, and contractions. I learned how the contraction monitors work, how internal heart rate monitors work, and the whys and hows of the birth of a child. I got to see the first glimpse of my son’s head, and hear his first cries. I got to cut his umbilical cord and help with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apgar_score">APGAR scoring</a>. Not being one to turn down a science-y opportunity to learn hands-on, I learned about the afterbirth and the delivery of the placenta (much to my wife’s chagrin).<br /><br />On the day after my son was born, I asked many questions to the pediatrician, and even got to help with circumcision. While it sounds a little disturbing, it was awesome.<br /><br />I was lucky that the doctors and nurses we had were so friendly and open to questions. I’m sure they don’t get too many people like me, so I’m glad they were so willing to share their knowledge and allow me to get a little closer than most probably dare.<br /><br />After being involved every step of the way, I can assuredly say that the birth of a child truly is nothing short of a miracle.<br /><br />YFNN<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHnUKl8e37aaOQ7GRnhbK56j3zJj6YEKh_hUAHbIPwh13oL9XUTZOb9687QGVWz4g8SOSslAhCQTXqaLXNqUJ2K7D-vOQYQT9GKbpOYwRy4mG6t1GpP6vipLaNQuHYMNLAfiwVuvOE9c/s1600-h/newbaby.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHnUKl8e37aaOQ7GRnhbK56j3zJj6YEKh_hUAHbIPwh13oL9XUTZOb9687QGVWz4g8SOSslAhCQTXqaLXNqUJ2K7D-vOQYQT9GKbpOYwRy4mG6t1GpP6vipLaNQuHYMNLAfiwVuvOE9c/s320/newbaby.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304653695408249282" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />(Isn't he cute?)Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-50022413393200118002009-01-29T11:15:00.003-05:002009-01-29T11:18:51.710-05:00Cops and Sandwiches<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xwdOYlhnsIpS7gdZmLnrcDIN_5J5c3BlXLKS3dlGhK4Pmj6UGImtERT5WoJdHdyVfrJVqbKDnM_Xp9RNxOey9S4cZNa6qgZk-nJZ0x0ErbHWqs4R_RE2zK-qweMouKlYNbv3QSkLS8A/s1600-h/dagwood.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 278px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xwdOYlhnsIpS7gdZmLnrcDIN_5J5c3BlXLKS3dlGhK4Pmj6UGImtERT5WoJdHdyVfrJVqbKDnM_Xp9RNxOey9S4cZNa6qgZk-nJZ0x0ErbHWqs4R_RE2zK-qweMouKlYNbv3QSkLS8A/s320/dagwood.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296750429922804306" border="0" /></a>Every Wednesday, the guys in my engineering group and I go out for lunch together. We try hard to not discuss work-related things and a tasty lunch is usually punctuated with plenty of laughter and good-hearted insults. It’s a great camaraderie-building event.<br /><br />Yesterday, we made a trip to one of our more common stops: the <a href="http://restaurantrow.com/MoreInfo.cfm?Code=856457&state=OH">Ohio Del</a>i, a local diner-like place that has GREAT sandwiches and soups. The Deli was recently featured on a Travel Channel show called <a href="http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Man_v_Food">Man vs. Food</a>. The hero of the show travels the country, visiting different establishments that tout extreme eating challenges. The Ohio Deli’s challenge: The Dagwood.<br /><br />The Dagwood is certainly a sandwich to behold. Named after the comic strip hero <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagwood_Bumstead">Dagwood Bumstead</a>’s colossal sandwiches, the Dagwood is packed with 2-1/2 pounds of three different kinds of deli meat, tomato, lettuce onion, and mayo, all stuffed between a couple of mammoth hunks of sourdough. The platter comes with a heaping pile of the Deli’s delicious fries and a pickle spear. The challenge is to consume the entire platter in less than 30 minutes. According to their photo wall of fame, the current men’s record is 5-1/2 minutes. (!)<br /><br />When we entered the Ohio Deli yesterday, we were seated next to some city police officers, who were getting ready to order. After some ribbing from his buddies, one of the officers decided to take the Deli’s Dagwood challenge.<br /><br />When he got his platter, I think he was little shocked. The sandwich was towering over a huge expanse of fries. The waitress casually placed the platter in front of him (using two hands) and noted that he had until 12:10 to finish (30 minutes). To his credit, the cop really gave his all. He was able to finish the sandwich in about 15 minutes, after loosening his gunbelt. He really struggled through the fries and especially the pickle spear, but he finished with just a few ticks of the clock to spare.<br /><br />H was, of course, heartily congratulated by our table, and the waitress took his picture and gave him his tee-shirt to commemorate his momentous achievement. As his group was getting up from the table, he commented to us that he sure hopes he doesn’t have to chase anybody or do anything strenuous the rest of the day and we certainly agreed.<br /><br />However, as they were leaving, we looked out the window to our snow-covered streets, and saw a tiny woman in a BMW stuck at the stoplight. She had already exited her car and was desperately trying to shovel the piles of snow out from underneath the front end. Of course, the officers saw her and felt obligated to push her on her way.<br /><br />While we couldn’t hear exactly what was being said, it was pretty clear that it was hig buddies thought it be absolutely hilarious that the Dagwood champion was quickly voted the guy to push the lady’s car. And push he did. He got her moving, but was he ever green in the face when he was done.<br /><br />Of course, after such a display of manliness and heroism, two the guys at my table decided that next week they’re going to attempt the Dagwood challenge. I told them that I’ll happily just watch the clock for them and finished my Buffalo Chicken Spinner. I’ll let you know how next week goes.<br /><br />I'll bet it goes delicious.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-85990085455731385192009-01-28T07:15:00.002-05:002009-01-28T07:26:24.048-05:00Fun With NumbersIt gets to a point with numbers that you start to lose your sense of perspective and relation, especially with money. I can relate to and understand $100,000. I can even relate to one million or one hundred million. But after a point, we start to lose our reference point and it turns into monopoly money and politicians know that. Does $400B dollars really feel twice as big as $200B? Not to me. It's lost perspective. So, it's important to express these numbers in something we can relate to.<br /><br />Obama's $825B "emergency" stimulus plan (I put "emergency" in quotations because only 3% spent in the first year isn't much of an emergency) is like spending:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">$1,000,000 a day for the next 2,260 years.</span><br /><br />Yes, that's right. The next 2,260 years. One million dollars. Every day. From now until the year 4269. <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">4269.</span><br /><br />Not enough? Try buying <a href="http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/Park-City-Proper_UT_84098_1099383974">this</a> 14 bedroom, 18 bathroom, 33,000 sq. ft. home in Park City, Utah every hour, on the hour, for the entire length of Obama's first term.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKRAlGr42O12mCq2onyoHhZAEBOH2OPFONBtj6hldpciZGK8x8QWKgNrpPo7NM7HMtitL0U7bqHWdLnth-NO0tjt0r2XQ1VUUv0gx2VrroRTTVAxrQ-2HjTKnl-D2-yH_m-bwwk-1sPLI/s1600-h/crazyhouse.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKRAlGr42O12mCq2onyoHhZAEBOH2OPFONBtj6hldpciZGK8x8QWKgNrpPo7NM7HMtitL0U7bqHWdLnth-NO0tjt0r2XQ1VUUv0gx2VrroRTTVAxrQ-2HjTKnl-D2-yH_m-bwwk-1sPLI/s320/crazyhouse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296317614653609938" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />That's spending $23,500,000 over 35,000 times. That's a lot of 23-million dollar mansions. Enough to give <span style="font-style: italic;">every single</span> Senator and Congressional Representative a mansion in <span style="font-style: italic;">each state</span> and still have over <span style="font-style: italic;">eight thousand</span> mansions left over.<br /><br />Crazy big numbers. Keep them in perspective.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-51577731308985037842009-01-27T22:44:00.002-05:002009-01-27T22:49:33.153-05:00Week One Under the Messiah<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjEz6zDcCYyOdlIjayxmw8nAfkhhBaAql7BFnvrae1arJCebv1OWvEgS571FVP5z6eDD0grwQ0YIdf41ZyPigiNf9VycRjs-3ikhjCRs3yYmehCgWIulTeM-ObPKPJjxpcFKRfxcYFP3w/s1600-h/obama_messiah4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjEz6zDcCYyOdlIjayxmw8nAfkhhBaAql7BFnvrae1arJCebv1OWvEgS571FVP5z6eDD0grwQ0YIdf41ZyPigiNf9VycRjs-3ikhjCRs3yYmehCgWIulTeM-ObPKPJjxpcFKRfxcYFP3w/s320/obama_messiah4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296186625702806114" border="0" /></a>Summary of week one under the rule of "the chosen one".<br /><br />1) Has his preacher friend declare that whites are racists for him.<br />2) States his intent to implement national gun control.<br />3) Pisses off press corps by not answering questions and talking down to them.<br />4) <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2009/01/23/obama-to-gop-i-won/">Acts like a jackass to the Senate minority whip.</a><br />5) Appoints Nancy Pelosi as dictator of national fuel economy standards.<br />6) Announces closure of terrorist retention facility.<br />7) States intent to pull out of Iraq ahead of schedule.<br /><br />I just can't get enough change.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-41223804423729648192009-01-26T08:32:00.005-05:002009-01-26T17:51:40.479-05:00This Ain't Calculus<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvchEpQfalhEwDR-Fr-Jg53FP07z6oTB2fIN1_TJK3me7SCnKa2CtDWbDEFm6LwzCjUb3zDxgHZQVytgYLoR1USi6VfYYZcBXz_bQhe3vuJyOGAecwFmAvJIQ4foLhOVggor234KQPjE8/s1600-h/no_calculus.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 319px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvchEpQfalhEwDR-Fr-Jg53FP07z6oTB2fIN1_TJK3me7SCnKa2CtDWbDEFm6LwzCjUb3zDxgHZQVytgYLoR1USi6VfYYZcBXz_bQhe3vuJyOGAecwFmAvJIQ4foLhOVggor234KQPjE8/s320/no_calculus.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295594946535487922" border="0" /></a>My wife is due in less than three weeks. <span style="font-style: italic;">Less than 21 days</span>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Yikes.</span><br /><br />To say that I’m personally unprepared is an understatement. Now, don’t’ get me wrong here. I’m an engineer by trade, so preparation and organization is what I do. Our checklists are completed, items have been purchased and assembled, and the closet is stocked with diapers. I’m confident that our home, nursery, and all the required “stuff” is ready to rock (likely <span style="font-style: italic;">overly-ready-to-rock</span>). Stuff-wise, I feel like we could bring home half a dozen babies and not need to buy a thing, but mentally, that’s a different story.<br /><br />I’m usually calm, collected, and practical. I plan, I rehearse, and when the time comes for most things, I’m sure I can deliver. I’m the kind of guy that rehearses presentations and buys adequate life insurance. I’m confident. I perform well under pressure. That’s why this baby is beating me up. Sure, I’d like to think that I’m mentally prepared for this kid, and I think I do a pretty good job of convincing my wife that we should feel comfortable and ready (<span style="font-style: italic;">and we should!</span>), but deep down I know that I’m personally not even close. What’s worse is that I know even with infinite planning, I'll never be totally prepared and that scares me. I’m not used to that at all.<br /><br />It’s just that the consequences seem so extreme to me. If I botch a presentation or mess up at work, it’s fixable. If I bang up the car or burn down the house, they’re replaceable. But with this kid, I get one shot to get it right. No do-overs. No mulligans. If I mess him up, it’s permanent. Not only for my wife and I, but for the rest of his life too. That’s absolutely terrifying.<br /><br />I’ve got the mechanics down. I know how to change a diaper; I know how to operate the carseat. I know how to carry him and I know what to look for when he’s ill. But, how do I know what to say and when to say it? How do I know what to teach and how to teach it? What if I teach him the wrong thing? What if I’m already out-of-touch with today’s kids? <span style="font-style: italic;">How do I even know if I mess up?</span><br /><br />This is way out of my comfort zone. I like well-defined answers. Every calculus problem has one correct answer. One. Every design has one optimum. One. Every manufacturing process has one maximum efficiency. One. With this baby, there isn’t one answer, and that unbelievably frustrating.<br /><br />I need a single solution. An optimum. A perfect plan of what to do and when to do it. It’s pretty obvious I’m not going to get it.<br /><br />Maybe this is why I hated all those liberal arts classes in college; I need a right answer.<br /><br />As always, any and all advice would be appreciated.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-21658560308213019302009-01-22T08:35:00.004-05:002009-01-22T08:41:24.100-05:00Direction or Misdirection?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9k4C_pY1MPwMVYA8x87n3gw22xG-GyJvCM0vMGhXICoQIPJSFETOfa9Ho2Fh8myj8vkfV4y4arvOMK9Y-WY9XcCgHzfAnUJarXvw6jyKIuC-VSrHghebKRusqe6zY012aQmV5xOgofoc/s1600-h/money-down-toilet-243x300.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 243px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9k4C_pY1MPwMVYA8x87n3gw22xG-GyJvCM0vMGhXICoQIPJSFETOfa9Ho2Fh8myj8vkfV4y4arvOMK9Y-WY9XcCgHzfAnUJarXvw6jyKIuC-VSrHghebKRusqe6zY012aQmV5xOgofoc/s320/money-down-toilet-243x300.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294112062114110978" border="0" /></a>Recently, economist and policy analyst Stephen Moore did an interview with a well-circulated newsletter that I occasionally read. He's is the author of the new book "The End of Prosperity" (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/End-Prosperity-Higher-Economy-If-Happen/dp/1416592385/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232631558&sr=8-1">linky-linky</a>) and an editorial writer for the Wall Street Journal. He is very well educated and was the senior economist for the the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee, so he definitely knows what he's talking about. I found this segment of the interview particularly interesting and certainly timely as we start a new era with a president and congress bound and determined to try to regulate, socialize, and tax this country into prosperity:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;">“The 1990’s was a great decade. Our book (The End of Prosperity) describes when Reagan came in with a new kind of supply-side pro-free-market philosophy- turning around, by the way, the worst decade of the century other than the Great Depression, which was the 1970’s.</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />Amazingly , the left is rewriting the history of the 70’s: “If only we hadn’t had Reaganomics, we could go back to those wonderful years of the 1970’s”- when we had gas lines and 25% mortgage interest rates and 14% inflation.”</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />In any case, Reagan did two things. He cut tax rates very significantly from 70% all the way down to 28%. And he slayed inflation. The inflation rate went from 14.5% down to 3%. We had the greatest boom for 25 years in the history of civilization. No country had ever seen anything like what happened in American from the early 1980’s through 2007. We created $40 trillion dollars of net new wealth over that period. It was an awesome experiment in prosperity.</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />Now, Bill Clinton’s tax increase did hurt the economy, The evidence is that in the first two years in the Clinton Administration, the economy actually slowed down. But once you had the Republican Revolution in 1994, once you had the combination of Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey running the Congress, then Clinton moved back to the right. That’s when he gave his speech, “the era of big government is over.”</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />We had welfare reform, we had the capital gains tax cut, we balanced the budget. Those were all pro-growth Reagan ideas.</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />But a lot of the economists that I talk to in the Obama camp look at that period and say, “Look, we can raise taxes through the roof and its not going to hurt the economy.”</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />That’s a very dangerous idea at a time when the rest of the world is going the other way. China, Sweden, India, my goodness, Russia has a 13% flat tax. How are we going to compete with them with a 40% income tax? It’s a really dangerous idea to be talking about raising taxes right now in the face of the worst economy we’ve had in 25 years.”</span><br /><br />Ah, the 70's. I'm so glad I was just a baby during the vast majority of them, especially the Carter years. I think my head would have exploded. I just hope the new prez doesn't take us the same direction.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-15372793940483503982009-01-15T06:36:00.003-05:002009-01-15T06:42:07.109-05:00Advice for 01/15/09<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZtX1PfkFPl44ud6T6g6WnJbeEm1OtObXwEjp8AZ-k5JQSvDk1OhXtQg27ax_Po8isyy7Pa2hqBEcmnZGy1E5pB0vNq6l4hAKXxqx0FhjweP8kJi5fHvtnhzbaVwciMrY3WiZHKPjgYw/s1600-h/sneeze.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 256px; height: 272px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZtX1PfkFPl44ud6T6g6WnJbeEm1OtObXwEjp8AZ-k5JQSvDk1OhXtQg27ax_Po8isyy7Pa2hqBEcmnZGy1E5pB0vNq6l4hAKXxqx0FhjweP8kJi5fHvtnhzbaVwciMrY3WiZHKPjgYw/s320/sneeze.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5291484072429433858" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Advice of the Day: </span>Don't sneeze when you've got a mouth full of shredded wheat.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Follow-up advice: </span>If you <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> sneeze with a mouth full of shredded wheat,<span style="font-style: italic;"> don't</span> try to contain it with your hand. It just ends up all over your face, including your eyes, beard and nose.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Follow-up to the follow-up advice:</span> If you <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> sneeze with a mouth full of shredded wheat, and you <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> try to contain it with your hand, make sure you check yourself out in a mirror before heading to a meeting. Partially-chewed shredded wheat in your goatee is not professional.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-48190167716395897262009-01-12T20:15:00.001-05:002009-01-12T20:15:00.646-05:00The Great Closet Adventure, Part Two<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vwgMjHbOhwpjNTSv9X_eK5lps6GL50SxGKZPVnt0w2hP_Y4C3k6o0Y_JZb29puw2HK-VO2cm9VIWga4PCdVtRwDVJMPN0AtuRsxIKdHbUmOPyjmJxqLL04nKgZ7gi-5zqjZN2yZ1Agc/s1600-h/oldshoe.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vwgMjHbOhwpjNTSv9X_eK5lps6GL50SxGKZPVnt0w2hP_Y4C3k6o0Y_JZb29puw2HK-VO2cm9VIWga4PCdVtRwDVJMPN0AtuRsxIKdHbUmOPyjmJxqLL04nKgZ7gi-5zqjZN2yZ1Agc/s320/oldshoe.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290506530637027538" border="0" /></a>I wanted to make sure that the closet I designed was efficient, functional and most importantly, flexible. I wanted the ability to move shelves and rods around as our closet needs changed and evolved. To me, this meant that everything needs to be installed on standards. (standards are the vertical beams that brackets attach to). That would allow anything to moved up and down in approximately 1.5" increments.<br /><br />Flexible. So, I started installing the standards I had purchased on every stud in the room. All told, I installed 22 seven-foot standards. When I was done, looked a bit like a prison, with white bars even spaced every 16 inches.<br /><br />Next, I referenced my parts list and double checked some measurements. Then I started cutting my shelves to length. The shelves I purchased were heavy-duty ClosetMaid shelves that were 12 inches deep and had an integrated hanging rod for clothes on hangers. Even though they were available in 4, 6, and 8-foot lengths too, I purchased the 12-foot lengths to reduce cost. I had a cut sheet drawn before I shopped, so I knew exactly how many lengths to get and how much waste I would have. I pulled out my DeWalt sawzall (my <span style="font-style: italic;">favorite</span> power tool) and got to cutting the shelves to the correct length.<br /><br />As I cut them one-by-one, I wiped them down and installed the plastic end caps to cover the rough ends. Then I moved the upstairs and installed them on the brackets in the standards. Before long, everything was cut and installed. I made some minor adjustments to the shelf heights and lengths, and at the end I was left with a total of only 18" of scrap shelf, in three pieces. Not too bad.<br /><br />We spent the rest of the day putting the clothes back in and sorting and re-organizing my wife's clothes. When we were finished, we had gained about 7 linear feet of hanging space and another 12 linear feet of shelf space. We were able to get all of her clothes and all of my clothes in, and still space left over. Efficiency is beautiful.<br /><br />My wife was amazed. Not only was there more room, but everything was still easily reachable and organized. I was referred to as the "closet magician" the rest of the weekend.<br /><br />All in all, it was a lot of work, but the wife is happy, the baby has a closet, and I don't have to trek to the basement to retrieve my khakis in the morning. Complete success.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-64287577683299692292009-01-12T16:58:00.001-05:002009-01-12T16:58:00.902-05:00The Great Closet Adventure, Part One<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1i82YzNSZqpdv1njyOIBIU2zEJefVKLgpdP9TXOD8MkylA6Rc5ANz5b-IuvJe0EgusDhF6CcgPSaH1LjtklxsJjpxeP6Tx9e59t8MB2M3mFvHd-uxOeszjD9ipsFnG3I1lJuYEM5OpyM/s1600-h/oldshoe.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1i82YzNSZqpdv1njyOIBIU2zEJefVKLgpdP9TXOD8MkylA6Rc5ANz5b-IuvJe0EgusDhF6CcgPSaH1LjtklxsJjpxeP6Tx9e59t8MB2M3mFvHd-uxOeszjD9ipsFnG3I1lJuYEM5OpyM/s320/oldshoe.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290505959172015058" border="0" /></a>I lost my closet.<br /><br />My closet has been taken over by an unborn child. You see, when my wife and I married, I got the closet in the spare bedroom upstairs for my clothes. The large walk-in closet in the master bedroom was inefficient and, um, full. My little closet was tight, but adequate. I even built some shelves to better utilize the top space above the hanging rods. Even though I had to go to a different bedroom to retrieve my clothes in the mornings, all was well and we were happy with our closet space.<br /><br />However, when we found out that my lovely wife was pregnant, the spare bedroom upstairs was quickly deemed "the nursery'. At first, I thought "No problem. Baby clothes are tiny and don't need hung up anyway. My closet is safe." Boy, was I wrong. Through the nesting process (learn about that bit of fun <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2008/12/third-trimester-thoughts.html">here</a>), I was firmly informed that baby clothes are indeed hang-able and will take up a lot of space. They even sell baby clothes hangers, which are basically miniature versions of adult hangers at higher prices, but apparently they're very important. Ask me how I know.<br /><br />Anyway, I was also informed that under no circumstances was I to enter the nursery every morning at 4:30am to retrieve my clothes. So, I was ousted from my closet and had to come up another solution. The basement bedroom was out (too far), the office closet upstairs was out (full of office-y stuff), and the coat closets downstairs already house, well, coats.<br /><br />So, that left me with reorganizing and increasing the space efficiency of the master bedroom walk-in closet. So this weekend, we set off on that task.<br /><br />The master bedroom closet is a pretty big space, although oddly-shaped. The existing shelves and rods were installed by the previous owner and were in rough shape. They were the cheapest plastic-coasted wire shelves you could buy, supported by plastic wall hooks and flimsy sheet metal brackets. <span style="font-style: italic;">Nothing </span>was screwed into studs, but used plastic wall anchors in drywall. Many shelves had started to droop and the anchors were starting to pull out of the drywall. To top it off, it was ridiculously inefficient. All the shelves were hung at approximately eye-level, leaving a three-foot space of unused space above them, and another 2 foot space underneath the clothes that hung off them.<br /><br />Since the closet was already full of my wife's clothes, belts, and shoes, there was absolutely zero space for my items. Add that to the near-dangerous hardware, and it was clear that I needed to rip everything out and start over.<br /><br />On Friday (I only work four days a week...more about that later, I suppose), we moved all of her clothing to a couple of portable closets and out of the way. Then we spent the remainder of the day removing the existing shelving.<br /><br />Apparently, the previous owners were not engineers. Nor were they efficiency experts or likely even high school graduates. What they were, however, is lazy. Complete home improvement hacks. They were the type of folks that wire light sockets backwards so you get zapped with you change a lightbulb. Or the kind that add lights to the garage by looping wires over existing wires and just taping them up. <span style="font-style: italic;">Dangerous </span>home improvement hacks.<br /><br />As I stated, not a single screw in the closet was screwed into a stud. Screws were either screwed directly into the drywall (which means they did essentially nothing) or used plastic wall anchors of varying sizes. What's more, no less than eleven different screw sizes and types were used. Eleven! Apparently whatever they had laying around sufficed. They ranged from 2" deck screws to 4" wood screws and even some machine screws. Some had flat heads, some had round heads. Some required a Phillips screwdriver, some required a flathead. Some of the brackets were even secured with nails pounded into wall anchors.<br /><br />Yep. Nails.<br /><br />When we were finished removing the old stuff, I was left with an empty room with 64 holes the drywall ranging from 1/8" (screws directly into drywall) to 1/2" (BIG plastic wall anchors). Did you see that? Sixty-four holes. None of which lined up with a stud. Zero. I can't believe the whole system didn't collapse under the weight of Wifey's stuff.<br /><br />So, I used an entire small container of putty and patches and got to work. Four hours later, everything was spackled, dry, sanded, and smooth. Since the putty matched the paint, it didn't even look too bad. I took some measurements of the room and grabbed my green engineering grid paper (yep, I'm a dork).<br /><br />I made scale drawings of the room from all angles and optimized the space available with the parts I knew were available at our local hardware store. Before long, I had six scale drawings of the closet from varying angles with every shelf, rod, bracket and standard in place, along with a complete parts list.<br /><br />90 minutes, $700, and one scary car trip later, I had every piece of hardware needed laid out in the garage. I set up my <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-WM500-Workmate-Capacity/dp/B0002ZU74C/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1231791435&sr=8-4">WorkMate</a> (which are <span style="font-style: italic;">awesome</span>) as a portable vise and went to bed. The rest would be tackled in the morning.<br /><br />More later...<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-19384791215547758682008-12-31T21:42:00.001-05:002008-12-31T21:42:00.499-05:00My Best Advice for 2009<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbRPM8HrJsucWNhKcnDDaNURzIcX8tA0Fvcype3jy8ozUCu31j6H2HaoUyVQ4QhYLBOqpB1c5sFQQLJeikXdf43ipfrh6PJHoOmg4U8TPzNL0McCZC00B51Ocw7wdmgg3_FIrkpvw5_so/s1600-h/stability.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbRPM8HrJsucWNhKcnDDaNURzIcX8tA0Fvcype3jy8ozUCu31j6H2HaoUyVQ4QhYLBOqpB1c5sFQQLJeikXdf43ipfrh6PJHoOmg4U8TPzNL0McCZC00B51Ocw7wdmgg3_FIrkpvw5_so/s320/stability.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286116395293017010" border="0" /></a><br />Speaking of stairs, you know how walking down the stairs is kind of just something you do and not something you have to actually think about; like breathing? Have you ever thought about it while you're descending the staircase? Well, don't. Once you start picturing <span style="font-style: italic;">left foot, right foot, next step</span>; it will jack you up bad. Wicked bad. And you look pretty dumb when it becomes obvious you've forgotten how to walk down stairs.<br /><br />Not that I would know anything about that.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-77209954407645104242008-12-31T19:18:00.004-05:002008-12-31T19:26:48.405-05:00I Think My Dog is Trying to Kill Me<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKLQdX7RoXjKtYvh4HbBEdBkyGKXWSD8BGE73c0gWbGhs10hR62odNfEImxplh9e5qI4H-whQno5a72YT5QRvmtnhYCoNmRYqkfBwdq8PkOiRpapNgVk0JuThhO8gFjrKFx-rMV-3_Q-0/s1600-h/IMG_1856.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKLQdX7RoXjKtYvh4HbBEdBkyGKXWSD8BGE73c0gWbGhs10hR62odNfEImxplh9e5qI4H-whQno5a72YT5QRvmtnhYCoNmRYqkfBwdq8PkOiRpapNgVk0JuThhO8gFjrKFx-rMV-3_Q-0/s320/IMG_1856.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286113899824095522" border="0" /></a>My dog, cute and wonderful as he is, is trying to kill me. Or at least watch me sprawl on the ground in pain.<br /><br />You see, he's got this thing where he needs to be <span style="font-style: italic;">precisely </span>where I am at all times (unless he's actively trying to kill my wife by the same means at that moment in time). When groceries are being brought in from the car and put away, he's in the doorway to the kitchen. When dishes are being done, he's between me and the dishwasher. When I'm on the couch, he insists on laying on the floor where my feet will go when I get up. When I get out of the shower, he's there.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">[Aside: Personally, I think he likes seeing me naked, but doesn't want to admit it. Every time I catch him looking at me right out of the shower, he does this thing where as soon as we make eye contact, he looks away and pretends he didn't notice me there. ]</span><br /><br />Fortunately for me (and him) my cat-like agility (do you smell burning pants?) allows me to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">maneuver</span> around him most times, avoiding a loud and likely painful trip to floor. My little hop, hop, big step, shuffle <span style="font-style: italic;">usually </span>prevents me from stomping on him as he lays unwavering on the floor. If, by chance, I do happen to clip his tail or leg while dancing around him, he sits up, looks at me all appalled, like I'm the a-hole. Um, you're the one <span style="font-style: italic;">laying </span>under the footrest of the recliner, jerk.<br /><br />I'm pretty sure his preferred method of attempted murder is the stairs. As I approach the top of the stairs (to go down), he will actually wait behind me until I'm on the second or third step before he tries to rush past in an attempt to send me to my clumsy demise. If I happen to walk down the stairs after him, he'll try too. I'll be going along at a pretty good clip right behind him and he will suddenly stop. Just <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">BAM</span>! <span style="font-style: italic;">Stop.</span> And I have to grab onto the wall to keep from going ass over melon over him and down the stairs.<br /><br />So, if any of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">y'all</span> ever find me dead at bottom of the basement stairs and Dempsey with an aloof-yet-guilty look on his face, you'll know really happened.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">[Aside #2: Yes, that's him at the top of this post, there. Can you see the demons in his eyes? And yes, as his shirt states, he is indeed "bossy beyond belief".]</span><br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">YFNN</span>Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-68616673194348839212008-12-18T06:31:00.002-05:002008-12-18T06:35:45.792-05:00Third Trimester Thoughts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbs8G7H8lWzlWFDkQZkrlN_faRLZIZXrFePQKQggMSLsbL6UiOoTWsNHwAg2YoaAARUsnaMGdJ7sg9twJ5xDYBlNbCACKQW1QacoBLkNBhKK7DURyEUzsA_F5cbkg0Weh5nSfhrNtsZIM/s1600-h/timebomb.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 288px; height: 273px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbs8G7H8lWzlWFDkQZkrlN_faRLZIZXrFePQKQggMSLsbL6UiOoTWsNHwAg2YoaAARUsnaMGdJ7sg9twJ5xDYBlNbCACKQW1QacoBLkNBhKK7DURyEUzsA_F5cbkg0Weh5nSfhrNtsZIM/s320/timebomb.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5281092322719536882" border="0" /></a>My lovely wife is in the third trimester of her pregnancy (I won't even attempt to say <span style="font-style: italic;">our</span> pregnancy...I'm not doing anything compared to her). On the general schedule of growing humans from scratch, that means she's just about finished. A couple more months, and we'll have a living, breathing, helpless person relying on us for <span style="font-style: italic;">everything</span>. A bit scary.<br /><br />The baby inside her apparently isn’t too well-versed on concepts like "day" or "night", so he'll kick whenever he damn well pleases. What this means is that wife never knows when she's going to get a swift kick to the spleen or bladder, usually resulting in a groan, moan, or grunt. Could be during a lovely dinner at a lovely Italian restaurant like <a href="http://www.lucecafe.com/">Luce</a>, or in the middle of a deep sleep. Baby doesn't care; he just knows he's gotta stretch out a bit.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Alien kicks. </span>What's interesting to me (and uncomfortable to her) is that no longer can you only <span style="font-style: italic;">feel </span>the kicks when you place your hand on her belly, you can actually <span style="font-style: italic;">see </span>them. It not unlike that scene in the alien movie when the guys chest bulges and pulsates right before the alien busts on out. There have been times when I would swear that I saw the outline of a foot pushing on her belly from the inside. It's disturbing actually.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Pee. </span> Every day is all about peeing for her. Before we leave the house, she pees. When we get to the restaurant, she pees. Before we leave, she pees. Getting showered and dressed sometimes requires up to three pee breaks. Even just making it through the night with only two pee breaks is a huge exercise in willpower and endurance. Fortunately, (and maybe I'm assuming too much here) all of the pants she wears now are stretchy and without buttons and zips...even the jeans. I would certainly think that would help drop the events down on the "pain in the rear scale".<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Nesting. </span>I had no idea. Seriously, no idea. The instinct to prepare is absolutely unbelievable. Suddenly, walls need painted, furniture needs moved, carpets need cleaned, closets need sorted, and there are constant ambiguous references to "getting ready." She's still got 8 weeks to go, and I'm already getting interrogated about packing for the hospital.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Emotions. </span> It's like someone took her emotion output and amplified it ten fold. When she laughs, she laughs until she has tears in her eyes and her stomach hurts. When she cries, it's for silly reasons, and is as intense as I've ever seen. Certain foods make her dance in her seat, and disappointments crash her for the entire day. A rollercoaster? You betcha.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Words. </span> This is probably the part that has shocked me the most. My wife has completely lost her grasp on the English language. Like a toddler with a 100-word vocabulary, she can never seem to find the right words to convey what she's trying to say. Ridiculous substitutions are common, and I'm usually at a loss to understand what she means. Usually I stare at her blankly as she frustratedly struggles to better define her intent. Examples? No problem.<br /><br />She recently wanted to know if the basket of dinner rolls was still on the table from dinner, so she asked me <span style="font-style: italic;">"Is the bread-bun-pot still available?"</span> What? Huh? Bread-bun-pot?<br /><br />Or when she wanted me to put the dirty towels in the hamper last night, I was asked to <span style="font-style: italic;">"Please correctly place them in the roughrider."</span> Yes, the roughrider. If you had an armful of towels and someone asked you to "correctly place them in the roughrider", you'd do what I did: stare blankly at them.<br /><br />I can't tell you how many times she's been frustrated with me when I don't understand what she's talking about. Any and all paperwork is refered to as "information", regardless if it's a bill or a christmas card. She often refers to "the thing" and makes ambiguous hand gestures. What makes it even more difficult is that I find it so cute and endearing. It's nigh-impossible to keep from giving her a hard time about it.<br /><br />So what's my role in this whole ordeal? Well, near as I can ascertain, it's my job to perform arbitrary organizational tasks, interpret the language of a crazy person, perform as a helping hand for getting out of cars and sofas, and exercise lots and lots of compassion and patience. And, I'm trying. I know that the frustrations I have to deal with are NOTHING compared to her daily ordeals.Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-75529339532369778502008-11-28T09:00:00.002-05:002008-11-28T09:00:00.564-05:00What's Your Corporate Jet?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ruDmfqaK00YFSsfbdhcNv4CchBJ0-4J4ifJ0JvNofOd3IZfcban73NvrpN2nRCGfa14QC2nstAUptmMG3llrVhYM_CmTdRg5Svz6leLS0Pwn92cIjQo_bhwNsnOnWCdjH4tLJBYtjFs/s1600-h/bigthreeceos.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 187px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ruDmfqaK00YFSsfbdhcNv4CchBJ0-4J4ifJ0JvNofOd3IZfcban73NvrpN2nRCGfa14QC2nstAUptmMG3llrVhYM_CmTdRg5Svz6leLS0Pwn92cIjQo_bhwNsnOnWCdjH4tLJBYtjFs/s320/bigthreeceos.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273383806514674338" border="0" /></a>Earlier this month, the three CEOs from Chrysler, Ford, and GM were summoned to Washington, D.C. to explain their situation and beg for some good ol' taxpayer cash. Three companies. Three jets. Three CEOs. Begging for cash. Three people. Three jets. Anyone else see a problem?<br /><br />Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) really nailed the sentiment:<br /><blockquote>"There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into Washington, D.C., and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hands," "It's almost like seeing a guy show up at the soup kitchen in high-hat and tuxedo. . . . I mean, couldn't you all have downgraded to first class or jet-pooled or something to get here?"</blockquote>These big-three CEOs got in front of congress, whined and complained about how high expenses are, how much they're hurting, and how badly they need government money, all the while ignoring the ridiculous luxury expenditures they authorize and enjoy. This is an extreme example to be sure, but I'm willing to bet that we've all got a "corporate jet" in our own personal finances.<br /><br />It's that one luxury item that we've started to take for granted. It's the expenditure that while expensive and unnecessary, we just don't give it up, even if money is tight. Maybe it's the satellite TV with premium channels that stays activated while you miss credit card payments. Maybe it's the high-dollar cell phone plan you maintain while you contemplate bankruptcy. Maybe it's the case of beer that's purchased while you struggle to buy groceries.<br /><br />With tough economic times here for some, maybe it's time to evaluate your expenses and see what can be pared back or eliminated, before you start whining about your plight.<br /><br />Harsh, but true.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-5898403852427729472008-11-27T18:45:00.000-05:002008-11-27T18:45:00.777-05:00The Latest Dance Craze!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW8PT2crWGinBqodYy-iej4fS7C_CwebExES-RS1PaMeQNxeLtLlnk_vRJKAfqvJfpA3KTPPrzXeLEvJgg9xO6UKlNV3CMIgZH3GSK_89Tn2GunGqeHGicQobWcFyvO51rW8XSdOSz1xs/s1600-h/ultrasound.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW8PT2crWGinBqodYy-iej4fS7C_CwebExES-RS1PaMeQNxeLtLlnk_vRJKAfqvJfpA3KTPPrzXeLEvJgg9xO6UKlNV3CMIgZH3GSK_89Tn2GunGqeHGicQobWcFyvO51rW8XSdOSz1xs/s320/ultrasound.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273382919773407778" border="0" /></a><br />Ultrasounds are funny things. The pictures are great and all, but the real treat is the live video, especially if the little guy is moving around.<br /><br />It all looks like a pathetic attempt at doing the YMCA dance.<br /><br />Don't worry though, I'm sure the wife (or maybe my mother-in-law!) will teach him the correct way once he leaves the her belly.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">YFNN</span>Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-85842680951996819122008-11-27T12:32:00.004-05:002008-11-27T12:32:00.531-05:00Changes, or a Complete Lack Of Them<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFRnScHp4yDjcJ54GdwUY3nHEpORN49pNPk2wFi1kwdlzXtJBNutiscitoC7np7PBKtTen548dQXCABZW3HBqzsGgxcYejXUg2NIETrwkkJdOo3wZgpq3xipfUpbMF-i2OIpLMnKt1rNE/s1600-h/robertgates.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFRnScHp4yDjcJ54GdwUY3nHEpORN49pNPk2wFi1kwdlzXtJBNutiscitoC7np7PBKtTen548dQXCABZW3HBqzsGgxcYejXUg2NIETrwkkJdOo3wZgpq3xipfUpbMF-i2OIpLMnKt1rNE/s320/robertgates.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273384915796126994" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The following post is a YFNN rant. You may find it offensive, crude or just plain wrong. Get over it.<br /><br /></span>How many times did we hear from now-President-elect Obama that the Iraq war is poorly run, full of bad management decisions, and going horribly? All the time.<br /><br />So, in order to rectify that problem, he sticks with the same guy that's been running it the whole time: Robert Gates.<br /><br />In his cabinet so far, he's picking old school Dems that have been around Washington for years (Daschle, Clinton, Waxman...seriously?) and now keeping the existing Secretary of Defense, who's been the target of immense amounts of hatred from his own mouth.<br /><br />Yessiree, Barack, you are definitely change we can believe in.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-42937358910747096582008-11-27T11:36:00.004-05:002008-11-27T12:07:52.239-05:00Life Insurance is Cheap!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVsjJG_LuwJUOsfEYSAFBs_RlTCO-SdllXEGqhV3_TSP-8J5EVQK_3YGCmLF1vgfczAbr-2EYQHUi9A7KACCAu89rqS0YNT5GVvTCZ2RNdT6tMmFicffisuwRIGQnn2FcEJsjn4uaTwI/s1600-h/rope.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVsjJG_LuwJUOsfEYSAFBs_RlTCO-SdllXEGqhV3_TSP-8J5EVQK_3YGCmLF1vgfczAbr-2EYQHUi9A7KACCAu89rqS0YNT5GVvTCZ2RNdT6tMmFicffisuwRIGQnn2FcEJsjn4uaTwI/s320/rope.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273377991723365250" border="0" /></a>I cannot believe how cheap term life insurance is. Seriously cheap.<br /><br />With the new baby on the way in a couple of short months, and my lovely bride now at home full-time, we decided that a larger life insurance policy was an absolute necessity. Before, when it was just the two of us, and we were both working, it was acceptable for us to carry minimal life insurance. We both only carried what our employers provided (two year's salary in both cases). That was plenty because neither of us was completely dependant on the other's salary to get by. If I died, she could have carried on with just her salary, and I could have done the same if she died.<br /><br />But, with a baby coming, life insurance got vitally important. So we searched out some level term policies to make sure my wife and child could live comfortably if I passed, and I could get by if she passed.<br /><br />There are lots of "rules of thumb" when it comes to the amount of insurance to get. <a href="http://www.kiplinger.com/basics/archives/2003/03/lifeinsurance.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Kiplinger's</span></a>, <a href="http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/lesson20/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">CNN's</span> Money magazine</a>, <a href="http://www.smartmoney.com/personal-finance/insurance/which-life-insurance-is-best-16975/">Smart Money</a>, etc., all have some really good guidelines. To get to my number, I used the 8-12 times my annual salary estimate. This way, the house would be paid off, and the wife and child could pay for college and still live comfortably (albeit not without some changes) for a long time. One million dollars covered us more than acceptably for my policy.<br /><br />For my wife's policy, we elected to get a much smaller amount. When she's working, she makes less than I do, so we're much less dependent on her income than mine. Since she won't be working (for a while, anyway), we won't be dependent on her income at all. So, basically, the amount just had to cover childcare costs so that I could continue to work and get an income. We settled on a $250,000 policy for her.<br /><br />For terms, we decided on a 30-year term for me and a 20-year term for her. Since this life insurance is so inexpensive for me right now, we felt it made sense to lock in my rate for 30 years. Granted $1,000,000 won't be worth as much in 30 years, but my health likely won't be as good when I'm 60 and getting insurance may be tougher. With a 30-year policy, I'm covered until our son is WELL out of college, and covered farther in case we decide to have more children.<br /><br />For my wife's policy, since it's mostly about covering childcare costs, a 20-year policy seemed more than adequate. 16-20 year <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">olds</span> don't need day care.<br /><br />So exactly how cheap were these policies? Well, since we're both fairly young (30-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ish</span>) and in good health (her <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">moreso</span> than me), they were really cheap. My 30-year, $1,000,000 policy was only $800 a year, and her 20-year, $250,000 policy was only $140 a year.<br /><br />Unbelievable.<br /><br />For more information on insurance policies and such, here's my recommended reading:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/06/07/interesting-insights-into-life-insurance-from-an-actuary-how-he-would-buy-life-insurance/">The Simple Dollar</a><br /><a href="http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2008/03/how-to-determin.html">Free Money Finance</a><br /><a href="http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2008/04/what-kind-of-li.html">Free Money Finance Again!</a><br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">YFNN</span>Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-8703573939985009632008-11-12T07:15:00.000-05:002008-11-12T07:15:00.977-05:00Controlling Junk<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8uEiie8jxnALywMXUAQBduTkva9JfY8XBLkLRegLH7jUknAddtvzdIY59lcZRRNxEGXOBQ0wD1BSmcRW0bZU7uurRWWivz8N9b9qwrivpc76AojIGbQo8TR4-XUzE4PTGzFW7IRucZaE/s1600-h/junkmail.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8uEiie8jxnALywMXUAQBduTkva9JfY8XBLkLRegLH7jUknAddtvzdIY59lcZRRNxEGXOBQ0wD1BSmcRW0bZU7uurRWWivz8N9b9qwrivpc76AojIGbQo8TR4-XUzE4PTGzFW7IRucZaE/s320/junkmail.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267541799077932850" border="0" /></a>A few nights ago, my lovely wife and I purged some junk from our living room. Accumulation of meaningless stuff has always been a constant problem. It's incredible how stuff just starts to accumulate. You pick up a brochure here, get a catalog there, and before you know it, you've got a whole trash bag full of things to recycle or throw away.<br /><br />The major issue with us is paperwork and such. With my wife recently getting laid off, we're getting inundated with paperwork for COBRA, severance payouts, investment rollovers, and unemployment information. And, that's on top of our standard mail of business magazines, political advertisements (thank God that's over), and regular bills and mail. The real problem is that we don't want to deal with it as it comes in. I don't want to file that COBRA paperwork away since I haven't gone through it yet (and don't want to forget about it), but I don't have the time or desire to deal with yet, either. The same thing happens with day care brochures, unread magazines, and other important but not-time-sensitive materials. So, it stacks up. Typically on our dining room table or the small table behind the sofa.<br /><br />What to do? Well, the real solution is to take care of that junk immediately, as soon as it comes in the house. I do okay with some items. Junk mail and most catalogs quickly meet up with the recycling bin, and vitally important items are dealt with promptly, but dealing with the other stuff immediately is just not realistic for me right now. After getting up at 4:30am and working a 10-hour day (minimum), the last thing I want to do when I walk in the door at night is to read over insurance statements or the latest day-care documentation. So, it stacks up until we get so sick of it that we can't stand it.<br /><br />I'm going to try to do better with this. I'm going to try to take care of these items immediately. Not only will it help with keeping the house more clutter-free, but it'll help my wife's sanity, too.<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-24043621878867991202008-11-09T11:46:00.003-05:002008-11-09T11:56:04.831-05:00Daily Interest & Motivation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2Y2h7SEA8YTMN9IKw5m8ixLkWiA_nxchxpbbp7mr4tGWbcaihD2I-WkVbic8iOfmWiBTMCIYuLhBylxkxwfhFDKTy9n43kzjJU1LO6O_BAQTRPG5EHPywPURaRrqPX1ll4Ez5ulAO9s/s1600-h/trashmoney.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2Y2h7SEA8YTMN9IKw5m8ixLkWiA_nxchxpbbp7mr4tGWbcaihD2I-WkVbic8iOfmWiBTMCIYuLhBylxkxwfhFDKTy9n43kzjJU1LO6O_BAQTRPG5EHPywPURaRrqPX1ll4Ez5ulAO9s/s320/trashmoney.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5266702430096414418" border="0" /></a>What does a 14% interest rate on a $3,000 credit card balance <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> mean?<br />What does a 6% rate on $22,000 car loan balance <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> mean?<br /><br />Sometimes, to fully understand the impact that debt can have on your life, you need to break it down into more meaningful chunks. For me, breaking down that interest cost to an estimated daily amount was very beneficial and eye-opening!<br /><br />Let's say you have a credit card with a $3,000 balance and an interest rate of 13.99%. We can get a decent estimate the your daily interest rate by merely dividing your interest rate by 365 (days in a year).<br /><br />13.99% / 365 = 0.0383% per day<br /><br />Now, that 0.0383% sure doesn't sound like much, but when you multiply by your balance:<br /><br />0.0383% * $3,000 = $1.15 per day!<br /><br />By itself, you may say "it's only a little over a dollar a day!", but think of it this way: that's a $1.15 every day, whether you work all day, sleep all day, go on vacation, whatever. <span style="font-style: italic;">EVERY DAY</span>. How would you feel if you woke up every morning and as soon as you walked out the front door, somebody would hold out their hand and demand $1.15? I'd get sick of that pretty fast! But, that's exactly what you're doing, just in a more deceptive way.<br /><br />Want an even more extreme example?<br /><br />Let's say you bought a shiny new car last year and owe $22,000 at 8.5% interest. I'll do the math again:<br /><br />8.5% / 365 = 0.0178% per day<br /><br />0.0178% * $22,000 = $5.12 per day!<br /><br />In other words, you're forking over a Lincoln every single day just for interest on that loan! $5.12 a day would pay for my lunch every day!<br /><br />Fortunately, every payment you make drops that daily interest down a bit more. Making extra payments on the principle drops it even faster.<br /><br />As you can see, it wouldn't take long for your daily interest to add up to $10, $15, or even $20 a day. <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Couldn't you use an extra $10 a day?</span><br /><br />YFNN<br /><a href="http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=ptsio5yJySTcyeCV0g8WgWw"></a>Your Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-21093130668494237252008-11-05T17:16:00.002-05:002008-11-05T17:21:45.113-05:00Reducing Dust on the Cheap<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrYhmUoP46J-rXUUy8zfcDize9WGE_-hoWjMKNCfTsnuqnSQaqekD8bXWalZYCmqAMwYSNCXnYUdrNyZhDJShVWGZgNVd1IzRh0Tv_7_Yc5zvNWO87-SQF1u0Eo3y90fUhoow32Lq5PA/s1600-h/duster.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvrYhmUoP46J-rXUUy8zfcDize9WGE_-hoWjMKNCfTsnuqnSQaqekD8bXWalZYCmqAMwYSNCXnYUdrNyZhDJShVWGZgNVd1IzRh0Tv_7_Yc5zvNWO87-SQF1u0Eo3y90fUhoow32Lq5PA/s320/duster.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265302056548064098" border="0" /></a>My lovely wife and I got a dog nearly 4 years ago. Shortly after he joined our family, we noticed the dust levels in the house increased dramatically. It's just one of those effects of having a pet I guess. We toughed it out for several months, dusting several times a week just keep things looking good.<br /><br />We bought some <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hamilton-Beach-TrueAir-04381-Allergen/dp/B00008R9PG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1225923434&sr=8-1">small air purifiers</a>, which helped quite a bit and kept the air in the house moving, but it didn't solve the problem completely.<br /><br />What did help dramatically was changing our furnace filter once a month rather than the every three months that is sometimes recommended. We also set the thermostat to run the blower on the system 24-hours a day. This provided a constant air exchange throughout the entire house, and the exchanged air was being filtered non-stop. This made a <span style="font-style: italic;">huge </span>difference in the dust levels in the house. We have to dust way less often now, we breath easier (especially during the winter), and don't wake up with sore throats and stuffed up noses.<br /><br />Are there any drawbacks? Of course; there's no such thing as a free lunch. First, the cost of changing our furnace filters over the 12-month year tripled. But, the filters we use are only $10-12 a piece, so going from $40 a year to $120, wasn't exactly earth-shattering. Also, theoretically, our electric bill should have gone up slightly, and it likely did, but the extra buck or two goes completely unnoticed on a typically $100 bill.<br /><br />I also chatted with our furnace repair man about the change and asked him about the added run time shortening the life of the blower. He told me that it likely wouldn't hurt it at all. Many times it's dirt and dust that kill blowers, and we're reducing those levels. And, much like a car's engine, it's easier on the motor's bearings to run constantly, rather than starting and stopping several times a day.<br /><br />Obviously, there's been some trade offs, but the dust levels in our house are now pretty low, considering the size of our dog, and our indoor air quality is improved as well.<br /><br />So, if you're battling indoor air quality in your home, consider changing your filter more often and running your forced air blower all the time. It certainly helped clean up our house!<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6674862463780228840.post-74473134762731098272008-11-01T13:56:00.009-05:002008-11-01T14:33:42.958-05:00The Ramsey Plan vs. The Nerd-ey Plan<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO5A4lncCSolEXbIUB89nqUBsc271YIAg5_Fd-jZrrANtNPPaGZbFKNOsFD7uTRwAimuUKsSJKAxSKypHV0cmqv0ZuaCR2Y6T5Ke1-yr_NuBtQjCqffY9DDYEc9PDHJ3Mm_pmScj8Eeqs/s1600-h/blueprint01.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO5A4lncCSolEXbIUB89nqUBsc271YIAg5_Fd-jZrrANtNPPaGZbFKNOsFD7uTRwAimuUKsSJKAxSKypHV0cmqv0ZuaCR2Y6T5Ke1-yr_NuBtQjCqffY9DDYEc9PDHJ3Mm_pmScj8Eeqs/s320/blueprint01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5263770410828961266" border="0" /></a><br />A reader <a href="https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6674862463780228840&postID=4973310841891360588">commented on a previous post</a> (thanks!) about my general financial strategy and how similar it is to <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/etc/cms/new_to_dave_2926.htmlc?ictid=new_to_dave">Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps</a>. This post is a result of that comment. Also, before reading the details of my family’s strategy, please understand that I am not a financial planner. I don't have a degree in finance or even economics. I don't work in finance for a living (directly, anyway). I’m just a regular Joe that’s lucky enough to have a decent finance understanding and is willing to share my family’s long-term strategy!<br /><br />I’m big fan of goal-setting, both short-term and long-term. I write them down, check on them regularly, revise them if necessary, and celebrate my successes when I reach them. I truly believe that once you set a clearly defined goal for yourself and write it down, you’re well on your way to achieving that goal. Just merely having a plan to follow makes decisions easier and keeps you focused on what’s really important to you.<br /><br />So it shouldn’t surprise you that I’ve got financial goals...lots of them. I keep monthly, yearly and lifetime financial goals and they’re all meticulously documented, revisited, and revised regularly. They all help me make day-to-day decisions, and keep me moving the direction I want to go. One of the most important is my overall financial strategy.<br /><br />Dave Ramsey's plan is a great starting point for the majority of Joe Q. Public. It's simple, easy to understand, and effective. But, I certainly don't think it's optimum, at least for us. The plan my wife and I follow to manage our finances and investments is more sophisticated than Dave Ramsey's plan, but I think it's a better fit for us. Yours may be totally different!<br /><br />For comparison's sake, here's <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/etc/cms/new_to_dave_2926.htmlc?ictid=new_to_dave">Dave's plan</a>:<br /><br />1) $1000 for a starter emergency fund.<br />2) Pay off all consumer debt using the debt snowball.<br />3) Accumulate 3 to 6 months worth of living expenses for an emergency fund.<br />4) Invest 15% of gross income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement.<br />5) Fund college.<br />6) Pay off home early.<br />7) Build wealth with mutual funds and real estate.<br /><br />My family's strategy varies in the steps themselves and in the amounts dictated by each step. Hopefully, I'm able to fully explain my reasoning for the changes I've made. Here are my steps:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1) Save $1000 per member of your family for a starter emergency fund.</span> Personally, I don't think $1000 is quite enough, especially if you have children. It's a great goal for a single person, but if you've got a family, you've got more folks to cover and emergencies have the potential to hit a little harder. I realize for people with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duggar_family">large families</a>, this goal becomes significantly more difficult, so good judgment needs to be used when determining your personal amount.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2) If your company offers a match on your 401(k), take it.</span> Invest only up to the amount required to get the entire match. If you don't do this step, you have the potential to leave a HUGE amount of free money on the table. Think of it this way: If on every payday, a man at the exit of your office's building would hand you a stack of 20-dollar bills ($100, $200, or $500) just for investing 5% of your income, wouldn't you take it? That's what your company match is: <span style="font-style: italic;">free money</span>. Even better, it's free money that'll compound as your 401(k) balance grows over the years.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3) Pay off all consumer debt, starting with the smallest amount, using a debt snowball. </span> In this instance I agree with Dave. Even though starting with the balance with the highest interest rate would result in a mathematically better result (minimally in most cases); I think the smallest balance should be tackled first, for a couple of reasons. First, if you go after the smallest balance first, you knock a minimum payment off your books quickly. This could be a big help if your family does get hit with some sort of financial hardship; it's one less minimum payment to make, which means your overall minimum monthly outlay is smaller. Second, there is a significant psychological boost over dropping a debt entirely, which does help to motivate you to keep moving.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4) Accumulate 4-6 months of living expenses for an emergency fund in a high-interest savings or money-market account.</span> . I've written about the <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2007/03/buck-your-brick-bank-for-bang-for-your.html">virtues of a</a> <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2007/03/buck-your-brick-bank-for-bang-for-your_02.html">solid</a> <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-graduates-and-focusing-on-finances_26.html">emergency</a> <a href="http://yfnn.blogspot.com/2008/10/in-defense-of-sound-personal-finance.html">fund</a> in the past, so this shouldn't be a surprise. Once you've got your debt paid off, accumulating this money shouldn't be too difficult. If you've only got one bread-winner, I think a six-month cash cushion is pretty darned important.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">5) Invest 15-20% of gross income in Roth IRAs and tax-advantaged retirement accounts, up to federal maximums.</span> I think that you can never have too much retirement income. Dave suggests 15%, but for us, 20% works up to the federal maximums. If you're fully funding two people's Roth IRAs (currently $5000 each), it doesn't take very much additional investment to reach that 20%! If you can <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Automatic-Millionaire-Powerful-One-Step-Finish/dp/0767923820/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225566597&sr=8-1">make it automatic</a>, so much the better. Fully funding a Roth IRA for one person is only $96 a week!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">6) Fund 80-95% of college costs for your children.</span> While you can certainly do 100% funding if you so choose, I like the 80-95% number a bit better. I firmly believe that when someone has a monetary stake in something, they take it more seriously, and in my mind, college is no exception. I fully expect my future son to contribute <span style="font-style: italic;">something </span>to his college education (which is a <span style="font-style: italic;">long</span> way off!).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">7) Put 10% of your net paychecks into a mutual fund as a "freedom account".</span> This is your "retire early" account, or your "travel around the world" account, or whatever-big-dream-you-may-have account. For us, it's retire early!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">8) Pay off your home mortgage.</span> Obviously, we'd all love to own our homes outright. Since a home mortgage is typically lower interest and tax-advantaged, I think this is the proper step to do it.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">9) Build wealth with mutual funds, real estate, and businesses.</span> When you get to this last step, you're living the good life. You'll have plenty of cash on hand, solid retirement accounts, a paid-for house, and fantastic cash flow. It's time to build it up even more through investing. If you choose real estate (rentals) or a business, that’s great. Mutual funds are great, too.<br /><br />As I said before, this likely isn't the path that's right for you. Each individual needs something just a little different. Right now, this path is perfect for us. As things change in the future, our goals and needs may change, too. So, we're going to keep our strategy flexible.<br /><br />So, what does your financial strategy look like?<br /><br />YFNNYour Friendly Neighborhood Nerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06811987648590870351noreply@blogger.com0